Tracking technology keeps trucks on the move

Tracking a hundred trucks, each dropping loads in different states at different times, could be a management and logistical nightmare.

In response, many trucking companies use digital tracking system technology. When the customer asks “Where’s my shipment?”, they need to have the answer.

Tracking systems offer direct communication between drivers and carriers, using global positioning satellite (GPS) systems and either cell phone or satellite communication mediums.

Superior-based Jeff Foster Trucking Inc. uses HighwayMaster®, a fleet communications management system from MinorPlanet USA (based in Richardson, TX). The software is integrated with Jeff Foster’s office management software, which handles accounts payable, fuel tracking and other logistical items.

Scott Earls, safety and claims coordinator at Jeff Foster, said the system combines cellular phone technology with GPS. Communication units are installed in 100 of the company’s diesel trucks.

“The GPS takes location readings every 20 minutes,” said Earls. “Typed messages are received at the truck within 10 minutes.”

Earls said dispatchers constantly use the system to stay in touch with drivers, who regularly key in status information. And it’s the tool dispatchers use to send driver cargo pick-up and routing instructions.

The HighwayMaster system allows an on-screen visual display of each truck’s actual location as it moves across the nation. A background base map shows state boundaries and highway systems.

Halvor Lines, another Superior-based trucking firm, used HighwayMaster software for seven years, then in 2001 switched to another company that went out of business before the last unit was installed. After reviewing options, it chose Qualcomm, a technology vendor based in San Diego, CA.

“Our customers require a dependable system. This one’s a little more expensive, but it’s reliable,” said Cameron Fraley, vice president and general manager at Halvor Lines. “Qualcomm is satellite-based.”

With the old system, dispatchers sometimes could see a truck’s location on-screen but couldn’t communicate with it. Halvor Lines now has 265 trucks with Qualcomm units and receives hourly GPS readings — and hasn’t had one communications problem, he said.

Halvor’s tracking system also ties into its IBM AS400 mainframe computer dispatch system.

The Qualcomm tracking system also offers an electronic data interchange through which customers can access portions of the Halvor Lines system via the Internet. Customers can view shipment status and invoice upon delivery, reducing processing time and accelerating collection.

Halvor Lines also uses its system to track driver hours, and has eliminated timesheets. But it’s chosen not to visually display driver locations on-screen, instead relying on written reports.

The Qualcomm system uses combined keyboard/display truck units. Because it is satellite rather than cell-based, message speed is typically less than one minute.

“Drivers love it, because for many years, after emptying a load, they had to find a pay phone to call about their next load,” said Fraley. “It sure increases efficiency.”

Another paperwork nightmare for trucking companies is the heavy vehicle use tax, a “fuel tax” based on the number of miles traveled within the patchwork of individual state borders. Truck mileage totals are required on a quarterly or monthly basis. Carriers then pay a fee if the state determines they didn’t buy enough fuel based on the number of miles driven there.

Jeff Foster and Halvor Lines both configure their tracking systems to forward GPS coordinates to a company in the Twin Cities that handles fuel tax reporting, saving countless man-hours and processing time.

The firms also have installed electronic control modules (ECM) in their trucks. These “engine brains” can be set to control and record engine speed, idling time and other parameters, as well as record excessive hard braking.

Jeff Foster runs reports on each truck trip; Halvor Lines downloads data at will via satellite. The information helps them control costs and is a tool for constructive driver feedback.

The technology helps companies improve utilization of hundreds of trucks and drivers and increase operations efficiency. And most important, it provides data for better decisionmaking.

Len Lund, service manager at Halvor Lines, uses the Qualcomm and ECM systems on a daily basis. “With these tools, we can determine exactly how the driver drives the truck,” he said.