Intermodal Carriers Install New SMART System

Intermodal transport offers a fuel-efficient, economical way to move refrigerated freight. However, the risks of equipment malfunction and freight spoilage can be high because these loads run unattended for long distances.

Satellite tracking would seem to provide the solution. However, satellite systems, until recently, have had drawbacks, says Hart Ferrall, cofounder of Satellite Monitoring and Remote Tracking Inc, or SMART Systems, based in Toms River, New Jersey. Intermodal carriers depended on low-earth-orbiting satellite systems that tracked equipment only 85% to 95% of the time.

"When you deal in $100,000 reefer loads, you need more than 85% coverage," Ferrall says. "I couldn't sell such a system. Customers demand the ability to control their assets at all times."

Though truckers use satellite tracking to pinpoint tractor location, railroads use another technology - trackside bar code readers. Rail car tracking is extremely efficient. Once a trailer is placed aboard a flatcar and the train leaves the terminal, the railroad can locate any car within a few hours.

Trailer location, while important, is not the real question for intermodal transport companies. They want to know what is happening inside the trailer. Is the refrigeration unit running? What operational mode is it in? Where is the thermostat set and what is the temperature inside the box?

Satellite tracking of trucks provides a real-time location combined with instant communication to a driver if needed. The rail system is a little harder to use, because the information flow is one-way from the locator hardware to the user. It is quite accurate if the placards on rail cars are clean enough to read. While it cannot provide an actual location for a moving rail car, the rail system can predict location based on the most recent sighting of a car and train speed.

The rail system suffers from one particular drawback. Trailer locations are only as accurate as the rail carrier's records of which trailers are loaded aboard a given flatcar. Bar code readers track only rail cars, not individual trailers on flatcars. Knowing the actual location of each trailer as well as train location can be vital information if trailers are loaded with time-sensitive freight.

Of course, intermodal trailers run in an environment without drivers. From the time a train leaves California until it reaches Chicago, for example, trailers are unattended for at least 72 hours, unless a specific request for services is made to the railroad. The problem is knowing when a unit needs to be checked.

New Satellite Solution SMART Systems believes it has the solution. It offers what it claims is the first satellite system that provides more than 99% coverage for untethered trailers. In addition to tracking, the system interacts with the refrigeration unit to alter system settings in transit. Anyone with access to the Internet can monitor equipment, change settings, and even start a pretrip routine within about a minute.

The web-enabled system is being installed on hundreds of refrigeration units on trailers, marine containers, and refrigerated rail cars. It is also being used to track fuel use and mileage on gensets and yard tractors.

For refrigeration applications, the two-way satellite system can order any command in real time that can be executed by the refrigeration unit, Ferrall says. "The ability to control mobile equipment almost 100% of the time is made possible by a geo-synchronous satellite system. We use a platform provided by Motient, formerly American Mobile Satellite Corporation. The technology is engineered by StarTrak and trademarked as ReeferTrak."

Origins of SMART With 18 years of experience in the intermodal industry, Ferrall has long realized the need for better equipment tracking. He was vice-president of Transamerica Distribution in Downers Grove, Illinois, in the 1980s, and later purchased an intermodal carrier. About four years ago, he cofounded SMART Systems with Mark Heck of Mark-It Services, an intermodal equipment service company based in the Bronx, New York.

"When Mark asked me to help develop a satellite tracking system, I didn't hesitate," Ferrall says. "Mark was working on the concept with several major intermodal carriers - Martrac, part of the UPS Logistics Group; CSX Intermodal; and Sea-Land Service."

Ferrall and Heck became partners in the SMART Systems venture, opening the headquarters in Toms River. Heck also continues to run Mark-It Services, a service outlet for Carrier Transicold. Besides its shop in the Bronx, Mark-It Services has another location in Philadelphia and serves seven rail yards in New Jersey.

In fact, Mark-It Services and SMART Systems coordinate services to offer 24-hour equipment monitoring and maintenance. Mark-It Services offers nationwide service through its affiliation with Carrier Transicold.

Mark-It Services operates an 11,000-sq-ft shop near the Hunts Point produce market in the Bronx. The shop provides full maintenance for intermodal equipment including containers, refrigeration units, chassis, and gensets plus highway tractors and trailers.

"Mark and his crew do hands-on manual inspections of all this equipment," Ferrall says. "He is one of the most knowledgeable people in the United States about refrigerated rail equipment maintenance. He does inspections, washouts, maintenance, and schedules pretrips - every aspect of intermodal equipment service."

Expo 2000 Introduction SMART System's ReeferTrak by StarTrak was introduced at Expo 2000, the 17th International Intermodal Expo held at the World Congress Center in Atlanta, Georgia. A refrigerated trailer with the tracking system was on display outside the show hall with other rail equipment.

ReeferTrak was fleet tested by Martrac, based in Atlanta. Martrac provided a trailer for the expo. Its refrigeration unit was remotely started and stopped repeatedly by satellite command from inside the exhibit hall.

SMART Systems performed a two-month test with Martrac, starting on July 19 when the trailer departed by rail from California to the Northeast. The refrigeration unit was monitored for internal and ambient temperatures. Besides successfully tracking reefer unit operation, the system showed an incident of fuel theft.

"We discovered that somebody stole 60% of the refrigeration unit fuel in California shortly after the driver picked up the load," Ferrall says. "The unit ran out of fuel four and a half days later, about a day before the scheduled arrival in New Jersey."

Using the SMART tracking system, problems such as low fuel or incorrect setpoint can be detected and corrected before a load spoils, Ferrall adds. However, users must decide which refrigeration unit functions they want checked. They must notify SMART Systems, or whoever is doing the monitoring, of these requirements. Notification is made by phone, fax, or e-mail.

The StarTrak software sends alarms for certain events. For instance, an alarm is sent if a unit shuts down. It is possible to restart the unit in transit. Alarms can be sent by e-mail, fax, and pager. The system can generate reports and send them to remote computer locations.

Prioritize Monitoring Events SMART Systems sells and installs StarTrak technology and offers custom event notification. Besides cargo box temperature, setpoint, and unit operating mode, ReeferTrak can monitor fuel level, oil pressure, battery condition, coolant temperature, and defrost override among others.

"A refrigeration unit microprocessor tracks more than 100 events," he says. "But customers don't want alarms going off for every event. Otherwise we would be calling constantly, night and day."

Prenotification is important because without it, freight may be spoiled or damaged, Ferrall adds. For instance, if a trailer ordinarily used to haul produce is loaded with computer parts, the refrigeration unit thermostat obviously should be reset from 34 F to 60 F. "If we are not notified, we won't notice any problem when the system tells us the cargo temperature is 34 F."

The first user of the SMART system, Martrac, is considering installing ReeferTrak on its entire fleet of 1,300 refrigerated trailers, says Ozzie O'Keefe, Martrac's director of intermodal services. "We are interested in the cost savings this system can provide," O'Keefe says. "We plan to use it to check unit operational mode, temperature, fuel level, and location. The system can help prevent cargo claims by alerting us immediately of unit malfunctions."

Customer Benefits Another benefit is quicker equipment turns. Using ReeferTrak to perform automatic pretrip inspections could save a day in a rail yard, O'Keefe says.

"After a trailer arrives at destination, it typically stays in the rail yard for one to three days," he says. "For example, Martrac may move a load from New Jersey to Chicago. If an inspection is done in Chicago, Martrac must pay for the work plus drayage to move the trailer to an inspection site. We save time and money by pretripping the refrigeration unit remotely, sometimes before the trailer is unloaded."

Ferrall estimates that the SMART system can increase equipment turns by 15%. Typically, intermodal trailers make about 12 round trips a year. A 15% increase would add about two more trips a year.

The SMART system also can be used to verify carrier performance, Heck adds. "Temperature profiles can be tracked regularly over the Web. Alarms and exception reporting can focus fleet managers on problem conditions and validate that equipment is operating properly in real time."

The system is available for operation with Carrier Transicold microprocessors (Micro and Advance) and Thermo King Up IV, Up V, and Up VI controllers. System hardware includes a flat antenna, installed on the trailer roof, and controls installed in a box in the refrigeration unit case. The control system interfaces with the refrigeration unit controller.

Genset Applications Most ReeferTrak equipment currently is installed on Carrier Transicold Ultima 53 and Ultra refrigeration units. Carrier Transicold recently received an order to install 700 ReeferTrak systems on Ultima 53 units modified for railcar use by the Burlington Northern Santa Fe, says Tom Ondo, marketing director for Carrier Transicold. The units will be installed on 72-ft Trinity refrigerated railcars. The communication system will be tied into the railroad's weigh-billing system.

Besides monitoring refrigeration units, StarTrak also is being used to track gensets. "Most of our equipment is on trailers and boxcars," Ferrall says. "But in the future, a lot will go on clip-on gensets. OOCL and Maersk are using the system on gensets to check running time for maintenance purposes and to monitor fuel level to prevent theft. The control system is wired to the genset alternator and oil pressure switch.

"SMART systems is also monitoring and tracking yard jockeys in rail yards. Customers want to track yard tractor operation as a preventive maintenance tool."

Intermodal carriers realize that SMART Systems can help control fleet equipment unattended on the rails and in rail yards, Ferrall says. "The first time carriers see this system catch a refrigeration unit set at the wrong temperature, they become believers for life. Effective satellite tracking is no longer science fiction."

Installation of the StarTrak system for yard tractors and gensets costs about $300 to $800 per unit, depending on system applications, Ferrall says. Installation of ReeferTrak hardware and software costs from $900 to $1,600 per unit. The monthly service charge for untethered satellite communication for reefer applications ranges from $20 to $40 per unit, he adds.

SMART Systems can be accessed at its web site: www.track-smart.com, or reached by phone at 732-349-7627.