Staying Safe in Adverse Weather

It's that time of year when we all face increased hazards caused by weather.  In addition, many of our clients are in their peak season.  Now is the time many of you are operating at full capacity, in the middle of the worst weather of the year. 

Some proven, basic rules for safe driving in winter weather:

1. Make sure drivers are prepared.  Mentally prepared, alert and awake.  Physically prepared, dressed for the weather and rested.  Make sure that the truck is stocked with some food and water, as well as cold weather clothing and gear.  

2. Make sure your vehicles are prepared.  Tires lose pressure in cold weather.  If chains are required, make sure they are carried.  Batteries fail in cold weather - test them now.  Make sure heaters work and ducts are not blocked.  Landing gears on your trailers are often overlooked - it's not fun cranking a stiff landing gear in cold weather at 2 AM. 

3. Fuel - never let trucks run low in the winter. 

4. Make sure your drivers watch their mirrors for wet roads that suddenly stop throwing spray - that water just turned to ice.  With a keen ear, drivers can tell by tire noise on the pavement when roads start to freeze over.  

5. In reduced traction conditions, every movement should be slow, well planned, and deliberate.  Braking, acceleration, gear changes, steering - all should be very smooth and slow.   

6. Watch the other guy - people do the craziest things around big trucks.  Always assume the worst from the other driver - and then you can be pleasantly surprised when it does not happen.  

Forbes publisher Karlgaard outlines 8 virtues to compete in an uneven economy

http://www.ccjdigital.com/forbes-publisher-karlgaard-outlines-8-virtues-to-compete-in-an-uneven-economy/?full-article=true

Opinion: FMCSA Must Move Forward on E-Logging Rule

By Bill Graves

President and CEO

American Trucking Associations

This Opinion piece appears in the Dec. 3 print edition of Transport Topics. 

With the dust settling from last month’s elections — and the voters returning to Washington a still-divided government — it is going to be incumbent upon our leaders to find areas of broad agreement to build upon if we are going to move forward as a nation.

While we’ll hear a lot about taxes and spending and a “fiscal cliff” — all important matters, to be sure — we shouldn’t lose sight of smaller but no less important issues. One such issue where the federal government could step up is in the area of highway safety and, specifically, electronic logging.

This summer, a strange and varied coalition came together to press Congress to require that trucks be outfitted with this potentially game-changing technology.

ATA, with support from the commercial motor vehicle enforcement community, the National Transportation Safety Board, AAA, the Teamsters, the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, along with other, smaller, industry groups, were successful in getting a mandate written into the highway bill.

Getting this provision into such an important piece of legislation was a great victory, and one that I and other safety leaders in Washington are quite proud of. However, the victory is a hollow one until the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration follows the law and does what Congress has tasked it to do.

There are certainly issues to be resolved in getting to a final regulation requiring these devices. For example, as a community we need to determine the best ways to share data from the device to the law enforcement community for oversight purposes. We also need to work through other technical issues outlined in the new law.

Compared with Superstorm Sandy and fiscal-cliff concerns, however, these are easy.

To be sure, there will be a group or two that will push back and attempt to postpone or delay progress on this issue. At least one of these groups will attempt to speak for drivers. However, we know what the driver-related data tell us. The American Transportation Research Institute research tells us that 76% of fleets saw an improvement in driver morale after transitioning to electronic logging, and 19% found it was easier to recruit and retain drivers after making the switch.

We also know from existing fleets that have voluntarily adopted electronic logging that drivers, along with operations personnel, plan better. And, once over a short electronic logging learning curve, drivers never want to return to paper.

The safety benefits of these devices should be plain: compliance with the hours-of-service rules leads to lower crash risk. The data from Compliance, Safety, Accountability tell us so, just as the carriers that have voluntarily adopted electronic logging have told us that their violation rates have declined once they made the switch.

Electronic logs improve safety by making compliance with the rules easier, and further, I’d argue that fighting the use of this technology is an endorsement of providing drivers the opportunity to fudge on their logs. In fact, I’d go so far as to say it is an endorsement of the cheating itself . . . not the biggest problem the industry has, but certainly one that exists.

There are those who fear the mandating of electronic logs because it will take away what they feel is a competitive advantage — namely the ability to drive longer than is allowed and perhaps longer than is safe.

Also obvious are the efficiency benefits to carriers and to drivers. Less time spent filling out, checking, rechecking, verifying, storing and retrieving paper logbooks is time that can be spent doing other things. Moving hours-of-service monitoring into the 21st century will help fleets and drivers plan trips better — reducing wasted time and fuel — and will take the tedious burden of paperwork out of the hands of the driver.

FMCSA has had its marching orders from Congress on this issue for nearly three months — and has previously expressed a desire to issue a rule for well longer than that. It is time — indeed, it is past time — for the agency to put forward a rule and to move our industry and our highways into a safer and more efficient future. Change is hard, but years from now we will look back in reflection and comment that this change was necessary.

Bill Graves is a former two-term governor of Kansas. American Trucking Associations, Arlington, Va., is a national trade federation with affiliated associations in every state. ATA owns Transport Topics Publishing Group.

FMCSA Implements CSA Improvements - Truckinginfo.com

FMCSA Implements CSA Improvements - Truckinginfo.com

FMCSA Advisory Panel Takes on Driver Training - Truckinginfo.com

FMCSA Advisory Panel Takes on Driver Training - Truckinginfo.com

ATRI Updates Operational Costs Report

The American Transportation Research Institute’s An Analysis of the Operational Costs of Trucking 2012 update cites research showing the average marginal trucking cost per mile for 2011 was $1.71. 

The research identifies fleet-generated marginal costs from 2008 to 2011 and provides carriers with an important high-level benchmarking tool. The 2011 cost is the highest of the four years studied.  Following a sharp decline in fuel prices and the resulting decreased industry costs in 2008 and 2009, marginal costs have steadily risen through 2010 and 2011. 

The per-mile costs were converted to hourly figures using an empirical truck operating speed. The total average industry cost per hour was $68.20 in 2011. Fuel and driver wages continue to be the largest cost centers for carrier, constituting 62% of the average operating cost in 2011. 

The Operational Costs of Trucking report is available online at www.ATRI-online.org.

Changes Ahead for California Refrigerated Equipment Users

Beginning January 1, 2013, brokers, freight forwarders, shippers, and receivers may now be cited for using transport refrigeration units (TRUs) that fail to meet the in-use emission standards established by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). 

Citations had previously been limited to motor carriers and drivers. A guidance document which spells out these requirements and how to ensure compliance is available online. In addition, CARB will limit the California operating life of certain new TRUs that do not meet the more stringent federal non-road engine emission standards set to take effect in 2013. An advisory detailing how new TRUs will be subject to the CARB requirements is also available online.

It's About Time

Gene Corcoran is my client with the longest tenure. Gene started using fleet technology within his private fleet in 1986. He is the most competent person I know at driving fleet efficiency, and a leading expert in tank truck operations. We sat down for an interview in January 2012.

JB: Gene, we first met at your Irving, TX terminal in 1994 - and by that time you already had 8 years' experience using fleet technology. Tell us about it.

GC: I started my trucking career in 1978. In 1986 we tested the first real, working onboard computer technology - and we rolled out the US fleet in 1987 and 1988.  I met my wife during this time; she was the corporate onboard computer project manager, and I was the garage supervisor in Brooklyn, NY.  

I've been working with trucking technology most of my professional life.  We have a long history using fleet technology, and we use fleet technology very differently than our competitors.

JB: We seem to be in a "smart phone" society, people load up on technology they don't fully utilize.  Every month I read stories in magazines about fleets trying to make their technology work - there seems to be a lack of focus.  Many fleets don't seem to have clear goals.  When using fleet technology, how do you avoid making a mistake?  Why do many struggle, yet you make it look very easy?

GC: Most fleets do the exact same thing.  Yet, they all measure efficiency differently. What are you measuring?  Why are you using these measurements?  You have problems - what are they?  Answer these questions, then build your technology plan.  When you write it down, it becomes clearer.

JB: What do you measure?  I imagine it's a long list of key performance indicators.

GC: No it's not - we measure time.  That's it.  Time is the one thing that all fleets have in common.

JB: Do you measure fuel economy, driving habits, CSA scores, anything else?

GC: Yes, we monitor those indicators, but we focus on time to measure our fleet's efficiency.   When we master that element, everything else falls into place.  Our three-step process is very simple:

1. Set up our trip schedules based on what we think is reasonable.  Trip schedules include loading, unloading, deadhead, and stem time.  You can't charge for stem time, but you're paying for it.

2. Measure actual performance against this trip schedules.  Look at each trip, and each trip segment - where can we drive out time?

3. Using actual, recorded information, we periodically move and tighten our trip schedules. Labor groups and drivers agree that these tightened trip schedules are reasonable - they are the ones who created these tighter schedules by their past performance.

JB: What have you seen for financial benefits?

GC: When we save 15 minutes per driver per shift, we save big bucks.  We know exactly what this number is, and we know that we'll give up those savings when we stop monitoring.  Data is useless unless you monitor and measure.

JB: How has this changed your company?

GC: When you focus on time, you drive all departments to work together.  Sales/marketing, dispatch, maintenance, and drivers must all constantly communicate and cooperate with each other.  If your department does anything to delay a driver - you must explain the situation.

When you measure the entire company on route time, maintenance will do those things that keep the trucks rolling.  It's how we justify auto tire inflation systems, automated transmissions, anything to keep the equipment rolling, out of the shop, and off the side of the road.

When you measure time, dispatch must do those things to facilitate the driver getting on and off the yard.  Cooperating with the drivers makes them more satisfied.  Trucks and trailers are ready when the driver arrives for work, and dispatch has loads and shifts planned.

Dispatch plans routes and trips to minimize exposure to traffic delays.  This in turn creates less hazardous routes, easing stress on the drivers and reducing exposure to accidents.  Sometimes the routes may be longer - that's OK if trip times more efficient and the route is less hazardous.

We spec and maintain trucks so that they don't break down as frequently, and we have a safer and more reliable fleet.  Drivers are happier.  Fewer safety defects improved our CSA scores. Improved CSA scores means we experience fewer Level 3 inspections, which further decreases our delays.

You create this cycle where time management drives improvements in all aspects of our fleet - financial performance, safety, compliance, on-time performance, maintenance costs, and driver satisfaction.

JB: What about safety? Don't you see more work-related injuries and traffic violations, and decreased fuel efficiency as a result of speed?

GC: We will do nothing that jeopardizes safety.  Safety is of paramount importance.  We strictly monitor speed and hard braking occurrences - the two leading indicators for aggressive and reckless driving.  We tolerate no speeding and only 1 hard brake occurrence every 200 miles.  As for non-driving activities - we allow drivers to move at a normal pace.  We will never tighten non-driving standards to the point that a driver is forced to move faster than normal.  Drivers learn to drive our trucks our way.

JB: Gene, thanks for your time and your valuable advice.