On August 5, 1994, an operator and two coworkers were loading a milling machine onto a lowboy trailer. The right rear track of the machine slipped off the trailer’s edge, causing the machine to rotate 180 degrees, crushing the operator to death.
It’s an extreme example of the need for increased trailer safety, but not entirely unusual. Industry statistics indicate that out of 34 cases, 29 people were killed during an incident involving a trailer. In addition to the one crushing, three electrocutions and one head and neck trauma led to death. The other incidents are broken down by percentage:
- 45% caused by loading or unloading mishaps
- 14% run over
- 14% due to improper repositioning of equipment
- 10% struck by a ramp
- 10% due to faulty equipment, parking on the highway or exposed tires
- 7% resulted from improper loading of material
“Safety starts before you buy a trailer,” insists Jim Ladner, sales manager for Landoll Corp., a leading designer and manufacturer of agricultural, transportation and material handling equipment, located in Marysville, KS. “You’re trying to move equipment with an investment in a transportation piece that should last 10 years, so you must consider your needs now and in the future. A lot of thought about where a trailer fits into a company’s growth cycle needs to go into the purchase.”
The reason he places such emphasis on planning is that matching a trailer’s capacity to its anticipated loads is imperative. Noting that rules and regulations regarding trailers and capacity vary per state, Ladner admonishes, “Never operate outside a trailer’s capacity. Never put 38 tons on a 35-ton-capacity trailer.”
Liable for Safety
Ladner cites safety issues and liability concerns for driving the current direction of the industry. “We’re in an era when liability is part of our business decisions. If a company gets a high rating from the CSA, it could lose its transportation license.”
CSA-Compliance, Safety, Accountability-is a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration initiative to improve large truck safety with the intention of reducing crashes, injuries and fatalities. Established in November 2010, it introduces a nationwide system of enforcement to make roadways safer. Points are awarded for transgressions
The three components of the CSA Operational Model include measurement of safety performance, using inspection and crash results to identify carriers whose actions could potentially lead to crashes; evaluation to help correct high-risk behavior; and intervention, covering the full spectrum of safety issues, including how data is collected, evaluated and shared.
As explained by Larry Baareman, vice president of Fleet Compliance Group, drivers have not been held accountable for safety since the 1940s, but that has changed under the CSA system. Drivers now have a personal safety performance record that incorporates a three-year point system. “Most insurance companies look at those records,” he says. So do potential employers.
CSA also rates the companies, citing them for infractions ranging from reflective lighting to tire inflation. Baareman reports that some of the most common findings in CSA’s research indicate that brakes are frequently out of adjustment or are defective; tires are improperly inflated; and drivers are fatigued. However, he adds, “Load securement and tie-down [violations] carry the biggest point value.”
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has issued over 33,000 warning letters since it launched CSA. According to them, many motor carriers have reported that the letter served as a wake-up call helping them to identify and address safety problems. In fact, the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute’s recent evaluation of the CSA Operational Model Test concluded that the CSA warning letter intervention is highly effective. Results revealed that a year after receiving a warning letter, 83% of the test carriers had resolved the identified safety
problems.
“Enforcement is heavy now,” Baareman says. To support his statement, he quotes fines over a 10-year period that have increased from approximately $20 million to $37 million. He believes the impact has already fostered an environment in which management is “controlling its drivers’ hours and lowering speeds” and that vehicles are being maintained better. “Maintenance programs have been stepped up, the equipment is safer, speeds are being controlled with ECMs and managers are monitoring driver hours.”
Because equipment must be maintained to a higher level to be considered roadworthy, a side benefit is the potential for more maintenance jobs. “Usually when the economy gets tough, safety and maintenance are the first things to go,” Baareman says, “but this could help create jobs instead.”
Safety Checklist
Maintenance is only as good as the inspection that precedes it. Whether purchasing a new trailer or inspecting one already part of the fleet, Landoll’s Ladner keeps a list of features to scrutinize. “If you’re hauling heavy equipment, you have a half-inch chain that should be regularly inspected.” If it stays with the trailer, it should be inspected when the trailer is inspected. If it stays with the truck, he suggests checking it during routine oil changes.
Tie-downs are an often-overlooked feature. “You need the proper number in the right places,” Ladner notes, pointing out that “lower-priced products may have fewer places because each spot costs money.” No matter how many there are, he advises checking for damaged or unsafe tie-down points.
When it comes to tie-down point location, Ladner says angle is important: a 45-degree angle makes the chain strongest. “The flatter it is, the more stress it puts on the chain,” he explains. However, he adds, use the specified tie-down locations from the manufacturer.
Because it’s unsafe and because the CSA can now ticket drivers for improper loading, Ladner says many drivers have become pseudo equipment operators, preferring to manage loading and tie-down to ensure it’s done properly. For better stability, it’s important to find the center of gravity when the trailer is loaded. The “Landoll option” includes a digital scale that provides the numbers below the axle to help identify the best location for proper weight distribution of the load.
Load angle is also important, with pavers in particular requiring a low load angle. “A six-degree load angle is very safe,” Ladner says. The ability to tilt the upper deck to the ground, with the axles at the rear hydraulically moving forward, assists loading.
As important as a deck that tilts, the height of the deck is perhaps even more important. Explaining that regulations regarding the overall height of a load differ by region, Ladner says, “A traveling single-drop [trailer] has a 38-inch deck suitable for shorter, lighter equipment. A lowboy double-drop works better for higher, heavier, wider loads. Selection is important.” Its lower center of gravity also improves stability, reducing the risk of rollover.
Load also plays a part in stopping ability, which is controlled by federal regulations. “There are a couple ways of calculating it,” Ladner explains. “Gross Vehicle Weight Rating declares that the combined the weight of the trailer and the payload can’t exceed a specified number. Gross Axle Weight Rating does the same thing for each axle. You can’t exceed the weakest link, whether that’s tire or wheel capacity or something else. It all affects loading.”
End users often confirm the manufacturer’s specifications on capacity and other issues such as tie-downs, based on their experience, Lander says, but expert input remains valuable. He says the Landoll sales staff is knowledgeable about regulations and load capacities and can help customers make better decisions.
Sam Vander Galien, Jr., president of Sam J.R.S. LLC, a trucking company based in Randolph, WI, purchased the patented XL Cheater Gooseneck custom-engineered by XL Specialized Trailers a few years ago, based on the recommendation of his local dealer. “After using it, I liked it so much I bought another,” he says.
Sticking Their Necks out for Safety
Founded in 1995, XL Specialized Trailers manufactures heavy-haul and specialized trailers for the construction, commercial, agricultural, wind energy, oil-and-gas, and custom-style trailer markets. According to Scott Wall, the Cheater was launched in 1998 and has been very successful in saving drivers time and money. “The Cheater is a specific hook-up solution we are very proud of.”
The hydraulic sliding gooseneck was designed to reduce hookup time, which facilitates safer hookups than alternative necks do. It can be used for any XL hydraulic lowboy application. “It saves a lot of time,” Galien confirms. “Instead of getting in and out of the truck many times to get lined up, moving one pin to another, we can just pull a lever, move a pin, and hook or unhook right away. I have transferred 4,000 pounds with the sliding fifth wheel plate that has multiple pin locations.” The XL Cheater has seven pin locations, allowing for a variety of swing clearances ranging from 88 inches to 116 inches.
Speed isn’t the only advantage of this innovative technology. “There is always a safety factor associated with the XL Cheater. We are decreasing the driver’s risk for injury by eliminating his need to pull the pin so many times,” explains Galien.
That feature has gotten drivers out of difficult situations. When working in rough or muddy terrain, drivers usually need to use lots of force to back up into the trailer to hook up. If something goes wrong, this ramming can damage the truck, trailer, or put the driver in harm’s way. With the XL Cheater, the driver can park a few feet away from the trailer and then use the hydraulic lever to move the neck back to the trailer, providing a faster, safer solution for heavy-hauling hook-ups.
Efficiency is another important feature. “It loads right to the max,” says Galien, whose company hauls construction equipment such as excavators, dozers, pipeline equipment. “The variable ride height and seven king pin settings make it versatile; we can adjust it depending on our load and to adhere to different states’ permit laws.”
Kicking the Tires
Each year 80,000 accidents are attributed to low tire pressure. Duane Sprague, North American distributor for PressurePro, tells story after story of drivers who lose a tire. Somehow, it always seems to happen when it’s raining, during the middle of the night or in the middle of nowhere. As he explains, “Ninety-nine percent of tires go down slowly. They can lose 1 psi to 2 psi every 15 to 30 minutes. There’s a point when the tire can’t support the load: It self-destructs, which can damage other parts of the vehicle as well.”
The outskirts of Phoenix aren’t exactly “nowhere,” but when a driver for Fann Contracting was hauling a heavy load through the desert city and noticed that the tire pressure monitor indicated a tire was going low, he knew he wouldn’t make it back to headquarters. “He called the tire repair company and arranged to meet outside Phoenix,” explains Scott Thomas, equipment manager. The repairman was waiting; he removed and repaired the tire. “Without the monitor, he would have had a tire blow and a long wait for help.”
Thomas says that Fann, specializing in heavy highway work and asphalt paving, had been looking at tire pressure monitoring systems for several years and had just started using PressurePro on its heavy-haul transport trucks and three trailers in April or May. “We’re still in the trial phase,” Thomas explains, adding that their goal is increased tire life.
The high cost of vehicles, fuel, tires, insurance, roadside downtime, and repairs, and considering the need for efficiency, carbon pollution concerns, and safety has made TPMS one of the hottest market segments.
“With the types of loads we haul and the number of miles we log, transporting equipment from one job to another, we have a lot of tire problems,” Thomas continues. He mentions one 10-foot-wide trailer that picks up nails and debris because it runs on the shoulder.
A typical fleet has, on average, one or two tires that are 30% low, estimates Phil Zaroor, president and CEO of Advantage PressurePro Enterprises Inc., in Harrisonville, MO, another long-time distributor for PressurePro. Low pressures contribute to breaking down the tire casing. “If it breaks the metal bonds, you can’t sell or retread the tire. It’s an insurance liability if it shreds on the road.”
A tractor/trailer combination has 34 tires. Considering the time it takes to manually check 34 tires, Thomas says it’s virtually impossible to get a driver to actually put a gauge on each tire. “They have a checklist and do walk-around inspections, but they don’t check the tires very often.” Zaroor says it takes less time to install a monitor than to put a gauge on a tire-and the gauge “doesn’t monitor the tire when you really need it: on the road.”
PressurePro saves labor by alleviating the time and effort of checking tire pressures manually. “It’s hard to get people to be conscientious,” Sprague says, adding that drivers like the system because of the work it saves them. “They can review pressures any time-while they’re going down the road under load or in the yard before startup.” Tire pressure is constantly monitored, while moving or parked.
After PressurePro monitors and tire sensors were installed, Thomas says his drivers were “amazed” at how accurate the system is. “I told them you can’t tell the difference between 60 and 110 pounds by thumping,” he chuckles.
Fann’s drivers were also impressed by how well the monitoring system informs them through audio and visual alerts. A low-pressure tire will eventually overheat, causing premature tire failure. With PressurePro, a standalone wireless electronic tire pressure monitoring system, the driver is alerted to low pressures and can even watch the deflation, allowing him to get to a safe place to repair the tire before significant damage has occurred, minimizing cost and inconvenience.
Another cost-saving aspect is the reminder to keep tires properly inflated. Properly inflated tires last longer; tire life is extended by as much as 35% due to less tread wear. The Tire Industry Safety Council estimates that 50% to 80% of the 500 million tires used in the US are underinflated. Proper inflation protects and saves the tire casing, reducing the chance of blowouts and zipper rips. It also assists in preventing dangerous debris discarded on the road by worn out and unsafe tires and casings.
Low tire pressure increases fuel consumption and carbon emissions, Zaroor points out. According to the Department of Transportation, underinflated tires waste 5.4 million gallons of fuel each day, or approximately 2 billion gallons per year in the US. Although Thomas says Fann is “not to the point to have increased fuel mileage yet,” Sprague points out that “mileage improvement extended over a fleet adds up. A quarter of a cent per mile makes people yawn … until they add it up.”
Citations don’t make people yawn. With roadside checks now in effect, Thomas says, “They will check the tires and can cite you for under-inflation.” Wireless roadside inspections are coming, Zaroor warns. TPMS products save downtime and potential write-ups. “CSA issues penalties and fines for low pressures and leaks. Some insurance companies offer discounts for using our monitors,” he adds.
Saving drivers and companies from costly citations is only one way PressurePro reduces costs. Estimating a return on investment in six to eight months, Sprague claims that one saved tire will amortize the expense of the whole system. Zaroor points out that the savings are extended to fuel efficiency, longer tire life and reduced maintenance costs. Safety, he says, is about the only aspect that is increased.
“They advertise that you can pay it off in one year,” Thomas adds. “The way we track costs is by the hour. It takes time to get results, but we’ve already saved just with reduced downtime and the cost of replacement tires. In the first month, we paid for the installation by not buying tires.” Fann was averaging one tire per week before they installed the TPMS system.
Time is another way to save money. With PressurePro’s 100% automated “Drop-and-Hook” System, designed specifically for tractor/trailer drop and hook fleets, Thomas says his drivers can quickly swap trailers. “It’s very convenient,” he indicates. “Swapping trailers is important; it’s a big benefit.”
“If fleets aren’t tracking trailers,” Zaroor concludes, “they don’t know pressures. They could have flats and need a service truck. That wastes time.”
Savings aside, proper inflation prevents irregular tread wear and other dangerous conditions that can lead to accidents. Properly inflated tires provide greater stability, handling and braking, while tires with low air pressures skid and hydroplane more easily. A tire underinflated by 10% loses 10% of its traction, Zaroor says. Additional “green” benefits can be gained because when tires wear prematurely, they add to the landfill problem and valuable resources are consumed to produce new tires.
