Holding trucking costs down

Transporting plants from the greenhouse to the garden center keeps getting more expensive. Paying for the transportation of products that you purchase is also going up. Growers need to keep close tabs on their trucking costs and how they might be reduced.

The average cost for short-haul trucking is currently more than $1.50/mile. According to the Truckers Report, trucking costs can be broken down as 39 percent fuel, 26 percent driver salary, 17 percent vehicle purchase, 13 percent maintenance and 6 percent insurance, permits, licenses and tolls.

Starting with the truck, a short review of where efficiencies might result may be helpful.

Select a truck for the load that is carried. Plants are relatively light weight. Considerable savings in fuel can be made by “right-sizing” the engine for the maximum load and road conditions. Overpowering uses extra fuel.

Rolling resistance uses one-third the power needed to move the truck. Tires are heavy. Selecting aluminum or magnesium rims can reduce weight. Going from 22.5-inch to 19.5-inch tires will reduce the weight about 400 pounds on a dual-tire axle. The use of a wide-base tire instead of duals will cut fuel consumption by 2 to 5 percent. Maintaining the correct tire pressure and balance is important. Fuel usage increases 1 percent for every 10 psi that a tire is below the recommended pressure.

Keep speed down. Increasing speed reduces fuel efficiency. For a trailer truck, increasing the speed from 60 mph to 70 mph reduces the miles/gallon from 7.1 to 6.1.

Tests have shown that at 50 mph, drag equals rolling resistance. At 75 mph, drag is 2.5 times rolling resistance. An aerodynamic body design with a sloped hood, streamlined front profile and open front bumper cuts drag. Roof deflectors improve efficiency up to 6 percent. Adding trailer side skirts below the body reduces air turbulence from the undercarriage with a savings of 5 to 18 percent.

Truck operation has a large impact on efficiency. A survey by the American Trucking Association found that the skill and decisions made by the driver had the greatest impact on fuel consumption. The difference between the best and poorest drivers was about 35 percent, or 10 to 15 cents/mile in fuel efficiency. A driver constantly makes decisions that affect fuel economy; when to shift, how fast to drive, how long to let the engine idle, when to brake, when and where to stop for fuel and how to travel between two locations. Changing driving style to include gradual acceleration, constant speed and anticipated braking can improve mileage by as much as 20 percent. Drivers that have gone through a formal training course usually do the best.

Scheduling deliveries is very important. Delivering a few flats or pots on demand or to correct a delivery mistake frequently costs more than the plants are worth. Making just-in-time deliveries to the large chains can also affect trucking costs. Picking up carts at the end of the season requires an extra trip to all the garden centers that you serve. Scheduling software is available that will route your trucks in the most efficient manner. It compares cost, mileage and time.

Regular maintenance of equipment pays in better efficiency and less breakdowns. An accurate log of daily miles traveled, fuel usage and miles/gallon can help in pinpointing problems with truck operation. A daily safety inspection should be part of the operator routine. Scheduling preventive maintenance based on hours, days or miles of operation will eliminate many breakdowns and lost time.

Although trucking amounts to less than 10 percent of the cost of plants, it can mount up at the end of the year. Purchasing the most efficient equipment, operating it properly and maintaining it on a regular schedule will keep the costs down.

John Bartok is a regular contributor to Greenhouse Management and an agricultural engineer and emeritus extension professor at the University of Connecticut. He is an author, consultant and a certified technical service provider doing greenhouse energy audits for USDA grant programs in New England.