Bulkmatic Transport, an Indiana-based dry bulk carrier, is adopting SmartDrive Systems’ video- and data-capture system after a successful trial.
The system will help the fleet reduce collisions and improve fuel efficiency through driver coaching, SmartDrive said.
“The SmartDrive video and data capture system enhances the information we have to successfully coach drivers and improve fleet safety,” said Terry McAdams, vice president of safety at Bulkmatic. “What used to take months to discover, our regional safety managers can now learn in a day and bring that information to drivers when it can have the greatest impact. In our first 60 days, we saw real results and significant improvement, including improved fuel savings and dramatically lower occurrences of risky driving behaviors.”
A pilot program at Bulkmatic’s Decatur, AL, facility last March resulted in up to an 87% improvement in driving skills and sustained fuel savings of 3.03%. Following that test, the company outfitted more tractors with the SmartDrive solution at its Chicago and Ft. Worth, TX, locations, with an added focus on mobile phone/device distractions, resulting in reductions in those activities.
“Professional athletes use video to improve, why not professional truck drivers?” McAdams said. “SmartDrive is an eye opening and very powerful tool that was easy for our managers to quickly adopt. It allows us to make significant progress by simply showing our drivers areas for improvement, and it helps discover risky driving skills before they cause an incident.”
McAdams added that their drivers have had a positive reaction to the program, especially after several collisions in which the Bulkmatic drivers were exonerated as a result of SmartDrive. In addition, the analysis that accompanies each video, coupled with an easy-to-use coaching application, saves their fleet safety managers time and enables more effective discussions with their drivers, SmartDrive said.
“The fast-time-to-value Bulkmatic experienced is typical of the results we’ve seen across the thousands of commercial vehicles deployed with our program,” said Steve Mitgang, CEO of SmartDrive. “Our open-platform with direct connection to the engine control unit enables us to capture more risk than other systems - such as rolling stops caused by mobile phone usage. This approach ensures fleets experience continued improvement and sustained results beyond the first year of deployment. We are proud to have been selected by Bulkmatic to help them improve safety while also improving their bottom line.”
