Since its inception, Diesel Emissions Service has been helping fleets reduce their emissions. CEO Steve Hoke was recently interviewed on IDLE TALK with GoGreen Communications CEO Ron Zima. During the interview, they discussed the importance of reducing idle times for heavy-duty fleets, why they should, and the downstream costs associated with excessive idling.
According to Argonne National Laboratory, long-haul heavy-duty trucks consume more than a billion gallons of fuel per year just during rest stops; including work trucks and passenger cars, over six billion gallons of gasoline and diesel fuel combined are wasted on idling annually.
The topic of reducing idling behavior has been controversial in the heavy-duty industry. Large fleets use their resources to analyze idling costs, while smaller fleets can feel helpless. In addition, factors like city traffic, driver behavior, and municipal and off-road duty cycles further complicate the issue.
About DES and IDLE FREE for our kids® for Fleets
DES was established in 2006 as the emissions division of parent company North State Truck Equipment, Inc., which has been serving the heavy-duty truck market since 1978. DES was established to help California businesses meet and exceed the strict CARB and EPA emissions regulations placed on diesel trucks. Since 2006, DES has sold and/or installed over 15,000 emissions control devices and is now an industry leader in diesel emissions on the west coast and beyond.
Ron Zima was the classic North American idler, leaving the car running in his daily life. He believed it didn’t use much gas, and there was no harm in idling. However, a conversation with his children’s school principal led him to discover that idling not only wastes money and creates emissions, but also harms the health of adults and children alike. Ron started IDLE FREE for our kids® in 2006 and has since grown his company GoGreen Communications Inc. to include fleets across North America. With the IDLE FREE for our kids® for Fleets eLearning program, fleets can reduce idle time up to 80%.
Both Steve and Ron believe that going idle-free is an easy way for fleets to save money and look like heroes to their customers.
Why Go Idle Free?
Reducing idle times has many benefits for fleets. Minimizing the time, the engine is running uses less fuel, and creates fewer emissions. What most fleets don’t realize, however, is that excessive idling has major downstream costs besides these. Both DES and GoGreen encourage fleets to reduce their idle times for big rewards.
In the past, much of the argument for going idle free relied on guilt and shame, as the transportation industry is one of the highest carbon emitters. However, IDLE FREE for our kids® for Fleets relies on winning the ‘hearts and minds’ of drivers. Greater than 80% of the time, drivers flip their old beliefs and behaviors on idling an engine. At home and at work!
But Isn’t Idling Good for the Engine?
There is a pervasive myth among diesel drivers that idling is good for the engine. However, “diesel-powered engines hate idling,” Ron said in the interview. Steve explained further that “the diesel engine is at its dirtiest at startup… the second dirtiest [is] idle time.” Manufacturers design the emissions control system to work best when the engine is in motion with a load. This myth leads to thousands of dollars in unnecessary costs.
Downstream Costs of Driver Idling Behavior
Idling increases wear and tear on the engine, thereby accelerating the maintenance schedule and increasing the risk of expensive repairs. Steve shared an infographic during the interview consisting of data gathered by the American Trucking Association’s Technology & Maintenance Council (TMC).
-
The average cost of a heavy-duty emissions repair is $514.
-
The average cost of a roadside breakdown is $448 through $760.
-
Fleets average 213,967 miles between emissions failures.
-
A fleet with 500 trucks spends $27k a month on emissions repairs, up 1837% from pre-2010 numbers.