Ok, hang on a second…I will be right with you…one more second…whew, who knew wrestling the soap box away from my dad would be such hard work.  Here it is and here I stand.  It has been some time since we have had much of interest to rant, I mean talk, about, but leave it to the California Air Resource Board , to strike again.

Many of you will remember that gas stations around the state had to “upgrade” their vapor recovery system by April of 2009 in order to catch a minute amount of additional vapors at the pump.  As part of this upgrade we were required to install CARB “certified” nozzles. Not to bore you but, there were two possible systems certified to meet the requirement, the balance system was installed in 30% of the stations and the only nozzle certified for use with that system was made by a company named VST. 

So when a mandated, certified, “commercially available”, more expensive, lesser warranted nozzle does not work….Well, you go to the other certified nozzles, right?

Ahhh, my mistake there is no other certified nozzle that works with the balance system….So now what do gas station operators have to do with the 35,000 nozzles in CA?  Well according to CARB and the State Fire Marshall, we have to remove the hold open latches on our existing $300 nozzles. We can then get in line to turn those nozzles in for $100 credit towards a $300 newly “certified” nozzle.

In the mean time, as of October 15^th, 2010,  every one of us trying to fuel at an affected station will have to stand by the tank and hold the nozzle open…

As if we didn’t hate to get gas enough…

My Best, Mary

Mary Fleet Manager Wall California Fuel, CARB, fuel price increases, fuel purchases, Gas Stations, Vapor recovery, VST

Tired of seeing the high cost of fuel eat away at your bottom line? For many businesses, the higher the cost of fuel, the fewer the profits. While businesses can never escape fuel costs entirely, there are things you can do to save money on fuel.

1. Ensure that your fleet is properly maintained.
   Under-inflated tires, dirty oil, clogged air filters and poorly tuned engines all increase your fuel costs. Keeping your fleet well maintained, you can cut your fuel consumption by up to 10 percent.
2. Consolidate your trips
   Mapping software such as Microsoft’s MapPoint can help your company  find the most efficient and at the same time consolidate delivery routes. Group your deliveries by area or only deliver to a group of customers in a city on specific days of the week.
3. Train all drivers not to idle
   When you let your engine idle, all you’re doing is unnecessarily increasing your fuel costs. Contrary to popular belief, idling is not an effective way to warm up a vehicle, even in cold weather. The best way to warm your vehicle is to drive it. Nor is idling “better” than frequently turning off and restarting your vehicle’s engine. “If you are going to be parked for more than 10 seconds, turn off the engine. Ten seconds of idling can use more fuel than turning off the engine and restarting it”.
4. Put speed governors on your fleet to increase your overall miles per gallon
   Speed is the largest factor in fuel efficiency because aerodynamic drag forces go up exponentially with vehicle speed. International offers a programmable option on its engines called Vehicle Speed Limiting (VLS) that caps how fast the truck can travel. Slowing down from 70 to just 60 mph using VLS could yield fuel savings of up to 10% a year.
5. Decrease your delivery area
   Decreasing your delivery area is a quick way to cut down on your fuel costs. Instead of offering free delivery within a fifty mile area, for instance, you might only offer free delivery within a twenty mile area. Another way of handling the problem of the increased cost of making deliveries is to charge a delivery fee that covers the additional cost of fuel.
6. Have your clients come to you rather than going to them
   While not possible for all businesses, changing the routine of who goes where can result in significant fuel cost savings.
7. Consolidate your fuel purchases to one vendor
   Bringing all of your fuel volume to one vendor will increase your purchasing power. Thus saving your company money on fuel costs.
8. Consider having an Onsite Fueling service come to your location
   This will decrease your overall cost of fueling your vehicles because you’ll be saving on the labor expense of your driver doing the fueling. If your fleet returns to your location everyday then this is a viable solution.
9. Track your fuel expenditures
   Just handling the administrative processing of expense checks, collecting receipts, creating reports all contribute to your overall cost of fuel. Ensure that you have an efficient system in place to handle the tracking of your fuel purchases.
10. Driver Skills
    Providing an orientation to new and existing drivers explaining to them how they should drive your fleet is essential to getting the best fuel economy possible. After the orientation Drivers should understand why fuel economy matters. Your company relies on their professionalism and skills to get the best fuel economy while using your equipment.

You don’t have to let fuel costs eat into your profits. Saving money on fuel is possible as long as your’re willing to pay attention to how your driving and willing to make a commitment to cutting your fuel costs.

Chris Fleet Manager Wall anti-idle, consolidate, delivery area, driver skills, fuel purchases, onsite fueling, speed governors, track fuel expenses, vehicle maintenance