Omnitracs, Samsung deliver ELD solution to trucking

Omnitracs announced a partnership with Samsung Electronics America Inc. to help the transportation industry address the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) electronic logging device (ELD) mandate. The partnership drives the creation of a fully-integrated joint solution, combining Samsung mobile devices (smartphones and tablets) and security solutions with Omnitracs' XRS fleet management software for U.S.-based fleets.

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Machines may soon get better preventative care than people

Here's a fun thought for the day: with all the advances being made in remote diagnostics and maintenance algorithms for trucks, cars, bulldozers, and other motorized equipment, it's becoming increasingly likely that machines are going to be receiving far better “preventative care” than us humans in the very near future.

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Motiv to power all-electric L.A. garbage trucks

Coming off a recent announcement on California's first all-electric refuse vehicle (ERV) heading to Sacramento, Motiv Power Systems' is deploying two zero-emission refuse trucks to the City of Los Angeles.

As a continuation of a demonstration project funded by the California Energy Commission, these Class-8 ERVs use the Motiv All-Electric Powertrain to drive a Crane Carrier chassis, with an automated side-loader body built by Amrep.

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Vehicle Tracking Solutions offers module to improve driver safety

Vehicle Tracking Solutions (VTS) has recently deployed an additional module to its Silent Passenger Fleet Management GPS platform: SP Driver Score Card.

The enhanced SP Driver Score Card is specifically designed to help fleet operators increase their profit, improve driver safety and reduce vehicle maintenance costs. Through the SP Driver Score Card configuration wizard, a proprietary algorithm allows fleet managers to monitor what they deem most important within their specific organization.

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Chanje’s Medium-Duty Electric Van

Chanje Energy, Inc. unveiled its Class 5 battery-electric commercial van at an Oct. 18 event in Fullerton, Calif. The vehicle provides 100 miles of electric range with 3,000 pounds of payload, and can reach a top speed of 80 mph. Read more here. Photos by Chris Brown, Paul Clinton, and Amy Hercher.

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Strong Production Reduces Class 8 Backlogs

Strong Class 8 production in the Month of September has impacted the backlog and build rate, according to an ACT Research report. With steady production levels, backlogs have contracted for the fifth consecutive month.

“Backlogs typically decline in September. When we seasonally adjust the data, the Class 8 backlog actually rose slightly from August,” said Kenny Vieth, ACT Research's president and senior analyst. “The month's smaller backlog along with stronger production reduced the Class 8 backlog/build ratio to 78 days, the skinniest backlog cushion for the industry since late 2013.”

September also saw a lower Class 8 backlog to build ratio, driven by an increased build rate.

“The Class 8 build rate rose to 1,208 units per day, the strongest rate of production in nearly two years,” said Vieth. “Through year-to-date, Class 8 build is up 4.5% compared to the same period last year.”

ACT Research has also been tracking the impact of the recent hurricanes on freight. Through previous analysis of the effects of hurricanes, ACT found that there is a 3-4 month pop in freight following the storms before volumes return to the pre-storm trend.

“Given the timing, the hurricane surge and the seasonal fall freight peak are lining up into the end of 2017,” said Vieth. “Freight and rate data clearly show the convergence of improving economic activity, hurricanes, and ELD adoption on trucking industry capacity relative to freight activity.”

Related: Class 8 Orders Increase in Healthy, Growing Market

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Driver iQ Offers Training Records for New Drivers

Photo: Driver iQ

Background screening provider Driver iQ has announced that it is offering access to Truck Driving School Records, allowing carriers to access driving school records as part of the pre-employment process.

As of the launch of the service, Driver iQ has more than 57,000 graduation records and says its database is growing. Driver iQ customers can access records by indicating that they want a school record when requesting a pre-employment screening through the company's customer portal. Other interested parties can obtain training records by utilizing the company's SingleCheck Verification online service for processing individual school record requests on driver graduates.

“Motor carriers need the ability to quickly and efficiently verify graduation records for CDL driver applicants,” said Amy Bricken, manager of client development at Driver iQ. “Currently, to obtain records, carriers need to contact each school and request a record. With this new capability from Driver iQ, carriers can conveniently access training records as part of their verification of an applicant's credentials rather than using administrative time to contact schools to obtain reports.”

The service can also benefit driving schools, according to Driver iQ. Schools that store their records with Driver iQ save time and money by eliminating the need to respond to requests for student records. In addition, each time a stored school record is accessed and reported to a carrier over the lifetime of the record in the system, the school receives credits towards Driver iQ screening services that they use for incoming student background checks.

“The benefit to driving schools that store graduation records in our database goes beyond the administrative time they save not responding to record requests or the cost savings they can realize by using credits when they need a background check on a new student,” said Bricken. “The schools can also use the database to see ...Read the rest of this story