What procedures do you have set up for a solid preventative maintenance and inspection plan? If you do not currently have a plan, developing one will be of significant value to your company.
Before you begin your plan, you want to access where you currently stand. Are your drivers constantly complaining about the state of their equipment? Do they complain that the maintenance personnel ignore their requests for repairs? If so, you need to intervene. Such complaints are a clear indication that your preventative maintenance procedures are insufficient.
A good PM plan involves:
- Keeping records of repairs
- Establishing preventative maintenance routines
- Setting up guidelines for putting units out of service
- Putting in place a means for evaluating the effectiveness of current preventative maintenance procedures
- Ensuring maintenance personnel are responsive to driver reported deficiencies
Your drivers play a big part in how well your equipment is cared form. Driving training should include:
- Teaching drivers to detect defects and then report them for repairs
- Ensuring that drivers perform a true pre- and post-trip inspection
- Educating drivers on the dangers of driving defective vehicles
- Training drivers to detect defective brakes during visual inspections
- Ensuring drivers check tires for wear and tread depth
- Training drivers on how to check rims for cracks and rust
- Instructing drivers to report steering wheel play
- Educating drivers on how to properly latch and lock pintle hooks
You can keep your company's SMS rating low and your individual drivers CSA scores low by implementing a solid preventative maintenance program.
