Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/378850
40 COMMERCIAL CARRIER JOURNAL | SEPTEMBER 2014 technology F leets today are having to find new ways to move freight with fewer trucks due to a driver shortage, rising equipment and fuel prices, gov- ernment regulations and other capacity constraints. While maximizing payload is a long- standing strategy, fleet managers often lack insight into whether or not their trucks are fully loaded before leaving quarries, oilfields, warehouse docks and other pickup locations. In addition to leaving money on the table, underloaded trucks could be a safety hazard. Gemini Motor Transport, a national petroleum hauler that transports fuel to Love's Travel Stops locations, now is installing Air-Weigh's onboard scales to acquire detailed payload information. The 220-truck fleet plans to use the technology to increase productivity by ensuring trailers are loaded to the maximum legal amount. Safety is also a concern: Full loads have fewer fumes and aren't as flammable as partial loads. Gemini plans to integrate the Air- Weigh LoadMaxx system with its telemat- ics platform from Cadec, providing fleet managers with an alert the instant an underloaded or overloaded event is oc- curring, giving them the opportunity to contact drivers to make corrections and identify best practices. Onboard load scales are common among fleets that haul bulk or refrigerated commodi- ties. For these types of op- erations, drivers and fleets are partially responsible for ensuring loads are legal and optimized before leaving pickup locations. Independent contractors and small fleets may require only a simple electronic or mechanical load scale, but many larger fleets have more need to monitor loading and unloading activities from the office and make real-time decisions. Knowing a truck is underloaded could create an opportunity to add another lighter load from a separate customer, thereby in- creasing profit and customer satisfaction. Instant information Onboard scales are mounted on the different axle groups of a combination vehicle to monitor air pressure and temperature of the air suspension system. The sensors are accurate to within 300 pounds of the actual onground weight, and while they aren't accurate enough to bill customers by the pound, they can make carriers more efficient. When drivers pick up a live or staged load, they know immediately if they are overloaded or underloaded. They also can monitor the total weight and the weight of each axle group as loading takes place. Drivers do not have to Continued on page 43 in focus: ONBOARD SCALES Many larger fleets have more need to monitor loading or unloading activities from the office and make real-time decisions. Weight a second Onboard scales deliver instant feedback BY AARON HUFF TruckWeight's onboard scales have standard RS232 and Bluetooth connections that can be used for inte- grating weight and sensor data into fleets' existing telematics platforms. The company also offers a cellu- lar option called FleetLink. Rice Lake's TradeRoute precision onboard scale is designed for drivers to bypass local truck scales. The scale's load cells support the vehicle's load only during the weigh cycle.