IN IT TOGETHER - siia.net can drivers be ... and manage road speed according to traffic conditions rather than letting the cruise ... From industry-leading truck GPS devices to the

110 HDT • JUNE 2015 www.truckinginfo.com

DRIVER DILEMMA: PART 6

The beatings will continue until morale improves.” You’ve probably seen that expression on a T-shirt somewhere. It’s a dis-

tasteful poke at some corporate and institutional cultures that propose solutions to problems that are quite at odds with the objective. It’s not unlike the approach some fleets take

new equipment. How can drivers be expected to achieve optimum perfor-mance from trucks they don’t know how to operate?

“Giving a seasoned profes-sional driver the keys to one of these [highly advanced] trucks is like giving a dirt track racer the key to a Formula 1 car and sending him off to race,” notes owner-operator Jeff Clark. “It does not mean they can’t

in trying to improve fuel economy. They stress the importance of such change, but don’t offer drivers the training or the tools they need to fulfill the demand.

We often hear from drivers who have just been assigned a new truck, maybe four of five years newer and more advanced than the last one they had, but they are offered no instruction or orientation on the

By Jim Park, Equipment [email protected]

TOGETHERIN IT

There are many ways fleets can help drivers maximize fuel economy.

The right equipment for the job improves the fleet’s and the driver’s chances for success.



drive. It means to optimize perfor-mance, they need to be trained on the specific equipment.”

There is much fleets can do to improve fuel economy, and investing in new technology is certainly high on the list. But do we still need to invest in training drivers for better fuel economy? Absolutely, says Bill Bliem, senior vice president of Fleet Services for Vineland, N.J-based NFI Industries.

“Even with all the automation we see today, you still need to train drivers,” he says. “We are in the process of switching over to 100% automated manual transmissions,

1 Avoid unnecessary braking — Maintaining a few miles per hour slower than the prevailing traffic flow will reduce the need to decelerate for slower traffic and then speed up again. Getting off the throttle pedal sooner and coasting to a stop light rather than braking, when possible, means less fuel burned. Use gravity-generated momentum when safe to do so by rolling down a hill and part

way up the other side, rather than braking on the hill to maintain a prescribed speed.

2 Don’t idle, ever — Vehicles equipped with auxiliary climate control systems do not ever need to idle except a few moments before shutdown after a hard pull. Remind drivers that all the myths they have ever heard that idling is necessary to warm up an engine, or that less fuel is burned during five minutes of idling than when starting an engine are just that, myths. Shut off the

engine whenever possible, even for a few minutes.

3 Accelerate gently — Drive the truck like you have an egg between your foot and the throttle pedal. Even though AMTs will shift according to their programming, most take cues from how aggressively the driver hits the pedal. High throttle demand usually produces higher revs be-tween gears and more aggressive shifts.

4 Reduce the gap — When proper axle loading permits, keep the trailer cinched up as close to the tractor as possible. The tractor-trailer gap is a big fuel waster, and it should be minimized when-ever the opportunity arises.

5 Drive the truck — Drivers have one big advantage over most of the automated functions on a truck; they can see the road. Rather than leaving the cruise control on all the time, manage speed and momentum in hills by backing off the throttle when nearing the crest of a hill, for example. There’s no need to go over the top at full power. Back off the throttle sooner when coming to a

stop, and manage road speed according to traffic conditions rather than letting the cruise bring you in so close to another car that you have to brake.

Top 5 ways drivers can instantly improve fuel economyDriver skill, or lack thereof, along with habits and behavior can have a huge impact on fuel efficiency.

It is said there can be a difference of something like 30% between a fleet’s best and worst driver. Sure, technology can level that playing field to some extent, but some things computers can’t fix. Here are five tips guaranteed to save fuel, no matter how your trucks are spec’d:

so you might think that would take the driver’s shifting habits out of the equation. It pretty much does, except you still need to explain to them how to drive the AMT.”

While it may seem counterintui-tive, Bliem says it’s often the veteran drivers who need the nudging.

“The new drivers are a little easier to train than the guys who have to change old habits,” he says. “It’s a bit harder for them to adjust their thinking.”

He describes a training exercise in which veteran drivers were taken over a mountain course and taught how to lug the engine down before downshifting.

“They wanted to shift at 1,400 rpm but the trainer wouldn’t let them, and again at 1,300 and 1,200,” Bliem says. “They were

“Putting the aero pack-ages on trailers is a benefit for the owner-operator, but I’m not sure all of them realize how much of an advantage that provides.”

– John Elliott, Load One Inc.

shocked when the truck went over the top at 1,100 rpm and the truck was gaining speed. We actually had to show them the torque curves so they could see there was no power up in the 1,700 rpm range where they are used to driving. There is no power there anymore, just noise.”

Clark says his conversations with other drivers lead him to believe there’s not a lot of fuel economy training going on any more. He says he’s aware of a few fleets with very good programs, but they seem to be the exception.

“I think training and incentives are the two best ways of improving fuel mileage,” he says. “There’s not a lot of return for a company driver who is working to do better with his fuel mileage, so they don’t have much of a reason to do things differently. Tie some of his take-home pay to a fuel mileage benchmark and watch what happens.”

It’s a little different with owner-operators. Their fuel savings is money earned, but fleets can still encourage better performance by offering trailing equipment that is as fuel efficient as possible.

“There’s not a lot in it for us to deck our trailers out with skirts and low-rolling resistance tires, but we offer that kind of equipment as a re-cruiting incentive,” says John Elliott, CEO of Load One based in Taylor, Mich., an owner-operator expedited fleet. “Putting the aero packages on the trailer is a benefit for the owner-operator, but I’m not sure all of them realize how much of an advantage

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Skilled drivers can certainly improve fuel economy, but skills don’t come naturally.


“The new drivers are a little easier to train than the guys who have old habits. It’s a bit harder for them to adjust their thinking.”

– Bill Bliem, NFI


www.truckinginfo.com JUNE 2015 • HDT 115

Rewards and incentives for better performance work well when they are perceived as achievable, fair and

equitable. It’s not easy meeting those three criteria in a fuel conservation exercise. Monitoring and tracking driver performance, sometimes called shaming and gaming, can also achieve the desired objective, but some drivers don’t respond well to that sort of peer pressure.

Nussbaum Transportation has been successful with its driver incentive program. An in-house algorithm was developed to level the playing field between trucks and various other parameters. Phil Braker, Nussbaum’s vice president of operations, had his IT department crunch the numbers and weight variables to arrive at a more level playing field.

“Our fleet is by no means homogeneous; we wanted driver buy-in,” he says. “We spent a lot of time getting it right and I think our program is very fair now. The driv-ers seem to think so, too, and they are participating.”

Keith Tuttle, president of Motor Carrier Service, Inc. and current chairman of the Truckload Carriers Association, says his company philosophy is that of

constant improvement. Fuel mileage reports as well as fleet CSA scores are posted in the common areas of the terminal facility for everyone to see. Some see it as a personal challenge to place in the top 10 every month, but some drivers would rather not be exposed as mediocre.

“We’ve burned a few bridges that way,” he admits. “We had some people who are more comfortable work-ing at a company where they are just steering wheel holders.”

If your company operates a diverse selection of equipment in a variety of applications, it might be worth exploring telematic driver reporting options that reveal driver habits and behavior, and reward them based on good behavior driving technique.

“It’s not hard to pull data on idle time, speeding, fuel economy, hard braking, etc., so drivers can be com-pared to their peers,” says Kelly Frey, vice president of product marketing at Telogis. “Once they become aware of the issues, they can start doing something about it. Used as a training tool as opposed to a punish-ment, driver tracking can be very useful.”

Carrots or sticks?

posted 9.9 mpg over a three-month period. He has the right truck, obvi-ously, but he drives it properly, too.

“I’m working to improve my fuel mileage every day,” he says. “I let the computers on the truck do their job and I do mine, too. Together, we’ll get to 10 mpg over a three-month period. For me, it’s a combination of technology, training and determination.” ■

that provides. We also keep the trail-ers lubed and aligned to minimize drag and rolling resistance. We check that twice a year. It’s incremental but it adds up.”

Elliott makes fuel and mileage data from the satellite records avail-able to owner-operators so they can see how they are doing. He says that while the company can’t force an owner-operator to drive a certain way, he can make it easier for them to see how they are doing.

“It’s hard to get the data from the owner-operator to show them what a difference it can make,” Elliott says “But showing them the before and after numbers we have can be an eye-opener for some of them.”

Elliott also stresses the importance of putting the driver into the right

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truck, especially in a lease/purchase program.

“Big, shiny, pretty trucks are an easier sell, but the drivers won’t make as much money with one of those,” he says. “Fuel economy is so vitally important today, I hate to see well-intentioned owner-operators limiting their chances with the wrong truck.”

The right truck can certainly make a difference. It’s not uncom-mon anymore to see fuel mileage in the 9-mpg range. Royal Jones, CEO of Mesilla Valley Transportation, says his fleet average is around 9 mpg, but adds that some of his drivers are best-ing 10. They aren’t accomplishing that in heavy, over-powered, non-aerodynamic trucks.

Independent Henry Albert just


This is the sixth installment in a year-long series on recruiting, retaining and managing truck drivers. For related web-exclu-sive content and links to other installments in the series, go to www.truckinginfo.com/drivers2015.


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www.truckinginfo.com JUNE 2015 • HDT 117

There are few stronger moti-vators than a good return on

an investment. Building driver buy-in to your fuel economy pro-gram requires enough incentive to overcome what the driver per-ceives they’ll be giving up, along with sufficient disincentive to maintain certain bad behaviors. It’s not all about money. While financial reward is certainly a strong motivator, it’s not the only effective one.

Without getting into a lot of psychobabble, one can look to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to gain an understanding of moti-vation. Maslow’s theory sug-gests that the most basic level of needs must be met before individuals will seek to achieve the secondary or higher level needs.

From the drivers’ point of view, cutting truck speeds from 65 to 60 mph, for example, could be perceived as a significant threat to their earning capability. It will save fuel, but if schedules are tight or there are penalties for service failures, requiring the driver to make the same run over a longer timeframe could create a lot of stress.

A late arrival could also compromise the reload, which could translate into additional time away from home — with no additional compensation.

Mazlow would say that because the drivers’ primary needs are not met, they would be less likely to embrace your request for better fuel mileage. The same applies to demands to limit idling. If the truck isn’t equipped with an auxiliary climate control system, the dis-comfort of spending a summer night in an overheated truck cab will probably supersede your need to have the truck shut off to save fuel.

If you expect to change behavior simply by demanding change, you will likely fail. On the other hand, if the requests are accompanied by assurances

and incentives, and something can be built into the program to instill improved self-worth, fulfillment and pride, then you’re practically assured of success.

What’s in it for me?

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IN IT TOGETHER - siia.net can drivers be ... and manage road speed according to traffic conditions rather than letting the cruise ... From industry-leading truck GPS devices to the