Fleet Maintenance - 20

How fleet technicians
can access dealershiplevel repair information
Since Right to Repair, more OEM
information is available to the
aftermarket than ever before.
Given the increasing complexity of today's
commercial vehicles, fleet technicians need
access to the same repair information that
dealership technicians have access to. In
general, they do have the access they need,
but it is important they know what steps to
take if they ever encounter any roadblocks.
"As detailed in the Right to Repair Law in
Massachusetts and the national memorandum of
understanding, information such as service bulletins, build sheets, and diagnostics codes available
to dealerships are required to be provided by the
OEMs," says Holly Wolfe, managing director of the
National Automotive Service Task Force (NASTF).
"All too often, vehicle manufacturers are not providing the complete information necessary under
the Right to Repair Law," says Sheila Andrews,
a heavy duty expert and longtime advocate
for the automotive aftermarket industry. "This
might include current engine diagnostic information or other up-to-date system information.
Furthermore, some manufacturers make it
difficult for technicians at fleets and independent
shops to locate their service information websites
and go through proper channels to obtain subscriptions to repair and diagnostics information."
Fleet technicians sometimes have to get resourceful. That can mean relying on a vendor or other
colleague with significant parts expertise, and
sometimes that means relying on a local dealer.
"In other instances, technicians can look to
scan tool manufacturers that have been
able to backward-engineer their devices
to help fill in the blanks," Andrews says.
No matter how resourceful a technician might be,
information gaps will sometimes persist. To help
close those gaps, NASTF has assembled links to
the OEMs' available service sites. Additionally,
NASTF has created a means by which fleets
and technicians can request information:
File a Service Information Request
(SIR) through NASTF if a manufacturer hasn't responded to a request. "The
more detailed the SIR is, the faster NASTF
can use its network of industry professionals to get a response," Wolfe says.
File a complaint with NASTF if there still is
no response, which initiates a dispute resolution process. "The manufacturer is brought
into a resolution panel with aftermarket and
other industry experts to have the information
provided to technicians and shops through its
service information website," Wolfe explains.
While Right to Repair dictates that OEMs
should provide the same information to
third parties that they do to their dealerships, it is still important to know the steps
to take if the information is not available.

20 Fleet Maintenance | August 2020

"Identifying a fault code is not enough,"
Gattamorta continues. "You need to know what
it looks like, where it's at, what the voltage or
resistance levels are, and how it is wired to the
ECM (engine control module). You probably even
need a step-by-step procedure on how to change a
component. You could spend a lot of time searching on Google, or maybe call a friend or dealer
you work with. In essence, the more you know,
the less you need."

»Cojali's Jaltest INFO Online provides a
vast array of technical information through
different modules. One such module includes
component replacement guides. Shown here
is a replacement guide for an aftertreatment
fuel injector on a Detroit Diesel engine.
Image courtesy of Cojali USA

Connecting diagnostic
insights to repair guidance
Time and money are two common challenges a
fleet faces in obtaining all of the necessary repair
information its technicians need. Looking to a
resource that compiles as much of the information as possible can be the only practical solution.
In the case of Cojali, Jaltest is the company's
all-makes all-models diagnostic tool. Jaltest INFO
Online is the complement to that tool.
"Most of the information provided by Jaltest
INFO Online is purchased from OEMs that are
forced to sell due to Right to Repair," Gattamorta
points out. "This allows a process of understanding
and information integration. But without the thousands of users we have, it would be nearly impossible to maintain. An independent shop sometimes
doesn't have access to purchase certain things.
If it does, it isn't cheap. Buying it all and using it
without a company that acts as an integrator is
probably not a good idea."
Jaltest INFO Online provides a vast array of
technical information through different modules,
including component descriptions and replacement guides, wiring diagrams, fault code troubleshooting guides, and service bulletins.
"We need to remember that we are an industry
of technicians, not computer masters," Gattamorta
says. "If we complicate things in different platforms
and work logics, we just drive everyone crazy. That's
why we integrate diagnostics and technical information in one format and one platform."
When it comes to arming Transervice's technicians with the repair information they need,
Fontana agrees that the first step is vehicle
performance data. There are many solutions out
there from OEMs, such as PACCAR Solutions and

»At Transervice, technicians helped
conceptualize and build customized
mobile carts that help bring online repair
information into the service bay. Productivityboosting features include wireless battery
power and a large viewing screen.
Photo courtesy of Transervice

International's Diamond Logic Builder. That list gets
really long, however, once a fleet identifies all of
the truck brands and systems its technicians have
to work on. For Transervice, the ability to service
mixed fleets requires a good telematics data consolidator that delivers data on all makes and models.
"We use Noregon," Fontana relates. "There are
other good products on the market and we are
always looking, but Noregon has been very good.
We get access to not only all of the major truck
manufacturers, but also systems like Cummins
engines and Eaton transmissions. Noregon is our
one source for everything we need to know, including service bulletins, recalls, schematics, and so on."

Fleet Maintenance

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