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Reefer Telematics: How Decker is Reducing Costly Dwell Time and Engine Hours

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  • Reefer Telematics: How Decker is Reducing Costly Dwell Time and Engine Hours
When evaluating the return on investment of a reefer management solution, reduced fuel consumption and improved trailer utilization are two of the selling points that resonate most when we’re speaking with fleet owners.  

But it’s always nice to hear real-world examples directly from carriers who are already realizing the cost-saving benefits of trailer telematics technology. According to Bradley Baade, Treasurer of Decker Truck Line, the carrier has seen some dramatic cost savings, due primarily to two key capabilities of their reefer management solution: running in start/stop mode instead of continuous run, and reducing reefer trailer to truck ratio through dwell monitoring.  

“ORBCOMM gave us the ability to do this with the real time information that is supplied to us,” says Baade.  “We are also monitoring trailer idle reports along with reefer units running on our customer facilities. This information has also helped us bill some of our customers for trailer usage.”  

Unless you’re carrying pharmaceuticals or temperature sensitive produce, carriers can achieve greater fuel savings by running in start/stop mode rather than continuous cooling mode. In fact, for Decker, switching to start/stop mode resulted in a 45% decrease in reefer run hours. 

A good reefer management solution allows dispatchers to switch between modes by sending a command directly to the vehicle or messaging the driver to change mode. Similarly, the ability to track and locate idle reefer trailers not only increases profits, but also enables fleet owners to do more with their existing fleet of refrigerated vehicles.  

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Decker is realizing these benefits thanks to ORBCOMM’s powerful, two-way RT6000+ cold chain telematics solution that provides comprehensive temperature, fuel management, maintenance, and logistical applications services for its refrigerated fleet. The real ROI comes from the ReeferTrak® web application, which delivers data reporting and analytics capabilities to increase in-transit visibility and efficiency of Decker’s refrigerated transport operations. 

The carrier even found one customer that was shipping dry product, but was using the trailers to cool down their docks! You never know what additional cost-saving benefits you can uncover until you deploy a reefer management solution. 

To learn more, contact us, and be sure to download our Reefer ROI White Paper. You can also visit with us this week at the Truckload Carriers Association 2016 Refrigerated Division Meeting at the Skamania Lodge, Stevenson, WA. 

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