Commercial Carrier Journal, April 2020

APRIL 2020

HELPING DRIVERS PLAN THEIR TRIPS

COPING WITH COVID-19

Apps keep trucks running on time

Coronavirus impacts trucking page 9

page 59

2020 INNOVATOR of the YEAR

POLARIS TRANSPORTATION GROUP

Canadian fleet uses automated tech to make work easier for employees

GETTING READY FOR ROADCHECK CVSA focusing on driver compliance page 49

BUSINESS SOLUTIONS FOR TRUCKING PROFESSIONALS

JURY VERDICTS GOING NUCLEAR What can your fleet do to fight them?

page 54

CLOGGED DPF COSTING YOU FUEL ECONOMY? Ash from your engine oil is likely to blame

90

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APRIL 2020 | VOL 177 | NO. 4

42

COVER STORY

Innovator of the Year:

Polaris Transportation Group Commercial Carrier Journal has named Mississauga, Ontario-based Polaris Transportation Group as the 2020 CCJ Innovator of the Year for deploying robotic process automation to automatically read emails, process attachments and create and send broker packages, and using machine learning to facilitate classification of required documents and data extraction.

Cover photo by Stephanie Brajkovich/Design by Richard Street

FEATURES

49

CVSA Roadcheck: Don’t get blitzed

With the Commercial Vehicle Safety Association’s annual International Roadcheck inspection blitz looming in early May, CCJ presents some quick tips and methods to keep your drivers from getting an out of service violation during the three-day enforcement event.

54

Hammered

Courts in recent years have taken up an alarming trend in crash litigation involving trucking companies: Awarding large settlements, sometimes regardless of fault, to plaintiffs who sue carriers after a crash.

Often, this includes courts digging into fleets’ pasts – including driver training and orientation – to justify those multimillion-dollar payouts.

59

What’s your 20?

Hours of service, traffic, weather, parking and many other variables make trip planning a complex problem to solve, especially now that fleets are operating under the ELD mandate. That’s why technology developers are drawing inspiration from navigation apps used by consumers to make it easier for truckers to work their way through the maze.

JOURNAL LEADING NEWS, TRUCKING MARKET CONDITIONS AND INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

8

News

HOS reforms sent to White House for final OK …

Cargo theft on the rise in 2019, but average value declines … Trucking’s rebound must navigate coronavirus outbreak …

Coronavirus envelops all things related to trucking … FMCSA boss addresses ELD tampering concerns … FMCSA moving forward with female, male minority harassment study … New Jersey bridge remains ATRI’s top freight bottleneck …

Film haulers seek relief from clearinghouse regs … Connecticut governor backs off trucks-only tolls …

Fleets can help themselves in defining owner-operators

10 InBrief 16 InFocus: TCA Annual Convention Learning expert: With driver training, less is more …

Diamond’s Kocmich named top owner-operator, wins $25,000 … Boyle, Nussbaum named Best Fleets to Drive For

COMMERCIAL CARRIER JOURNAL

| APRIL 2020 3

DEPARTMENTS

ccjdigital.com

technology

20 21

Unscheduled maintenance cost up more than 20% since 2018 FMCSA’s Tech-Celerate Now backed by TMC, ATA, others

34

OEMs, ELD providers to pare down vehicle connectivity

35

Samsara updates fleet maintenance dashboard

35

Omnitracs easing IFTA, state highway tax filing

36

Many driving incidents unreported, survey finds

36

Marketplace wants to monetize transport data

facebook.com/CCJMagazine @CCJnow linkedin.com/ccjmagazine

Editorial Editor: Jason Cannon Senior Editor: Aaron Huff Associate Editor: Tom Quimby Managing Editor: Dean Smallwood News Editor: Matt Cole Contributing Editors: Todd Dills, James Jaillet editorial@ccjdigital.com

22

Battery-electric Freightliner CX Fleet now being tested

22

Panel weighs merits, challenges of electric trucking

36 InBrief 37 Breakthrough offers data

23

Nikola teams with acquisition firm, gets NASDAQ listing

37

DataTrail debuts fleet management software

production@ccjdigital.com

Trevor Milton still wants to revolutionize trucking

38

Hubtek promotes task automation bot technology

Corporate

24

management platform

25 Isuzu doubles down on gas 25 InBrief 26 FCCC debuts production MT50e

38

Rolling Strong seeks healthy competition

all-electric chassis

26

Autonomous truck developer Starsky calls it quits

27

Western Star celebrates 200,000th truck

28 Test Drive: Volvo Electric VNR

30 InFocus:

40

Harmonics and vibration

Wilson Logistics to pilot automated convoy technology

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

6

Upfront Editor Jason Cannon’s column

72 Preventable or Not? Straight truck driver John Doe was making a left turn from a one-way street, but his turn was too wide, and he hit a sports car in the next lane that he didn’t see. Was this a preventable accident?

66 Products Pliers, regional tires, spray lubricant, more 4

COMMERCIAL CARRIER JOURNAL

71 Ad Index | APRIL 2020

Design & Production Art Director: Richard Street Quality Assurance: Timothy Smith Advertising Production Manager: Leah Boyd

Chairman Emeritus: Mike Reilly President/CEO: Brent Reilly Executive Vice President and General Manager, Equipment: Prescott Shibles Senior Vice President and General Manager, Recruiting: Scott Miller Executive Vice President, Internal Consulting Services: Nick Reid Senior Vice President, Audience: Linda Longton Senior Vice President, Acquisitions and Business Development: Robert Lake Senior Vice President, Marketing: Julie Arsenault

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UPFRONT

From supply chains to truck shows, COVID-19 knows no boundaries

BY JASON CANNON

N

o one wants to get sick – and I’m a terrible sick patient, just ask my wife – but I can’t recall ever upending my entire life to avoid exposure to illness. Last month I dropped part of a banana on the kitchen floor and, after a few moments of consideration, ate it anyway.

As CCJ went to press, there had been about 34,300 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States, encompassing all 50 states and D.C. Last month I spent much of two weeks in airplanes, and given the abnormally low foot traffic in some of the busiest airports in the country, it’s clear that people were officially leery of moving themselves around. But trucking doesn’t have that option. If you tried to buy toilet paper, you probably experienced just how delicate our supply chain is and how exposed it is to wild swings of fear-driven demand.

This was supposed to be a bounce-back year for a trucking industry that barely survived 2019, but that forecast already had been pushed later into 2020 before anyone figured out that coronavirus had nothing to do with a Mexican pale lager.

“Until late February, we expected to see a gradual but steady recovery in trucking conditions after a mildly weak first quarter,” said Avery Vise, FTR’s vice president of trucking. “The panic over the coronavirus as well as recent developments regarding global oil markets has injected considerable risk and uncertainty into this outlook. While many of those risks are to the downside, the situation also could develop in ways that might benefit trucking companies in the coming months in terms of volume, utilization and rates.”

Domestic port and rail volumes were starting to reflect the drop in Chinese output, impacting the supply-side of basic supply and demand. ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello last month said port volumes were plummeting.

“There are major implications for a number of freight-intensive economic sectors, and we are just on the cusp of feeling that pinch,” said Kenny Vieth, ACT president and senior analyst.

Toilet paper and Purell weren’t the only things weighing on the COVID-19-stressed supply chain.

Freight volumes of bottled water and nonperishable foods were surging, Costello said, “because Americans are stockpiling in case we are quarantined for an extended period.” However, he said,

that spike would be short-lived and there would be payback in softer volumes for those goods later.

A survey released March 12 by the Institute for Supply Management showed that almost 75% of respondents already had seen COVID-19-related transportation disruptions, with another 80%-plus expecting to see some impact.

According to a CCJ online poll conducted last month during the outbreak’s initial days, about one-third of respondents still were running the same number of loads, while about 13% said business actually had boomed as part of reseller restocking.

However, more than a fourth of respondents had experienced a slight slowdown, and nearly a fifth said they had seen a sharp decline. About 6% said they had sent office personnel home and had laid off some drivers.

Even if you can balance your supply chain, you still need healthy people to pull it all together, and every day it got a little harder to conduct business as usual.

Glenn Larson, president and CEO of TLG Peterbilt, recommended his employees temporarily limit in-person meetings.

“Our teams are also more than happy to serve [customers] by phone, email, web chat or text.”

Dealerships weren’t the only place you found an increased emphasis on digital interaction. Instructional Technologies Inc. polled more than 1,800 customers and found that 60% of respondents said concerns over the coronavirus were pushing more training online versus in person.

As far as large gatherings go, the same coronavirus concerns that forced the cancellation of major sporting events also filtered into truck trade shows and other industry gatherings, including the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Ky. Whether you think this is a politically-driven media-fueled fear-mongering campaign or a global health crisis, the effects of COVID-19 were being felt in places far beyond the doctor’s office. Costello noted a few economists said the United States is in a recession, with others forecasting very little GDP growth this quarter and a negative reading next quarter.

“I still think it is too early to make that call, but the trends are pointing in that direction,” he said.

Trillions of dollars already have been sapped from global markets. The financial implications from the coronavirus will be worse and more widespread than the virus itself.

JASON CANNON is Editor of Commercial Carrier Journal. E-mail jasoncannon@randallreilly.com.

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LEADING NEWS, TRUCKING MARKET CONDITIONS AND INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

HOS reforms sent to White House for final OK

A

final rule to overhaul the hours of service (HOS) regulations was sent last month to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval — one of the final steps before the rule can be published in the Federal Register and take effect.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration filed the rule with OMB March 2, which indicates that the rulemaking to reform HOS hasn’t stalled after former FMCSA Administrator Ray Martinez’s resignation last fall.

Martinez had initiated the HOS reforms after a series of listening sessions in his first months on the job in 2018. Also, FMCSA Acting Administrator Jim Mullen said in late February that the agency remained intent on seeing the rulemaking through. FMCSA’s HOS proposal last fall provided an option for drivers to extend their 14-hour clock by two hours if they face adverse conditions.

It’s unclear what exactly is in the HOS final rule, as the text has not been made public. However, extend their 14-hour clock by two hours if they face adverse FMCSA’s proposed HOS reforms, published last August, called for a few key changes to existing HOS regulations. Chief conditions such as heavy traffic or bad weather. among those changes would be the ability for drivers to pause Federal law dictates that OMB approve or deny the rule their 14-hour on-duty clock one time and go off-duty for up to within 90 days, but that can be extended to 120 days if deemed necessary. If OMB clears the rule, FMCSA would be free to three hours.

Likewise, the proposed rule expanded the split-sleeper berth publish it in the Federal Register, meaning a final rule could be filed within the coming months. After it’s published, there option to allow drivers to use a seven- and three-hour split of their required 10 off-duty hours. Existing regulations allow a likely will be an implementation period of either months or split-sleeper option of eight hours and two hours. FMCSA’s years to allow the industry to prepare for the rule’s changes.

HOS proposal last fall also provided an option for drivers to – James Jaillet

Cargo theft on the rise in 2019, but average value declines

T

he number of recorded U.S. cargo thefts increased in 2019 over the previous year, while the average values of those thefts decreased, according to an annual report from SensiGuard.

According to the cargo theft recording firm, there were 703 thefts recorded in 2019 with an average loss value of $118,396, Scan the QR code with your smartphone or visit ccjdigital.com/news/subscribe-tonewsletters to sign up for the CCJ Daily Report, a daily e-mail newsletter filled with news, analysis, blogs and market condition articles.

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a 17% uptick in volume compared to 2018 and a 22% decrease in value. The firm said the growth in volume – the first yearover-year increase since 2011 – is due to cargo thieves using more advanced techniques, adding that values likely will catch up with the increase in volume.

Full-truckload theft accounted for 54% of all thefts in 2019.

Electronics were the most-stolen product type at 17%. Nearly half of all thefts took place in three states, with 44% occurring in California, Texas and Georgia.

Thieves were more active late in the year, with November seeing the most thefts (14%), followed by December (11%) and October (10%).

– CCJ Staff

JOURNAL NEWS

Trucking’s rebound must navigate COVID-19

T

he spot market last month hit a historically unprecedented surge as shippers scrambled to find trucking service to move loads bound for restocking retailers such as grocers, Walmart and Target after the panic buy over the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak.

Once that surge levels off, however, the industry should brace for a sharp recession, said analysts from FTR. Jonathan Starks, chief intelligence officer of the transportation forecasting firm, said GDP is forecasted to shrink by 0.7% in the first quarter, then -1.2% in the second and third quarters of this year.

Starks referred to those economic losses as a “serious but not catastrophic recession,” but noted that the The path to recovery isn’t likely to be a steady improvement, partly because of the impact of COVID-19. situation regarding the virus outbreak is fluid. “Every day, things happen that we didn’t think could ever For now, he said, the spot market is outpacing demand of happen,” he said. “There are lots of X factors.” early 2018, one of trucking’s historically strongest periods of In short, said Avery Vise, FTR’s vice president of trucking, growth. Soaring load availability is absorbing the capacity “this is going to be ugly. It’s going to be a recession.” Vise says added in 2017 and 2018. the market could hit “something of a V-shape” and potentially Trucking could ride the current domestic surge “well into bounce back later this year.

Starks said he anticipates a recovery period beginning in the the second quarter,” Nicholson said, but the recessionary environment brought on by the suddenly stalled economy could fourth quarter, “of course from a lower level” than the current cause some pain, especially for carriers in heavily exposed secstate of the economy. Upside potential for a later rebound includes bailouts and stimulus spending from Washington and tors such as automotive and drayage and in manufacturing.

Like Starks, Nicholson said much of the economic outlook a shorter-than-anticipated period of impact of the virus outbreak. “But the downside risks are twice as likely as the upside” depends on the containment of the COVID-19 outbreak both domestically and abroad.

– Linda Longton potential, he said.

Moreover, the impact on freight demand could be much worse than the losses in GDP, Starks said. FTR forecasts declines of 7.4% in the second quarter and 6.4% in the third Hours regs suspended quarter for the goods transport sector of the economy. for outbreak relief One area already being severely impacted and likely to The U.S. Department of Transportation on March 13 suspended hours of service continue so is the auto-hauling sector, said Jim Nicholson, regulations for interstate truck and bus drivers hauling loads and people related to CEO for LoadSmart. Carriers heavily reliant on hauling parts responding to the COVID-19 outbreak. for automobile production have reported “rapid deterioration The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration issued an emergency declarain truckload volumes,” he said, and they’ve been looking to tion, part of President Trump’s March 13 national emergency declaration, that diversify and potentially take advantage of the replenishment suspended hours of service regulations nationwide for drivers hauling: boom in reefer and dry van hauling.

• Medical supplies and equipment related to the testing, diagnosis and treatment “In the short term, they can take advantage of the trends in of COVID-19. the spot market,” Nicholson said, but longer term, as their auto • Supplies related to preventing the spread of coronavirus, such as masks, gloves, contracts wind down and the spot market tension eases, “it’s a hand sanitizer, soap and disinfectants. challenging environment to operate in.”

• Food, paper products and other groceries for emergency restocking of distribuLikewise, import volumes at ports are way down due to tion centers and stores. loads from China being stalled from the coronavirus outbreak • Precursor raw materials such as paper, plastic or alcohol. that began there in January. Nicholson predicts import levels • Equipment, supplies and persons meant to provide temporary housing and from China won’t rebound until the third quarter, given the quarantine facilities. time it will take for the Chinese economy and production to • Personnel to provide medical or other emergency services.

– CCJ Staff find its footing. commercial carrier journal

| april 2020 9

SPONSORED INFORMATION

DAMAGE CALCULATIONS FROM 30,000 FEET

I

n my last article, I talked about a driving under the influence case in which the jury awarded more than $1 billion in damages. This is how damages are calculated in personal injury cases.

There is an old saying in the legal profession that a single lawyer in a small town will starve but two lawyers in a small town will make a good living. This often comes into play in personal injury cases.

In a case involving injury you generally have two types of damages: special and general.

Special damages include money lost as a result of the alleged negligence of the other party; for instance, lost wages and medical bills.

General damages are less quantifiable and include losses endured and potentially continually endured, such as pain and emotional distress.

In a small case you may be dealing with an insurance adjuster whor reviews the claim and makes an offer. You can accept this offer or counter until both parties come to an agreement — all without using an attorney. This is why the single lawyer in a small town starves.

However, in a larger case (with two attorneys involved) the damages calculation and the settlement negotiations get more involved.

With large enough claims, you could find yourself in negotiations (or litigation) with an attorney for the insurance company. In this scenario, the attorney and adjuster still review all documentation but also likely use a personal injury calculator designed by insurance companies to determine a fair assessment of damages. The program factors in settlement amounts for similar injuries, geographic location and whether the plaintiff is represented by an attorney.

In contrast, plaintiff’s counsel does not use software to calculate damages. They specifically calculate past and future lost wages; medical bills; out of pocket expenses such as medications; physical therapy; childcare; housekeeping; and loss of personal items.

General damages on the other hand are not as quantifiable. In a large personal injury case plaintiff’s counsel will include things such as emotional distress, anxiety, loss of sleep, permanent pain or injuries, and more.There is no easy way to assign a dollar value to these issues.

As you can guess, the amount claimed by the plaintiff taking the above factors into consideration and the amount claimed by the insurance company rarely match. At this point the fun begins as the parties began negotiation and trying to convince each other why their calculations are correct. And this, my friends, is where the two lawyers make their living.

JOURNAL NEWS

INBRIEF 4/20 • Unified Carrier Registration fees for trucking companies, brokers and freight forwarders in 2020 were reduced between $3 and $2,712 depending on the number of vehicles owned or operated by the companies. FMCSA said fees will remain at the same level for 2021 and subsequent years.

• UPS (CCJ Top 250, No. 1) expanded its partnership with TuSimple – a developer of autonomous heavy-duty truck technology – to run 20 trips a week, including a new route from Phoenix to El Paso, Texas. TuSimple operates as a motor carrier and contracts loads from UPS. The two companies partnered last spring to run 10 autonomous test trips a week between Phoenix and Dallas. TuSimple said it currently has 18 contracted customers and runs about 20 autonomous loaded trips per day.

• UPS petitioned the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to allow its driver trainees with commercial learner’s permits to pull 28-foot doubles to obtain behind-the-wheel training. UPS said its CLP drivers would be “under direct supervision of a driving instructor.” Federal regulations currently don’t allow a double/triple trailer endorsement on CLPs. To view comments, go to Regulations.gov and search Docket No. FMCSA-2020-0069.

• Saint-Laurent, Quebec-based TFI International (CCJ Top 250, No. 10) received approval for an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange. The company said it hopes to raise some $200 million via the IPO for potential acquisitions and to pay down debt. The Canadian company will trade under the ticker symbol TFII, the same symbol it already uses on the Toronto Stock Exchange.

• Cedar Rapids, Iowa-based CRST International (CCJ Top 250, No. 18) acquired NAL Group, an Edison, N.J.-based final-mile logistics company; terms were not released. NAL specializes in warehousing services, home delivery of big and bulky consumer durables, complex inhome installation and assembly services and express courier services.

• Ritchie Bros. last month began auctioning off truck equipment from Indianapolis-based Celadon (CCJ Top 250, No. 41), which closed its doors last December after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The lineup included model-year 2015-18 tractors.

• PS Logistics (CCJ Top 250, No. 45) completed its acquisition of Southeast Logistics, Houndstooth Transportation, C Cross Transport and Viking Transportation. PS, based in Birmingham, Ala., said the transaction, terms of which were not disclosed, will further strengthen its Southeast U.S. operations and provide it with additional terminals in Tuscaloosa, Ala., where Southeast is based, and Waynesboro, Miss.

Southeast has approximately 250 drivers.

• Mississauga, Ontario-based Polaris Transportation Group acquired PRI Logistics, a third-party logistics brokerage based in Vaughan, Ontario. The deal, terms of which were not released, will have PRI Logistics operating under the Polaris Global Logistics brand.

• Jones Logistics acquired Columbus, Miss.-based Volume Freight, a logistics and transportation company; terms were not released. Jones specializes in dedicated contract carriage and freight brokerage and, with the Volume acquisition and its 80 employees, now employs 257 people.

• Kansas City, Mo.-based Infinity Transportation Logistics changed its name to Infinity Intermodal to better reflect the company’s identity as an asset-based temperature-controlled truckload intermodal carrier.

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JOURNAL NEWS

Coronavirus envelops all things related to trucking

L

ast month, a driver for Quality Transport Co., a 31-truck fleet out of Freeport, Ill., was hooked to brokered load bound for a Costco distribution center in Tracy, Calif. The operator happened upon a sight he’d not seen before in his 30 years behind the wheel: An approximately 200-truck line – and growing – waiting to drop off.

“We didn’t know what to do,” said Amanda Schuier, senior vice president for Quality. The driver had another load after the Costco dropoff awaiting a pickup at another facility, but he was stuck with the dry van full of food-safe containers.

It was uncharted territory for all involved, Schuier said. “Do we try to reset the appointment and attempt to deliver again?

Do we take it back to the original shipper? We ended up pulling him out of the line and getting him to a safe place to park for the night so we could try to figure out a plan.”

Trucking shows The driver then waited canceled, at a nearby truck stop for two days before he was postponed able to get to the facilOrganizers of two trucking-related trade ity and deliver the load. shows canceled or postponed their But the delays obviously events last month due to the spread of rippled through the fleet’s COVID-19. scheduling. Schuier then The Mid-America Trucking Show anth found herself busy making nounced the cancellation of the 49 anplans for her in-office pernual event that was set for March 26-28 sonnel to work remotely. in Louisville, Ky. MATS management said “Most of my drivers March 12 they made the decision after seem to want to continue consulting with exhibitors, attendees, the to do their jobs the way Kentucky governor’s office, the Kentucky they always do,” she said.

Cabinet for Health and Families Services The fleet has “commuand others. nicated to them to limit Show management said the show th exposure and contact in would return in 2021 for its 50 annivertruck stops the best they sary on March 25-27 in Louisville. can, but they want to stay Organizers of Truck World, the national on the road.” trade show for Canada’s trucking industry, What the Quality driver postponed the event following the World faced was likely an exHealth Organization declaring COVID-19 a treme example at a retailer global pandemic. who faced a nationwide The event now will be held June 4-6 swell of consumers seekat the International Centre in Missising food items and other sauga, Ontario, just outside of Toronto. It household goods as fears originally was scheduled for April 16-18 surrounding the outat the same venue. The corresponding break of the COVID-19 TruckTech fleet maintenance summit was coronavirus ratcheted up.

– CCJ Staff rescheduled to June 5.

Amazon announced plans 12

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to hire 100,000 workers globally to help fulfill a surge in demand for online orders.

On the flipside, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. suspended Americas manufacturing through at least April 3, and BridgesThis picture from a Quality tone announced a temTransport driver showed the long porary phased shutdown line of trucks awaiting to unload at a Costco distribution center in of tire manufacturing in North and Latin America, California last month. with all facilities planning to resume normal operations on or before April 12.

Mack Trucks and Volvo Trucks both shuttered assembly operations, and Navistar International Corp. suspended production at its truck assembly plant in Springfield, Ohio, for at least two weeks. Daimler Trucks North America said all its manufacturing facilities in North America were “in task force mode to maintain the continuity of our operations. The supply chain continues to be relatively stable, allowing us to continue to deliver trucks on time. … The environment is changing rapidly, and we are adapting every day.”

Meanwhile, the three major truck stop chains – TA/Petro, Pilot and Love’s – canceled buffets, closed salad bars and increased cleaning and disinfecting efforts, while some locations switched to takeout-only service.

While many respondents to polling conducted by CCJ sister magazine Overdrive during the outbreak’s initial days reported business as usual, almost 20% reported either canceled appointments or a sharp decline in demand for their service.

“We haul fuel, and there are now no loads, yet the bills continue,” said trucker Iva Ludlow, awaiting word with others on whether relief packages coming out of Washington ultimately could deliver support to small business and/or wage workers impacted by the crisis.

Six percent of respondents reported a spike in demand for their service, and 43% said business appeared normal. Other readers (26%) reported concentrating on “social distancing” – keeping at least six feet of distance between themselves and others in public places – and focusing on washing their hands and practicing good hygiene.

Trucker Eli Vaughan said last month that as a result of COVID-19 precautions, his main shipper would “not allow drivers or visitors to enter their facility. Back up near the door, take the chains, straps off. … Or vice versa. Can’t use the bathroom or break room” at all, he said.

– CCJ Staff

JOURNAL NEWS

FMCSA boss addresses ELD tampering concerns

S

ince the federal electronic logging device mandate took effect in late 2017, there’s been a 52% reduction in hours of service violations, said Jim Mullen, acting administrator for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

Speaking at last month’s annual meeting of the Truckload Carriers Association near Orlando, Fla., Mullen said roadside Jim Mullen, acting FMCSA administrator, said the agency is inspections have found addressing certain ELD models that allow illegal tampering by less than 1% of carriers drivers. are noncompliant with the mandate.

During a question-andanswer session, an attendee asked if the agency is addressing certain ELD models that allow illegal tampering by drivers.

“We’re aware of some instances of fraudulent uses of ELDs,” Mullen said, and the agency investigates them. “We have a process by which we can decertify ELD vendors.” He said he’d heard of one vendor that used the ability to manipulate its system as a “marketing hook.”

On other initiatives, Mullen said: • Drug database. The agency’s new Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse has reached nearly 700,000 registrants since it went live Jan. 6. “Nearly 9,000 drivers who tested positive or refused a test have now been entered into the database” and cannot legally drive until they complete a return-to-duty program, he said.

• Younger drivers. Almost 40 carriers have agreed to participate in a pilot program to test the safety performance of 18-20-year-old drivers experienced with driving trucks in the military, but more drivers are needed to reach the goal of 200 drivers. FMCSA also is gathering comments on an expanded pilot program that would include drivers without military experience.

• DataQ accident reviews. During a Q&A session, an attendee said the process of filing a DataQ accident review, by which FMCSA can clear drivers and carriers when it can be determined that an accident was nonpreventable, is “cumbersome, too long. When can you fix it?” Mullen said over 90% of the reviewed cases were deemed nonpreventable, “so the program’s working.” Mullen admitted, however, that the process is cumbersome and that the agency is working to improve it.

– Max Heine

G N I K O LO FOR A ?

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JOURNAL NEWS

FMCSA moving forward with female, male minority harassment study

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he Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is moving forward with its plan to study the prevalence of harassment and assaults against minority and female truck drivers.

The agency once again is submitting an information collection request to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval to conduct the study titled “Crime Prevention for Truckers.” FMCSA submitted a similar request to OMB last July.

The agency said it has “accumulated evidence, both documentary and anecdotal, for a serious pattern of

harassment- and assault-related crimes against female and minority male truckers.”

In its proposed study, a maximum of 440 female truckers and 440 male minority truckers will be included in the information collection through a combination of in-person interviews and an online survey. To be eligible to participate, drivers must report that they are a female or a minority male who has driven a truck professionally in the past two years. A $25 incentive will be given to eligible respondents who complete the in-person interview or online survey.

New Jersey bridge remains ATRI’s top freight bottleneck

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he intersection of Interstate 95 and State Route 4 near the George Washington Bridge in Fort Lee, N.J., is the worst U.S. freight bottleneck for the second year in a row, according to data compiled by the American TransportaThe I-95 at S.R. 4 intersection tion Research Institute (ATRI). near the George Washington ATRI’s “2020 Top Truck Bottleneck Bridge in Fort Lee, N.J., sees an average truck speed of List” analyzes the level of truck-involved 30 mph. congestion at 300 locations across the United States using GPS data from more than 1 million trucks.

The firm found that the number of locations experiencing “significant congestion” – with average daily speeds of 45 mph or less – has increased by 92% in the last five years.

The average truck speed at the G.W. Bridge interchange is 29.7 mph, with an average truck speed during rush hour of 22.4 mph. The average rush hour speed at this location increased by 5.1% in 2019, ATRI reports.

In addition to the G.W. Bridge, the other top 10 U.S. freight bottlenecks include three intersections in Atlanta, two in Los Angeles and one each in Nashville, Houston, Chicago and Cincinnati.

Overall, Texas leads the way with the most truck bottlenecks with 11, followed by California, Georgia and New York with seven each.

ATRI said congestion costs the trucking industry $74.5 billion each year with 1.2 billion lost hours of productivity, the equivalent of 425,533 trucks sitting idle for an entire year.

– CCJ Staff 14

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The agency is considering developing training or outreach materials to help female and minority male truckers protect themselves from crime or harassment.

If the study finds a significant problem, FMCSA will consider developing training or outreach materials to help female and minority male truckers protect themselves from crime or harassment.

To view comments, go to Regulations.gov and search Docket No. FMCSA-2018-0278-0005. – CCJ Staff

Film haulers seek relief from clearinghouse regs

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consortium representing carriers that provide transportation services to and from theatrical, commercial, television Motion Picture and motion picture Compliance Solutions requests that its member production sites is companies be allowed to petitioning the Federal conduct limited queries Motor Carrier Safety before hiring a driver.

Administration for relief from the CDL Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse rule.

Motion Picture Compliance Solutions (MPCS) requests that its member companies not be required to conduct a full query of the clearinghouse when hiring a driver for a project, but instead be able to conduct limited queries.

MPCS said if the limited query indicates that information about the driver exists in the clearinghouse, the driver would not be allowed to perform safety-sensitive functions unless and until a full query shows the driver isn’t prohibited from driving a truck.

To view comments, go to Regulations.gov and search Docket No. FMCSA-2020-0101.

– CCJ Staff

JOURNAL NEWS

Connecticut governor backs off trucks-only tolls

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onnecticut Gov. Ned Lamont announced he would back off on pushing for trucks-only tolls in the state because lawmakers continue to put off voting on the issue.

“I think it’s time to take a pause,” he said at a press conference. “If these guys [legislators] aren’t willing to vote and step up, I’m going to solve this problem. Right now, we’re going to go back to the way we’ve done it for years in this state when we just kept kicking the can down the road.”

The State Legislature was scheduled to vote on the bill Feb. 20, but Lamont said lawmakers told him the previous day they needed more time before a vote. Lamont said the trucks-only toll plan he submitted would have generated about $200 million for state infrastructure funding. He said he now will get the funds from bonds.

“I’ve lost patience [in the Legislature],” Lamont said.

“They’ve asked for another week, another month, for six months. I finally said ‘Enough.’ We’re going to go forward and put in place our plan to fix transportation.”

Meanwhile, in another small victory for opponents of trucksonly tolls, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First District last month denied a petition from the1 Rhode Island Department of CCJ Safety 2020 Ad.pdf 3/2/20 9:02 AM

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont last December submitted a plan for trucks-only tolls on 12 bridges on major state thoroughfares.

Transportation for a rehearing of a case over state truck tolls, which will keep the case under federal district court jurisdiction.

A judge ruled in December that the American Trucking Associations’ lawsuit over the tolls could be heard in a federal court. RIDOT challenged that ruling in January to try to keep the case in state courts.

A district court ruled in March 2019 that Rhode Island’s tolls were considered taxes under the Tax Injunction Act, which says federal courts do not have jurisdiction over state taxes. ATA’s lawsuit argues that the tolls discriminate against interstate trucking companies and are unconstitutional because they “impede the flow of interstate commerce.”

– CCJ Staff

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JOURNAL NEWS

in focus: TCA ANNUAL CONVENTION

Learning expert: With driver training, less is more

BY AARON HUFF

I

n terms of learning efficiency, business conferences that fleet executives and administrators attend, such as the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) annual event, are not much different than a typical driver orientation training meeting.

In both instances, adults typically are seated in rooms listening to presenters disseminate information with PowerPoint slides.

“Minds are going to drift,” said Dr. Gina Anderson, an expert in adult learning and instructional systems, at Truckload 2020, held last month in Orlando, Fla. Anderson, who led the breakout session “Creating a Winning Orientation Strategy,” is chief executive for Luma Brighter Learning, which provides an online learning management system (LMS) with a large collection of interactive and customizable driver training modules.

The attention span of adults, she said,

is about 8.5 seconds — roughly the same as goldfish. Getting the attention and motivation of learners is the most important step in training, Anderson said.

She demonstrated how to get learners’ attention, surreptitiously, with a bingostyle game. Anderson asked attendees to fill out squares on a paper with training strategies they use or think would be effective for drivers.

“What are your strategies?” she asked.

Attendees in the meeting placed a sticker on each square when content presented by Anderson matched the answers on their own squares. Prizes would be awarded at the end, she said.

The activity got the attention of learners by setting up a challenge for people to come up with their own solutions.

People have preconceptions for how things should be done, and accessing prior knowledge on any topic will make the learner more efficient, she said, by getting them to use existing

Dr. Gina Anderson, chief executive for Luma Brighter Learning, led the Truckload 2020 breakout session “Creating a Winning Orientation Strategy.”

synapses in their brains to correct their own misconceptions.

Learning happens when people have “a-ha” moments when they are shown and can experience for themselves how something works, Anderson said.

“That’s kind of how you change those misconceptions — they have to actually experience it,” she said, offering this example: “If I keep telling you this is the right way to teach you, it’s not going to matter. Because you already think a certain way.”

Less is more Anderson also stressed that driver training content needs to be short and simple, according to research that shows the human brain can hold only about seven pieces of information in its working memory.

“It does not even matter if you are motivated to learn,” she said. “Your brain is only made up to do a certain capacity.”

Diamond’s Kocmich named top owner-operator, wins $25K

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evin Kocmich, who learned to truck on a farm and now hauls mostly oversized and overweight freight, was named the 2019 Owner-Operator of the Year at last month’s annual meeting of the Truckload Carriers Association. Kocmich, who lives in Litchfield, Minn., received a $25,000 cash award with the honor.

“I’m proud to be part of such an important industry that keeps the world moving, whether it’s basic supplies to disasters or to keep the country safe,” said Kocmich, who is leased to Racine, Wis.-based Diamond Transportation System.

TCA’s other top award went to Don 16

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Lewis, 2019 Company Driver of the Year, who also received $25,000. Lewis, of Republic, Mo., drives for Wilson Logistics of Springfield, Mo. The awards are sponsored by Love’s and Cummins. TCA produces the owneroperator award with CCJ’s sister brand Overdrive and the company driver award with another sister brand, Truckers News.

A $2,500 cash award went to each of the owner-operator finalists, Jesse Dennis, leased to Prime Inc., and team drivers Robert and Tracy Roth, leased to Erb International, and to the company driver finalists, Robie Jensen of Fremont Contract Carriers

| april 2020

and Randy Kuryk of Bison Transport.

The competition recognizes drivers with strong safety records who’ve also improved the image of trucking and served their communities. The owner-operator award also recognizes business acumen.

Kocmich, 58, will be profiled in Overdrive in – Max Heine April.

Kevin Kocmich was named the 2019 OwnerOperator of the Year at last month’s annual meeting of the Truckload Carriers Association.

JOURNAL NEWS Learners also have unique preferences for how they consume training content, such as by reading, watching short videos or using interactive media. Anderson said Luma has been studying driver learning preferences for seven years by analyzing data and feedback from drivers that complete its Luma eNugget modules.

One conclusion is that drivers agree that listening to someone talk is their least preferred training format, she said.

“How many of you prefer to listen to me talk?”

Anderson asked. “Is this how we learn best? Research would say no, so why do we keep doing it?”

The answer, she said, is “you will train people the way you learn best or that you learned. You are going to do something you are comfortable with.”

Anderson stressed the importance of authenticity in learning. She encouraged fleets to use their own people, such as a safety director, in training videos. Giving drivers on-demand access to all the training content as a resource also is valuable, since drivers will remember only a small portion of new information they are presented in orientation.

The average person “has to see a new concept at least seven times before it goes into their longterm memory,” Anderson said.

Eliminating paperwork is another effective strategy. “You don’t need to sit with drivers and have them fill out paperwork,” she said, noting that fleets that use digital forms, such as those Luma provides, can free up orientation trainers to be more efficient.

Anderson provided the following list of takeaways to attendees to make their driver orientation training more effective: • Engage the driver right away.

• Use face time with drivers wisely.

• Create shorter lessons that drivers can do at their own pace. “In terms of learning, less is more,” she said.

• Break content down into a variety of formats.

• Gather and implement driver feedback with surveys and analytics.

“If you remember one thing,” Anderson concluded, “it is that learning is an iterative process.

You can’t be in orientation disseminating information and expect them to remember.”

Boyle, Nussbaum named Best Fleets to Drive For

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he Truckload Carriers Association and CarriersEdge unveiled the overall winners of the 2020 Best Fleets to Drive For contest during TCA’s annual convention held in Orlando, Fla. The Best Overall Fleet in the small carrier category (total annual mileage of less than 25 million), an award sponsored by TruckRight, was presented to Boyle Transportation of Billerica, Mass. The Best Overall Fleet in the large carrier category (total annual mileage of 25 million or more), an award sponsored by EpicVue, was presented to Nussbaum Transportation of Hudson, Ill. Also, TCA and Great West Casualty Co. announced the grand prize winners in TCA’s Fleet Safety Award contests. The grand prize in the small carrier division was presented to Erb International Inc. of New Hamburg, Ontario. The grand prize in the large carrier division was presented to Bison Transport of Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Best Fleets to Drive For, now in its 12 year, is an annual survey and contest that recognizes North American for-hire trucking companies that provide the best workplace experience for their drivers. To be considered, fleets must be nominated by a company driver or an independent contractor working with them.

Annually, each January, TCA and CarriersEdge announce their Top 20 Best Fleets to Drive For winners that are categorized according to size, and the highest scoring fleet in each category is named the overall winner.

The overall 20 Best Fleets to Drive For in 2020 are: • American Central Transport, Kansas City, Mo. • America’s Service Line, Green

Bay, Wis. • Bison Transport, Winnipeg, Manitoba • Boyle Transportation, Billerica, Mass.

• Central Oregon Truck Co., Redmond, Ore. • Challenger, Cambridge, Ontario • Fortigo Freight Services, Etobicoke, Ontario • Fremont Contract Carriers, Fremont, Neb. • FTC Transportation, Oklahoma City • Garner Trucking, Findlay, Ohio • Grand Island Express, Grand Island, Neb. • Halvor Lines, Superior, Wis. • Load One Transportation & Logistics, Taylor, Mich.

• Motor Carrier Service, Northwood, Ohio • Nussbaum Transportation Services, Hudson, Ill. • Prime Inc., Springfield, Mo. • Thomas E. Keller Trucking, Defiance, Ohio • TLD Logistics Services, Knoxville, Tenn.

• Transpro Freight Systems, Milton, Ontario • Wellington Motor Freight, Aberfoyle, Ontario In addition to the Top 20, TCA and CarriersEdge identified five Fleets to Watch (honorable mentions): • Averitt Express, Cookeville, Tenn.

• Brenny Specialized, St. Joseph, Minn.

• Leonard’s Express, Farmington, N.Y. • Melton Truck Lines, Tulsa, Okla.

• Wilson Logistics, Springfield, Mo. – CCJ Staff

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JOURNAL NEWS

While California’s legislation that effectively outlawed owneroperators in the state has gotten most of the attention, similar initiatives are coming up in other states.

Fleets can help themselves in defining owner-operators

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s California and other states figure out how they’ll handle independent contractor definitions, carriers can take some simple steps that could help them defend their owner-operator classifications, said Ryan Kelly, chief executive officer for Openforce, which helps carriers with outsourcing.

Many of Kelly’s tips involve ways to show clearly that employee drivers and owner-operators are treated differently.

He spoke on “Building a Battle Plan to Survive AB5 and the ABC Test” during a session at the Truckload Carriers Association’s annual meeting, Truckload 2020, held last month in Orlando, Fla. While California’s legislation that effectively outlawed owner-operators in the state, AB5 and its ABC test, has gotten most of the attention in recent months, similar initiatives are coming up in other states, Kelly said. Also, the classification distinction arises in other areas of employment, such as workers’ compensation and other types of insurance. Nevada is friendly to independent contractors, but it has an ABC test in its workers’ compensation law, he said.

California’s biggest problem for trucking has been the B prong of the three-pronged ABC test, which says the contractor cannot be performing work that is essentially the same work as the employer. Two California cases 18

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involving trucking have ruled temporarily against AB5.

“These are great decisions, but still in flux,” Kelly said. It appears some states are watching for court rulings to get worked out before progressing with similar legislation, he said.

The biggest causes of independent contractor misclassification allegations are money and injuries, Kelly said. “Injured ICs can be workers-comp-seeking missiles,” he said. Lacking workers’ compensation or occupational accident insurance, an injured owner-operator is likely to turn to a carrier’s workers’ compensation policy and try to qualify.

One way a fleet can protect against that is to require in a leasing contract that owner-operators have their own insurance covering on-the-job injuries, Kelly said. If owner-operators are able to participate in a carrier’s insurance plan, consult with legal counsel regarding chargebacks, which can get “sticky” over nuances in federal law of whether the insurance is protecting the public or the owner-operator, he said.

“If you are charging your owner-operators back for insurance, be very careful about markups” on the premiums, Kelly said, which are viewed differently among states. Maryland “almost treats that as the selling of insurance.”

He encouraged fleets to “mind the

| april 2020

details” in distinguishing driver types at every phase of onboarding, to the point of having separate tracks for orientation.

While some fleets give owner-operators the same “employee handbook” that employees get, they should “make it a specific owner-operator manual,” Kelly said.

Even better, arrange it so owneroperators don’t need a manual, which is in line with accommodating their desire to be identified as experienced and truly independent contractors. Similarly, with fleet programs recognizing driver safety or length of service, the ideal would be to differ the programs in name and other details for each driver group, he said.

Even if the courts force California to back away from AB5 and its ABC test, fleets still will face scrutiny to define independent contractors, likely under the Borello test, Kelly said. Borello came from a 1989 California Supreme Court ruling that relies upon up to 13 factors, many of which address how much control the employer has over the worker.

The ABC and Borello tests assume the individual is an employee, putting the burden of proof on the employer to prove the worker is an independent contractor, he said.

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Unscheduled maintenance Cost up more than 20% since 2018

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he cost of an unscheduled mechanical repair continues to increase, closing out 2019 with its fourth consecutive quarterly jump and exceeding $400 for the first time since the Technology Maintenance Council (TMC)/FleetNet Vertical Benchmarking Program began in 2017.

At $407, the average cost of a mechanical repair was 24% higher than the same quarter in 2018. The average cost per tow averaged $1,485 for the past three quarters, and towing events increased more than 30% from Q3 to Q4 2019. Not every roadside event needs a tow, but those soaring costs made their mark on the overall average.

When factoring in tire expenses and towing events, the average cost of a repair hit $450 last quarter, a jump of 26% over the year. Accounting for fleets that submitted data to FleetNet in 2019 that were not included the prior year, the average cost of a repair skyrocketed to $513, a surge of 43% over 12 months.

“Cost per repair looks like a permanent headwind our industry is facing, and it would be advantageous to fleets to seek to address this,” said Robert Braswell, executive director for TMC. The report, co-authored by TMC and FleetNet America, looked at repair costs in the truckload, less-than-truckload and tank sectors and showed roadside repairs varied significantly across all three sectors.

In every VMRS (vehicle maintenance reporting standard) system, the average truckload carrier saw more roadside repairs – meaning trucks were traveling fewer miles between breakdowns – than the average LTL or tank fleet. The bestin-class truckload carrier, however, outperformed the LTL and tank vertical averages in some VMRS systems.

Truckload and LTL carriers each saw an increase in the

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| april 2020

The average cost of a repair skyrocketed to $513 by yearend 2019, a surge of 43% over 12 months.

number of miles traveled between breakdowns. Truckload carriers improved by 20% (an improvement of 2,400 miles) from Q3 2019, while LTL carriers improved 15% (almost 8,000 more miles) between incidents.

A wide gap in variance between the performance of average fleets and the best-in-class carrier suggests there “is a pretty good indication that our industry has room to reduce maintenance costs by closing the gap between the average and best-in-class fleets,” said Jim Buell, executive vice president of sales and marketing for FleetNet America. “People think roadside repairs are like death and taxes. They just happen, and you just deal with it.”

The best-in-class LTL carrier, for example, got 188% more distance – a difference of 27,000 miles – between breakdowns over the fleet average.

Cooling systems, the engine, lights, brakes and tires accounted for 64% of all roadside repairs experienced by participating fleets in the third quarter of 2019. Lighting repair on a per-mile basis improved 15% in Q4, while engine repairs improved 13%. The biggest gain over the quarter was tires, with 29% more miles between repairs.

Buell said there is some seasonality in the Top 5 causes, adding he expected exhaust-related repairs to climb into the

FMCSA’s TechCelerate Now is focused on specific ADAS technology performance categories, including monitoring, warning, braking and steering systems.

FMCSA’s Tech-Celerate Now backed by TMC, ATA, others Truckload and LTL carriers each saw an increase in the number of miles traveled between breakdowns.

Cooling systems, the engine, lights, brakes and tires accounted for 64% of all roadside repairs in the third quarter of 2019.

fifth spot for Q1 2020.

One of the major cost drivers, Buell said, was labor cost associated with being downed on the road. Technician talent is at a premium, and mobile technicians often command top dollar, as that work environment and the hours are not desirable working conditions.

“It makes sense,” he said. “It’s basic economics. It’s supply and demand.”

Length of repair also was up – from 0.9 hours to 1.1 hours – due to technological sophistication of modern equipment, Buell said.

“If you blow a tire, you have to take off a tire inflation system, take the tire off, put the tire back on and put the system back together,” he said.

– Jason Cannon

G

etting familiar with new collision mitigation technologies can be challenging. To help fleets get a better understanding of a growing list of devices designed to improve commercial vehicle safety, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration recently launched Tech-Celerate Now (tech-celeratenow.org).

The Technology and Maintenance Council announced its support of the program that seeks to promote FMCSA’s goals of accelerating the adoption of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) “by developing recommended practices, videos and other technical materials that support the implementation of ADAS technologies in commercial vehicle fleets,” said Robert Braswell, executive director for TMC. “We are very pleased to join this industry coalition to help improve vehicle safety and equipment operation and maintenance.”

Tech-Celerate Now is focused on specific ADAS technology performance categories, including monitoring, warning, braking and steering systems. Among other key tasks, the cooperative will work together to determine appropriate levels of ADAS deployment, serve as a resource on available ADAS technology and provide technical information and video content. The program

also aims to get work truck and van fleets motivated in learning more about the latest collision mitigation technologies.

Tech-Celerate Now brings together government agencies and trucking industry organizations such as TMC, the American Trucking Associations, the American Transportation Research Institute and the OwnerOperator Independent Drivers Association.

At TMC’s meeting in Atlanta in late February, industry stakeholders began plans to develop technical materials and outreach programs aimed at educating trucking industry professionals on the merits of early adoption of ADAS technologies.

“We became the best salesmen, because we’re going to be educating fleets towards all these technologies,” said Ross Froat, director of engineering and information technology for ATA. “All this information that we gather, that we research, that we develop these products with will be on the website. The website will be used as a resource, as a single commercial neutral zone for fleets to go and learn more about these technologies. And also, it will be an area to link them to what providers are out there and where they’re at and how they can get involved if they choose to go that way.”

– Tom Quimby

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Battery-electric Freightliner CX Fleet now being tested

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aimler Trucks North America (DTNA) last month launched the Freightliner Customer Experience (CX) Fleet for its electric truck program. The fleet of all-electric pre-series trucks includes six heavy-duty eCascadias and two medium-duty eM2 106 trucks.

The Freightliner CX Fleet is part of DTNA’s ongoing co-creation initiative that engages customers in the commercial electric vehicle development process by deploying trucks in real-world applications. At least 14 different customers are testing the new fleet.

Participants are members of the Freightliner Electric Vehicle Council, a group of customers working with Freightliner to identify and address hurdles to large-scale deployment of commercial battery-electric vehicles. Over the next 22 months, DTNA will collect and analyze data and feedback from

the CX Fleet to continue to improve upon future vehicle design and assist customers navigating a transition to electric fleets.

Freightliner’s CX Fleet of all-electric pre-series trucks “It’s critical that we colincludes six heavy-duty eCascadias and two mediumlaborate with customers duty eM2 106 trucks. across multiple segments to further our understanding of how provide feedback and real-world use commercial battery-electric trucks will data on the integration of battery-elecbe part of a long-term solution in CO2tric trucks in large-scale fleet operations. neutral transportation,” said Richard The Freightliner Electric Innovation Howard, senior vice president of onFleet recently hit a milestone, surpassing highway sales and marketing for DTNA. 100,000 cumulative miles of operation.

“Our customers provide important The eCascadia is a Class 8 tractor continuous feedback that contributes designed for local and regional distributo our ongoing design and purposeful tion and drayage, and the eM2 is a Class innovation of these trucks, and together 6/7 truck designed for local distribuwe will lead the future.” tion, pickup-and-delivery, food and The CX Fleet adds to the 30-vehicle beverage delivery and last-mile logistics Freightliner Electric Innovation Fleet, applications. which started operation in 2018 to – CCJ Staff

Panel weighs merits, challenges of electric trucking

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uel cell or electric? Or both?

While there may be no rush to choose an alternative powertrain, that could change as lawmakers weigh their options in the ongoing battle against emissions.

California’s Advanced Clean Truck Rule, which the California Air Resources Board (CARB) is expected to adopt in May, will require up to half of new truck sales in certain classes to emit zero emissions by 2030. According to CARB, mediumand heavy-duty trucks account for 21% of greenhouse gas emissions and half of nitrous oxide, or NOx, emissions in the Golden State.

Zero-emissions trucks, both electric and fuel-cell, currently exist as test mules. But that will have to change soon as the state mandate to begin getting zero-emissions trucks to market begins in 2024 and increases on an annual basis thereafter.

To help shed light on fuel-cell and electric powertrains, the Green Truck Summit at last month’s Work Truck Show in Indianapolis hosted a panel to compare the two new kids on the block — which aren’t exactly new.

Electric powertrains were tested by the U.S. Postal Service in 22

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the late 1800s but didn’t make the cut because of range limitations and charge times. Fuel-cell development can be traced back for decades, with one of the more memorable prototypes being GM’s Electrovan.

“If you look at why hydrogen hasn’t been successful, it’s because it’s expensive to manufacture,” said Bill Cherry, director of national accounts for Nikola.

Nikola, which has developed Class 8 fuel-cell prototype tractors, aims to lower hydrogen production costs by producing the gas through electrolysis powered by solar and wind.

Their goal is to build 700 stations over the next 10 years.

Nikola also is developing electric powertrains, and the company believes there’s room for both technologies. “It just depends on the application,” Cherry said.

Abas Goodarzi, president and chief executive officer for US Hybrid, agreed. Shorter routes are more suited to electric, and hitting 100 miles with a large load may require charging up, which can hurt productivity.

“At that point, you may want to use hydrogen,” Goodarzi said. “The good thing about fuel cells is that the performance

Nikola teams with acquisition firm, eyes NASDAQ listing

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ikola Corp. last month entered into an agreement with VectoIQ Acquisition Corp., a publicly-traded specialpurpose acquisition company.

Upon the closing of the transaction, the combined company will be named Nikola Corp. The implied enterprise value at closing was $3.3 billion, and Nikola said the proceeds will help accelerate production, allow it to break ground on its manufacturing facility in Coolidge, Ariz., and begin its hydrogen station infrastructure rollout.

The company expects to generate revenue by 2021 with the rollout of its BEV truck, followed by FCEV truck sales starting in 2023 and the initial buildout of its hydrogen fueling network to serve Nikola customers’ fleets, including Anheuser-Busch.

“We are on a roll,” said Trevor Milton, founder and chief executive officer for

Nikola. “The world is transitioning to zero-emissions platforms. We believe we have a differentiated business model built on economics, not government subsidies.

We now need to doubledown and speed up the timelines and get to market.”

Nikola said it has more Nikola expects to generate revenue by 2021 with than $10 billion in preorder leases to-date and a joint ven- the rollout of its BEV truck, followed by FCEV truck sales in 2023 and the initial buildout of its hydrogen ture in place with European fueling network. industrial vehicle manufacturer Iveco. Nikola’s business model “Nikola’s vision of a zero-emissions supplies both the truck and hydrogen future and ability to execute were key fueling infrastructure. drivers in our decision.”

“In our two-year quest to find a Milton will serve as executive chairpartner that was a proven technology man of the combined company. Mark leader and focused on making a global Russell, who joined Nikola as president difference, Nikola was the clear winner,” in 2019, will serve as CEO. said Stephen Girsky, CEO for VectoIQ. – Jason Cannon

To help shed light on fuel-cell and electric powertrains, the Green Truck Summit at last month’s Work Truck Show in Indianapolis hosted a panel to compare the two.

of electric is always the same. They fuel-up like natural gas but drive like an electric.”

Another advantage for fuel-cell powertrains is their ability to work in freezing climates.

“When you run a fuel cell, you’re not seasonable-dependent,” Goodarzi said. “With electric, it makes a big difference if you’re in Boston or Los Angeles.”

Tim Campbell, managing director for Campbells Consultancy, said the choice between the two alt-fuels calls for collaboration. “Look at hydrogen and battery, but you cannot do it in isolation,” he said.

Energy density in batteries has increased through the years,

which has attracted hard-working fleets. “We’re seeing a lot of electrification in refuse trucks,” said Campbell, who resides in the United Kingdom.

As with hydrogen, the challenge remains a lack of charging infrastructure needed to support amp-hungry powertrains.

While enough power is being generated, getting that power to trucks is a different story.

“The power’s not in the right place at the right time,” Campbell said, adding that facilities will be assessed more often for their electric capacity as EVs continue to gain market share.

When it comes to smaller vehicle classes, OEMs have made it clear where they think their investments are best served.

Ford, Chevy, Nissan and Volkswagen are betting heavy on battery-electric. While fuel-cell projects may continue – both Chevy and Volkswagen have been active in that arena – they see more practical scalability in battery-electric.

Ted Cannis, director of global electrification for Ford, said U.S. charging stations currently number over 12,500. A map posted by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data Center shows 42 U.S. hydrogen stations, all in California.

– Tom Quimby commercial carrier journal

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Trevor Milton still wants to revolutionize trucking And he still doesn’t care if you don’t believe him

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n September 2016, CCJ profiled an up-and-coming trucking entrepreneur whose name probably didn’t immediately resonate. At the time, serial entrepreneur Trevor Milton was best known as “the guy who said he’s going to build a 2,000-hp tractor.” Fast forward 42 months, and the truck’s power output is a little less eye-popping but a lot more practical – up to 2,000 lb.-ft. torque with up to 1,000 hp.

With partners like Iveco, Ryder, Wabco and Bosch in-tow, in a little less than four years, Milton – who founded natural gas fueling system designer dHybrid Systems and sold it to Worthington Industries in 2014 – has delivered on practically everything he said back then, and you can make a case that he’s overdelivered. For Nikola Motor Company (NMC), a firm that was widely panned as “vaporware” in 2016, credibility has done nothing but pile up.

“There is a unique personality to entrepreneurs that succeed,” Milton said.

“When their backs are against the wall, they are more focused and honed in than ever before. That pressure motivates them and brings out the very best in them. That is how I was. When people said that about me, it made me want it more.”

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) late last summer awarded NMC a $1.7 million grant to advance its research into fuel-cell-membrane electrode assembly.

Nikola’s hydrogen station partner, NEL Hydrogen of Oslo, Norway, also was awarded $2 million from DOE. In partnership with Anheuser-Busch and BYD Motors, NMC in November assisted with the first zero-emissions beer delivery in the brewer’s hometown of St. 24

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Louis. Nikola’s hydrogen-electric truck picked up the load of beer and delivered it to Anheuser-Busch local wholesaler partner Lohr Distributors, marking the first commercial delivery using a Nikola hydrogen-electric vehicle.

In February, NMC debuted an electric pickup truck, the Badger, which features an estimated range of up to 600 miles while delivering 980 lb.-ft. of torque, 906 peak horsepower (455 continuous horsepower) and a towing capacity of more than 8,000 pounds.

Milton uprooted his once-fledgling company from Salt Lake City and moved south to Arizona, where he’s picked a 500acre site on the west side of Phoenix to erect a 1 million-square-foot facility and last month led his business to the brink of a more than $3 billion public offering on the NASDAQ. Looking back on it all, Milton joked that he sometimes wonders “how I didn’t screw it all up.”

“There are so many decisions you can make, and it only takes one bad one to derail the entire thing,” he said. “I guess a lot of my past companies, some successes and some failures, have prepared me for this. I wouldn’t be ready to make those decisions if I had not had the history of learning already on a smaller scale. I am very taken aback every time I think about where we are today and how we got here. Nothing short of a miracle and hard work.”

Milton and his company created the conversation about hydrogen while the rest of the industry was focused on platooning and driverless trucks, and when attentions en masse turned to electrification, he doubled down.

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Nikola Motor Company’s business model supplies both the truck and hydrogen fueling infrastructure, and Trevor Milton sees the complete lack of hydrogen infrastructure as a path to the kind of success that natural gas and other alternative fuels never enjoyed.

“I always tell people that Toyota created the fuel cell for mass adoption and Nikola sold the fuel cell for mass adoption,” he said. “Toyota never learned how to solve the problem of making it cost-effective.

Nikola did. Now the whole world believes in hydrogen.”

The one thing Milton has yet to do is actually deliver a truck, but Nikola expects to launch its battery-electric truck to the urban pickup-and-delivery segment next year, with long-haul fuel-cell trucks to follow.

Nikola’s business model supplies both the truck and hydrogen fueling infrastructure, and Milton sees the complete lack of hydrogen infrastructure as a path to the kind of success that natural gas and other alternative fuels never enjoyed.

“You get to start from scratch and learn everything wrong that everyone else did,” he said. “With hydrogen, you are able to solve multiple problems — grid balancing, green energy, cost of production, building only on routes that are pre-sold with trucks. No one thought of that when they were building out the CNG market.

They dabbled in it, but never full vertical integration, which is key.”

With a range of about 750 miles, the fuel-cell trucks currently on NMC’s books – around 14,000 – are on par with all the Class 8 units ordered in February across all OEMs. – Jason Cannon

Isuzu doubles down on gas

INBRIEF

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• Daimler Trucks North America announced a shift from a traditional brand-centric product strategy for its Freightliner and Western Star operations to a segment-based business to better position the company to serve both its on-highway and vocational customers by aligning its internal resources to meet their segment-specific needs.

iesel isn’t dead, but it’s certainly under siege in the last-mile segment.

Isuzu’s lineup has featured a gaspowered truck in the North American market since 1994, and at last month’s Work Truck Show in Indianapolis, the company added two new gasoline engines to its N-Series.

A 6.6-liter V8 will be available in the Class 3 NPR and Class 4 NPRHD, while a 6.0-liter V8 is slated for A 6.6-liter V8 will be available in Isuzu’s offering in both the Class 5 NQR Class 3 NPR and Class 4 NPR-HD, while a (17,950-lb. GVWR) and Class 5 NRR. 6.0-liter V8 is slated for both the Class 5 The NRR will be the first 19,500-lb.

NQR and Class 5 NRR. GVWR low-cab-forward truck on the market to offer a gasoline engine option.

Emissions regulations, definitions of which Isuzu Commercial Truck of America President Shaun Skinner called “a work in progress,” have made gasoline an attractive option when coupled with a shortening length of haul and the mechanical complexities of a modern diesel engine.

“Gas truck sales for the entire medium-duty segment continue to grow,” Skinner said, noting that gasoline engines account for 50% of Class 4 and 5 mediumduty truck sales, while gasoline trucks already make up almost 50% of Isuzu’s North American sales.

The new small-block 6.6-liter V8 direct-injection engine has a power output of 350 hp and 425 lb.-ft. of torque at 3,800 rpm. It features variable valve timing and a variable displacement oil pump that fluctuates oil pressure based on engine demand.

The engine will be matched to a General Motors-engineered 6L90 six-speed automatic transmission with double overdrive and a lock-up torque converter.

Standard cab and crew-cab models will be available, with wheelbases ranging from 109 to 176 inches.

The new 6.0-liter V8 engine will be built from a GM Vortec V8 block that has been customized to Isuzu specifications, and it will produce 311 hp and generate 353 lb.-ft. of torque at 4,150 rpm. The engine will be matched to a six-speed Allison 1000 RDS transmission with power-takeoff capabilities — the first time Isuzu has offered a PTO in a gas-powered truck.

A standard cab with seating for three or a crew cab with seating for up to seven both are available in wheelbases ranging from 132.5 to 176 inches.

Each new gasoline model will offer a 38.6-gallon stainless-steel fuel tank, and both engines feature a 200,000-mile design life.

Spartan Motors will handle assembly of the trucks from its facility in Charlotte, Mich. Production of NPR Gas (12,000-lb. GVWR) and NPR-HD Gas (14,500-lb.

GVWR) models equipped with the new 6.6-liter V8 gasoline engine will begin this July. Work on the Class 5 units equipped with the 6.0-liter engine is expected to begin late this year or early next year.

– Jason Cannon

• Nikola Corp., Iveco and FPT Industrial will manufacture the Nikola Tre at Iveco’s plant in Ulm, Germany, beginning in 2021, after the facility undergoes a $43.9 million upgrade.

The heavy-duty battery-electric model is based on Iveco’s S-Way commercial vehicle platform and integrates Nikola’s truck technology, controls and infotainment.

• Continental made its HDL2 DL and HDL2 DL Eco Plus drive tires available in a new size, 295/75R22.5, to allow fleets to spec the same size tire on both the steer and drive axles, simplifying casing management.

• Meritor launched Drivetrain on Demand, a service that offers simplified ordering processes for U.S. and Canadian customers needing fast replacement of driveshaft and differential assemblies within 24 hours.

Customers purchasing from the Drivetrain on Demand portfolio of more than 10,000 driveshaft assembly part numbers can order via MeritorPartsXpress.com.

• Thermo King launched its Performance Advantage service to provide customers with a set of maintenance programs designed to extend the life of their transportation refrigeration equipment, increase uptime and reduce costs. Benefits include fixed/predictable rates, choice of plans, product coverage and reporting packages.

• Phillips Connect Technologies (PCT) and CIE Manufacturing (CIEM) formalized a Preferred Partner Agreement for PCT to provide its telematics offerings for CIEM’s OEM chassis and for CIEM to promote PCT as its preferred telematics partner.

• Utilimaster opened a new 105,000-squarefoot facility in Bristol, Ind., that will employ nearly 200 workers and be dedicated to commercial fleet and work vehicle production, research and development and aftermarket parts and service.

• Peterbilt opened its 400th dealer location with a new TLG Peterbilt facility in Dunn, N.C. commercial carrier journal

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INBRIEF • FleetPride, a distributor of truck and trailer parts to the independent heavy-duty aftermarket, opened a new location in Columbus, Ohio, to expand its business in the center of the state.

• TireView, P.S.I.’s tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS), now has a dedicated website at TireView.com that features general information about the benefits of tire pressure monitoring and TireView’s applications for trucks, tractors and trailers.

• Hendrickson launched an app designed to centralize the company’s product and training videos, Parts Plus lookup system, technician help and Field Service Request system for ease of access and reference.

• Eco Flaps announced that McLane Co., a provider of grocery and foodservice products, is installing its splash guards on 3,800 tractors and 4,800 trailers.

• Double Coin Tires/CMA added two new warehouses in Rancho Cucamonga and Riverside, Calif.

• Trader Interactive, a marketplace and dealer services provider for the commercial equipment industries, acquired NextTruck, a buy/sell digital listing service for commercial trucks and trailers, from The Cosby Harrison Co..

• Reading Truck Group of Pennsylvania acquired Action Fabrication & Truck Equipment Inc. and its affiliates. Action is a manufacturer and upfitter of service utility truck bodies and specialty truck equipment bodies. Reading now has 12 distribution and upfitting sites nationwide.

• Comvoy, a searchable marketplace for work trucks and vans, announced a partnership with HomeAdvisor, a home services marketplace, to help HomeAdvisor’s network of service professionals find work vehicles suited for their jobs.

• Walton, Ky.-based American Trailer Rental Group acquired Advantage Trailer Leasing of Texas. Advantage is based in Dallas and also has operations in Houston, San Antonio, Austin and Longview.

• Mckinney Trailer Rentals, a Brea, Calif.-based provider of over-the-road trailer rentals and leases, launched Mckinney Trailer Sales, a new division focusing on trailer sales.

• Stertil-Koni, a provider of heavy-duty lifts, produced and sold its 1,000th inground scissor-style EcoLift made at the company’s U.S. manufacturing facility in Streator, Ill.

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FCCC debuts production MT50e all-electric chassis

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reightliner Custom Chassis Corp. (FCCC) is partnering with Proterra, a provider of highperformance electric transportation systems for The MT50e is the first of heavy-duty platforms, to develop an enhanced several planned commercial electric vehicles from production-ready version of its all-electric FCCC for use in a variety of MT50e truck chassis for 2020. The MT50e will applications. feature Proterra’s battery system that features 226 kWh of energy capacity and an all-electric zero-emissions drive system.

Built on FCCC’s MT platform, the all-electric MT50e will feature a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 16,000 to 23,000 pounds, with no reduction in cargo volume capacity. The vehicle’s factory-installed fully integrated electric power system is designed to enable more than 125 miles of driving range and to fully charge in about three hours with DC fast charging.

“Fleet operators are looking to electrify delivery trucks today, and there is growing industry interest in a high-performance electric chassis with an energydense battery system,” said Ryan Popple, CEO for Proterra. “The MT50e offers fleet operators a leading vehicle platform they’re familiar with, combined with – CCJ Staff proven electric vehicle technology and expertise from Proterra.”

Autonomous truck developer Starsky calls it quits

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tarsky Robotics, an autonomous truck developer that also operated as a 50-truck motor carrier as recently as a year ago, has wound down its trucking operations. In a blog post March 19, Stefan Seltz-Axmacher, the company’s founder and chief execuIn June 2019, autonomous truck developer Starsky Robotics’ tive officer, said Starsky’s Series B round of unmanned truck performed a funding “fell apart” last November and that 9.4-mile run at highway speeds the company was forced to lay off most of its on public roads. workforce the same week.

Seltz-Axmacher said that since January, he had been attempting to sell Starsky’s assets, including its patents related to autonomous technology, but that investors weren’t interested in the company’s safety-focused approach and wanted more features. He said the autonomous development field also had become more crowded, making it harder to raise cash, and that the trucking downturn from late 2018 through 2019 also had set the company back.

Starsky operated as a U.S. Department of Transportation-registered motor carrier as a means to hire drivers, build its business and test its autonomous systems. The company scored $17 million in funding in 2018 and in mid-2019 operated a nearly 10-mile run in Florida using an unmanned vehicle with a live load on a public road, with the truck being piloted by autonomous programming and monitored remotely from an office.

– Todd Dills

Western Star celebrates 200,000th truck

Western Star celebrated the production of its 200,000th truck with an event at the company’s Portland Truck Manufacturing Plant in Oregon. The model-year 2020 4700SB rolled off the assembly line and was delivered to customer Joe Johnson Equipment of Innisfil, Ontario, in a March 5 ceremony attended by Western Star executives, plant employees and customer representatives. The truck bears a special marker and has the signatures of all the plant employees who helped build it inscribed underneath its hood. It will be upfitted as a vacuum excavator. Western Star also is providing a sneak peek at WesternStarTrucks.com of its newest model in the vocational truck product portfolio of Daimler Trucks North America. The truck is set to be fully unveiled this summer.

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TEST DRIVE: VOLVO ELECTRIC VNR

Volvo hopes e-truck moves freight, public opinion

This electric VNR test unit is part of Volvo’s LIGHTS partnership, which will see a combination of straight trucks and tractors service dedicated routes in and around California’s Inland Empire.

BY JASON CANNON

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he electric truck is carving out a niche in stop-and-start and lowmileage applications, so sending a small fleet of them into California’s ports sounds like a no-brainer.

Announced just more than a year ago, the Low Impact Green Heavy Transport Solution (LIGHTS) partnership teamed together Volvo Trucks North America (VTNA) fleet customers NFI (CCJ Top 250, No. 28) and Dependable Highway Express (No. 125) in the deployment of electric VNR trucks for use at their 28

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California port operations — part of a joint effort to demonstrate the ability of battery-electric vehicles (EVs) to improve freight and warehouse efficiencies, reduce emissions and improve air quality.

The first crop of LIGHTS trucks have been ordered and delivered, but delivery of one straight truck in particular may have been a little behind schedule because, in mid-February, I was driving it around the Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif.

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My test unit belonged to DHE and is part of Volvo’s LIGHTS partnership, which will see a combination of straight trucks and tractors – five in all – service dedicated routes in and around California’s Inland Empire.

The first five trucks were built on the line at Volvo’s New River Valley (NRV) truck assembly plant in Virginia as gliders before being finished by hand in Greensboro, N.C. When the electric VNR enters production late this year, it will be built at NRV on the same line

The gauge cluster on the electric VNR is where you will find the battery range and other information, such as vehicle speed.

as conventional VNR models, but its electric driveline will be installed on a different production line.

The eVNR’s driveline is time-tested, having started on Volvo’s electric bus — Volvo has sold more than 4,000 electrified buses since 2010. It then was integrated into Volvo’s European FE electric cabover before making its way to the VNR. The truck’s radiator is functional and keeps the system heated and cooled, which supports battery life. A modular power box – basically the brain of the whole outfit – sits where a diesel engine normally would. Packs of batteries flank the cab, each weighing about 1,150 pounds, and supply onboard power. The battery system is designed like a shelf, allowing packs to be slid in and out for service.

The charging port is located on the driver’s side, which prevents the driver from unknowingly pulling away while the truck is charging. You’d practically have to climb over the cable to get into the cab.

The eVNR features center-mounted dual electric motors with a two-speed gearbox. The truck seamlessly shifts into second gear around 30 mph. It doesn’t take off like a rocket – nor should it – but the torque and power are instant.

The electric truck one day may revolutionize the transportation industry,

but very little of what matters to the driver is slated to get an overhaul. As far as the driving experience, there’s no sexy story to tell. It feels, handles and drives like a truck, which is a good thing. Of all the obstacles to overcome – lack of infrastructure, range anxiety and battery weight and cost – reinventing on-road feel and performance is an unnecessary war to fight.

Gear selector buttons – neutral, drive and reverse – are mounted in the dash.

To move the truck forward, you release the air brake, hit the D button and punch the throttle. There’s no creeping along at idle, so hitting the pedal is pretty important.

The amount of noise coming from the truck – or at least the absence of it – feels … odd. A lot of engineering has gone into a modern diesel engine to limit the amount of noise it makes, but there’s no mistaking a diesel-powered Volvo VNR for a Tesla Model 3 in a blind test. The only noise coming from the electric truck, aside from the tires making contact with the pavement, comes from the air compressor.

By placing the truck in reverse, its electric motors turn in the other direction. There is no “shifting” into reverse.

That makes the change in course much smoother and easier on the cargo.

A gauge where the tachometer normally would be tells you the amount

of load on the battery. At rest, it points to zero. Depending on speed, grade and load, it will drift to some degree of negative.

Coasting downhill with the regenerative brake engaged will pump more power into the battery and push the needle toward the plus side, because you’re making more energy than you’re using.

The regenerative brake is located on the stalk where the engine brake would be, and it similarly has three stages. Each will engage after about 2 seconds of the driver having taken their foot off the accelerator. An automatic setting takes into consideration the truck’s payload and targeted range to capture the most amount of energy needed in the smoothest stage possible.

Volvo will use the LIGHTS project to help determine just how far its electrified VNRs can travel on a full charge under load, but the range demand on these routes is minimal — generally less than 175 miles.

Volvo has logged about 2,000 test miles across the five trucks, but they’re about to be handed over full time. These trucks aren’t technology demonstrators.

They’re working trucks. They have real freight-moving obligations, and downtime will be a problem.

That’s exactly how VTNA President Peter Voorhoeve wants it. LIGHTS isn’t a science experiment, and he hopes it will pave the way for an electrified future where electric trucks at a port will be as ubiquitous as Maersk containers.

“I would like to able to say that this LIGHTS project really changed the use of electromobility,” said Voorhoeve, noting that he has a higher objective for the project than simply getting orders. “I hope to sell as many of them as possible, but this is larger than selling trucks. This is about moving the public opinion that this works, that this is the way forward.

If we get that, then LIGHTS was a success.”

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in focus: HARMONICS AND VIBRATION

Picking up vibrations Harmonics can lead to driver discomfort, breakdowns

BY JASON CANNON

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nless you’re a Beach Boy, there’s nothing good about picking up vibrations.

In the search for a smoother and quieter ride, industry trends such as engine downspeeding have had an effect on truck dynamics and harmonics, often contributing to noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) issues.

While component manufacturers and OEMs have adapted truck designs accordingly, tire imbalance, a damaged driveline, driveline imbalance and driveline angles are several potential causes for vibration that can result in driver discomfort and vehicle impairment, making it important to identify the root cause before starting any repairs.

As a first step, Tom Bosler, director of global driveshaft product planning for Dana’s commercial vehicle business, suggested following the company’s stepby-step Vibration Diagnostics guide, a flowchart for diagnosing the most common causes of vehicle vibrations and how the issues can be addressed.

Similarly, the Technology and Maintenance Council’s recommended practice on troubleshooting vehicle ride complaints in heavy-duty tractors and trucks (RP 648) offers a comprehensive diagnostics guideline.

“While the driveshaft or tires are often assumed to be the NVH culprit, the problem of vibration in the powertrain should be handled with a systematic approach,” Bosler said. “NVH issues may be rooted in a variety of vehicle configurations and can interact with the natural frequency of many parts of the vehicle, such as the transmission, axle, suspension, clutch, tires, dashboard, door panels or other components. A technician 30

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should investigate beyond where the immediate symptom is being experienced.”

If a driveline is suspected as the source, first look for missing or loose parts such as bolts, snap rings and balance weights, said Anthony Lentini, chief engineer for Meritor.

Tire imbalance, a damaged driveline, driveline imbalance “Inspect for other and driveline angles are several potential causes for damage, such as bent vibration. or dented tubes or rail and steering column.” excessive run-out, lash or end play in Ley and Lentini agreed that if a vibrauniversal joints, the slip section and the tion analyzer is not readily available, center bearing, indicating excess wear,” using the conditions where the issue is Lentini said. “If these conditions are present can help troubleshoot. To deterfound, repair or replacement of commine if the imbalance is caused by the ponents as needed will likely resolve tire or the driveline, turning may help. the issue. Driveline layout can also be a If the vibration gets faster or slower source of problems if the universal joint operating angles are too high or not well on turns, it likely is tire-related. If the vibration only is present under load or canceled.” throttle and not when in cruise, it may If inspection of the driveshaft checks be angle issues. If the vibration is in a out and joint angles are within recomvery narrow speed range, balance or mended limits, the next step involves the center bearing isolator would be the more detailed troubleshooting by using likely root cause. a vibration analyzer to determine the If it’s necessary to have the shafts frequency at which the vibration occurs rebalanced, it is best practice to “systemthrough the use of accelerometers. balance” where two or more shafts are “This will help to positively identify connected, which will represent the the root cause,” said Jason Ley, chief assembled condition in the vehicle. engineer for Meritor. “The identified Isolation of driveline-induced vibrafrequency will match the operating parameters of the source component — for tions also can be improved by changing the stiffness of the center bearing example, wheel or driveshaft rpm when cushion. Driveline manufacturers offer vibration occurs.” a choice of cushion stiffness to optimize Placement of the accelerometer senthe isolation feature. The vehicle OEM sors is critical, he said. “You’ll want to detect vibration levels where drivers feel or driveline manufacturer should be consulted before making this change. the problem — for example, at the seat

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CONGRATULATIONS!

WINNERS Kevin Kocmich and Don Lewis, winners of the Driver of the Year Contest, each receive $25,000, thanks to sponsors Cummins and Love’s. Owner-operator finalists Jesse Dennis, leased to Prime Inc., and team drivers Robert and Tracy Roth, leased to Erb International, each win $2,500. Likewise, company driver finalists Robie Jensen, of Fremont Contract Carriers, and Randy Kuryk, of Bison Transport, each win $2,500.

The contest is organized by the Truckload Carriers Association, Overdrive and Truckers News.

Kevin Kocmich

Don Lewis

Diamond Transportation System The 2019 Owner-Operator of the Year

Wilson Logistics The 2019 Company Driver of the Year.

sponsors:

Read about the winners

OverdriveOnline.com or TruckersNews.com

n PA R T N E R S O L U T I O N S / T H E R M O K I N G

Driven by Data

Thermo King technology solutions increase uptime, retention and profits

Your priorities are clear: company profitability, customer satisfaction, driver retention, and fleet uptime – just to name a few. As you juggle these, industry regulations are changing and becoming more complex just as quickly as the needs of your customers. As a business owner, you need a partner who understands the industry and can help you run a profitable business.

Precedent warranty claims are at the lowest rate ever seen on Thermo King trailer platforms.

Thermo King also has a Quality and Reliability Engineering team dedicated to continuously making improvements on the products, in addition to the equipment being backed by a warranty. So you can rest easy knowing your business is covered day in and day out.

If you are concerned about being Evergreen CARB and EPA emissions compliant, the Precedent S Series was developed for just that purpose.

“We’ve spent a lot of money through the years to stay CARB compliant and as efficient as possible so when we had the opportunity to add to our fleet in 2018, Thermo King’s Precedent S-600RR unit was a no-brainer. We knew we wanted an Evergreen solution that would be with us for the long haul,” says Christopher Brach, vice president of operations at Radiant Clipper.

DATA IS KEY: INSIGHTS ON EQUIPMENT PERFORMANCE AND INCREASING OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY The internet has fundamentally changed customer expectations. As a result, instant information has become the norm. The only way to deliver what your clients want is by fully embracing data-driven fleet operations.

Real-time telematics solutions are an integral part of a fleet’s “big data” picture. When telematics solutions are enabled, they can open a window into the real-time fleet operations and provide critical visibility for items OPERATING COSTS AND RETURN ON INVESTMENT such as temperature-sensitive products, cargo traceability, and asset moniManaging rapidly growing business costs is not easy and uptime is essentoring. This can provide a more comprehensive assessment of the fleet. tial. So what can you do to address this problem? Solar power. It’s an ideal Is your unit on? What’s the temperature set-point? Thermo King’s solution to meet your power needs and TracKing® telematics, a GPRS/GPS save you money. temperature and asset management ThermoLite® solar panels, by Thermo system, can offer you real-time visibiKing, help lower operational costs by lity into the whereabouts and status reducing diesel APU run time by 20 to of every asset you own on the road.

30%, extending battery life to five or Quality data can help you increase fleet more years, and helping match APU and efficiency by detecting potential issues tractor preventive maintenance. With and determining timely maintenance APUs, solar offsets daytime heat loads, practices and delivering the information helps maintain peak performance, and your customers demand. provides a full battery bank.

Today’s fleets are under increasing Solar power offers a host of benefits pressure to improve productivity, and for fleets running without APUs, such many rely on data from their transport KEVIN JOHNSON, VICE PRESIDENT, CPx as reducing jump starts, expensive management systems to direct their road calls, and the cost of replacement operations. batteries. Solar panels can also power “TracKing telematics allows our diesel-fired heaters, keep tractor batteries healthy, and ensure electronics employees to monitor the current and past temperature history of a load, stay powered up even over the weekend. trailer location, fuel levels, door openings, and reefer operation data in real Martin Brower Brampton Canada knows firsthand the benefits of solar time and across our organization. This has enabled us to improve our asset power. “With the solar panel, we can leave the reefer on cycle-sentry utilization, reduce fuel consumption, and better manage maintenance,” mode all year long, including winter, without the worry of a dead battery. says Kevin Johnson, vice president, CPx. “We recognized the importance Previously, we’d run in continuous mode, burning fuel for no reason, just that our customers place on cold chain security, and the Thermo King to ensure the battery would stay charged,” says Fleet and Warehouse TracKing system gives us real-time temperature monitoring now, and a Engineering Manager Chris Chua. “We are also recording fewer engine traceability solution ready for those who will be needing it in the future.” hours on the reefer, which stretches out the warranty time — it takes longer to reach the 15,000-hour mark. Both translate to financial savings and FOOD SAFETY, EQUIPMENT RELIABILITY, reduced emissions.”

AND EMISSION CONTROLS One final note regarding solar: If you want to prevent midday liftgate Refrigerated transportation is changing as consumers demand fresher battery failures and help reduce fuel consumption and delivery delays, food. This adds pressure on your business to deliver a fresh product in a then solar power is the way to go. timelier manner while ensuring its quality when it’s in your fleet.

You rely on equipment that will not only perform to your customers’ A STRONG PARTNER high expectations but is reliable and efficient. Thermo King has been Thermo King is a dedicated business partner who offers a wide variety around since 1938 and offers premium products, such as Precedent® of products and services that can help you deliver peace of mind to your S-600RR unit. Thermo King’s first priority is protecting perishable products, customers by ensuring temperature-sensitive goods make it to their destiwhich is why units are factory programmed to run with tighter temperanations safely and efficiently. In addition to understanding what keeps you ture ranges and shorter null cycle times than the competitor to ensure the up at night, Thermo King is a leader in the transportation industry and can safe delivery of your customers’ products. help you run a more profitable business..

Thermo King also takes your equipment quality and reliability concerns seriously. They have invested heavily in the resources and technology to make capable units so you can increase asset utilization within your fleet Learn more at ThermoKing.com/Driven and maximize your bottom line. With a relentless focus on quality, the

“We recognized the importance that our customers place on cold chain security, and the Thermo King TracKing system gives us real-time temperature monitoring now, and a traceability solution ready for those who will be needing it in the future.”

MAKING THE LATEST TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENTS WORK FOR YOUR FLEET BY AARON HUFF

technology

Working together OEMs, ELD providers to pare down vehicle connectivity

“C

onnected vehicle” technology covers a wide range of applications that drivers, fleets and industry suppliers use to increase asset productivity and safety.

Examples include remote diagnostics, overthe-air programming, electronic logging devices (ELDs), tire pressure monitoring systems (TPMS) and video event recorders.

Fleets often install multiple devices on their vehicles to run these and other applications.

Each device may require a separate wireless subscription.

Increasingly, fleets are looking to consolidate OEMs use telematics to remotely program trucks and engines. Bobby their mobile technologies. Truck makers are Weisneck supervises the remote programming and diagnostics team in giving them a pathway to do this with factoryVolvo’s Uptime Center. installed telematics systems. OEMs use these systems to power their remote diagnostics services and remote to its vehicle’s data bus; and the third is the OEM’s telematics system. programming and to gather operating data for product Forte has been talking with the fleet’s tractor suppliers to use development. the factory-installed telematics devices to eliminate this redunFleets traditionally have spec’d their trucks with prewired dancy. The OEM’s telematics systems would send data to servers kits to speed aftermarket installation of telematics and ELD in the cloud, where telematics companies such as Geotab would systems. These kits typically add $500 to the cost of a vehicle have access to the information for its applications. but don’t eliminate the need for secondary antennas and wireInstead of installing hardware after purchasing a vehicle, a less subscriptions.

“There is a lot of redundancy,” said Nick Forte, vice presifleet could go to the online portal of its preferred fleet management provider and enter a VIN number. Data integrations dent of maintenance and equipment for Hirschbach Motor between the servers of the OEM and the mobile fleet manLines (CCJ Top 250, No. 65). agement provider would make the data available to the fleet’s The Dubuque, Iowa-based fleet has three cellular data cloud-based applications. connections for each of its 2,000 trucks. One is for the tablets In addition to consolidating hardware and wireless costs, used to run its ELDs and other applications from Transflo; fleets would benefit from their telematics hardware being covanother is for Geotab fleet management devices that connect ered by their vehicle warranty and OEM dealer network, said Brian Mulshine, director of customer experience for Navistar.

OEMs such as Navistar are working with industry technolINTERESTED IN TRUCKING ogy suppliers to eliminate the need for fleets to install thirdTECHNOLOGY? party telematics devices. “Fleets are coming to a point where Go to ccjdigital.com/news/subscribe-to-newsletters they are saying, ‘Stop it. You have to work together,’ ” Mulshine to subscribe to the CCJ Technology Weekly e-mail said. newsletter.

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technology

Neil Cawse, chief executive officer for Geotab, believes that within the next five years, fleets will opt-out of installing telematics devices because the connected vehicles of OEMs will come standard with a free basic management platform.

Volvo Trucks and Mack Trucks have announced integrations with Geotab, Verizon Connect and Omnitracs. Geotab also integrates with embedded telematics systems in lightand medium-duty vehicles from GM and Ford.

Freightliner installs telematics devices from Zonar but has not made any announcements to make the data available to third-party telematics devices. Also, Kenworth and Peterbilt have a partnership with Trimble but have not announced plans to do likewise.

The change to using factory-installed telematics devices is a big departure from the transportation industry reusing the same devices on vehicles as they cycle through fleet equipment.

The evolution of mobile operating systems has ushered in a new era where fleets replace their onboard computers and display units far more frequently, said Ray Greer, chief executive for Omnitracs. As Omnitracs integrates with more OEM-installed telematics systems, the company probably won’t be getting out of the hardware business anytime soon, Greer said.

Trucks go through several owners before they reach their end of life, and while the original buyer of a new vehicle may not install telematics hardware, the used truck buyer will install their own hardware, he said.

“Lifecycle management will always be a challenge for the industry,” Greer said.

“We will always have hardware. I don’t see a world where we won’t.”

AARON HUFF is Senior Editor of Commercial Carrier Journal. E-mail ahuff@ccjmagazine.com or call (385) 225-9472.

Samsara’s redesigned fleet management dashboard helps simplify workflow for the system’s dispatch, maintenance, safety and compliance data.

Samsara updates mobile fleet maintenance system dashboard

S

amsara has redesigned the dashboard of its mobile fleet management system to help provide individual users and teams with better workflows for dispatch, maintenance, safety and compliance. A vertical navigation bar on the left-hand side helps maximize screen space and allows users to scan features grouped by category according to their job responsibilities.

All dashboard features are accessible in the Samsara Fleet app that lets customers set up text and email alerts to review and respond to a variety of events, such as reviewing dashcam footage of risky driver behaviors for coaching.

Managers also can send messages directly to drivers using the Samsara Driver App. – Aaron Huff

Omnitracs hoping to ease IFTA, state highway mileage tax filing

O

mnitracs, a provider of fleet management technology, released an automation tool for reporting and filing International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA) and state highway mileage taxes. Omnitracs Tax Manager, available on the Omnitracs One platform, imports mileage and fuel data from telematics devices and automatically files taxes for all states and jurisdictions.

The application reduces manual processing by using AI-enabled machine learning technology to cross-reference driving history and fuel purchases. A “guided” experience is designed to walk customers step-by-step through the filing process.

– Aaron Huff commercial carrier journal

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technology

INBRIEF • Aptean, an Alpharetta, Ga.-based provider of enterprise software systems, acquired U.K.-based Paragon Software Systems, a provider of transportation management software serving the food and beverage, distribution and retail industries; terms were not released. Aptean said the acquisition will expand its European presence and add Paragon’s software to its product lineup to meet the expanding supply chain needs of its customers.

• Descartes Systems Group, a provider of on-demand Software-as-a-Service offerings designed to unite logistics-intensive businesses in commerce, acquired Peoplevox, a provider of cloud-based e-commerce warehouse management solutions, for $24.5 million.

• Maven Machines announced $7 million in Series A funding led by Allos Ventures. Maven, a supplier of mobile fleet management technologies whose platform combines telematics with workflow, dispatch and route optimization capabilities, said the investment will be used to increase its workforce across all departments, including engineering, operations, sales and marketing.

• BestPass, a provider of streamlined toll management services, rolled out a toll-by-plate service as a supplement to its transponder-based toll coverage. The service includes both power unit and trailer license plates.

• Opus9, a digital freight broker, launched its own free transportation management system (TMS) designed to pair with its existing proprietary Marketplace platform. The company said its TMS allows U.S. shippers to manage all their freight from a single location, including access to a variety of functions such as requesting rates, booking with their carriers, tracking and management of shipments and electronic documentation management.

• Decisiv launched the Decisiv Marketplace, a resource that combines its service relationship management (SRM) platform for truck dealerships, service providers and fleets with an ecosystem of partner services. The company also teamed with Terminal Investment Corp. (Tico), a provider of terminal tractor manufacturing and services, to develop Tico Edge, a cloudbased platform that allows Tico’s dealer network, customers and uptime center to collaborate on repair events and share real-time visibility.

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Many driving incidents unreported, survey finds

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he reason why video-based safety systems continue to be in demand to capture risky driving Integrated Video by behaviors was highlighted in a recent study from Verizon Connect captures Verizon Connect that found that the majority of video and data for review commercial vehicle dangerous driving incidents go by fleet operators. unreported.

Results from a June 2019 survey of 1,000 adults in the United States by Verizon Connect, in partnership with Wakefield Research, show: • 4 in 5 (81%) people say they have witnessed a commercial vehicle being driven dangerously on the road, but only 2 in 5 (41%) reported the incident.

• City residents who witness dangerous commercial driving are more likely to report it than those in the suburbs or rural areas. More than half (51%) of adults in the city say they reported it vs. 39% of adults in the suburbs.

• Millennials who witness dangerous commercial driving are more likely to report it than their older peers. More than half (54%) of Millennials say they reported it vs. 45% of Gen-Xers and 25% of Boomers.

• The top reasons for not reporting are people being unable to capture evidence (37%), not being able to identify the driver (35%) and not knowing how or where to report the information (30%).

– Aaron Huff

Marketplace wants to monetize transport data

D

exFreight, a provider of a blockchain-based logistics platform, and Ocean Protocol, a decenThe dexFreight-Ocean Protocol Web3 data tralized data exchange protocol built to unlock data marketplace is designed for artificial intelligence, announced a partnership to enable transportation to launch an omnichannel data marketplace for the companies to monetize their operational data. transportation and logistics industry. The Web3 data marketplace will be available in April and initially will focus on serving U.S.-based truckload transportation providers.

According to the companies, the U.S. logistics industry is comprised of 500,000 trucking companies, 16,000 brokers and millions of shippers, and the majority of them are small and medium-size companies unable to easily monetize their own data, while third-party software vendors are able to aggregate and sell data to competitors, marketing firms, insurance companies, government agencies and others.

Several types of logistics data will be generated in the dexFreight omnichannel marketplace, including information on the historical location of trucks, shipment attributes, prices, indices and invoices. In the marketplace, carriers, brokers and shippers will own their data and have the option of sharing it with the community without revealing their identity or strategic competitive information. Users contributing data will be compensated in tokens via smart contracts, and they also will have access to premium marketplace features made possible by harvesting the data, such as rate predictions.

– CCJ Staff

technology

INBRIEF

Breakthrough offers data management platform

B

reakthrough, a provider of transportation energy FELIX uses Breakthrough’s and information management, launched its proprietary methodology FELIX (Freight, Energy, Load, Information, eXperifor identifying contracted ence) transportation data management platform decapacity and providing rate guidance to shippers. signed to provide shippers with a single, streamlined system to secure and strengthen strategic relationships with transportation partners. FELIX is based on shippers’ demand for capacity and is designed to help transportation teams optimize their capacity and rates using transparent data captured from the broader transportation ecosystem.

“FELIX was created for clients looking to challenge the status quo of traditional transportation strategies but who were lacking the resources necessary to effectively locate and interpret the powerful data of broader transportation networks around them,” said Doug Mueller, president and chief executive officer for Breakthrough.

“We developed a platform that increases the efficiency of transportation in total, giving shippers the ability to see what is happening in their network both day-to-day and over time.”

The database powering the FELIX platform provides a view of the North American transportation ecosystem, allowing decision-makers to develop long-term plans for their contract freight while reducing the need for spot freight.

Additional highlights of FELIX, according to the company, include increased access to fuel and freight forecasting, the ability to further understand carrier areas of operation, the ability to recognize and offer market-based pricing to carriers, and The Recommender, a proprietary engine that captures transparent network information and turns it into suggested actions in a shipper’s network to drive efficiencies.

– CCJ Staff

DataTrail debuts fleet management software DataTrail’s FleetBridge fleet

D

management software provides

ataTrail announced its equipment and employee FleetBridge fleet manmonitoring software to help agement software designed to improve safety and communication. help fleets manage operational costs and improve safety standards. The software’s GPS-based fleet tracking software can help with getting access to driver safety, time auditing, vehicle and equipment tracking and monitoring, analytics data and after-hours usage.

The software is designed to be simple to navigate and use due to its engaging, interactive and informative interface. It collects data from the fleet and organizes it before providing it through the user-friendly interface. The program also allows operations to manage maintenance schedules, monitor vehicle usage and keep track of productivity and how it affects the business’ bottom line.

FleetBridge also aims to improve safety and security for drivers through driving scores with speed tracking and crash reports. Operations will be able to handle emergencies immediately due to real-time updates and job tracking, and with hours of service tracking, operators can support drivers by letting them know when it’s time to take a break.

– CCJ Staff

• Coyote Logistics, a third-party logistics provider, expanded its CoyotoGo digital freight platform with new on-demand features designed to help shippers speed transactions, including instant quotes, added visibility and online tracking, faster settlements and transparency of facility ratings. The platform also has updates for the carrier app and desktop interface.

• Instructional Technologies Inc., a provider of training offerings for the transportation industry, provided its 15 millionth lesson from its Pro-Tread library.

• Garmin announced a collaboration with Forward Thinking Systems (FTS) to allow Garmin’s fleet 790 commercial navigation device to provide live-streaming video telematics and workforce management without any additional hardware. The android-powered fleet 790 tablet’s built-in camera works as a dashcam when paired with FTS’ FleetCam and Field Warrior app.

• Transflo by Pegasus Transtech, a provider of enterprise mobility and business process automation, integrated with Espyr’s Fit to Pass program to help reinforce healthy lifestyles for drivers and assist them in passing the U.S. Department of Transportation recertification exam. Carriers can add the Fit to Pass year-round coaching program directly to their fleet’s Transflo Mobile+ app as a premium upgrade.

• Asurint and Fleetworthy Solutions, providers of safety and compliance services, announced a partnership to offer their products to a broader market of commercial motor carriers. Asurint provides technology-enabled pre-employment background screening and drug-testing services. Fleetworthy Solutions provides safety compliance services and technology offerings via a menu of telematics integrations for a single source of compliance management data.

• Phoenix-based Knight-Swift Transportation (CCJ Top 250, No. 4) added Truckstop.com’s freight-matching platform to its Book It Now platform to allow brokers to flag Knight-Swift as a preferred carrier. Knight-Swift also is leading DAT Solutions’ pilot of DAT Book Now, an automated freight-tendering technology designed to let carriers on the DAT network of load boards search for freight and lock in the rate with one click.

commercial carrier journal

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technology

INBRIEF • Safe Fleet, a provider of video, safety and productivity offerings for fleets, acquired American Midwest Fleet Solutions, a provider of in-field installation and service of safety, security, navigation, tracking and communications products, as well as ladder racks and other specialty equipment and electronics. Safe Fleet said the purchase will expand its fleet upfit capabilities.

• FourKites, a provider of real-time shipment information and tracking, announced that Frozen Food Express, a temperature-controlled less-thantruckload provider, selected its platform to provide customers with shipment visibility, updated ETAs and temperature tracking, along with truck-specific traffic and weather, to give FFE a centralized dashboard to manage customer service.

• RLI Transportation, a provider of transportation insurance, now offers Samsara’s AI dashcam to its customers at no added cost and a discount on premiums of up to 5%. Samsara provides added visibility into harsh braking, rolling stops, near misses, speeding and distracted driving. RLI plans to use incident and safety data from Samsara to serve its customers with tailored safety training and data-driven underwriting and claims decisions.

• Ryan Transportation, an Overland Park, Kan.-based third-party logistics provider, now offers its RTS Pro Shipper Portal to provide its customers with real-time load tracking. With highly visible color-coded icons on a dashboard, Ryan customers can see which loads are on time or delayed, view uploaded shipping documents and find details on specific loads.

• Blume Global, a provider of transportation technologies designed to provide real-time visibility, logistics execution, asset management and optimization, announced that Matson Logistics, a provider of supply chain services, selected its Blume Assets platform to increase visibility and optimize utilization for its fleet of 700 53-foot intermodal containers.

• Vnomics Corp., a provider of an onboard fuel savings tool that combines real-time driver coaching with fuel efficiency data, announced that Farmington, N.Y.-based Leonard’s Express (CCJ Top 250, No. 214) selected its True Fuel system.

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Hubtek promotes task automation bot technology

H

ubtek, a workforce optimization provider for the transportation industry, announced its Task Hubtek’s Task Automation Bot technology designed to eliminate Automation Bot technology turns time-consuming and costly transportation and logistics unstructured and management workflow processes. Using Robotic Process semi-structured data in Automation (RPA) software technology, the Bot can be documents, spreadsheets integrated with any transportation or enterprise manage- and emails into structured data. ment system without requiring the development of an application programming interface (API).

“Our Task Automation Bot technology automates routine tasks for motor carriers, brokers, 3PLs, freight forwarders and other logistics operations,” said Ricky Gonzalez, chief executive officer for Hubtek. “We have built our Task Automation Bot so your staff is free to excel at sales and service and not be glued to a keyboard entering data.”

Initial capabilities of the Bot include recognizing information in emails and putting it into appropriate categories, such as available loads, quote requests and load tenders.

Using RPA, a rules-based software technology driven by machine learning and AI designed to perform high-volume repetitive tasks faster than a human, the technology turns unstructured and semi-structured data in documents, spreadsheets and emails into structured data.

“That saves your staff from having to read each email and then determine an appropriate plan of action,” Gonzalez said. “Information is organized accurately in a matter – CCJ Staff of seconds, which also speeds response times for customer inquiries.”

Rolling Strong seeks healthy competition

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olling Strong, a provider of health and wellness programs for transportation companies and their drivers, as well as owner-operators, announced that its app now has the ability for terminal vs. terminal, company vs. company and industry-wide competitions, allowing senior The Rolling Strong app leadership and management staff to enable health and wellness improvement initiatives by fostering competition. now makes it possible for industry organizations The new capabilities of the Rolling Strong app also to promote health make it possible for industry organizations to promote and wellness through competitions. health and wellness through competitions. Several associations have expressed interest and are looking for industry suppliers to sponsor awards, said Stephen Kane, president for Rolling Strong.

The company can promote competitions through the app, emails and social media, and provide trophies and host awards events, Kane said.

In the competitions, participants earn prizes for signing up for the Rolling Strong app, getting wellness checks, speaking to wellness coaches who can provide mobile or live support through the platform, and taking steps to improve nutrition, fitness, sleep and stress and weight management.

Rolling Strong also announced that Skyline Transportation – a Knoxville, Tenn.based provider of truckload, dedicated, specialized and expedited services – has adopted its health and wellness mobile app for drivers and office personnel.

– CCJ Staff

| april 2020

technology

Wilson Logistics to pilot automated convoy technology

W

ilson Logistics (CCJ Top 250, No. 109), a family-owned transportation and logistics company based in Springfield, Mo., soon will be using a platooning technology that will allow its drivers in trailing vehicles to go off duty while in motion.

The company is partnering with Locomation, a trucking technology platform that offers humanguided autonomous convoying. The agreement is for a three-year pilot test and will put Locomation’s Locomation’s human-guided autonomous technology autonomous convoying trucks are expected to begin operations on the road across several at Wilson Logistics this spring.

Wilson Logistics shipping routes.

Locomation will provide a two-truck Locomation’s Autonomous Relay convoy with safety staff and will work Convoy (ARC) technology allows one in tandem with the Wilson Logistics driver to pilot a lead truck equipped operations team to execute highly with technology augmentation, while efficient freight movements. Locomaa follower truck operates in tandem through Locomation’s fully autonomous tion said that full commercialization of its autonomous vehicle technology is system. This allows the follower driver expected to produce an estimated 33% to log off and rest during this time. reduction in operating cost per mile and Each ARC segment is engineered an 8% reduction in fuel expense while for maximum yield by Locomation’s removing 41 metric tons of carbon dioxbusiness operations team headed by ide from the air per tractor annually. industry veteran Tom Kroswek.

The initial commercialization phase “Our work with Locomation will will build up to 124 trucks before ultimark a significant step forward for mately expanding to more than 2,000 Wilson Logistics,” said Darrel Wilson, ARC-equipped trucks from multiple the fleet’s chairman and chief executive fleets. officer. “Not only will we improve asset “We couldn’t be more excited about utilization and network efficiency, but this partnership,” said Dr. Çetin Meriçli, we’ll make great strides in reducing our CEO and co-founder of Locomation. energy spend while improving safety. It also makes the truck a much better place Meriçli is one of five members of Locomation’s founding team who built highly to work for our team of professional advanced autonomous vehicle systems truck drivers.” during their time together at Carnegie The deal is part of Wilson Logistics’ Mellon’s National Robotics Engineering initiative to improve the driver exCenter. perience while boosting profitability “We’ve built our ARC technology through technology.

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stack and network strategy to leverage the value of long-established trucking routes and systems,” Meriçli said.

“Wilson Logistics is a perfect fit for our first pilot program.”

Locomation trucks are expected to begin operations at Wilson Logistics this spring. At peak implementation, the agreement is expected to operate more than 62 two-truck convoys on 11 ARC segments throughout the United States. The next phase in the partnership anticipates delivering more than 1,000 two-truck convoys operating on more than 68 ARC segments nationwide.

“Locomation identifies the most conducive freight activities to produce the highest yield possible, while achieving more than 20 hours of equipment utilization with full integration into the customer’s transportation management systems,” said Kroswek, head of network engineering for Locomation. “This approach enables us to fully implement the technology into the customer’s organization in a way that delivers sustainable results.”

– Aaron Huff

CCJ 2020 INNOVATOR of the YEAR

CROSSING THE BORDER TO

SUCCESS Polaris Transportation Group using technology to automate routine paperwork, customs clearance

BY AARON HUFF 42

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| april 2020

Each night, Mississauga, Ontario-based Polaris Transportation Group dispatches 35 line-hauls into the United States. Dave Brajkovich, chief technology officer (left), and Dave Cox, president, have plans to make the bordercrossing process become paperless.

I

COVER STORY CCJ 2020 INNOVATOR of the YEAR

n 2017, Dave Cox began asking Polaris Transportation Group (PTG) employees a profound question to learn their career path: “What do you want to do in life?”

PHOTOS BY STEPHANIE BRAJKOVICH

He had just become the Mississauga, Ontario-based carrier’s new president following the passing of his father, Larry Cox, who founded PTG in 1994 and was big on investing in technology to be more efficient, scalable and competitive. Dave Cox is following in his father’s footsteps and is taking that philosophy a few steps further.

“The business situation was ready for change,” he says, and he began to establish a new framework for PTG based on five pillars: technology, talent, customer-centricity, safety and community.

PTG offers full supply chain solutions – transportation, logistics, warehousing, distribution and technology – within a niche of next-day pickup-and-delivery service between the greater Toronto area and select areas in the United States.

The company has a fleet of more than 120 tractors and 280 trailers that operates from C-TPAT certified facilities that include two warehouses in Toronto and a location in Ohio that offers truckload and less-thantruckload (LTL) service.

Cox describes PTG, which transports more than 300,000 orders a year across the border, as an “American company headquartered in Toronto,” with many customers, transportation partners and competitors in the United States.

In 2018, he hired Dave Brajkovich to fill a new position as chief technology officer. Brajkovich had been a technology adviser to the

Dave Cox, PTG president, meets with company leaders in the Digital Laboratory to set a vision for the company.

company since 2015 with experience in automating business systems in the financial, healthcare, manufacturing and banking industries.

As Brajkovich worked to bring new digital capabilities to PTG, Cox had a vision for employees in all aspects, from the office to the driver’s seat. He wanted his people to use their skill sets instead of doing mundane work.

During the last two years, PTG has implemented robotic process automation (RPA), a blockchain hyperledger for building communities, artificial intelligence and application programming interface (API)-based system integrations to unlock human capital to focus on more valuable activities and careers than processing freight transactions.

“People are creative and want to use their talents,” Cox says. Now, PTG employees are on track to becoming “Polaris engineers” who use advanced

technology to make better operational and planning decisions.

For leading a digital transformation to increase employee satisfaction and deliver business results, Polaris Transportation Group has earned the distinctive honor as the Commercial Carrier Journal 2020 Innovator of the Year.

Ready for robotics The company had an immediate need for a technology pillar in order entry. As an LTL carrier, PTG’s local pickup-and-delivery operations feed 35 line-haul schedules southbound and 35 northbound every night.

The assets go no further than 500 miles out and return, loaded with freight into and out of the Toronto area. All the line-hauls have daily cutoff times for orders that have to go through a series of complex operational steps. Each order has unique

commercial carrier journal

| april 2020 43

COVER STORY CCJ 2020 INNOVATOR of the YEAR touch points for data and documents.

“We deal with a high level of variation of documents,” Brajkovich says. “Nothing is consistent.”

Besides dealing with a large volume and variety of shipping documents, PTG’s order entry and customs departments exchange information with customers to clear orders for border crossings.

Before the line-hauls depart, PTG has to send an electronic load manifest or “customs invoice” to border-crossing agencies at least one hour before drivers arrive at checkpoints to prevent transit delays.

As CTO, Brajkovich evaluated several RPA platforms to alleviate workload in the order entry, customs and operations departments. RPA uses algorithms or “bots” that replicate human workflow and integrate with various applications and back-end systems to automate data and document processing.

PTG selected an RPA platform from WorkFusion and built its own proprietary application layers for its unique business needs as a cross-border LTL carrier.

The effort resulted in a Control Tower system that automates workflow for about 80% of the cross-border freight transactions. For transactions that are not straight-through processing, the system identifies exceptions for “data stewards” at PTG to manage, Brajkovich says.

Since the initial RPA rollout, PTG has added machine-learning technology that recognizes new documents and continues to increase the level of straight-through automation of orders.

Unlocking human capital The RPA platform has reduced the cost per order for PTG and brought visibility to work in process (WIP). Workers can see the status of all orders at any time of day. Before the technology, “we had no clue what orders were ahead or behind schedule,” Brajkovich says.

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Dave Brajkovich, PTG CTO, meets with the NorthStar Digital Solutions team regularly to brainstorm ideas and test new projects to make the company more automated.

The automated bots have enabled PTG to go from 22 full-and part-time workers – who touched every order during the lifecycle, from order entry through operations – to 15. Most of the job reductions were temporary staffers, he says.

Today, about 80% of the orders and documents that PTG receives from customers are automatically processed straight through — sending customs invoices to border agencies to obtain clearance.

The company is able to clear WIP in the system up to four hours earlier every day and process orders at an accuracy rate of 99.9%. As a result, freight is getting cleared through customs faster, and “at the end of the day, we are not holding up trucks or shipments,” Brajkovich says.

Lucy Lewis, director of customer care, has seen the transformation in order entry. Prior to using the RPA technology, orders came in by phone, email or electronic data interchange (EDI) and were funneled to a single office worker who printed them out and distributed them to a team for manual entry into the company’s enterprise resource planning (ERP) system.

Workers had to validate the items they would input, such as addresses, cities and postal codes. Most orders arrive between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., and during

| april 2020

that period, the order entry team “had a huge bottleneck,” Lewis says. “We had to get assistance from other departments during the peak time to help us get through the backlog.”

Today, the bots do the validation and data entry process for orders as quickly as they arrive from email, the website, EDI or APIs. Rather than processing data, the order entry team now is focused on quality and managing exceptions, Lewis says.

The bots also feed orders directly into the ERP system for the operations team to start planning pickups. Overall, Lewis says, workers are more motivated and engaged because the technology is freeing them from data entry and other manual tasks, allowing them to focus on customer service and improving their skillsets.

“They feel like they are adding value and feel a part of something much bigger than just order entry,” she says.

“They feel like they are part of the entire process from a customer perspective.”

A digital laboratory As work continued to progress with RPA technology in order entry and the customs and operations departments, Cox and Brajkovich created a new business entity in 2018 called NorthStar Digital Solutions.

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COVER STORY CCJ 2020 INNOVATOR of the YEAR Rather than place PTG’s growing technology team into an IT department, which carries a perception as a cost center, the executives wanted technology workers to have a sense of ownership and be perceived as “a bunch of smart people trying to improve processes,” Brajkovich says.

Cox and Brajkovich also saw an opportunity for NorthStar Digital Solutions to develop technology that could benefit other motor carriers, freight forwarders and even businesses in other industries. While PTG is its largest customer, NorthStar Digital Solutions has added capacity to develop and support solutions for other clients.

As part of PTG’s digital transformation, Cox renovated the office with an open area to give it a modern feel.

NorthStar Digital Solutions is located in the new addition, which has a Digital Laboratory for executives and technology and front-line office workers to gather at any time of day.

“This is our creation room where we do brainstorming,” Brajkovich says, pointing to walls in the Digital Laboratory that are painted for the whiteboarding of ideas, projects and tasks.

“The inspiration that this has created is

Lucy Lewis, director of customer care, has overseen the transformation in order entry with RPA technology.

massive.”

The ultimate goal for NorthStar Digital Solutions, Brajkovich says, is to develop the capabilities for “complete order-to-cash automation” of freight transactions. People always will be needed to manage exceptions and “pull the switches and levers,” he says, but technology can remove the mundane, repetitive work.

The Digital Laboratory currently is

ABOUT THE AWARD Commercial Carrier Journal’s editors recognize innovators throughout the year and select one for special recognition as the CCJ Innovator of the Year.

Innovators considered for the current award were those recognized in the magazine in 2019.

Innovation in any aspect of the operation is eligible for recognition.

To qualify, the carrier must operate at least 10 power units in Classes 3-8 and maintain a satisfactory safety rating, if rated. Selection of innovators for recognition is at the sole discretion of CCJ’s editorial staff.

This year’s award was announced 46

commercial carrier journal

and presented at the CCJ Innovators Summit, a networking event for current and prior-year CCJ Innovators held Feb. 5-7 in Key Largo, Fla. Representatives of the innovative trucking operations updated one another on their initiatives.

The CCJ Innovators program is sponsored by Cummins, Freightliner Trucks, Omnitracs and Shell Lubricants. For more information on the program and links to previously recognized CCJ Innovators or to fill out the online nomination form, go to CCJInnovators.com, or contact Jason Cannon, CCJ editor, at jasoncannon@randallreilly.com.

| april 2020

testing new technologies the company is planning to roll out. One of the top priorities is to go live with a barcodeand document-scanning application for drivers that will help to further digitize the workforce and workflow.

Currently, drivers collect bills of lading and other shipping documents and return them to the office after their pickup routes. The documents are scanned, reviewed by customs and sent to freight forwarders and border agencies for clearance.

Ultimately, PTG wants to be able to clear freight through customs as soon as drivers get the documents. With a new application, drivers will be able to take a picture of a bill of lading or scan a barcode, and they also will be able to update shipment quantities for realtime visibility and give customers and dispatchers real-time shipment arrival notifications.

By getting that data earlier in the process, PTG will be able to process orders for customs clearance – before drivers return and freight hits the dock for loading the line-haul trailers – by importing data and documents into the RPA platform remotely.

“Building manifests as we’re loading is

COVER STORY CCJ 2020 INNOVATOR of the YEAR where we are going,” Brajkovich says.

The new technology will complement a mobile app PTG recently began using from Trimble called D2Link that drivers use to receive dispatch information and update shipment status.

With the D2Link technology, the operations team has been able to reduce labor costs and free people up from manual work to “focus on bigger things,” such as how to increase productivity, says Jason Ragoo, dispatch manager.

Heading into the future Besides using technology to automate internal business systems and workflow, PTG continues to make strides to help its customers do the same by increasing connectivity options and capabilities.

PTG has built a suite of APIs that enable its business systems to connect directly with those of its customers and border agencies, Brajkovich says. Currently, the company is ahead of the market in this regard, and border-crossing agencies also are moving toward higher levels of automation.

“As they improve, we will be able to align with them,” he says. “When border agencies are ready, we will be able to send APIs throughout the process to them. Technically, we should be paperfree at some point in time.”

Currently, when drivers arrive at the

border, they must have a paper copy of the load manifest. This requirement could become more flexible, Brajkovich says, and with the new technology, PTG drivers could present an electronic load manifest on their mobile device. Border agencies could scan the document to save time.

“That’s where we are going with it,” he says.

PTG also has been working with IBM to develop a blockchain platform for transportation,and Brajkovich sees this as the next wave of business-to-business connectivity. The platform uses a “distributed ledger” on a centralized hosted environment.

The platform is in the final preparatory stages of launch and is designed to ease business transactions for PTG and its customers.

“We have some ideas and partners who are interested,” he says. “Once we hook them up and start going, there is no stopping us.”

With the coming blockchain developments, PTG and NorthStar have positioned themselves to provide services that go beyond RPA to integrating business models throughout the supply chain.

Besides automating business processes, the technology platforms that PTG has today are solid from a performance

Jason Ragoo, dispatch manager, says the operations team has been able to reduce labor costs and free people up to “focus on bigger things” to increase asset and driver productivity.

and security standpoint to enable the company to scale up quickly without having to invest in more IT infrastructure, Brajkovich says.

Cox sees opportunities to make the load-planning process for PTG’s daily line-haul schedules more fluid and dynamic. Currently, a lot of manual work is involved in setting up runs, despite having predictable departure schedules.

“We shouldn’t have to spend time setting these runs up each day,” he says.

“That’s what we are going to use robotics for.”

Cox says that with the robotics, any adjustments that need to be made to plans throughout the day could be automated the moment that exceptions happen, such as a driver not making it to a pickup on time or a shipper not having freight ready.

Those uncertainties currently cause extra work when freight hits the crossdock, but he sees more opportunities for systems to make decisions and free up human intellectual capacity to make better decisions using “cleaner” information.

Information might show a driver is two hours away from returning to the dock and will miss the cutoff time for a departure to New York City. A human could intervene and move the freight from the first line-haul departure to New York City to the third departure, Cox says.

Making these and other decisions is what humans do best, but they need the right information and to be freed from manual processes to be able to make better business decisions, he says.

With all the new technology, Cox is excited about the future, and so are PTG employees. “It makes the job fun again,” he says. “[Dave Cox] lets us be our own entrepreneurs,” Brajkovich says. “That’s why I came here. The culture Dave is creating is really great. It allows everybody to lift to the next level. If they want to try something, we say ‘Go for it.’ ” commercial carrier journal

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EQUIPMENT: CVSA ROADCHECK

READY FOR

ROADCHECK

While drivers are this year’s focus, fleets can’t neglect their trucks

BY TOM QUIMBY AND JASON CANNON

T

his year’s Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) annual International Roadcheck inspection blitz will have a special focus on “driver requirements” — commercial driver’s licenses, medical cards, seatbelts, records of duty status, electronic logging device compliance and more.

The 72-hour ramp-up in enforcement usually takes place the first week in June, but CVSA said it moved this year’s event to May 5-7 “when the weather may be more favorable for some jurisdictions.”

At press time, there was no word on whether the COVID-19 outbreak would prompt CVSA to reschedule.

While driver qualifications are the

CVSA’s decision to focus on driver requirements this year stems from the 2018 implementation of ELDs.

focus of 2020’s Roadcheck, inspectors still will conduct mostly a full 37-point North American Standard Level I inspection during the three-day blitz. During the vehicle portion of the inspection, law enforcement will check brake systems, cargo securement, driveline components, exhaust systems, frames, fuel systems, lights, steering, the

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EQUIPMENT: CVSA ROADCHECK suspension, tires and more.

CVSA’s decision to focus on driver requirements this year stems from the December 2018 implementation of ELDs and the association’s ongoing goal to not only get drivers more in-tune with using the devices relative to hours of service but also help them become more diligent in handling documents required at roadside, said Kerri Wirachowsky, director of CVSA’s roadside inspection program and a former Canadian truck inspector.

Last year, more than 12,000 trucks and 2,700 drivers were placed out of service (OOS) during the inspection spree.

The top OOS violations for drivers were hours of service (1,179 OOS violations, 37.2% of the total), wrong class license (714, 22.5%) and false logs (467, 14.7%).

“You may have trained your guy how to sign on and how to sign off and log in and log out and toggle between personal conveyance and driving and on-duty, but don’t forget to train your driver on how to transfer those files,” Wirachowsky said. “If your user manual and your malfunction instruction card and your blank logs are all electronic, that driver needs to know how to be able to produce those at roadside when stopped. A lot of times, they don’t know how, and if they can’t produce it, they’re going to be cited. That’s probably one of the biggest things we’ve seen since (ELD) implementation — drivers failing to transfer or failing to have their documents in a row.”

Being able to transfer ELD data is one thing, but keeping the device plugged in is another. California Highway Patrol Sgt. Robert Daniels, who works in the commercial vehicle section, said he’s hearing of drivers unplugging their device as a modern workaround for falsifying their logs. Daniels, an 18-year CHP veteran, said pulling the plug on ELDs is a carryover from drivers who used to report losing their paper log books before the ELD mandate.

“Before, drivers might say they don’t 50

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have a log book because they don’t want to give you a book that’s over hours,” Daniels said. “A lot of time, the penalty’s less for not having a log book compared to being over hours, and it would be the same with ELDs. A lot of times, they’ll just unplug it, because they know they’re going to be over hours. So they try to avoid that violation by doing that.”

When it comes to medical cards, even though more states are combining the cards with CDLs, it’s best at this point for drivers to keep a medical certificate on hand.

“It’s still in the implementation stages,” Wirachowsky said. “Most drivers have carried their med cards around since they started driving. Don’t change that practice until post-2021 when it’s supposed to be fully implemented as opposed to relying on a state-by-state basis. Just put it in your wallet, and have it ready if an inspector asks for it.”

Also, neatness – and preparation – counts.

“It’s a stressful situation for a driver,” Wirachowsky said. “If he’s got paperwork all over the place, it causes him to be stressed out. And some inspectors get frustrated when things aren’t coming at them like the way they want. To me, it’s all about reducing the stress of the entire event.”

BRAKES

While there are plenty of things to look at during a roadside inspection, odds are high that if a truck is placed OOS during Roadcheck, it’s going to be brake-related.

The numbers really don’t change much year to year. Brake violations in some form accounted for almost 46% of all OOS violations for trucks during last year’s blitz. Braking systems topped the list at 28% of OOS citations, and brake adjustment came in No. 3 at 17.1%.

Homer Hogg, director of technical service for TravelCenters of America, pointed out a common shop approach to brake maintenance that can lead to

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While there are plenty of things to look at during a roadside inspection, odds are high that if a truck is placed OOS during CVSA’s International Roadcheck, it’s going to be brake-related.

costly problems down the road at a time when the industry is up against rising insurance rates, costly litigation and a shaky market brought on by COVID-19.

“Don’t make the mistake of extending your lubrication intervals too far,” Hogg said. “The tendency is to align chassis lubrication with engine oil drain intervals.

However, this can lead to slack adjusters getting dry and not operating properly.

Additionally, have your foundation brake parts inspected before the vehicle is lubricated. Worn brake foundation parts will prevent the slack adjusters from maintaining the proper stroke.”

Before hitting the road, drivers can play a vital role in preventing expensive violations by conducting thorough pre-checks.

“Drivers should visually inspect brake components during daily walkarounds, looking for damaged or loose-hanging hoses, air chambers, pushrods or slack

EQUIPMENT: CVSA ROADCHECK

adjusters,” said Keith McComsey, director of marketing and customer solutions for Bendix Spicer Foundation Brake.

“Compare the relative position of the slack adjuster (angle) on each axle. If they’re different, it could indicate an outof-adjustment brake or a broken power spring in the spring brake.”

Wirachowsky said fleets stand to benefit from taking the time to teach drivers how to conduct thorough preand post-trip inspections. Hogg said the added pressure of hours of service regulations do not have to detract from effective pre-trip inspections as long as drivers are trained adequately.

“If you talk to most companies, they’ll give their drivers 15 minutes front-end and back-end of the trip to do pre- and post-trip inspections,” Wirachowsky said. “You can do a decent trip inspection in 15 minutes. I teach an industry course. We teach them basically what

roadside inspectors do, and my biggest thing to industry is just because the guy can drive the truck doesn’t mean he knows what he’s looking at during the pre-trip. Teaching drivers how to do a pre-trip is as important as teaching them how to drive the truck, and most drivers have not been trained to the extent they need to be.”

TIRES

Tires and wheels accounted for 3,156 truck OOS violations during last year’s Roadcheck — a whopping 19.3% of all rigs parked during the event.

“When it comes to inspections by law enforcement, CSA assigns heavy point penalties for tire issues,” said Jason Miller, national fleet channel sales manager for Cooper Tire. “There are four times as many points against you for a worn-out tire as compared to driving a truck with no door.”

Improper tread depth is one of several tire violations that can place a truck OOS immediately. Marco Rabe, Continental’s head of research and development for commercial vehicle tires, said checking drive and trailer tires for at least 2/32” of tread and steer tires for 4/32” also provides an opportunity to give the tires a full once-over for pressure and damage.

When tires are worn to 2/32”, treadwear indicators become flush with the tread elements, making determining minimum depth easy. But Pat Keating, senior manager of field engineering for Yokohama Tire, said any depth greater than 2/32” should be measured.

Paul Tatarchuk, B2BN special services coordinator for Michelin North America, said the minimum tread depths set by the U.S. Department of Transportation are just that – the minimum – and that many fleets establish their own internal tread depth rules through their maintenance policy to determine when tires are to be removed and recycled for retreading.

Miller said cutting it close on minimal tread depth can put a driver in a condition where the truck is legal on the way out but OOS on the way back. “Many line-haul truckers run as many as 2,000 miles per week, up to 4,000 miles for teams,” he said.

With steer tires wearing 10,000 miles per 32nd or less, a tire with 1/32” or 2/32” to spare is likely to drop below the legal limit by the time the truck returns to the terminal, Miller said. “It’s best to calculate those miles in advance to ensure you’re not cutting your tread depth to below legal limits,” he said.

Inflation level isn’t itself an OOS violation unless the tire is legally flat, but overinflation and underinflation are leading contributors toward other citations.

“Thumping a tire with a mallet or club is and always has been useless,” Tatarchuk said. Inflation levels should be checked using only an approved commercial carrier journal

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EQUIPMENT: CVSA ROADCHECK pressure gauge, he said.

“Using a thumper – a tire bat – is a longstanding ritual that really identifies only tires that are dead flat,” Miller added. “A tire that’s 20% to 30% underinflated is very tough to identify with a thumper.”

Proper pressure not only helps avoid potential violations, it also increases tire life, reduces fuel consumption and improves retreadability, Keating said.

“A $10 stick gauge is worth its weight in gold if used properly and consistently,” he said. “Some dealers provide yard checks as a free service.”

Time-consuming manual inspections actually can be more expensive versus investing in digital tire monitoring products, Rabe said.

“Handheld gauges need to be calibrated frequently to ensure accuracy,” he said. “Even fleets with strong, standardized inspection practices can be deceived by an inaccurate pressure gauge.”

The inside position on a set of duals is more cumbersome to inspect and, as

a result, often gets less attention, Miller said.

“Unlike steer tires, a low inner dual is very tough to detect visually,” he said.

“Not only does that put the low inner dual in jeopardy, the additional load on the full tire it’s mated to may become fatigued.”

“An inside tire is there for a reason,” Tatarchuk added. “By design, it takes two tires at that axle end to carry the load. If the one inside is not carrying the load, the other is overloaded, and a dangerous situation may arise.”

Checking just the outside tire can increase irregular wear, because it increases the likelihood that the pressures won’t match, Keating said. Mismatched air pressure also can have a negative impact on fuel economy. When duals are mismatched for inflation, the tire with the lower psi wants to run at a smaller loaded radius, causing it to skip to keep up with the full tire, Miller said.

“Just a 5-psi difference in inflation between duals is the equivalent of one

Improper tread depth is one tire violation that can place a truck out of service immediately.

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| april 2020

tire having a circumference that is 5/16” smaller,” he said. “That means during every rotation cycle, the smaller-circumference tire must scuff ahead to keep up with the tire with more inflation. These tires rotate around 500 times per mile, so simple math means you’re dragging a tire 13 feet every mile under load.”

SECUREMENT

Cargo securement issues accounted for 12.2% of truck OOS violations during last year’s Roadcheck — the top truck OOS violation that wasn’t componentrelated and the No. 4 violation overall.

“When you step back and just try to look at the basics, the first thing you’re going to do is make sure the load is safe, stable and immobilized,” said Ralph Abato, president and managing director for Doleco USA. The 387-page instructor’s manual for the North American Cargo Securement Standard includes a slide presentation, and viewers are reminded of the hazards of not securing a load properly. One image shows a bulldozer on a trailer that was secured improperly with a single 3/8” chain. During a hard stop, the dozer launched into the cab and killed the driver. In this case, the choice to not follow a load formula proved deadly.

For others, it may result in a costly OOS violation during the blitz.

Another general requirement for load securement is a formula, Abato said.

“You need to double-check the number of tie-downs that you’re using against the weight of the load,” he said. “You have to be at a minimum with the working load of all the tie-downs. Whether they be chains or web straps, they need to be one-half aggregate of the weight of the load of the cargo. It’s pretty basic, but if the drivers don’t know those laws, then they’re in for real problems.”

Abato said keeping up with new cargo securement equipment can lead to safer loads and improved working conditions. “[Improper load securement] creates

EQUIPMENT: CVSA ROADCHECK

Keeping up with new cargo securement equipment can lead to safer loads and improved working conditions.

workers comp claims [and] damage to the cargo,” he said.

LIGHTS

While keeping the lights on seems like a fairly easy thing to do, 11.5% of last year’s OOS truck violations were caused by light failures. Unfortunately, fixing outages on the road may entail a lot more than simply replacing a broken bulb.

“In this era of LED lighting, lamp failure may suggest broader systemic issues,” said Kyle O’Dell, director of

engineering for Optronics. “A lamp that appears to simply be burned out turns out to be caused by corrosion in that lamp’s branch of the electrical system.

This means moisture is loose in the entire system — and a bigger problem.”

O’Dell recommended drivers and technicians conducting inspections to diagnose light failures should check for disconnected, broken and cracked lamps. If the connections and lamps are fine, move on to the wire harness segments and connectors closest to the malfunctioning light.

Though it may seem like a quick way to diagnose lighting failure, stay away from wire probes, said Andrew Liuzzo, marketing specialist for Truck-Lite.

“The use of wire probes or picks to check voltage or continuity should be immediately discontinued, as this practice immediately compromises a harness system,” Liuzzo said. “Puncturing wire allows for moisture to wick throughout a vehicle’s electrical system, corroding it from the inside out. Using a multimeter to troubleshoot a wiring harness system is the safest way to ensure the longevity of a harness system without damaging

Optronics’ USA-Plus Modular Connection System has an O-ring-style seal and a secondary lock pin design to help protect against moisture and dust.

connectors, wires and seals.”

The greatest threat to lighting and electrical systems is corrosion, so check for it regularly, Liuzzo said. The slightest pin hole in wire insulation can pave the way for moisture, which can lead to devastating corrosion, lighting failure and a violation, he said.

“Many fleet maintenance professionals think of corrosion as a more winterrelated issue,” O’Dell said. “However, though brutal cold-weather conditions and chemicals in Northern regions may help to compromise an electrical system, warmer, wetter weather actually amplifies the spread of corrosion. Every 50-degree Fahrenheit rise in temperature doubles the rate of corrosive activity.”

CVSA’S UPDATED OUT-OF-SERVICE CRITERIA NOW IN EFFECT The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s updated 2020 North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria now are in effect. The criteria identify critical vehicle inspection items and detail what can be cause to prohibit a motor carrier or driver from operating a commercial motor vehicle for a specified period of time or until the condition is corrected.

The 2020 version replaces and supersedes all previous versions, and the changes to this year’s edition of the manual can be found at cvsa.org/wpcontent/uploads/OOSC-Changes-Letter.pdf. Included among the changes are removal of defective sway bars from the criteria and removal of references to now-disallowed automatic onboard recording devices (AOBRDs).

Perhaps the most significant change has to do with additional OOS criteria related to drivers who fail a drug test reported to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s new Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse database and who are required to complete return-to-duty procedures to get clearance to

haul again. Such drivers’ eligibility information will be accessible via law enforcement lookup tools, and drivers will be placed OOS if found to be operating before cleared for duty.

CVSA offers different formats of the new OOS criteria, including a spiral-bound hard-copy handbook, an electronic PDF file with a reThe 2020 version stricted three-device and/or web browser limit, of CVSA’s North American Standard a Spanish and bilingual English/Spanish edition Out-of-Service and French Canadian and bilingual French Criteria replaces Canadian/English editions ($35-$75, depending and supersedes all previous versions. on edition and CVSA membership status).

Also, the updated OOS criteria app now is available by searching “CVSA” in the Apple or Google Play stores ($24.99).

– CCJ Staff

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BUSINESS | NUCLEAR VERDICTS

HAMMERED Last year’s record number of motor carrier bankruptcies partly was due to higher insurance premiums from rising accident claims and jury-awarded “nuclear verdicts.”

Huge crash settlements prompt calls for reform

C

BY MATT COLE ourts in recent years have taken up an alarming trend in crash litigation involving trucking companies: Awarding large settlements, sometimes regardless of fault, to plaintiffs who sue carriers after a crash. Often, this includes courts digging into fleets’ pasts – including driver training and orientation – to justify those multimillion-dollar payouts.

Even if the fleet or driver wasn’t at fault, juries think “somebody has to pay,” said Annette Sandberg, chief executive officer for TransSafe Consulting and former administrator for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. “I think 54

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verdicts will keep going up and up,” she said. “Short of tort reform with some kind of limits, I just don’t know [where they will stop]. It’s unfortunate. It ends up costing all of us.”

Such “nuclear verdicts” have had a ripple effect throughout the trucking industry, forcing some carriers into bankruptcy and causing insurance rates to skyrocket.

“Nuclear verdicts” generally refer to cases in which a jury returns a settlement of $10 million or more. That’s well above the $750,000 in liability insurance required of trucking companies and the $1 million that most hold, often leading

| april 2020

to lawsuits against insurers and, sometimes, fleets liquidating assets to pay.

Verdicts have reached as high as $281 million in a 2013 case, Aguilar v. Heckmann Water Resources, in which the driveshaft of a Heckmann truck broke off and killed motorist Carlos Aguilar.

Attorneys point to climbing medical costs, new tactics by plaintiff attorneys, changing societal views around money and court precedent as factors in the trend toward runaway verdicts.

“Really good plaintiff lawyers that had done products liability, medical malpractice, class action and other cases began to move [away] from those

BUSINESS | NUCLEAR VERDICTS

LEGAL, DATA EXPERTS SHARE STRATEGIES TO ADDRESS INSURANCE ‘DEATH SPIRAL’ Last year’s record number of motor carrier bankruptcies partly was due to higher insurance premiums from rising accident claims and jury-awarded “nuclear verdicts,” a trial defense attorney told attendees at the 2020 Omnitracs Outlook user conference in Las Vegas in late February.

According to data compiled by CaseMetrix, the average verdict for trucking cases in the Southeast through February was about $17.5 million, already up from last year’s average of $16.9 million.

Insurance companies have become “horrified of trucking accident claims,” said Steve Setliff, managing partner for Setliff Law. He said they are paying inflated claims to avoid protracted legal battles but in the process are creating a “death spiral” for insurance costs in the transportation industry.

anything during their training,” Setliff said. “What I care about is (management’s) ability to stand up in the middle of a courtroom and say, ‘We train them.’ I have got to be able to go to court and summon up all the Baptist preacher that I can summon up and say ‘This is a good company. We do it the right way.’ ”

The ‘Reptile’ strategy Setliff shared advice for motor carriers to protect themselves from plaintiff attorneys and escalating insurance costs. The main strategy that attorneys use when going after trucking companies is found in the book “Reptile” published in 2009 by David Ball and Don Keenan, he said.

Plaintiff attorneys seek maximum punitive damages by depicting motor carriers as bad actors that don’t care about people. During trial, “they’ll summon up that inner fear that everybody has when they get close to or anywhere in proximity to a big truck — it’s frightening,” he said.

Setliff recommended that motor carriers list all their safety achievements and showcase their safety culture on social media and their company websites.

“If I Googled your company right now, what would I see?” he asked. Judges tell jurors not to talk to anyone about the cases they are involved in, but “it lasts until the jurors hit they jury room, and then they’re Googling.”

The social media presence of a fleet’s safety director and other people in positions of responsibility also matters. “Is it a bunch of pictures of them hanging out at the Daytona 500 passed out on the hood of a truck and everybody with Bud Light cans?” Setliff asked.

Having a solid policy for driver hiring, retention and training policies also is critical. Those who are in charge must be able to articulate in Chris Haney, director of safety one sentence what standards they and human resources for Payne use for each of these processes and Trucking, stressed the importance of managing public safety data to have documentation, he said. help mitigate legal risks.

“I don’t care if (drivers) learn

Problems with CSA Chris Haney, director of safety and human resources for Payne Trucking, a bulk hauler based in Fredericksburg, Va., focused on proactively resolving data issues that otherwise may create additional legal risks.

Haney reviewed each of the seven BASIC categories in the Compliance, Safety, Accountabilty (CSA) program from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. He noted how CSA data often is misrepresented by plaintiff attorneys and misinterpreted by other parties, such as shippers and insurance companies, for assessing carrier safety risks.

The CSA program has unintended consequences “that we as an industry are left to deal with,” said Haney, who made these points about the BASICs: • The Crash Indicator is a record of a carrier’s reportable accidents on the nation’s highways, but it “has caused a great deal of controversy over the last decade,” he said.

While the Crash Indicator score isn’t public, anyone can view all of a motor carrier’s reportable accident data for the past 24 months. The data shows fatalities and injuries and if the truck driver was cited, but it “will not tell who was at fault.”

• Hazardous Materials compliance scores are not public, but “everything else is free game for whoever is willing to click on the button.”

• Driver Fitness does not show drivers disqualified by FMCSA, so other carriers have no way of knowing. But during an audit, they can be held responsible for having a disqualified driver operating a vehicle on commercial roadways. This oversight is difficult and expensive for carriers to defend.

“We have no access to this information, yet we as an industry are held accountable for it and pay greatly as a result of it,” Haney said.

Haney gave motor carriers advice on how to use FMCSA DataQs to correct erroneous CSA information, such as when a driver is cited for an accident while dashcam footage proves otherwise.

Pay attention to “every single detail of every single event that takes place within your company,” he said. “Data is your friend in these cases.”

– Aaron Huff

Attorney Steve Setliff urged motor carriers to promote their safety awards as a legal defense strategy.

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BUSINESS | NUCLEAR VERDICTS

areas,” said Charles Carr, president for Birmingham-based firm Carr Allison.

“There was a lot of tort reform in medical malpractice with protections against these runaway verdicts. They moved over to trucking litigation.”

Carr traces the rise of trucking-related nuclear verdicts to a 2011 Georgia case, Foster v. Landstar Ranger, that involved a fatal crash. Liability was clear — the truck driver had run a red light and hit a vehicle, killing one of its occupants. The consensus among those involved in the case, Carr said, was that the judgment against the fleet would be about $10 million. But the fleet’s insurer took the case to court, hoping for a smaller settlement.

When the verdict came back, it was for $40 million, Carr said. “It shocked everyone. It wouldn’t be so shocking today, based on what we’ve seen.” The attorney that won the case then went on a speaking tour, teaching other attorneys how he did it.

Plaintiff attorneys working truck

crashes have since, in many cases, refused settlements with fleets, Carr said. “It was a snowball effect, and since that time, it spread like a virus,” he said.

“These verdicts went from Georgia to California to New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, South Carolina.”

Michael Langford, a partner for transportation law firm Scopelitis, Garvin, Light, Hansen and Feary, says rising medical costs also have fueled huge verdicts against fleets.

“In most personal injury cases, a component is medical expenses, past and future,” Langford said. “We have higher medical expenses than in the past, so now you also have a person injured and needing future medical care. There is a projection about where healthcare is going.”

Likewise, he said, plaintiff attorneys have taken on new tactics in court, using what’s called the “Reptile theory.”

“They want to stir them (the jury)

up with such emotion that, even at the most basic reptilian level, they have to award a big number to send a message,” Langford said. “They work hard at showing the trucking company is engaged in systemic failures designed at causing harm. They want to back it all up and go to what caused a trucker to blow through a red light, including a systemic failure to hire right, offer the correct orientation and training, etc.

They want to prove a failure to engage in all safety measures to prevent all possible accidents.”

The theory also is used to score payouts from fleets with drivers who aren’t even at fault in a crash. In a case involving Werner Enterprises (CCJ Top 250, No. 11), which resulted in a $90 million verdict against the fleet, a pickup truck lost control on the opposite side of a highway in Texas and crossed the median into the path of the Werner truck, resulting in the death of a 7-year-old and serious injuries to a 12-year-old.

FLEET PRESIDENT ON A MISSION TO CURB DISTRACTED DRIVING

Keith Wilson, president of Portland, Ore.-based Titan Freight Systems, is running for City Council.

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Fatal accidents involving large trucks and buses have been climbing. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s most recent Fatal Motor Vehicle Crashes report showed a total of 4,889 fatalities in 2017. This amount increased 9% from 2016, which was up 5.4% from 2015. That number was up 4.8% from 2014.

Compared to national trends, Titan Freight Systems, a less-than-truckload carrier based in Portland, Ore., has had zero fatal accidents in its 51 years of business. But from 2014 onward, the company’s property damage incidents had started to become a different story.

The number of incidents tripled from 2014 to 2017, and claims costs doubled. In 2018, Titan Freight had 18% fewer incidents, but its claims costs rose 22% year over year.

Titan Freight’s management team was concerned the numbers possibly indicated a higher fatality risk. Keith Wilson, president of the company, initially believed the

| april 2020

increase in highway speeds and decrease in law enforcement budgets both contributed to the rise in crash statistics. The types of incidents the fleet was having were not speed-related, however.

Drivers were hitting low bridges and awnings while not seeing restricted-height limits. They also hit bollards and were having side swipes, and one driver hit a tree branch while talking on the phone with a dispatcher — all signs of distracted driving, Wilson said.

Wilson began to gain insight on the dangers and prevalence of driver distraction in January after Titan Freight installed Netradyne’s Driveri vision-based driver safety system across its 44-truck fleet. He said he had been looking at camera systems for three years but that the products were “labor-intensive and were reactive, not proactive.”

Wilson had been waiting for a system that would give drivers real-time training in the cab rather than reviewing video and data in coaching sessions after

BUSINESS | NUCLEAR VERDICTS

“There was a lot of tort reform in medical malpractice with protections against these runaway verdicts. They moved over to trucking litigation.”

– Charles Carr, president for Birmingham-based firm Carr Allison

“What they (the plaintiff attorneys) did in Houston was they brought in all this evidence about how [Werner] trained their drivers,” Carr said. “They bring in all this stuff, but the driver in that accident was doing nothing wrong.

The jury focuses on the conduct.”

Werner has appealed the verdict, and Carr predicted it will head to the Texas Supreme Court in the coming years. “[Werner] did everything right — everything they should have done,” he said. “You can’t pay millions to settle a case that you have absolutely no liability

whatsoever for. All they could do was take the verdict – they were shocked by it – then take it up on appeal.”

Calls for reform The key to mitigating the cascading effects of such huge verdicts on the trucking industry lies in tort reform at the congressional level, which Sandberg said is a tall order given the current dysfunction in Washington. “Everybody would like to see tort reform, but we can’t get Congress to agree on anything,” she said.

American Trucking Associations President Chris Spear in October said his group has made tort reform on truck crash litigation a “tier one priority.”

“These nuclear verdicts are strangling our industry,” Spear said. “We will back our state association executives that pursue ballot initiatives, going state-to-state to fight, until we have won.”

At the state level, some work has been done, Langford said, but that doesn’t do enough to address a national industry such as trucking. “We have 50 states of patchwork laws,” he said. “Often it’s

events had occurred. He also wanted a system that did not depend on engine and vehicle data to trigger critical safety event recording.

One of Wilson’s primary concerns about relying solely on engine control module (ECM) data was the negative consequences of the Hawthorne effect, which theorizes that people behave a certain way based on how they are being measured. If a driver knows he will be judged negatively for a rapid deceleration or “hard brake” event, the driver likely will advance through a yellow light at an intersection instead of stopping.

This creates an unsafe behavior in an otherwise safe situation, he said.

Netradyne’s Driveri system uses camera vision with edge computing and artificial intelligence to analyze 100% of drive time. The technology visually captures signs, signals, pedestrians and other objects to provide a complete view of driver safety.

When Titan Freight installed the system, it initially used the forward-facing camera but did not activate the driver-facing camera. The day the company turned the

system on in January, management received 62 alerts for unsafe driving practices.

The system gives drivers proactive alerts when they have risky behaviors. These alerts give drivers time to address the problem, such as speeding or following distance, before an alert is tripped for fleet management and negatively impacts their driving scores.

In 10 months of use with the exterior cameras enabled, Titan Freight reduced unsafe events by 77%. It also saw immediate improvement when drivers managed their own behavior through the mobile app and from manager coaching.

After Netradyne released a new feature that automatically detects distracted driving, Titan Freight enabled the interior cameras. The day it activated this feature, management had 45 distracted driving alerts.

Within two weeks, the fleet saw a 96% reduction in the number of those alerts. The AI within Driveri accurately captured distracted driving events, and the system provided in-cab alerts so those drivers could

adjust their behavior.

While there was initial concern about retention, “we didn’t lose any drivers due to the interior cab cams,” Wilson said. “The drivers really wanted to earn the safety bonus, to do well, and when they saw their distracted driving behavior, there was a lot of buy-in.”

Titan Freight is now 14 months and over two million driving miles into using the Driveri system. In 2019, the company reduced property damage incidents by 39% year over year, and its claims costs fell by 64%.

Upon renewing its insurance policy, the company had an 11% reduction in premiums. “That paid for the system alone,” he said.

Wilson is running for the Portland City Council, and if he wins the election in May, he wants the city to address traffic-related fatalities by investing in mobile camera systems that can be set up at roadside to detect distracted driving and send real-time notices to police officers for ticketing. The photos from these systems can determine instantly if motorists have their hands on a – Aaron Huff phone while driving, Wilson said. commercial carrier journal

| april 2020 57

BUSINESS | NUCLEAR VERDICTS

“We see a fair number of reductions in terms of judgments. There are no standards to punitive damages, and they can work purely off emotion.”

– Lee Parsley, general counsel for Texans for Lawsuit Reform

reform around the edges. They aren’t addressing what needs to be addressed to bring damages down.”

Carr said the need for reforms on such litigation is dire. It “will either happen soon, or it will get to the point where insurance for the motor carrier industry becomes so expensive that either they can’t get it or that many smaller companies go out of business,” he said. “Somebody has to pay for that.

Freight costs will go up, or [goods] won’t be delivered.”

Who pays those settlements?

Who actually foots the bill for those multimillion-dollar settlements? It depends mostly on the fleet, their size and their insurance type.

Many larger fleets are self-insured up to a certain point, meaning they are on the hook for a certain amount of liability before their insurance company takes over. In the case of some of the largest trucking companies, they may be self-insured for $10 million, Carr said. If such fleets are hit with a verdict higher than that, the trucking company would have to pay their $10 million before insurance comes in to pay the rest.

For smaller fleets that may have the minimum liability coverage, the money owed in a verdict has to come from somewhere, Carr said.

“If there’s a $21 million verdict with only a $1 million policy, [the plaintiff ’s] options are to either walk away and take the million and forget about the other $20 million, or sue the insurance company that only offered $1 million for bad 58

commercial carrier journal

faith,” he said. “Or if it’s a solid trucking company with trucks in their yard, send the sheriff in to seize those trucks, and sell them.”

Lee Parsley, general counsel for litigation reform group Texans for Lawsuit Reform, said the verdict amount announced from such cases isn’t always what gets paid out. In Texas, punitive damages – which are intended to punish the recipient on top of economic and noneconomic damages – are capped based on a formula calculated after the trial.

“A jury is presented with the idea that a trucking company is rogue and needs to be punished, but in Texas, verdicts that have large punitive damage numbers won’t sustain into law,” Parsley said. “After the verdict comes in, lawyers return to the courtroom, and the defense lawyer will say the (economic and noneconomic) damages are X and Y, so the punitive damages are capped at Z. We see a fair number of reductions in terms of judgments. There are no standards to punitive damages, and they can work purely off emotion. They [juries] think nothing of punishing companies for multimillions of dollars.”

Fending off a bad verdict There are ways fleets can protect themselves from large court-issued paydays.

Sandberg said carriers should enforce all existing safety policies and regulatory requirements.

“Have processes on vetting and hiring drivers,” she said. “Some fleets might hire a driver and train them at the very

| april 2020

beginning, and that’s the last time they’re trained. Have systems and processes in place for everything.”

Parsley said in-cab camera systems have helped protect Texas trucking companies from liability. Sandberg agreed, adding that fleets that adopt cameras also need to adopt processes for “how to enforce and use that tool. … You have to have a methodical process. What’s fireable, what’s egregious, what’s trainable?”

She also suggested that fleets dealing with an accident get in front of the narrative. “What you find with people on the defensive is they don’t talk to the press. I don’t know that that’s always a good strategy. It doesn’t hurt to make it look like you’re aggressively investigating [an accident]. If you fire a driver, come out and say it. A lot of companies think they can hunker down and wait it out, but in this day and age, it never goes away. If your story isn’t out there, nobody’s going to hear it.”

Also, if you know your driver is at fault, “jump on it, and deal with it early,” Sandberg said. “Don’t force them to take you to court.”

Carr said his firm has evaluated cases early to see if there is a chance they “could ultimately become a nuclear verdict.” If so, “we work really hard to resolve those kinds of cases early,” he said.

“If you know the value of it [the case], and if your primary motivation is to get it settled within a few months after the accident occurred, you can do it. A lot of the industry doesn’t put the time and effort into doing that.”

TECHNOLOGY: DRIVER TRIP PLANNING

WHAT’S YOUR

20?

Trip planning apps help fleets, drivers stay on schedule

BY AARON HUFF

W

ith the final compliance date for the electronic logging device (ELD) mandate in the rearview mirror, a number of transportation technology suppliers now are focusing on helping fleets maximize the time available for their drivers to do their jobs.

Hours of service, traffic, weather, parking and many other variables have made trip planning a complex problem

to solve. But technology developers are drawing inspiration from navigation apps used by consumers to make it easier for truckers to work their way through the maze.

Workforce demographics also are prompting carriers to provide drivers with the latest trip planning tools. Millennials now are the largest segment of the workforce, and as more young workers enter the transportation industry,

Marigold & Onions is using Paragon Systems to create optimal routes with accurate driving and loading/unloading times for drivers.

they expect the technology they use at work to mirror what they use at home and play.

Creating round trips Motor carriers are using technology to create better routes that simplify the driver’s trip planning. Dry van truckload carrier Cargo Transporters (CCJ Top 250, No. 182) has 11 fleet leaders that each manage between 50 and 55 drivers.

commercial carrier journal

| april 2020 59

TECHNOLOGY: DRIVER TRIP PLANNING Claremont, N.C.-based Cargo Transporters focuses on keeping drivers in the same headhaul and backhaul lanes to maximize their home time and earnings.

The company’s load planning process focuses on giving drivers out-and-back trips.

“We do not do a lot of triangles,” said Jerry Sigmon, chief operating officer for the Claremont, N.C.-based company.

“We’re a headhaul-backhaul carrier.”

Drivers have familiar routes and work for the same customers. Those who live in the Carolinas have opportunities to pass through their hometowns during the workweek.

“It works out well for the driver and for the customer,” Sigmon said.

The fleet leaders know what types of loads and lanes drivers prefer, and Cargo Transporters’ open-door policy gives drivers a chance to meet with managers whenever they pass through the company’s headquarters.

As part of the dispatch process, drivers with an outbound load also receive a backhaul as early as possible to help with their trip planning. When drivers have a round trip, they can plan when and where to take their required rest breaks, Sigmon said.

“We are always trying to improve our pre-plans so our drivers know as quickly as possible what their next load is going to be,” he said.

When dispatching, fleet leaders communicate any known dwell times for live loads that do not have drop-and-hook 60

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trailers already spotted. If a driver knows a load has an expected six-hour delay, they might decide to take a 10-hour off-duty break at a shipping or receiving location beforehand, Sigmon said.

Drivers can view and respond to all dispatch assignments using the fleet’s mobile communications platform or driveCT mobile app.

The onboard platform has a navigation app that shows drivers companyapproved fuel stops along their routes and turn-by-turn directions to shipping and receiving facilities. Cargo Transporters identifies and inputs the exact GPS coordinates into the navigation app based on route analysis and driver feedback.

“We try to do what we can inside our walls,” said Sigmon, who wants drivers to be as efficient as possible and “maximize their earnings and home time.”

each day using routing software from Paragon Systems.

Prior to implementing Paragon nearly three years ago, Marigold & Onions manually planned delivery routes for its fleet of 11 cargo vans. Fleet planners divided up daily orders from customers into routes, allotting drivers 30 minutes of travel time between stops.

Once deliveries were complete, planners used a manual paper-based system to schedule next-day pickups for used items such as dishes and supplies. Copies of the delivery manifests from the previous day were plugged into currentday routes for drivers to make pickups after they had made deliveries at nearby locations.

With this manual system, a number of pickups were falling between the cracks, said John Valente, director of operations.

Marigold & Onions receives an average of 100 orders from customers each day. The Paragon system pulls in those orders from the company’s enterprise resource planning (ERP) system and builds optimal route schedules for both deliveries and pickups.

Drivers return to headquarters two or three times each day to drop off used equipment and pick up new orders.

The orders are loaded onto racks, and Paragon accounts for how many servings fit on each rack and the number of minutes it takes drivers to unload a rack. With these details, the software

Taking out stress Giving drivers accurate information about their routes, such as how long they will spend on activities such as loading and unloading, helps alleviate job stress and keeps the focus on safe driving.

Such has been the experience of Marigold & Onions, a Toronto-based catering and event service provider. The company optimizes driver trip plans

| april 2020

Trimble’s TMWGo app has a Driver Trip Planning feature for drivers to review and change their itineraries.

TECHNOLOGY: DRIVER TRIP PLANNING uses its street-level database to calculate and when they prefer to take mandated departure and travel times for each stop rest breaks. on routes.

Last September, Trimble Transportation announced a Driver Trip Planning Drivers now are less stressed because feature for its TruETA route planning their routes have accurate times allottool. The new feature captures driver ted for travel, deliveries and pickups, input to calculate more accurate time Valente said. Marigold & Onions also estimates for arrivals. is saving money on fuel and vehicle TruETA pulls data from both the maintenance by reducing mileage and saving labor costs from having less dead office and the vehicle to recalculate the ETAs of loads in time between progress each time deliveries. a position update “The flow is exis received from tremely accurate,” a fleet’s mobile he said. “Now communications drivers know system. exactly what they Motor carriers are doing all day using the feature long.” can provide drivDrivers also ers visibility of feel like they have their trip itinerarcontrol over the ies in the TMWGo routing. Schedmobile app. The ulers can use itinerary shows driver feedback the locations and to tailor routes in time of day for Paragon to avoid planned hours of streets with heavy service breaks. It congestion or road also predicts arconstruction. rival times for all Valente said delivery points.

Marigold & OnThe trip plans ions plans to add Omnitracs One has a driver workflow interface that organizes driver activities calculated by a mobile driver by location.

TruETA assume app for presentdrivers will use ing electronic the maximum 11 hours of drive time on invoices to clients at delivery to capture their clocks and stop for the minimum a signature. The company also plans to implement a vehicle telematics platform amount of time required for rest breaks. and integrate the GPS data with Paragon However, “that’s not how drivers operto analyze planned versus actual routing ate,” said Jay Delaney, senior director of product management for Trimble and capture reefer temperatures and driver safety data.

Transportation.

Delaney said Trimble’s industry data analysis shows drivers typically use 9.5 Capturing driver intent hours out of the 11 they have available A number of software tools can optito drive in each duty cycle. mize driver-load matches and create Within the app, drivers can view routes, but many of these products do a timeline of all planned stops for not account for changes that drivers may want to make to the plans, such as where their trips, and they can update their 62

commercial carrier journal

| april 2020

trip itinerary if they want to extend their breaks at any location. The app also gives drivers a map view of their current route with traffic and weather overlays.

If a driver wants to take an 11-hour rest break instead of the minimum 10 hours, the system will recalculate the driver’s ETAs for the remainder of the itinerary to show what effect the change will have, Delaney said. If a driver wants to make additional stops, they also can input those and see how they will impact their ETAs. A driver may not want to drive five hours straight like the plan shows and could change the itinerary to stop every two hours. This and other updates to a trip plan give the dispatcher real-time visibility of how the driver is executing according to plan.

The ETAs are recalculated constantly. If a driver gets stuck in traffic or is delayed at a customer facility, fleet managers can be alerted if the ETA falls out of range, and they can make plans to prevent service failures, Delaney said.

Trimble Transportation plans to integrate the TMWGo app with telematics devices used by fleets. The company also plans to add a new tool for drivers to input predicted time available (PTA), showing what time they plan to be available for the next load once they are empty.

Giving drivers a choice Some motor carriers let drivers choose from a preselected list of loads as part of their trip planning. McLeod Software has a “feasibility engine” in its LoadMaster transportation management software (TMS) system. When fleet managers make a load assignment, the engine determines if the driver assigned to the load has enough hours available and also checks for other conflicts such as time-off requests.

Fleets also can use LoadMaster to offer company drivers and contractors

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TECHNOLOGY: DRIVER TRIP PLANNING a choice in loads that can through the workflow, said be screened for feasibility Gary Blohm, vice president of and driver preferences, said sales for Omnitracs. The jobs Dustin Strickland, senior might include filling out a deproduct manager for McLeod livery form or a driver vehicle Software. inspection report (DVIR).

The load offers are visible Omnitracs also has a team through the McLeod Anyof data scientists working on where mobile app. Drivers a project designed to help can respond to load offers carriers remove the friction of through the app or their fleets’ detention times. The comweb-based driver portal. pany is building a database McLeod Software also is for tracking detention times exploring additional features at billions of locations that With real-time driver hours of service, load planners can make that could make the trip planquick, accurate decisions. Shown here is McLeod Software’s are visited by 600,000 trucks LoadMaster driver feasibility feature. ning process more interactive subscribed to its platform. for drivers and fleet managELDs have narrowed the ers, said Mark Cubine, vice president of “contextual based workflow” tool that margin of error in trip planning. Even marketing. fleets use to customize driver workflow simple mistakes by drivers and fleet Other new developments for driver by location. managers can lead to service failures trip planning center on improving the The driver interface has circles that and exacerbate job stress. New fleet flow of location-based information. show all the jobs that drivers need management technology aims to remove Omnitracs’ new mobile fleet manageto complete at each stop, and drivers the guesswork and make the most of the ment platform, Omnitracs One, has a can push buttons on each circle to go time that is available.

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Upgraded pliers

Snap-on’s P-Series “A” Revision Cutting Pliers now feature an additional staked screw design to help relieve foreign-object damage concerns. The pliers are built to stay sharp through 200,000 cycles and have an internal torsion spring engineered to return the pliers to the open position and keep them grip-friendly, and because the plier joints are precision-ground, opening and closing friction is reduced, helping the tools operate smoothly without lubrication.

Snap-on, www.snapon.com, 877-762-7664

Tandem-axle long-haul/ regional tire

TRUs for box trucks

Carrier Transicold has added three models to its next-generation Supra series of diesel-powered truck refrigeration units. Joining the initial Supra S6 model are the S7, S8 and S9 models, all built for less weight and to deliver improved cooling capacities more efficiently while using less fuel and refrigerant and reducing sound output, making them suitable for nighttime deliveries.

When parked and operating on electric standby power, the lineup is engineered to deliver refrigeration capacities that rival their capacities when engine-driven. A wraparound honeycomb grille provides a more contemporary appearance and is removable for easy access to internal components.

Carrier Transicold, www.transicold.carrier.com, 800-227-7437

Bridgestone’s M713 Ecopia tire is suited for tandem-axle applications in long-haul and regional service, with a casing designed to pair with a Bandag FuelTech retread to help extend tire life. The tire features an IntelliShape sidewall that helps reduce weight to minimize rolling resistance, and it leverages the company’s proprietary Fuel Saver Sidewall compound and patented NanoPro-Tech polymer technology to help reduce energy loss and enhance fuel economy. It features 3D siping to provide more biting edges to help increase traction in all weather conditions, an optimized belt package for casing durability and reduced tire weight, a high-rigidity tread pattern to help control movement of the tread blocks for less wear and lower rolling resistance, and a continuous shoulder design to uniformly distribute weight and torque to help impede irregular wear. The tire is available in sizes 295/75R22, 295.75R24.5, 11R22.5 and 11R24.5.

Bridgestone Americas Inc., commercial.bridgestone.com, 844-858-4737

Flatbed combo trailer

Wabash National’s re-engineered Transcraft Eagle flatbed combo trailer has new product badging and premium features that now come standard. In addition to a lighter-weight design, the trailer now offers more load securement versatility, a high standard beam rating to help handle tough loads and additional side turn/marker lamps for improved highway visibility. It also is engineered for lower weight, more payload capacity and added corrosion resistance.

Wabash National Corp., www.wabashnational.com, 800-937-4784

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PRODUCTS

Darkened LED lamps

Optronics’ Smoke-Lens LED Lamps feature darkened lenses that help them blend into a vehicle’s body contours, presenting a clean, noninvasive and stylish look.

The lineup includes 6-inch oval and 4-inch round stop/tail/turn lamps, a 6-inch oval backup lamp and a ¾-inch PC-rated clearance marker lamp. The lamps, lenses and housings are made of sonically welded polycarbonate material that employ a solid-state surface-mount design that helps protect their electronics against moisture, shock and vibration.

Optronics International, www.optronicsinc.com, 800-364-5483

Smart trailer nosebox

Phillips has enhanced its QBox trailer wire management nosebox system to now include its Permalogic feature designed to manage power to the trailer dome lamps at the 7-way connection. With Permalogic, the possibility of leaving the lamps on is eliminated by either manually switching the dome lamps on and off on the QBox, stepping on the brake pedal to turn the lamps off, allowing the system’s automatic timer to turn off the lamps or taking advantage of the system’s low-voltage disconnect. The QBox with Permalogic can be spec’d with or without circuit breakers and is built to offer 50% more interior working space, keeping trailer wires organized and pinch-free, while its durable Sta-Dry housing helps protect the internal wiring against corrosion, chemicals and extreme weather. The QBox also features the company’s QCS2 (Quick-Change Socket) that facilitates faster and easier socket replacement and added corrosion protection at the 7-way trailer connection.

Phillips Industries, www.phillipsind.com, 800-423-4512

Expanded tire lineup Yokohama introduced three new truck tires and new sizes for two other tires.

• The 504C, which replaces the MY507, is an aggressive all-position radial designed with a sturdy undertread for improved retreadability and a longer overall casing life to handle both onand off-highway applications. It will be available in May in sizes 11R22.5 (H) and 11R24.5 (H).

• The urban pickup-and-delivery 714R features enhanced construction to help facilitate added fuel efficiency, while wide shoulder grooves help provide more traction. It will be available this summer in sizes 225/70R19.5 (14) and 245/70R19.5 (16).

• The all-position 115R for Class 4-5 vehicles is built for year-round traction and dependability and is engineered with a heat-resistant compound for improved

fuel efficiency and a longer-lasting tread.

It has an N speed rating (87 mph) and will be available this summer initially in size 225/70R19.5 (14).

• The 715R open-shoulder regional-drive tire, already available is size 11R22.5, now also is available in sizes 295/75R22.5,

285/75R24.5 and 11R24.5.

• The 114R UWB regional-haul ultrawide-base trailer tire, now available in size 445/50R/22.5, will be available this spring in size 455/55R/22.5.

Yokohama Tire Corp., www.yokohamatruck.com, 800-722-9888

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| april 2020 67

PRODUCTS

Aftermarket lineup

Denso’s latest heavy-duty aftermarket parts include: • Starters and alternators: First Time Fit starters and alternators provide wide coverage for Class 8 and medium-duty trucks.

• Spark plugs for natural gas engines: Two new part numbers have been added to the

company’s line of spark plugs and rubber boot kits for vehicles that run on natural gas.

• PowerEdge diesel aftertreatment parts: More diesel particulate filter (DPF) and diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC) part numbers are available.

• Heavy- and medium-duty A/C com-

pressors: Aftermarket coverage now includes Daimler Trucks North America, Hino and Sprinter.

• PowerEdge starters and alternators: The company’s lineup now includes 39PE and 42PE starters, as well as 24PE 12-volt 170-amp alternators in pad-mount and J180-mount types.

Denso, www.densoheavyduty.com, 310-513-7353

Regional drive tire

Cooper’s Work Series All Weather Drive (AWD) tire for regional fleets comes in three sizes – 295/75R22.5 LR G, 11R22.5 LR H and 11R24.5 LR H – and has an openshoulder design with tightly packed center tread blocks that are highly siped to help enhance traction and interlocked to help maintain tread stability while cornering. Featuring 26/32nds of tread depth and a wide footprint for long miles to removal, the tire uses the company’s Snow Groove Technology with wide snow grooves separating the three inner tread blocks from the outside ribs, enhancing traction. To ward off irregular wear and enhance performance, the tire features shoulder tie bars to provide stability to the shoulder ribs, allowing for an improved balance of traction and irregular wear resistance. Built around a four steelbelt casing, the tire also is more retreadable, and stone ejectors located between the tread blocks help resist stone drilling.

Cooper Tire and Rubber Co., www.coopertire.com, 800-854-6288

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PRODUCTS

Spray lubricant

Hot Shot’s Secret Never Rust Lubricant is a multipurpose 100% synthetic spray lubricant formulated to protect metal parts from rust and corrosion. It is suited for metal nuts and bolts, cables and chains, metal tools, truck parts and door hinges and locks and is engineered to be effective in extreme temperatures, with an operating temperature range of -65 to 300 degrees Fahrenheit. It is made to resist water washout and to not dry out, separate or bleed on equipment. It also can be used to remove gummy labels, tape or stickers and is compatible to use with most seals except for EDPM rubber.

To apply, shake the 9-ounce aerosol can, hold the spray tip 8 to 10 inches from the metal surface, and spray evenly.

Hot water hose sprayer

Rheem’s HotWave multipurpose hose sprayer uses tankless water heating technology to provide continuous hot water outdoors to help save users time and effort when washing their vehicles. A plug-and-play design easily attaches and works with any garden hose to provide adjustable heated water up to a maximum 110 degrees Fahrenheit. The device’s multipurpose design features four spray patterns that offer a different water pressure and the ability to use cool, warm or hot settings. It features a comfortable ergonomic grip and a trigger lock engineered for easy use.

Rheem, www.rheem.com, 800-621-5622

Hot Shot’s Secret, www.hotshotsecret.com, 800-341-6516

Heavy regional tires

Continental’s 19.5-inch Conti HSR+ heavy steer and Conti HDR+ heavy drive regional tires are suited for on-/off-road applications where traction and high on-road mileage are needed. The tires use a cap/base tread compound designed to enhance cut-and-chip performance and have a retreadable casing. The HSR+ is available with a matching retread, the 16/32-inch all-position ContiTread HSR. Continental Tire the Americas, www.continental-truck.com/truck, 800-847-3349

Download the Imperial App today.

Fleet Maintenance Solutions for the Road Ahead 888-838-6718 imperialsupplies.com

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| april 2020 69

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COMMERCIAL CARRIER JOURNAL

|

APRIL 2020

AD INDEX 3M . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3m .com/lightupthenight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Ancra Cargo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ancracargo .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 BestPass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . bestpass .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 CCJ Innovators Congratulations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ccjinnovators .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 CCJ Innovators Summit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ccjinnovators .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 Chevron . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . deloemissionscontrolcenter .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .IFC-1 Direct Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . directequipmentsupply .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 Drivers Legal Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . driverslegalplan .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10, 11 EZ Oil Drain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ezoildrainvalve .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 Fleetpride . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . fleetpride .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 GATS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . truckshow .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 Howes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . howeslube .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Imperial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . imperialsupplies .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Innovative Products of America . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ipatools .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Instructional Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . instructiontech .net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 Isuzu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . isuzucv .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IBC LKQ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . lkqheavytruck .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 Penske . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . gopenske .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Peterbilt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . peterbilt .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .BC ProMiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . promiles .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 Small Fleet Champ - One 9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . overdriveonline .com/small-fleet-championship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 St . Christopher Truckers Fund . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . truckersfund .org . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63, 70 Strick Trailers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . stricktrailers .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 TBS Factoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . tbsfactoring .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 TCA DOY Congratulations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . truckersnews .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Thermo King Partner Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . thermoking .com/driven . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32-33 Wheel-Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . wheel-check .com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

commercial carrier journal

| april 2020 71

LEADERSHIP IS THE JOB,

TRAINING

IS THE TOOL. GREAT LEADERS EQUIP THEIR TEAMS WITH TOOLS FOR SUCCESS.

PREVENTABLE or NOT? Overly-wide left turn doesn’t go right for Doe

P

iloting his straight job down one-way North Main Street on a sunny day in beautiful downtown Crumbville, Tenn., trucker John Doe daydreamed about the hotrod lime-colored 1955 Peterbilt – reportedly featuring a 550-hp 3406E – he’d seen that morning at Berger’s Truck Stop.

Man, that rig probably could rip a kingpin clean off !

Ahh! There was First Avenue, at the next intersection. Moving into the leftturn-only lane, Doe stopped for the red light. At that moment, teenager Tony Lambrusko was dominating the center lane of North Main in his Mustang, moving rapidly toward the light where an inattentive Doe waited.

When the traffic signal turned green, Doe began a wide left turn, made memorable by a loud “Whambo!” as his right front Straight truck driver John fender connected with the Doe was making a left turn solidly left rear fender of from a one-way street, but Lambrusko’s pony.

Doe conhis turn was too wide, and Bummer! tested the preventhe hit a sports car in the able-accident love letter from his safety next lane that he didn’t director, claiming see. Was this a preventable that Lambrusko’s car had wandered accident? into his lane.

Asked to decide the issue, the National Safety Council’s Accident Review Committee (after reviewing accident photos of both vehicles) upheld the “preventable” decision, concluding that Doe probably wasn’t paying enough attention to his surroundings and that his turn had been a tad too wide.

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72

commercial carrier journal

| april 2020

WE’VE RAISED THE CEILING ON BEST IN CLASS

Peterbilt’s Model 579 UltraLoft is a lightweight integral cab-sleeper design that takes the Model 579 to new levels of driver comfort and performance.

The distinctive exterior features a bold, sculpted roofline and aerodynamic enhancements for increased fuel economy. The new interior offers bestin-class headroom, bunk space and storage. The standard PACCAR Powertrain, including the PACCAR MX-13 engine and the advanced PACCAR Automated Transmission, maximizes fuel efficiency and drivability, making the Model 579 UltraLoft the driver’s truck of choice.

For more information, stop by your nearest Peterbilt dealer or visit Peterbilt.com.

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