Analyzing Log and Chip Truck Performance in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan with GPS Tracking Devices

Details

• Creators:
  Lautala, Pasi Tapio ; Pouryousef, Hamed ; Stewart, Richard ; Ogard, Libby ; Vartiainen, Janne
• Corporate Creators:
  University of Wisconsin--Madison. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering ; University of Wisconsin--Superior
• Corporate Contributors:
  National Center for Freight and Infrastructure Research and Education (U.S.)
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  Forest Products Global Positioning System Logging Trucks
• Publication/ Report Number:
  University of Wisconsin, Superior paper no. 02-22:1
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  Michigan
• Corporate Publisher:
  National Center for Freight and Infrastructure Research and Education (U.S.)
• Abstract:
  "Minimizing transportation costs is essential in the forest products industry, as the
  
  relatively low value
  
  and high weight of the products causes transportation to account for exceptionally high
  
  portion of the
  
  overall cost. The Midwest forest products industry competes in a global market, and the
  
  region’s value
  
  proposition is highly dependent on affordable and efficient transportation system.
  
  Understanding of
  
  system efficiencies requires sufficient data, but while most individual forest products
  
  companies collect
  
  data on origins and destinations of truck trips, little is known about the actual aggregate
  
  movements along
  
  the route. One alternative to collect data on truck movements is with Global Positioning
  
  Systems (GPS)
  
  data receivers. Since the cell phone coverage in the region is very sparse and unreliable,
  
  using satellite
  
  based GPS is a logical alternative, but the use of such devices has been limited in the
  
  forest products
  
  industry, partially due to high cost of devices and the carrier’s reluctance for
  
  centralized dispatching.
  
  The research, sponsored by National Center for Freight & Infrastructure Research &
  
  Education
  
  (CFIRE), focused on using GPS data recorders on both log and chip trucks operating in the
  
  Upper
  
  Peninsula of Michigan (UP) and analyzed the data to validate trends and to
  
  identify potential
  
  improvements and savings. A Trine XL data collector was selected for this research effort
  
  because it is
  
  inexpensive, easy to use and provides the necessary geospatial information to perform
  
  truck movement
  
  analysis. Since this GPS system doesn’t have real-time tracking capabilities, log sheets
  
  were developed
  
  for truck drivers to compliment the geospatial data. With combination of GPS data and
  
  filled out log
  
  sheets, the research team was able to make interpretations of truck movements and
  
  activities during stops
  
  or idling periods.
  
  This paper presents a brief literature review of past truck tracking studies and
  
  alternative GPS devices
  
  available for tracking purposes. It introduces the three project steps and reviews the
  
  outcomes of the
  
  project. The research concluded that there are significant similarities between
  
  log and chip truck
  
  movements. It also validated the fact that the main hindrance for truck productivity
  
  involves numerous
  
  truck stops required either for loading or unloading, totaling almost fifty percent of the
  
  overall operational
  
  time. On the other hand, chip trucks had significantly shorter unloading times when
  
  compared to the log
  
  trucks and they recorded higher average daily mileage. The research did not
  
  identify specific
  
  inefficiencies in the actions of truck drivers, but it was recognized that trucks
  
  experience extensive idle
  
  periods during operations. The sensitivity analysis conducted to identify potential
  
  savings from reduced
  
  idling suggested that several thousand dollars in fuel savings could be realized by each
  
  individual truck
  
  annually, if idling could be reduced.
  
  
• Format:
  PDF
• Collection(s):
  University Transportation Centers US Transportation Collection
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:896e30dda2054a30f0d4ec2b4e9542640fe8b5cf1d029fe3f65a6050d02aed0dc17a0d4042f5cd3893045b8cee3af9fc58674f7111aaa1efca47c9ba334586b6
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/25340/dot_25340_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 769.32 KB ]