Smith System Announces Nationwide DOT Compliance
Seminars to Address New Hours-of-Service Rule - Enforcement date of January 4, 2004, demands quick action to avoid
penalties - Arlington, TX – August 14, 2003—Smith
System, the leader in professional driver training, today announced a
nationwide series of seminars to help fleets meet the new U.S. Department
of Transportation (DOT) hours-of-service requirements that will be enforced
beginning January 4, 2004. The DOT Compliance Seminars will be held
in cities around the country from September through the end of the year.
In April 2003, the DOT announced the first substantial change to the hours-of-service
rules since 1939. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)
and its state enforcement partners have stated that they will be enforcing
the final rule. Carriers and their drivers need to quickly become familiar
with the new regulation and make any procedural changes necessary for
compliance.
“We recognize that this is a significant change for carriers. That
is why we initiated an interactive, hands-on seminar to specifically address
DOT compliance issues,” said Tony Douglas, president of Smith System.
“For more than 50 years, Smith System has been at the forefront
of driver training and serving commercial fleets, and this is an area
where we have significant expertise.”
In addition to the new rules, the Smith System DOT Compliance Seminars
will also update attendees on general DOT regulations and interpretations.
This includes accident reporting, recordkeeping, driver qualification,
alcohol and drug testing, CDL, driving rules and maintenance.
The seminar instructors will be Tony Douglas, president and CEO of Smith
System, and Jeff Simon, facility management consultant for Performa, Inc.
Douglas has more than 23 years experience in the transportation industry,
including VP of safety and risk management for North America’s largest
hauler of bulk hazardous materials. He has also presented DOT seminars
nationally.
Simon currently specializes in compliance engineering at Performa and
has more than 27 years of management experience with commercial fleets.
He has spent the last 13 years as a nationwide seminar presenter and is
a recognized national speaker on regulatory and safety topics.
The seminar fee is $229 for the first attendee, $199 for each additional,
with every third attendee free. For a full schedule of classes and
locations, or to enroll, call Smith System at 800-777-7648 or visit www.smith-system.com/dot.shtml
About Smith System
Smith System Driver Improvement Institute, Inc. was founded in 1952 as
the nation's first fleet driver safety training organization with on-road,
hands-on safety education techniques for experienced drivers. Smith System
delivers behind the wheel instruction to more than 15,000 fleet drivers
each year and has presented their program in 47 countries. In the past
decade, Smith has provided services to more than half of the current Fortune
500® fleets and is the only company in the industry that guarantees
the quality of their training. In addition to its on-road training and
extensive video and DVD library, the company offers web-based education
and fleet monitoring.
Media Contacts: Frank
Powers
Smith System
800-777-7648
