National Trucking Week

for more informaTion on Shaw Tracking, ViSiT www.ShawTracking.ca or call 1-800-478-9511. Shaw Tracking proVideS The feedback required To help profeSSional Truck driVerS like biSon TranSporT'S gary de VoS opTimize eVery aSpecT of Their performance. biSon TranSporT phoToS It all started 19 years ago with a simple objective. Back then — in 1996, to be exact — Winnipeg-based Bison Transport was looking to tap into cutting-edge technology to make its operation more efficient. They signed on to utilize the services of Shaw Tracking, with one clear-cut goal in mind. "We wanted to use their system to provide a form of communication between our operations department and our drivers," recalls Garth Pitzel, Bison's director of safety and driver development. "It turned out to be a great move. As Shaw Tracking advanced their product, we advanced our usage of it. Today, for example, we now use e-logs (electronic logs). By the end of 2014, 100 per cent of our drivers were making their entries electronically." Shaw Tracking's services has made Bison Transport a safer, more efficient operation. "Take driver performance," says Pitzel. "Before we used the system, it used to take time to relay important data — such as critical distance and driver speed — to drivers. Utilizing Shaw Tracking allows us to get that information to drivers immediately. We can also see what a driver is doing as they drive their truck to their destination." Consequently, if there's an issue — where data from the system shows that a driver has been following other vehicles too closely — a red flag will go up to denote there's a problem. "An exception report will come up showing a critical event dealing with following time," he says. "Thanks to the system, we can deal with that event in real time. Because we have the information immediately, we can have a conversation and address the behaviour so it doesn't get worse. Having the ability to affect the behaviour of a driver immediately protects both our employees, and the public." At the same time, thanks to Shaw's comprehensive system, customers will know exactly where their freight is en route to its final destination. "Because we can see were our truck is at any given time, we can tell our customers exactly where their load is," says Pitzel. "Even better than that, customers can now sign in to see where the truck is via a GPS system. If a truck isn't going to be able to make a delivery, they'll know. We've come a long way from the days when we used to phone in the position of our trucks." Conversely, that same GPS position can also be used to safeguard the health of drivers who often find themselves on remote stretches of highway, well-removed from medical facilities. "It even helps with medical situations," he says. "If a driver is having a health issue, an ambulance can be dispatched to their location by using the GPS system. And if a driver happens to be running out of the hours allotted to them to drive, the computer will notify them." Most importantly, Shaw Tracking's technology is making transporting goods by truck a much safer enterprise. "With the data now right at our fingertips, we can instantly see daily (truck) inspection reports and address minor or major maintenance issues right away. If there's a security issue — such as a truck being followed — we know where it is so we can react instantly. With new drivers just out of training school, we can still see them, and further train them so as to eliminate mistakes from happening. The system is a tool that allows us to be safer, and more efficient." In essence, Shaw Tracking provides the feedback required to help professional truck drivers optimize every aspect of their performance. "It's a measurement tool that helps to ensure drivers perform the way they should," says Pitzel, noting there's been a 67 per cent reduction in critical incidents since 2013 due to the immediate availability of that information. "A bad day for a truck driver can be really bad. Getting the information in real time allows us to do something with it right away, and help them get better. That benefits everyone — employees, customers and other drivers on the road." ❙ by Todd lewyS for The free preSS

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