How to stop idle waste of fuel: spiking diesel prices have caused operators of construction trucks to stop shrugging off fuel costs and look for ways to save money
Published in: Construction Equipment
Date: 10/1/2004
By: Berg, Tom
Diesel fuel prices in mid-August reached the highest average cost ever: $1.814 per gallon, according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s weekly survey. In California and other West Coast markets, diesel was well above $2 a gallon. Some experts believe that awakening demand in China and India mean we’ll never again see cheap oil.
There are several logical ways to survive this: Specify fuel-efficient trucks–a subject we often cover in our regular driving and news features. Charge more money to cover increased expenses, including fuel. And take the necessary steps to conserve fuel.
How trucking rates are set varies widely around the country and, in most cases, truck owners have little control over what they’re paid. Many construction-truck operations support publically funded road projects, where contracts are drawn up in advance and often do not provide for fuel-price spikes.
So the California Dump Truck Owners Association is trying to get rate adjustments written into contracts. This would work something like federally sanctioned fuel surcharges paid by shippers to freight haulers. The group’s general manager, Lee Brown, has proposed “structured or surcharge price adjustments” for fuel and construction commodities, and would work both ways as costs rise or fall.
In a letter to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Brown noted that prices of fuel and construction materials are “very volatile” and state contracts should include a clause that would allow retroactive adjustments. The ability to receive higher payments would make contractors more willing to pay more to their subcontractors, including truckers. The state’s serious budget problems wouldn’t seem to encourage this kind of change, but the association is hopeful.
Idlin’ away the fuel
Reducing costs is one thing truck operators themselves can do, but look around and you’ll see truck engines–not to mention those in all types of construction equipment–idling away when no work is being done. Much of this is at plants and jobsites as trucks wait to load and unload, while at fuel pumps, and while drivers take lunch or rest breaks or just stand around shooting the bull. Truck diesels burn one-half to one gallon per hour, depending on engine size and how fast the idling is set for. How many hours a day, week or month do the engines in construction trucks idle, and how much fuel do they consume in this manner? And what’s it costing owners?
No one seems to know for sure. For years truck and engine makers said that construction-truck operators didn’t worry about fuel. More important were long-term durability, reliability and productivity. The truck that carries the most revenue-producing loads per working day is usually the best one. That’s still largely true, but manufacturers say that owners have begun worrying about fuel use, and they want the builders to help them do the saving.
Trouble is, manufacturers can’t give them much more than the efficiency already built into today’s trucks and engines. Aerodynamic designs popular with over-the-road trucks don’t do much for slower-moving vocational models, though they could for trucks running mostly at highway speeds. Electronic controls help the diesels squeeze fuel, though the latest models with more serious emissions-control equipment use more fuel than before.
And the engines in many construction trucks do more than just move the truck. They also spin concrete drums, pump off cement, lift pallets of bricks, blocks, bags and other supplies, run diggers and man buckets, and perform a myriad of other tasks. So their engines don’t often shut down.
But the truth is, drivers go too fast, idle engines many times when they’re doing no work, rev them higher than they should, and in general blow any possible fuel savings out the stack. They do so because they’ve never been told not to, or because they think it’s what their engines need, or it’s what they and their buddies do. And they don’t take criticism well.
“They like to hear em idle,” says Tom McKellar, executive vice president of Dalton Trucking, a regional hauler of building supplies in Riverside, Calif., and a CDTOA member. “There’s something cool about letting the thing idle, and they get to leave the air conditioning on. Most of them don’t think about the fuel, and that trucking’s a marginal business at best.”
Dalton and other CDTOA members have rules against excessive idling, according to Brown, and Dalton is one of them. Its employee manual instructs drivers to limit warm-up and cool-down time to between three and five minutes. And, “if a driver expects to be stopped for more than three to four minutes, he should shut off the engine,” the manual says.
Do drivers really do this? Some do, said McKellar, who did a quick survey of a few drivers and supervisors in response to the question. “If the weather’s hot, we keep ’em idling” to run air conditioners. “But for the most part, guys will shut ’em off if it’s going to be five minutes or more,” he said.
Many engines shut themselves off, he added. A few of Dalton’s older trucks have mechanical shut-downs, but most have electronic controls whose idle-limiting function is programmed to turn off when the clutch, brake and accelerator pedals are not touched for five minutes.
Stopping and restarting the engine will not hurt it or the truck. Engine builders say a warm engine is already “oiled”–there’s a film of oil on bearing surfaces and oil lines are wet, so there’s nothing that’s dry and liable to be hurt. Even cold engines have some oil residue at critical places and short cranking won’t injure anything. Volvo Trucks makes sure by delaying fuel injection on its VE D12 diesel for at least three revolutions before fuel is injected; this gives oil time to circulate.
Slow idling should be avoided with most engines because temperatures and oil pressures can drop. Again, an exception is the Volvo D12, whose turbocharger induces back pressure when necessary to keep the top end of a slowidling engine hot and healthy.
Will repeated restarts hurt the truck’s electrical system? Not in any decently maintained truck, builders say. Modern trucks have solidstate gauges and switches with only microvolts running through them. The self-checking that occurs when the key is turned on puts no wear and tear on warning lights, wiring or anything else. Testing by one supplier put an instrument system through two weeks of constant activation with no harm done.
Old trucks might be hurt by excessive restarts. However, owners of any truck should be sure that starter motors and batteries are able to take more workouts. Replace batteries regularly, before they fail. And consider spec’ing or installing strong gear-reduction cranking motors, which weigh considerably less than regular starters–another bonus.
The best fuel-saving results come from setting up a specific program and training drivers, say managers of over-the-road fleets which count fuel as one of their top expenses. They say there’s a lot of help available for the asking from truck and engine builders, manufacturers and dealers. Large and small fleets can get it, usually for free, by asking dealers.
Manufacturers have prepared printed and recorded materials–pamphlets, booklets, and audio and video tapes and CDs–that drivers can read, view and listen to. Sometimes drivertrainers will visit to conduct classes, and can tailor instruction to the operation. All the company’s management has to do is set aside some time and be willing to pay drivers for the hour or two they’ll sit in a class.
In big companies, top executives have to decide that a fuel-saving program is worthwhile, and back managers who’ll implement it. If they don’t, the program is likely to fail.
Training can be for naught if drivers won’t accept the concepts and techniques offered, so follow-up sessions may be in order for the stubborn ones. And training is wasted unless bosses follow up by monitoring fuel usage.
Economy figures can be captured from electronic engine controls and processed on any personal computer, or simply by comparing miles run with gallons of fuel burned. Many construction trucks fuel up often, sometimes every day, so the raw numbers are available for crunching–which is a simple matter of dividing gallons burned into the number of miles traveled or hours operated since the last fill-up–and feedback to drivers can be fast. It takes some clerical work and a method of posting the fuel-usage numbers for drivers to see.
Drivers perform best if they’re given a stake in the outcome–namely, paid for some of the fuel they save. For most drivers, this amounts to a raise, and they’ll like it. Making it a contest can yield even better results. In over-the-road freight-hauling fleets, where fuel economy is very important, some managers post fuel-economy figures periodically, and drivers tend to cajole each other into getting better numbers.
Some drivers have been known to actually buy fuel with their own money to qualify for cash bonuses. Fraud? Who cares? “Any time somebody wants to buy fuel for me, I’ll take it,” one chuckling manager told an audience during a session on incentive programs sponsored by the Technology & Maintenance Council of the American Trucking Associations.
Another incentive for drivers and managers is a growing number of anti-idling regulations. These are in effect in 18 states and the District of Columbia, as well as local municipalities. For example, both the state and city of New York have laws against idling by trucks/buses that are unattended or not doing work. Fines can be stiff, usually starting at $200 and going to $1,000 and more for repeat offenses.
Most anti-idling regs have exceptions that would include certain activities by construction trucks. Authorities at a recent conference on idle-reduction measures sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy insisted that they distinguish between idling done for a good reason and “needless idling,” which happens just because drivers want to or their bosses tell them to. Needless idling is the target of laws and enforcement; it’s also the reason for sales of auxiliary power units and sleeper heaters and coolers, plus a growing infrastructure of electrical plug-ins and “off-board” air conditioning systems at trucks stops and rest areas.
There are few, if any, opportunities for construction trucks to use alternate power sources. But as anti-idling laws spread, owners and drivers may have to learn the difference between needless and necessary idling, and be ready to explain the difference to a judge.
RELATED ARTICLE: Driving Tip from the Pros
* Use freeways whenever you can. Studies have shown that stop signs, red lights and stop-and-go traffic consume fuel more than almost any other negative factor or bad habit. So head for the freeway and stay on it until you have to make a delivery or take a rest.
* Get moving shortly after cranking over the engine, and shut it off as soon as you’re parked. A modern diesel (and even most old ones) need only a few minutes to warm up, and the temperature will come up as you leave the yard and wait at lights to get to the road. A hot engine and its turbocharger will likewise cool down during similar pauses. You can almost always limit warm ups and cool downs to five minutes.
* Avoid idling the engine. Turn it off whenever you can, such as while sitting at long red lights (you know where they are if you’re on a regular route), waiting for long freight trains, and especially while waiting to load or unload. Always turn off the engine when you stop to use a phone or go in for lunch. The cab will cool off or warm up again within minutes of your return, and while it’s doing so, you can do a walk-around inspection. In hot weather, idle to run the air conditioner, but only when you really need to.
* “Short shift.” When starting out, upshift at low rpm in low-range gears, gradually increasing revs as road speed increases. For example, if the engine idles at 600 rpm, gently engage the clutch, let the truck start moving, then apply a little gas. Shift to second at 1,000; to third at 1,100; to fourth at 1,200 and so on. This can be done because you don’t need the horsepower produced at higher revs until the truck approaches highway speeds.
* Let momentum move you. Get off the gas before you approach a speed zone and are about to enter a small town, and downshift only enough to avoid bogging down the engine. Then watch as the truck drifts for blocks with no power application. Traffic can spoil this tactic, but practice it when you can.
* Play with traffic lights. Approach red lights slowly and try to time your arrival at the intersections just before the light turns to green. That saves you a stop and allows you to keep moving more or less steadily.
* Plan ahead on upgrades. Avoid storming a hill at the highest possible speed, and instead estimate the final gear you’ll need to top it. Get into that gear early and stay there, and feed the engine only the fuel it needs to sustain a speed in that gear. Then, ease off the gas as you approach the hill’s crest. Upshift just before you reach the top; then stay off the gas and let the truck’s momentum carry you over.
* Cruise in the engine’s “sweet spot.” The point where power and economy are highest is around 1,450 rpm in many of today’s heavy diesels and about 1,600 rpm in those made in the late ’90s and early ’00s. Smaller engines have sweet spots, too. Find out where they are from published information from engine builders, and cruise down the highway at that engine speed.
* Use cruise control. Many engines are set up to deliver more power and torque when CC is engaged, so use it.
* Let gravity do the work. As you begin rolling downhill, leave the accelerator alone. Gravity will increase the truck’s speed unless it’s a shallow grade or you’re heading into a strong head wind. In those cases, use only the minimum amount of power to return to a sensible cruising speed. Skip-shift as speed climbs, but let revs go up if you’ll need the engine brake to control your downhill speed.
* Don’t overuse the engine brake. Trying to downshift too frequently to get maximum retarding power will often result in your going faster than you should, and you’ll be a safety hazard and burn more fuel. You also risk missing a downshift and being stuck in neutral with no retarding power at all. A combination of the engine brake and gentle applications of service brakes will be smoother and cause little lining wear.
RELATED ARTICLE: Word from a Wise (Older) Guy
Owner-operators stand to save the most from economical driving habits because they have to buy their own fuel. But many don’t bother to save because they like to run with their buddies and are otherwise caught up in the “fun” of the business. Yet sometimes the older and wiser guys realize that trucking is a living more than a game.
Mark Allen, 42, of Romoland, Calif., is an example. He says his stingy habits get him about 6.7 miles per gallon with his 80,000-pound transfer dump when other guys get 4, 5 and 6 mpg.
“I get a lot of ribbing because I don’t drive the same thing they do and don’t drive like a lot of them do,” says Allen, who’s been truckin’ since his teenage days, when his father owned and operated dump trucks. He also studied diesel mechanics at a trade school in Phoenix, has considerable fix-it skills, and most of all, a mind of his own.
“I run this ’89 Freightliner with a setback axle, and that’s not too common,” as most truckers in southern California prefer “large cars” with forward-set steer axles. The Freightliner was a road tractor with a big sleeper box, which Allen had removed when he decided to switch from flatbed hauling of building supplies to dump trucking. He shortened the wheelbase, installed an 15-foot box and the hookups to pull a transfer-dump trailer.
With a transfer rig, the truck itself never hauls more than half its total load, as it dumps the truck’s load first, then shoulders the trailer’s box and goes to dump it, so the ex-tractor is not unduly strained. And its setback steer axle lets Allen make tight U-turns where others can’t. This helps on aspalt paving jobs, which is most of his business. He doesn’t know if the FLD 120’s aerodynamic nose gets him better fuel economy, but it doesn’t hurt when he encounters head- and sidewinds.
Driving conservatively is his other main way to save fuel. He keeps revs of his Caterpillar 3406B low–1,700 rpm is about tops–because lower engine speed saves fuel. “My mechanic has it set up just right, so it pulls from way down. I’ve got a buddy who’s got the same kind of Cat, but his is set up differently; he’s got a 1,700-and-up engine and mine is a 1,700-and-down.”
Still, Allen likes power. The mechanically controlled 3406B started life making 400 horsepower, “but it’s set up way higher now. I don’t even know where it’s at, but I can climb long hills much better than most guys.” On longer runs he likes to keep up road speed to cut trip times, but uses power sparingly and chooses climbing gears carefully.
“Keep the accelerator only where you have to get the power you need to make the hill,” he said. And he doesn’t do a lot of downshifting while climbing hills. “You know what gear you’re going to end up climbing a hill in, so why not get there right away and stay with it? And I start backing off the power before the top of the hill and upshift as soon as I reach it, maybe before.”
And he shuts off the engine whenever he can. “I don’t shut it off at traffic lights and that sort of thing, but when I get to the job and I can see there’s a line and I’m going to have a wait a while, I’ll shut it off.
“But I don’t shut it off now,” he said in mid-August. Most of his hauling is in the desert, from Palm Springs to Indio, where summer temperatures can reach 120 degrees and monsoonal humidity drifts up from the south. “With the air conditioning off, this cab heats up right now. I can’t sit here and bake.”
By TOM BERG, Truck Editor
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