Based in Newcastle, Delaware, ARS Truck & Fleet Service thrives on providing exceptional mobile fleet service, keeping customers’ vehicles moving through preventive maintenance and repair services — working both in the shop and on the road. It’s even been named one of Delaware’s Fastest 50 growing companies and the Multi-Shop Organization top shop by the Automotive Training Institute. Even with all the recognition and a packed schedule of 50,000 services annually, customer relationships remain the focal point of the business.

“We’re the best at what we do because we understand there’s real people behind the wheel, real businesses trying to succeed and real customer’s we’re trying to support,” said Patrick Connell, president and CEO of ARS Truck & Fleet Service.

ARS Truck & Fleet Service prioritizes a win-win relationship with its customer base. Customers can count on the company to handle preventive maintenance, allowing them to focus completely on their operations. This keeps vehicles operating efficiently and saves costs over time with more efficient operation, less downtime and longer equipment life.

ARS Truck & Fleet Service attributes its high level of success to attracting the best employees and partnering with the best equipment suppliers. Its highly trained crews use custom mobile lube equipment from Sage Oil Vac to complete fast, safe and clean fluid exchanges.

Customized equipment meets unique mobile fleet servicing needs

ARS Truck & Fleet Service provides onsite and in-shop preventive maintenance for fleets ranging from five to 500 vehicles in Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The company’s mobile fleet services keep customers on the road, eliminating the need to ferry vehicles back and forth. Service solutions are customized to meet the unique needs of each customer.

In the same way, ARS Truck & Fleet Service leadership didn’t want a pre-packaged preventive maintenance equipment solution when investing in updated lube trucks. They needed the flexibility to design a tailored solution. The company found an ideal partner with Sage Oil Vac. The revolutionary Sage Oil Vac LubeBuilder^™ system provides a customizable à la carte solution featuring patented no-pump lube exchange technology. Quick response times confirmed the Sage Oil Vac team was just as customer focused as ARS Fleet Service.

“Sage Oil Vac responded in record time. ARS Truck & Fleet Service was well down the road to buying Sage Oil Vac equipment before any other lube system providers even called back,” recalled Connell.

The Sage Oil Vac lineup ranges from lube carts to trucks to fit a range of needs — including completely customizable LubeBuilder systems. Working with Sage Oil Vac, the ARS Truck & Fleet Service team was able to develop a solution uniquely tailored to meet the needs of its customers as well as on-site and mobile fleet service technicians.

The result of the collaborative design process was a LubeBuilder system mounted in enclosed high-roof utility bodies. The systems are equipped with two tanks — one waste oil tank and one fresh oil tank. Light-duty trucks use 30-gallon tanks while heavy-duty trucks use 60-gallon tanks.

Located along the Atlantic coast, ARS Truck & Fleet Service faces hot summers and cold winters with an average of 45 inches of precipitation annually. But the enclosed Sage Oil Vac lube trucks are up to the challenge. No amount of cold has stopped them.

Many features have been added to simplify efficiency for the service technician. For example, LED product-level sensors are being used. The technician knows how much capacity is left in the tank without guessing.

Exceeding customer expectations

To raise the bar for its customers, ARS Truck & Fleet Service needed to find a solution that would address customary limitations of competitive preventive maintenance solutions. So, they chose a mobile lube equipment partner who does things differently.

“Sage Oil Vac is uniquely positioned to attack many different issues with one piece of equipment,” said Connell.

That includes speeding — and cleaning — up preventive maintenance. ARS Truck & Fleet Service can now change oil faster and with less mess than the competition. The patented Sage Oil Vac system uses cutting-edge vacuum technology to make changing fluids faster, while the enclosed design keeps oil where it should be. Compressed air builds vacuum pressure to move fluids to and from tanks making mobile fleet servicing cleaner than ever.

“The Sage Oil Vac system helped elevate ARS Truck & Fleet Service to a more professional level. We have become a better provider in all areas of the business. PM can be performed much faster than before. Technicians are much happier because of the cleanliness of the system. They don’t have to clean up a jobsite after doing a PM when they head home at the end of the day. It helps with hiring and retention of employees,” said Connell.

“We listened to ARS Truck & Fleet Service and adapted our product to meet their unique needs. This is a partnership built on a desire to deliver top-notch customer service,” said Aaron Sage, CEO of Sage Oil Vac.

ARS Truck & Fleet Service has been able to up its game by specifying custom preventive maintenance trucks with the Sage Oil Vac LubeBuilder system. This partnership has proven a true win-win relationship, with ARS Fleet Service budgeting for over 20 more LubeBuilder systems in the first half of next year.

Sage Oil can customize a solution that addresses the unique needs of any preventive maintenance application. Use the Sage Oil Vac Product Match Tool to discover the best system for your work.

If plummeting temperatures stress you out, just imagine what they do to your equipment and field service technicians. While changing oil in cold weather is necessary, it can take a toll on both people and machines. Working in subzero conditions quickly induces fatigue. And as the mercury drops, oil thickens and equipment becomes more reluctant to turn over due to the increased oil friction resistance and decreased battery efficiency.

However, delaying preventive maintenance is not a successful strategy. Don’t wait for freezing temperatures to catch you out in the cold. Be prepared with the right procedures, fluids and equipment to keep your machines and technicians productive. We’ve broken down our top tips for changing oil in cold weather.

Keep the oil flowing

Oil viscosity is the key differentiator in cold-weather operations. It measures the resistance of the oil to flow at different temperatures — ultimately determining the thickness or thinness of the oil. This is perhaps one of the most important properties of oil because viscosity provides the lubrication film between metal parts. The viscosity needs to be thick enough to prevent metal contact while being thin enough to prevent excessive energy loss.

Temperature changes can influence oil viscosity, which makes changing oil in cold weather more difficult. You’ll need the right oil to match the conditions. The oil must remain sufficiently viscous at high temperatures, but it can’t be too thick at low temperatures. The oil must remain robust across a wide temperature range to handle cold starts in the winter and normal internal operating temperatures.

When selecting the appropriate oil, pay particular attention to the number before the W in the oil specification. That number stands for the winter viscosity. A lower number means it is more fluid at a colder temperature. For instance, a 5W-40 engine oil is thinner in cold temperatures than a 10W-30.

Since viscosity is dependent on temperature, consult the equipment owner’s manual and make sure you are using the recommended oil for the temperatures you will be operating in. Equipment operator manuals may suggest different oils for varying temperature ranges.

Changing oil in cold weather

Never perform ‘cold’ oil changes, regardless of the weather outside. Best practice dictates oil should always be warm so it flows freely and drains completely. Start the engine to circulate the oil prior to the oil change or perform the oil change shortly after the equipment has been shut down for the day.

Running the engine immediately prior to an oil change also helps ensure better removal of contaminants from inside the engine. When the machine is working, contaminants from wear, the combustion process and the environment are suspended in the oil.

Shortly after shutting the machine down, these contaminants settle out to internal surfaces and the bottom of the oil pan. If you change the oil after the engine has been at rest, these contaminants will likely adhere to the internal engine surfaces.

Get a leg up on the competition

Why not just bring the equipment to a heated shop where technicians can work in comfort? While this sounds like a logical solution for changing oil in cold weather, there are several drawbacks to consider. When equipment is integral to a jobsite’s overall operation, the time and cost to transport equipment to the shop and back results in lost productivity. This can quickly erode revenue potential.

It is often simply more cost-effective to service equipment on the jobsite, even during the cold weather months. Sage Oil Vac can help you find solutions that will give you a leg up on the competition while protecting vital assets — your technicians and your equipment.

Make it easier for technicians

Working long hours to finish changing oil in cold weather can be unbearable with a subpar lube truck setup. Using buckets to change the oil further complicates the task and exposes technicians to hot oil. Having the right tools for the job makes all the difference.

Using a closed-loop system with quick disconnects protects your technicians from oil exposure and reduces manual effort while your technicians battle the weather. Less physical effort in subzero temperatures means more productive technicians.

The Sage Oil Vac system reduces the effort required by your technicians. It uses compressed air to build air pressure and move fluids to and from tanks. Hot motor oil can be vacuumed from equipment at up to six to eight gallons per minute. This enclosed, no-pump system with sealed tanks protects both the operator and the environment from spills.

Options for enclosed trailers, enclosed trucks or even a custom system can also simplify changing oil in cold weather. Sage Oil Vac offers heated fluid tanks that use immersion heaters to help promote productivity. Coolant circulates through probes in the tank, transferring heat to the oil and enabling easier oil changes as outside temperatures plummet.

Sage Oil Vac also offers an optional heated grease probe. This allows the technician to heat grease and improve flow rates in cold weather months.

Make it easier for your technicians. Contact Sage Oil Vac and get prepared for any weather.

Finding drivers and navigating tight urban jobsites requires an innovative approach.

BY AARON SAGE

The long-standing driver shortage continues to worsen while many contractors also face ever more crowded urban jobsites. These challenges place a squeeze on existing mobile lube activities.

Large Class 7 or Class 8 lube/fuel trucks have been the norm on jobsites around the U.S. for decades. These trucks help technicians maximize preventive maintenance efficiency by transporting large quantities of off-road diesel and oil. Technicians can service multiple machines in the field before returning to the shop for additional fluids.

The capacity of these trucks depends on the Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR), which defines the maximum legal weight of a vehicle including passengers and cargo. The GVWR helps determine how many gallons of fluid a lube truck can transport. It’s not uncommon for Class 7 or Class 8 lube/fuel trucks to haul up to 1,000 gallons of fuel and 400 gallons of maintenance fluids in one trip.

While the capacity provides a clear advantage for some applications, Class 7 and larger trucks exceeding 26,000 pounds GVWR requires operators with commercial driver’s license (CDL). With these drivers becoming harder to find, some lube truck owners are exploring smaller trucks that don’t require a CDL — those in Class 5 and Class 6 — to help them care for equipment on the job. In the process, they’re discovering the cost and efficiency benefits of deploying these smaller open- and enclosed non-CDL trucks that weren’t frequently seen on jobsites just a few years ago.

Cope with the driver shortage

The first factor driving the transition to non-CDL trucks is the worsening driver shortage. Despite growing demand for all types of commercial transportation that requires a CDL — namely over-the-road trucking — the number of licensed commercial drivers in the U.S. has not increased. In short, the demand is growing but the qualified labor pool is not. There’s just a shortage of qualified, skilled drivers. It’s as simple as that.

This places lube truck owners in direct competition with over-the-road haulers and local businesses. You can invest over a month sending your employee to a driver school to earn a CDL, but there is no guarantee that you can retain that driver to recoup the investment.

Sprint Sand and Clay specializes in dirt work and selling construction materials to contractors and home builders in Greater Houston, Texas. When it comes to operating lube trucks for preventive maintenance, they find drivers with a CDL can demand higher compensation. It is also difficult to compete for available drivers because many don’t want to service equipment. They simply want to drive.

“Trying to find a CDL driver that wants to perform the service, not just take a load from point A to point B all day, is tough,” said Jacob Phillips, vice president of operations at Sprint Sand and Clay.

Lube truck owners can proactively address this challenge by eliminating the licensing requirement and creating new opportunities for existing employees. Without the requirement for special licensing, almost any technician in the shop can be assigned to run a non-CDL truck. This opens the door to more hiring opportunities for company owners and managers and more employment opportunities for operators.

Balance capacity and efficiency

The second factor in the transition to non-CDL trucks is the actual fluid capacity needed to service equipment. Contractors simply may not need the capacity or fuel-handling capability of a Class 7 or Class 8 lube truck.  While not having enough capacity to service all the equipment on the jobsite leads to a loss of efficiency, hauling excess capacity decreases efficiency as well.

Sprint Sand and Clay knew they needed a solution that would balance capacity with efficiency. When the maintenance staff must service more than 200 pieces of heavy equipment on 35 jobsites across the fourth largest U.S. city, efficiency is essential. That’s the challenge this contractor faces each day. When its lube truck leaves the shop, it may travel two hours one way to a jobsite.

“It’s important that the truck has enough storage and fluid capacity to service many pieces of equipment on that side of town before going back and refilling the truck,” said Kyle Cain, president of Sprint Sand and Clay.

Sprint Sand and Clay’s service technician typically performs preventive maintenance on every piece of equipment while the truck is on a jobsite to maximize efficiency.

“In today’s world, you have to be as efficient as possible. We attribute our success a lot to equipment that we use and the innovation that’s provided with that equipment, from our dump trucks to our equipment to our lube trucks,” said Cain.

Sprint Sand and Clay turned to a Sage Oil Vac non-CDL open lube body. The non-CDL bodies — available in both open and enclosed formats — are perfect for heavy equipment preventive maintenance. The open non-CDL lube body features a 180-gallon (681.37-L) used oil tank and five fresh product tanks with a combined 400-gallon (1,514-L) capacity. The enclosed lube body offers additional protection from the elements and higher fluid capacity — with a 220-gallon (832.8-L) used oil tank, 420 gallons of new oil capacity, 120-pound grease capacity, and 60-gallon tanks for new and used coolant.

“We really believe in the small compact size of a Sage lube truck. It’s very efficient and the cost of ownership compared to having a larger CDL truck with a CDL driver just makes sense,” said Cain.

Despite its compact size, the non-CDL open lube body is up to the task of servicing Sprint Sand and Clay’s 200-machine fleet. It offers the capacity to service all the equipment on up to two jobsites without having to go back to the shop to fill up.

Minimize operating costs

The third factor in the transition to a non-CDL lube truck is the lower operating cost. It is easy to assume a bigger lube truck would drive efficiency, but that’s not always the case. Traditional Class 7 or Class 8 trucks have high fluid capacities, enabling them to service a lot of equipment. However, due to their size, they’re also less fuel efficient when traveling long distances.

If the smaller truck has the capacity to tackle a day’s worth of preventive maintenance without returning to the shop, it may provide a lower cost of operation. For instance, smaller displacement engines consume less fuel when driving long distances between jobsites.

Without wasted extra capacity, utilization costs can decrease. Lower upfront costs paired with a smaller operating cost translate into a higher return on investment. Maintenance staff can calculate the total weight of the products that need to be carried to help assess truck size. It’s not always beneficial to automatically size up the next truck.

There are also regulatory costs to consider when operating larger trucks — which become an even bigger issue when traveling across state lines. Multiple non-CDL trucks will sometimes be more cost-effective and efficient than one Class 8 truck. It’s sometimes hard to get people to make a change like that, but when you put pencil to paper, these changes can pay for themselves in months.

Access tight jobsites

A fourth factor to consider in the transition to a non-CDL lube truck would be jobsite access. Larger tandem-axle trucks can be difficult to maneuver on jobsites with uneven terrain. A single-axle non-CDL service truck offers enhanced maneuverability on tight or crowded jobsites. These lighter-weight trucks can also perform better than larger tandem-axle trucks in rough terrain. Sage Oil Vac uses Chevrolet 6500, Ford F-600 and International 6500 four-wheel drive chassis. This adds mobility seldom seen with a larger truck due to the driven steer axle.

If you’re working at a remote location that has a lot of challenging terrain, the smaller jobsite lube truck is going to be nimbler and will perform better in terrain like that than a larger, tandem-axle truck. This added maneuverability has been beneficial to Sprint Sand and Clay.

“It’s been very easy to maneuver in traffic, especially in Houston,” noted Cain.

Maneuverability coupled with quick connect fillings and design of the Sage Oil Vac system with its sealed tanks reduces the chance of oil spills.

“A lot of our jobs are on government entity property — cities and counties — so being able to get in and out without having any spillage or environmental issues is very important to us,” said Cain.

Consider all alternatives

There are several reasons for transitioning to a non-CDL lube truck. It opens the available labor force, it can reduce operating costs, it is more maneuverable and there is a lower acquisition cost. The latter was particularly important for Sprint Sand and Clay.

The compact size and efficient operation of the non-CDL truck gives Sprint Sand and Clay a cost-effective heavy equipment service option. It provided a more cost-effective solution than relying on the local equipment dealer for preventive maintenance.

“I think when you compare what we would have to pay from the dealership versus doing it ourselves, it just really made sense for us,” said Cain.

But the non-CDL truck is not the best answer for every application. You really need to look at all available options and determine if a larger lube/fuel truck, a trailer or a jobsite skid will work best in your specific application. Each solution has its own unique set of benefits.

 

* This article was first published in the July issue of Equipment Today magazine.

You’re already aware of how preventive maintenance (PM) programs can help reduce operating costs, increase reliability and extend equipment life. Yet many operations remain stuck in a corrective maintenance rut where they spend much of their time repairing or servicing machines that are down.

While preventive maintenance is a simple concept, developing actual preventive maintenance programs prove more challenging. Where do you start?

Break the process into a few manageable steps.

Set goals

Start by defining what you want to achieve. Are you targeting reduced equipment failures and downtime, decreased maintenance costs or extended equipment life? The answer to this question can help determine how your preventive maintenance program can be structured.

For instance, if your primary goal is to maximize uptime, service speed may be an important element in your preventive maintenance efforts.

“The quicker the PM can be performed, the faster equipment can get back to work. If the maintenance can be performed during off hours, the machine will be ready to go when an operator’s shift starts,” says Aaron Sage, CEO, Sage Oil Vac.

Create an asset list

Preventive maintenance programs require careful documentation. Create a list of all machines in your fleet and their condition. This should include the make, model and serial number for each machine in your preventive maintenance program.

Make a checklist outlining the required maintenance task schedule, including inspections, adjustments and calibrations, and replacement of disposable components for each machine. Include a list of all the fluids, filters and common service parts — as well as quantities — required to perform the maintenance.

In order to coordinate maintenance, you will need a way to track each machine’s location, usage and the maintenance schedule checklist. A tool like a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) can ensure work is not missed, lost or ignored.

Develop a personalized approach

Identify the optimum maintenance interval for each asset. This can be based on time or usage. Time-based preventive maintenance may occur daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, semi-annually or annually. Usage-based frequencies can be based on runtime hours or mileage.

Preventive maintenance programs can be structured around a central service shop or mobile jobsite service vehicles. Is it more efficient to bring your equipment to a central service facility or to service equipment on the jobsite? Often servicing equipment on the job saves transportation time and cost, allowing crews to service multiple machines during off hours for maximum utilization.

Choose the right solutions

After your preventive maintenance program is structured, it is time to locate the best service and lube solutions. With numerous options and configurations available, it can be overwhelming to determine which mobile lube equipment is the best fit for your needs.

Fleet size, the distance between jobsites, and fluid types and quantities needed for service all factor into your best fluid maintenance solution. You want to be able to carry all the fluids, filters and components necessary to perform service without multiple trips back to the shop. There isn’t a single solution that meets the needs of every preventive maintenance program. That’s why Sage Oil Vac offers a full line of lube skids, fuel and lube trailers, and lube trucks and bodies. Our expert team can help you identify the best solution for your unique needs.

Fluid exchange speed is another important consideration for many preventive maintenance programs. For example, the Sage Oil Vac pump-free design can fill products at a rate of up to 20 gallons per minute. It can also vacuum hot motor oil from equipment at up to 6 to 8 gallons per minute. That’s much faster than conventional pump-based fluid exchange systems. The time savings translate into more machines serviced per day.

Accuracy can be another important consideration in the selection process. Each Sage Oil Vac mobile lube system offers a digital meter to ensure you fill machines with the proper amount of fluid. Certain meters offer preset functions that allow you to set the amount of oil needed to refill the tank. No more underfilling or overfilling.

Train technicians on the process

In addition to the proper tools, well-designed preventive maintenance programs need without properly trained technicians. These technicians will need to understand the process of capturing and documenting necessary information in the field.

Track and adjust

Lastly, a good preventive maintenance program constantly evolves. Over time, ask yourself: What is working well? What are the pain points? Am I achieving my stated goals? If not, why?

It is necessary to track results and continually adjust the program to meet defined objectives and adapt to evolving business demands.

In summary, the steps to create a successful PM program include:

• Set goals
• Create an asset list
• Identify optimum maintenance intervals
• Choose the right equipment
• Train technicians
• Track and adjust the PM program

It is often helpful to seek outside advice. Sage Oil Vac can help you find solutions to refine your preventive maintenance program.

Let’s face it. Difficulty sourcing new equipment means you will need to ask more from aging fleets. Extending equipment life cycles with proactive maintenance and filling gaps with used machines are common coping strategies to deal with shortages and economic uncertainty.

Despite the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, the construction equipment supply chain is still struggling to find a new normal. Several factors contributed to this crisis. The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted global supply chains, causing production shutdowns, labor shortages and transportation bottlenecks. Manufacturing plants faced temporary closures and reduced capacities, leading to delays in equipment production.

At the same time, the rapid growth of infrastructure projects in emerging economies, such as China and India, significantly increased the demand for construction equipment. Manufacturers struggled to keep up with this heightened demand, making recovery in the supply chain even more difficult.

Continued supply chain constraints are inflating prices for construction equipment, extending project timelines and increasing competition for limited resources. As a result, many businesses have been forced to keep existing machines in the fleet longer, purchase used equipment or rent to fill the gaps.

Gain significant edge with proactive maintenance strategy

But how do you maintain productivity with an aging equipment fleet? The answer lies in stepping up proactive maintenance efforts. By implementing regular proactive maintenance practices, you can minimize downtime, enhance productivity and ultimately prolong the life of your equipment.

A thorough preventive maintenance plan helps you identify and address potential issues before they escalate into major problems. Routinely examining components, replacing worn-out parts and conducting necessary repairs boosts machine uptime. Regular lubrication and timely fluid exchanges ensure that equipment operates at optimal levels, reducing the likelihood of sudden breakdowns or malfunctions.

Stay on schedule

Now is the time to closely examine your proactive maintenance practices and explore solutions that can keep up with manufacturer-recommended service intervals. This includes properly managing your preventive maintenance parts inventory. You’ll need parts available when service comes due, along with a buffer to address any unexpected events.

Staying on top of the manufacturer-suggested maintenance schedules is your best insurance against downtime with aging fleets. Can your mobile lube solutions keep pace? Fleet size, the distance between jobsites, and fluid types and quantity needed to service all equipment on a site all factor into the best fluid maintenance solution.

The actual speed of the fluid exchange is another important consideration. For example, the Sage Oil Vac pump-free design can fill products at a rate of up to 20 gallons per minute and vacuum hot motor oil from equipment at up to 6-8 gallons per minute. This is much faster than conventional pump-based fluid exchange systems. The time savings translate into more machines serviced per day.

Every fleet is different, requiring a unique solution tailored to address its proactive maintenance challenges. Sage Oil Vac understands there is no one-size-fits-all solution. That’s why there’s a complete line of preventive maintenance parts, lube carts, skids, trailers and trucks to fit the needs of any fleet.

Investing time and resources into preventive maintenance is a wise decision that pays off in the long run, especially in the current environment with aging fleets. Contact Sage Oil Vac to discuss your preventive maintenance options.

Servicing a truck fleet scattered across multiple plant locations presents mindboggling logistical challenges for dedicated shops. So here’s the million-dollar question: Do you bring all the equipment to the shop for preventive maintenance, or do you bring the shop to the equipment with a preventive maintenance trailer?

Maschmeyer Concrete faced this daunting decision with its fleet of trucks distributed across multiple plant locations in Florida. The company’s dedicated service shop locations were a short drive from the plants, but downtime traveling back and forth between the plants and the service shops proved costly. With the company based in the Sunshine State, there is no off season. The trucks stay in constant motion — and downtime equates to lost productivity. Serviced trucks need to be ready for work when the sun rises.

Since 1986, Maschmeyer Concrete has become one of Florida’s leading ready-mix concrete, block and building materials suppliers. This privately held, family-operated business is among only a handful of concrete producers recognized as Silver Premier Producers by the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association. To earn this honor, your company must meet rigid standards in production, quality control, environmental protection and customer service.

By consistently delivering quality products in a safe and timely manner, Maschmeyer Concrete has grown to several locations across the state with ready-mix concrete plants and block plant locations servicing customers throughout the Southeast, Central and Tampa Bay regions of Florida.

This work is carried out with a fleet of ready-mix trucks, heavy-haul trucks that transport the concrete blocks and dump trucks used to deliver sand and reclaim crushed concrete. Preventive maintenance is especially important in the ready-mix business. These trucks carry perishable loads that can harden in the mixing drums, meaning unexpected breakdowns can become a maintenance nightmare.

Rethinking preventive maintenance

Maschmeyer initially chose to bring all its trucks to the dedicated shop for service versus servicing them with a preventive maintenance trailer at the concrete production plant. Here’s how it worked. Truck drivers would transport the trucks from their plant location to the shop when it was time for preventive maintenance. These drivers then contacted a rideshare app for a ride back to their home plant. When service was completed, the driver would need to be transported back to the service shop to pick up the truck.

Think of all the time and money used throughout the process. The diesel consumed by the trucks traveling back and forth to the shop. The driver’s time in transport or waiting for a lift. Not to mention the cost of all those rideshares.

Six years ago, Maschmeyer Concrete made the decision to change course and bring the shop to the equipment. The company initially built its own preventive maintenance trailer, but it came with a few drawbacks. Technicians drained oil into pans, which was then pumped from the oil pans into a 70-gallon waste tank. It was not an ideal setup. The company wanted a turnkey solution that would increase oil change efficiency.

Fleet Maintenance Manager James Salmon realized it was time to find a solution that would better meet the company’s evolving needs. He reached out to Mark Steinberg at ACME Truck Body and purchased a Sage Oil Vac 5120 jobsite trailer. This trailer streamlined preventive maintenance for Maschmeyer Concrete, eliminating waste and increasing truck driver job satisfaction. Transport of drivers and trucks stopped. The company now services the trucks at the plant, meaning the equipment is ready to go the next morning.

The Sage Oil Vac preventive maintenance trailer helps Maschmeyer perform three oil changes per night. The trucks being serviced require 15W-40 diesel engine oil, hydraulic fluid, antifreeze and 85W-140 gear oil. The concrete company needs to carry sufficient quantities of these fluids to prevent trips back to the shop. The 5120 jobsite trailer’s 120-gallon (454.25-L) used oil tank and four 80-gallon (302.83-L) fresh product tanks proved up to the task.

Work never stops. Neither do the trailers.

To maximize jobsite efficiency, Maschmeyer purchased two additional Sage Oil Vac 5120 jobsite trailers to service trucks at its plants. The added trailers help them get maintenance done, whether the trucks are located near Orlando, Tampa Bay or Palm Beach.

The quality and durability of the Sage Oil Vac 5120 jobsite trailers keep the Maschmeyer fleet rolling year-round, which is important since the company never slows down. Over the last six years, the 5120 jobsite trailers have not missed a single day of work. All repairs have been minor, and the trailers have been fixed and operational the same day.

The Sage Oil Vac preventive maintenance trailer fits well with Maschmeyer Concrete’s commitment to safety and protecting the environment. Every Sage Oil Vac lube trailer houses a patented, pump-free, low-maintenance fluid exchange system that protects the operator and the environment. The tanks are not vented to the atmosphere and the risks of spills or exposure are minimized.

Trial and error provides the perfect solution

Maschmeyer tried two approaches to preventive maintenance: bringing the trucks to the shop and bringing the shop to the trucks with a preventive maintenance trailer. The verdict? Sage Oil Vac 5120 jobsite trailers provide the most cost-effective oil changes for the company. Reduced travel time for the drivers, reduced fuel consumption, the elimination of rideshare transport, and most importantly, the trucks are ready to roll at sunrise.

Check out the complete lineup of Sage Oil Vac fuel and lube trailers.

When you have more than 200 pieces of heavy equipment to service on 35 jobsites across the fourth largest U.S. city, efficiency is essential. That’s the challenge Sprint Sand and Clay faces each day as a contractor specializing in dirt work and selling construction materials to contractors and home builders in Greater Houston, Texas. When its lube truck leaves the shop, it may travel two hours one way to a jobsite.

“It’s important that the lube truck has enough storage and fluid capacity to service many pieces of equipment on that side of town before going back and refilling the truck,” said Kyle Cain, president of Sprint Sand and Clay.

Sprint Sand and Clay’s service technician typically performs preventive maintenance on every piece of equipment while the truck is on a jobsite to maximize efficiency.

“In today’s world, you have to be as efficient as possible. We attribute our success a lot to equipment that we use and the innovation that’s provided with that equipment, from our dump trucks to our equipment to our lube trucks,” said Cain.

Expanding the labor pool

Let’s face it, drivers with a CDL are in high demand and difficult to find. Contractors like Sprint Sand and Clay are competing with over-the-road haulers and local businesses. This means these drivers can demand higher compensation. Many don’t want to service equipment, either.

“Trying to find a CDL driver that wants to perform the service, not just take a load from point A to point B all day, is tough,” said Jacob Phillips, vice president of operations at Sprint Sand and Clay.

Without the need for special licensing requirements, almost any technician in your shop can be assigned to run a non-CDL truck.

Non-CDL truck to the rescue

So, when Sprint Sand and Clay knew they needed a solution that would balance capacity with efficiency, they turned to a Sage Oil Vac non-CDL open lube body. The non-CDL bodies are a great fit for heavy equipment preventive maintenance, featuring a 180-gallon (681.37-L) used oil tank and five fresh product tanks that can be configured for any fluids.

“We really believe in the small compact size of a [Sage Oil Vac non-CDL] lube truck. It’s very efficient and the cost of ownership compared to having a larger CDL truck with a CDL driver just makes sense,” said Cain.

The non-CDL truck provided a more cost-effective solution than relying on the local equipment dealer for preventive maintenance.

“I think when you compare what we would have to pay from the dealership versus doing it ourselves, it just really made sense for us,” said Cain.

Despite its small size, the Sage Oil Vac non-CDL open lube body has been up to the task of servicing Sprint Sand and Clay’s 200-machine fleet. It offers the capacity to service all the equipment on up to two jobsites without having to go back to the shop to fill up. Plus, it’s easy to get around in.

“It’s been very easy to maneuver in traffic, especially in Houston,” noted Cain.

Maneuverability coupled with quick connect fittings and exclusive pump-free technology of the Sage Oil Vac system reduces the chance of oil spills.

“A lot of our jobs are on government entity property — cities and counties — so being able to get in and out without having any spillage or environmental issues is very important to us,” said Cain.

Slash operating costs

Competitive mobile lube trucks often require a compressor to run 100% of the time. Sage Oil Vac trucks are different. Once the on-board compressor creates the necessary vacuum for the system, it shuts off. The technician can service an entire machine without turning the compressor on again.

“We don’t depend on the truck idling all day,” said Cain.

The compact size and efficient operation of the non-CDL truck gives Sprint Sand and Clay a cost-effective heavy equipment service option.

“If something happened to our lube truck, we’d be solely dependent on the dealer to come service our equipment. With the markup and cost, it just wouldn’t be efficient for us,” said Cain.

Learn more about the complete range of Sage Oil Vac trucks.

Working around heavy machinery requires constant vigilance. Slips and falls while getting on or off heavy machinery are common causes of injury. Fatigue can also contribute to careless mistakes. This June, take some time to review your preventive maintenance safety efforts — both in the shop and in the field — in recognition of National Safety Month. The following four preventive maintenance tips can help protect your technicians during the busy season.

Jobsite Safety Tip 1:  Simplify the task.

Making daily maintenance simpler is an easy way to help keep your technicians safe.

For decades, heavy equipment oil changes were a rather straightforward, labor-intensive process. Technicians spent hours on the ritual of removing oil plugs and catching the oil in a container. After removing the filter while attempting to minimize spillage, new oil was added — typically using a funnel.

This often required the technicians to crawl around — and even under — the machine to pull plugs, access filters and position themselves to pour oil from jugs into funnels. Technicians often worked in close proximity to hot oil and carry oil in heavy pails.

Modern oil change technologies, like the Sage Oil Vac system, streamline the oil change process. The mobile lube system replaces the antiquated practice of manually lifting heavy buckets or jugs and crawling around the machine when transferring bulk fluids to the equipment.

Jobsite Safety Tip 2: Minimize exposure to oil.

Keep the jobsite and technicians as clean as possible.

The enclosed, pump-free Sage Oil Vac system protects the technician and the environment, as tanks are not vented into the atmosphere. Additionally, clean, sealed tanks prevent contaminants from being introduced into fresh fluids. There is also less chance of spillage on the job.

Accessories such as the Sage Oil Vac barrel straw, allow your technicians to transfer oil safely and quickly from bulk or drum storage into the mobile lube system with minimal effort and virtually no spills. They will not only be much cleaner at the end of the day, but less fatigued.

Jobsite Safety Tip 3: Reduce time-related stress.

The summer busy season can put additional pressure on service technicians, and using conventional mechanical pump-based systems can be time consuming.

The Sage Oil Vac pump-free vacuum technology uses compressed air to push oil out of the tank. It removes used oil and dispenses fresh oil at up to 15 gallons per minute, allowing more machines to be serviced per day than units utilizing mechanical pumps.

By making the oil change process more efficient, fewer employees are needed to keep up with routine maintenance. This is critical in today’s labor market. Technicians are more productive when they have all the fluids they need to service the fleets without the added stress of frequent trips to the shop. Sage Oil Vac offers a wide range of solutions to match your maintenance demands with an optimized mobile lube solution.

Jobsite Safety Tip 4: Reduce jobsite noise.

Conventional mechanical pump-based based oil change systems require a compressor to run 100% of the time. Sage Oil Vac systems, on the other hand, conserve air by creating and maintaining vacuum pressure within the tanks. This reduces air compressor run time by up to 70% over conventional pump-based equipment. The result? Less noise exposure for your technicians and less onsite noise.

Following these four jobsite safety tips will provide a better working environment for your valued technicians. Contact Sage Oil Vac to learn how we can help your technicians safely and efficiently keep your fleet running during the heat of the busy season.

When Doug Holmes started his construction business in Lubbock, Texas, all his crew needed to finish construction equipment maintenance was a pickup truck with diesel tank in the back. Ten years and 75 pieces of equipment later, that pickup truck just wasn’t cutting it for the Doug Holmes Construction fleet. Even adding more pickups didn’t help. Holmes and his crew needed a new solution for efficient fuel and service — and they found it with a Sage Oil Vac Class 7 Fuel/Lube Body.

“When it showed up, it was every bit as good as we’d hoped it would be.”

– Doug Holmes, President of Doug Holmes Construction

Servicing heavy equipment out of a pickup

The Doug Holmes Construction crew works on projects across West Texas, from new construction to road construction. Their specialties include dirt work, concrete and asphalt. According to Holmes, there’s plenty of work to go around in Lubbock and the surrounding areas.

With construction work comes the need for heavy equipment — and with heavy equipment comes maintenance needs. In the beginning, Holmes’ team was able to fuel and service equipment out of a pickup. Then a fleet of pickups. After a while, even that wasn’t enough. Today, they need to move up to 800 gallons of fuel daily.

“We started out being a small business and as our business needs grew, we outgrew the ability to service and fuel our equipment,” Holmes said.

Holmes knew they needed something different to get the job done. In every other part of the business, state-of-the-art equipment and technology were helping Holmes and his crew get an edge over the competition. It was time to bring the fuel and maintenance equipment up to speed.

The search began at CONEXPO 2020. Holmes and his son — who works for the family business — were on the lookout for a truck that could help streamline maintenance. After walking the massive show floor and connecting with different brands, they found a Class 7 FL7120S Fuel/Lube Body from Sage Oil Vac to be the best fit.

Simplifying construction equipment maintenance

The difference between their old setup and the new setup was clear as soon as the new Class 7 work truck arrived on site.

“When it showed up, it was every bit as good as we’d hoped it would be,” Holmes said. “We were really excited to be able to expand the ability to grow and to make life much easier than what we had been dealing with for the last few years.”

Before adding their Sage Oil Vac truck, it took three workers to keep up with fuel and service demands across the fleet. With the new addition, one person can maintain the fleet. Today, that’s Nick Balderama. The service tech for Doug Holmes Construction is out in the field every day with the Class 7 truck.

“There’s never a minute that I’m not busy throughout the day working here,” Balderama said. “This truck really helps me get a lot done each day because it has all of the fluids that I could possibly need.”

Outfitted with a 1,000-gallon diesel tank and five product tanks, the Class 7 Fuel/Lube Body can handle everything from DEF to hydraulic oil. In fact, it includes a 60-gallon DEF tank. That helps Balderama be more productive without frequent trips to the shop. But it’s not just the capacity of the vehicle that keeps things moving efficiently. The size of the truck offers an advantage too. Redesigned to include a shorter tank and wheelbase, the Class 7 Fuel/Lube Body helps crews like Doug Holmes Construction navigate jobsites.

“With this truck, I can actually roll right up to wherever I need to be to service a piece of equipment, whereas if it were a little bit larger, sometimes I would have to just post up somewhere and let that equipment come to me,” Balderama said.

Service beyond the sale

When Holmes selected Sage Oil Vac equipment to help streamline construction equipment maintenance, he found a partner invested in keeping their mobile lube equipment up and running.

“They have been extremely easy to work with. Anytime that we have a problem, they take it to heart. They get us stuff as quickly as we can,” Holmes said. “They know that we’re running one big truck that services a whole lot of equipment and they’ve been able to keep our uptime running, and they’ve made life very smooth and easy for us for the last two years.”

Learn more about the Class 7 truck Doug Holmes Construction trusts to keep their operation ahead of the game.

Warmer temperatures and longer days can only mean one thing. The busy season is almost here for preventive maintenance professionals. Are you ready for it? If you’re not stocked up on the preventive maintenance parts you need, the answer is probably not. Fortunately, you can implement a parts management strategy to help your operation get — and stay — ready for whatever the season throws at you. After all, downtime is money out the window. Here are five steps that can help keep your crew on track.

Before you do anything else: Implement a consistent preventive maintenance program

The more consistent you are with your equipment maintenance program, the easier it will be to manage your parts inventory. No more wondering which preventive maintenance parts you have on hand. Your crew will be so familiar with your process and inventory that they won’t even need to look it up in your records — even though it never hurts to double check.

Now, on to the other steps your operation can take.

Step 1: Start with a look back

Does your operation keep a record of the parts you’ve ordered in the past? That could be the key to streamlining the ordering process this year. Keep an eye on which parts pop up frequently in your records. Those are likely the ones your operation uses the most often — and are likely useful to always have on hand. After all, there’s nothing worse than not having the right part in your inventory. It puts your work on hold and can disrupt your busy schedule.

Step 2: Go through your current supplies

Have limited records? You can also get an idea of what parts you need by taking a thorough look through your current inventory. This is also the perfect time to update your inventory list — or get one started. The more up to date your list is, the more confident you can be when ordering additional parts.

Step 3: Figure out usage rates

Once you know which preventive maintenance parts you need, you’ll want to know the quantity to keep on hand. The most accurate way to make that happen is to calculate usage rates. For each type of part, consider how frequently it must be changed and the factors that impact that timeline. Those could include the season and jobsite conditions Then, think about how many pieces of equipment will need service for that part.

Take an engine oil filter for example. You could be changing that filter every 250 hours on each piece of equipment. Do you have enough wear parts on hand to keep up with that demand?

Step 4: Create an inventory buffer

You know what they say about the best laid plans. Even if you’re planning ahead, calculating what you need and keeping inventory on hand, a lead-time or delivery issue could mean you don’t have the preventive maintenance parts you need when you need them. Especially if you’re only keeping exactly what you think you need on hand.

With an inventory buffer, you’ll always have a few more parts than you think you need. They’ll come in handy if supply chain issues threaten to interrupt your workflow.

Step 5: Track inventory levels

Even if you have a feeling you know what your equipment fleet will need during the busy season, make the next year even easier with consistent inventory tracking. Whether you keep track on paper or through an inventory management system, you’ll start to understand your needs in the long term. The more information you collect over time, the more accurate your predictions will be for your preventive maintenance parts.

Streamline the parts-buying process

Once you know what you need for the busy season, you’ll want an easy way to stock up. When it comes to your Sage Oil Vac equipment, we make it easy. Order everything you need online, and we’ll ship it right to your door. It doesn’t get better than that. We have everything you need to keep your preventive maintenance equipment ready to go, from wear parts to lube carts — not to mention exclusive accessories to make the fluid exchange process cleaner, safer and faster. Start shopping today.