JULY.2013
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Safety is more than a habit p3 Hub-mount wheels vs. stud-mount wheels p6
LETTER FROM THE INDUSTRY
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he bus and coach industry is too complex to function without the software systems needed to manage fleet maintenance and shop activity. Granted, an extremely organized mechanic armed with reams of paper, a filing cabinet and a limited workload could probably create a functioning preventative maintenance system. But it is a moot issue in this day and age. Technology is imperative in preventing failed bus inspections, poor vehicle performance due to missed preventative maintenance, or worst of all — an accident. Even the most organized mechanic concedes that the time it costs to summarize maintenance data is reason alone to invest in preventative maintenance software. There are three areas in which bus and motorcoach operators can expect incalculable benefits from a sustainable and scalable software program. Under-inspected vehicles — According to the U.S. Department of Energy a perfected preventative maintenance schedule is the absolute best way to increase vehicle fuel efficiency by 10 to 40 percent per vehicle. Over-inspected vehicles — More than a few bus operators fearful of being out of compliance will often lump multiple preventative maintenance measures together every 30 days whether they are due or not. The fact is different engine types require different intervals for oil changes and lubes. Without a computerized system it is difficult to maintain a sophisticated inspection regime tailored to each individual vehicle. Federal and state compliance — The cost to buy and implement a fleet management program pales in comparison to the cost of a vehicle taken off the road due to a failed state inspection, not to mention the bad press associated with having a low ratio of compliance. It is impossible to exactly amortize gains in fuel efficiency, decreased labor and use of materials, but $100 per vehicle per year is a fair and conservative representative value for these areas of savings.
Michael Hinckley, President EasyBus Inc., Balston Lake, NY JULY 2013
Vol. 03 • No. 07 Publisher / Editor in Chief Steve Kane steve@busride.com Associate Publisher Sali T. Williams swilliams@busride.com Editor David Hubbard david@busride.com Managing Editor Richard Tackett rtackett@busride.com Art Director Stephen Gamble sgamble@theproducersinc.com Senior Account Executive Andy Pieri apieri@busride.com Production Director Valerie Valtierra valerie@busride.com Accountant Fred Valdez fvaldez@powertrademedia.com
CONTENTS
BUS industry SAFETY council
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Safety is more than a habit
Pay constant attention to safe workplace behavior By Robert Buchwalter
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Shoot for true safety
The process involves constant attention, evaluation and re-evaluation By Christopher W. Ferrone
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Learn the difference between hub-mount wheels and stud-mount wheels By Norm Teibe 6 Cover photo courtesy of ABC Companies 2
A publication of:
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LETTER FROM THE INDUSTRY
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Products and Services
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OEM DIRECT
A skill is comprised of many elements: knowledge, training, experience, and successful execution.
Safety is more than
a habit
By Robert Buchwalter
N
ext time you’re in a discussion with a small group, mention a hot air balloon ride you took. Maybe one other person might have a similar experience. Mention someone getting hurt at work, however, and the conversation’s flood gates will unfortunately open. It seems we have all either been injured or been around when someone else was. We must continually strive to erase workplace injury. There is nothing good about someone being injured but, if anything, it does make us more cautious for a few hours, days, or weeks, depending on the severity of the injury. We normally take steps to correct the causes of the injury almost immediately after it occurs. But, as time goes on, we slip into old habits and prior practices, and eventually someone gets hurt again. Maintaining coaches provides plenty of injury risk. Tools and parts can slip, causing cuts or bruises. Back sprains, even electric shocks and flying debris are also garage risks. Other cumulative injuries might take years to manifest themselves: illnesses later in life from exposure to toxic chemicals; joint pain from improper footwear; or loss of hearing caused by not wearing hearing protection. Safety articles often state that “safety is an attitude.” While a list of prominent risk factors should be assembled for maintenance shops, we cannot anticipate everything. True, professional health and safety managers who study work environments can provide valuable methods to reduce the potential for work injuries. However, they cannot be everywhere and see everything. In short, everyone must be a health and safety officer. Employees must constantly exercise the attitude of safety in our shops and elsewhere. Are you skilled at your job? A skill is comprised of many elements: knowledge, training, experience, and successful execution. Most technicians would say that they’re skilled in the technical aspects of bus maintenance, but do those skills
actively encompass safety? Or is it “simply understood” that employees should work safely and that safety, in general, is a merely a habit? Safety should never be considered a simple habit. A habit is a routine done with little thought. Safety on the job and in personal life must be an actively engaged skill. Employees should exercise safe working practices throughout every waking moment. Safety should progress from an attitude, to work practices, and then to the level of a constantly practiced and refined skill. Often, maintenance professionals are asked to break off from one job and assist someone with another, often without time to get the proper safety equipment or to carefully review the circumstances and situation. So often, these impromptu actions can lead to significant and long lasting injuries. It is paramount to perform all tasks in a safe manner, for the benefit of all employees. A safe working attitude is contagious, so be the good example The moment a workplace injury occurs, we can always think of several ways the injury could have been prevented. We need to critique each action in advance to ensure we are doing it as safely as possible. Regular safety meetings, reviews of hazards, safeguards on shop equipment, and encouragement and rewards for safety suggestions all ought to be part of our jobs on a very regular basis. It is a disservice to consider safety as a mere habit. All maintenance professionals should aim to be skilled in safety practices and be shining examples of safe workplace procedure.
Robert Buchwalter serves as one of two Prevost technical field instructors conducting seminars at the Prevost factory in Quebec, customers’ shops, and transit agencies. He is a member of the BUSRide Editorial Advisory Board.
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Shoot for
true safety The process involves constant attention, evaluation and re-evaluation. By Christopher W. Ferrone
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reaches in safety typically occur at numerous levels when warning signs go unheeded, meaning someone must be in charge of safety, and equipped with a plan for every phase in the operation. The question the safety director must resolve is if policy and employee practices actually ensure practical, tangible and authentic safety measures. True working safety emanates from the small reliable procedures in a process that is always changing. Each measure by itself may not appear safety related, but administered correctly, each step contributes to a desirable condition I call true safety. My own routine begins every Saturday morning at the garage at 3 a.m. I need this extra time to fine-tune my safety program without interruption. I start with over-pit inspections to ensure the reliability of the buses going out on the highway that day. While some consider reliability as ensuring the vehicle
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BUSRIDE MAINTENANCE | J ULY. 2013
is ready for the duty cycle, utility is not my immediate worry. An unreliable vehicle that can fail in any way always compromises safety. In my system, reliability is a safety function. A keen sense of hearing and smell are useful tools during inspections. Unusual noises coming from the vehicle usually indicate a problem. Walking by a bus that emits the odor of gear oil usually indicates a hub seal is leaking. Hearing an odd noise or detecting an odor and not checking it out represent poor safety behavior. Attention to every detail is the basic element in true safety. Don’t be a robot or merely a box checker. True safety takes the safety department to a level of care where everyone knows to stop and look for problems at the least provocation. Once the buses move to the ready line, I speak with each driver individually to check their fitness for the day. I want drivers to be wakeful and alert, arriving on
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time and not rushing to make a diving clock-in. Drivers rushing for the clock are most likely late for their report time, and subsequently late for their order — not the mindset of true safety. Positive behavior and best practices are paramount. Personal appearance and mental attitude figure strongly in a truly safe operation. We discuss the weather and the effect it will have on driving that day and have a solid plan to deal with the
not take direction of any type from anyone else. If the situation requires assistance, such as backing up or parking, the driver should step off the bus and have a look for himself. We once had a driver back into a tree, causing damage to the bus. In our discussion to learn what had happened and why, I was able to pinpoint three minutes of unrelated detail which made it clear we had a problem. The driver admitted he allowed someone
“ True safety is a process of constant attention, evaluation and re-evaluation.” conditions. A safe carrier gives its drivers the option and even encourages them to stop driving as the situation may require. We review the destination or event for the group and assess the passengers. Are they children, adults or teens? In the case of events with a definite start time, the drivers know not to let the passengers influence the operation of the bus, or where to park and unload. Too often passengers try to manipulate the driver for their personal benefit. The driver is in control and must be the only person making the decisions. They must
to help him back up around a car that was in the way. I informed him that this accident was chargeable and preventable due to the fact he let someone control him as opposed to being in full control of his bus. Strive to improve. A satisfactory safety record can lull the company into a false sense of security. True safety is a process of constant attention, evaluation and re-evaluation. Christopher W. Ferrone is president of Americoach Systems Inc., Glenview, IL, an engineering firm specializing in transportation technology, analysis and safety.
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Learn the difference between hub-mount wheel and stud-mount wheels Hub-mount and stud-mount wheel systems are also called hub-piloted wheel systems and stud-piloted wheel systems. Earlier coaches used the stud-piloted system, while more recent coaches use the hub-piloted system. It is important to know the difference between these two systems, as the components of each system are not interchangeable with each other (although they will fit in most cases). By Norm Teibe remember to reverse the direction to tighten for each nut. Tighten the inner nuts first on the drive axle; then tighten the outer nuts. When the coach comes back for a fastener retorque, back the outer drive axle wheel nuts off to retorque the inners; then retighten the outer nuts. This requires the coach to come back a second time to retorque the outer nuts.
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Hub piloted wheel system Stud-piloted wheel system The stud-piloted system uses wheel studs and wheel nuts to center the wheel on the coach, while the hub-piloted system uses a flange or “mounting pads� on the hub to center the wheel onto the hub. The fasteners on stud-piloted wheels come with both right-hand and left-hand thread. Use the righthand threaded fasteners on the right side of the coach (curb side); the left-hand fasteners on the left side of the coach. The stud-piloted fastener has a taper or chamfer on the nut which seats in a matching chamfer in the wheel stud hole. B These chamfers are the easiest way to tell the two systems apart, as the hub-piloted wheel does not have this chamfer. The stud-piloted system uses an inner nut and an outer nut on the drive axle with dual wheels. It is important to note the right-hand C nuts tighten in one direction; the left-hand nut tightens in the opposite direction. Mechanics must
The hub-piloted wheel system does not use fasteners with a chamfer or an inner and outer nut on the drive axle. Instead, it uses a single wheel nut with a captured washer and only right-hand thread fasteners. The hub-piloted wheel uses a straight through stud hole without a chamfer. Wheels for both types of systems are available in steel and aluminum. D
A. Stud-piloted wheel. B. Stud-piloted inner wheel nut. C. Stud-piloted outer wheel nut. D. Hub piloted wheel. E. Hub piloted wheel nut with captured washer.
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Norm Teibe is lead hand and trainer at Diversified Transportation Ltd, Edmonton, AB, Canada, a division of Pacific Western Transportation, Calgary, AB. 6
BUSRIDE MAINTENANCE | J ULY. 2013
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PRODUCTS & SERVICES
Champion launches UltraFleet® SAE 5W-30 diesel motor oil Champion Oil, a 55-year old global manufacturing and specialty lubricant blending company, recently announced its new premium SAE 5W-30 UltraFleet® API-CJ4 synthetic heavy duty diesel motor oil. The company says its robust formula provides the same level of engine protection as leading SAE 15W-40 HD Motor Oils, but with more end user benefits. The lower viscosity oil was found to deliver an average of 3.3 percent and up to 4.5 percent fuel economy improvement over a conventional SAE 15W-40 API CJ-4 lubricant tested at an independent testing facility using the SAE J1321 fuel test protocol. Champion says the new oil has a 50 percent faster time to pressurization than a traditional SAE 15W-40, leading to faster lubrication of critical valve train hardware and reduced start-up bearing wear. Available this month, Champion says its SAE 5W-30 UltraFleet® heavy-duty diesel motor also improves torque efficiency and provides real world fuel economy benefits. Champion Brands, LLC Clinton, MO
Gates adds Polarseal II Clamp Assortment System to lineup Gates Corporation, a global diversified manufacturer of industrial and automotive aftermarket parts, announced the release of the new PolarSeal® II Clamp Assortment System. This new kit contains hand-held tools to create A/C barrier hose assemblies directly on vehicles without the need for traditional crimping methods. Gates says the PolarSeal II clamp assortment also eliminates the need to stock large quantities of pre-made hose assemblies. The PolarSeal II Clamp Assortment System includes 50 color-coded clamps (in five different sizes); specially designed Gates ratcheting pliers that do not release until the assembly is crimped; a small I.D. hose cutter useful for on-vehicle repair; a hose cutter replacement blade; and clamps that include a positioning guide to ensure proper alignment over the fitting stem, eliminating the need for a separate cage. Gates Corporation Denver, CO
Atlas Copco debuts 7-37 GA VSD+ compact compressor Atlas Copco announced a new, very compact oil-injected rotary screw compressor from 7 to 37 kW: the 7-37 GA VSD+. Besides a small footprint, it offers a leap forward in Free Air Delivery (improvements of up to 12 percent), and a breakthrough energy-efficiency: it requires on average 50 percent less energy than a comparable idling compressor. This new type of compressor offering a variable speed (frequency-controlled) will be suitable for most industries and aims to contribute significantly to green economy needs. Atlas Copco translated the most requested needs of its customers in this new type of compressor: better performances, with less energy consumed, low noise levels and a compact footprint. With the GA VSD+, a variable speed drive compressor achieves better performances even at full load than a comparable idling compressor. This innovation will enable all compressor users to switch over to variable speed drive compressors, which the company says is an important step toward a more sustainable industry. Atlas Copco Wilrijk, Belgium
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