Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/936627
54 commercial carrier journal | february 2018 Knowing how, when to use remote diagnostics can help carriers cut costs, improve uptime BY JASON CANNON N ew technologies such as remote diagnostics can be intimidating, o en providing unfamiliar lev- els of information to end users — and they may not know what to do with it once they see it. But if harnessed properly, that kind of deep-dive into a eet's business and equipment utilization can be life-changing. "Simply put, eets choosing to not utilize a remote diag- nostics platform are missing out on insight that leads to cost savings and increased uptime," says Dave Covington, chief technology o cer for Noregon. However, out tting trucks for remote diagnostics capabilities when they weren't factory-equipped with them can be tricky. Pre-2008 trucks operated with J1587 and J1708 circuitry that would broadcast simple failure mode indicators that easily could be tracked to an SAE code related to a speci c engine problem. In transitioning to more modern J1939 circuitry, the broadcast became more complex and less relatable to a single speci c issue. "You really need a secret decoder ring to take that broad- cast and interpret that into an actionable item," says Rick Tapp, maintenance manager for PacLease. " ere were maybe only 100 codes available in 2006, and now there are probably over 1,200 codes." Greg Treinen, manager of connectivity for Daimler Trucks North America, says most Detroit-powered Freightliner and Western Star trucks built since April 2011 include the connectivity platform that delivers Detroit Connect's Virtual Technician remote diagnostics service. at platform also is compatible with older U.S. Environ- mental Protection Agency 2010-era Detroit engines with EDITOR'S NOTE: THE FOLLOWING STORY IS PART TWO OF A THREEPART SERIES ON "OUTOFWARRANTY TRUCKS." JANUARY'S INSTALLMENT FOCUSED ON OIL DRAIN INTERVALS. MARCH'S STORY WILL ADDRESS AFTERMARKET WARRANTIES.