Since the concept came out a few years ago, and after initial resistance from drivers, the job of integrating an EWD into a fleet gets easier and more effective.

As the number of electronic work diaries (EWDs) grows and trucking operators grow in understanding of the valuable job they can do in a business, the devices are becoming simpler to use and more effective as a fleet management tool.

The Hubfleet EWD app is available on Android and IOS (Apple) devices, making it possible to use as a ‘Driver BYO device’, or it can be installed on a company device fixed to the truck.

One of the fleets which has taken up the EWD idea and run with it is Jim Pearson Transport from Port Macquarie in NSW, and is using the system to manage drivers and driver fatigue.

“We’ve got a couple of different advanced fatigue management setups and we needed to get an EWD tailored to that, which Hubfleet have done” says Jim Pearson. “We also needed something that was mobile and the fact our guys can either do it on their phone or they can use an iPad, that sort of just means there are less things people have to carry around. It’s been a great thing and the driver acceptance has been good and more guys are going onto it all the time.”

Drivers download the Hubfleet mobile app and register for free. Fleet managers, or owner drivers, create a ‘Record Keeper’ account on the Hubfleet web portal and invite drivers to connect using their mobile phone number. Record keepers pay a monthly fee for each driver they connect to. All records created by the driver are updated in real time and can be accessed via the web portal.

During a shift, a driver can create, edit or delete any record. They can even delete the entire shift, so fixing mistakes is straight forward. However, when ending a shift, a driver must sign off on the driver declaration by entering their four-digit pin. After this is entered, records for that shift cannot be edited. This is a requirement of the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator.

On the roadside, an authorised enforcement officer can request to view the EWD. Before handing the device over to the officer, drivers can lock the Hubfleet app in the compliance view mode. This means the officer can only see the last 28 days of records and cannot access any other part of the EWD, or any other apps or features on the device.

“We’ve given it to some of our drivers, who sort of spread the word about how good it was, and others are just coming on,” says Jim. “It’s pretty much able to sell itself. It’s good for the drivers, too, because they know straight away if they’ve made a mistake, or they’ve done something wrong.

“They know if it’s saying everything’s right they’re going to be pretty right. It’s not like someone goes back through a book and tells them they made a mistake several weeks ago. They know and the EWD gives them warnings, before it’s going to happen, so they know.

“The way that fatigue hours are set up under the law it’s quite difficult, especially long hours. How many hours in a 24 hour period, all that sort of stuff. It’s not hard to make a mistake, and we’ve had blokes that have all of a sudden realised that they’ve been doing things wrong.

“We wanted something where we could see what our drivers were up to. We needed to be able to see if there were any issues each day. We needed to get reports to make sure that people were following the rules, and not making mistakes . The way it reports back to us is very good.”

Put simply, Hubfleet takes the guess work out of fatigue compliances and helps drivers and office staff improve safety and efficiency.