On December 18, 2017, the ELD mandate came into effect for transport trucks traversing US roads. The ruling applies to all trucks – even those that are Canadian-based – with a handful of category exemptions. Immediately after the mandate came into being, the Government of Canada announced in the Canada Gazette its intention to make ELD use mandatory in our country as well. Eventually, all transport trucks (again, with a few local exceptions) will have to embrace ELD usage when carrying goods in Canada and the US. 

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) in the US announced an out-of-service grace period running from Dec.18, 2017 to April 1, 2018. During this grace period a driver wasn’t put out of service, but citations, violations, and warnings were written. As of December 18, 2017 all vehicles without an ELD caught at an inspection were written up and given eight days’ notice to install an approved ELD.
(This notice applied to that particular unit only and not the whole fleet.) Full fleet enforcement began April 1, 2018.

How have providers of ELD products and services prepared for the mandate? Let’s find out.

What are ELDs?

Electronic logging devices are smart hardware that help carriers and drivers comply with hours of service (HOS) regulations by allowing drivers to efficiently and accurately record their Record of Duty Status (RODS), replacing the paper logbooks used for so many years. An ELD connects with an engine’s control module to track location, power and motion, miles driven, engine hours, and in some cases, much more. The information stores in a format that allows carriers or transportation officials to collect and review.

As defined by the FMCSA in the US, an ELD must:
• Connect to the truck’s engine to record if the truck is in motion;
• Allow the driver to log in and select On-duty, Off-duty, or On-duty Not Driving; drive segments must be automatically selected based on vehicle movement;
• Graphically display RODS, so a driver can quickly see hours in a day;
• Provide data in a standardized format that can be transmitted to law enforcement in a number of prescribed ways;
• Be provider-certified that the device meets the proper specifications; and
• Be listed on an FMCSA website.

If you are currently using automatic onboard recording devices (AOBRDs) to electronically track HOS information, you are grandfathered-in and don’t have to move to true ELDs until December 2019.

ELD product and service providers were asked how the transition to ELDs has gone to date. Here is what they had to say.

Bell Canada

“Transportation is one of the core verticals in Bell’s IoT (Internet of Things) portfolio, and with our product partners, we have been providing customers in the transportation industry with our Fleet Management and ELD solutions for many years, “ states Tal Schierau, Director, National Sales – IoT, Bell Canada. “Our ELD solutions are fully compliant with US regulations, and we’ll continue working with our partners to ensure our ELD solutions are relevant and fully compliant with the new Canadian mandate when it becomes official.”

Schierau says Bell provides detailed information relevant to the US mandate on its IoT website and will do the same for the Canadian mandate. Information about Bell’s Fleet Management solutions, including ELD products and services, was shared with customers during Bell Mobility’s Canada-wide series of seminars this spring, which featured PMTC’s President Mike Millian. 

Bell Canada prides itself on providing the right solution for every fleet client, adds Schierau. He says the combination of the speed of Bell’s LTE network, its national coverage, and Bell’s focus on individual customer service has created very positive relationships with Canadian transportation companies.

Asked how he viewed the transition to ELDs for the US mandate, Schierau says, “For companies that planned ahead, the process went very smoothly. For those that waited until the last minute, they faced challenges such as training their personnel and receiving on-time delivery of ELD products from OEMs. There was a lot of pressure on manufacturers to get product out for the December deadline.”

Based on the US experience, he cautions carriers equipping for the Canadian mandate to “plan now – don’t wait. The research, implementation and training all take time. The sooner you move, the sooner your people are comfortable with the system, and the sooner your company will see gains that the system provides beyond its ELD capabilities.”

Specifically, Schierau was referring to Bell’s LTE-M (Long Term Evolution, category M1) network. The network enables carriers and companies in other industries to continually track their assets (trucks, trailers and loads) remotely and economically, wherever they travel. 

Fleetmetrica

Fleetmetrica’s Ward Warkentin says, “We’ve been fortunate in that we’ve been working with most of our fleet customers for many years and they already have telematics. The ELD system, in most cases, was simply an enhancement of their existing system, so we found the transition period was smooth. 

“If you are getting only ELD-capability on your trucks, you are not competitive. Technology can do so much more for you – beyond the compliance perspective offered by ELDs. Fleetmetrica prides itself on doing more with the data than just HOS. The opportunities are huge. For example, some of our clients have saved as much as 5-6 cents per mile simply by informing drivers of their performance.”

Warkentin laments those companies that waited so long to incorporate ELD technology into their fleet operations. “Whatever the reason – whether they are owner-operators, didn’t want to spend the upfront money, or didn’t run into the US – it’s costing them a lot to play catch-up now.”

He adds, “One of our Ontario-based fleet customers surveyed its drivers two months after incorporating the new ELD system, and 87% of the drivers felt the ELD had a positive impact on their driving behaviour and they actually looked forward to the monitoring aspect of the system. They liked the fact that the ELD system showcased exemplary performance and compensated them for that performance.” 

The ELD mandate has been a boon to Fleetmetrica and, in fact, it has established two new divisions as a result, one dealing with insurance markets sources and the other with compliance.

“We are excited,” says Warkentin. “We believe it’s just the start of a lot more technology being introduced to the industry through smarter trucks. We’ve advised our clients to go beyond ELDs simply because data can make you a better, more profitable carrier.”

Omnitracs

Lauren Domnick, Senior Director, Analytics & Modeling, at Omnitracs told PMC magazine, “Omnitracs developed an array of ELD products leading up to the US mandate.  While many large carriers adopted ELD technology months or even years ago, many smaller carriers waited until the last minute hoping for changes or a delay in the mandate. Once everyone realized the mandate was actually going to happen, the transition was smoother than we anticipated.”

Domnick adds, “The most frequent questions directed at Omnitracs staff leading up to December 18 were around exemptions and the grandfather clauses. Once carriers knew they had to proceed with becoming ELD compliant, everyone jumped in ‘feet first.’”

Asked what advice she has for carriers who may be entering the US market for the first time or Canadian-only carriers anticipating our nation’s ELD mandate, Domnick says, “Talk to your vendor and ask questions. Omnitracs has an extensive training group that is well versed in the ELD mandate and our company’s ELD products. We are developing a new app called ‘HOS Helper’ that will help drivers master their ELD products and be comfortable with the new mandate. 

“A by-product of the ELD mandate is that it opened a lot of eyes to how much data is available to the industry and can be utilized by carriers. For example, Omnitracs has developed a pair of models that link hours of service stats with driver accident proneness and driver retention. I’m sure as we gather more data, we will be able to devise more models in this vein.” 

Domnick concluded, “I’m convinced the transition to the Canadian ELD mandate for carriers will absolutely be smoother, especially for those Canadian carrier who have gone through the experience in the US.”

Dallas-based Tom Cuthbertson, VP Regulatory Compliance for Omnitracs, credited the company’s marketing group on an “excellent job” in preparing the industry for the imminent ELD mandate. “They established ELDFacts.com, an invaluable resource for companies looking to adopt an ELD system. The website is very generic concerning ELD information and doesn’t flaunt Omnitracs products. It also contains a section aimed at Canadian carriers. Our group also ran countless webinars on a variety of ELD topics. My hat is off to them.”

Since Omnitracs also supplies AOBRDs, the company was very cognizant of providing products that could easily transition to ELDs. Cuthbertson says, “Our AORBD products captured more data than was required for AORBDs, so carriers could easily migrate to ELDs – it wasn’t a great leap for them.”

Cuthbertson says the Canadian ELD mandate will definitely be viewed as an opportunity, and there won’t be as large a development cycle. “The emphasis will probably be more on the transference mechanism between the two mandates and two jurisdictions,” he states.

“Smart carriers won’t transition to ELDs just to satisfy their HOS logging needs,” Cuthbertson concludes. “Omnitracs products offer so much more. They simplify border crossings, they alert the fleet to engine and tire malfunctions before they become an out-of-service issue, they monitor fuel usage and driving style, and they allow for much better planning. In short, they make fleets much more efficient and create a stronger bottom line.”   

From PeopleNet

PeopleNet’s President Bill Wright tells PMC, “PeopleNet has offered eDriverLogs®, our electronic logging solution, for over two decades. While hours of service (HOS) compliance has been a key tenet of what we do, we needed to migrate our solution from being an AOBRD to being an ELD to meet the mandate’s technical requirements.

“Last year, we became listed as self-certified by the FMCSA for our eDriver Logs ELD, an Android solution that is fully compliant with the US mandate,” Wright continues. “The Android platform gives customers the flexibility to select an in-cab display from a broad range of both commercial and consumer-grade Android devices. It also gives them access to a comprehensive set of other PeopleNet fleet mobility solutions and our dozens of software integration partners. This means they can implement technology that goes beyond just ELD compliance and can help to improve efficiencies and return on investment throughout their fleet.”

He says another benefit of the eDriver Logs ELD is that it leverages 4G LTE connectivity. With the impending shutdown of CDMA networks in both the US and Canada, the eDriver Logs ELD is ‘future-proofed’ to maintain connectivity.

PeopleNet’s message to customers and the industry at large is that PeopleNet’s fleet mobility technology can help carriers increase efficiencies, improve safety, and make their drivers’ jobs easier. Another aspect of its message is that electronic logging is part of PeopleNet’s heritage. Since the mandate’s final rule was published in the US in 2015, new startups have flooded the market that don’t have trucking industry experience and are trying to take advantage of the mandate. PeopleNet’s history in the industry means it is a committed partner that will help customers not only get compliant with the ELD mandate, but will also help them utilize technology to address other aspects of their fleet.

When asked if he had advice for carriers in preparing for the Canadian mandate, he replies, “Don’t delay in strategizing what a migration to ELDs might look like in your fleet. Transitioning from manual to electronic logging systems means more than simply changing the hardware and software – it’s a change in culture. You need an implementation plan. Part of the process is doing your homework on ELD providers in the market. Make sure your provider is ‘in it for the long haul’ and has experience in Canadian HOS regulations and cross border operations. Look for a provider whose solutions go beyond compliance and offer additional value to save your company time and money, help eliminate safety risks, and improve the bottom line.”

Wright mentions that both the US grandfather clause regarding AOBRDs and the pending Canadian ELD mandate are a challenge, and yet an opportunity for providers. He says, “Our AOBRD-based customers must migrate to our ELD platform, but it is a great opportunity for them to implement the latest technology we have to offer and to use the mandate to realize new benefits of our solution. Since it appears the Canadian mandate aligns well with the US mandate, that will be a help in making the necessary product changes, but a significant investment will still be needed. At the same time, we can help paper-based fleets realize the full benefits of implementing technology.”

It appears the industry is in good hands thanks to these ELD experts, and if your company doesn’t have an ELD system in place, what’s keeping you?

In the NEXT ISSUE: 

The story of how one carrier transitioned to ELDs.