1. Map the vehicles, not just the parking spaces
Start with a count and a profile. How many vehicles are washed per day, and what are they: light vans, rigid trucks, tractor units, coaches, or a mixed fleet? Write down the largest vehicle in the fleet by length, height and width, because that single number sets bay dimensions, hose length and whether an operator can reach the far side of a body panel without climbing on something.
Then separate the cleaning tasks. A body wash is not the same job as an engine compartment, and neither is the same as a cab interior. The HW02 is described by the manufacturer for exterior vehicle cleaning at fuelling and parking sites, interior vacuuming and disinfection, and engine-compartment cleaning. If your fleet also needs chassis or underside work, say so at the assessment stage, because that changes the equipment shortlist rather than the workflow.
Record the peak, not the average. A depot that washes 6 vehicles on a normal day and 30 before a bank holiday is a 30-vehicle site for sizing purposes.
2. Test the power supply before you talk about machines
This is the step that most often kills a good plan. Fixed units on a fleet site are normally mains-powered equipment: the HW02 detail page lists 220 V working voltage and a 6 kW heating element. That is not a domestic socket and an extension lead. Your assessment should record, for each candidate bay location: the available supply voltage, the rated circuit protection, the distance from the distribution board, and whether a dedicated circuit can be installed. Add the true measured distance, because cable length and voltage drop are frequently priced in only at installation.
Where the supply genuinely cannot support fixed equipment, mobile units are the answer instead. Battery-powered and driving-style cleaning machines are built for indoor garages and narrow parking areas where a fixed installation is not possible. In that case, the assessment shifts to battery handling: where the machine charges, who owns the charger, and how the battery swaps across shifts.
3. Water: inlet, volume, and where it goes afterwards
Three separate questions, and each needs a written answer. First, the inlet. The HW02 specification records a tap-water inlet with a 4-point internal-tooth joint (1/2 inch). Walk the site and find out whether such a connection exists near the wash position or has to be extended. Second, storage. A fixed tank on the HW02 is listed at 80 L in SUS304; that determines how many machines the site can support and whether a refill cycle interrupts the queue. Third, drainage.
Steam cleaning uses far less water per vehicle than a hose, which is precisely why it suits yards with a water restriction or a frozen outdoor bay. But less water is not zero water, and the runoff carries oil, grease and road grime. Your assessment must identify the drain route, whether an oil-water separator is already installed, and what your local discharge rules require. Do not treat this as a paperwork detail: on many sites it is the item that dictates civil works.
4. Measure the working area, including what is overhead
A bay drawing is not the same as a site measurement. Take the clear width and length at floor level, then the clearance height to the lowest obstruction — beams, ducting, sprinkler heads, lighting. Then check the surface: a sealed concrete floor with a fall to drain is workable; an unsealed slab with ponding is not, and water and oil will keep pooling around the operator.
Also measure the machine's own footprint against the path it has to travel. The HW02 detail page gives 1,200 × 800 × 1,200 mm including handles. Note door widths, turning radii and any ramp, because a fixed unit has to be wheeled into position and stored somewhere when not in use. For sites where vehicles are parked in tight rows and the machine must travel between them, mobile units are the more practical choice.
5. Confirm drainage, containment and winter conditions
Ask the site team who cleans the bay, and when. A wash area that is not cleared between shifts becomes a slip hazard the same afternoon. Decide containment for spillage, storage for any detergents used alongside steam, and lighting levels for early and late shifts.
For outdoor or partly open sites, record the lowest winter temperature and how many days a year the bay is unusable with a hose. Low-water steam work is often evaluated at exactly these sites, and the payback argument rests on the days when conventional washing stops working.
6. Decide the staffing model and the training route
Steam and hot-water equipment is not a pressure washer with a different nozzle. Dry steam and wet steam are different modes for different soils, and the wrong setting on a painted panel or an electrical compartment creates rework. Write into the assessment who operates the machine, how many shifts it runs, and who supervises. Ask the supplier what handover and training they provide with the PowerDe cleaning equipment line, and what documentation ships with the unit.
Protection features are part of the operator-safety picture, not marketing decoration. The HW02 page lists leakage, short-circuit, high-temperature, high-voltage and water-shortage protection among its safety items. Verify the exact list on the specific model at quotation stage, since published copy for some models on the site varies.
7. Identify the compliance and audit documents you will need
Fleet sites are audited. Depending on your sector you may need a risk assessment for the wash task, evidence of discharge compliance, electrical installation certification for a fixed machine, and a cleaning record per vehicle for anything subject to hygiene inspection. The assessment should list which documents the site already holds and which the equipment purchase itself has to produce, so this is not discovered during an audit.
Where hygiene is the driver — food distribution, livestock transport, waste and feed vehicles — write the required standard down explicitly. Equipment capability claims belong against a written requirement, not a general statement that the fleet must be clean.
8. Cost the total service, not the list price
Put the following on one line and compare options at the same depth: purchase price; electrical works and any new circuit; water inlet and drainage works; hose and accessory lengths you actually need; consumables and spares; service interval and response time; and labour hours per vehicle before and after. The water saving only becomes a number once you know the site's water and effluent charges, and the labour saving only holds if the site can actually clear the daily peak.
Ask explicitly about warranty terms, spare-parts availability in your region, and what happens when a machine is down. A fleet that cannot wash its vehicles has a compliance problem before it has a cosmetic one.
What to send the supplier so the quote is correct the first time
A short pack is enough: the vehicle mix and daily peak; the largest vehicle's dimensions; photographs of the bay from two sides with measurements written on them; the supply details and distance to the distribution board; the water inlet and drain locations; the winter operating conditions; and the cleaning tasks in priority order. With that, a supplier can propose a fixed unit or a mobile unit with confidence. Shenzhen PowerDe Automation Precision Equipment also offers customised configurations and engineering services, so a site whose layout is unusual can be sent through the same assessment rather than being fitted to off-the-shelf equipment.
Run this assessment once, properly, and the specification, the installation and the running cost all settle down. Skip it, and you will be buying twice.
