Atlas Trucking Deploys SmartDrive Video-Based Safety Solution to Reduce Risk and Protect Drivers

Fleet Improved SmartDrive Safety Score by 83 Percent as a Result of Adoption

SmartDrive Systems, a leader in video-based safety and transportation intelligence, announced Atlas Trucking, one of Transport Topics’ Top Manufacturing Carriers, has deployed the SmartDrive program across its entire fleet. Based on other fleets’ recommendations, Atlas elected to roll out the platform without conducting a pilot, speeding time to results. The carrier also cited as a reason for forgoing a trial the high-touch, personalized support provided by the SmartDrive team, which ensured fleet management, company drivers and owner-operators understood and felt comfortable with the video-based safety solution.

“With telematics, we know if a driver has a hard brake, lane departure or is speeding, but this doesn’t provide a complete picture of what has transpired,” commented Jeff Bronson, director of transportation at Atlas Trucking. “Only with video and analytics from SmartDrive do we have a comprehensive view of fleet safety—this allows us to understand why the driver took an action and informs how we can correct it in the future.”

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As a member of the Eaton Steel family of companies, Atlas Trucking operates in all 48 contiguous United States, with most trucks operating in the Midwest, Northeast, Texas and Ontario, Canada. While 75 percent of its work involves the steel industry, Atlas also provides specialized transportation services to the metal and heavy haul, automotive, building materials, manufacturing, trade show and robotics industries.

“We had an incident on the road a few years ago where the driver described what happened, but we couldn’t prove it. Video would have saved us a lot of money, time and grief,” stated Marc Scibilla, director of safety and maintenance at Atlas. “In fact, shortly after our rollout, the context provided by SmartDrive—within minutes—enabled us to exonerate two drivers, clearly demonstrating the importance of having a video solution to safeguard our drivers and their livelihood.”

For private fleets in particular, protecting brand reputation is vital, and video-based safety offers the context and peace of mind safety managers need to reduce risk. Safety is paramount at Atlas, as are support for drivers and delivering outstanding service to customers. The company invests in best-in-class technology, including SmartDrive 360, which provides insight into the riskiest driving behaviors and helps ensure drivers follow standard operating procedures.

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“Atlas Transportation is another in a growing list of companies that recognize the value of video coupled with a managed service and turn to SmartDrive because of our demonstrated commitment to outstanding service, innovation and value,” noted Steve Mitgang, SmartDrive CEO. “Jeff, Marc and the whole Atlas team accelerated results with the decision to go straight to rollout, and it has already paid off in reduced risk and bottom line savings.”

Scibilla pointed out that the SmartDrive team was exceptionally responsive, delivering everything Atlas asked. Additionally, the SmartDrive fully managed service removes the burden of extensive video review from Atlas and ensures consistent, high-quality data, enabling fleet managers to focus on coaching to improve driver performance.

“One of our drivers was involved recently in a serious collision that was not his fault. Thanks to SmartDrive, we knew how to respond, who to get involved and what our next steps should be. Without that video, we would have had to let the driver go and it would have cost the company a lot of money,” added Bronson. “As a result of this one incident, we now have drivers asking us to install SmartDrive in their trucks. The value of video is priceless. In a world where you can’t control a lot, this is one thing you can control.”

Jeff Bronson is speaking at the National Private Truck Council’s (NPTC) annual conference, taking place April 14 through April 16 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Bronson will help prepare fleets to successfully make the case for video-based recording by highlighting the benefits of protecting drivers with personalized coaching insights proven to increase safe driving behaviors and exonerate drivers from false claims.

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