Truck driving is a skill, and the level of a driver’s skills can have a big impact on any business. Whether you are owner-driver or a fleet manager, a highly skilled driver will deliver better fuel efficiency, be less likely to have an accident and ultimately improve a fleet’s uptime.
The challenge is knowing each driver’s strengths and areas that can be improved, and to be able to provide tailored coaching.
“Even highly experienced drivers could have areas of improvement that they are not aware of,” said Waldemar Christensen, managing director of Volvo Trucks South Africa. “However, through new technologies – namely connectivity and data analytics – it is now possible to collect data and use it to fine-tune driving techniques.”
This is resulting in a growing number of connected services that can provide real-time coaching tips, as well as generate reports and insights that can help traditional offboard driver coaching to be more targeted towards areas that offer potential for further improvements.
“Looking ahead, advances in machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) are making it possible to analyse and process greater amounts of data, which in turn can help refine driver coaching further,” explained Christensen.
There are many factors that influence a truck’s fuel consumption – many of which are outside of the driver’s control. However, driving technique does make a difference and any investment in driver development and coaching is likely to be returned through lower consumption, fewer accidents, and reduced wear on components.
Technology drives improvements
“Trucks today produce vast amounts of data every time they are out on the road, and increasingly this data can generate useful insights. For example, is there a specific route or stretch of road where fuel consumption is always higher? Or certain situations where harsh braking is more common?” said Christensen.
“Looking ahead, advances in machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) are making it possible to analyse and process greater amounts of data.”
Modern trucks also feature a variety of advanced active safety systems, which are designed to help mitigate accidents. The same technologies can also help identify and prevent future accidents by highlighting unsafe situations, near misses and areas of improvement.
Christensen explained that, “not so long ago, the fuel gage was the only metric for measuring fuel consumption. However, now connected services make it possible for fleet managers to pinpoint who, when, where, and how fuel is being consumed.”
This information can then be reported back to drivers, both in real-time as well as after the trip in the form of driver coaching. The information can also be consolidated into reports for whole fleets, enabling businesses to invest in courses and training programmes that target the areas most in need of attention.
“Whether the ambition is to save fuel or minimise harmful emissions, driving technique has a large influence, with highly skilled drivers able to offer significant reductions compared to their colleagues,” said Christensen. “However, no matter how advanced or sophisticated a driver coaching solution is, it is worthless if it is not compatible with drivers’ daily reality.”
For this reason, Volvo Trucks’ developers work extensively with interaction design and behavioural science to ensure their solutions are user-friendly and intuitive, and that they meet specific needs of both individual drivers and fleet customers.
Driver coaching needs to be non-intrusive and not interfere or disturb the driver unnecessarily. It’s also important that they do not receive too many notifications or are overwhelmed with too much information at once. The information should be accessible and easy to understand and integrated with their daily workflows.
“A connected driver coaching solution needs to be tailored to each individual and their assignment. There is no point providing tips for driving on highways to a driver of a refuse truck,” stated Christensen. “The intention should always be to help the driver improve their driving technique – not make them feel inferior or deficient. For the same reason, a good solution should also acknowledge improvements and progress.”
Current connected services for driver coaching tend to be reactive in that they respond to behaviours and events that have already happened. The next step is to develop services that are more predictive and can anticipate what is likely to happen next.
Whether the ambition is to save fuel or minimise harmful emissions, driving technique has a large influence
“Volvo trucks are made for its most precious cargo, the driver. With innovative safety features and a driver-focused working environment, the key aim of the cab is to give the driver a more productive, safe and comfortable life on the road,” concluded Christensen.
“That is why Volvo Truck remains committed to utilise the latest technology to help and support our fleet drivers every step of the way.”
Tanje Wandrag
