Overdrive Magazine | Trucking Business News & Owner Operator Info
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/989498
PULSE June 2018 | Overdrive | 7 Our January cover story, "Your link in the blockchain," introduced readers to a technol- ogy with potentially broad application that could render a lot of finger-pointing in the supply chain a moot issue. Blockchain likely will affect owner-opera- tors in a good way, given that many of their problems have lingered for decades due to the lack of accountability among shippers, brokers and other parties. The accuracy and immediacy of blockchain records, typically called a "distributed ledger," could bring some needed change. It could well mirror part of what has hap- pened with another technology of precision: electronic logging devices. Many owner-op- erators who opposed e-logs have come to ap- preciate the relief from pressure to drive well over hours and fudge the logs, not to mention escape from the tedium of manual logging. Remaining opposition seems based on losing the productivity edge that came from minor fudging to grab a few extra miles and resolve the absurd technicalities of how the hours of service rule plays out in real life. As the ELD mandate has taken hold, more individuals and organizations, including the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Asso- ciation, have acknowledged that ELDs are a tool exposing the real problem: the hours rule itself. The ongoing legislative proposals that have resulted might not have happened if a technological advance had not magnified the rule's inherent problems for all to see. Now it's blockchain technology that aspires to shine a light into trucking's shadows. One of the first such benefits cited for owner-op- erators has been detention pay. Blockchain promises to go beyond just GPS data with a more thorough record of all delivery details and, more importantly, real-time sharing of that information with every party that needs to know it. Detention pay, where contracted, should be fair and speedy. Streamlined payments, made possible by in- voices rapidly verified and shared, was among topics of potential benefit to owner-operators during last month's Transpar- ency18 conference in Atlanta. It was put on by data compa- ny Freightwaves and tied to the Blockchain in Transport Alliance. Another topic was part of a Learning Machine system using blockchain for placing "ownership of records in the hands of the recipient." That includes drivers, who no longer would be subject to the delays or inaccuracies common when records are held only by a gov- ernment agency or a fleet. Another service, by PEIR, relies on time- and loca- tion-stamped smartphone photos in the blockchain to help isolate blame when cargo or containers are damaged. "It's very cheap insurance," said David Carnes of PEIR. Owner-operators and fleets have been the whipping boys too often when a delivery goes awry. If technology grabs snapshots of the truth and blockchain rubber-stamps them for all to see, that's a step forward. mheine@randallreilly.com By Max Heine Editorial director Werner emphasized, stressing that the violation will hit both his and his carrier's record. "I just sat there in my truck that night for 10 hours," he says, stewing over "just what I'm sitting there for. I had nothing to hide and was up- front with him about it." Leniency? Hope is cold comfort in an age of auto- mation enforced with a blind legalism. Other perspectives, from OverdriveOnline.com commenters: Bill Henry: It would not have been a problem on paper logs. Josh Brown: This is not a le- git article on leniency. I really wish it was, but it wasn't. This driver did not do everything that was required of him to do before DOT looked at his ELD. If he would have made the correct changes, then he would have been fine. Also, remember the only reason DOT even looked at his ELD was due to him speeding. Ben: Not one simple mis- take, but two simple mistakes. First, you broke the speed limit. Second, you screwed up on your log. Truck drivers (like myself) are just doing their job trying to hang in there, just like cops. I wish cops existed only and genuinely for law enforce- ment (to protect and to serve). Unfortunately, nowadays its more like "to protect, to serve, and to clean up financial loose ends of my city." ... Don't give them a reason to give us a ticket. And slow the truck down! ... Take your time, be safe, and maybe the rates might actually in- crease more to sustain what we do, because they need us! Faster processing of accurate detention pay isn't the only benefit drivers could gain through blockchain's documentation of steps in the supply chain. Truth-telling Max Heine