Run on Less Kicks Off as Participants Aim for 9 mpg

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Heavy Duty Trucking  /  September 7, 2017

Run on Less, billed as a first-of-its-kind national fuel efficiency roadshow, has kicked off this week from multiple locations around the country. The event is led by the Trucking Efficiency Operation of the North American Council on Freight Efficiency and Carbon War Room.

Seven drivers, behind the wheels of differently spec’d trucks from seven different fleets, will participate in the three-week fuel-efficiency challenge, which wraps up at the North American Commercial Vehicle Show in Atlanta Sept. 25-28. The trucks will be monitored throughout the event, traveling through varied terrain and different traffic and weather conditions.

Daily fuel economy, including dollars and gallons saved, will be reported on the Run on Less website. The seven participating fleets are Albert Transport, PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay Division, Hirschbach, Mesilla Valley Transportation, Nussbaum Transportation, Ploger Transportation, and U.S. Xpress.

The goal of Run on Less is to demonstrate how Class 8 trucks can use different technologies to achieve the best fuel economy possible. With a goal of achieving 9.0 mpg, the trucks have been fitted with different technologies, including 6x2s, automated transmissions, aerodynamics, and other technologies that assist with improved freight efficiency.

To keep up to date with the drivers and trucks, visit runonless.com

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Back in 1988, the Peterbilt Model 372 achieved 11 miles per gallon.

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Run on Less: We're averaging 10.1 mpg in Class 8 trucks

Aaron March, Fleet Owner  /  September 22, 2017

With fuel-saving technologies, trucks capable of even more — but real-world conditions take their toll

Midway through their cross-country exhibition run converging on Atlanta this weekend, the Run on Less truck efficiency roadshow vehicles are seeing some impressive double-digit mpg results. But real-world conditions have factored in, demonstrating the challenges fleets face in getting optimal fuel efficiency from their trucks.

Run on Less is sponsored by Shell and PepsiCo and hosted by the North American Council for Freight Efficiency (NACFE) and Carbon War Room (CWR). Seven fleets committed trucks to participate in the roadshow, including Albert Transport, PepsiCo's Frito-Lay division, Hirschbach, Mesilla Valley Transportation, Nussbaum Transportation, Ploger Transportation and U.S. Xpress.

"This is real drivers on real routes hauling real freight," said Mike Roeth, executive director of NACFE and operations lead for Trucking Efficiency, a joint NACFE-CWR effort that studies and reports on various heavy truck fuel efficiency technologies.  

The Run on Less trucks are on their normal routes and are equipped with Geotab telematics devices to stream data to the team monitoring results like vehicle speed, elevation, gallons of diesel burned and miles traveled.

"It's consistent across all seven trucks, and we're using that to populate RunOnLess.com. These are not test vehicles that have been designed specially for fuel [economy]; these are not on special tracks or anything like that," Roeth noted.

Early results

The roadshow is holding a press conference this Sunday at the North American Commercial Vehicle Show to provide results and observations from the trucks in more detail. Before then, however, Roeth said the Run on Less trucks so far have averaged 10.1 mpg, nearly 4 mpg higher than the 6.4 mpg average of all Class 8 trucks operating across the U.S. and Canada.

Over the 31,000 collective miles they'd traveled, that means the Run on Less trucks saved some 1,800 gal. of diesel fuel and about $4,500 compared with that Class 8 average.

If all those 1.7 million U.S. and Canadian trucks were as efficient as the seven in the Run on Less roadshow, "we would save 9.7 billion gal. of diesel fuel, $24 billion and 98 million tons of CO2" every year, Roeth pointed out.

Challenges

Among the Run on Less trucks, the highest daily fuel efficiency observed at this point was 12.8 mpg and the lowest was 7.4 mpg. The differences were driven by factors like the weight of the payload in the trailer, wind direction and speed, elevation and speed at which the trucks were driven.

"The last few weeks have been really challenging for moving freight around our country," Roeth noted. "With Hurricanes Harvey in the Gulf and in Texas and Irma in the Caribbean and Florida, our dependency on oil in this country has become obvious."

The hurricanes affected the Run on Less trucks, he added, with some having to alter routes, encountering problems getting fuel and experiencing high winds that affected their fuel efficiency. On that latter point, wind can be a benefit if it's coming from behind, but any other direction is a detractor.

Meanwhile, Frito Lay's snack manufacturing operations in Georgia and Florida were disrupted for many days, "challenging that particular Run on Less truck to catch up," Roeth said.

Another observation the Run on Less exhibition has noted is that the trucking industry's common "drop-and-hook" operations can have a big effect on fuel economy. A driver takes a load to its destination, drops it off and takes on another load, and the trailer that's picked up might not have the same aerodynamic and other fuel-saving technologies.

Drivers in the Run on Less lineup pointed that out. They cited trailer tails as a big loss if they switched from a trailer with one to another without; handling also isn't as good in that case, with more wind drag forming in that boxed-off, standard end of a trailer. One driver said the lack of a good trailer tail could shave off half a mpg in fuel effiency.

Trailer wheel aerodynamic fairings and dual wheels vs. "super single" wide-base tires are a few more efficiency technologies that drivers may find themselves suddenly with or without.

"From a fuel efficiency standpoint, the difference between the same tractor hauling a highly efficient trailer — one with these technologies we've talked about vs. one that doesn't — can be 10% to 15%," Roeth said.

That can make a big difference for fleets. With just that 10-15% difference, hauling a less-efficient trailer can add up to about $4,000 per year for a single truck. What's more, older trailers may also be poorly maintained.

"Maybe it has poor alignment, poor tire pressure or other things that could negatively affect fuel economy," Roeth noted. Thus even fleets equipping their trucks with the latest fuel-efficiency technologies may find reaching that optimal mpg in the real world elusive.

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Driver Sustains Over 11 MPG for 5,600 Miles

Heavy Duty Trucking (HDT)  /  September 22, 2017

Driver David Gooch was able to sustain 11.21 miles per gallon over 5,599 miles during the #Raceto10mpg challenge put on by Cumberland International and Sharp Transport.

To achieve the high mileage figure, Gooch made extensive use of cruise control in order to stay in top gear as often as possible. He managed to keep cruise control on 83% of the time, allowing the truck to stay in top gear 89% of the time. During the time the vehicle was in top gear, it averaged 12.34 mpg.

Gooch stayed in communication with personnel at Sharp Transport throughout his run for day-to-day telematics reports. These reports helped him tweak his driving habits and routines to maximize his overall fuel economy during the nearly 6,000-mile run which took him through 10 states.

Gooch was one of two Sharp Transport drivers given Cumberland International’s C10 LT demo truck. The C10 is a truck spec’ed by the Tennessee dealership with the best fuel-saving options it has to offer. Cumberland allows fleets to try out C10 trucks for free to see how the spec works in their operations.

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Run On Less Drivers Average 10.1 mpg, Surpassing Goals

Heavy Duty Trucking (HTD)  /  September 24, 2017

ATLANTA – Despite the challenges of two hurricanes, on top of the normal trucking challenges of high elevations, heavy loads, and crosswinds, seven drivers over 17 days and 50,000 miles managed to average 10.1 mpg overall in the Run on Less fuel-economy road show that concluded this weekend in Atlanta at the North American Commercial Vehicle Show.

Run on Less, put on by the Carbon War Room and the North American Council for Freight Efficiency, proved that 10 mpg is possible using efficiency technologies that are available on the market today. The results exceeded the original 9 mpg goal set by CWR and NACFE.

Using a variety of commercially available technologies, including 6x2 axles, trailer and tractor aerodynamics, engine accessories, tire pressure systems, automated transmissions, low viscosity oils and others, they demonstrated that it is possible to save fuel in real world operations.

If the 1.7 million trucks on North American highways today achieved the same level of efficiency as the trucks in the Run, they would save 9.7 billion gallons of diesel fuel, $24.3 billion and 98 million tons of CO2 each year.

The 17-day event kicked off on Sept. 6. The trucks—from fleets Albert Transport, PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay Division, Hirschbach, Mesilla Valley Transportation, Nussbaum Transportation, Ploger Transportation, and U.S. Xpress— saved 2,877 gallons of fuel and $7,193 compared to the national average of 6.4 mpg. The highest mpg achieved in a single day was 12.8, and three different trucks had days over 12.5 mpg. The lowest mpg from a truck was 7.1 on one of the days, and the average for all lowest mpgs throughout the Run was 8.8. The average gross combination weight over the Run was 55,498 pounds, with 31 of the 99 days over 65,000 pounds.

The trucks were monitored over the three-week period with telematics devices from GeoTab.

Wind was monitored along each truck’s route using OpenWeatherMap.org, and it varied from a 6.8 mph average headwind to a 7.6 tailwind. All truckers dealt with hurricanes Harvey or Irma. Average vehicle speed was 54 mph and elevation gain was tracked for each route. One day, a truck travelled 3,270 ft. of elevation gain with 72,960 gross combination weight and experienced an average 2.7 mph headwind – and still achieved 9.7 mpg. The seven trucks have some similar specifications, but all have differences, demonstrating there are many different combinations of technologies that can achieve high levels of mpg.

The seven trucks—three Freightliners, two Internationals, and two Volvos, were piloted by experienced drivers—Henry Albert, Bradley Long, Tommy Revell, Roberto Sandoval, Joel Morrow, Clark Reed, and Mark Risien.

Shell and PepsiCo were the title sponsors; sustainability are core values for both of these companies. For instance, Shell’s Eco-marathon challenges students to design, build and drive the most energy-efficient cars. And Shell is sponsoring a Starship concept truck that will demonstrate freight efficiency.

Annie Peter, fleet sector marketing manager for Shell Lubricants, noted, “It will take collaboration among energy suppliers, lubricants producers and fuel retailers like Shell, vehicle manufacturers, fleet owners, businesses and other organizations to work together to consistently achieve the impressive fuel economy and CO2 reduction results these seven drivers accomplished during the Run. We are continually striving for more advanced technology, such as our low viscosity lubricants, to help reduce the loss of energy through friction, improve overall engine efficiency, and actively reduce emissions from combustion.”

Nearly a year ago, PepsiCo announced an ambitious global sustainability agenda, including reducing absolute greenhouse gas emissions across the company's value chain by at least 20% by 2030.

“We are so proud of Tommy Revell who drove on behalf of Frito-Lay, and all of the participating fleets and drivers for their contributions to this effort,” said Mike O’Connell, senior director, supply chain, PepsiCo, a former HDT Truck Fleet Innovator. “Run on Less demonstrated what can be accomplished when our industry comes together and combines readily available technologies with experienced drivers who leverage smart driving skills regardless of road and weather conditions. Now more than ever, it's so critical that we improve the fuel economy of our fleets as a way to meet sustainability goals and ultimately improve the bottom line for our respective organizations.”  

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Saving fuel with Run on Less

Sean Kilcarr, Fleet Owner  /  September 24, 2017

A 17-day fuel economy test involving seven different tractor-trailers operated across the country overseen by the North American Council for Freight Efficiency (NACFE) delivered an average of 10.1 miles per gallon (mpg) using what Mike Roeth, NACFE's executive director, called "real trucks hauling real freight over real routes." That 10.1 mpg average also occurred despite higher winds and heavier traffic flows caused in part by hurricanes Harvey and Irma as well, the group said. The seven tractor-trailers, their drivers, plus fleet executives, sponsors and NACFE personnel were on hand during a press event at the inaugural North American Commercial Vehicle (NACV) show here in Atlanta to offer more details about the road test's results.

Photo gallery - http://fleetowner.com/fuel/saving-fuel-run-less#slide-0-field_images-227001

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NACFE Test Gets 10.1 MPG Despite Harvey, Irma Challenges

Transport Topics  /  September 24, 2017

ATLANTA — After 50,107 miles driven over 99 driver-days, including battles with Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, seven drivers from seven trucking companies gathered for a victory lap to celebrate 10.1 miles per gallon.

The North American Council for Freight Efficiency released details of its Run on Less road trial here on Sept. 24 and reported the drivers topped their goal of 9 mpg by posting a final average of 10.1.

The test ran Sept. 6-22 with regular trucks from for-hire and private fleets, all spec’d to maximize mileage and seeing how well they could do “with real trucks, real drivers and real freight,” said Mike Roeth, NACFE’s executive director.

The press conference was the first event of the North American Commercial Vehicle Show, which held its inaugural version Sept. 25-28 at the Georgia World Congress Center.

Data was gathered from each of the seven trucks — three Freightliners, two Internationals and two Volvos — through a GeoTab Go7 telematics device. The Go7 tracked engine revolutions per minute, torque, location, fuel usage and other figures.

Roeth said the weather effects of the two hurricanes made driving difficult, but did not nullify the value of the test.

“One driver drove into a Harvey headwind and then had Irma pushing him,” he said.

All of the trucks in the test were made either this year or in 2016. The drivers involved ran in linehaul applications, and all of the trailers had aerodynamic skirts and fairings.

Beyond the grand total for fuel economy, some of the individual readings were noteworthy. The worst average for a one-day drive, for example, was 7.1 mpg. NACFE estimates the average fuel economy for the nation’s trucks at 6.4 mpg.

NACFE took the worst single-day performances across the entire test and averaged them out; the result was 8.8 mpg, demonstrating that even the worst days in the tested trucks were on average just below the original goal for the whole test. Yunsu Park, a consulting engineer who worked on the trial, said the 8.8 number was one of the most impressive for him.

NACFE estimates that if the Run on Less equipment were standard on all of the nation’s 1.7 million U.S. highway tractors, and those trucks returned 10.1 mpg instead of 6.4 mpg, the industry would annually save 9.7 billion gallons of fuel worth $24.3 billion.

lark Reed of Nussbaum Transportation in Hudson, Ill., drove a Freighliner Cascadia with a 15-liter Detroit Diesel engine during the trial. Reed said he likes the big engine because he often hauls heavy general freight loads of 76,000 pounds, gross weight, over the Rocky Mountains.

Reed said he drove his regular truck for the test so there was nothing new to break in.

Cory Adams, a Nussbaum driver trainer and coach, said the carrier’s fuel-economy average lately has been about 9 mpg, and that obsessing over fuel has become a way of life.

“If we stayed at what we were like in 2009, we’d probably have about 50 trucks now instead of the 300 we do have,” Adams said.

Beyond the spec’ing of hardware, Reed and Adams said the company works a lot on driver training to help maximize mileage.

Joel Morrow, a driver for Ploger Transportation of Norwalk, Ohio, is a big believer in Volvo’s 6x2 powertrain configurations. He said he would like to see a test like Run on Less happen every year.

The storms turned Morrow’s usual routine upside down. Normally, he said, he hauls lighter loads of furniture, often to Houston and Florida. That stopped when the storms started.

“I was hauling a lot of water, canned soup and rice — very heavy, dense stuff, but it was my normal truck,” said Morrow, who is also Ploger’s vice president of procurement.

Morrow hauled the loads in a truck with an 11-liter engine. He was not able to avail himself of the savings from fully lifting the tag axle, but he said the load-biasing function, which adds weight to the single drive axle, helped maintain traction and safety through the deluge.

John Vesey, the operations manager of refrigerated carrier Hirschback Motor Lines of East Dubuque, Ill., said his driver, Brad Long, hauled heavy loads of frozen meat as part of his dedicated contract carriage route.

Long drove a 2016 International with a 15-liter Cummins engine because, Vesey said, the company wanted to use a truck and engine that was already well-broken-in.

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