Colonial Cartage is finding new ways to lower fuel consumption
“Fuel economy is now an extremely urgent issue for us to address,” says Joe Ruzicka, maintenance manager at Colonial Cartage Corp. “With diesel prices where they are today, we are actively revisiting our road speed and idle time practices, and putting a renewed emphasis on finding ways to lower fuel consumption.”
Based in the metropolitan Atlanta area, Colonial Cartage has been providing direct food-grade dry and refrigerated truckload, LTL and pool distribution (bulk breakdown, order assembly and shuttle) service to Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee and north Florida for almost 40 years.
The Colonial Cartage fleet includes 67 International 9200i day-cab tractors powered by Cummins engines, including 25 N14 and 42 ISX models rated at 435 HP. Trailers include 70 Great Dane 53-ft. reefers with Carrier Ultra XTC refrigeration units, 70 more 48- to 53-footers of various makes with ThermoKing units, and 11 Stoughton 53-ft. dry vans.
“We don’t have a firmly established trade cycle because we run fairly low mileage,” Ruzicka says. “Our philosophy is to keep tractors for around ten years, but including new purchases we made in 2005 and 2006, the average power unit in our fleet is only three years old. Our next purchase will probably be in late 2009 or early 2010.
“When we purchased trucks in 2005 and 2006, we specified Cummins ISX engines,” Ruzicka continues. “Today, the electronic controls on those engines are helping us reduce fuel consumption without incurring any additional costs. For example, we’ve had the idle shutdown timer set at five minutes fleet-wide for some time, and we’re looking into shortening that to two or three minutes in the near future.”
Studying data
That decision, Ruzicka notes, will be based in part on the data made available by the engine ECM. “We’re studying it to determine if we can link driver habits to fuel economy,” he relates further. “For example, on our 2005 and newer vehicles, we are able to see how many times the truck has shut down electronically. We then take the information and come up with a miles-per-idle-shutdown statistic. Currently, the range is from 32 miles to over 1,100 miles per automatic shutdown and the average is 131 miles, or about 18 percent, so our initial goal is an average of 330 miles.
“What we are attempting is a culture change with our drivers,” Ruzicka continues, “a change in the mentality to one that realizes idling is an unnecessary waste of fuel. It can be difficult to break old habits, but that is exactly what we are attempting. We want shutting off the truck when it isn’t moving to become second nature to our drivers. It should be like wearing seatbelts; after a while it’s automatic, you don’t even think about it.”
Colonial Cartage tractors are also electronically limited to a maximum road speed of 65 MPH and lowering that limit to 62 MPH is now being considered. The previous road speed limit for company vehicles was 68 MPH, Ruzicka notes, and the drop to 65 MPH brought a 4/10-MPG savings. Overall today, the fleet is averaging 6.3 MPG, and the top 15 percent is achieving close to 7 MPG, so the goals are achievable.
“Most importantly,” Ruzicka says, “our drivers have been very understanding of all the changes we’ve made to help improve fuel efficiency. We’ve come up with a fuel economy scorecard for each driver that includes factors such as MPG, idle percentage, miles per idle shutdown and percentage of time spent in cruise control.
“Our drivers understand that these are simple areas they can monitor and use to improve their fuel economy,” Ruzicka continues. “It’s also become a means of inspiring them to become competitive as we recognize the top ten percent quarterly with a certificate and a gift card. At the same time, we work with drivers that have low scores to help them improve their performance.”
SmartWay approach
Another factor in realizing improved fuel economy at Colonial Cartage, according to Ruzicka, has been the fleet’s participation in the U.S. Environmental Agency’s SmartWay Transport Partnership. The innovative market-based partnership between EPA and the freight industry is designed to increase energy efficiency while significantly reducing greenhouse gases and air pollution. As partners in the programs, trucking companies like Colonial Cartage commit to measuring and improving the efficiency of their operations.
“The biggest benefit we can derive form participating in SmartWay will be in the future spec’ing of our trucks,” Ruzicka says. “Previously, our specs were based mainly on cost and ease of maintenance. In the future, our primary considerations will include fuel consumption.”
In addition, tools developed by EPA have helped the fleet quantify the benefits of fuel-saving systems and components that can significantly lower fuel consumption. For example, Ruzicka reports that Colonial Cartage has become more knowledgeable about spec’ing lightweight components and the effect that closing the tractor-trailer gap can have on aerodynamics and fuel efficiency.
The company is also in the process of converting its tractor to run on wide-base single drive tires. “We actually started switching from duals to Michelin X One single tires to address the need for longer tread wear,” he says. “We soon realized that these tires also save fuel by reducing weight and rolling resistance, and by providing a slight aerodynamic benefit. In the future, we’re going to consider experimenting with the wide-base singles on our trailers as well.
“Our relationships with our suppliers have always been very important to us,” Ruzicka adds. “They have routinely brought new fuel saving technologies to our attention, and through SmartWay, the industry’s manufacturers have developed performance specifications for tractors and trailers that have helped us as well.
“Our success in reducing fuel consumption is the result of many things,” Ruzicka concludes. “From developing more efficient specifications to addressing idle time, road speed and driving habits, and changing maintenance practices, we’re much more conscious about what we’re doing to ensure our equipment gets the job done for our customers while using the least possible amount of fuel.”
COLONIAL CARTAGE TRACTOR SPECIFICATIONS
Model: International 9200i
Wheelbase: 163 in.
Engine: Cummins ISX; 435 HP @ 1,800 RPM
Transmission: Eaton Fuller UltraShift, 10-speed
Driveshafts: Spicer
Front Axle: Dana Spicer
Front Suspension: parabolic taper leaf springs
Power Steering: Sheppard
Rear Axle: Dana Spicer, 3.55 ratio
Wheel Seals: National
Brakes: Meritor Q Plus
ABS: Bendix
Parking Brakes: MGM
Rear Suspension: International, air ride
Wheels: 22.5-in. disc
Tires: 445/55R22.5 Michelin X One drive
5th Wheel: Fontaine
Air Compressor: Bendix, 18.7CFM
Air Dryer: Bendix, AD-9
Fan Clutch: Horton Drivemaster
Batteries: Delco
Starter: Delco 42MT
Alternator: Leece-Neville, 140 amp
Block Heater: Phillips, 1500 watt
Lighting: Truck-Lite
Seats: National
Fuel Tanks: dual aluminum, 100 gal. cap
