The first volume of tractor maintenance topics, compiled by the editors of Overdrive and Truckers News, covers 12 tasks that help optimize equipment life. Each one-page guide, written by Equipment Editor John Baxter, has a simple sequence of steps, helpful photos and a list of needed tools.

You can order this e-book, How to maintain a tractor, Vol. 1,” now. This and other owner-operator products are available through the Overdrive Store.

Steven Oakley Price, 41, of Licking, Mo. pleaded guilty Dec. 1 in the U. S. District Court for Missouri’s western district. If the court accepts Price’s plea agreement, he will serve an eight-year federal prison term without parole. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the federal probation office’s presentence investigation ends.

Price inserted fuel-soaked clothing, rags or fuel filters into the wheel wells of tractor-trailers in Missouri, Georgia, Indiana, West Virginia, Iowa and Illinois between August 2009 and June 2010. No serious injuries occurred, according to the district’s U.S. attorney.

Law enforcement identified him as a suspect after they observed him during several fires at a Kingdom City, Mo. truck stop.

His employer, Illinois-based Tennant Truck Lines, assisted investigators in using the company’s GPS to track Price’s truck. Between August 2009 and June 2010, his truck was placed either at or near each fire and in one case, immediately adjacent to the burned truck.

On June 23, 2010, a truck fire was set at a Valley Grove, W.Va., truck stop with the method used in the previous arsons. Investigators were conducting surveillance of Price using GPS data and arrested him in his truck parked close to the fire.

A year before a Jefferson City, Mo., jury returned a seven-court indictment, which replaced a previous indictment from July and added five additional counts of arson.

The indictments included a charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Law enforcement stated they had found Price possessed a bolt-action rifle in Texas County, Mo., the previous June. Federal law prohibits anyone convicted of a felony to possess a firearm or ammunition and he had prior felony convictions for arson, theft burglary and hot check personal services, they said.

In California, Eureka residents will continue a more than two decade tradtiion when they cheer as many as 100 trucks participating in the Christmas Convoy Truckers Parade. Past participants have used variety of decorations, some lighted so heavily three generators were required.

The parade begins at 6 pm Dec. 11 in Redwood Acres.

Also in California, volunteers will gather food for charity during the Paradise’s Christmas Truck Parade. Also known as the Big Truck Parade, the procession will begin 6:30 p.m. at Paradise Community Park.

The Myrtle Creek-Tri City Area Chamber of Commerce has said the 18th Annual Timber Trucker’s Light Parade will begin “as soon as it gets dark” Dec. 11 in Riddle, Ore.
It estimated as many as 15,000 spectators have lined the five-mile route to see drivers toss them candy and trinkets and see truckers compete for awards.

In Washington, bagpipers will lead lighted trucks in the Starlight Truck Parade 7 p.m. Dec. 2 through downtown Stevenson.

The joint meeting is set for Wed., Dec. 7, where MCSAC and the MRB will consider presentations on obstructive sleep apnea and its relationship to the population of commercial motor vehicle drivers.
The entirety of the meeting will occur at the Hilton Alexandria Old Town, 1767 King Street, Alexandria, Va., in the Washington and Jefferson rooms on the second floor. Meetings will be held Monday – Wednesday 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. ET, Thursday. 8:30 a.m.-noon.

Other items on the agenda include full-committee consideration of the technical standards report by its EOBR Implementation Subcommittee established at the last, November meeting. The MCSAC will also return to the issue of potential revision to roadside violation severity weightings in the Carriers Safety Measurement System in FMCSA’s CSA program. Data regarding the cross-border trucking pilot program with Mexico will also be shared.

The Cross-Border Trucking Pilot Program subcommittee meets 3:15-4:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday.

Allen and Donna Smith of The Truth About Trucking Live online radio show will host the all-day event, which they have organized. The admission cost of $89 includes a breakfast buffet and dinner buffet, and access to cash and other prizes. A plaque and $500 will be awarded to the person who has made the biggest difference in trucking. Live entertainment will include the Keystruckers, Jim and Jan McCarter.

Social media tools and information will be presented during the convention. Allen Smith points out that social media is more than using Facebook and Twitter. “Social media is networking with others, socializing, establishing contacts with other truckers and professionals within the industry,” he says.

Social media expert Austin Walsh will explain how truckers can use social media to express their ideas and concerns. Richard Wilson of Trans Products & Trans Services will discuss procedures for drivers to submit comments and suggestions to government websites, another form of social media interaction.

Eddie Gichuhi of Trip Sheet Central will present “Winning Business Strategies.” James McCormack of Trucking Careers of America LLC will speak on how to find a trucking job. Trucking employment attorney Paul O. Taylor will speaking on trucker’s rights under the law. The meeting also will include a three-hour Q&A panel.

Also scheduled to appear are Hope Rivenburg, widow of slain trucker Jason Rivenburg, and Kylla Leeburg of Truckers Against Trafficking.

Dozens of new smart-phone apps can save you money, time and hassles. Best of all, many are free.

From electronic logging to word on whether a shower’s available at that next truck stop, trucking applications for smartphones have emerged to meet needs large and small for owner-operators. Since the iPhone’s introduction in 2007, competing phones have followed, as have thousands of apps that can be downloaded easily in seconds, usually at no cost.

Michigan-based Miguel Dunkelberger, leased to LR & Sons of Grand Rapids, Mich., has been using Mobile Warrior’s IDDL log book and inspection-report app on his iPhone for more than a year, he says. The feature completely replaced his paper logs.

While not a federally approved electronic onboard recorder, the application affords Dunkelberger, for the $9.95 a month he spends for the service, not only the simplicity of push-button logging but also a significant boost in record-keeping ease. When his carrier was audited by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, he was asked to provide three months’ worth of logs. All he had to do was log into his account and send an email.

Dunkelberger also utilizes Pilot Travel Centers’ store locator app, which can quickly find the nearest Pilot or Flying J location. TravelCenters of America’s new TruckSmart app does the same for TA and Petro locations, as well as providing parking availability, fuel price and other data.

iPad usage of Getloaded’s iGetLoaded app has tripled since last October, says Getloaded Marketing Manager Dane Schwartz, an indication of the app markets’ growing significance on tablet devices, as on phones. “At any level of business, whether it’s accounting, freight matching, or navigation, you can pretty much do it from your phone,” he says.

While most applications that have been around for a while are functional on the iPhone, software developers are introducing versions built to operate on phones driven by Google’s Android operating system. TransCore marketing rep Eileen Hart reports the company’s research a couple of years ago found that “Blackberry was the most popular one. The iPhone has really taken off since then. Most recently, Android has surpassed the iPhone among our customers.”

Regardless of operating system, whether you’re searching for a load, a truck stop, fuel prices, accounting tools, or guides to state hazmat regs, chances are there’s an app for it.

Freight

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iGetLoaded

What it does: This app enables mobile access for Getloaded.com load-board users, with GPS-enabled and other load searches, access to broker credit ratings, rate indexing, one-touch calling for load details, PC Miler routing/mileage and more.

What they say: “This app brings all the essential, core features available at Getloaded.com, plus more, right to your fingertips.” Android functionality is coming, says Dane Schwartz, possibly late this year.

Access: iPhone. getloaded.com/mobile

ITS Trucker

What it does: Internet Truckstop’s app allows access to the IT load board to search for freight using GPS or another location and to post your truck. A “Get Me Home” button displays all loads delivering in a radius of your home base. Direct-dial functions enable one-touch calling.

What they say: CreditStop Broker and Days2Pay information is available on each load as a value-added tool.

Access: Android, iPhone. iTunes App Store or download for Android at udrove.com/and/trucker.apk

My DAT Truckstop

What it does: This app provides up to 25 nearby loads per search from TransCore’s DAT network, in addition to access to information about truck stops, alternative parking data and points of interest.

What they say: “There’s a call button integrated into the interface” for load details, says product developer Scott McCollister, plus a “navigate button” to see what’s near your current location.

Access: Android; iPhone coming late summer. transcore.com

TQL Freight Finder

What it does: This app enables searches from your current location or elsewhere of available loads, by trailer type and within an adjustable radius of up to 300 miles, via broker Total Quality Logistics.

What they say: The app enables one-touch calling of TQL agents about particular loads, and offers additional searches by equipment type, load date and destination city/state.

Access: Android, iPhone. tql.com

uShip mobile

What it does: This app helps hotshot haulers and other owner-operators find and bid on freight through the online marketplace uShip.

What they say: Benefits include “push notifications,” alerting bidders to when a bid is accepted or declined or questions are asked; full messaging capability between truckers and shippers; navigation capabilities with map views; optional GPS tracking to alert shippers/consignees to arrival times. uShip recently added brokered loads. The app is in partnership with Unwired Nation.

Access: Android, Blackberry, iPhone and others. uship.com

Logs, inspection reports and more

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iLogMiles

What it does: Computer-assisted logging for hours-of-service compliance

What they say: “iLogMiles will generate a PDF template for your daily logbook” that you can print and sign to store. As with other computer-assisted logging apps, ability to print is key to complying with federal record-keeping guidelines.

Access: iPhone. www.bryanhinton.com/apps/ilogmiles

Mobile Warrior iDDL

What it does: Computer-assisted logging for hours of service compliance, as well as vehicle inspection reports.

What they say: Combined with an online storage account ($9.95 monthly and up), the app “will pay for itself by reducing your paperwork alone.” It also allows for signature capture to enable drivers to electronically sign and store online daily logs and inspection reports.

Access: iPhone. www.iddl.com

uDrove

What it does: Computer-assisted logging and vehicle inspection report functionality as well as mileage tracking for taxes and fuel and other expense recording capability.

What they say: The app is free, but a web storage account for $25 monthly completes the package. The company is building its “Gateway” system to be a full-function electronic onboard recorder managed from your smartphone, offering access to critical equipment information in real time to identify cost-reduction opportunities and partial automation of logs for accurate compliance.

Access: iPhone, Android, Blackberry. udrove.com

Xata Turnpike RouteTracker

What it does: The RouteTracker is a multi-function federally certified electronic onboard recorder. It combines an application for smartphone users that connects to the engine ECM via a small device plugged into the ECM, for no additional charge.

What they say: Software package includes access to engine diagnostics and other performance information, real-time tracking capability – useful in alerting consignees/shippers and other customers as to your truck’s arrival time – and automated IFTA data collection and reporting, in addition to the logging capability. Installation time is “less than 10 minutes,” the company says. Combined with web-based storage and tools, the package costs $35 a month.

Access: Most smartphones on Verizon and Sprint networks, including Android-operated. xata.com or eobr.com.

Truck stops, road service, dealers

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Continental Truck Tires Dealer Locator

What it does: Offers quick search for Continental dealers as well as one-touch access to roadside service network.

What they say: The app “makes it easy for drivers of commercial vehicles to find the nearest authorized service provider when they need tire or emergency road service.” National account customers and ContiFleet members can also dial the TrukFix hotline for service with one touch.

Access: iPhone. www.continental-truck.com

Mack Dealer Locator

What it does: Lists and helps connect users to Mack dealers utilizing phone GPS functionality for real-time location tracking, among other features.

What they say: This app will find the nearest dealer based on current location, or by searching an alphabetical list by state or province. Customers can access a dealer’s contact information, address, website and services offered as well.

Access: iPhone. www.macktrucks.com

Michelin Truck Tires Locator

What it does: More than just a dealer locator, this app uses GPS technology to find the nearest Michelin truck tire or service provider, as well as information about that location. Users can dial Michelin OnCall emergency road service directly or search for a provider by category.

What they say: The application can also display service providers based on an entered location other than the current GPS location. Users have the ability to call the service provider or save the provider’s information to their device.

Access: Android, Blackberry, iPhone. www.michelintruck.com

Pilot store locator

What it does: Allows search for Pilot Travel Centers and Flying J locations.

What they say: The app plots nearest locations on a map, then offers turn-by-turn directions. Pilot Travel Center Locator iPhone app searches the immediate area or a specific city, state, or zip and displays the distance to any truck stop.

Access: iPhone. pilottravelcenters.com

Truck Stop Coupons

What it does: This app offers discounts for merchandise and services at truck stops, navigational capabilities and more.

What they say: “The database of truck stops powering this app is the most complete in the country and is updated daily.” This app was developed by Overdrive publisher Randall-Reilly Business Media and Information in collaboration with ProMiles.

Access: Blackberry, iPhone. www.truckstopcoupons.com

Trucker Net

What it does: One-touch access to the U.S.-Canada parts and service network of Daimler Trucks North America, including Freightliner, Sterling, Western Star and Detroit Diesel, as well as TravelCenters of America and Petro locations. Dealer special information is also available.

What they say: Built into the app is DTNA’s Excelerator “On Call” 24/7 support line for “roadside assistance, tow/extraction and monitoring of your repairs to get you back on the road fast.”

Access: Android, iPhone; Blackberry on the way. daimler-trucksnorthamerica.com

TruckSmart

What it does: TruckSmart is a multifunction app offered by TA/Petro providing interactive maps displaying nearby locations, fuel prices, number of available showers and estimates of available parking by location, updated every two hours. It also has special offers at restaurants, travel stores and truck maintenance centers.

What they say: A one-touch call to the RoadSquad national call center captures the user’s precise coordinates when mobile assistance is needed. Phase two of the app, expected this summer, would integrate the UltraOne rewards program, allowing members to check points balance, access shower credits, review past transactions, review UltraExtras benefits achieved, call Customer Service and even reserve a shower.

Access: iPhone, Android. tatravelcenters.com/trucksmart

Truckster

What it does: Truckster, formerly “Truck Stops Pro,” offers location and contact information for truck stops, as well as current fuel prices, amenities and more. Also searchable by location are rest areas, Wal-Mart locations, weigh stations, hotels and SpeedCo locations.

What they say: “This application is designed to be a community effort.” Users can assist the developer in updating the information and adding additional stops. Drivers can post notes about each stop.

Access: iPhone, Android. $3.99, search on iTunes, Android Market

Other tools for business, safety

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DriveReply

What it does: This safety app, available in English and Spanish, triggers your phone to send autoreplies to texts and/or phone calls when you reach speed greater than 10-15 mph. Replies can be personalized and/or disabled if a direct reply is necessary.

What they say: The app includes emergency features enabling certain users to get through to the driver, and its passenger-selection option lets a passenger access the phone’s full functionality while in motion.

Access: Android, Blackberry, iPhone, Windows Mobile. $4.95, drivereply.com

HazRef 2008

What it does: A reference guide to more than 3,000 hazardous materials as identified by the United States Code of Federal Regulations.

What they say: An Acme Truck Lines hauler called this app the “hazmat bible for truckers. It has everything the [hazardous material regulations] book carries, plus more. And it’s very easy to navigate.”

Access: iPhone. Search “HazRef” on iTunes.

Pocket FuelCal

What it does: Created by SWW Freight broker Zach Womack, this app calculates fuel surcharges in total or by mile/kilometer.

What they say: Whether you’re an independent trying to determine what you should charge a shipper or a leased owner-operator double-checking your carrier’s surcharge payment, the PocketFuelCal app makes it easy to determine surcharges by inputting fuel-efficiency, base and current fuel price and lane distance.

Access: iPhone. $1.99, truckingadvantage.com/fuel-surcharges

Trapster

What it does: This app indexes law enforcement speed traps and enforcement cameras with user-provided information.

What they say: “Police want people to drive safely, and telling drivers where the checkpoints are helps them do just that.” The app has more than 11 million users worldwide.

Access: Most platforms. trapster.com

TripPak Mobile

What it does: This app from ACS provides owner-operators leased to participating fleets with the ability to update their trip status, confirm pick-up and delivery with signature capture, and capture trip documents for submission via their smartphones.

What they say: The app provides drivers with a document submission method that is convenient and provides faster pay with state-of-the-art technology, reducing out-of-route miles.

Access: iPhone, Android. trippak.com/mobile.asp

Trucker

What it does: This app aggregates trucking-related news and resources, with a focus on driver-led social media.

What they say: Trucker “is a valuable source for truck drivers, allowing for continued expansion of categories” with user input and review.

Access: iPhone. $0.99, truckerapp.com

Winter Chain Laws

What it does: This app from the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association is a comprehensive reference guide for chain permissions/prohibitions by state. (OOIDA also offers a free fuel surcharge calculator app.)

What they say: “Know how the state you’re trucking through regulates the use of tire chains and travel.”

Access: Android. ooida.com, via the apps page

Spotlight on EOBR mandate

Today, only the Xata Turnpike app is capable of providing logging functionality on a smartphone to satisfy federal regulations of electronic onboard recorders for hours of service monitoring. As of mid-May, it was one of the only low-cost EOBRs on the market, though others were in the works.

The other smartphone-functional logging devices are computer-assisted logs. Any operator using such will still have to satisfy record-keeping and other requirements of the paper log regulations. Logging programs must be able to be retrieved and printed or emailed/faxed for view on request of law enforcement.

The maker of the uDrove logging solution, functional on the iPhone, Android phones and Blackberries, is building the uDrove Gateway system to be a full-function EOBR, positioned for a potential mandate. uDrove’s will be another low-cost EOBR, with wireless communication between a “black box” connected to the ECM and the operator’s smartphone. As with the Xata Turnpike EOBR, uDrove’s will be managed directly from the smartphone. In addition to logs, critical equipment information will be accessible in real time to identify cost-reduction opportunities and track performance.

The device will be available this year, says uDrove rep Scott Moscrip. “Fleets and owner-operators can start out with the phone [for computer-assisted logging], and if the mandate does come, they don’t have to scrub anything,” he says. “All they have to do is plug the black box into their truck, and it starts talking to the phone.”

Crowd-sourcing on-highway information

The Truckster app’s creator, Leigh Gagnon, was a long-haul driver when he began developing the app for the iPhone, one of the earliest of its kind. When it debuted in 2009, there “was nothing else like it out there,” he says, and Gagnon called it, simply, “Truck Stops.”

Today the app is more than just a truck stop locator with fuel-price information. Gagnon has begun listing services, from SpeedCo and TransFlo locations to alternative parking data and driver-provided information on the open/closed status of weigh stations, input in real time. Gagnon’s also working on an online interface for truck stop operators to make available special offers and information to Truckster users.

Truckster had offered load search capability, partnering with TransCore’s DAT network, but terminated the contract in May when TransCore released a similar app.

Gaghon is now working on his own load board service.

Money/budgeting

• The Chase Mobile app allows a Chase account holder to snap a photo of a check with an iPhone or Android phone and deposit it directly.

• Log mileage and photos of receipts for purchases under $75 for tax record-keeping with the Expensify app, available on most platforms.

• Create a central space for tracking account balances and bill payment due dates with the Pageonce app, available on iPhone, Android and Windows Mobile platforms, as well as for laptop web browsers.

• Create and track your budget with Mint.com or, for $1.99, Ace Budget’s iPhone or Android apps.

• Need cash? The ATM Hunter app by MasterCard for iPhone, Blackberry and Android phones locates the nearest auto-teller.

Unless otherwise noted, the apps included here are free of charge and are available in the iTunes app store for iPhone or in application markets for Android, Blackberry, Windows Mobile or other devices. Most iPhone apps are also functional on the iPad.

The Purchasing Managers Index “registered 53.5 percent and indicates expansion in the manufacturing sector for the 22nd consecutive month,” says ISM’s Bradley Holcomb. Any reading above 50 indicates growth.

“This month’s index, however, registered 6.9 percentage points below the April reading of 60.4 percent, and is the first reading below 60 percent for 2011, as well as the lowest PMI reported for the past 12 months,” he says.

One problem, as most flatbedders know, is that housing continues to lag far behind manufacturing. That was evidenced by one of three manufacturing sectors — Furniture & Related Products — that contracted in May. The other two were Printing & Related Support Activities; and Food, Beverage & Tobacco Products.

The good news is that 14 groups reported growth in May. They were, in order: Nonmetallic Mineral Products; Petroleum & Coal Products; Machinery; Transportation Equipment; Computer & Electronic Products; Textile Mills; Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components; Primary Metals; Miscellaneous Manufacturing; Paper Products; Chemical Products; Plastics & Rubber Products; Apparel, Leather & Allied Products; and Fabricated Metal Products.

The article’s backdrop is legislation, supported by President Obama and about 190 members of Congress, to accelerate subsidies for natural gas vehicles. Among the story’s interesting tidbits:

• There’s been a rash of natural gas discoveries in the United States, resulting in much lower prices relative to diesel fuel.
• “Fewer than 1,000 natural-gas 18-wheeler tractors have been sold in the U.S., industry experts say.”
• UPS has ordered 48 natural gas trucks at $195,000 each, the company says. And to help with that purchase, it got $4 million from the feds.

Read more.

I had argued that the proposed mandate for electronic onboard recorders could eventually put pressure to raise pay. Carriers that have been cheating on hours, assuming they even stay in business under the Compliance, Safety, Accountability program, would need more trucks and drivers to do legally the same amount of hauling they’ve been doing illegally. More demand for drivers means higher pay.

The other reader, retired owner-operator H.J. Steele, in a letter to the editor, says my argument made him chuckle to himself. “I heard this same song and dance when the CDL came into being and again when having a Hazmat endorsement meant undergoing a background check and fingerprinting,” Steele writes. “It didn’t happen in either of those two examples and I don’t believe it will happen with the advent of EOBRs.”

We’ll never know for sure. There are many forces affecting driver pay, mostly to push it higher. But even the best industry economist would be stretching it to strictly attribute any part of a pay raise in the coming months to an EOBR mandate.

Click the “responses” button below and tell us what you think.

• Here’s what’s been proposed and what’s next regarding the issue.
• The comment period on the proposed rule has been extended to May 23.
• Overdrive covered the topic in detail in a cover story last year.
• There are other, less comprehensive types of computer-assisted logging.
• For the latest coverage of EOBRs, read the February cover story from Truckers News, Overdrive’s sister publication.
• You’ll want to ensure all your equipment will pass inspection. These Overdrive articles explain how to maintain lights, brakes and other common areas of equipment failure:

[grabber tire.jpg]Tires and brakes
Maintaining proper pressure, May 2011.
Spec’ing tires, Feb. 2011
Preventing tire/brake failure, July 2010
Avoiding top tire killers, May 2010

[backuplamps.jpg]Lights and electrical systems
How-to: Maintain batteries, Oct. 2010
Preventing battery drain, July 2010
Preventing power divider failure, July 2010
How-to: Upgrade headlamps for longevity, May 2010

[powertrain]Power- and drivetrain
2010 engines, March 2011
How-to: Change oil, Feb. 2011
Synthetic oil, Jan. 2011
Overhauling the engine, Nov. 2010
Oil viscosity, Nov. 2010
How-to: Maintain steering, Sept. 2010

[NEED A TRAILER PIC]Trailers and other topics
How-to: Maintain suspension, March 2011
How-to: Maintain landing gear, Jan. 2011
How-to: Beat corrosion, Nov. 2010
Spec’ing trailers for durability, Sept. 2010
How-to: Detect air leaks, Aug. 2010
How-to: Service reefer unit, July 2010
Preventing broken belts/clamps/hoses, July 2010
Preventing air pressure loss, July 2010