Techs from TravelCenters of America dominated the Trailer Track competition, winning 12 of 15 awards announced.
Trailers get little enough attention in the real world, and this new focus gives them the respect they deserve. Trailers (and truck bodies) are where the payloads go, after all. READ MORE
Tags: Maintenance, Vehicle Maintenance, Trailers, TMC, TMC SuperTech
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Friday, September 23, 2016 12:59 PM | » Comments(1)
A new or existing task force might bring in trailer-builder and repair-shop representatives to speak to it.
How do you repair a lowboy trailer whose deck structure has lost its arc? That might deserve some scrutiny, the organization figures. READ MORE
Tags: Trailers, TMC, TMC SuperTech, Lowboy Trailers, Trailer Repairs
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Wednesday, September 21, 2016 6:32 AM | » Comments(1)
The company is exhibiting at the giant IAA truck show in Hannover, Germany, by sharing a booth with its battery supplier, Gentherm.
The Intelligent Electric Axle axle replaces a “passive” axle on a standard trailer tandem or tridem, and promises big fuel savings – 10 to 20% from hybrid-powered operation alone, Hyliion claims. READ MORE
Tags: Trailers, IAA, Fuel Economy, Europe, Hybrid Trucks, Hyliion
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Sunday, September 18, 2016 3:53 PM | » Comments(0)
Among seven categories of fuel-savings devices for over-the-road rigs, trailer aero devices had the lowest acceptance rate, about 21%.
It appears that it took a government decree to push operators into it, and it will take another set of rules to force further adoption of drag-reduction methods for trailers. READ MORE
Tags: Trailers, Fleet Study, Aerodynamics, NACFE, Trailer Aerodynamics
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Monday, September 12, 2016 8:30 AM | » Comments(0)
Box-type and vocational trailers are both affected in 2018-27 rules, and the U.S. is the first country in the world to regulate them.
Trailers have long been regulated for safety. But trailers’ contributions to fuel economy and reduced emissions are new matters for for federal authorities. READ MORE
Tags: Trailers, EPA, Fuel Economy, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, NHTSA
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Wednesday, August 24, 2016 1:53 PM | » Comments(2)
The electric-powered tandem captures braking energy that helps propel the trailer to reduce engine effort and thus save fuel.
Company execs say Initial assembly of fleet-test units will be later this year with full production a few months later. READ MORE
Tags: Alternative Fuels & Hybrids, Hybrids
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Friday, August 19, 2016 8:21 AM | » Comments(1)
Incredibly, she was not hurt at all because she was wearing her seat-and-shoulder belt. And we can hope she received a life's lesson.
A motorist doing some high-speed tailgating on an Interstate highway in Arizona loses control, bumps a semi and crashes big time. READ MORE
Tags: Seat Belts, Driving Safety, Tailgating
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Monday, August 8, 2016 5:30 AM | » Comments(3)
That explains why the rig turned left in front of the approaching car; the truck driver thought he had more time than there really was.
If Joshua Brown had been watching where his car was going, he’d have simply stepped on the brake pedal and probably avoided the crash. READ MORE
Tags: Driver Safety, Vehicle Safety, NTSB, Autonomous Vehicles, Tesla Motors
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Friday, July 29, 2016 11:30 AM | » Comments(3)
Now being developed for aircraft and cars, the concept has fuel-saving possibilities for tractor-trailers, its backers say.
Plasma, the stuff of lightning and the Northern Lights, can be harnessed to alter the flow of air over trucks. READ MORE
Tags: Trailers, Aerodynamics, P.S.I.
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Friday, July 22, 2016 8:15 AM | » Comments(0)
July is National Ice Cream Month. Act now or act soon to get special deals on this happy food. Of course it comes by truck.
Barry, a Ralphs driver, rejected a load because it was too warm. He was especially conscientious, but his action exemplifies care shown by workers all along the "cold chain." READ MORE
Tags: Reefers, Food and Beverage Fleets, Transport Refrigeration
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Sunday, July 17, 2016 12:01 AM | » Comments(0)
OWL and Giraffe gauge wires and bridges above, and could make poles obsolete, their makers say.
In many states, rigs carrying oversize loads are escorted by pilot cars, some of them equipped with poles to gauge overhead obstructions. There are better ways. READ MORE
Tags: Technology, Oversize Loads
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Wednesday, June 29, 2016 11:55 AM | » Comments(2)
Abe Samuels devised an easy way for carriers to display proper hazmat labels for many types of dangerous goods.
It was a challenge when a carrier transported a mixed load of various dangerous goods that needed to be identified. Today there are nine categories of hazards with 24 divisions among them. READ MORE
Tags: Hazardous Materials, Hazmat, Labelmaster
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Tuesday, June 21, 2016 9:08 AM | » Comments(1)
Jeffrey Soule perfected his Liftgate-Lok over months of designing and testing. Its bar "fought the Dok Lok to a tie," he declared.
Lift gates cannot mate to dock restraints because they lack attachment points for the hooks, so shippers won't load the trailers, until now. Tom Berg has the details in his Trailer Talk blog. READ MORE
Tags: Vehicle Safety, Lift Gates, Dock Restraints
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Monday, June 13, 2016 6:54 AM | » Comments(0)
Jim Fox, a manager at aviation-fuel-hauler Pinnacle Express, is a strong believer in disc brakes. This mechanic and million-mile former driver declares that drum brakes are "obsolete." Read more in Tom Berg's Trailer Talk blog. READ MORE
Tags: SAF-Holland, Liquid Tank Trailers, Air Disc Brakes
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Friday, June 10, 2016 7:41 AM | » Comments(0)
It seems amazing that the tractor stayed hanging there instead of breaking loose and falling onto the street below. But fifth wheels and trailer kingpins are very strong.
There are no federal government or SAE strength requirements, so standards were set by the marketplace, and now by European rules. READ MORE
Tags: Accidents, Trailers, Fifth Wheels
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Wednesday, June 1, 2016 10:49 AM | » Comments(0)
Air Tabs vortex generators and Laydon side skirts smooth air flow and make trailers easier to pull.
“All you have to do is ride a motorcycle behind the trailers to notice the difference” between aero and bare trailers, says John Drake, a Harley-Davidson enthusiast. Learn more in the Trailer Talk blog. READ MORE
Tags: Aerodynamics, Fuel Economy, Trailer Skirts
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Tuesday, May 24, 2016 1:18 PM | » Comments(2)
Did you see that scrap-hauling rig tipping over on the Tappan Zee Bridge over the Hudson River last Friday?
Did you see that scrap-hauling rig tipping over on the Tappan Zee Bridge over the Hudson River last Friday? The rear axle broke loose and the trailer lost its footing. What a Friday-the-13th happening! READ MORE
Tags: Equipment Issues, Safety & Compliance, Dump Trailers, Accidents
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Wednesday, May 18, 2016 6:34 PM | » Comments(0)
Was a "beta-test" version of the advanced electric car's control software to blame?
Rear-underride collisions upset safety advocates because they badly hurt auto drivers and passengers. What about a front-underride incident with no driver and no injuries? READ MORE
Tags: Underride Guard, Underride, Driver Safety, Vehicle Safety
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Thursday, May 12, 2016 11:55 AM | » Comments(3)
Enthusiasts invited to event honoring the long-gone company and its people.
Ruth Fruehauf continues her "Singing Wheels" efforts to preserve the trailer builder's history. Enthusiasts are invited to the event, honoring the long-gone company and its people. READ MORE
Tags: Trailers, Trucking History, Fruehauf
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Thursday, May 5, 2016 9:39 AM | » Comments(2)
Bottled water rides in trailers, and the shipper wants them all shipshape.
Senior Editor Tom Berg braves the cold and freezing moisture to watch inspectors check equipment important to this transportation segment. READ MORE
Tags: Vehicle Safety, Fleet Safety, Inspections
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Tuesday, April 26, 2016 6:06 PM | » Comments(0)
In any display of lowboy and other heavy-haul trailers, the dominant color is black. And there are two reasons, says the president of Rogers Brothers Corp.
"You spray one coat of paint over a checkerboard test panel and if you see the checkerboard underneath, you need to spray another coat. With black, it’ll cover in one coat." READ MORE
Tags: Vehicle Paint, Paint, Rogers Trailers
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Wednesday, April 20, 2016 6:52 PM | » Comments(0)
"They track better when the axle’s up,” the driver said. “And they turn corners easier.”
On the road last month, Senior Editor Tom Berg spotted a pneumatic tanker trailer with some non-traditional features. He shares some insight from the driver in his latest Trailer Talk blog. READ MORE
Tags: Driver Safety, Fuel Economy, Mac Trailer, Lift Axle, Tire Inflation
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Thursday, April 7, 2016 7:20 AM | » Comments(3)
A park commemorates a verse from the '70s Eagles' tune, and it's been drawing tourists since the late '90s.
It wouldn't be complete without the F-500 stakeside, of course, and that's the first thing I went to. READ MORE
Tags: Truck Bodies, Ford, Arizona
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Monday, March 28, 2016 3:00 PM | » Comments(2)
Arkansas initiative aims to convince students, parents and school counselors that training for skilled jobs is as worthwhile as going to a four-year college.
Among the many job openings a new program in Arkansas seeks to fill are truck driving and truck technicians. Tom Berg has the details from TMC in his Trailer Talk blog. READ MORE
Tags: Training, Arkansas, Technician Training, Arkansas Trucking Association
Author: Tom Berg | Posted @ Thursday, March 10, 2016 9:33 AM | » Comments(0)