Written by Samuel Welbourne, Supply Chain Analyst
Are Long Lines at the Scales Weighing on You?
To reduce weigh time, CAT Scale developed the Weigh My Truck app. With the Weigh My Truck app, a driver can weigh their truck and pay with our Dot Transportation, Inc. (DTI) account without needing to park or wait in line to pay a scale fee.
Having a driver sitting and waiting anywhere affects the driver’s time and company expense, so getting creative to limit wait times increases our efficiency and earning potential for every driver, tractor, and trailer. One of the low hanging fruits in this cost bracket is the weighing process. Today, a driver is required to weigh his or her truck, find a parking spot, and go inside to pay their scale fee to the weighmaster. According to CAT Scale, this process averages about 30 minutes. At 22,908 weighing occurrences in 2019, DTI logged over 11,000 hours of fleet-wide scale time.
Distribution Center Rollout
We want to provide this tool as an option for all drivers. Currently, we are rolling it out by distribution center (DC). Dot Foods Indiana, Georgia, and Oklahoma have gotten ahead of the curve by providing drivers access to their Dot Foods email, which they will need to use the Weigh My Truck app. Having access to a Dot email is important to the driver, who will have access to a growing list of fleet tools, and to Dot Foods for increased convenience and security. If you would like to be prepared for the rollout at your DC, you will need two things:
- Ability to download the “Weigh My Truck” app on your smartphone
- Access to your Dot Foods email account
As technology continues to advance, opportunities to trim costs or wasted time will only increase. Minimizing the time a driver is sitting maximizes their salary and increases equipment productivity for the company. Continually looking for ways to eliminate lost time helps our drivers and allows us to provide better service to our customers.