The Onspot Blog

Over the years at Onspot, we have fit thousands of chassis with our automatic tire chain system. Vehicle applications ranging from fire and rescue, school and transit bus, plow and tow truck, and various forms of local and long-haul delivery trucks are just some of the chassis where the Onspot system is currently in use. Our Onspot factory located in North Vernon, IN is also more than just a place where our product is made, it is also an R&D facility that allows us to stay on top of the latest chassis changes and adapt our product to these changes. Occasionally, we also have customers contact us with some pretty interesting and challenging vehicles that they would like outfitted with Onspots. One recent vehicle that comes to mind is that of Bro. John Pinnix with the Remote Alaska Missions or R.A.M.

In today’s commercial trucking industry, keeping the wheels turning is still a daunting task. Even with all the latest advances in technology, simple factors like traffic, weather, downtime, and health still hamper the transportation of freight by truck drivers around the world. What follows are the most common issues that plague drivers and ways to combat them.

Which is the perfect road surface treatment to increase traction?

To keep transportation – and society – running, authorities have different strategies for keeping roads open and driveable in harsh winter conditions. Snowplows keep the snow masses away from the road, and often some kind of surface treatment is used to increase traction when roads are icy and unsafe. But, which is the perfect road surface treatment? The simple answer is... None! Every method of surface treatment is a compromise between effectiveness, cost, handling and side effects. Let's have a look at some methods.

It’s February and the groundhog saw his shadow. Six more weeks of winter or so they say. Here at Onspot, show season is starting to ramp up. Soon you will find us at a variety of trade shows throughout the US and Canada ranging from Fire/EMS to Municipal and School shows. These are just a few types of trade show events we will be attending this year. Additionally, we will also be traveling to promote Onspot maintenance and driver training throughout our territories.

Through advances in technology, vehicles of today have come a long way. Emergency vehicle response time is faster, modern plow trucks maintain roads more effectively, and semis, buses and cars all use devices that provide the driver, and those around them, with a safer means of transportation. Ultimately, however, it is the driver who needs to understand how to maximize all this technology in order to take advantage of its potential.

The change of season is here for the majority of us. By now most have swapped out summer clothing for winter wear. Jackets, scarves and hats are taking the place of shorts and tee shirts. A similar type of preparation is also being done by numerous town and city DOT garages in the United States as well as by many truck drivers on the road. In these instances, however, they are preparing their vehicles for winter driving.

Through major advances in technology, the trucks of today have surpassed the trucks of yesterday in terms of efficiency and safety. Today, not only can fleet owners and mechanics track the location of their trucks, they are also able to get real time diagnostic data while the truck is on the road. The drivers of these trucks also benefit from new advances in technology accomplishing the majority of their work from the safety and security of the cab.

While attending the Southeastern States Pupil Transportation Conference (SESPTC) in Asheville, North Carolina, I had the opportunity to meet with several school transportation directors. One of these directors, William Kurts (a member of NAPT), gave a lecture on the importance of overseeing school bus fleet maintenance. Kurts is the director of transportation for Lexington, South Carolina School District One and oversees 100 buses that run 231 routes. What follows are some timely highlights from the lecture as we approach the start of another school year.

Ever wonder what would happen if we did not have accurate records for certain things in our lives. Say, for example, you go to see the doctor or the dentist and they did not have any record of your medical history or any record of what took place during your last visit. The same could be said for your home or car. Service work was done but there were no records kept. Imagine driving with no license, registration, or proof of insurance. Although not as critical as these scenarios, the same does hold true when talking about keeping accurate records of your Onspot chain system.

Spring is finally here. Although the start of spring in the US officially began on March 20th the winter season would not go quietly. On the East coast, for example, a wintry mix of snow and ice started off the month of April. Now, however, the colder weather truly seems to be behind us as streets are swept clean, motorcycles take to the roads and classic cars come out of storage. During this time of the year there is also a focus by many towns and cities to start spring maintenance on their equipment and vehicles.