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Service truck of the future
jeff_51
Member Posts: 545
I will be either retired or one of the dead men by then.
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Comments
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What will it look like?
Shape? Equipment? Add-ons? Or will it resemble the same old tired service truck we've seen for half a century. Curious journalist wants to know.0 -
As the cost of oil approaches 100$ per bbl....
and as predicted, the supply disappears, THIS may be the service van of the future...
ME
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We'll sure reek some havoc....
On trips to the supply house with that ride!
Maybe something like this ? With big racks ! Chris0 -
my great grandfather
used to load his tools on the trolley, stop at the supply store and pick up toilets, and go to customers houses. Bob
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There will be no
need for a service vechicle, stuff will not break down in the future
hot rod
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Okay funny guys
Pass the mustard.0 -
Or This.
PATRIOT HEATING & COOLING, INC.
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The \"posh\" ride
Haven't figured out exactly what to do with the ladders yet.......
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Had to ....
Oldie but goodie0 -
work truck of the future?
Enclosed are a few models I've been considering...0 -
that should
say.....................
ACE construction0 -
The government
Would love that last one....
EPA, OSHA, DOT, and more.
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Keeping cool
The redneck-tech cool-down truck.0 -
Is that
our man, Dan?
As for trucks of the future, at the cost of gas, it will be cheaper for folks to bring their boilers to many locally situated shops.
Mc'repair anyone?0 -
You forgot one....
BIO Diesel...similar to your SUV, butt...
Here's a picture of it in PARK position.
ME
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vehicle service?
Mark, I thought that was std. equipment on that model for making roadside repairs when a shoe goes flat??0 -
These are all very interesting
I am not sure which one I prefer.
On a more serious note I have been doing consulting on trucks and vans for several years now. I actually designed the interiors of all the service trucks for the gas company I worked for. One thing that must be done is reduce the size of service vans and in doing so go with better mileage vehicles. Overall cost of vehicle operation my require vehicles fueled wit LP Gas, CNG, hydrogen etc. Almost all of those have higher up front costs, and higher fuel costs but save big time in maintenance and usually give better mileage per gallon/cubic foot. If you go with alterantive fuels make sure the vehicle is a dedicated vehicle for that fuel and not converted. The converted vehicles ahve never been as good as the dedicated factory designed vehicles.
The thing that most vehicles in our businees need is oraganized!!!!!. When this is done overall weight and weight distribution is drastically reduced. It also saves on inventory costs and loss due to damage of equipment carried in the vehicles. A place for everything and everything in its place. I revamped a companies vehicles about 10 years back. They had real problems with the cost of inventory and accountability for what was purchased and what was installed and as they put it what they could not find. After reorganizing their trucks and procedures the next 18 months they saved almost $300,000 in over costs on inventory.
Look into a better way to supply parts for next days work. Going to the supply house every morning is not cost effective and tends to cause a lot of shopping to go on by techs. This all ends up stored somewhere on the vehicle and my never get used. The old cliche "I thought I might need it". If possible have stock delivered to the job by the supply house or use a truck of your own just for delivery. Have a system in place for ordering parts the day before and having them available first thing in the next AM.
Better planning of travel routes will save a lot of fuel and time. Have routes that start at a point and finish at a point and do not keep going back over the same routes. Planning is the name of the game and good dispatching.
Do not leave vehicles running to keep them cool in the summer and warm in the winter. This wastes a lot of fuel.Tire care and proper inflation of tires is also big. A good maintenance schedule on vehicles and change the oil according to vehicle recommendations.
So you can see it is more than just what the vehicles will look like it also means a better system of operation. Fuel costs can put you out of business and I do not think they are going down.0 -
Tim, you're describing a well-organized company...
... a company where the scale allows them to wring some very good efficiencies from consolidating the parts ordering, etc. down to the minimum number of needed people.
If I may, allow me to add one caveat.... running the engine in the summertime to maintain an even temperature inside the van may be a requirement in some parts of the country for the HVAC trade. Why? Because otherwise the refrigerant bottles may exceed their safe working pressures.
I saw several canisters over at HVAC-Talk that had their safety caps blown off. One of them went off with the tech inside the vehicle. So, unless you can insulate/refrigerate the bottles seperately from the rest of the truck, you may need supplemental cooling in some parts of the country. Obviously, this is not a common problem in most of the US, but the safe working limits of all gas canisters you guys work with need to be considered. Cheers!0 -
I was not aware of
the need to run AC to keep canisters cool. That sounds like a real problem to me. What about the canister on the techs day off sitting in the yard with sun beating down on it? Here in RI it is actually against the law to run your vehicle if it is not occupied.
A lot of the ammonia we carried on our trucks for charging gas AC had its own ventilation and sealed area from the rest of the vehicle.0 -
Service truck
I guess it depends if you are going to do really BIG jobs and have to haul a lot of large equipment, or just small jobs.
Also, if you want the wife to go with you, there must be room for her too. She can ride on top like in the photo.
These photos show room to carry the wife, and also room to haul a lot of equipment.
Ed0 -
Service trucks
Two things to consider are if you wife wants to ride along on small jobs, or if you really have to carry large equipment for the big jobs.
Ed0 -
As I recall
One of our very own went out and bought a ice machine for his shop (that too) so the techs could keep the 410A from blowing off in their hot van.
A lot of the wholesalers around here have ice machines so the techs and installers can fill drink coolers and ice chests.
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Here, have a look.
> the need to run AC to keep canisters cool. That
> sounds like a real problem to me. What about the
> canister on the techs day off sitting in the yard
> with sun beating down on it? Here in RI it is
> actually against the law to run your vehicle if
> it is not occupied.
>
> A lot of the ammonia we
> carried on our trucks for charging gas AC had its
> own ventilation and sealed area from the rest of
> the vehicle.
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... here, have a look for yourself...
... this thread shows pictures of multiple R22 containers where the safety valves popped. Apparently, the problem with the R410A is potentially even greater due to the higher pressures.
A simple evap cooler /insulation kit could help here but someone would first have to invent, market, etc. it. The low-tech approach is to dunk them in ice water at the beginning of the day and/or to bring an ice chest along for th ride. If done right, you could come up with a very simple insulated frame that takes advantage of the metal frame and a small ice bucket at the bottom to keep the bottles cool.0 -
My favorite!
I believe it "Clucks" while driving.There was an error rendering this rich post.
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MARK ROCKS !!
THE WINNER IS Mark Eatherton and his donkey. The best by far!!!0 -
Here's what the Utility uses in Scotland!
Being over six feet tall would be a real headache - literally!
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Sauna car
After a hard workday, nothing beats a sauna!
http://mbjork.home.cern.ch/mbjork/gase/events/saunaab_test/saunaab_test.htm0 -
How bout this?
German service vehicle for oil appliances/boilers..35-70mpg. Not much space required for parking!
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