During their dealership inspections, KPA consultants routinely observe and document activities that could be considered unsafe.  Some of the most problematic employee behaviors stem from complacency,  particularly among technicians who often perform repetitive tasks.  Unfortunately, this can have dire consequences when one of the most dangerous pieces of equipment a technician works with is the one lifted above their head many times a day.

Natural Gas Vehicle Institute (NGVi) wants to bring attention to an important requirement under NFPA 52, the installation code for natural gas vehicles.

As key systems in commercial vehicles, maintenance of antilock braking systems is vital to proper truck and trailer performance. Technicians who understand how ABS works are best prepared to service the equipment in the field and react intelligently when an ABS warning lamp illuminates.

When replacing a universal joint, experts note the importance of following manufacturer guidance, using proper tools and post-service inspection and lubrication as essential for ensuring a universal joint achieves its maximum life cycle.

Leaf springs may often be overlooked in visual inspections, experts say. Here's how to know when you should be looking for a new one.

The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance's (CVSA) 2023 North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria are now available for purchase. The new criteria go into effect on April 1. The 2023 version replaces and supersedes all previous versions.

CVSA offers different formats of the new out-of-service criteria. Find the format that works best for you.

AVAILABLE NOW

• Spiral-bound, hard-copy handbook

• Electronic PDF with a restricted three device and/or web browser limit (cannot be printed or copy-and-pasted and is best viewed on a desktop computer)

• Spanish version (8.5" x 11")

• Bilingual English/Spanish version (8.5" x 11")

• French Canadian version (8.5" x 11")

• Bilingual English/French Canadian version (8.5" x 11")

COMING SOON

If the app is more your style, the 2023 out-of-service criteria will be available in the app next month. The app also contains inspection bulletins, inspection procedures, operational policies, access to CVSA Learning for online training, real-life photo examples of vehicle, cargo securement and hazardous materials/dangerous goods violations, and much more.

Drivers rely on their brakes to stop their vehicle every time they depress the brake pedal, hundreds of times per day. Therefore, regular inspection of the braking system should be part of any preventive maintenance program.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has released its vehicle safety defect/non-compliance notices for October 2022. 

For busy service technicians, tools are available for measuring a brake’s free play and stroke, as well as the do-it-yourself method of cutting a short segment of tape measure and attaching a magnet to one end.

Every year, dozens of workers die and thousands more become ill while working in hot or humid conditions. The OSHA Heat Illness Prevention campaign educates employers and workers on the dangers of working in the heat.

To save on costs, many service departments are purchasing flammable liquids such as brake cleaner, lacquer thinner, gasoline, and other flammable liquids in bulk 55-gallon drums.  While this may make economic sense, you may have to spend a bit more upfront to comply with flammable liquid storage regulations.

An El Paso metal stamping manufacturer with a history of workplace safety violations failed again to protect its workers from the dangers of moving machine parts. As a result, a worker suffered the amputation of two fingers inside a 500-ton hydraulic press.

Nearly one in 10 people endure noise levels at work loud enough to cause hearing loss while seven in 10 experience moderately loud noise levels, reports the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Yet, the bureau's Occupational Requirements Survey, published in 2019, found that more than half of the nation's manufacturing workers reported not using personal protective equipment to protect their hearing.

Advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), has quite literally been all the rage for the last several years. So many articles, social media groups, forums, training classes, and podcast episodes have become dedicated to the subject. But why? For starters, in a profession where technology is always evolving, this was a big change from normal service. ADAS is not really all that new, arguably debuting back in 1999 with Mercedes-Benz “Distronic,” which used radar for adaptive cruise control (ACC). But now we are seeing it on virtually every high-line vehicle, and it's absolutely trickling down to the more economical models.

What is brake balance? A vehicle’s brakes are said to be in balance if all brakes apply and release at about the same time, with each brake developing the appropriate braking force for its weight load.
On the other hand, brake imbalance, such as when a tractor brakes faster and more aggressively than its trailer, causes rapid lining wear on the hardest-working brakes, bumping of tractors by trailers, jackknifing and panic stops with more panic than stop.