This showcase spotlights some of the innovations that can enhance driver comfort and safety, as well as screening services that employers can use to hire qualified, capable drivers in the controlled-temperature distribution industry. Included are software and high-technology tools designed to address driver-related requirements.
Driver career path outline offered for free
Trincon Group has released an outline of its driver career path plan and made it available for free through the company web site, www.trincon.com.
Studies conducted by the Conference Board and American Management Association discovered that American workers believe companies and their staff would perform better if businesses initiated employee incentive programs. In addition to increased company and employee productivity, 93 percent of American workers believe that American products and services could better compete against their foreign counterparts if American management involved workers in more continuous improvement efforts.
Trincon's career path outline includes six levels of development that allow new drivers to advance and become seasoned professionals. It also summarizes a driver incentive program that is based on the amount of miles driven and length of employment. Rewards for excellent performance and advanced levels of experience include pay increases, bonuses, vacation time, and title advancement.
For more information on Trincon's driver hiring and retention program, visit www.trincon.com/retention.htm.
UniGroup Inc selects TMW software
UniGroup Inc has licensed TMW Systems' D2Link software for approximately 3,000 of its drivers' cellular telephones.
D2Link turns wireless phones running Java into convenient driver communications units connected with company dispatch systems. It facilitates more affordable and efficient trip communications, asset management, and load assignments for drivers and company operations. Dispatchers can send drivers load assignments and trip schedules. Drivers can reply to accept loads or send trip updates, following innovative stop schedule listings.
UniGroup selected D2Link technology because it is a cost-effective application that meets its communications requirements. In addition, the software is fully integrated with UniGroup operating systems through TMW's TotalMail middleware. UniGroup previously used a 12-year-old, permanently mounted tracking and data communications platform in its trucks.
Software for driver bonus, award programs
J J Keller & Associates Inc has introduced Keller-Soft Safety Incentives & Awards Tracker, a software program that helps users develop, manage, and report on driver bonus and award programs.
This software allows users to select from safety, longevity, and performance factors in order to create and customize award programs that will suit their operation. Once driver data is input, the software maintains and reports on driver eligibility for the award programs.
The software calculates drivers' eligibility and elimination based on their length of employment or cumulative safe mileage; generates reports on bonus and awards program cost, award status by driver, and other variables; imports existing driver data from Microsoft Excel; and supports multiple bonus programs across multiple locations.
The software also contains reference information on the value of incentive programs and how to run them.
The Keller-Soft Safety Incentives & Awards Tracker software is available for $179 by phoning 800-327-6868. Callers should reference Action Code 16255 when ordering. Visit www.jjkeller.com/awardtrack for more information.
LDW helps Prime cut accident rate by 85%
Prime Inc, the Springfield MO-based refrigerated, flatbed, and tanker carrier, has achieved an 85 percent decrease rate in run-off-road and rollover accidents since deploying Iteris' Lane Departure Warning (LDW) system.
In early 2006, the carrier began upgrading its fleet of more than 2,700 leased and company-owned trucks with Iteris' LDW technology. During that year, trucks not equipped with Iteris' LDW systems traveled 328 million miles and had a combined run-off-road and rollover accident rate of 0.19 per million — or one every 5.3 million miles traveled. At the end of 2006, Prime equipped 515 trucks with Iteris' LDW systems. These trucks traveled 33.3 million miles and experienced a run-off-road and rollover crash rate of 0.03 per million — or one in 33.3 million miles traveled.
Prime's total cost for run-off-road and rollover accidents for trucks not equipped with LDW was more than $3 million in 2006. For the 515 trucks equipped with Iteris' LDW system, Prime estimates it will save about $551,000 annually on these types of accidents. When compared with the cost of equipping these trucks with LDW, Prime will recognize a positive return on its investment in slightly more than 11 months.
