The Fuel Lock system has introduced conveniences to JJ Trucking’s operations from record keeping to purchasing, but the key benefit is that it has helped JJ Trucking save money. The security features provided assurances to management to replace its use of cardlock services to become a bulk fuel user that maintains a fuel tank.
The Challenge
Indeed, there was reason for hesitation—the JJ Trucking yard is a mile east of the town and unsupervised overnight, but the savings were tempting. By purchasing their own tank, they could save up to five cents per litre over the current practice of using their fuel provider’s cardlock services. Cents add up when the fleet size approaches 100 vehicles. The availability of Fuel Lock™ by Calian Agriculture helped tilt their decision to become a bulk fuel customer.
The solution
Fuel Lock Business controls access to fuel with a keypadbased PIN system, and reports usage data to a mobile app. With the purchase of a 60,000 L fuel tank, JJ Trucking adopted a new approach to supplying fuel to its vehicles and registered PINs to 76 employees. “What I love about Fuel Lock is the keypad,” said Lorne Neuls. “There are no cards, no key fobs, nothing. You just have to remember your number and you’re set. It’s super simple.”
The operations at JJ Trucking are just as simple. At the beginning of the day, employees take out their truck, excavator or payloader. At the end of day, they fuel up. The routine helped Sheila spot irregularity in filling activities. “I’d get the notification whenever someone fills, so I’d phone Lorne to compare notes on the activity and we’d realize ‘hey, this isn’t right.’ The guys work pretty consistent shifts.” Sheila would cancel the PIN and issue a new one to the employee. Employees learned to guard their PIN like a password.
"The savings paid for Fuel Lock very quickly.”
Lorne Neuls of JJ Trucking Ltd in Arcola, SK
The Results
PIN-generated data has served JJ Trucking in other aspects of its record-keeping. The company uses ExakTime, time tracking and scheduling software for the construction industry, but sometimes employees would forget to clock out. In these instances, Sheila consults the time of their fuel fill at the end of the day and adds 20 minutes for a good estimate of hours worked. The tidy record keeping also helps keep fuel purchase data separate from JJ Trucking’s co-owned company, LD Allan Enterprises of Creelman, SK. Finally, they benefit from accurate usage data for International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA) reporting.
The Fuel Lock system has introduced conveniences to JJ Trucking’s operations from record keeping to purchasing, but the key benefit is that it has helped JJ Trucking save money. The security features provided assurances to management to replace its use of cardlock services to become a bulk fuel user that maintains a fuel tank. Said Lorne, “the savings paid for Fuel Lock very quickly.
