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Understanding the Critical Role of the Utility in Fleet Electrification

Proper planning and engagement can aid in the smooth transition to fleet electrification.
Adding electric vehicles to your fleet is not as simple as selecting the vehicle you want and ordering it. Unlike diesel and gasoline powered vehicles, you can’t just pull into a truck stop and plug in your EV to recharge the battery. At least not yet.

But don’t let this scare you off from considering bringing electric vehicles into your operation. Proper planning will help you have a smooth transition to a hybrid or electrified fleet. Even if you’re not an expert on charging infrastructure or fleet electrification, there are resources at your disposal: a local utility can provide helpful guidance and it’s quite likely they already have experience assisting other fleets with electrification efforts.

Engage Your Utility First
When it comes to electricity, rates can fluctuate up to 200% in a given day depending on when and how quickly it’s used. To put things in perspective: imagine if the price of oil varies based on when and how fast you filled the tank. Think how difficult it would be to plan and budget properly.
The 3,300 electric utilities in the U.S. have varying tariffs structures, peak demand rates, time of use charges, etc.; all of which impact what you will be paying to charge your vehicles. Therefore, it is imperative that you work with your local utility and not rely on general information about needed electric charging infrastructure, rates, etc.

So before you even place an order for an electric vehicle, you first want to speak with your electric utility company. They can not only give you information on your current electrical , but can also tell you about special, local funding opportunities that might be available to defray costs. They can assist with everything from your substation to your transformer through to your meter.

Each case is unique and should be dealt with on an individual basis by working in tandem with partners and utility company staff.

Utility as Consultant
Fleet managers also need to determine exactly what their operational needs are going to be, and how charging will fit into this. How many EVs are you planning to add to the fleet? Will they all need to be fully charged at the end of each day? Will they all be charging at the same time of day or will they be returning to the yard at different times and therefore charging throughout the day?

Here again you can bring in a utility partner or specialist consultant to help you model multiple charging scenarios. They can also help you build out an infrastructure that is capable of handling additional charging stations in the future as you bring more EVs into your fleet. When it comes to retrofitting your facility, your energy provider can advise if electrical upgrades may be necessary to accommodate your specific needs.

Now is when you should start thinking about ongoing energy management. This is an area that is often overlooked, but failure to think through how to manage energy and avoid demand charges could result in costly surprises on your energy bills month after month.
Bring up the discussion on load management and best ways to fuel your electric fleet early. Only at this point should you begin constructing the infrastructure and installing the charging equipment.

Don’t Underestimate Planning
In its Guidance Report, Amping Up: Charging Infrastructure for Electric Trucks, The North American Council for Freight Efficiency found that, “Because of the nature of EV charging infrastructure, utilities will need to be involved in the planning and implementation processes as partners, and because they are subject to much regulation and government bureaucracy, it’s best to engage them early, as planning and permitting can take over a year.”

In addition, the report found, “Planning and permitting for charging infrastructure can be very time-intensive process.” This means you need to begin the process well before you take possession of your first electric vehicle. NACFE advises that “infrastructure planning, negotiating, funding, permitting, installation, and certification can take much longer than procuring the [vehicle] itself.”

While different from diesel and gasoline powered vehicles, there is no need to shy away from electric vehicles. With some careful, early planning you can seamlessly integrate them into your current operation.

Muffi Ghadiali is founder and CEO of Electriphi Inc., a developer of EV fleet and energy management solutions. Electriphi offers a planning tool to help fleets begin to electrify their fleets.

Source:  https://www.greenfleetmagazine.com/338418/understanding-the-critical-role-of-the-utility-in-fleet-electrification

 by Muffi Ghadiali Share with FacebookShare with TwitterShare with LinkedInShare by Email
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Originally posted on Fleet Forward

5 Benefits of Having a Truck Optimized GPS on Your Phone

If you are a trucker working hard day and night, it is essential to choose a truck optimized GPS as your navigation tool while getting behind on wheels. The fastest routes navigated by the standard GPS may cause you ending with more time and money unpredictably.

Here is the list of benefits to get a GPS navigation tool that are specially designed for truckers.

• · To Avoid Low Clearance Or Truck-Restriction Routes
• By using the GPS tool that is intended and designed only for truckers, it certainly helps you to avoid the non-friendly truck routes, low clearance or low bridges that could crash your truck trailer.
• · Save Money On Fuel
• NO more feeling headaches of searching for the best deal on fuel. There are bundle of GPS navigation tool provides you the up-to-date and accurate diesel price of nearby fuel stations.
• · Delivery Freights on Time.

The truck specified GPS tool helps you to prevent the traffic congestions. You can plan the route to an unfamiliar destination in advance according to the live weather and traffic conditions provided.

· Save Time
No doubt, you can save your precious time in searching for the nearby Truck POI locations with the truck optimize GPS. Knowing in advance where to pull over your truck, it is definitely beneficial for you.

· Convenience
Within the GPS system, you can easily find the nearby Walmart stores with truck parking, scales, truck washes, hotels and restaurants nearby. It is the most convenience way to find places to fill your stomach and take a nap or relax your mind.

The Truckbubba app is the best companion app for truck drivers in North America. This app is integrated with several different mobile app assistants such as Truck Weigh Station App, Diesel Fuel Locator App, Truck Route Planner, Speedometer, Weather Forecast, etc.

Speedometer feature is a speed limit alert that allows you to adjust the speed limit for highways and cities respectively with no speeding violation.It will automatically warn you with vivid yellow or red value if your truck is over speeding.

Truckbubba app — Truck optimized GPS with speed limit alert is the best matching solution to ensure the safety of the truckers on the road.

Learn more at: www.truckbubba.com

Mighty Machines Giant Tow Trucks

Mighty Machines focuses on footage of real machines (firetrucks, airplanes, freight trains, snow plows) working. Voiceovers tell the story of how the machines work together to get work done.

FUEL SAVING TIPS FOR TRUCKS: REDUCE IDLING, SAVE ON GAS

STUDY PROVES TURNING YOUR VEHICLE OFF MINIMIZES BOTH FUEL CONSUMPTION AND CO2 EMISSIONS.

You may have heard that it takes more fuel to turn your vehicle off and back on again than it does to stay idling when stopped. One fast food chain even made a claim that it was “Greener” to use the drive-through than parking and walking in for a to-go order. With fuel costs and anti-idling laws being an essential consideration for vehicle owners and fleet managers, it’s important to know the facts.

The fact is that even for short stops, it saves fuel to turn off your vehicle. Idling for even 10 seconds produces more CO2 emissions and burns more fuel than simply turning your engine off, and restarting. This was found by a study done by Argonne National Laboratory, and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Vehicle Technologies Program.

IDLING STUDY RESULTS
Engineers were tasked to study vehicles in the Argonne laboratory’s Advanced Powertrain Research Facility to determine the impacts of idling and restarting. Dynamometer tests were conducted at the facility and revealed that parking a vehicle, turning it off, and then restarting it uses less fuel and produces less CO2 than idling for just 10 seconds. In addition, the study also revealed that the fastest way to warm up a car engine is to drive the vehicle, not by idling it. Argonne found that depending on the vehicle’s size, 0.2 to 0.5 gallons of fuel per hour is used when idling.

EMBRACE ANTI-IDLING LAWS
With these findings, and as states, provinces, and countries continue to introduce climate change action plans and green initiatives focused on greenhouse gas emissions, now is the perfect time to start embracing an anti-idle mindset in day-to-day driving and work operations. And for those that use air compressors, the VMAC UNDERHOOD70 – Green Series Air Compressor integrates perfectly into environmentally-friendly and fuel-conscious operations.

UNDERHOOD70-GREEN SERIES AIR COMPRESSOR
The VMAC UNDERHOOD70 – Green Series Air Compressor produces up to 70 CFM at 100% duty cycle. This powerful rotary screw air compressor is installed under the hood of the work truck and its throttle control automatically adjusts truck engine idle speed just enough to match air demand, which reduces fuel consumption. What’s more, the easy-to-use VMAC intelligent digital controls also cut down on idling, as the control system shuts the truck off when air isn’t being used, and then automatically turns the truck back on when air is needed. This reduces fuel consumption and emissions as the vehicle is not idling when tools are not in use. Learn more about the VMAC UNDERHOOD70 – Green Series Air Compressor.

VEHICLE IDLING STUDY CONCLUSION
Going back to the fast food chain’s claim, no, it is not greener to use the drive-through than it is to park and pick up your order inside the restaurant. Here are the facts:

• Idling for more than 10 seconds burns more fuel, and produces more C02 emissions than turning the engine on and off
• Idling for an hour uses 0.2 to 0.5 gallons of fuel, depending on the vehicle, and fuel consumption increases as idling speed increases
• Warming up a vehicle by driving is more effective than idling

Consider these findings next time you find yourself idling your truck, whether working on a job site, picking up a food order, or warming up your truck this winter. And when planning to purchase a new air compressor, consider the VMAC UNDERHOOD70 – Green Series Air Compressor.

Source and learn more at: https://www.vmacair.com/blog/


Related blogs: Going Green with VMAC: Lightweight & Fuel Saving Air Compressors

Service for Your Motorhome at North Bay Truck Center

North Bay Truck Center is becoming the go-to place for motor home chassis work. That is because if you take the shell off of a motor home--take the body off of it--let’s say, for example, a diesel pusher. It’s really a bus chassis. It’s really built by the truck and bus chassis manufacturers. Many that built the motor home chassis also built big trucks, and Freightliner is an example. For us, if we’re under the motor home or we’re looking into the engine compartment, we’re really looking at the same picture as we are if we’re looking on a Class 6, 7 or 8 truck. We are well versed on the platforms of engines that they use. Primarily, they use Cummins or Caterpillar engines on some of the older ones. For the diesel pushers, we’re very well versed on those engines. We have the computer software to plug into them. We’re familiar with the Allison transmissions that are most all of them use. The braking systems on a lot of them are air brakes, similar to that of a Class 6 through 8 truck. They also have suspension components that are shared. They use air ride suspension on the front axle a lot of times, which is found on the newest class 6 through 8 trucks. We’re very familiar with the chassis of the diesel pushers. North Bay is also going to be able to look up maintenance schedules on those as well. Motor homes generally will come with all manuals in a big binder referring to your refrigerator, your heating system, air conditioning. If your vehicle is new, you should have the Cummins manual for the engine and in the case of the Freightliner chassis, a Freightliner chassis manual with maintenance intervals for that chassis as well as the engine. Again, we can help look those things up if you don’t have the manuals available. On the diesel pushers, we have a facility large enough to bring the biggest unit into the shop. Even a 45-foot 3-axle diesel pusher can fit inside our shop and be kept under cover. If it does require to be outside for a time, we have surveillance cameras outside our shop and you can rest assured that our facility is locked down and that the cameras are working 24/7. We're also very familiar with the smaller coaches that are built on a gasoline or light-duty diesel chassis such as Ford or Chevrolet or GMC, or even the Sprinter chassis. Again, these are truck chassis or cutaway van chassis that we work on every day. We service almost anything related to the truck chassis part of the motor home, including, axle bearings, tires, the rear differential, transmission, steering components, including the air conditioning on the chassis. We do not work on the roof mounted air, but we can help direct you to who can help with that, and other internal aspects of the motor home. Everything to do with what makes it go down the road and stop, we can take care of for you.  Tires on motor homes can easily develop flat spots from sitting too long, and the air and UV rays deteriorate tires over time whether they are being used or not. We can help with tires because we sell tires for all trucks and buses and can balance and install them so that your coach rides smooth again and is perfectly safe in your travels. North Bay recently purchased six Mohawk pedestal lifts that will allow us to lift the largest diesel pusher up in the air outside of our facility to facilitate faster and more efficient repairs. Our goal is to get you back on the road on your travels very quickly, and insure that the repairs are done right. You can count on us with your motor home.

We Install and Repair Liftgates - North Bay Truck Center

What is a lift gate?

One commonly overlooked service to add to shipping your freight is a truck with a lift gate service. What is a lift gate? A lift gate is a fold away metal platform that mounts to the back of a dry van trailer or a freight truck, when the lift gate is extended out from under the truck it acts as a platform to lift freight from the ground level up to the height of the bed of the trailer. This allows the freight carrier to use a pallet jack to move a palletized load from the trailer of the truck, down to the ground through the use of the lift gate, then into the business or destination of the freight. This is especially useful when the cargo or freight being transported is too heavy to be loaded or unloaded by hand.

While the use of the lift gate is essential for a lot of companies, and pretty much any residential shipment, there are some instances where a lift gate service is not required. Companies with a shipping dock don’t require a lift gate because the truck can back the trailer right up to a platform, then the freight can be unloaded from the trailer using a forklift, pallet jack, or other types of machinery. But the lift gate service is designed for companies that don’t have a shipping dock or access to a fork lift. When making arrangements with a shipping company it is important to know if the destination you are shipping your freight to is equipped with a loading dock or a forklift, if not then you will need to add the lift gate service to your shipment.

Article Source: https://www.freightratecentral.com/blog/lift-gate-service-important-know-need

Photo Source: http://www.tommygate.com/liftgates/flatbed-and-van/

Tommy Gate - G2 Series - Pickup and Service Operation

Operation Video for the Tommy Gate G2 Series, Pickup and Service Body Models.

It's HUGE - The Supply Of Trailer Parts at North Bay Truck Center

North Bay Truck Center in Fairfield CA has a huge selection of heavy duty trailer parts including bearings, axle assemblies, hubs, and much more. Heavy duty truck and trailer repair is our specialty, and we also work on light duty trucks. We have an extremely well stocked parts department to take care of almost any need in a hurry.

 See more about North Bay at http://www.northbaytruckcenter.com

Complete Line Of Grote Lighting and Electrical Products

North Bay Truck Center stocks the entire line of Grote lighting and electrical products to take care of any need our truck customers might have. Whether it is for light duty trucks all the way to class 8 heavy haulers, North Bay Truck Center in Fairfield CA has the inventory and expertise to get the job done effectively and quickly.

See more at http://www.northbaytruckcenter.com

 

SO CAL ALTCAR Conference, Expo and Ride and Drive - Oct 16th, 2019

California's trailblazing commitment to alternative technology transportation, infrastructure and energy.

Learn more at: https://www.altcarexposocal.com/