MAINTENANCE: This week LCT.com went live with its fourth web channel, or micro-Web site, devoted to the topic of MAINTENANCE. The channel will draw upon content from the magazine, other fleet-related publicaitons run by Bobit Business Media, and industry suppliers.
The channel joins a digital content suite of three other channels launched earlier this year, DRIVING GREEN, TECHNOLOGY, and FINANCE & INSURANCE. The combination of the four channels, the weekly E-News edition, LCT Blog, and the Web site reaffirms that LCT Magazine is THE ONE AND ONLY B2B information provider that offers consistent digital content for the chauffeured transportation and charter and tour industries. No other publication matches our output or content. And in case you wonder, the name "Rehab Center" does not refer to nor implicate any industry alcoholics. Rather it was a working name that will be replaced with the more simple moniker of maintenance. -- Martin Romjue, LCT editor
WEB-SPECTACLE PREVIEW: See the latest content from the July 2009 "MAINTENANCE" issue of LCT Magazine. Select stories are now available on our multi-layered WEBsite, INCLUDING our first-ever WEBXclusive feature article.
The magazine won't hit your mailboxes for another, err, two weeks or so, but you can get acquainted with the following content:
- 10 Things an operator learned from doing his own maintenance
- What to look for when browsing used and repo limos and fleet vehicles
- Basics to keeping a bus in top running shape
- A global operator's advice on navigating the econ-storm
- LCT Publisher Sara McLean's primer on low maintenance success
Just click on the website or go straight to features.
10 THINGS A GAS STATION WON'T TELL YOU: This
helpful resource dispels some myths and provides a helpful guide to chauffeurs and operators pulling up to gas pumps daily.
BLADDER CONTROL: Ewwww, that's a photo of a Prius bladder. I never knew the Toyota Prius had something called a fuel bladder. But then I never knew the Prius could be called a limo either.
The bladder appears to have caused a few problems. In the zeal to reduce hybdrocarbon emissions, Toyota designed a collapsible fuel bladder that recedes as the car consumes gas. Except, the bladder wouldn't always stretch back at fill-up nor did it register correctly on the fuel gauge.
Not very Depends-able.
Now the third generation heavenly hybrid will have a GAS TANK like all other vehicles. Better to have gas problems than bladder problems?
Anyway, it must be frustrating if an operator is handling multiple runs with a Prius and can't depend on a reliable fuel range estimate. But then, again, why is the Prius a livery sedan? -- M.R.
GREEN TESTING GROUND: Red Oak Transportation of White Plains, N.Y., says it will be using 3,696 less quarts of oil and 288 less oil filters per year because it started using micoGreen filters. This will
reduce maintenance expenses 56% this year, according to coverage in Aftermarket Business. Red Oak chose microGreen convinced it was worth the return on investment. "With many green products, there is a high capital cost that takes years to recover and we were pleasantly surprised to learn this was not the case with the microGreen filter," said Andy Stoppelmann, CEO of Red Oak Transportation. There are many green fleet products being marketed these days, and it's not easy to make purchase decisions tied into your green program and cost cutting reality. The great thing about fleet managers is they're putting lots of mileage onto a small, medium, or large number of vehicles. They're testing them out and learning what works and what doesn't. So, spread the word on what is/isn't working for you, and keep us informed, too. -- J.L.
DIVERSITY: While reading
this news piece on Pittsburgh Transportation Group hiring a new HR manager, it struck me once again how many sizable operators have over the years expanded their fleets beyond chauffeured transportation. And that also means taxis, which is ironic since the taxi industry has been hostile many times to the limo business when it comes to lobbying and pressuring airports and state/municipal bureaucrats to go easy on taxis and take it out on limos. Perhaps this will change that picture long term as taxi companies continue to lose revenue and chauffeured transportation expands. And perhaps the long term growth will be tied into operators becoming transportation companies and not just limo companies. Metro Cars (Taylor, Mich.) and Harrison Global (Waltham, Mass.) operate taxis along with chauffeured vehicles. AFC Corporate Transportation (Houston) has put school buses into its mix. And there are plenty of other operators who are building impressive transportation fleets especially through motorcoaches and shuttle/limo buses. The management duties are similar: hiring and training drivers; financing, maintaining and remarketing fleet vehicles; dealing with licensing and regulation mandates; setting up corporate accounts. Once you get into the transportation business, you can expand those skills and resources into ancillary markets. This could be a way to stabilize revenue and profits during economic downturns. -- J.L.
HALLOWEEN LIMO CARE: We're not sure if there's such a thing as a Trick-Or-Treat limo run, but a Fall recession is a good time to tune-up vehicles while you can afford it, and get them ready for the long, cold economic and political winter. While Meineke offers these tips becasue it wants your business, you can save money by doing this yourself.
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JIM LUFF REPORTS: It was Friday afternoon and the day could not have been any busier both in my business life and my personal life. As the president of a children's charity, I was preparing to throw our biggest fundraiser the next day: A party for 6,000 people. I was feeling overwhelmed already when I was informed that we had a major emergency involving one of our cars in Paso Robles. . .
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There's a lot coming up very soon: LCT East at the Mohegan Sun, and then right after that, I'll be flying over to Chicago to attend the first-ever
Green Fleet Conference. I'm looking forward to learning more about the fuel and vehicle options that affect operators and will be covering it online and in LCT Magazine. Green Fleet is being put on by Automotive Fleet, a sister publication here at Bobit Business Media. It will mostly be made up of corporate and government fleet managers and auto manufacturers and suppliers promoting their green programs. This should be good - I used to cover that industry and know that fleet managers have been bringing alternative-fuel vehicles into their fleets since the early 1990s and have a lot of experience with every thing you can think about: CNG and LNG, propane, hybrids, hybrid electric, hydrogen fuel cell, ethanol, and in the '90s - methanol. I can't wait - maybe I'll see you there.
-- Jon LeSage
Take a look at the new website offered by the U.S. Dept. of Energy, called
Fueleconomy.gov. There is a lot of good, useful information from a respected source of transportation fuel trends. Some of the benefits of visiting the site include: comparing new vehicles for purchase by mileage, emissions, and safety ratings; where to buy fuel nearby for the cheapest price; details on alternative-fuel vehicles; tax incentives for purchasing diesel-powered vehicles; and late-breaking news stories. It's a warehouse of information on a subject that's becoming top-of-mind for many operators.
North Dakota does the best job maintaining its roads and bridges and New Jersey has the worst-performing, least cost-effective highway system in the nation, according to an annual Reason Foundation study that measures each state's road conditions and expenditures. Massachusetts' roads are the safest; Montana's are the deadliest. Across the country, 24.1% of bridges are deficient or functionally obsolete. The Reason Foundation
presented the report to the public, full of state comparison charts, if you're interested.
... you have to take care of your tires. Bad things can happen when this isn't done.
Here's a tire tip article you might want to read, or assign staff members to go over, that offers tire purchase and care-taking pointers.
BACK TO BASICS: Top industry executives recently offered a primer on fuel savings for operators. While much of it has been said before, it cannot be said enough. Each operator should be following these common-sense practices.
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Does gassing up in the morning save you money because of the low AM temperature? What about updating your air filter? Wanna know?
Click here to read the CNNMoney.com article.