Looking Around The Corner

Maximising today's technologies to support tomorrow's legal requirements for the management and development of drivers

Coach operators today are faced with increased challenges brought about by ever more regulatory change. The implementation of the Working Time Directive in spring 2005 requires operators to have undertaken a thorough review of current working practices. There are a great many questions being asked about how the respective legislation changes are going to be implemented in the UK, just think of the additional complexities that attempting to make the legislation applicable across Europe. The delays in progress and uncertainty on the future timescales, now even their viability, has created considerable overhead in time and energy. The implementation of working process changes well before the directive becomes law are necessary now, particularly a fresh look at usage of the tachograph by drivers. In addition, the expected arrival of the Digital Tachograph will be close behind.

In many ways the UK is well positioned to implement the new legislation, many coach and bus companies have or are already in negotiation with the labour force to agree the working practices, pay scales, productivity requirements and the communications strategies to keep all well informed of progress.

To support these changes suppliers to the industry will require a good understanding of the current performance of the transport function of every operator. It is not enough to simply demonstrate basic conformance to the current 'hours law' and processes to reduce driver infringements by sampled tachograph analysis. It requires a detailed understanding of the working time, available time and forward planning for all drivers and vehicles; meaning - near 100% analysis is essential.

Nevertheless change is happening to operators of tachographed vehicles, and effort must be invested in looking at the technologies that exist today that will support evolutionary development of business practices. The tachograph provides a wealth of extremely valuable information that can and should be used for both the historical analysis of previous days duty, plus a measurement of the overall working time and available time looking forward. To really exploit data requires the analysis to be performed in “effective” real-time (less than 24hours). Cost effective depot based computer technology exists today for the capturing and reporting of tachograph data. It only requires an understanding of how the analysed data can be turned into a powerful management decision-making tool. It is this “effective” real-time information that the digital Tachograph promises, but why wait? The capability exists now and will be fully compatible with the digital devices and, therefore, will support the mixed fleets operators for many years to come.

Many operators and hauliers already recognise that near real-time analysis of driver duty is a very powerful means of driving performance improvements, reducing costs and providing effective planning capability for forward resource utilisation. The Human asset (the driver) is a valuable resource in short supply. Drivers need better support and training to be able to do their job more effectively from both the employer’s perspective as well as the haulier’s customer. “Effective” real-time analysis is directly relevant to the driver; consequently they will be more diligent about their working time, because they will benefit from the immediate turnaround of duty information that will be fresh in their minds. They will also take more responsibility for their time management and recording their activities, particularly as it could have an effect on their income and working hours.

What is necessary right now is some guidance from the authorities on how to capture for example ‘periods of availability’. Particularly whether the driver should differentiate ‘other work’ and ‘period of availability’ by mode switch operation of the Tachograph (square box and cross hammer respectively). Such direction will enable valuable data to be captured, and reported on now such that actions can be taken soon to implement any necessary changes to reach conformity.

Analysis bureaux can implement modification extremely quickly that will enable measurements of ‘drive’, other work’, ‘period of availability’ and ‘rest’ to be reported immediately, all that’s needed is some simple direction from the government departments responsible particularly on the use of the tachograph mode switch.

Technology today, offers a fantastic opportunity for the management of any size fleet to welcome the legal changes and to plan to maximise the benefits. The Working Time Directive and the Digital Tachograph will be introduced in the near future and unless operators invest now in improved processes and the associated technologies that will ensure the introduction is smooth and as pain free as possible - the risks to their business continuity will be considerable.

Chris Telfer, Sales and Marketing Director, TruTac Limited.

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