Load Securement

It is an awful feeling when you loose a load off your flat bed or spill it inside your trailer. As far as I am concerned there is no real load security for van trailers unless after market design has been applied to it. Load bars do not hold the cargo in place and there is not enough logistic rails to efficiently use logistic straps. As you can see in these videos a lost load is a real mess.

I laugh when I hear people pressing the issue of load security. How can we secure loads when the equipment is not designed to allow us to secure our loads properly. I feel all enclosed trailers have a minimum of trailer length horizontal logistic rails at 2 foot intervals up the wall of the trailer. I have seen gated load bars which gives you a greater load security area unlike a 2” diam. bar.

I'll start taking this industry more seriously when I see the industry become more serious about standardizing equipment to create a higher safety factor.

On a good note, if you want a copy of the Load Security Handbook you can get it HERE.

Tags: Trucker Load Securement

0 comments View Entry

I was over at the Inside Scoop forum at Truckers Report and I was surprised at the number of companies listed. No wonder everyone has a hard time choosing.

I remember being approached in driver school by Schneider and Challenger but I declined their offers. In fact I think 95% of the class said no thanks.

I lucked out and on my first day of looking I found a small Quebec flatbed carrier with a satellite outlet in my area. They had a 30 year trucking veteran train me on my days off(no pay). After a couple of months I was working full time. First local then highway. Well, Laidlaw bought them and 2 months later they closed my outlet.

A year later I worked for a flatbed company( Laidlaw took our Quebec trucks and formed a new company using an old company's CVOR which they owned and dismantled).I felt something wasn't right and moved on. A year later they ditched that company too.

No more big companies for me. I changed my attitude and started looking for smaller private companies and things started looking up.

Now I only work for companies privately owned and less than 30 trucks. I am specific about short haul (500) mile radius. I speak with their dispatch , safety compliance, and ask a lot of questions about pay rate and company policy before I join.

The advice I recommend is to ask what they want from you as a driver and tell them what can give them as a driver. Don't say yes until all your questions are answered. After you get hired look for an experienced company driver to give you some guidance of company policy and operations.

I hope this can help someone having a hard time deciding what company to choose.

Tags: TruckerI Was Over At The Inside Scoop Forum And I Was Surprised At The Numb

0 comments View Entry

They call us professional drivers working in a professional industry. How much do you agree with that statement?

I guess the first thing to look at is the definition of the word "Professional".

I have worked in the manufacturing and public service industry for 20 years before I became a truck driver. I still can't believe how trucking companies and some industries survive.

My experience in dealing with management in this industry has lead me to the conclusion that:
- we have a lack of knowledgeable and experienced people in dispatch and safety compliance.
- communication skills are insufficient.
- few people take responsibility for their actions or decisions.

I know profit margins are narrow to none in this industry. which makes me think you would want professional people working for you to cut down unnecessary costs.

I could go on in more detail of personal experiences that make me shake my head and say "what did I get into?"

Tags: Trucker

0 comments View Entry

Eating healthy in a Big Rig

">

The biggest problem we have is eating regularly and healthy while we run the roads for a living. Now-a-days with our truck designs and technology there should be no reason to jeopardize our nutritional health.

My truck has a 60” bunk with lots of storage space, a cooler, kettle, and microwave since I have a 2500 watt converter. My food supply consists of frozen dinners, cereal, fruit salads, soups, nutritional supplements, vegetable and fruit drinks. Once in a while I get a craving for a bag of M&M's or bugles. So no matter where I get held up I can just pull off the road and prepare a healthy meal in ten minutes or less.

Here is an article to prove my point of view; No Time to Cook? Frozen Dinners to the Rescue

So how do you make the best choice, faced with hundreds of frozen dinners and entrees that are readily available?

• Frozen meals have gotten tastier over the years, but you still must buy and try before you find your favorites.

• Beware of potpies with crust, Hungry Man dinners, and stuffed-crust or extra-cheese pizzas.

• Select dinners that are balanced and contain a lean source of protein, such as Lean Cuisine, Healthy Choice, and Weight Watchers brands.

• Choose dinners or entrees with no more than 300-400 calories.

• Choose meals with no more than 30% of the calories coming from fat. This would be about 10-14 grams of total fat if the meal contains 300-400 calories.

• Select meals with no more than 6 grams of saturated fat.

• Aim for a sodium content no higher than 600 milligrams.

• Add on a side salad with low calorie dressing, a serving of fruit, and a glass of low-fat milk to round out the meal. This will help you boost the fiber, calcium and nutrient contents of your meal.

I hope this helps you find a way to eat healthier without having to search the countryside for a good truck stop and keep some kind of a regular eating schedule.

Tags: Health

1 comments View Entry

How many times have you been asked when will you get there? Are you having a problem calculating time over distance. I get funny looks from drivers and customers when I tell them without hesitation when I'll be there. I've been calculating my trip times for years and can usually be accurate within an hour. Here is how it works:

Driving time= trip miles divided by 50 mph.

Border crossings= 1-2 hr. Depending on economy.

Meals = 1.5 hrs.

Customer visits = 2hrs

Sleep = 6hrs

On the average (80-90%) these times work well for me because I eat 2 meals a day and get 5-6 hrs sleep every night. By consistantly using this type of calculation my dispatch can become familiar with the way I drive and better dispatch me without surprises. It has served me well and have never been fired over it.

Give it a try and let me know what you think. This is something they don't teach you in school.

1 comments View Entry

For those of you that have heard about the Ontario, Canada speed limiter devices here it is from our department of transport:

http://www.e-laws.gov.on.ca/html/statutes/english/elaws_statutes_90h08_e.htm#BK117

Note: On a day to be named by proclamation of the Lieutenant Governor, Part VI is amended by the Statutes of Ontario, 2008, chapter 8, section 1 by adding the following section:

Speed-limiting systems

Required use by commercial motor vehicles

68.1  (1)  No person shall drive, or permit the operation of, a commercial motor vehicle on a highway unless the vehicle is equipped with a speed-limiting system that is activated and functioning in accordance with the regulations. 2008, c. 8, s. 1.

Same

(2)  Except as authorized by the regulations, no person shall,

(a) deactivate, or permit a person to deactivate, a commercial motor vehicle’s speed-limiting system; or

(b) modify, or permit a person to modify, a commercial motor vehicle’s speed-limiting system such that it ceases to function in accordance with the regulations. 2008, c. 8, s. 1.

Tampering device prohibited

(3)  No person shall drive, or permit the operation of, a commercial motor vehicle on a highway if the vehicle is equipped with, has attached to it or carries,

(a) a prescribed device or prescribed equipment; or

(b) another device or equipment that is designed to disguise the fact that the vehicle is not equipped with a speed-limiting system that is activated and functioning in accordance with the regulations. 2008, c. 8, s. 1.

Verifying compliance

(4)  A police officer or officer appointed for carrying out the provisions of this Act, in exercising his or her powers under section 82 or 216.1, may require that the driver or other person in charge of a commercial motor vehicle,

(a) provide the officer with access to the vehicle’s computer system in order to retrieve and read any information relevant to the activation and functioning of the vehicle’s speed-limiting system;

(b) surrender to the officer any device or equipment carried in the vehicle that operates as part of the vehicle’s speed-limiting system; and

(c) surrender to the officer any records that the driver is required by the regulations to carry with him or her while driving the vehicle. 2008, c. 8, s. 1.

Same

(5)  A driver or other person in charge of a commercial motor vehicle shall comply with any requirement made under subsection (4) by a police officer or officer appointed for carrying out the provisions of this Act. 2008, c. 8, s. 1.

Seizure of tampering device

(6)  If a police officer or officer appointed for carrying out the provisions of this Act finds a device or equipment prohibited by subsection (3) in the course of any inspection of a commercial motor vehicle, he or she may detach, if necessary, and seize any such device or equipment. 2008, c. 8, s. 1.

Sale of tampering devices prohibited

(7)  No person shall sell, offer or advertise for sale a device or equipment prohibited by subsection (3). 2008, c. 8, s. 1.

Offence

(8)  Every person who contravenes or fails to comply with subsection (1), (2), (3), (5) or (7), or a regulation made under this section, is guilty of an offence and on conviction is liable to a fine of not less than $250 and not more than $20,000. 2008, c. 8, s. 1.

Evidentiary presumption

(9)  In any proceeding under this section and in the absence of evidence to the contrary, proof that a commercial motor vehicle was driven on a highway at a speed equal to or greater than the speed prescribed for the purpose of this subsection is proof that the vehicle was not equipped with a speed-limiting system that was activated and functioning as required by subsection (1). 2008, c. 8, s. 1.

Forfeiture of tampering device

(10)  Where a person is convicted of an offence under subsection (3), any device or equipment seized under subsection (6) by means of which the offence was committed is forfeited to the Crown. 2008, c. 8, s. 1.

Regulations

(11)  The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations,

(a) defining “commercial motor vehicle” for the purposes of this section;

(b) prescribing standards for speed-limiting systems;

(c) governing the activation and functioning of speed-limiting systems, including prescribing and governing the speed at which speed-limiting systems must be set and prescribing different speed settings for different circumstances;

(d) prescribing devices and equipment for the purpose of clause (3) (a);

(e) governing methods to verify compliance with this section and the regulations, including prescribing devices and software to be used to retrieve and read information in computer systems;

(f) prescribing the speed for the purpose of subsection (9);

(g) requiring and governing the inspection and maintenance of speed-limiting systems;

(h) governing records to be kept and submitted in relation to the inspection, maintenance, activation and functioning of speed-limiting systems;

(i) governing records to be kept and carried by drivers in relation to the activation and functioning of speed-limiting systems;

(j) exempting any person or class of persons or any commercial motor vehicle or class of commercial motor vehicles from any requirement or provision of this section or of a regulation made under this section and prescribing conditions and circumstances for any such exemption. 2008, c. 8, s. 1.

See: 2008, c. 8, ss. 1, 2.

It's rather lenghty but when they are actually going to enforce it I can't even get out of the D.O.T.  In my opinion it's a law that will only make it to the law books and no farther.

Tags: Speed Devices

0 comments View Entry

They are at it again. Pay the government $135.00 and you can enter the seaports to pick up your loads and feel safe. You only have until January 2009 to obtain this top notch government security card if you want access to the US seaports.

For those of you needing the registration information go to    https://twicprogram.tsa.dhs.gov/

MY OPINION:  Since this card is your own, not the companies, I would suggest getting it if you travel the east or west coast. As the economy is getting tougher this will give you an edge for employment if trucking companies have to start looking at import/export freight becuase domestic freaight slows down.                                                                                                                                                                                 

Tags: TWIC Home Security

2 comments View Entry

I was on a trip the other day to Philly. I arrived an hour after my appointment and was put into a dock. When I was empty I noticed a truck from the same supplier just pulling into the dock. Ironiccally he was there before I was. He showed up at the back-haul an hour after me and was loaded 4 hours before me. The next day I showed up three hours behind him and was empty an hour after him.  I stopped an hour for dinner and my six hours sleep.

I don't know how many times i've experienced this. As I always say" Hurry-up and wait."

1 comments View Entry

Eat Healthy, Sleep Well, Drive Hard

It is well known that the trucking industry is not the healthiest of careers. How many people do you know who's life or career has been cut short due to poor health created by their trucking career?


To be successful in the trucking industry you must become assertive with your scheduling of sleep, diet and time management. The industry is not going set guidelines for you to eat, sleep and drive.


A study about trucker health prepared for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration revealed that:




A 1993 study of 2,945 truck drivers attending a trade show noted that 73 percent of all
respondents to a survey were either overweight or obese. Of these drivers, 33 percent
were classified as obese (i.e., Body Mass Index Greater than 30) and 40 percent were
classified as overweight (i.e., Body Mass Index between 25 and 30).


A 1993 study of 2,945 truck drivers attending a trade show revealed over 80 percent
of these drivers ate only one or two meals per day and 36 percent had three or more
snacks per day.


The typical snacks of the drivers in the above 1996 study were: Chips, Fruit, Candy, Donuts, Cookies. Only 15 percent of these drivers ate five or more servings of fruits and vegetables per
day.



If you don't want to be part of these statitics you must take control of your habits, lifestyle and enviroment.
Set up your truck to accomadate healthy snacks and meals.

Set up a nutritional supplement program to compliment your healthy meals.

Set up a sleep schedule that allows you 6-8 hours sleep.

Make a plan to walk (if allowed) while waiting at a customer. Bounce a tennis ball of the side of your trailer. Play frisbee with a fellow trucker.



By taking control of your health in this industry you will feel healthier, less tired and enjoy driving more.



One driver has the right idea!

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqFZ6DRBji0)

0 comments View Entry