Trucking news and briefs for Oct. 16, 2024:
1 in 10 owner-ops' brakes inspected during CVSA's August Brake Safety Week
Certified inspectors in Canada, Mexico and the U.S. conducted 16,725 inspections on commercial motor vehicles as part of the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) North American Brake Safety Week, Aug. 25-31, CVSA said. Approximately 87% of the commercial motor vehicles inspected did not have out-of-service violations and were deemed safe and permitted to proceed on roadways.
Among Overdrive readers, a nearly equivalent percentage weren't inspected whatsoever, and only around 10 percent saw an inspection of their equipment. Readers were responding to polling on inspection incidence in the immediate aftermath of Brake Safety Week.
Out of the 16,725 commercial motor vehicle inspections conducted, 2,149 of those vehicles had brake-related out-of-service violations, CVSA noted, a 12.8% out-of-service rate.
Of the trucks and buses placed out of service, 1,355 (63.1%) had stand-alone out-of-service brake violations and 217 (10.1%) had steering axle brake OOS violations. Also, 1,216 (56.6%) failed the 20% defective brakes criterion, which states that a vehicle is out of service if the number of defective brakes is equal to or greater than 20% of the service brakes on the vehicle or combination.
[Related: The 20% rule -- how brake adjustment violations can put you out of service]
The focus area for this year’s Brake Safety Week was lining/pad violations in drum and disc brake systems. Throughout the week, inspectors looked for loose, missing or worn brake linings/pads, as well as cracks, voids or contamination. Inspectors found 382 lining/pad violations on power (tractor) units and 272 on towed (trailer) units, for a total of 654 brake lining/pad violations.
How the numbers shook out for tractor (power unit) and/or trailer (towed unit) brakes' lining/pad violations found during Brake Safety Week.CVSA
Sixty-one jurisdictions around North America participated in this year’s Brake Safety Week.
- In Canada, inspectors conducted 1,926 inspections and discovered 243 brake-related out-of-service violations for a 12.6% out-of-service rate.
- In Mexico, just 107 inspections were conducted -- with only six brake-related out-of-service violations.
- In the U.S., 14,692 inspections discovered 1,900 brake-related out-of-service violations, a 12.9% out-of-service rate.
Next year’s Brake Safety Week is scheduled for Aug. 24-30, 2025.
[Related: Prime time for air disc brakes: 2 in 5 owner-operators report running them on the tractor]
Volvo Trucks' Blue Service Contract, Mack's Connect updated for better managed maintenance
Volvo Trucks North America unveiled enhancements to its Blue Service Contract, a dealer-managed preventive maintenance solution designed to maximize fleet uptime and efficiency. Powered by proprietary computational models, the adaptive maintenance system adjusts service intervals dynamically based on factors such as fuel consumption, idle time, and oil samples, Volvo said. The data-driven approach to maintenance scheduling replaces traditional static intervals with customized and optimized schedules, ensuring the right maintenance at the right time. By consolidating services into fewer planned stops, the system maximizes uptime for customers to keep trucks on the road.
Customers benefit under the contract from service schedule optimization, bundling services into one stop, leading to reduced operating costs, Volvo said. Conversely, if a truck has seen unusually demanding conditions for a prolonged period of time, the adaptive maintenance AI model will recommend service sooner. Dealers proactively schedule service visits using connectivity within the Blue Service Contract, allowing customers to focus on business growth while knowing maintenance is being managed efficiently to keep trucks in peak operating condition.
These new features are enabled by Volvo Trucks’ integrated connectivity solutions, which monitor the entire truck that is connected to the 24/7 Volvo Trucks Uptime Center. This allows fleet managers and their dealers to monitor and manage trucks in near real-time.
[Related: Telematics beyond ELD systems: Real expense, uptime benefits]
Similarly for Mack Trucks customers, the Mack Connect program provides a single source for performance data, location tracking, operational analytics and diagnostic insights in a unified dashboard designed to simplify operations and drive profitability, Mack said.
Mack Connect gathers data about a customer's trucks, services and specific applications, translating this information into improved fuel efficiency, safety and productivity. The portal offers access to asset location, idle time, traffic information, fuel efficiency, safety performance and vehicle speed.
"Mack Connect is designed to give our customers the portal they need to maximize their fleet's efficiency and profitability," said Patrick Brown, director of Strategy at Mack Trucks. "By providing a comprehensive, user-friendly platform for fleet management, we're enabling our customers to make data-driven decisions that can significantly impact their bottom line."
Mack Connect offers visibility to the Mack GuardDog Connect integrated telematics solution, allowing customers to manage fault events and access over-the-air updates when available. The platform's reporting and analytics capabilities enable customers to make data-driven decisions to improve their return on investment and fleet management.
Mack Connect with integrated uptime is standard for two years on all new Mack-powered Model Year 2025 vehicles.
Volvo's Blue Service Contract service can be paid via ACH, FleetPreferred or as part of truck financing through Volvo Financial Services in fixed monthly payments with no interest expense. The Blue Service Contract is available on all Volvo trucks that are 2023 model year and newer, and the company continues to bring dealer locations with training and sales support into the network. Dealer management groups such as Bruckner’s Truck & Equipment (13 locations), Vanguard Truck Centers (10 locations), Nextran Truck Centers (8 locations), Bergey’s Truck Center (6 locations), Nacarato Truck Centers (6 locations), McMahon Truck Centers (3 locations), Tri-State Truck Center (3 locations), Northwest Equipment Sales and others are among those on the list of certified Blue Service Contract dealers.
