Fiona Soltes – Page 2 – Utility Fleet Professional

What Do AI and Machine Learning Mean for Utility Fleets?

Written by Fiona Soltes on February 26, 2018. Posted in Technology.

There are some people who still believe artificial intelligence (AI) is no more than sci-fi wizardry. And there are others who tend to view it with blind optimism, as a kind of be-all, end-all for industries of all types. But somewhere in between, AI has taken its true place as just one piece of a much broader technology transformation.

Both AI and machine learning – a field of computer science that enables computers to think intelligently and even “learn” from historical data without specifically being programmed – eventually will make their way to utility fleets, perhaps through relationships with other industries. David Groarke, managing director of Indigo Advisory Group (www.indigoadvisorygroup.com), a new-energy/utilities consulting firm, ticked off some possibilities. These might involve, for example, electric fleet vehicles automatically being charged during off-peak times. Or, they might include the use of telematics to better predict and adjust driver behaviors. Examples abound in other industries, too, such as supply chain and logistics.

As a result, Groarke and others have said, now is the time for utility fleet professionals to take notes, ask questions, be willing to share data for more accurate and strategic insights – and keep pushing the envelope by exploring what-if applications.

“More information is always better,” said Paul Millington, vice president of technology products for Element Fleet Management (www.elementfleet.com). “As experts who are dedicated to fleet, we make it our job to anticipate what insights our customers would be looking for. I’d say keep asking the questions of your fleet management company and others on whether your objectives could be achieved with machine learning.”

Millington and Marius Stroe, Element Fleet’s director of software development, referenced a maintenance management project that uses AI to more efficiently handle vendor authorizations and proposed pricing. Rather than separating out utility fleets, Millington said, incorporating the data into a broader set can reveal different insights, perhaps related to similarities in usage patterns or asset types. That could result in “better recommendations and better understanding for all, regardless of industry,” he said.

Not-So-New Technology
Groarke noted that even though these concepts might seem futuristic, machine learning has been around “for a very long time. The utility industry has been using machine learning in how it operates the grid since the 1970s. But we’re only starting to get really sophisticated big data sets now.”

For example, with more sensors on vehicles, more data can be explored, which can lead to more patterns being recognized and inferences being made. This is especially the case with safety and maintenance, and inroads are being made.

Even so, Groarke said, he’s still seeing some skepticism among certain groups. “They really want to see if the proof is in the pudding, to look at the numbers and see why they should invest in this technology.”

For those groups in particular, he recommended keeping an eye open. The ability to better process data eventually can lead to the ability to make smarter business decisions.

Stroe, meanwhile, referenced the importance of constant dialogue between technology experts and business leaders as the field evolves. Ongoing education is essential on all sides.

“You have to have the technology team explain to business leaders what machine learning is and how it works,” he said. “You also have to have business leaders explain all of the features of the enterprise to the technology team.” In many cases, company technology teams already are exploring these possibilities – but the external conversations haven’t yet taken place.

The experts also urge dialogue with OEMs to help further insights.

“It’s interesting to see how manufacturers are starting to leverage some of this data,” Millington said. “That’s part of the next frontier that fleet managers will need to start thinking about. Fleet management companies have some influence over OEMs, but it’s the client base in the utility space that really has a lot of influence.”

About the Author: Fiona Soltes is a longtime freelance writer based just outside Nashville, Tenn. Her regular clients represent a variety of sectors, including fleet, engineering, technology, logistics, business services, disaster preparedness and material handling. Prior to her freelance career, Soltes spent seven years as a staff writer for The Tennessean, a daily newspaper serving Nashville and the surrounding area.

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First Steps for AI and Machine Learning
Don’t know where to begin when it comes to artificial intelligence as it relates to your utility’s fleet? David Groarke, managing director of Indigo Advisory Group, offered a few suggestions:

Seek to understand the AI and machine learning solutions that already are emerging. This likely will involve looking at other industries and exploring how efforts might translate to utility fleets.
Do more with the data you already have on hand. Look at the information that sensors are providing. Explore the technology and software that are available. This will help engender trust in – and perhaps build excitement about – what’s possible.
Realize the different uses of AI and machine learning will be introduced incrementally. “We’re not in a period of disruption,” Groarke said. “These are changes that are going to take decades.” With that said, there still are elements that can help businesses in the shorter term.

Choosing a Lift with Safety in Mind

Written by Fiona Soltes on December 8, 2017. Posted in Maintenance.

When selecting a new maintenance bay lift that’s safe for your fleet operation, there’s more to consider than the assets that will be lifted on it. It’s also essential to account for what will be under and above the lift – and how the weight will be distributed.

All too often, industry experts say, well-meaning fleet professionals and maintenance technicians choose a lift simply based on the weight of the largest vehicle or piece of equipment it will hold. But there’s more to the equation, and getting it wrong can have disastrous results.

First, noted George Survant, senior director of fleet relations for NTEA – The Association for the Work Truck Industry (www.ntea.com), it’s important to remember that the base weight of an asset is one thing, but the weight of that asset when it’s on the lift, fully loaded, is another.

Here are seven additional considerations from Survant and Steve Perlstein, president of auto lift supplier Mohawk Lifts (www.mohawklifts.com), on choosing a lift with safety in mind.

In terms of safety certification, Perlstein said “one and only one” matters: certification from the Automotive Lift Institute (www.autolift.org). Take note: There is an ALI requirement that all options and accessories used on a lift must be certified; if they’re not, the lift’s certification is void. That can make some options worthless. “People really should be checking and verifying not only that options are available, but the options are adequately rated,” Perlstein said.

Proper sizing of a lift means knowing not just the overall weight of the largest vehicle it will hold, but also knowing the weight of that vehicle’s rear axle. “In the utility world, it’s only the back that matters,” Perlstein said.

As trucks have gotten taller, Survant explained, “you need to make sure you have adequate headroom. If the lift could push the top of the truck through a low-hanging roof, and you have a new operator who is not familiar with that, they’ll give you a brand new skylight.”

Ensure the lift is designed for the entire array of equipment it will hold, Survant said. Different assets may require different attachment points and configurations.

If you’re thinking about potentially buying from a secondary market supplier, keep aftermarket support in mind. You don’t want to find yourself, years down the line, with a product you’ve bought from someone who is no longer in business – or one who has no relationship with the equipment manufacturer, Survant advised.

Know the strength of the shop floor. Concrete can vary in thickness and strength, Survant said, “and that can be a problem if you put a new-generation lift in an older facility that perhaps wasn’t built for it.” Most new lifts have large feet to help distribute weight, “but it’s not impossible to find yourself in a set of circumstances the equipment wasn’t designed for,” he said.

Training – both initial and ongoing – is critical. When was the last time your technicians were properly trained on safe use of a lift? Other types of training take place annually, Perlstein said, and it’s worth considering annual training for lifts, too. “God forbid something happen,” he said. “But if it does, at least you’ll have a paper trail to show that the technicians were trained. Our society has become so litigious, it’s what you now have to do.”

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Safe Lift Operation Should Be ‘Intuitive’
What’s the main thing fleet professional George Survant would advise looking for in a lift?

Primarily, he said, that its proper use would be “intuitive.”

“What you find, in some of the older units, is that they have safeguards, tricks you need to know to make them safe,” he said. “But those tricks aren’t always obvious to technicians.”

He told the story of a mechanic who had a vehicle roll right off the back of a lift; certain supports were supposed to be upright as opposed to flat, Survant said, and the mechanic put up the supports in the front, but not the ones in the rear. “So as soon as he got it off the ground, it tilted backwards,” Survant said.

For those upfitting a garage with a new-generation lift, he explained, “one of the single most important characteristics is that the correct operation of the device is easy to identify. … It needs to be built in such a way that the lift won’t operate if the lift safety features aren’t engaged.”

Thankfully, Survant said, “the industry has taken a few giant steps forward” in lift design, especially when it comes to safety. “Back when I started, you had to fiddle with things all the time. You had to keep all your documentation in hand. And you had to worry about hydraulics. Units are nowhere near that complex today, and are so well-built and designed.”

Strategies for Hiring and Retaining Skilled Technicians

Written by Fiona Soltes on September 12, 2017. Posted in Management.

It’s no secret that today’s utility fleets have encountered difficulty finding job candidates with the appropriate training, experience and technical skills. And not only that – once qualified candidates are hired, those workers can be wooed by other companies offering greater salary and benefits packages.

So, how can you find and keep the right candidates for your fleet job openings?

Those in the know recommend partnering with area technical schools and colleges to ensure the right skills are being taught – and the right candidates are being snapped up early. On the other end of the spectrum, they recommend providing current employees with training and career development opportunities to keep them engaged.

“There’s a lot of poaching going on, especially on the utility side,” said Jason Ball, who worked as both a heavy-duty mechanic and fleet manager before taking the helm of Utility Training Group (www.utilitytraininggroup.com) less than two years ago. Specialized on-the-job training – delivered by someone like Ball or an OEM representative – sweetens the pot by helping workers learn new skills, gain confidence and stay up to date on the latest technologies.

But it’s important, Ball said, to make sure those conducting the training have the right experience, in addition to good references.

Understand Values and Priorities
Matt Gilliland, director of transportation and facilities for Nebraska Public Power District, said he’s seen individual applicant priorities change over time. Understanding new priorities and values can help attract the right crew members.

Individuals are no longer just looking for job security, he said, or somewhere to stay for a long period of time. Instead, it’s more about how the job can contribute to life balance – and possibly even how the job can impact social issues important to the applicant. They often want a seat at the table, and desire to engage in teamwork and successes that go beyond their individual job descriptions.

“It’s important to communicate not only about the position you’re looking to hire them for, but also the direction of the company,” said Gilliland, who is scheduled to speak as part of a hiring and retention panel at the 2017 Utility Fleet Conference (www.utilityfleetconference.com) in early October. That might include, for example, the company’s values related to sustainability and global impact.

For utilities in particular, one of the biggest challenges in terms of hiring is that there’s a wide range of equipment and a broad skill set involved in fleet work, yet very few places where individuals can learn to specialize in that work. Gilliland and his team have found value – and employees – by serving on the advisory boards of area colleges.

Ball said if he were the one in the recruiting seat today, he’d be “advertising as many places as possible,” as well as keeping an eye out for quality workers at other companies who may be interested in new opportunities and willing to grow.

Another tactic, gleaned from other industries: Don’t forget social media. The channel increasingly is being used for professional as well as personal reasons. Entrepreneur, in a 2015 guest blog written by Joe Budzienski, Monster’s vice president of product and technology, reported that more than 60,000 jobs were being tweeted about each day on Twitter, and that the platform was being used by 40 percent of overall companies to recruit talent (see www.entrepreneur.com/article/245295). In addition, 54 percent of recruiters were using Facebook.

No matter how a person comes to the job – or the length of the efforts made to get them there – it is always possible that they’ll still leave in search of greener pastures. But you can’t think in terms of just training them for someone else, Gilliland said.

“If you hire the correct individual, there’s a higher likelihood that you’ll have a long-term relationship with them,” he said. “And if they do go on to another job, you can still understand that you were part of the investment that made them able to do so. That’s still money well spent because the profession itself is advanced.”

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Making the Grade with Technical School Recruiting
Ranken Technical College in St. Louis (www.ranken.edu) is one school that offers coursework including diesel repair technology and fleet management. But there are challenges; Dan Kania, Ranken’s dean of academic affairs, said that over time, fewer people have been applying for the field.

As a result, “Employers need to contact students well before they graduate to get them into the pipeline,” he said. “Companies who wait to recruit from graduating classes will find the students already employed with other companies.”

Utilities that want to build relationships with area colleges – and, therefore, put their hat in the ring early – can do so in a number of ways. Ranken, for example, conducts industry advisory board meetings twice a year.

“Attend the advisory board meetings, as well as Ranken’s monthly employer breakfasts, to become familiar with the college’s offerings,” he said. Utility fleet administrators also should attend open houses, he said, to present information to students and collect resumes.

Strategies to Reduce Fuel Theft and Fuel Card Misuse

Written by Fiona Soltes on July 17, 2017. Posted in Utility Industry News, Smart Fleets.

Yes, it could happen: A nefarious individual could approach one of your pieces of equipment parked on the lot and siphon fuel right from the tank.

What is perhaps more likely, though, is loss due to improperly used fuel cards.

“By and large, employees do the right thing,” said Geoff Scalf, director of global energy business development at Telogis (www.telogis.com). “But you will have some employees who will make poor choices.”

Leveraging the proper technology and techniques can help ensure fuel theft is kept to a minimum.

It’s important that employees understand what the proper use of fuel cards means. Aside from using the cards to fill up personal vehicles, Scalf said he often hears of employees who travel in groups and don’t think twice about using one employee’s card to fill up several vehicles at once. There’s nothing fraudulent about that sort of misuse, but it can make for messy paperwork, numbers that don’t add up and misallocation of funds in the future. Another example of misuse: when an employee pulls a trailer with, say, a backhoe loaded onto it, and then uses the card to top off both the truck and backhoe without changing any codes in the system.

Telogis Fleet offers one way to keep closer tabs on misuse, whether or not it was intentional. The Telogis platform includes a module that gives increased visibility into fuel usage.

“It looks at fuel transactions and compares those to miles driven, to the location of the vehicle, to when the transactions actually occurred,” Scalf said. “It also looks at what you would expect the miles per gallon to be for that vehicle. Then it will flag anything that is outside the norm. Now, the customer can easily analyze the data; identify trends, opportunities and maintenance issues; as well as identify which transactions may be fraudulent or if there’s been misuse of the fuel card.”

Before implementation of the Telogis platform, it’s not unusual, Scalf said, to see 10 to 20 percent of fuel involved in misuse or theft. Because of the advantages of increased visibility, Telogis does have competitors in the fleet management software space. What makes the company different, according to Scalf, is that it works with automotive and equipment OEMs, installing telematics hardware with Telogis software so that it is available for use from the moment vehicles are delivered – minimizing the downtime and hassle of installations.

The increased visibility a fleet management program provides can mean benefits beyond reducing fuel theft and misuse. On the list: increased driver safety, work order management, better vehicle and employee allocation, and more.

Other Strategic Efforts
When it comes to addressing fuel theft in particular, the use of monitors, sensors and anti-siphoning devices also can be strategic efforts. Traditional safety and security precautions still apply; telematics simply takes things further. And if the data is available, why not use it?

“Fuel management definitely requires controls,” said Todd Carlson, principal manager for fleet asset management at Southern California Edison. “An uncontrolled fuel program can induce shrinkage and theft across a fleet. From my experience, even the worst scenarios of theft typically impact only a small percentage of the total annual fleet consumption, yet the dollar amounts can be significant.”

Carlson noted that Southern California Edison has had very few documented instances of fuel theft in recent years; a number of efforts to reduce it are in place.

“The majority of our fuel consumption and pumping occurs at bulk facilities at our service centers, which are behind fences, well-lit and typically monitored with cameras,” he said. “Off-site fueling is reviewed and approved by the driver’s manager via expense reporting.” In addition, SCE utilizes a telematics system that allows for tracking vehicle location and fuel consumption, and has Veeder-Root systems on most bulk tanks to confirm bulk delivery volumes.

Utility fleet professionals can be quite surprised when they first become aware of what’s actually been happening with their fuel, Scalf said. But the first step toward any improvement is being aware of the issue.

About the Author: Fiona Soltes is a longtime freelance writer based just outside Nashville, Tenn. Her regular clients represent a variety of sectors, including fleet, engineering, technology, logistics, business services, disaster preparedness and material handling. Prior to her freelance career, Soltes spent seven years as a staff writer for The Tennessean, a daily newspaper serving Nashville and the surrounding area.

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When Combating Fuel Theft, Don’t Forget the Basics
In addition to strategic use of technology, fighting fuel theft and fuel card misuse starts with some practicalities. Following are several questions fleet managers should consider as they address these issues:
• Are fuel tanks locked and keys secure?
• Are vehicles parked in safe, secure, well-lit areas?
• Are employees aware of what constitutes proper fuel card use?
• Do employees understand why reducing fuel theft matters?
• Are consequences for improper fuel card use in place and enforced?
• Is off-site fueling regularly and comprehensively reviewed?
• Is there adequate visibility into how, when and by whom fuel cards are being used?
• Have anti-siphoning devices and/or sensors or monitors been considered/installed where necessary?

Will Solar Drive the Future of Electrified Trucks?

Written by Fiona Soltes on May 22, 2017. Posted in Management.

Several years ago, when gas prices were higher and an industry need arose to reduce costs and seek alternative solutions, conversations about harnessing the sun intensified. Combined with advances in electric vehicle technology, the possibilities of what manufacturers and fleets could do in this realm began to grow.

Solar power began to be used to extend the range of some electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. And a full-size electric pickup truck using solar to extend its range was introduced at the 2014 North American International Auto Show.

Given the evolution of solar power use in vehicles over the years, where are we today?

As it turns out, on a slightly different course than one may have assumed. Rather than focus on the use of solar to add range to electric vehicles, utility fleets are, for example, adding panels as components of larger energy management systems. Solar power may be used to recharge vehicle starting and auxiliary batteries. It also can supplement battery charging while a vehicle is being driven or while it’s stopped – a valuable feature where legislation may prohibit idling. Additionally, solar power paired with an inverter system converts DC battery power to AC household power to charge cordless tools, laptops, test equipment and other work truck loads that require AC power without draining the battery.

“It’s a very clean and silent way to create AC power without using a generator,” said Sean O’Connor, sales channel manager of Go Power! (www.gpelectric.com). His company, based in Victoria, British Columbia, has been in the industry since 2000, originally starting with solar and inverter systems for RVs. Go Power! introduced its panels and power inverters to the work truck market five years ago when the company recognized a need to greatly reduce battery replacement within fleets. Minimizing the frequent battery replacements typical among fleets can bring a fast return on investment.

Even on cloudy days, a solar panel still can generate power. Panels range from about 30 watts to 100-plus watts; regardless of the power produced, a solar power system can use a solar controller, which acts like a fuel shutoff valve, to protect the battery from overcharging and prolong battery life.

Mike Stephens, Go Power! division manager, said every fleet has a slightly different niche and need. The right combination might include an inverter only, or a solar panel for trickle charging, or solar panels and an inverter. Systems can be uniquely designed to meet a fleet’s requirements.

Harnessing Practicality
With regard to using solar power, there are some things that still aren’t completely practical – yet. But Dave Meisel, senior director of transportation and aviation services at Pacific Gas and Electric Co., has seen solar’s practical applications. His fleet employs an electric power takeoff (ePTO) system that uses a series of batteries to power onboard equipment at job sites, and truck-mounted solar panels have been used to charge those ePTO batteries.

Altogether, the system has helped increase productivity by extending the number of hours employees can work in noise-restricted areas because power no longer has to be supplied by a noisy generator. There also have been increases in safety because workers can now communicate by talking rather than having to use hand signals over the sound of that generator, and bucket truck operators – who traditionally sit in the back near the exhaust – have greatly benefited from reduced emissions on the ground. Meisel partnered with Altec (www.altec.com) to electrify PG&E’s worksites through the company’s Jobsite Energy Management System (JEMS), “and solar has been a part of that,” said Meisel, whose California-based fleet of roughly 15,000 assets has one of cleanest power generation mixes in the nation. “Electrifying the worksite has been a huge win for us.”

The way Meisel sees it, the biggest thing to remember about electrification is that the technology is still in its infancy. Its potential – and the full potential of solar power – remains to be seen.

“I don’t know that we’ve fully understood, at this stage of the game, how much this type of technology could benefit our industry,” he said. Meisel has one vehicle in his fleet, for example, that can act as a standalone generator with exportable power. “That technology is spreading relatively quickly. I’m sure there are some smart people out there who will move it further than we have. But we’re excited about potential. We’re excited about the opportunities that it presents,” he said.

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Warming up to the idea of solar? Here are a few things to consider:
• Recognize that the benefits of using solar power may be difficult to quantify, said Pacific Gas and Electric Co.’s Dave Meisel. As part of a larger energy management system, there have been some obvious wins. But it’s important to look at the picture more broadly; gains don’t just stop “at the door of the garage,” Meisel said, and may expand to other departments and areas.
• If you’re considering a particular system, make sure it’s within the proper parameters of any anti-idling legislation in the state or states in which your fleet operates, and appropriate for individual requirements. In addition, understand that anti-idling legislation likely will keep expanding.
• Keep an eye on solar developments. There is much interest, for example, in the commercial trucking space. Through companies such as Go Power!, eNow (www.enowenergy.com) and Green Solar Transportation (www.greensolartransport.com), solar and electric vehicle technology continue to develop.

Putting a Lock on Lost Keys

Written by Fiona Soltes on February 20, 2017. Posted in Technology.

Keeping track of keys in a utility fleet environment – which may have thousands of assets, from pickups to bucket trucks and beyond – can be a costly endeavor. In fact, the price tag associated with maintaining fleet vehicle keys and replacing those that are lost can hit well into five figures each year.

“Keys are pretty much a nightmare for every utility,” said Gary Lentsch, CAFM, fleet manager at Eugene (Ore.) Water & Electric Board. With roughly 350 pieces of equipment, he has a lot to keep up with. Two keyboards – one master with keys that never leave the property and another keyboard for the shop to use – help some. In addition, two more keys for each vehicle go directly to the department receiving the equipment. But problems still arise.

The biggest culprit? When departments make their own additional keys, not realizing that for some vehicles, OEMs will only allow eight keys to be programmed the same.

“And if you’ve got four, and then someone goes back and makes a couple more, you’re at five and six, then we hit seven and eight, and when you go to make the ninth key, the number one key drops off,” Lentsch said. “It’s deactivated. That could be the one on your master keyboard. … It’s actually happened quite a bit.”

Another challenge is vehicles with an ignition fob and start button; those fobs are likely to be put in a purse or pocket, possibly going through the laundry or never being seen again.

Helpful Options
The good news is that there are options that may help.

For those with a variety of equipment on the same vehicle, for example, the one-key lock technology from BOLT (www.boltlock.com) allows fleet professionals to insert the vehicle’s ignition key into a padlock, cable lock, tailgate handle or other type of lock and have that lock “learn” that ignition key.

The advantage, said BOLT spokesperson Jason Buckles, is that there’s now only one key to keep up with rather than a whole ring, decreasing the potential cost of replacing numerous lost keys. He’s heard of trailer yards where all locks have been configured the same for added convenience. BOLT also allows fleet professionals to specify locks on Knapheide, A.R.E., LEER and other truck storage equipment, and matches locks for numerous OEMs, such as GM, Ford and Chrysler. Buckles highlighted BOLT’s high safety and security ratings as well.

As for key storage, the electronic key management system from KeyCodeBox (www.keycodebox.com) tackles the challenge of lost keys from another angle.

KeyCodeBox is a key cabinet that isolates each key in its own compartment for greater accountability and reporting. The compartments require a confirmation code for opening, and the person overseeing the keys will receive notifications as the keys go out. There are options for fingerprint and magnetic stripe/ID card readers, and founder Buzz Siler said the product is ideal for fleet operations in which multiple people share the same equipment. In addition, the system can be configured to send text messages to those who have not yet returned keys by the expected time. Another bonus for utility companies, the way Siler sees it, is that the product can reduce the need for someone to sit behind a desk 24 hours a day, handing out keys.

“A key machine allows utility companies to do business 24/7 without having someone on the off shift,” he said. “You could have one admin that works nine to five, and the way the software is set up, you can communicate with the KeyCodeBox no matter where you are, give codes and reservation information, and the box can operate autonomously.”

In addition to utility companies, Siler is seeing KeyCodeBox used by property management and other industries; he foresees a day when smaller versions may be mounted in vans for secure deliveries.

In the meantime, utility fleet professionals will no doubt keep looking for creative ways to keep track of keys. And as those keys become more technologically complex – and therefore expensive – the stakes continue to rise.

“I’ve worked at three different utilities in my career,” Lentsch said. “And every one has fought the same thing. For some of these fleets that have several thousands of vehicles? I can’t even imagine.”

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Mitigating Lost Key Costs
It would be great if you could somehow make sure your employees would never lose another key. As that’s squarely in the not-going-to-happen category, let’s consider the following ways to mitigate cost and lost productivity.
• Periodically test master keys to ensure they still work with the equipment they match; OEMs increasingly set a limit on how many times a key can be copied.
• Do a little math about the costs incurred with each lost key, including lost time, and share that information with employees. For added impact, track results for a quarter, six months or a year.
• Charge costs of key replacements back to employees or their departments.
• Consider using new technologies.

Mistakes to Avoid When Selecting Maintenance Bay Lifts

Written by Fiona Soltes on November 29, 2016. Posted in Maintenance.

As Dale Collins, CAFM, has rightsized his fleet in recent years, the fleet services supervisor for Virginia-based Fairfax Water has discovered the need to rightsize his maintenance bay lifts as well.

When the vehicle maintenance facility was built, the fleet had a higher percentage of heavy-duty dump trucks and crew vans, so the emphasis was on lifts that could handle their 60,000-pound weight. These days, however, Collins can service 80 percent of his fleet with more efficient 12,000-pound-capacity cassette lifts.

“Anybody who is in the market for a lift has to know what it is they’re trying to lift, how much it weighs and what the lift’s wheelbase limits are – not only how small it will get, but how long you will need it to be,” Collins said. “A lot of times you can get into a jam with longer vehicles.”

Collins speaks from experience; one Freightliner in the utility’s fleet has a 328-inch wheelbase. But the fleet department was able to work with the lift manufacturer/distributor to secure lifts that can handle anything from the Freightliner down to the 125-inch wheelbase of a Ford Ranger pickup.

This story highlights a potential error some fleet managers make when choosing lifts: assuming that they are one size – or one style – fits all. Collins now has a diversified set of lifts for his diverse fleet, including a telescoping piston lift for heavy-duty assets as well as an in-ground scissor-type lift that utilizes only 7 gallons of fluid to operate.

Lift Selection Guidance
Collins and Peter Bowers, technical sales support manager for Stertil-Koni (www.stertil-koni.com), offer the following three pieces of advice to assist you when you are searching for the right lifts for your fleet. Stertil-Koni, the first lift company to be ISO 9001 certified, is an industry leader in manufacturing, selling and servicing heavy-duty vehicle lifts.

1. Don’t assume a single lift can do it all. “A well-equipped shop will have a variety of lifts: platform lifts for preventive maintenance and inspections, swing-arm two-post lifts for wheels-free work on vehicles up to 30,000 pounds and in-ground lifts for wheels-free work on vehicles up to 105,000 pounds,” Bowers said. “And of course, mobile columns for quick and easy lifting.”

2. Don’t skimp on certifications. Bowers urges fleet managers to only buy lifts certified by the Automotive Lift Institute (www.autolift.org). According to the institute, both ANSI and OSHA have standards and requirements, but neither performs product compliance evaluations or inspection services for hire, and neither provides product certification.

3. Don’t buy on price alone. Yes, price should be a consideration. But it should fall behind utility and safety, Bowers said. “The last thing you want to do is have a lift that you depend on to service your fleet that’s not safe,” Collins added. In addition to taking advantage of the opportunity to increase efficiency, Collins replaced lifts because his previous ones were old and outdated. New lifts might have touch-screen controls, environmentally friendly components or other advances.

Whatever a fleet manager’s lift needs are, Collins encourages that manager to ask what others are using. And that doesn’t just mean talking to fleet administrators; it also means asking lift companies for contact information of others that they have worked with. “If you’re not sure, see if you can’t get these folks to take you to another site so you can see how other organizations are using [lifts],” he said. Each operation will be unique, but the process will give you a better idea about what might work – and what might not.

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Additional Questions to Address
Are you wondering what else you should consider when choosing a maintenance bay lift? Stertil-Koni’s Peter Bowers encourages you to ask the following questions:
• Does the lift have redundant mechanical and electrical safety systems?
• Are you buying from a company that provides strong after-sales service? “The salesperson sells the first lift, and the service department sells every lift thereafter,” Bowers said. “After-sales support is paramount.”
• Have you taken the overall maintenance environment into account? Note the height of the building and whether the tallest vehicle will fit when lifted to the full height of the lifting system. “You always want your techs to operate comfortably under the height of the raised vehicle, which is best for ergonomics,” Bowers said. In addition, when using mobile column lifts, make sure the flooring is level and that the surface can withstand the point loads that will be generated.
• Do you own or lease the maintenance facility? Owners may be more prepared to invest in infrastructure modifications required for in-ground or fixed-equipment lifts. Fixed-equipment lifts – such as Stertil-Koni’s axle-engaging ECOLIFT scissor lift or telescopic piston DIAMOND LIFT – cost more upfront, but they pay for themselves over the long haul in efficiency, Bowers said. Mobile column lifts like Stertil-Koni’s EARTHLIFT offer flexibility while still handling the largest utility vehicles.

Getting Utility Fleet Drivers to Embrace Idle Reduction

Written by Fiona Soltes on September 16, 2016. Posted in Smart Fleets.

Regardless of how cutting-edge a type of technology may seem, getting buy-in from prospective users often requires a pragmatic approach: They need to be convinced it works.

Such is the case with anti-idling technology. Today’s tools – aimed at reducing emissions and wasted fuel – include automatic shut-off systems, real-time alerts and plug-in hybrid vehicles that allow systems to work when the engine is off. But the only way utility fleet operators will fully embrace such tools, experts say, is when they grasp the difference that can be made, in terms of both the environment and their organization’s financial bottom line.

“It’s very spotty,” said Linda Gaines, transportation system analyst at Argonne National Laboratory (www.anl.gov) and a recognized idling authority. “You’ll go to some meetings and talk to some fleets, and they’re on board. It’s like your job is done, and the information is all out there. A lot of states have regulations, and it seems like we’ve made a lot of headway. And then you go and visit some company and see how far there still is to go.”

Gaines referenced one organization that is interested in idle reduction and went through the process of installing telematics, but, she said, was still “absolutely shocked by how much idling their trucks were actually doing. I think that’s not an unusual occurrence. Just by sharing that information with the drivers, without any kind of threat or any kind of reward, either way, just by being aware, the drivers reduced their idling by some very significant fraction.” That fraction was near 30 percent.

Raising Awareness
Neil Holladay, regional fleet manager with NPL (www.gonpl.com), an infrastructure construction company that specializes in utility construction services, said that in 2014, he and his sustainability committee co-chair were individually working on issues related to fuel and carbon footprint. When it came time for a presentation, they discovered they had both identified idling as the biggest threat – and opportunity. With a fleet of roughly 3,500 assets, the company was wasting more than $1.5 million in fuel annually due to idling. They discussed whether the best tactic would be to create an awareness campaign or write a policy; awareness won out.

“We put a campaign together that was pure saturation,” Holladay said. They shared data about the effects of idling at every turn, created no-idling areas and gave away $25 gift cards for success stories.

“It was like advertising: When you hear something for the 10th time, you’re sick of it,” he said. “But it’s OK for people to frown upon it or even poke fun. It will still catch someone’s eye. And when [it does], it’s going to be effective. You just can’t get discouraged. It takes a little time.”

Within a couple of months, NPL’s idling had dropped a few percentage points. A few months after that, “we were seeing a large 10 percent drop,” Holladay said. And within the first year, the company had saved more than 1 million pounds in carbon dioxide emissions and just over $188,000 in fuel costs.

Perhaps the best part is that many of the company’s fleet operators are outdoorsmen and parents, and they connected with the idea of environmental stewardship for future generations. But it did take changing thinking about the way things had always been done.

The Lowest-Hanging Fruit
When it comes to getting drivers to change their mindset about idle reduction, concrete numbers certainly help. So, too, does the proper equipment. Odyne Systems (www.odyne.com) is a leading manufacturer of hybrid systems for medium- and heavy-duty work trucks, and Matt Jarmuz, director of sales, sees such solutions as the lowest-hanging fruit in improving fuel efficiency and reducing emissions. In addition to powering, say, strobe lights and cabin comfort, Odyne’s large battery packs also can handle hydraulics and export power. And even while vehicles are in motion, the plug-in hybrid solution improves efficiency. As of press time, the company has placed roughly 300 vehicles in about 60 different fleets.

Jarmuz also is a strong proponent of telematics use and has seen fleets that, for example, have a system that sends an automatic email to a fleet manager when a truck idles for more than five minutes. Other fleets work from a more prevention-oriented coaching approach.

With hybrid technology, operators won’t feel that stopping idling is about “taking things away,” Jarmuz said.

But even without it, framing idle reduction as a gain – one that lowers fuel expenditures and contributes to reduced maintenance costs, greater asset reliability and longer vehicle service life – rather than a loss may well be the key to acceptance and implementation within your fleet.

Photo: GPS Insight

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Idling by the Numbers
• Idling of heavy-duty and light-duty vehicles combined wastes an estimated 6 billion gallons of fuel each year.
• Many still believe that restarting a vehicle burns more fuel than letting it idle, but idling for 10 seconds wastes more fuel than a restart.
• Personal vehicles produce roughly 30 million tons of carbon dioxide every year due to idling. Eliminating the unnecessary idling of personal vehicles would be the equivalent of taking 5 million vehicles off the roads.
• Numerous states have enacted fines for unnecessary idling, including Massachusetts, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Vermont and Hawaii, and parts of California, Colorado, New York, Ohio and Utah, among others. A list of state and local regulations is available at www.cleancities.energy.gov/idlebase.

Source: www.anl.gov/sites/anl.gov/files/Idling-PersonalVehicles050715.pdf

Utility Fleets and the Sharing Economy

Written by Fiona Soltes on July 19, 2016. Posted in Management.

In our increasingly shared economy, even some utility fleets are moving from “mine” to “ours.”

This certainly makes sense. In addition to the fact that utility equipment and vehicles often are costly, they’re also unlikely to be in constant use. Pooling and sharing resources, then, can help cut down on surplus, reduce expenses and streamline operations.

The even better news? As the sharing economy has matured – think of Airbnb, Uber and Lyft – so have the technology offerings that help make it possible. There’s online forum MuniRent (www.munirent.co), for example, which allows municipalities to share surplus goods and equipment. AssetWorks (www.assetworks.com) offers fleet management software along with an automated motor pool solution, and allows reservations through smartphones and tablets. And then there’s Agile FleetCommander (www.agilefleet.com), web-based fleet and motor pool software that has been used by fleets in virtually all categories.

Naturally, the argument can be – and often is – made that there’s a segment of a utility fleet that can’t be downsized because it’s used during emergencies and peak demand. It’s also true that some vehicles have specialized tools onboard that are assigned to a particular individual.

The key is in recognizing that “no vehicle sharing initiative should try to apply the same rules for all types of vehicles and equipment,” said Ed Smith, co-founder, president and CEO of Agile Access Control Inc., developer of the Agile FleetCommander software. Fleet managers must acknowledge that real obstacles are present, he said, but also that some constructed barriers to sharing “simply aren’t fact-based.” Technology can help fleet managers know who has custody of a vehicle – and its keys – as well as assist in reporting and chargebacks.

Dave Meisel, senior director of transportation and aviation services for Pacific Gas and Electric Co., said his department has tried sharing initiatives on multiple occasions, with varying levels of success. One of the challenges is that many first responders are dispatched from their homes, so their equipment is not at a central location. But there are trouble trucks, line trucks, dump trucks, digger derricks, directional boring equipment, cars and pickups that are shared across PG&E’s operating departments.

“When it’s reasonable and practical, you can have an asset in gas today and in electric tomorrow,” Meisel said. However, he doesn’t consider it a rightsizing effort as much as he does good business sense – especially when scaled to a fleet of 15,000 assets and a service territory of 75,000 square miles.

But yes, there has been pushback.

“Most of the people I know in this industry, they’re really conscious of trying to be responsive, trying to meet our customers’ needs as soon as possible,” Meisel said. “They’re great people and are really hard-wired for emergency and customer response. Sometimes that thought process leads them to want to keep equipment locally just in case something bad happens. But when you add that up over 100 locations, that can add up to a lot of equipment and a significant, unnecessary operating expense.”

Being able to make the case for the business decision has helped many come around, Meisel said, and if the needed equipment isn’t available through the pool, a rental follows.

Florida Power & Light Co. also has a pool of utility vehicles, the result of a utilization analysis several years ago. The organization, an Agile Access Control customer that uses the Agile FleetCommander software, was able reduce its fleet by more than 60 specialty vehicles, Smith said, while still providing a high level of service. “Not only did they receive $7.5 million when they disposed of the vehicles, they no longer had the costs associated with depreciation, replacement and maintenance,” he said.

So, where does a fleet manager even start? Meisel said it begins with a true understanding of how equipment is currently being used – and how it’s not.

Ultimately, though, the success of any effort may come down to the way it’s presented. Cost savings can lead to the purchase of newer equipment and a younger fleet overall. In addition, the ability to turn over reporting, cleaning and fueling to a central facility might help make sharing a winning proposition for all involved.

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The Sharing Economy by the Numbers
Today’s sharing economy – also known as the on-demand economy, peer-to-peer economy or collaborative consumption – has stretched across numerous industries. Airbnb, Spotify, TaskRabbit, Uber and others all offer opportunities to share and share alike.

But how much is it catching on? In April 2015, PwC (www.pwc.com) released the following statistics in “Consumer Intelligence Series: The Sharing Economy.” At that time:
• 19 percent of adults surveyed had engaged in a sharing economy transaction; 7 percent had been providers.
• 86 percent agreed that sharing is making life more affordable.
• 83 percent agreed the sharing economy results in greater convenience and efficiency.
• 76 percent believed the sharing economy is better for the environment.
• 72 percent of adults were concerned that the quality of sharing economy experiences will be inconsistent.
• 89 percent believed the sharing economy is based on trust between provider and user, but 69 percent were concerned about putting their trust in these services.

To see the full report, visit www.pwc.com/us/en/industry/entertainment-media/publications/consumer-intelligence-series/assets/pwc-cis-sharing-economy.pdf.

Is 3-D Printing Shaping Up for Replacement Parts?

Written by Fiona Soltes on May 19, 2016. Posted in Management.

The mere presence of some cars can inspire creative journeys and wishful thinking. But a life-size Shelby Cobra, made with a 3-D printer? That takes even visionaries down a whole different road.

Cincinnati Inc. (www.e-ci.com) – an innovative machine tool manufacturer for more than 100 years – has been behind the printing of two such cars through its Big Area Additive Manufacturing (BAAM) technology; the first was in conjunction with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (www.ornl.gov), the largest U.S. Department of Energy science and energy lab, located in Oak Ridge, Tenn. Over the past couple of years, the cars have been used as marketing tools, a clear demonstration of potential.

Even though the Cobras have been transported to events in enclosed trailers rather than driven, they’re still enough to make many stop and wonder: If a 3-D printer can make a car or other vehicle, wouldn’t it follow that it would soon be in use to supply equipment parts as well? Will we soon see maintenance shops creating their own replacement parts for utility and other vehicles, rather than having to store them, purchase them elsewhere or wait for delivery?

Time to tap the brakes. Three-dimensional printing is indeed showing promise in a variety of industries. But in terms of creating parts that can withstand heat, water, chemicals and other challenges facing current automotive materials, we’re not there yet. First, there’s a fundamental point of physics to be overcome, said Duncan Stewart, director of technology, media and telecommunications research for Deloitte Canada (www.deloitte.com/ca). Even if printers and processes become significantly faster – silencing those who believe no one will want to wait the hours it takes to create parts – there’s still the matter of allowing each printed layer to cool completely before the next one is applied. Eventually, the rate of progress will reach a saturation point.

“I am willing to say that 3-D printers will be faster in 2020,” Stewart said. “But that doesn’t mean that something that takes eight hours to print will take seven. It may go from eight hours to six, or maybe four, but it’s not going to be eight minutes.”

Listen to the current hype, and it’s easy to believe that 3-D printing is already being done en masse – and for a lot more than making Star Wars figurines. But as far as Stewart knows, based on conversations in recent years with those in the industry, there are no major manufacturers using finished parts in their production cars today.

What’s more likely is that 3-D printing will increasingly be used for tooling, jigs, dies, molds and rapid prototyping. Stewart also envisions a rise in service bureaus printing out specific items in “ones and twos” rather than larger quantities, as well as the use of 3-D printers for, say, items needed on an aircraft carrier or in space, where the wait for a spare would be significantly longer.

Overall, though, “we’ve got to dial this stuff back,” he said. “There are some unrealistic expectations.”

At Cincinnati Inc., BAAM is indeed available; the latest iteration can print objects as large as 20 feet long by 8 feet wide by 6 feet tall, at a rate of 100 pounds of material per hour. But it’s considered a beta machine rather than a product machine, and it’s offered through “pre-qualified sale,” said Matt Garbarino, marketing manager. Cincinnati’s forte is in machine building, not material development; the company wants to ensure that engineering resources and the right materials suppliers are able to join in the collaboration, so the company is more likely to sell to someone with like-minded objectives. Development must continue so that end products have the right properties.

Also of note is how a newly printed item comes off a 3-D machine. For the second Shelby Cobra, for example, the body took 12 hours to print, but sanding, painting and decaling it took weeks.

Regardless, 3-D enthusiasm continues to rise. When Cincinnati Inc. displayed one of the cars at The Work Truck Show 2016, which took place in March, Garbarino said many attendees were astonished. People’s familiarity with Cincinnati Inc. and the company’s understanding of fabrication made the conversations easy.

As for conversations about possibility? Those still come easy, too. But the path there may be a bit longer – and rougher around the edges – than many realize.

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In Some Industries, 3-D Printing Has Already Moved on Down the Road
No, the experts say – we won’t be printing spare parts from the back of a utility truck any time soon, due to cost, time and practicality considerations. But 3-D printing is making definite strides elsewhere.

Surgeons in numerous areas have begun using 3-D printing to provide new perspectives and practice for particular procedures. These might include, for example, the replication of a baby’s heart or skull. Training on the printed parts can reduce the time the child would have to spend under anesthesia.

Phoenix-based Local Motors (www.localmotors.com) is working toward the creation of a 3-D printed car that will exceed Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards by 2017. Partners include IBM, integrating Internet of Things technology through IBM Watson; Siemens’ Solid Edge to provide CAD modeling; global design firm IDEO to “renew” Local Motors Labs (the company’s small-footprint micro-factories are aimed at sustainable, community-based vehicle development); and SABIC to improve materials.

Author: Fiona Soltes

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