Expert Guidance for Meeting Trucking Industry Standard of Care

October 21, 2024

Valuable Real-World Expertise for the Trucking Industry

Safe trucking operations require strict regulatory compliance, including vehicle maintenance, driver training and certification, hours-of-service adherence, and proper cargo handling. These regulations require that companies implement and maintain robust safety protocols to minimize risks, prevent accidents, and ensure legal compliance.

Partnering with a transportation expert can help you identify gaps in these areas, improve operational safety, and reduce liability exposure. While many consultants offer transportation expertise from a background in law enforcement or regulatory compliance, this can often only be a part of the whole picture.

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The Rimkus Difference
The experts at Rimkus hold Class A CDL licenses and have real-world experience in the trucking industry, which means they can offer a wealth of knowledge in Department of Transportation (DOT) compliance, training, record-keeping, and safety.

We can assist with matters involving driver standard of care; driver hiring, qualifications, training, and retention; loading/unloading operations and procedures; forklift operations; loading dock operations; cargo securement, and longer combination vehicles (LCV) operation.

Our expertise also includes DOT, FMCSA, and OSHA compliance; driver hiring, retention, credentialing, and training; fleet maintenance; logistics; warehousing operations; and CMV driver hours of service, including the use and management of Electronic Logging Devices (ELDs).

Rimkus also offers a wealth of biomechanical expertise spanning a variety of industries and applications that may be crucial in understanding transportation matters, such as those involving injury accidents, disputes over who was driving, or questions about proper seat belt use. We can perform evaluations and reconstructions for low- to high-speed collisions to help our clients understand the facts about reported injuries and explain the mechanisms that caused them.

Meet the Trucking Standard of Care Experts
Desmond

James Desmond, C.D.S.
Principal Consultant
jdesmond@rimkus.com
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James Desmond is a transportation and trucking safety expert with more than 30 years of experience in the commercial trucking industry, including 12 years in senior safety and compliance leadership roles following nearly two million accident-free miles driven in 41 states over 20 years as a CMV driver.

He gained broad safety and regulatory compliance experience as a Regional Safety Manager for a global transportation provider, progressing into roles with increasing responsibility throughout his career. James has led efforts that resulted in a fleet safety award as well as positive outcomes in various federal and state regulatory reviews, including FMCSA, PHMSA, OSHA, and CHP. He has worked collaboratively and solely to develop safety process management tools, consulted on an electronic logging device (ELD) product design, and created custom training curriculum. James has also successfully designed and developed modern DOT compliance and safety programs for multiple companies.

Gonzalez

Ismael (Izzy) Gonzalez
Senior Consultant
izzy.gonzalez@rimkus.com
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Izzy Gonzalez is a trucking operations and management expert with more than 40 years of experience in the commercial transportation industry, including industrial logistics, warehouse operations, project management, and inventory control. He possesses broad safety and regulatory compliance knowledge and experience as a Commercial Motor Vehicle (CMV) owner/operator, a Terminal Manager for a nationally recognized 48-state less-than-truckload (LTL) motor carrier, and a Risk Manager.

Additionally, he launched an integrative fleet management program for a large parcel carrier as part of an acquisition/merger and has worked both collaboratively and independently to develop safety process management tools. Izzy completed an FMCSA New Carrier Entrant audit, securing a United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) number for the subject motor carrier.

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Connect with Us at TIDA 2024
The Trucking Industry Defense Association’s 32nd Annual Seminar is October 23-25 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. This seminar brings together professionals to learn and discuss issues affecting the trucking defense industry.

We’ll be attending to learn, share our expertise, and discuss how Rimkus consultants can be a valuable resource in resolving complex matters and providing solutions to tough problems. Stop by our booth to speak with:

  • James Desmond
    • Principal Transportation Consultant
  • Drew Edwards
    • Director, Business Development
  • Jeff Hickman
    • Human Factors Practice Leader

Want to connect before TIDA? Contact Drew Edwards at dedwards@rimkus.com.

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