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MEET NIGEL OWNER OPERATOR

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Nigel Dawkins born September 7, 1969 in Saint Jamaica West Indies I was always interested in truck Because my father was a trucker used to sit on his lap looking out the windshield I found my first love my father migrate in 1980 and I joined him there after in 1985 I live with him my father wasn’t a truck driver at the time he took a factory job in 1988 I join the Marine Corps 15 months serving the desert storm numerous different appointments from 1988 to 1992 my duties serving in the Marine Corps was supplying logistics while serving in the desert storm I was in charge of distributing all other units in the field with their supplies needed. After leaving the military in 1992 I gain employment with Airborne Express now called DHL. I started off as a van carrier driver and then I upgraded to driving tractor trailers for them picking up air freight at Newark JFK and LaGuardia airport with a 48Ft trailer which held 18 containers. I stayed with airport express up until 1995 for then I Purc
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TRACTOR-TRAILER AIR LINES

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Air Line Touching Violations Overlooked In this article I will share insight on something drivers may overlook during our daily inspection. Tractor airlines shouldn’t be touching any portion of tractor frame having a quick release attachment on your pogo stick may help you make adjustments very easily without requiring a wrench. Quick release only works best when your tractor has air lines encased all together. Encasement airline help prevent airlines from chafing against tractor frame. Second overlooked airline is located on trailer which is in front of your dump valve. This airline sometimes hangs differently when adjusting tandem be mindful of these lines for, they must be at a foot off the ground, so they do not catch anything while enroute. Corrective action would be too check dump valve is not released. If harness holding airlines went bad sometimes a zip tie will provide a temporary fix until you can report repair on your daily vehicle inspection re
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Low Tire Treads Indicator

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Checking on tires built-in tread indicator bars are in place so one can identify when your tire is in DOT violation. Wear indicator marker ∆ along sidewall of tire and wear bars are spaced throughout tire tread evenly. When wear bars are flush with the level of the tread means you need to replace tire. Constantly checking tires is key in spotting low wear bars because tire placement varies throughout your shift.  Another tire DOT violation is flat spots on treads. Images below provide a visual for what you should be on the look out for during tire inspection. Tricks of trade is use of a quarter by placing quarter between tire grooves with head placed downward if you can see the top of his head new tire is needed. Truck tread depth gauge is a tool you can also use in determining whether tire threads are within DOT compliance.  Low tire air pressure indicator light on trailer driver’s view side also communicates tire having a air leak present if it stays on for an extended period while e
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Commercial Drivers view VS Mechanics view on Equipment

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  Here what they have to say about the equipment from both parties. CDL DEPOT would like your point of view on driver’s equipment you operate and the mechanics/ technicians that service the equipment. If you could share your thought on how Freightliner could improve upon that would help both the commercial driver and the mechanic/ technician during their work schedule? Let us see your perspective on this topic…. Share the next piece of equipment for discussion? We want to hear your suggestion today? Open discussion here maybe heard and shared so give it a GO!
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Driver Retention Solutions

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  Looking into driver detention from a driver’s lens this issue remains at the top of list for drivers which impacts not only the drivers ELD service hours but the trucking indusrty itself. It is essential that we work effectively in finding solutions that will have provided results. Within this article it will discuss critical solutions in helping minimize the effects of driver detention. When drivers are detained in anyway it has a major impact on the ability to generate revenue and arise in operating cost across the entire trucking industry.  If on analyzes the effect of driver detention.  Training employees on hours of service may provide knowledge and understanding of how critical their efforts will improve the overall process for the trucking industry driver detention through the years ahead. Once a driver arrives a protocol shall be in place this will be crucial in minimizing driver detention. Such as radio in load number/pickup number, brief detailed instructions that will opti
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Air Line Touching Violations Overlooked

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In this article I will share insight on something drivers may overlook during our daily inspection. Tractor airlines shouldn’t be touching any portion of tractor frame having a quick release attachment on your pogo stick may help you make adjustments very easily without requiring a wrench. Quick release only works best when your tractor has air lines encased all together.  Encasement airline help prevent airlines from chafing against tractor frame. Second overlooked airline is located on trailer which is in front of your dump valve. This airline sometimes hangs differently when adjusting tandem be mindful of these lines for, they must be at a foot off the ground, so they do not catch anything while enroute. Corrective action would be too check dump valve is not released.  If harness holding airlines went bad sometimes a zip tie will provide a temporary fix until you can report repair on your daily vehicle inspection report (DVIR) Last airline overlooked is rear trailer axles. No lines
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Hundreds of Cargos Stolen and Billions Lost: Are You at Risk?

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  Have you thought about cargo theft lately? You really should. The United States is one of the most at-risk countries for cargo theft. In 2012, the U.S. reached an all-time high in cargo thefts with FreightWatch reporting 946 incidents. It's increasing each year too. Cargo thieves are not going to give up, and it's just a matter of time before your company may suffer from the consequences.  The Consequences of Cargo Theft   Four types of theft are common with cargos: 1.       Deceptive pickup 2.       Driver theft 3.       Facility burglary/robbery 4.       Hijacking The most common theft is deceptive pickup, which means the entire contents of the cargo are stolen. This can equate to hundreds of thousands of dollars lost depending on the products. Jewelry, electronics, and tobacco are the products that end up costing its companies the most money. The following figure shows how much was lost in 2011 and 2012 for the most common cargo items.  Losing the value of
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