Use your words. . .  My mom said it to me, I said it to my kids, you said it to yours. A few weeks ago the Los Angeles Business Journal did an editorial on the Cost of Regulations on Small Business (see September 30th post.) As an immediate response to a shortsighted editorial, the owner of our company, John DeWitt, whipped off a letter to the Editor. As John DeWitt shows us every day, we still need to use our words. Do not let other people determine how our country is run. Exercise your right to speak – to your friends, to your enemies and to YOUR representatives in government. Let them know what regulations cost your business, in dollars, in sense, in opportunity. Do you know?

My Best, Mary

By CHARLES CRUMPLEY

Los Angeles Business Journal Staff

An official state report on the cost of regulations on small businesses in California was released last week, and it sure had some eye-popping numbers. The total cost of regulation was $134,122.48 per small business in California in 2007, the report said, and indirect business taxes not generated or lost were $57,260.15 per small business.My first reaction: Wow! My second reaction: Wait a minute.

Those numbers – the ones that ended with 48 cents, etc. – stopped me. After all, this is the kind of report based on all manner of broad assumptions and multipliers, so to somberly report figures so exact, so down-to-the-cent picky, implies a precision that simply doesn’t exist and shouldn’t be pretended. It’s an immediate red flag.

And if you read the report, what stands out is that it relies on data that Forbes magazine gathers to make its many lists, the ones that compare cities and states in terms of their business friendliness.  Read full story >>

Re: The Comment column headlined “Serious Issue, Dubious Report” in the Sept. 28 issue:

From my personal experience, I would suggest that the reported cost of regulations of $134,128.48 per small business in California is understated. Our family-owned and -managed company spent 85 percent of its profit before taxes in one year on construction to meet mandated regulatory requirements, with no measurable environmental (or any other) improvements for our kids, employees, customers or the public. These numbers do not include ongoing costs of permitting, government inspections, record-keeping, loan costs, insurance and potential fines (up to $20,000 per day). This is for stuff that inhibits better customer service, and diverts scarce assets from improving operations and salaries.

John DeWitt
DeWitt Petroleum

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Bobby Fleet Manager Wall

It seems that no matter how much you train, prepare, establish guidelines accidents happen. There is a new product on the market for hazmat clean-up. It is called the Hydrocarbon spill clean-up (FM-186) program available from Environmental Chemical Solutions Inc. (ECS)

Traditional Methods of Clean-Up – In the past if there is a spill, the only resource was to use “kitty litter” to soak up the spill and dispose of the used absorbent material as hazardous waste.

Our future – This new product breaks-down the spilled diesel or gasoline and makes it easy for the naturally occurring surface bacteria to digest the spilled material. Thus, the treatment chemicals and the resultant wastes are non-hazardous. (Source: California Environmental Protection Agency).

We have implemented the use of FM-186 at our fueling locations and aboard our on-site fuel delivery trucks. FM-186 is also available for purchase from our Lubricants warehouse.

At DeWitt Petroleum, we like to do our part to minimize the impact of nonpoint pollution and protect our environment. Just another reason to purchase fuel from DeWitt Petroleum.

Bobby Fleet Manager Wall diesel, FM-186, on-site fueling, petroleum

It seems that it should be easier to find Truck Scales but every driver, fleet manager, dispatcher that I speak with has a different way of finding the very necessary Truck scale/ weigh station.

Throughout my search I found out that much of the scale finding procedure for drivers is they’ve been using the same location for decades. Others rely on their RF radio (channel 19) to be exact. I had one person tell me that he looks it up on his i-phone.

We’ll just in case you didn’t already know DeWitt Petroleum has (3) fueling locations with Scales/ Weigh Stations in Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties.

If you have a different approach please share.

Thanks in Advance!

Bobby Fleet Manager Wall Los Angeles Weigh Stations, Truck Scales, Weighmasters

Establishing a fleet fueling policy makes sense. After all, fuel is usually the single largest variable expense for a fleet of any size. A fleet fueling policy–carefully planned, implemented and enforced–can be a company’s most effective tool in the battle to cut unnecessary costs.

Thanks to a revolution in the electronic capture of fueling data at the pump through the use of electronic fleet fueling cards, fleet managers now have timely, accurate data they can use to battle waste and abuse.

If a driver makes a purchase outside parameters set by the manager–e.g., the driver buys premium rather than regular gasoline–this information is recorded instantly and appears on a regular billing statement along with the individual driver and vehicle number. Through the use of tools like Exception Reporting and purchase alerts managers can enforce cost-saving policies quickly, not weeks after the fact.

Six Components of a Fleet Fueling Policy.
Here are 6 basic guidelines you can use to build an effective fueling policy:

1. Enforce limits at the time of purchase. The most effective way to enforce a fleet fueling policy is to set limits so that purchases outside the limits are not even allowed. For example, if you restrict transactions to two per day, the third transaction will be declined at the point of purchase.
2. Restrict non-fuel products and services. Many fleet managers find it helpful to place restrictions on the kinds of products drivers may purchase. This helps to control costs, quality and consistency.
3. Control the location, days, and times of purchases. Frequent fuel purchases made with the company card outside of business hours are a sure sign of waste and abuse. Make sure your drivers purchase fuel only during business hours, look for fuel purchases that exceed tank capacity, and eliminate multiple purchases in a single day whenever possible.
4. Mandate one or more fueling locations to help control quality, consistency and the cost of fuel and service your drivers purchase.
5. Encourage drivers to fuel at locations with pay-at-the-pump. Drivers will save valuable time and get on the road faster by patronizing only pay-at-the-pump locations.
6. Stipulate the type of fuel for each vehicle. There is no reason that your all diesel fleet should ever have the option to purchase gasoline. Get one or two cards that are good for all fuels. It is easy to track. In addition, Every time a driver fills the tank with a premium or mid-grade fuel, the company wastes as much as 10¢ to 25¢ more per gallon – or approximately $2 more per tank of gas.

Communicate the Policy.
Once you have established a good, comprehensive fleet fueling policy, the next step is to communicate the new policy clearly to every driver in the fleet. Let them know that all fuel purchases will be monitored and that all exceptions, especially repeated infractions, will need to be justified. Have them sign a Fuel Card Agreement to make sure your drivers understand you company policy.

Choose a Flexible Program.
DeWitt Petroleum can help you take a critical look at your fleet, identify the areas where you have the most problems and work with you to establish a fueling policy.

Bobby Fleet Manager Wall costs, cut, driver, enforce purchase limits, fleet, Fleet Cards, flexible, fuel, policy, program, unnecessary