John Deere’s Canadian fleet and Linde Canada have been named the safest private fleets. Linde was previously known as Praxair Canada, but took on the name change in March to align with its parent company’s global branding.

The Private Fleet Safety Awards were given out during the Private Motor Truck Council of Canada’s (PMTC) virtual annual conference June 17.

John Deere Canada won the award in the medium-sized fleet category. It operates 60 power units and 190 trailers, operated by 75 employees. Drivers are supplied by CPC Logistics. John Deere has a CVOR violation rate of 10.14% and was been involved in 0.93 incidents per million kilometers last year.

Its hiring process includes reference checks, abstract submissions, a pre-employment medical, written and road test and drug testing. The fleet conducts a full investigation into every incident, including written reports, interviews and remedial training.

It uses telematics to track hours-of-service, fuel consumption, speed, sudden stops and on-time delivery performance and has seen significant improvements, according to the fleet.

Linde Canada has 433 drivers operating 384 tractors and 218 straight trucks. Last year it ran more than 31 million kilometers. New hires are put through an 80-hour in-class program, which they must repeat every three years.

Drivers are trained on product handling, defensive driving, and sleep management. They’re required to pass a self-assessment at the beginning of every shift to ensure they’re fit for duty. Drivers receive a ring after a million miles of safe driving and diamonds to go into the ring at subsequent milestones.

Linde Canada had a CVOR violation rate of 15.27% and recorded less than two accidents per million kilometers. Jim Dimech oversees the fleet and credited the drivers for the award.

“In the last year, when many times the world around them stopped, our drivers – like many of us in the industry – kept our supply chains moving,” he said upon accepting the award. “With the backdrop of Covid, safety became even more critical. Our fleet remained outbreak-free while delivering oxygen to hospitals and carbon dioxide for vaccination efforts.”

“The process of applying for one of these awards provides a checklist for fleet managers to see what the best-in-class fleets are doing to maintain their safety programs. Even if you do not believe you will win an award, there is an immense benefit to going through the process of entering,” said PMTC president Mike Millian.