Daily Archives2016 December 26

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Did you know that if you are interested in purchasing a semi truck, it is now easier than ever to find the perfect one for your business, dealership, or fleet, even in these tough economic times. If you are a company driver and you are tired of all the nonsense you have to deal with working for someone else, you should definitely consider getting your own transportation business. Besides, why make money for someone else?

Go out there and get your own vehicle. Even with bad credit you will be better off with your own business. Commercial truck financing with bad credit provides trucks for acquisition & buy out of equipment that were repossessed before.

Loans for folks with bad credit helps borrowers with the finances who want to buy a truck. Commercial loan financing can help you with the loan that you need.

If you have bad credit there are many places that can arrange a loan for you. The commercial truck loan should be one that you understand and one that you are most comfortable with. Experienced companies understand the finance market and what is needed to get you low-interest rates and fast approvals. Most trucking companies have programs to train you to be a trainer but you will need to have a certain amount of truck driving experience under your belt. How the truck driving industry is changing and the myths associated with the industry are exactly what they are, just “myths”. Whether you are a seasoned owner operator, a company semi driver or a semi driver who has just obtained a CDL license, there are thousands and thousands of off lease semi’s and repos waiting for you to take over the payments. Some drivers own a semi and are their own boss; others drive for others and have set hours and destinations. Ask yourself this question; what kind of trucker do you want to be?

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Source by Bobby Gold

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When someone places a used heavy truck on the market, there are certainly things that they make sure to do or to have before any deals are mentioned to potential buyers. If you are one of those potential buyers but are unsure as to what should be considered when buying used heavy trucks, take a moment to look at the top things that should always be considered and examined before any purchase is made.

Age and History

The very first things that should be considered are the age and history of the used heavy trucks. Although used trucks will always be an older model, there are certain years that are considered past their prime and may not be up to standards as more modern heavy trucks are. A general rule of thumb is to have a cut off age of around ten years and this also means taking a look at how each particular truck has aged over those years.

Look at the accident history to see what the truck has been through and make sure to see if everything was repaired properly or even replaced, otherwise consider looking at other options. If a seller does not have the history available, great caution should be taken since they may be trying to hide something that is less than favorable for them.

Integrity

As previously mentioned, it is very important to check the integrity of used heavy trucks because it is what will ensure a good reliable vehicle or a possible hazard for the driver’s safety that that of other divers on the road. Give a very thorough check of the body structure along with all of the essentials under the hood. If there are any uncertainties about the integrity, there are always professionals who can be hired to give it a thorough check prior to purchase.

This step is perhaps the most important since it will give buyers an idea of how safe the vehicle is and also to see if it is in fact worth the price that it is listed as. If there are any negative findings, there should be room to negotiate or, if these negatives seem too much to take on, it will give indication to continue the search elsewhere.

Cleanliness

A very basic factor that affects many sales is the overall cleanliness both inside and out. As a seller, it is important to have a clean used heavy truck that is on the market simply to get people’s attention and a better chance for a sale. As a buyer, it is very clear to see which sellers are worth talking to and which ones are not simply from the first glance of the truck. If a seller cannot be bothered to clean the vehicle, there is little confidence that they were able to keep the truck in top condition during ownership. This may lead to possible problems that are not visible immediately but may in fact creep up over time.

In order to avoid wasting time and money on used heavy trucks, make sure to look at the things that sellers consider before placing the vehicles on the market. They are simple and, in most cases, quite important to ensure a safe and reliable mode of transportation. This is especially important for those who will have to use these vehicles for an extended period of time on the road.

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Source by Laurel R. Lindsay

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Bucket trucks are commonly seen on Americas streets and highways, but what exactly are these trucks being used for? This article examines some of the common, uncommon and sometimes humorous uses for these trucks.

Ten Uses for Bucket Trucks

Use Number 1: Maintenance on Electrical Utility and Telecommunications Lines

The most obvious use for bucket trucks is for elevating workers to electrical utility and telecommunications lines for maintenance. Special insulated trucks are used for these jobs to protect workers from the dangerous, high voltage wires that the job requires them to work with.

Use Number 2: Window Washing

Since these trucks have booms that can extend sometimes 60′ or more, they may be used for washing exterior windows on mid-sized office buildings of up to 5 stories. These trucks allow window washers to safely reach windows at heights that are inaccessible with ladders.

Use Number 3: Fruit Picking

Cherry Pickers were originally designed to pick fruit from orchards (though not just cherry orchards). These trucks are still heavily used by fruit pickers in orchards today.

Use Number 4: Animal Rescue

Help Wildlife, a site dedicated to show the devastating effects of fishing line on wildlife, documents a case where a sea gull was rescued using a bucket truck. The gull had a hook and fishing line caught in it’s wing, and became entangled in a 50′ tall tree. Animal rescuers were able to rescue the bird using a bucket truck.

Use Number 5: Hanging Decorations

From hanging Christmas decorations in your city square, to banners on your favorite local teams field, these trucks are used for hanging all manner of decorations.

Use Number 6: Tree Trimming

Bucket Trucks are often seen on city streets after big thunderstorms, when loose and broken tree branches endanger electrical lines. Workers trimming trees near power lines use special insulated bucket trucks to keep them safe from the dangerous, high voltage wires that they will likely be near in the course of their jobs. Arborists also use bucket trucks to reach the tops of very tall trees that need routine care.

Use Number 7: Stage Performance Tools

Michael Jackson has a long history of including cherry pickers in his stage performances and music videos dating back to his 1987 Bad Tour. Most recently, he was seen rehearsing “Beat It” on a cherry picker in the documentary film, Michael Jackson’s This is It. This was the last known footage of Michael Jackson before his death in 2009.

Use Number 8: Security Detail

Some retail stores have security guards stationed in specially modified trucks that give guards a birds eye view of the parking lot.

Use Number 9: Exterior Painting

Just like window washers, some painters use these trucks to reach high places on the building exteriors that they are painting. These trucks allow painters to safely reach heights of up to 5 stories to safely paint building exteriors.

Use Number 10: Fire Rescue

Some fire trucks are equipped with a boom and bucket, technically making these fire trucks special purpose bucket trucks! These specially designed trucks allow firemen to reach tall buildings to put out fires, and sometimes rescue people from places that would otherwise be inaccessible.

These trucks are versatile machines that can be used for many things! But operators of these powerful utility trucks must be properly trained in order to operate them safely. Before renting or purchasing a truck for any of the uses described in this article, take time to learn about aerial lift safety and invest in a trained and experienced operator for your bucket truck.

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Source by Amber R Hunter

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Before we understand what exactly are the alternatives of kaizen let’s get a briefing on what kaizen is and how it works.

Kaizen is a process through which companies and businesses bring improvement in their businesses. There are several departments in which kaizen applications can be successfully implemented. Some of the departments which usually face instant success with kaizen applications are accounts, marketing, human resources, strategy department, manufacturing, management and services. If the principles of kaizen are applied with care they can help in elimination of waste, removal of additional unnecessary work and introduction of activities that will lead to more profit generation. However, kaizen cannot be successfully implemented if the employees are not trained about it properly. It is very important for the employees to know how kaizen works it will make them analyze as to which activity of theirs is a wastage of time and which one is giving them profit. As results are generated the employees become more and more motivated and as a result they keep on working for the betterment.

However, it is not only kaizen which helps in bringing the efficiency of the company upward rather today there are several alternatives to kaizen available in the market, which are highly effective and give the user profound results. The very first alternative to kaizen is the kanban system. The kanban system is a highly effective tool to reduce the operation costs by eliminating all the wastes and the scraps.

Through this system, several worksites are created which can give birth to instant responses and also push the methods which assure quality control and proper achievement of designs of projects. It also helps in attaining the trust of the employee in order to help achieve maximum output which using their resources to the maximum. Kanban is a very powerful tool and makes use of both pull and push policies to gain a better control over the workflow. The results that companies usually face after implementing kaizen are that they are able to cut down their costs tremendously while also achieve higher benefits.

The second alternative of kaizen available is called Business Process Reengineering also known as BPR. BPR aims upon bringing relevant changes in the environment of the organizational structure. It usually focuses upon technology and office automation. BPR keeps on implementing strategies till it does not get the working environment which is effective, ethical and also grabs a lot of profit for the company. The three major elements of BPR are processing of materials, data and financial outcome. The main target of BPR is those departments of the organizations where core businesses processes take place. It then after visualizing their operations creates strategies which will cut down the costs, increase the use of limited resources and maximize the profits to the maximum. They achieve all this by redesigning the basic operations, retooling them and then finally re-orchestrating.

The third alternative to kaizen is Modular function deployment (MFD). It is a structured process which identifies the best product design which covers the development of the product from every possible angle. The aim of MFD is to successfully deliver the product to the right audience and attain their satisfaction in return. Along with design factors it also takes several critical factors into consideration such as customer requirement, brand image and product strategy.

Each of these alternatives to kaizen target only on making a lot of profit by utilizing the least possible resources.

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Source by Sam Miller

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Q: Why is owning an ice cream truck vending company like owning a modeling agency?

A: Because looks count for A LOT.

There is nothing that is going to lose you more customers in less time than a truck which has a paint job which makes it look sketchy, trashy or just plain boring. So I’ve created a list of 5 do’s and 5 don’ts you should be aware of when making the crucial decision about how to paint your truck:

DO’S:

1. DO use bright colors which make your truck standout – after all you want to be noticed!
2. DO use your writing and text which will advertise you by drawing the eye and which is appealing to both children and adults.
3. DO keep your design simple – don’t bombard your customers with distracting colors and images.
4. DO go for a retro design. For many people, ice cream trucks conjure up treasured memories from their youth so you can never be too old-fashioned!
5. DO you know your customer! Certain designs will work better in different locations and with people from different backgrounds and income brackets. An ice cream truck selling along Venice Beach is going to have a very different look and feel than a truck selling in downtown Manhattan!

DON’T:

1. DON’T use brown, grey or other colors which make you appear to blend into the background or worse, appear boring.
2. DON’T overdo it with decals and decorations. Doing too much visually can be almost as bad as doing too little.
3. DON’T use color schemes which may be associated with drugs or other illegal activity. Some ice cream vendors have given the industry a bad name by dealing more than ice cream from their trucks!
4. DON’T place decals and other signage too high or too low. Make sure that all writing can be seen by both children and adults.
5. DON”T spoil your amazing design by forgetting that a window may have to go in the middle of it! Make sure that you take into account the practicalities of your vehicle and make a sketch before you start painting.

At the end of the day the design of your ice cream truck will be a major component in how people view your business. When in doubt keep it simple, it is better to have a well executed simple design then trying to get fancying and having an amateur paint job. The easiest things to do are also the most effective, add some color to your bumpers, wheels, mirrors, and your rooftop speaker. Customers will notice the little things like uneven paint, uncentered decals and lettering or crooked lines so make sure everything is done right, especially on the side of your truck that has the serving window.

And remember, just because you painted your truck doesn’t mean you can neglect it; make sure you spray it down with water every few days and whenever it rains, because the dirt the accumulates on your roof will bleed down onto the sides of your truck.

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Source by Tim Meyers

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Spray on bed liners finish the looks of a pickup bed probably better than any other bed coating option. Especially now that the bed liner coating color can match the paint of your pickup. However, bed liners come with several problems. If you’re thinking of getting a spray liner or already have one, here are a few ideas to consider.

Permanent may not always be best. Sure, it’s a plus to get a liner that lasts as long as the truck, especially with a life-time warranty. But that in no ways means you get a liner that can’t be damaged. See, the guarantee just means the liner will be repaired.

Repair means a respray with all the accompanying hassles and time spent. And in the meantime you drive a pickup with a damaged liner and maybe chances of a damaged bed too. The real key to spray liner durability is the thickness of the coating. That means liner material can be torn away and worn away and still the damage may not get to the bed itself.

Another thought you may not want to think about is how that liner gets on the truck. The only way the liner paint will stay on is with proper surface preparation. That means the paint gets sanded very aggressively. It all but gets destroyed before the liner coat goes on. Picture this. You get this new truck with the carefully applied factory paint coating and then you pay this guy to take an air sander and sand the paint almost off. Then you spray a paint coating on over that.

That’s not necessarily a bad thing, it’s just a painful thought. That’s what it takes to get that “permanent” liner.

Damage to truck beds comes as more than just scratches too. Dents may do more harm than scrapes can really. Dents certainly take more to repair than a few scratches. Dent protection is another way that liners pay for themselves. Spray coatings usually add nearly a full quarter inch to the bed thickness. That coat includes rubber texture material as well as fast hardening paint as well. That thickness absorbs bumps while warding off damage.

For looks a sprayed liner may be unbeatable, but for protection a cheap alternative avoids some of the problems built in with spray.

Cheap rubber mats protect from impact better and are easily removed. With permanent liners, really nasty hauling makes a mess of the bed and you have no choice but to either clean it out or leave it a mess. But with temporary liners, it’s an easy task to slip the mat in or out when you need it or when you don’t.

Another consideration with spray on bed liners arises when you get the price tag. A professional coating costs you big. That’s a real reason to look at other options or at least to carefully protect the liner if you already have one.

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Source by Al Bullington

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In a previous article I discussed the essentials for perimeter security of a secured trailer parking lot or drop yard. However, true perimeter security requires more than a formidable wall between the yard and the outside world. A secured parking lot must also have secure methods of getting in and out of the yard. This article will focus on the security necessary for the ins and outs of any secure drop yard.

When evaluating the security of any drop yard’s entrance points you should start at the physical characteristics of the gate. A secure trailer parking lot’s entrances and exits should be designed so that when they are closed they provide a physical barrier similar to the perimeter fence. Many inferior yards only have a stop sign and if you’re lucky a guard to yell, “stop.” However, such yards cannot be considered secure.

Once you have determined the physical barriers necessary to prevent unauthorized entrance and exit from the yard are present you need to evaluate the controls used by the yard. A secure truck parking lot should at all times, have on-site trained guards to ensure that only authorized entries and exits occur. A simple key fob or numeric pad controlling the gate should never be considered a secure lot. Also, the on-site guard should be controlling the entrance and exits of all pedestrians as well. Essentially no man or machine should be on the yard that is not authorized and has legitimate business being there. Only on-site guards can provide the security standard required to call a drop yard secure.

Having an on-site guard and physical barrier preventing unauthorized entry or exit is not enough for true security. The vehicle and pedestrian entrances and exits must be monitored one hundred percent (100%) by high definition CCTV. The use of high definition CCTV is important, as the system must be able to identify the vehicle or person entering or exiting. Where, remote staff is also monitoring the gate the CCTV must provide enough detail for the plates and trailer numbers to be recognizable for comparison with customer release forms.

The lighting at all entrance or exit gates must support the security of the yard. Therefore, it must provide adequate lighting for the CCTV to identify vehicle plate numbers and to identify facial features of any pedestrians. Nothing can render a sophisticated CCTV system useless like poor lighting. The proper lighting of the gate area not only assists on-site guards but also is crucial for a properly functioning CCTV monitoring system.

All the intimidating gates and high-tech surveillance systems will not prevent theft from a secure yard if the guards are lax. Properly trained on-site guards are crucial and cannot be replaced by fancy equipment. Do not get blindsided by technology and overlook the on-site staff of any yard you are assessing. True the technology may help find the thieves and may assist in recovering some of the stolen cargo, but a secure drop yard should prevent theft. That is the reason any trucking company entrusts its’ equipment and cargo to the yard.

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Source by Dan Otting