december2022 - 15

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A
commercial vehicle maintenance team is only as good as the people
within it. And those workers are only as productive and successful as
the tools and equipment at their disposal allow. With the right tools,
technicians will be at their most efficient-providing faster throughput
with fewer repeat repairs-to achieve higher vehicle uptime.
Fleet Maintenance spoke with industry award-winning technicians as well as
maintenance managers of successful repair operations to better understand how
to outfit technicians and the shop with the tools and equipment that will establish
the most efficient maintenance environment.
" The most powerful feature is the OEM software
that is installed on it, " Johnson said. " Being able to
diagnose, run tests, monitor values, and change
parameters is extremely powerful. My main use is
in the diagnosis of check engine lights and other
vehicle warning lights such as ABS, traction
control, and driver safety systems.
" The diagnostic laptop helps in promoting vehicle
uptime by allowing us to accurately scan vehicle
systems and diagnose the problem correctly
the first time, and thus keeping the vehicle on the
road, " Johnson reinforced.
Technicians aren't the only ones who highly
prize diagnostic software in the shop.
" Our number one tool that promotes uptime
is that OE software,
that diagnostic laptop, "
concurred Mark Kanitz, service manager at Rush
Truck Centers-Houston. " A large percentage of
everything that's rolling into our service department
requires that we are communicating in
some capacity with a module or a computer on
that truck. And so, it really serves as a starting
point to make a determination as far as what that
repair path may look like. "
Kanitz related that the software is used on
services from engine repair to transmission
repair, collision mitigation systems, and anything
in between. And from a managerial perspective,
Kanitz said that it is up to him to equip his technicians
(more than 50 at the Houston-based shop)
with the software relevant to their area of expertise.
" We have techs who tend to gravitate to a certain
» Diagnostic software and a portable laptop
were the resounding leader of the polled
technicians' shop essential equipment.
Mack Trucks
Shop essentials
So, what do the best techs and management alike
consider the essentials to get the work done?
Diagnostic tools
" Number one, hands down, would have to be our
OEM diagnostic computer, " said Chris Purcell,
service technician at Rush Truck Centers-
Atlanta. Purcell, Grand Champion of Rush's
internal technician competition, the All-Around
Tech Skills Rodeo, stated that diagnostic software
is utilized day-in and day-out, multiple times a
day-if not on every job, then almost every job.
" We run health reports and use internet access
for troubleshooting, wiring diagrams, and things
of that nature, " he said.
Purcell said while working at this International
dealer location he mainly uses the OEM's EZ-Tech
software, which includes multiple applications.
He and his shop also use an all-makes software
as well, but he mentioned the clear distinctions
between the two.
" The OEM diagnostic software gives you
detailed code descriptions, " he related. " There
are multiple diagnostic tests you can run. You
can do snapshot recordings to help you identify
different failures. The generic software typically
gives you a fault number, and then it's up to you
to look it up from there. There may be a few minor
diagnostic tests it will let you do-maybe a forced
regen and things like that; some resets-but you've
definitely got more access with OEM software. It
helps to have an all-in-one versus having to go
from here to there. "
Purcell and his team in Atlanta aren't the only
ones relying on OE diagnostic software. Bonnie
Greenwood, senior shop technician at FedEx
Freight's Salt Lake City, Utah, location also
ranks diagnostic laptops and adapters amongst
her most essential tools. Recently, Greenwood
placed second at TMCSuperTech, the annual
American Trucking Associations' Technology
and Maintenance Council's National Technicians
Skills Competitions-the highest ranking ever for
a female in the competition's 17-year history. She
was also the first female TMCFutureTech champ.
" I use this setup to diagnose issues and fault
codes on tractors, daily, " she related. " This equipment
allows me to quickly assess which ECUs
are present and communicating, pull fault codes,
and then access any OEM program for further
diagnostics. "
Ryder Systems' 2022 Ryder Top Tech winner,
Christopher Johnson, a technician out of Annacis
Island, Delta, British Columbia, Canada, said his
favorite tool is his SBT diagnostic laptop, a Dell
Toughbook-a tool he uses every day in some
form or another. Johnson related that he uses
the laptop and its software to get vehicle health
reports during services and diagnostic sessions.
area and aspect of the truck, and they are more
proficient with that, " he said. " We have a technician
who's very proficient with transmissions and
gear work. I'm going to ensure that his diagnostic
laptop has maybe Eaton's ServiceRanger and
Peterbilt's ESA (Electronic Service Analyst) as the
OE software. But it may not make sense for me to
have him fully equipped with an engine program
that he's not working on day-in and day-out. "
Kanitz's shop employs a divide-and-conquer
tactic-with the software divided and supplied to
techs as needed for the specialist work they do. But
this doesn't happen overnight, and it takes careful
management and development to get a team
equipped to execute repairs efficiently.
" When we get a technician started, we try
to figure out where they excel most, " Kanitz
explained. " And that is when we look at it from
a shop management standpoint. I want to get
those guys in environments where they're going
to succeed and grow. And then from there, as they
continue their career with us, we look at trying to
expand their knowledge and get them introduced
to other areas that maybe they haven't had that
natural inclination towards. "
Regardless of where a tech is proficient, it is
paramount they are familiar and comfortable
with diagnostic software from the start.
" You think back to your typical diesel truck
or heavy-duty truck compared to what it was,
say 30 or 35 years ago, when everything was
mechanical-to now, " said Victor Cummings, Rush
Enterprises VP of service operations. " The truck
has become very complex. "
December 2022 | FleetMaintenance.com
15
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december2022

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