Service technician comfort
Service truck technicians don’t take a snow day; they get the job done no matter the conditions. Even in rain, heat, snow or freezing weather, service techs are on the jobsite completing repairs and maintenance.
Being able to duck into a cooled or heated truck cab to get a break from the elements helps keep technicians safe in harsh elements, and it’s a big factor in their comfort and productivity. Finding ways to maximize tech comfort on the jobsite can also help technician retention efforts for your organization. A temperature-regulated cab is easier on electronics, like laptops and tablets, that are so critical to helping technicians look up information and diagnose issues on the jobsite.
“I keep my truck running so that I can hop in the truck and cool down or get warm. There are days when it's so cold I can't handle it anymore, and I have to get in the truck to warm up so I can feel my fingers again and go back to work,” says Vernon Patrick, a service technician with Hoopaugh Grading. “And then other days it’s so hot and I’m out here sweating over a 400-degree engine, and I start getting dizzy. Then I need the air conditioning so I can grab some water and sit in the truck and cool down.”
The current options available for heating and cooling a service truck cab can drive up your fleet costs and impact a truck’s resale value if they involve cutting or modifying the cab. As a result, it can be a struggle to balance issues of technician comfort and safety with your goals of reducing idling and controlling costs.
If trucks in your fleet use a PTO system, the truck engine must run to provide power for tools and equipment as well as to heat or cool the cab. When trucks in your fleet use an all-in-one solution, this eliminates the need to idle the truck engine to power tools or equipment. But idling will still be required to heat or cool the truck cab. Other solutions may require costly cab modifications.
Learn more about how the limitations of current heating and cooling options force you to compromise.