Monthly Archives2017 January

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Replacement Theory in Operations Research

It is used in the decision-making process of replacing existing equipment with us by a new one. It is like replacing our old refrigerator, moped, car or any machinery in garage, workshop and so on. Some real life examples of this situation are decisions to buy a new TV, Car, Truck, Lathe Machine, even our House or Apartment.

What data is required to apply this technique?

One needs to two kinds of data in these situations. The first one being the maintenance cost of the equipment, that is, how much you are spending every period (every month, every year depending on the life of the item). This also keeps our spending in check and otherwise also it’s a good habit to maintain our expenses. Secondly, you need to have approximate resale value corresponding to the respective period that is weekly, monthly, yearly and so on. This resale values can be obtained by consulting experts in respective fields or even elders home.

What is the theory?

The costs mentioned above have typical characteristics. The maintenance cost of items usually goes up while its resale value goes down. This maintenance cost after a while can be huge while at the same time, the resale value of that item can drastically go down. This result into a total loss and most of the times, in such cases, we throw away that item or scrap it. Replacement theory gives a optimum trade-off between rising maintenance cost and declining resale value. This optimum period, when the replacement can be actually made, is the sum of maintenance and depreciation in the original cost of equipment.

Illustration

Consider the example of a Truck; the pattern of failure here is progressive in nature, that is, as the life of vehicle increases; its efficiency decreases. This results in additional expenditure in running or maintaining this vehicle and at the same time its resale value (also called as scrap value) keeps on decreasing. The above case makes this situation a typical case for applying ‘Replacement Theory’.

Lets see a text-book problem. A transport company purchased a truck for $100000. The resale value of the truck keeps on decreasing from $75000/- in the first year to $20000/- in the eighth year while, the running cost in maintaining the truck keeps on increasing with $3000/- in the first year till it goes to $25000/- in the eighth year. Determine the optimum replacement policy?

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Source by Rajesh Timane

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I had read the articles, the various reports and scientific data and so, it was now time to put this apparently miraculous product to the ultimate test. A good friend of mine who specializes in the hand crafted manufacture of Ash furniture gave me the suggestion that we could try it out on a freshly cut slice of Ash tree. Normally he fills the trees, removes the branches and they are then stacked for periods of up to twenty years to completely dry out the wood and make it suitable for use in the manufacturing process. What he now suggested was that we cut a large slice from a recently felled and still wet tree, then apply this cedar oil based product to it and see what happens and if there is any noticeable difference.

Armed with a five gallon bucket of the product, an extremely long chain saw, some gasoline and a couple of saw horses, we set off in my friend’s truck towards the site where his Ash trees were kept. After about forty minutes we drove up a bumpy gravel road and turned into an area that appeared to be an abandoned stone quarry. We stopped his truck and got out to view some well stacked piles of huge trees, all set out in neat rows to both sides of the truck. We commenced by emptying out the truck box of all the items we had carried with us. My friend set up the two saw horses in the middle of the gravel yard and then proceeded to gas up his chain saw and give it a first start. Now convinced that everything was in good working order, we headed off towards one of the log piles.

I was advised that this particular stack of trees had only been felled just over one week previously and as such, they were still as wet as the day they were cut down. My friend studied each of the trees in the stack and then made his decision as to which one would be our subject for the experiment. Marking the end of it with chalk, he picked up his chain saw and climbed up to a suitable position where he could access the tree’s diameter with ease. With ear muffs on and a couple of fast pulls on the chain saw string, that well known buzz burst into life and the long chain was ready to start cutting. He stood firm and straight on the logs and commenced his first cut through a tree with a diameter of almost five feet. Within a few minutes and a couple of position moves on his part, the end of the large tree fell free to the ground. The exposed cut was clean and straight and I could see most of the circles quite clearly. Without hesitation, he climbed back up to his original position and started his second cut. The chain entered the tree about three inches from the newly exposed end and once again he worked away steadily until an almost evenly thick slice again fell free to land on top of the first slice. With that, the chain saw stopped buzzing and he climbed down to explain that this was the slice we were going to do our experiment on.

Together, we carefully pulled the large tree slice away from the pile and then, with one of us one each side we lifted the rather heavy piece of wood up and over onto the two awaiting saw horses. Placing it carefully on top of the horses, we had to adjust one of them to get it lying more solidly in position without a wobble. After a short five minute rest, we took over the bucket of fluid to start our test. Armed with a three inch brush each, we coated all of the upper side with its first coat of the cedarshield oil. It soaked into the timber as quickly as we applied it and that in itself was quite amazing considering how wet the timber was. We waited another five minutes or so and then commenced applying our second coat in exactly the same way as the first and yet again, it continued to soak in to the wood almost immediately. After this we waited maybe ten minutes before starting our third and final application. This time, by the time we were about half way across the large circle of wood, the fluid started to drip from the underside and onto the gravel below. We completed our application, closed the bucket and placed our brushes tightly into a plastic bag then went back to examine the now actively dripping tree slice. Sure enough, the underside was oozing the fluid we had applied on the surface but it did feel different to the touch. At that point we really didn’t understand what was happening or why the fluid coming through the downward side felt so different to the touch.

The real surprise came when the fluid finally stopped dripping through the wood and we decided it was time to lift the slice back to the truck. Again, with one of us at each side we grabbed hold of the wood and commenced to lift it. We both stopped in unison and dropped the wood back onto the saw horses for we had discovered it was now very light in weight compared to the time we had placed it in position. After some discussion on this, we again lifted it up and carried it over to the waiting truck for transportation back to my friend’s workshop. With everything now packed up and well secured, we left the site and headed back home with our newly cut slice of Ash tree. Upon arrival at his home and workshop, we were both eager to investigate the treated timber in more detail. Yes, its weight was now equivalent to that of dried Ash of the same dimensions but we had to ask ourselves why? We sent the slice through his planer and thickness machine and out it came fully dressed just like a piece of fully seasoned dry timber I was advised. To my friend who was well used to working with this type of timber, this discovery was truly amazing in itself. However, when we read the technical data for the fluid and found that the wood was now dimensionally stable, that it would not split or warp and that it was also fully protected from all types of fungal attack, rot and insect attack, my friend looked at me and stated “This has to the most miraculous invention for the treatment of wood ever!”

Upon reading the technical data further, we discovered that the cedarshield fluid contained double tailed molecules within its formulation and upon its application to timber, these molecules would instantly attach themselves to hydroxyls within the timber, acting as a water scavenger and instantly turning the inherent moisture into ethanol gas which immediately evaporated and left the wood totally dry and completely preserved again almost everything. Truly an amazing achievement and even more so when we considered that this fluid is 100% natural organic in its make up and contained no toxins, poisons or hazards of any kind. My friend continued to work on our newly cut circle of Ash wood and now, I am the proud owner of a highly polished and most certainly all natural Ash picnic table that I seen being manufactured literally from start to finish. This unique fluid is now saving my friend from waiting for periods of up to twenty years before he can work his beloved Ash timbers. It is most certainly a wonderful, safe and highly effective product that is likely to be used throughout all areas of the lumber industry.

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Source by Robert M Littlejohn

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Depending on the size and design of the steel building there are two options for moving it. Larger steel buildings sealed to a foundation will need to be disassembled and reassembled, while smaller steel buildings may be able to be moved short distances in one piece. Either way, moving a steel building 50 feet or 500 miles requires a lift and a skilled lift operator; if it’s being moved any significant distance an 18-wheeler will be required.

It is possible to move smaller steel buildings like sheds or small garages without disassembling it. If a smaller building is being moved a short distance, say from one end of a property to another it can actually be slid. The process begins by carefully raising the front of the steel building with a lift and sliding wood under it to act like a stand and then again repeating this process on the back to the building. Then, by attaching a towrope to the wood beneath the building, the steel structure can be towed from one place to another.

While this method is much less costly than disassembly and reassembly it’s also more risky. Uneven movement can cause bending and warping that can damage or destroy the structural integrity of a steel building. An advisable, but not surefire method of preventing flexing is to reinforce the skids by attaching 2×4’s cut to the width the building to the skids creating a sort of frame. In the end the building can be towed on the skids by a truck; much like a child being slid through the snow on a sled by his parents.

If the building needs to be moved further then it can be raised up by the lift from the 2 until a truck is able to move below it at which point the lift can lower the steel building or shed onto the bed of the truck. The truck can then relocate the building and then again a lift and raise and lower the steel building onto its new property.

Moving a larger building is much more complex because it involved breaking down a building into its basic components, transporting the components, and then reassembling them back together. The most important part of breaking down a building is organization. Improper deconstruction can create costly expenses in the form of lost or damaged parts. It’s highly highly recommended that skilled laborers be hired to ensure the structural integrity of the steel building is protected through all phases of the moving process.

Breaking down a building is essentially done in the reverse order of constructing one. Remove the trim and accessories, then the roof and wall sheeting, then the framing. A new foundation with the appropriate anchor bolts will need to be prepared at the new location. Once all of the components are moved from the original location to the new location the reconstruction process can begin as if it were a brand new building. High-quality buildings will be easier to move because their components will be able to better withstand the wear and tear of being taken apart and put back together. Also, pre-welded clips on buildings will speed up the entire process and prevent the loss of loose bolted clips during the move.

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Source by Cristina La Fevers

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When it comes to long haul trucking, one of the most important accessories of the tractor unit is the sleeper. Sleeper units come in many different shapes and sizes, and can be built as part of the cab or an add-on unit that sits directly behind the cab. The sleeper is, in a sense, the drivers’ home away from home. Depending on the need and design of the sleeper, some units offer just enough room to accommodate a bed and a few modest necessities, while others provide all the comforts and accommodations one would find in a modern RV!

Although the sleeper has been around for many years in one form or another, there was a time when a trucker did not have even the simplest sleeping space available to them in their semi tractor. For decades the cab-over was the design of choice because of regulatory rules that restricted the combined length of the tractor/trailer assembly. To pull a longer trailer required a shorter tractor, and a shorter tractor left little, if any room for a sleeper. If a trucker needed to stop and sleep they had a choice – either stop at a motel, or pull over at a truck stop or wayside rest and sleep sitting-up in the drivers’ seat.

As years passed there was development of cab-over units that integrated a small sleeping area behind the seating, and in most cases, small was the operative word! More like a tiny bunk than a bed, it allowed drivers to “comfortably” get some sleep. Curtains that separated the driving area from the sleeping compartment blocked light and afforded some privacy. Drawbacks to this design included the need for the driver to climb over the “doghouse” (area of the cab that covered the engine) to get into the bunk, and the inherent design of the cab-over configuration. When maintenance was required on the engine the entire cab unit tipped forward to allow access to the engine. That meant everything in the cab not secured or stored correctly would fall towards the windshield area. Although this sleeper design helped truckers get some required restful sleep, design improvements were obvious and changes had to be made to provide more room, comfort, and safety.

The Federal Surface Transportation Assistance Act of 1982 modified previous limits to tractor/trailer combinations. The length of the tractor and trailer were now measured separately instead of as one unit. Two big changes happened at this point; Conventional tractors (driver sits behind the engine compartment) became the norm, and longer semi tractors allowed for longer, bigger sleeper units. As materials and technology advanced, larger yet lighter and more powerful tractor designs hit the market. Following close behind were changes to sleeper units. Utilizing the same lightweight materials and design technologies, sleepers slowly evolved from a cramped bunk to living spaces that can easily be described as rolling motel rooms.

Conventional semi tractors can be manufactured with the sleeper unit as a seamless part of the cab, or ordered from the factory without a sleeper unit. There are several after-market sleeper manufacturers that can design, build and install a sleeper unit on a tractor frame assembly. The size of the sleeper is dependent on the length of the frame to provide adequate spacing from behind the cab unit to the fifth wheel. The advantage to an add-on after-market sleeper is that it can be removed from the tractor assembly and transferred to a new tractor when the old tractor is traded-in or re-purposed.

Modern sleepers provide more space and greater comfort than those of the past. Sleepers can be easily entered from the cab through an ample access way, and some have enough height for a person to stand and move around with ease. Furniture such as tables and seating can be easily maneuvered to provide a comfortable work environment for two people. These interstate “home away from home” sleeper units provide the ultimate in luxury and efficiency for team drivers, especially husband and wife teams who professionally ply their driving expertise for weeks or months at a time.

The cab-over-semi tractor of decades ago, designed and built strictly for sheer brute strength and pulling power with little (if any) thought to driver comfort, has faded into the past. Total sleeping comfort in a semi sleeper world is now commonplace when it comes to long-haul trucking. Almost every tractor unit on the highway today is of conventional design, and most sport some type of factory or after-market sleeper unit that provides amenities and comfort for drivers who need quality and restful sleep. From simple sleeper units that provide a comfortable bed and needed storage space to behemoth custom built assemblies that proved every comfort of home including a shower and toilet, almost anything a person can imagine can now be custom built and incorporated into a modern, sleek and aerodynamic sleeper unit!

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Source by Greta Golfis

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Car repairs are expensive. While the initial cost of a car might not be that much, bringing that same car to the mechanic can easily empty your bank account. Hundreds of people lose money every day due to a car that doesn’t work properly. If you rely upon your car to get to work, to pick up your children, and to simply get around town, you know how important your vehicle really is. But, what can you do if you just can’t afford to pay for those pricey car repairs?

Have you considered applying for a car repair loan? That’s right – car repair loans do exist. These loans are reserved exclusively for those that cannot pay for car repairs up front. While traditional lenders might provide loans to those with stellar credit, these lenders hardly every approve any kind of loan for those with poor credit. If your credit report isn’t something that you are proud of, you can take solace in knowing that there are private lenders out there that will approve a car repair loan for you – no matter what your credit report might look like.

How does this type of loan work? While customary lenders will base your loan entirely upon your credit history, other private lenders will base a loan only upon your assets. This means that your bad credit report doesn’t matter at all. All you need to have is some form of steady income, a car that’s less than eight years old, car insurance, and a clear car title. Car repair loans through bad credit lenders are the easiest and most efficient way to fix your vehicle. Car owners with no credit, bad credit, and a history of bankruptcy can gain a specific car repair loan. This type of loan is also perfect for truck drivers.

Car repairs might cost a lot, but repairing a large truck is another kind of expense altogether. If your rig needs major alterations, don’t skip another day of work. There are lots of loads out there that you might be missing out on if your truck doesn’t work properly. Still, finding the money to repair a large truck might seem like an impossible feat. If you are stuck in this situation, you should know that car repair loans can apply to you as well – regardless of your credit history.

You’ll also be happy to know that paying back this kind of loan is also easily attainable. Monthly payments will always be well within your budget, and you’ll find those repayment terms easy to follow. Why should your credit report prevent you from getting where you need to go? It shouldn’t. Instead, apply for your car repair loan online right now. Within moments, you should be approved for that loan that you so desperately need. Why put your life on hold due to car repairs? Instead of trying to scrape together the money for those large car or truck repairs, sign up for an Auto Title Loan… and get your life back in motion.

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Source by Molly Wider

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Lots of people turn to cars under $1000 bucks looking save a buck or two. Here is a quick guide on how to make some cash (that you can use to buy more rusty boxes on wheels of course)

Plain and simple part cars out.

Step 1. Buy a car. This is pretty much the most crucial step. If you are actually doing this to make money and not just salvaging that blown up buick sitting in your driveway than you need to find a car that people want to buy parts for. eBay is pretty much your friend here and my suggested avenue for selling most parts. In the past I have watched people make money from a variety of cars (my roommate used to finance his workshop with parted out cars) One in particular was a 1994 Honda Accord. Thats right you don’t need to buy a 1939 Alfa Romeo (although that would be sweet) or anything super rare to get good money for parts.

Often times finding a car that is pretty common can be a good thing but be sure to check eBay for the prices certain parts are going for before hand and let that be your guide in making your purchase. Now when it comes to buying the car usually the ones that don’t run will be your best deals and you may even get a freebie if your lucky. (few people want dead cars in their driveway) Obviously the less you pay the more you profit.

Step 2. Tear it apart. The key here is research and time management. Everybody wants to pull the engine and trans etc., but often times it may not even be worth it. Check out eBay or where ever you plan on selling and ask yourself is what these parts are selling for worth my time? Would I actually want to crate and ship this? Is anybody actually bidding on this crap? All good questions that need answers. Honestly it tends to be the nickel and dime parts that can really make you some money. Shifters, speedometers, sensors, mirrors, sun-visors, etc. these parts take seconds to remove and if they are in good shape people are often willing to pay a pretty penny for them, because the only other option for parts like these tends to be the dealers who charge an arm and a leg.

Step 3. Sell The Parts. Once you have determined what you want to sell and pulled the stuff off its time to start selling. I like eBay but swap meets, forums, and other sources may work better for you. If you have done your research you know where to find the people who see value in the parts you have pulled.

Step 4. Scrap the rest. Always factor in that you can prolly get $100-$300 bucks for the rest of the pile at the scrap yard. Usually you will want to haul it there yourself and will probably need to pull the tires and gas tank. I would even consider it a good rule of thumb to try and not pay more for the car than you can scrap it for. This helps you avoid any kind of loss.

And there you have it. Four easy steps to make some quick money and make your neighbors hate you.

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Source by Brian Ostrowiak

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Just like any tool or piece of equipment, proper maintenance habits are the key to enjoying a long service life of dependable use from heavy duty tarp. Some people choose to see tarpaulins as disposable, especially the ubiquitous blue, but any homeowner or business owner can appreciate the savings from keeping all of their equipment well maintained.

Let’s take a look at some good habits for keeping all kinds of heavy duty products in good working condition for years to come.

Polyethylene Maintenance

A blue tarpaulin is made from polyethylene, or poly for short. This is a plastic material that is easy to manufacture, is inexpensive, and typically less durable than other materials. For these reasons, many people misuse the covers and then throw them away once they begin to show wear and tear. However, a when well cared for and maintained, they can have a long life.

Be conscientious of the types of materials you cover with a blue poly; sharp edges and abrasive materials will cut through the plastic material. Avoid using poly covers near sharp rocks or chunks of concrete as well; abrasive rocks will eventually wear through the material. Don’t try to use a poly product on a trailer; they do not have enough tear resistance to withstand the high wind force when driving a truck. Also, keep blue polys out of direct sun during the summer months or if you live in the southern states as UV radiation will degrade the polyethylene.

Overall, avoiding the above situations will allow your blue tarpaulin to last a long time. When they do eventually wear down, make sure to recycle them, just like a plastic soda bottle.

Canvas Maintenance

Canvas is a natural fiber and it is stronger than poly and will enjoy a long service life. There are two major maintenance habits for a canvas tarp. First, any tears that develop in canvas have to be repaired as soon as possible. While canvas is a durable material, existing tears will tend to spread. Second, long term exposure to standing water will eventually waterlog the canvas tarp, and it will develop mold and mildew if it is constantly soaking wet. These tarpaulins can also have a finish coating in order to improve their durability, resistance to UV rays, and to help inhibit the growth of mold. Since canvas is a significant investment compared to poly, it is a good idea to use a premium finish.

Vinyl Maintenance

Vinyl is one of the strongest materials and is used for truck tarps, lumber tarps for commercial trucking. However, lumber tarps are not indestructible and require their own maintenance routine. Laminated vinyl will crack if used outdoors in below freezing temperatures and are typically not UV treated. Vinyl coated polyester products usually have built-in UV protection and have outstanding UV performance. Tears on vinyl can be easily repaired with vinyl cement and some spare vinyl fabrics.

With a few good habits, any type of heavy duty tarp will last a long time and prove to be a good investment.

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Source by Chris A. Harmen

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Albert McMakin, a 24 year old farmer, had just given his life to Christ the year before. He heard Dr. Mordecai Ham was coming to speak at a tent meeting. He was so exited that he invited countless friends and family members. Many of them agreed to come…except Billy.

Billy was the handsome, big-man-on-campus at the local high school. He didn’t have much interest or time for Jesus. Albert, though, was smarter than your average bear. He borrowed a truck from a friend and asked Billy to drive it. “You don’t even need to stay for the meeting,” said Albert, “just drive me to and from.” Since Billy didn’t have a vehicle of his own and desperately wanted to drive, he agreed to Albert’s proposition.

Billy stayed outside in the truck during the whole time, but he listened to Ham’s words. By the end of the tent meeting, though, Jesus had his hooks in him; young Billy Graham walked forward during the alter call and gave his life to Jesus Christ.

Yes, Billy Graham is a man who has changed the world; but that’s not who I’m referring to in the title of this post.

You’ve probably heard of Billy Graham, but have any of you heard of Albert McMakin? Chances are, the answer is no. However, his is no obscure name in the ledgers of heaven, for his enthusiasm and willingness to share the Good News of Christ to anyone willing to listen (and some, like Billy, who weren’t willing to listen) has rippled through eternity in a grandiose way.

How different would the world be had McMakin kept the Good News to himself?

Do you have an Albert McMakin in your life? I do. I actually have several, and if you take even one of them out of my life, the trajectory of my steps goes in a very different direction. I am eternally grateful for each one of them: Mr. Wenger, Travis, Steve, Matt, Yohan, and Darwin (Isn’t that ironic that one of the men who helped lead me to Christ is named “Darwin”! Ha! Take that, Richard Dawkins.).

Though sometimes fear and apathy get the best of me, It is men like these and stories like McMakin’s that keep me intent on speaking of Jesus whenever I can. May you be encouraged by his story in the same direction.

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Source by Rich Bordner

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As in any business model, Motor Carriers (MC) utilizing Owner Operators (OO) enjoy certain benefits while also assuming additional risks. One such risk is the potential “uninsured” exposure of the OO while not in a “business use” capacity for the Motor Carrier. The MC’s Trucking or Commercial Auto Liability (AL) insurance policy provides coverage for the motor carriers’ owned units as well as any hired tractors and trailer during their time of hire. Coverage ceases for an Owner Operator once they are no longer in a “business use” capacity for the Motor Carrier. The concern is the OO continues to utilize their vehicle while displaying the MC placard and may not have other insurance available. Many times, the “deep” pocket of the MC is called upon to make the injured 3rd party whole.

Three products have been developed to address the coverage gap for the Owner Operator.

Non-trucking Liability:

Cost: Low

Protection to Motor Carriers Auto Liability: Low

Market Availability: High

Non-Trucking Liability provides protection for “personal use” by utilizing a Trucking or Commercial Auto Liability policy form and attaching a “business use” exclusion. The difficulty arises in that the definition of “business use” is not typically defined in the policy rather it is derived directly from various state and federal court decisions interpreting this phrase.

Unfortunately, “business use” has been interpreted very broadly and extends beyond “dispatch”. Following are some typical scenarios that would not be covered by the Non-trucking policy due to the broad interpretation of the “business use” exclusion:

• OO drops load and his heading home to include a trip deviation to the grocery store (courts determine OO is owed a trip home)
• OO takes vehicle to garage on weekend for maintenance (courts determine OO is maintaining unit in accordance with MC lease requirements)
• OO is out of town, between loads. He goes to movie theatre. (courts determine OO is out of town at direction of MC)

Example of Coverage: OO utilizes their truck on personal time to run to grocery store and hits another vehicle.

Bobtail Liability:

Cost: Medium

Protection to Motor Carriers Auto Liability: Medium

Market Availability: Low

Many in the transportation industry use the same terminology for Bobtail Liability and Non Trucking Liability, when actually they are quite different. Bobtail defines coverage as “any time the trailer is unattached” whether or not the OO has been dispatched by the motor carrier.

Example of Coverage:

• OO drops load and bobtails to pick up next load.
• OO drops load at end of day and bobtails homes.
• Be aware the Bobtail Policy will not respond anytime a trailer is attached, even if truly in a personal situation, e.g.:
• OO brings homes an empty trailer and runs to the store on the weekend.
• OO uses his tractor to a move a mobile home on weekend.
• OO assists a friend in moving by pulling trailer with household goods

Unladen Liability:

Cost: High

Protection to Motor Carriers Auto Liability: High

Market Availability: Very Low (Per Class Basis)

Unladen Liability provides the least ambiguity in coverage and the broadest level of protection for the MC and OO. This policy provides coverage while bobtailing (no trailer attached) as well as while deadheading (trailer does not contain or carry any cargo – no bill of lading), regardless of dispatch. The difficulty with this coverage line is the low availability (typically not available in a master settlement deduct program; rather the OO’s need to obtain on a direct basis).

There are pros and cons to each of the coverage models which vary depending on the risk tolerance and the operations of the Motor Carrier and Owner Operator. Deciding on the right program can be critical to managing your risk. Enlist the help of a qualified insurance broker to review your current insurance programs and operations and to provide suggestions and options that best fit your needs.

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Source by Trent Tillman

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There have been many people who have come and gone in the mobile oil change business. It always looks easy from the surface and is relatively inexpensive to start with minimum investment compared to most other businesses. But most mobile oil change operators rarely make it past the first year. In fact most do not make it past the first several months. One has to wonder why such a good idea ultimately ends in failure. Lets take a closer look.

First the profit generated from oil changes is not enough to sustain a healthy business. After you calculate the cost of goods from the total bill there is rarely is more than twenty five dollars net profit made from your typical oil change. And that figure does not include the gas used driving to the actual location. You have to be doing a lot of oil changes per day for you to make a decent profit to support your business and your personal expenses. Most quick lubes make even less due to their substantially higher overhead yet make up for it in large volume. Most successful fixed locations are doing 60 oil changes on a bad day. A mobile oil change company, with most of the time one or perhaps two people working it, does not have that luxury. The most your typical mobile oil change van can do is ten oil changes per day and after that the operator is exhausted. And even if a person could consistently do ten oil changes per day he still has to generate those oil changes from somewhere. They do not magically appear. Do you have a plan how to do that? Most start out thinking corporate campuses will provide tons of business especially if its marketed by the companies there. In reality that rarely works as advertised and you will be lucky if you get 10 customers in one year from a huge corporate campus. The end conclusion is that the net per oil change is just too low to make a viable business from it without a massive amount of volume.

Second, many mobile oil change operators are not very good salesmen. They are usually very honest people and ones who are very passionate about what they do and you gotta love that but I have found that most owners of mobile oil changes are terrible at the sales end. They are usually the type who try to charge way less than the going market rate and think they can tell a few people about their “awesome service” and wait by the phone. That never works. You have to go out and get them. You have to do a copious amount of cold calling. You have to talk to a lot of fleet managers and sale yourself first and then your service. Most in the mobile oil change business do not fully understand this or never really apply themselves to this side of business. Its probably the most important part not just in the mobile oil change business but any business for that matter. I will go out on a limb and say that if you are a great salesmen you will do well running a mobile oil change business or franchise. If you know about cars but not sales then I recommend working for a new or used car dealer for 2-3 months and get the experience. It will be tough and gruesome but that is the quickest way to get good a pure hard core sales without a lot of the “fluff.” Then open your mobile oil change company.

Third, the weather cannot be understated in limiting what mobile oil change operators can do. There are few states that have decent weather throughout the year. Half the states get really cold several months out of the years and the other half get really hot throughout 3/4 of the year. Both are equally discouraging. A fixed location can turn on the air or turn on the heat. Their operators work in a controlled environment. You do not have that luxury. You may have several fleets planned for one day and it can be pouring down rain that day. Have you thought about changing oil in 0 degrees. Your hands will not be able to grip that oil filter or wretch its as hard as a rock or you cannot feel them. Or changing hot 150 degree motor oil in 100 degree humid weather on a vehicle where it’s oil filter is in the middle of a hot engine manifold and you have to burn yourself to get to it? Do you clean it off and skip it or burn yourself to get to it? That will happen.

Having mentioned these three major hurdles, and there are more, I will say that it is not impossible. I have made a success of it. But I wish that someone would have been straightforward with me before me and my partner spent over $80,000 getting into the mobile oil change business. We were sold on a lot of unreal hopes and dreams from Jet Set Life Technologies about great wealth using a flawed model involving oil extreme. They set us up with a nice van and their product is good but their whole system is flawed from the bottom to the top. We found a way to make it work but sadly 90% of the mobile oil change business operators do not. The success rate is very small. Understand whats really involved and if you think you can grind it out and not make any money for 2-3 years, go for it.

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Source by W Barras