Weighing Getting Weightier
LAS VEGAS – On-board scale maker Air Weigh believes new hours of service (HOS) rules put into effect this year have brought new emphasis to on-board weighing technology for trucks.
“We think there’s much more acceptance of the on-board weighing concept because the new HOS rules creates a situation where you can’t afford to waste even a half hour,” Peter Powell, Air Weigh’s vp-marketing, told Fleet Owner here at The Truck Show.
“You can’t afford to drive 170 miles down the road and find you are overloaded at the first highway scales you come to,” he said. “Driving time is too precious for that – above and beyond, of course, are the fines you’ll receive for being overloaded.”
The big issue Powell believes in dealing with the HOS regulations is how to maximize the productivity of both trucks and drivers.
“The key we think is knowing if you are hauling near your maximum weight,” Powell said. “For one fleet customer, for example, having on-board weighing technology allowed them to load one extra pallet of freight on their trailers – and that one extra pallet translated into a 3% improvement in productivity for the whole fleet, more than offsetting losses due to HOS. That’s why if you don’t maximize your load, especially under these new rules, you’ll lose money.”
