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The arrival of an additional work force?

By David A. Kolman - Monday January 21, 2013

The more people in an area, the larger the labor pool to draw from. If your operation is in a handful of cities, you might want to up your employee recruiting efforts. Penske Truck Rental , a leading global transportation services provider, has released its annual list of top moving destinations within the United States. The list is compiled through its online consumer truck rental reservations and through Penske Truck Rental call centers. Once again, Atlanta, GA topped the list. It has been the number one moving destination for each of the three years that Penske has compiled its ranking. The Dallas/Fort Worth area made the jump from fourth to second place. Four markets (Chicago, Houston, Denver and Seattle) retained...
A rodeoing I went

By David A. Kolman - Monday January 14, 2013

For the seventh time, Rush Truck Centers put on its annual Tech Skills Rodeo. The event was created so that the company’s technicians can test their skills against one another and compete for valuable prizes, cash and an increase in their hourly pay. Rush Truck Centers is North America’s largest network of heavy and medium duty truck dealerships. In order to be able to take part in the rodeo, Rush’s 1,400 technicians from its 70 locations in 15 states who meet certain training requirements attempt to qualify through written exams in the test areas. This year the test areas were: heavy duty vehicles, medium duty vehicles and CNG/LNG-powered vehicles. For this year’s event, held in in San Antonio, TX, 400 technicians took...
A walk through an axle plant

By David A. Kolman - Monday January 7, 2013

I am one of those editors that truly enjoy plant tours. I am fascinated how raw material comes into a plant at one end and then, after a typically circuitous journey through many stations, is transformed into a product comes out the other end. So, when I received an invite from Meritor to tour its Fletcher (Asheville), NC, manufacturing facility I jumped at the chance. However, I was concerned about walking the entire plant, the size of which is slightly more than a half million square feet. The first thing that struck me about the plant was its relative quietness and how clean it was. I was also impressed by the number of automated processes and robotic systems, and with the emphasis on safety throughout the plant. The...
My New Year’s resolutions

By David A. Kolman - Monday December 31, 2012

I do not like to see another year end and a new one start. Each passing year is yet another reminder that I am aging, and I don’t need reminding of that. My body reminds me of that as I get out of bed each morning. Nevertheless, with each New Year I always do several things. One is to ruminate on something my dear father told me a long time ago: “The end of a year is neither an end nor a beginning. Rather, it is a going on with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us.” Another is to remember to write the correct year on all my paperwork. A third thing is to conscientiously try to be a better person, not to take things so seriously and continue to learn new skills and abilities. Another of my traditions is...
T’was Christmas Eve at the maintenance facility

By David A. Kolman - Monday December 17, 2012

T’was the night before Christmas and all through the maintenance facility, Not a creature was stirring, and there was no technician-manager hostility. The stockings were hung in the lunchroom with care, In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there. The technicians were all at home nestled snug in their beds, While visions of new technology and government regulations danced in their heads. When out in front of the maintenance facility there arose such a clatter, The 24/7 shop manager sprang from his desk to see what was the matter. The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow, Gave the luster of mid-day to objects below. When what to the manager’s eyes did appear on the maintenance...
Have some holiday fun

By David A. Kolman - Monday December 10, 2012

How well do you know your holiday trivia? Why not test yourself with this fun quiz? 1. What do the songs Jingle Bells , Sleigh Ride and Winter Wonderland have in common? 2. Approximately what percentage of American homes eat turkey on Christmas? 3. What one reindeer is never mentioned in the poem ’Twas the night before Christmas ? 4. How many reindeer does Santa Claus have? 5. Name the eight reindeer mentioned in the poem 'Twas the Night Before Christmas ? 6. When did the U.S. Marine Corps' Reserve Toys for Tots program start? 7. What president began the annual tradition of the National Christmas Tree lighting ceremony on the White House lawn? 8. What newspaper assured a reader: “Yes, Virginia, there is a...
How to share the road with snowplows

By David A. Kolman - Monday December 3, 2012

Sharing the road with a snowplow can create some special challenges, along with the need for extra caution. Here are some tips from traffics safety professionals for helping you stay safe. - Be visible. Keep your headlights on at all times when traveling in snow and inclement weather. - Don’t follow snowplows too closely. Driving conditions behind a snowplow are better than conditions ahead of it. What’s more, snowplow operators stop, turn, back up or exit frequently, and often with little warning. You may not be able to stop in time on a slippery roadway. - Watch for flying material. Keep an adequate following distance so your vehicle doesn’t get pelted and damaged by any flying sanding materials, snow, ice or...
Showing my fuel economy prowess

By David A. Kolman - Monday December 3, 2012

As was reported on vehicleservicepros.com , I was among a select group of five veteran truck journalists invited to serve as a judge for the 2013 American Truck Dealers (ATD) Commercial Truck of the Year program. This is a national award that recognizes the top truck entries in the heavy and medium duty categories. Judging involved evaluating the nine truck nominees using an especially-created scoring system that encompassed three main judging categories: innovation and design, safety and driver satisfaction. One of nominees in the medium duty truck category was a Class 5 Hino 195h Diesel-Electric Hybrid. It had a 210-hp Hino J05E Series diesel mated to an Aisin 6-speed fully automatic transmission. As part of the judging...
Lift learning

By David A. Kolman - Monday November 26, 2012

I had the opportunity to participate in the Demo Day heavy duty vehicle lift manufacturer Stertil-Koni held recently at its U.S. headquarters in Stevensville, MD. The town is located across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge in Queen Anne's County, MD. The event was intended to highlight Stertil-Koni’s line of lifts to potential customers and customers, as well as to distributors and distributor salespeople. On display were four models of lifts: the Diamond Lift high-pressure telescopic piston lift, Earthlift wireless mobile column lift, ECOLIFT ultra-shallow, full-rise, in-ground axle engaging lift and SKYLIFT platform lift. I’ve been around vehicle lifts before, but not like at this event. First of all, the lifts were brand new...
What’s re-refining oil all about?

By David A. Kolman - Monday November 19, 2012

There are a lot of misconceptions about re-refined motor oils and lubes. Today’s re-refining processes are considerably different, and much more advanced, then when re-refining first began during World War II when everything was in short supply. To be honest, I never gave re-refined oil much consideration. When I came into the industry many years ago, I was taught to go with the “real” stuff. Last week, I was invited by Safety-Kleen to tour its re-refinery in East Chicago, IN. The company is a leading provider of environmental services to commercial, industrial and automotive customers, and the largest re-refiner of used oil and provider of parts cleaning services in North America. Safety-Kleen owns and operates two oil...