The NTSB sometimes offers companies a role in an investigation when it can provide technical assistance to the agency and Tesla was offered and accepted the role in the investigation of the March 23 incident. The crash involved a Model X that was traveling near Mountain View, Calif., with the vehicle’s semi-autonomous autopilot system engaged.

There was some back and forth between Tesla and the NTSB on why the electric car maker was removed from the investigation and whether it had chosen to leave or not. Tesla initially claimed that it decided to leave the investigation because the NTSB wasn't allowing the company to release information about the investigation to the public. But in a statement released April 12, the NTSB said that Tesla was, in fact, involuntarily removed because it decided to release information without running it by the agency first.

It was reported in early April that NTSB investigators were not happy with Tesla for releasing information on the crash. Tesla publicly stated that the autopilot system had been engaged with the minimum follow distance set. The company indicated that with minimum follow distances that drivers needed to be attentive to the road and ready to intervene with hands on the steering wheel. It was revealed that the driver in the March 23 crash, who was killed when the car slammed into a highway barrier, was not acting according to its recommendations when the accident occurred.

The NTSB asks parties that are involved in crash investigations to vet released data before releasing it to the public because the information may be incomplete and can lead to speculation and incorrect assumptions about the probable cause of a crash. The incomplete information can hurt the investigation process and does a disservice to the public, according to the agency.

“It is unfortunate that Tesla, by its actions, did not abide by the party agreement,” said Robert Sumwalt, NTSB chairman. “We decided to revoke Tesla’s party status and informed Mr. Musk in a phone call last evening and via letter today. While we understand the demand for information that parties face during an NTSB investigation, uncoordinated releases of incomplete information do not further transportation safety or serve the public interest.”

Despite no longer being an official part of the investigation, Tesla will still be required to cooperate with requests for information from the NTSB during the investigation because it is the manufacturer of the vehicle involved in the crash.

This is not the first time that the NTSB has removed a party from an investigation. In 2009, the NTSB removed the National Air Traffic Controllers Association from the investigation into a mid-air collision in New York. It also revoked the party status of both the Independent Pilots Association and UPS during an investigation into the crash of a UPS flight in Alabama in 2014.

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The UCL41 Series Scene Light uses 12 diodes and advanced optical engineering to focus its optimal beam pattern and is the first in a new style of directional scene lighting from Optronics.

Optronics’ UCL41 Series Scene Light is engineered to deliver an intense white LED beam pattern at a 45-degree angle to its mounting position. The lamp enables OEMs, bodybuilders and end users to determine the size and shape of the scene they prefer to illuminate. Mounting the lamp higher creates a larger scene, while mounting it lower creates a smaller scene, and the lamps can be rotated before mounting to deliver light that is oriented to a vehicle’s front, rear and sides.

The low-profile surface-mount lamp is simple to install and requires only two mounting fasteners. Once the UCL41 is secured, a black- or chrome-coated plastic bezel snaps into position, giving the lamp a clean finished appearance.

The UCL41 Series Scene Light accommodates both 12- and 24-volt electrical systems and is IP67 rated. The lamp comes complete with a 6-inch hard-wired lead and ground wires and requires only a three-quarter-inch hole for the wire feed. The lamp measures just 8.7 inches in width and 2.95 inches in height. The lamp is 1.59 inches thick when installed, including its mounting plate and bezel. In order to maintain the lamp’s low profile, the UCL41’s lens is designed with a 15-degree angle, relying on its advanced optical design to enable the lamp to cast its unique 45-degree beam pattern.

“The UCL41 Series Scene Light is a highly versatile and competitively priced alternative to current scene light offerings,” said Johnson. “With its unique precision optics, the UCL41 is a new low-cost, high-value option for work trucks, emergency, fire and rescue applications, as well as recreational vehicles.”

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The Fontaine H7 is rated up to 70,000 pounds vertical load, a drawbar pull rating up to 200,000 pounds and has the option of being blocked (no-tilt) from the factory. The H7 is suited for logging, heavy haul, oil field, mining and other severe-duty applications.

Like the 7000 Series, the H7 features a cast steel housing and the Fontaine No-Slack locking system with a trigger-activated self-adjusting locking mechanism. The fifth wheel lock self-adjusts in order to accommodate for wear and for variations in kingpin geometry.

It is designed to give drivers get a snug, secure connection as they move from trailer to trailer. The design also reduces shock inputs into the frame when braking and accelerating, leading to a smoother ride and longer-lasting components for lower maintenance costs.

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President Donald Trump took time from his busy schedule Thursday to promote recent changes to the tax code passed by Congress last December in a speech in the Rose Garden. He had the help of "everyday" Americans, including two from the trucking industry.

The move comes on the heels of reports that the tax plan has not been as popular with Americans as Republicans have hoped and a recent Congressional Budget Office assessment that it will balloon the U.S. deficit to $1 trillion by next year.

To bolster his argument that the tax plan is indeed improving the lives of both American workers and businesses, the president invited several “everyday” Americans to speak about how they have benefited in their personal and professional lives.

Executives and employees from Werner Enterprises, Crete Carrier Corp., and TCW were in attendance to share how the tax cuts have enabled the carriers to increase employee compensation, invest in new equipment, and expand operations.

TCW was represented by President Dave Manning, chairman of the American Trucking Associations, and driver David Livingston; Werner was represented by President and CEO Derek Leathers and driver Quinton Ward, driver Marvin Fielder, and associate Kathryn Oswald; and Crete was represented by CEO and Chairman Tonn Ostergard, Vice Chair Holly Ostergard, and driver Jeff Tetzloff. 

Leathers told attendees that recent changes to the tax code have allowed the Omaha, Nebraska-based Werner to invest more than $127 million in new, clean and environmentally friendly trucks and trailers. Additionally, Leathers noted, Werner has been able to invest in its driver corps in the form of pay raises and bonuses, which he said have averaged out to $2,400 per driver since December.

“Mr. President,” Leathers said, “I just want to thank you for your hard work to invest and free up the American economy, our businesses, and the men and women who make it happen.”

Leathers introduced Werner Operation Freedom driver Quinten Ward to speak about how the tax cut has benefited him and his family and allowed them to take a long-sought vacation to Florida.

“It’s such an honor to be here today,” Ward said in his remarks. “This president understands that government doesn’t create jobs. Businesses and people do. The tax reform law puts money back in my pocket. It has a direct impact on me. After leaving the military, I was looking for a good-paying career. And the trucking industry aggressively hires veterans – especially Werner. And when I had the opportunity to work for the Operation Freedom fleet, which emphasizes the hiring of military veterans, I was beside myself. It was a dream come true. Mr. President, you care about truck drivers. And we see that. We cover this country and haul freight that keeps America moving every day. Thank you so much for fighting for us.”

As he shook Ward’s hand, the president remarked, “And as importantly, the roads are getting a lot better, have you noticed? The roads are getting a lot better. The truckers were not too happy with the roads. But they’re getting a lot better.”

ATA Says Trucking's Voices Are Heard

The three fleets are all members of the American Trucking Associations.

“Putting truckers in a position to have their voices heard on important issues is a critical part of what we do at ATA,” said ATA President and CEO Chris Spear.

ATA was a strong advocate for the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and hosted President Trump in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, at an event in October 2017 to rally support behind tax reform.  A January 2018 survey of ATA member companies revealed that 50% of carriers were planning to increase wages or offer bonuses as a result of tax reform, and 47% were planning to invest their tax cuts in new equipment, including trucks, trailers and safety technology.

“ATA championed for these tax cuts because, as truckers, we knew full well how they would boost not only our industry, but the larger economy too,” said Manning. “We’re only a few months into them becoming law, yet we can already see their effects in our operations and in a growing economy.”

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XPO Logistics has introduced a cloud-based freight marketplace called XPO Connect that is designed to give shippers visibility across freight modes to improve the efficiency of the supply chain.

Through XPO Connect shippers are able to access business intelligence that can help them to purchase transportation more efficiently. For example, they are able to see fluctuations in capacity, spot rates, and load postings by geography. Shippers can also access carrier capacity, assign loads and track freight movements, using a single login to the XPO Connect platform.

The XPO Connect platform is able to integrate all modes of transportation as well, allowing shippers to have a broader view of the freight marketplace.

“We’re tireless when it comes to finding new ways to make supply chains more efficient,” said Mario Harik, chief information officer. “XPO Connect gives customers direct access to our transportation network and the predictive data that powers it. The platform provides a new level of visibility that informs better decision-making under all market conditions.”

XPO has been investing heavily in technology annually in order to develop technology systems and mobile applications including the company’s Freight Optimizer brokerage system, Drive XPO mobile capabilities for carriers, Ship XPO tools for e-commerce, and its WMx warehouse management platform.

“We’re leveraging our leading positions across the supply chain to help companies transform how they do business,” said Troy Cooper, chief operating officer of XPO Logistics. “The investments we’re making in disruptive technology will change the game in transportation and logistics. XPO Connect gives our customers industry-first access to each new capability.”

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Roush CleanTech designs, engineers, manufactures and installs propane autogas fuel systems for Ford commercial vehicles and Blue Bird school buses. Propane autogas helps fleet operators lower costs and reduce harmful emissions of their fleets.

BSquare is focused on delivering business improvement through Industrial IoT. They provide IoT applications, service, and a platform focused on the transportation industry. Created for the business user, BSquare's DataV helps turn device and vehicle data into smarter operational decisions.

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Nikola has tasked Schneider with spearheading efforts with the Fuel Cell R&D division working with Bosch in Germany and the hydrogen fueling technology team for the Nikola stations with NEL Hydrogen in Norway. He will also lead the development of the Nikola R&D Center in Phoenix, Ariz.

Schneider spent most of his 20-year career working for BMW and Mercedes-Benz and was noted by Nikola as a hydrogen and fuel cell expert. He worked in vehicle electrification, fuel cells, electric and hydrogen infrastructure, and tanks at automakers around the globe.

Schneider was also instrumental in the worldwide standardization for electric and fuel cell vehicle infrastructure, serving as the chair of Hydrogen Fueling Standards and Specifications at SAE and ISO and most recently, wireless charging at SAE.

“As we prepare for production testing, durability and manufacturing, it was necessary to hire one of the top fuel cell pioneers in the world,” said Trevor Milton, Nikola Motors chief executive officer.  “We are excited to introduce industry veterans into our company structure to help prepare for the manufacturing rollout.”

Nikola is currently completing a 150,000 square-foot R&D facility in Phoenix that the company will relocate to by Aug. 2018. It also has plans for a 1 million square-foot assembly plant in Buckeye, Ariz., just outside of Phoenix.

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The rapidly expanding world of electric trucks has a new player with an established reputation: Volvo has introduced its first all-electric truck for commercial use in Europe. The new Volvo FL Electric is designed for urban distribution and refuse operations, among other applications.

The first trucks in the Volvo FL Electric range are now entering regular operation with customers in Gothenburg, Sweden, home of Volvo Trucks. Sales and series production of the new model are slated to begin in Europe next year. The first two Volvo FL Electric trucks will be operated by refuse collection and recycling company Renova and haulage firm TGM.

According to Volvo, the FL Electric is a fully electrically-powered truck for distribution, refuse collection and other applications in urban conditions, with a GVW of 16 tons. Additional features include:

• A driveline comprised of a 185 kW electric motor: max power/130 kW continuous output, two speed transmission, propeller shaft, rear axle. Max torque electric motor 425 Nm. Max torque rear axle 16 kNm.
• Energy storage: 2-6 lithium-ion batteries, totalling 100–300 kWh.
• Range: Up to 300 km (186 miles).
• Charging: AC charging via the mains grid (22 kW) or DC fast charge via CCS/Combo2 for up to 150 kW.
• Recharging time: From empty to fully charged batteries: fast charge 1-2 hours (DC charging), night charge up to 10 hours (AC charging) with maximum battery capacity of 300 kWh.

“We’re immensely proud to present the first in a range of fully electrically-powered Volvo trucks ready for regular traffic,” said Claes Nilsson, president Volvo Trucks. “With this model we are making it possible for cities that aim for sustainable urban development to benefit from the advantages of electrified truck transports,”

“In order to make the transition secure and smooth, we will offer holistic solutions based on each customer’s individual needs regarding driving cycles, load capacity, uptime, range and other parameters,” added Jonas Odermalm, head of product strategy Volvo FL and Volvo FE at Volvo Trucks. “Such a solution may encompass everything from route analysis and battery optimisation to servicing and financing. Volvo Trucks works closely with several suppliers of charging equipment. The aim as always is to offer customers high uptime and productivity,”

Backing the Volvo Trucks offer is the Volvo Group’s accumulated expertise in electrified transport solutions, the company said in a press release, noting that sister company Volvo Buses has sold more than 4000 electrified buses since 2010. Volvo said that the technology used for propulsion and energy storage in the Volvo FL Electric has been thoroughly tried and tested from the outset and is supported by Volvo Trucks’ network for sales, service and parts supply.

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Going it alone is an increasingly tough proposition for OEMs in today’s hyper-competitive automotive industry. That fact, based on what the companies call their “common ideas,” have led Hino Motors and Volkswagen Truck & Bus to sign a long-term strategic partnership agreement that aims to “further explore each other’s capabilities to cooperate in logistics and traffic solution research, existing and new technologies as well as in procurement.”

According to Hino's announcement of the partnership, “the evaluation of technology cooperation will focus on conventional powertrains, hybrid and electric powertrains, as well as connectivity and autonomous driving systems. Both partners aim to enhance their respective market positions in the global transportation business and will jointly develop innovative technologies to offer customers the highest value. “

The two companies have set up a Joint Alliance Board based on the agreement to discuss the direction of the long-term and eye-level partnership. According to Hino, the Alliance Board will pursue a “pragmatic approach with a lean organization and balanced rights for both companies that remain independent.” The board comprises chief executive officers from both companies as well as additional senior management representatives.

Among other things, the Alliance Board will explore and evaluate cooperation in existing technologies, with an eye toward determining whether there is room for jointly utilizing conventional powertrains, to offer better products for customers. Furthermore, according to Hino, it will also evaluate initiatives for future transportation technologies.

“This agreement was made possible because Hino Motors and Volkswagen Truck & Bus respect each other and share the same aspiration to offer customers the highest value,” Yoshio Shimo, president and CEO of Hino Motors, said of the agreement. “Hino Motors invented the company slogan ‘Trucks and Busses that do more’. To do justice to that, Hino Motors will pursue regional business cooperation and joint utilization of technologies with Volkswagen Truck and Bus to offer customers better products and ultimately customized total support. It will also be a strong tie-up at times of new challenges in the field of transportation due to the rapid growth of e-commerce.”

Andreas Renschler, member of the board of management of Volkswagen AG and CEO of Volkswagen Truck & Bus, said, “We are delighted to enter into the SCFA with Hino Motors as we are teaming up with one of the leading truck and bus companies, whose presence is especially strong in Asia. It is an excellent fit in terms of regional footprints and products, but also concerning common ideas on how to shape the future of transportation together. The cooperation with Hino Motors will also contribute to our strategy to become Global Champion in the transportation industry by providing the highest value to our customers.”

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It’s said that dead men tell no tales. Dead tires, however, sure do. Ignore them, and you do so at your expense. Since tires rarely self-destruct, there is always a smoking gun, and it’s in your best interest to find it. You do that through failure analysis.

An expert can tell at a glance what’s happening to a tire, often by just looking at it or rubbing a hand over the tread face. Tire wear, you see, isn’t the tire’s fault. There’s something wrong with the truck that’s aggravating the situation. You must fix that to arrest the tire wear. So where do you start?

If you do not have the luxury of an in-house expert, a service provider can probably help. Jeff Lecklider, president of Gem City Tire in Dayton, Ohio, performs that service for dozens of fleet customers.

“We work with the customer to help them to reduce their tire costs, and we usually start with a fleet survey,” he says. “We’ll give them a baseline of the condition of their fleet, including tread depth, air pressure, any tire conditions, irregular wear, flat tires, etc., and then we recommend a course of action. We do this regularly so we can spot problems as soon as they become visible.”

Various mechanical problems leave telltale signs on tires. Take cupping and scalloped wear on a steer tire. That’s usually caused by some non-uniformity in the tire/wheel assembly, such as non-concentric mounting or a moderate to severe out-of-balance condition. Feathered wear on a steer tire is another easy one – it’s a sign of misalignment. But which misalignment condition? Here you might need to dig a little deeper. It could be an excessive toe-in condition. It could be drive axle misalignment creating a side thrust. Or it could be a bent tie rod.

“Tires are symptomatic,” says tire expert and semi-retired consultant Asa Sharp. “There are a variety of other things on the truck that cause the wear. For that reason, it’s very important to conduct a thorough out-of-service analysis when the tire comes off the truck, or if you’re smart about it, during the regular fleet tire surveys — before the tires hit the scrap pile.”

During, after, and before

It obviously makes sense to monitor in-service tire performance, watching for irregular wear and mechanically induced damage, but tracking wear and using that insight for future tire purchases really pays off. Tire tracking can be tedious, but it is getting easier. Most maintenance software platforms enable tire tracking, and some of the tire pressure monitoring systems offer the ability to self-populate those databases.

“On top of providing real-time tire pressure and temperature readings and alert schedules, we’re also able to provide fleets with historical performance data to unlock tire performance trends,” says Vanessa Hargrave, CMO of Advantage PressurePro. “We’re now able to help fleets move their tire maintenance programs from reactive to proactive.”

When Kirk Altrichter was vice president of maintenance at Crete Carrier Corp. (he’s now vice president of fleet services at Kenan Advantage Group), he participated in a Tire Benchmarking panel discussion at a TMC meeting where he revealed some of the benefits of a diligent tracking program.

“With my supplier, we have been watching which tires fail at what wheel positions,” he said. “It was interesting but not unexpected that the right rear outer trailer was the most failure-prone position. We also found an unexpectedly high number of failures of the left rear inner tires.

“It’s all about trying to take cost out by identifying problems before they occur on the road. For the past several years we have tried to ensure we have the right tire at the right wheel position,” he added.

If staying on top of your tires while they are still on the truck is too tall an order, there is always the fleet yard survey, or as a last resort, an objective study of your tire scrap pile. It’s too late for that tire once it hits the scrap pile, but if you kept a record of what truck and wheel position it came from, you can still glean some insight from it.

“You’re conducting a post-mortem of sorts,” Sharp says. “It’s easy to determine what happened to the tire. Even if you can’t make that determination yourself, your vendor or the TMC Tire Condition guides can help. Every type of calamity to befall a tire leaves a fingerprint.”

Most regrettable are tires that go missing in action. Their story is likely to remain untold unless the roadside repair service can determine the cause of the failure or get the carcass back to you. It’s estimated that about 80% of on-road tire failures not caused by a road hazard are the result of creeping air loss, or under-inflation. Keeping those tires properly inflated would likely have saved them.

FleetNet America recently produced a maintenance benchmarking report demonstrating the difference in various maintenance practices. In the tire category, for example, results of their collected data showed that the average fleet in the survey experienced on-road tire repair/replacement events every 35,166 miles. The worst-in-class fleet put in a service call every 34,438 miles. Astonishingly, the best-in-class fleet in the reporting group saw a service call frequency at half the rate of the worst fleet, with an event occurring only once every 71,238 miles. Those are averages, of course, but it shows pretty clearly that a bit of tire maintenance can go a really long way.  

That fleet, and those like it, probably pay a lot more attention to their tires before and during their service life, rather than after.

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Most dump trucks and trailers look rather workaday, engaged as they are in an inherently dirty business. Not so with the colorful and meaningful graphics on rigs operated by Mike’s Trucking, headquartered at West Jefferson in central Ohio. 

Mike Culbertson, founder of the materials-hauling fleet, identifies his company with a snappy pink, teal, and white logo, and in the last 10 years has applied advertising and theme designs to some of his aluminum dump trailers and truck bodies.

“I’ve done a flowing American flag, a POW-MIA, autism [awareness], and the fight for a breast cancer cure,” Culbertson says. That message adorns a Vantage end-dump trailer decorated with a big “Find The Cure” pink ribbon on either side. A recently acquired dump truck sports multiple pink ribbons for the anti-cancer campaign. Cabs on the Kenworth tractor and Peterbilt truck chassis are painted bright pink. Other trailers carry ads for a group of auto outlets, a farm and garden implement dealer, and a radio station.

After the cost of producing and applying the wraps, the commercial ads produce monthly revenue that goes to his company’s bottom line. The radio station gives him reduced rates for his own commercials promoting his trucking service. The theme work he did out of patriotism and to support research efforts to find cures for the afflictions. Several female friends have had breast cancer.

Route 40 Signs in Springfield collaborates on the designs, then produces and applies the vinyl wraps, according to Ryan Lee, a principal at the business. Mike’s Trucking has been a regular customer for about five years, so gets a discount from the usual $2,000 to $3,000 price for printing and installing a wrap. Application takes about a day, and they can later be quickly removed and surfaces prepared for newer vinyl graphics.  

Culbertson has 50 late-model power units and 60 trailers, and brokers loads for 15 owner-operators. He credits three children who are now involved in the business and “many good employees” for the company’s prosperity.

Mike still drives on occasion — “I love it” — but looking back at his 33 years in business, he summed up another key to success: “I have worked very, very hard, and when I work, I go, go, go.”

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Bill Ziegler, president of Ziegler Tire & Supply Co., says bluntly: “Tier 4 tires are slowly killing the retread business.” Retread sales were flat in 2017 versus 2016 for the Massillon, Ohio, based company. Ziegler says to be more competitive requires an increase in volume to spread costs over more units. “We are trying to sell more retreads and casings versus selling Tier 4 new tires.”

At Wonderland Tire Co. Inc., retreading made up 40% of company-wide sales in 2017. “Our units were up about 4% over 2016 but this was mainly due to two acquisitions that we made in June of 2017,” says Jon Langerak, president.

“Pricing is very competitive in the retreading sector, and we see this trend continuing because of the cheap disposable Chinese truck tires being dumped into the United States.”

Retreading volumes have declined year over year at Eastern Iowa Tire Inc. as well.  “In our area of the country the first quarter is always slow,” says Gary Van Blaricom, president and CEO. However, 2017’s first quarter was very good for Eastern Iowa Tire, making comparisons to 2018’s first quarter challenging for the Davenport, Iowa-based company, which has five plants.

Van Blaricom attributes some of the loss to original equipment purchases made by his retreading customers. Tier 4 tires are responsible, too. “Cheap Chinese import tires have greatly affected retreading. When you consider that the price of a cap and casing is about the same price as what you can sell a Tier 4 Chinese tire for, most customers are probably going to go with the new tire and just throw the casing away.” To help boost retread sales, the company has incentivized its salespeople on retreading this year in addition to their normal commission programs. Van Blaricom also notes that Bandag has come out with some programs which have “helped us a considerable amount.”

Casing crunch causes concern

The volume of low-cost Chinese imports declined briefly last year, according to Brad Raben, vice president of commercial sales at Raben Tire Co. LLC of Evansville, Indiana. But when the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) voted to not levy duties on Chinese truck and bus tires in March 2017, the flow of imports resumed.

“I don’t think there’s any relief in the near future,” he says. “It’s a concern that retreading is falling to the Chinese tires, but the real surprise this year is casings.” In contrast to a few years ago when medium truck tire casings were in short supply, this year they are plentiful.

“Is there less demand for retreading or are we just kind of caught up on a cycle?” wonders Raben. “We were hoping lower prices with casings would make us more competitive with Chinese tires, but it seems like retreading is flat.”

In contrast, casings are in short supply for retreaders of off-the-road tires. Jim John Jr. is president of Craft Tire Inc., which does business as Shrader Retreading in Uniontown, Pennsylvania. He says there’s a possibility of a slight shortage on some OTR tire sizes.

“It does appear that some sizes, specifically larger sizes then moving down to the smaller sizes, may be short in the middle of 2018,” he says.

Retreaders could step in to make up for a shortage of replacement OTR tires, but the availability of quality retreadable casings is a concern, according to John. Conversely, short supply of quality major brand casings along with increased retread rubber and material costs will continue to make competition against Tier 3 new tires difficult on smaller OTR sizes.

“When the tire shortage ended and pricing fell in 2015 and 2016, folks just started running tires to destruction,” says John. Equipment operators purchased low-cost Tier 3 tires that were not as retreadable as Tier 1 and Tier 2 tires. “Running the major brands to destruction as opposed to retreading them and incorporating off-brand third tier tires is really going to put a strain on quality casing supply.”

Today, Hickman says, his employees are pushing the value of products and services to their customers, and he agrees with John’s assessment of the casing situation today. “Finding good quality casings is becoming more difficult,” Hickman says. “We’re expanding our buying market to compensate.”

Retreading represents approximately 50% of annual sales at BestDrive LLC. The Continental Tire Americas LLC subsidiary says that is the same mix as prior years, and overall sales have increased. “In terms of making our products more competitive, we are seeing increased demand for retread tires that ‘look like new, run like new,’ and that’s the promise of the ContiTread brand,” says Steve Postel, Continental’s head of retail for commercial vehicle tires in the Americas region and head of BestDrive.

“Many of the tread patterns and rubber compounds match what is used in a new Continental tire, which helps our customers feel confident that they can rely on their ContiTread retreads. Continental has also been offering a cap and casing promotion this year that is making the prices even more competitive,” says Postel. He adds the company is focused on increasing its distribution network to make ContiTread premium retreads available to more fleets across the U.S.

 Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations LLC, which does business as GCR Tires & Service, operates 26 plants, three less than last year and has introduced two Bandag-exclusive equipment innovations designed to improve non-destructive inspection to assure curing system integrity. Additionally, Bridgestone launched a “Bandag Built for Better” campaign aimed at educating fleet customers on the merits of retreading.

Commercial tire market realigns

As more Chinese tires enter the U.S. commercial tire market, both Tier 1 tire suppliers and dealer networks across the country have begun to make adjustments to deal with this, and other, new, low-cost competition. Michelin North America Inc. sold seven of its nine Tire Centers LLC (TCi) retread plants to commercial dealers in the last year. The buyers included Toledo, Ohio-based Shrader Tire & Oil Co., which bought one plant. Two plants were sold to T&W Tire LLC., based in Oklahoma City, Okla. Greensboro, N.C.-based Snider Tire Inc. purchased four TCi retread plants.

Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores Inc., which does business as Love’s Truck Solutions LLC, sells retreads as well as new tire brands at Love’s Truck Tire Care and Speedco locations, which totaled more than 330 as of March 2018. The Oklahoma-based truck stop chain bought Bridgestone Americas Inc.’s Speedco network, which provides quick lube and inspection services to the trucking industry, in September 2017.

In 2016, Van Blaricom organized a group of dealers into Tire Service Solutions, or TSS for short, to better compete against truck stop chains like Love’s Travel Stops as well as the TA Truck Service Commercial Tire Network operated by Travel Centers of America LLC. TSS also enables its member dealers to compete more effectively against large dealers that cover a large geographic area.

“TSS is a group of independent dealers that have banded together to provide service and product to all of our customers who travel the geographic area that we encompass, which is an eight-state area,” says Van Blaricom.

Customers of TSS member dealers receive the same pricing regardless of their location. “It gives us the ability to capture customers that might not be in our area. For instance, if Royal Tire has a large customer coming through here, that customer is going to get the same pricing as they would get at Royal Tire. They’re not going to be taken advantage of with $200 used wheels and $400 cap and casings,” says Van Blaricom. “Additionally, if Royal Tire, for example, has the business of a large trucking company with a location in Iowa, then we will probably get that business as well.”

TSS also is a buying group whose purchases represent about $600 million in sales. To further lower costs, the group is considering performing billing, payables and receivables functions for all the member companies.

“It’s a concept that is working well for us. It isn’t new, but we’re actually going about it in a different way than some of the other groups that are out there,” says Van Blaricom.

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Krug was one of three finalists for the award, including Kendra Phillips, group director of SE Operations for Ryder System and Betty Weiland, senior editorial manager of the transportation publishing department, J. J. Keller & Associates. The announcement was made during the Transportation Intermediaries Association 2018 Capital Ideas Conference and Exhibition in Palm Desert, Calif.

Krug has over 15 years of executive leadership experience and has worked in the logistics industry for more than 7 years. She joined GlobalTranz in 2014 to help grow the organization into one of the largest privately-held companies in Arizona.

The DWLA was established to promote the achievements of women employed in the North American transportation industry. The award highlights the crucial roles of women in the field of commercial transportation and logistics. Truckstop.com and TIA partnered with WIT in supporting the award.

“I am incredibly honored to be recognized by Women In Trucking as the 2018 Distinguished Woman in Logistics Award recipient,” said Krug. “I share this honor with the talented employees of GlobalTranz and am proud to represent the many accomplished and deserving women in the trucking and transportation industry.”

Krug was instrumental in creating GlobalTranz's corporate responsibility program that implements initiatives to serve the Phoenix community, ensure company-wide social responsibility, and lessen the organization’s carbon footprint on the environment. She is also involved with charity and nonprofit organizations in her community, such as Feed My Starving Children, National Charity League, The Jared Box Project, Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, and the Back to School Drive.

The award winner was chosen by a panel of judges that included: Laurie Denham, vice president of education, TIA; Brent Hutto, chief relationship officer, Truckstop.com; Ellen Voie, president and CEO, WIT; and Stephanie S. Ivey, director of Intermodal Freight Transportation Institute, Southeast Transportation Workforce Center, and associate professor, department of civil engineering at the University of Memphis.

“Each year the judging for the Distinguished Women in Logistics gets harder and harder, and this year is no exception,” said Voie. “Renee Krug is not only a leader and a woman who has succeeded in the area of logistics, she has made a difference in her community, and that’s even more impressive with her demanding career at GlobalTranz.”

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Since January 1, 2014, von Wallfeld has been a member of the Mangement Board of the Mercedes-Benz Sales and Marketing Organization Germany (MBVD) with responsibility for passenger car sales. He started his career at Daimler AG in the International Management Associate Program. After occupying several positions in the areas of product management and sales strategy at the Group’s headquarters in Stuttgart, he managed the company-owned Mercedes-Benz sales and service outlet in Fulda from 2006 to 2011. In this function, he was responsible for the cross-divisional sales operations for cars, vans, and trucks. Starting in 2011, he headed Brand Experience Communication for the Mercedes-Benz Cars unit in Stuttgart, which is responsible for the division’s auto show participation, exhibitions, events, retail presentations, customer centers, and other brand platforms all over the world.

The successor of Andreas von Wallfeld as Head of Sales and Marketing Mercedes-Benz Cars Germany will be announced at a later date.

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The number of loads on the DAT network of load boards increased 3.2% and load-to-truck ratios moved higher for all three equipment types during the week ending April 7, which caused rates to spike.

Capacity on DAT load boards fell 2.7% as there were also fewer available trucks.

This caused the national average van rate to jump 9 cents over the past week to $2.24 per mile. Flatbeds not only posted a slightly bigger gain, 10 cents, the national average of $2.63 per mile set a new record high on the DAT network. The national average reefer rate gained 8 cents, following it being unchanged for several weeks, coming in at $2.48 per mile. All reported rates include fuel surcharges.

Load availability during the first week of April picked up where it left off in March. The number of loads posted last month was up 92% compared to March 2017 while the number of trucks posted was down 7%.

The number of available van loads increased 1% while truck posts declined 2% last week, which caused the van load-to-truck ratio to increase 3% to 7.4 loads per truck. Spot rates were higher on 52 of DAT’s Top 100 van lanes.

Key outbound van markets included:

• Los Angeles: $2.36 per mile, up 6 cents
• Houston: $2.21 per mile, up 4 cents
• Columbus, Ohio: $2.78 per mile, up 8 cents

Flatbed load posts increased 6% and truck posts declined 3% last week and the flatbed load-to-truck ratio increased 9% to 111, the highest-ever weekly load-to-truck ratio in the DAT record books for any equipment type.

With 5% fewer trucks posted last week, the national load-to-truck ratio for reefers increased 6% to 11 loads per truck. Rates were up on 44 of DAT’s highest-volume reefer markets while 25 trended down. California reefer markets continue to strengthen, with the average outbound rate from Los Angeles up 11 cents to $2.90 per mile.

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The Labor Department reported Wednesday the Consumer Price Index (CPI) fell 0.1% last month from February, the first and largest falloff since May 2017. However, over the past 12 months this gauge of retail prices showed a gain of 2.4%, its largest hike in a year and stronger than the February year-ago reading of 2.2%.

When volatile food and energy prices are eliminated, the so-called core CPI posted a 0.2% increase in March, the same as in February, while it climbed 2.1% in March from a year earlier, the biggest advance since February 2017.

Nathan Janzen, senior economist at RBC Economic pointed out annual growth in the core CPI is now slightly above Federal Reserve policymakers’ 2% inflation objective while other recent trends have been stronger than that. 

“The 6-month rolling average of month-over-month core CPI growth was 2.6% at an annualized rate in March by our calculation,” he said. “That marks the third straight month at a 2.5% or greater pace.”

Janzen also noted month-over-month increases in an alternative measure preferred by the Federal Reserve has also been running above its 2% inflation objective over the half year to February.  

The good news, Janzen said, is there is still little evidence that inflation is coming unhinged on the upside, but there is also a need for caution.

"Further signs of firming, though, along with ongoing tightening in labor markets, add to the evidence that the economy is operating close to if not somewhat beyond long-run capacity constraints,” Janzen said. “That is fully consistent with the view that, barring some unexpected shock, interest rates will continue to grind higher to gradually withdraw still-accommodative monetary policy conditions.”

This followed the release on Tuesday of a separate report from the Labor Department that showed prices at the wholesale level rose 0.3% in March from the month before, more than analysts’ were expecting, and following a 0.2% gain in February.

This latest gain pushed the Producer Price Index (PPI) higher by 3% over the past 12 months, up from a year-ago level of 2.8% the month before.

The PPI minus food, energy, and trade services rose 0.4% in March, the  same as in both February and January. For the 12 months ended in March, prices for foods, energy, and trade services increased 2.9%, the largest advance since 12-month percent change data were available in August 2014.

The gain in the so-called core PPI led analysts at Wells Fargo Securities to say this “points to the underlying trend in inflation continuing to strengthen” while it noting this translates into a more than 4% annualized growth rate over the past three months.

Stifel Chief Economist Lindsey Piegza said that while producer prices remain elevated, the cost pressures on the production side have yet to translate fully into price increases on the consumer side.

“With the U.S. consumer on still-fragile footing amid disappointing wage gains, any ability for producers to pass on cost increases remains restricted without the risk of losing market share,” she said.

Piegza said, at this point, the Fed remains on sidelines, “waiting for a meaningful gain in prices as exemplified by their preferred measure, the PCE and most preferably in wage gains.” The PCE is the Personal Consumption Expenditures Index, a measure of price changes in consumer goods and services.

She noted some Fed officials remain skeptical of rising inflation given there is, in their words, no “evidence of a meaningful improvement in the underlying trend in inflation, measures of inflation expectations, or wage growth.”

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The first acquisition is Drive Shafts Unlimited, located in San Antonio. It has been repairing all types of drive shafts for years in San Antonio and surrounding areas, and the services they offer will be complementary to the parts and services offered by Complete Gear Services, whom ITP acquired in May of 2017.

The second acquisition, Truckers Equipment Inc., is headquartered in Corpus Christi, Texas, with satellite locations in Pharr and Harlingen. They have served the truck equipment needs of southern Texas since 1936 and have a reputation for outstanding service and support. With these two acquisitions, ITP has positioned themselves to reach entirely new groups of customers all the way to the southern tip of Texas.

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It’s likely that the first-ever wagon invented by humans was a flatbed design. We’ll never know for sure, of course, but it stands to reason: A flatbed trailer is the very model of simplicity, flexibility and efficiency. And modern flatbeds today are stunning examples of modern design: No frills, functional, and tough.

But the true wonder in flatbeds has to be the delta between how incredibly light modern designs are and the payloads they haul. You’ll find heavy-duty flatbed trailers hauling everything from construction and mining machines that take up every inch of available deck space on the unit — and then some — down to steel coils that concentrate an enormous amount of weight into a very small area of the trailer. The challenge to design trailers with absolute minimal tare weight with the ability to haul such a wide array of loads under grueling conditions is daunting. But, doing so is a must, for weight-focused flatbed haulers nationwide.

A look at the flatbed market

And the demand for flatbeds is strong. Dave de Poincy, president of East Manufacturing, says his company is looking for a flatbed market of around 28,000 units this year. “Currently,” he says, “East has a record backlog, and we’ve experienced five record months of sales orders in a row. All the projections we’re hearing from our fleet customers are positive and they’re a good spring with regard to flatbed freight and high demand. So we are looking for these trends to generate both higher profits for fleets and nice orders for flatbed trailer suppliers.”

However, on the day Craig Bennett, senior vice president, sales and marketing for Utility Trailers, spoke to HDT for this story, President Trump had just announced new import tariffs on steel and aluminum coming into the United States, which he said could cool off the hot flatbed market. “This is just happening,” Bennett said, “so we’ll have to see how everything plays out. But this move could certainly drive the costs of the ingots of steel and aluminum coming into the country up. And it could make those resources more scarce. Obviously, both of those responses to the tariffs could cause price adjustments and availability issues with flatbed trailers the remainder of the year. It’s a situation that we manufacturers will have to monitor closely.”

The race to save weight

International economic intrigue aside, don’t look for flatbed fleets to stop running any time soon. Watkins Trucking is a specialized flatbed fleet running all 48 states out of Birmingham, Alabama. Founder and President Wayne Watkins says the diverse nature of his payloads means trailer tare weight is a major concern for him when updating his fleet. “We run about 85 tractors and 180 flatbed trailers — all Utility Trailers,” Watkins says. “And we haul everything from steel beams and rebar, to steel coils and construction machinery. So our trailers have to be both lightweight and durable.”

Watkins says his latest additions have been Utility’s newest 4000AE flatbed, a combination steel-aluminum design. He says the way he’s spec’ing them today, the new 53-foot trailers are about 800 pounds lighter than previous models, with the 48-foot units about 400 pounds lighter — comparable to all-aluminum designs. “Overall, I like the simplicity of the Utility design and its functionality. It’s an extremely lightweight flatbed, but there are still steel crossmembers that provide excellent durability — which matches our applications perfectly.”

Craig Bennett says Watkins’ comments are a validation of the marching orders Utility engineers received when they were given the go-ahead to start work on the 4000AE design. He says all Utility designs have to be at least as light, if not lighter, than the model they are intended to replace, which proved to be a challenge for the 4000AE’s design team. “We felt a combination aluminum-steel design made more sense, since we felt we could target the same weight as all-aluminum designs while retaining high strength. But it still took us four or five attempts to finally get there!”

These are tough trends for other trailer builders as well, says Bill Wallace, platform manager for East Manufacturing, who notes that everything from new de-icing agents used on highways today and changing market conditions are driving suppliers to more lightweight designs.

“Today, we’re designing our flatbed trailers with a whole host of weight-saving features, including aluminum outer legs on landing gears, aluminum landing gear braces, aluminum air tanks,” he says. “And these features are quickly becoming the new standards in the industry.”

The final 4000AE design, Bennett notes, cuts weight while coming in stronger than the previous Utility flatbed model, and includes a standard coil package and new LED lights, which Watkins also approves of. “I don’t like to see protruding lights,” he says, because they tend to get broken off or smashed when drivers throw straps across a load. But they’re also brighter and safer, which I like as well.

“Everybody makes a really good flatbed today,” Watkins says. “For me, it really comes down to how you spec them and all the little idiosyncrasies we all like to have on our equipment. I like a simple design and don’t really go wild on my specs, other than adding active tire pressure management systems. But all the suppliers are really focused on weight today. And that’s good. Because that is the most crucial design component there is, if you’re a flatbed fleet.” 

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Following the assessment, Betts and other business leaders held task force meetings with education partners at high schools, community colleges, and universities, as well as with local government officials, to discuss what was and wasn’t working when it came to educational opportunities in the career and technical arenas. They also talked about best practices, including the need for accredited instructors, certification, and dual enrollment.

One big gap they discovered was that there was not a medium- and heavy-duty truck technician training program anywhere in California’s Central Valley. The closest programs were at least 200 miles away. But Reedley College, located in California’s San Joaquin Valley, had an ag/diesel program. Betts says the group was able to work with Reedley to widen the ag/diesel program so it became National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation accredited for ASE (National Association for Automotive Service Excellence) master technician programs.

The group did not stop there. It also worked with Duncan Polytec, the only 100% career technical high school in the area, to develop a truck technician program.

“Our brand new heavy truck program covers ASE master technician content, and students enrolled in the program will then be able to matriculate into the Reedley College program,” Betts explains. The program is set up as a dual enrollment program so students in the Duncan Polytec program can receive college credit for their technical classes.

“We just broke ground for a new building, and it is going to be the most state-of-the-art high school program anywhere in the country,” Betts says. “The Duncan program is a flagship program, but other programs we have set up will also offer dual enrollment and certifications along with fully accredited instructors.”

Industry stakeholders reviewed curriculum to make sure it was based on accredited programs and “to make sure that each program is one of continuous improvement,” Betts explains.

The end result, he believes, is that students coming out of these programs will be trained to deal with real issues related to truck maintenance and repair. “We know that it takes time to become a productive technician, but when these kids walk into a shop, they will have a great foundation to build upon.”

The programs are set up to allow 30 students per semester in each class, where they will get a combination of in-class and hands-on experience.

Betts says their efforts have been successful because business did not undertake the effort alone. “You need to form an alliance. You work with educators and you work with industry together. You form a vision and you take an inventory of what is available in your area and where the gaps are.”

Betts also believes the time is ripe for these types of educational programs to be successful. “People are realizing that there are great technical jobs out there. In addition, academia truly does want the industry to be engaged and involved in the educational process.”

He adds, “People need to believe that you can do this and be optimistic about it. You need to get enough industry support, because it is hard to do it by yourself and you will get frustrated. But if you gather industry support and then bring educators into the conversation, great things will happen.”

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Zed Connect was launched by Cummins in June aimed at taking an innovative approach to help trucking fleets, drivers and other industry partners to overcome challenges and improve the bottom line while working across all makes and models.

Zed Connects first product offering was the plug-and-play Zed ELD. A smartphone-based solution for small and mid-sized fleets, it was designed to help meet federal electronic logging device requirements while minimizing financial impact.

Following that initial ELD launch in June 2017, the company debuted an OBDII 16-pin adapter for the ELDs developed specifically for smaller commercial vehicles and vocational work trucks requiring compliance to the FMCSA ELD mandate.

“Since our inception less than a year ago, our company has grown substantially,” said Skip Kinford, Zed Connect CEO.  “The development of our ELD solutions marks the first of many new products and technologies that will launch in 2018 and beyond.  Accordingly, we need proper facilities that will accommodate our team, as well as staff that we’ll add in the months ahead.”

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Hundreds of PrePass users have enrolled in the NorPass and Green Light weigh station bypass programs in the 90 days since Help Inc. partnered with the Washington State Department of Transportation to allow interoperability between the systems.

Representing over 100,000 commercial vehicles, PrePass users who have enrolled are now able to bypass weigh stations at 44 additional locations in seven states: Alaska, Connecticut, Idaho, New York, Oregon, South Dakota, and Washington. NorPass is operated by Wash DOT on behalf of the other NorPass states, and Oregon Green Light is run by the Oregon DOT Motor Carrier Transportation Division.

Fleets that enroll are able to use just one transponder in their trucks –a NorPass/Oregon Green Light Transponder purchased from Wash. DOT that can be enrolled in PrePass, or a PrePass transponder that can be enrolled in NorPass/Oregon Green Light.

“The enthusiastic participation by our customers to take advantage of HELP’s partnerships with NorPass and Oregon Green Light demonstrates the exceptional value of weigh station bypassing,” said Karen Rasmussen, chief executive officer of HELP Inc. “Safe fleets and drivers appreciate the time and fuel savings of PrePass in additional jurisdictions, and the opportunities for interoperability of their transponders.”

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The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has ordered Tennessee-based trucking company Rock Stone Company, also known as RC Stone & Farms, to cease all transportation of explosives and hazardous materials after it was found to pose an imminent hazard to public safety.

In March, an RC Stone & Farms truck was subjected to an unannounced roadside inspection by the Tennessee Highway Patrol where it was discovered that the pickup truck was transporting explosives in violation of federal hazardous materials regulations as well as Federal Motor Carrier Safety regulations. The truck and driver were immediately placed out of service.

Haphazardly placed in the bed of the truck were a number of Class 1 explosives including ammonium nitrate-fuel oil mixture, electric detonators, blasting caps, and detonating cord. These explosive materials were stored in a bent metal toolbox and placed next to metal objects such as pipes, buckets and tools. The detonators and detonation cord were improperly stored in an unmarked cardboard box.

Regulations require detonators and explosive materials to be transported separately unless the detonators are packaged in a U.S. Department of Transportation specification container or package.

RC Stone & Farm had not prepared hazardous materials shipping papers or placed HM placards on the vehicle. It also failed to prepare emergency response information to be used in the case of an incident. On top of all of that, the driver didn’t have a  commercial driver’s license, hazardous materials endorsement, or medical certificate.

FMCSA investigators further found RC Stone & Farm in violation of HMRs and FMCSRs “so widespread as to demonstrate a continuing and flagrant disregard for compliance and a management philosophy indifferent to motor carrier safety.” 

It was discovered that the company had been transporting explosive materials to 44 blasting sites around Tennessee since Jan. 1, 2018, all without the proper placards or shipping papers.

RC Stone and Farm may be assessed civil penalties of up to $25,705 for each violation of the out-of-service order.  The carrier may also be assessed civil penalties of up to $14,502 for operating a commercial vehicle in interstate commerce without necessary DOT registration.  If violations are determined to be willful, criminal penalties may be imposed, including a fine of up to $25,000 and imprisonment for a term not to exceed one year.

FMCSA is also considering civil penalties for the safety violations discovered during the investigation and may refer this matter for criminal prosecution.

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The compact design and low starting height of 8-inches allow CAJ-25 to be used in shop use or road service work. It features a long handle design for hard-to-engage vehicles and large rubber wheels for easy movement.

The CAJ-25 incorporates an air-driven motor that powers the hydraulic system, eliminating the manual pumping process. It also includes a feature which allows the user to reset the ram back to the minimum starting height without the need for an air hose connection.

The CAJ-25 integrates Black Hard Coating, an anti-corrosive lifetime coating that protects the threaded ram adjustment from the elements. The unit has multiple starting heights with the acme threaded screw extension and welded steel frame construction. It is modular in design – allowing users to maintain the jack through the purchase of replacement parts.

In addition to the CAJ-25, the second commercial vehicle jack offered in the line is the CAJ-35 which offers 70,000 pounds of lifting capacity.

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The conference will guide attendees how to extract more business value from the data that fleets collect to make cost reporting and operations more efficient. The conference will also focus on leveraging TMC’s Vehicle Maintenance Reporting Standards as well as new breakdown maintenance benchmarking services available through a joint project with FleetNet America.

TMC’s Fleet Data Management and Cybersecurity Conference registration is now open, and the event will be co-located with the National Accounting and Finance Council’s Annual Conference. The two adjoining conferences will be held June 5-7 in Raleigh, N.C., and will include two joint sessions.

“These two conferences will place attendees at the cutting edge of cyber tech and finance and equip them with the tools and knowledge needed to navigate and lead in a business environment that is constantly changing,” said Chris Spear, ATA president and chief executive officer.

The Fleet Data Management and Cybersecurity Conference will bring together fleets, manufacturers, software providers, and OEMs to address a wide range of prominent issues, including VMRS, software procurement and cybersecurity best practices.

Registration is also open for the NAFC conference, which will cover trucking business topics such as the impact of tax reform on fleets and risk management to emerging trends like blockchain and the latest developments in mergers and acquisitions.  All NAFC participants will have the opportunity to earn up to nine Continuing Professional Education credits.

“The worlds of trucking and technology are merging more than ever before,” said Robert Braswell, executive director of TMC.  “We are very excited about this new conference, which will deliver value to our members as they prepare and build cyber and data strategies.”

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Federal-Mogul is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Icahn Enterprises. The selling price is comprised of $800 million in cash and 29.5 million shares of Tenneco common stock, of which 23.8 million shares will be non-voting shares that will convert to voting shares if and when sold.

Icahn said there will be restrictions on how much Tenneco stock can be sold within the first 150 days after the closing. Under the agreement, Tenneco can reduce the amount of non-voting common stock by up to 7.3 million shares and increase the cash consideration proportionately at the closing. The voting and non-voting shares of Tenneco common stock will have the same economic value. Tenneco will also assume all debt of Federal-Mogul.

In connection with the sale, Tenneco announced its intention to separate the combined businesses into two independent, publicly traded companies through a tax-free spin-off to its stockholders that will establish an aftermarket and ride performance company and a powertrain technology company that makes parts such as pistons, ignition coils and spark plugs.

The sale is expected to close in the second half of 2018, subject to regulatory approvals, approval by Tenneco stockholders and other customary closing conditions, with the separation anticipated to occur in the second half of 2019. The sale is not subject to any financing condition.

“Icahn Enterprises acquired majority control of Federal-Mogul in 2008 when we saw an out-of-favor market opportunity for a great company," said Icahn Chairman Carl Icahn in a statement. "During that time, we have built one of the leading global suppliers of automotive products. I am very proud of the business we have built at Federal-Mogul and agree with Tenneco regarding the tremendous value in the business combination and separation into two companies."

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The next-generation Chevrolet Silverado HD pickups will debut next year, as 2020 models, according to the automaker. It will be the latest all-new trucks in the Silverado lineup revealed in just 18 months, joining the 2019 Silverado 1500 and medium-duty chassis cabs.

The next-generation Silverado HD pickups, which include the 2500HD and 3500HD, are designed for the specific priorities and needs of heavy-duty truck customers. On-road testing of the new Silverado HD prototypes will begin in the near future to reach Chevrolet’s durability and validation standards. and the bolder.

The first production models are scheduled to roll off the assembly lines in Flint, Mich., in the third quarter of 2019.

The 2019 Silverado 1500 was introduced in January. Through extensive use of mixed materials and advanced manufacturing, the new truck weighs less than the outgoing model — up to 450 pounds less for crew cab V-8 models — while building on the legacy of dependable, long-lasting Chevrolet full-size pickups.

The new Silverado 1500 also offers a broad range of trims and engine/transmission combinations, providing customers with an array of opportunities to find their ideal truck.

The 2019 Silverado 4500HD, 5500HD, and 6500HD chassis-cab models were introduced in March at The Work Truck Show 2018 and are scheduled to go on sale later this year. The first Silverado medium-duty trucks are designed specifically for commercial customers, with an emphasis on being easy to drive, easy to upfit and easy to service, according to Chevrolet.

“Chevrolet has built more than 85 million trucks in 100 years and we have applied that accumulated truck expertise to the new Silverado range,” said Alan Batey, global head of Chevrolet. “All three Silverado models offer a wide range of choices, as no two truck customers are alike. Every Silverado is built to be long-lasting and dependable, as many customers need their trucks to earn a living or to do what they enjoy most when they’re off the clock. Finally, every Silverado is built to work — as we know every truck, no matter how luxurious, has a job to do.”

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Motus customers, which includes those who use their personal vehicles for business purporses (or "grey fleet" drivers), are able to use the platform to track mileage, calculate reimbursements or personal use chargebacks on vehicles, and submit reimbursement reports and logs via its mobile app, according to Fleetcor.

The partnership between Fleetcor and Motus will allow mobile workers to use their Fleetcor fuel card to pay for business-related expenses and fuel, instead of using personal payment methods and calculating reimbursement amounts on the Motus app. Motus customers will also have access to Fleetcor fuel discounts, real-time pricing, security benefits, and more.

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International’s new LT highway tractor may look much like the 11-year-old ProStar it replaces, but the resemblance is barely skin deep. The LT retains the signature International grille — though it’s shaped differently if you look closely — but almost everything behind the grille was touched in some way by the sweeping overhaul of the company’s best-selling highway truck.

The primary drivers in the reshaping exercise were increased fuel efficiency and driver appeal. “If drivers do not want to drive the trucks, fleets aren’t going to buy them,” said Denny Mooney, International’s senior vice president, global product development.

Designers conducted dozens of driver clinics to get feedback from folks who use the product, and a few interesting themes emerged. For one, truck drivers want a truck designed like a truck.

“Career truck drivers aren’t interested in automotive designing like chrome accents and such. They want trucks designed to do a job,” said Jeff Sass, International’s senior vice president, sales and marketing, when the truck was unveiled.

Feedback from drivers resulted in a review of more than 500 points of contact between the driver and the truck. The result was a cab with more elbow, hip, and leg room, along with a more ergonomic but truck-like dash layout and greatly improved mirror design. By popular demand, International even put the air horn back where it “belongs,” on a lanyard above the driver-side door.

Sass calls the LT “the most driver-centric Class 8 vehicle we’ve ever built.”

A very close second design priority was fuel economy. At the Las Vegas launch of the LT in fall of 2016, International’s then-President Bill Kozek said the 2018 LT with an N13 engine would be 7% more efficient than a 2017 ProStar with a Cummins ISX 15 engine. He claimed a 3% improvement in aerodynamic efficiency alone, with lighter weights and new engine technology contributing the remaining 4%. When International’s new engine, the A26, appeared in February, Darren Gosbee, International’s vice president - advanced engineering, said the A26 would boost fuel economy by 5% over its predecessor, the N13. That’s a potential fuel efficiency increase of close to 10% compared to a 2017 ProStar.

At the A26 launch event, Gosbee said an A26-equipped LT highway truck bettered 8 mpg over three runs on a 475-mile fuel-economy test route known as the Illinois Hilly Route, said to simulate real-world driving conditions for 75% of International’s customer fleets.

Around the LT

The LT is a considerable step forward from the ProStar. Beginning with the cooling module, the A26 engine uses the same radiator as the X15, so there’s considerable cooling capacity. The interstage cooler has been dropped, so there is only the radiator and the AC condenser up there. A new rubber gasket around the rad seals out dust that gets kicked by the fan, so the fins stay cleaner for longer, preventing clogging and a loss of cooling capacity over time.

You’ll hardly ever hear the fan come on, and when it does, it’s much quieter, because it has only six blades rather than the previous 11. It draws 31 hp less than the larger fan, and is much easier on the fan clutch, too.

The hood is now taller at the top, and longer overall, stretching the bumper-to-back-of-cab measurement to 125 inches. This, the company says, improves the front profile of the truck for smoother air flow and less drag.

Built into the hood are a pair of splash guards that were formerly chassis-mounted. This makes engine access much easier while still protecting from muck.

The three-piece bumper offers a couple of advantages. First, it’s less expensive to repair than a one-piece bumper. Second, it’s available in several different configurations, depending on the type of trailer you pull. Aero research conducted during International’s SuperTruck project revealed that the bumper has a large influence on how airflow interacts with the trailer, whether there are side skirts or not, trailer boat tail or not. The bumper also sits about 8 inches off the ground to minimize damage from curb strikes.  

The suspension at the rear of the cab now has a wider stance, giving the cab a distinctly more stable ride. The fuel tank mounts and the spring hangers in the International Ride Optimized Suspension (IROS) are made of cast aluminum, saving close to 200 pounds in chassis weight.

The doors were redesigned and made two times stiffer than the ProStar’s doors, International says. The new doors are also canted slightly inward at the top to force a tighter seal around the opening. This helps keep out drafts as well as noise. Stiffening the door also helps reduce vibration and the associated resonant noise.

The new mirrors are perhaps the most striking change. They are now pedestal-mounted and set significantly farther forward than the ProStar’s, which reduces the degree to which a driver has to twist his or her head to see them. And they are mounted low for better visibility alongside the truck. When looking out the right-side window, I could actually look over the top of the mirror at traffic approaching from that side. This eliminates a dangerous blind spot that exists on most other Class 8 cabs.

Cab and sleeper

The sleeper on the truck I drove was the 56-inch HiRise model with the Diamond interior. I’d call it a regional-plus sleeper — more than adequate for a few days on the road. It’s not what you’d call plush, but it’s airy and comfortable with lots of storage.

The cab is where International’s design team really went to town. Highlights of the redesign include a completely new HVAC system, and tons of room around the driver’s seat and between the seat back and the wheel. The dash now features a 5.5-inch display set between the speedometer and the tach. It’s bright and easy to read, and drivers can scroll through at least a dozen screens of useful information. My ride did not have the B-panel display where a navigation screen, an ELD, or another digital gauge display might go. Mine had the cubby hole. The trim package on the truck seemed to be a combination of the Classic and Diamond package. I had the wood-grain trim and colored accents from the Diamond package, but it was missing certain features like the optional gauges on the outer side of the B-panel.

New with the LT is a stalk-mounted transmission control that also controls the engine brake. It’s easy to use and much easier to handle than the old one, which was mounted on the dashboard. Moving the shifter opened up some room for three large cup holders on the lower portion of the dash panel, still leaving enough clearance to swing your legs past when pivoting from the driver’s seat to the sleeper.

Out on the road

Driving the LT was a very satisfying experience. The cab is super quiet even when the engine is in a good pull. I was able to talk to my tour guide, International’s director of product marketing for on-highway trucks, Bill Distel, without raising my voice. The driving position was spectacularly comfortable and seemed designed to fit my frame. I spent a few minutes fiddling with it before pulling out, and suspect that with the range of movement in the seat, almost any driver will be able to dial in a comfortable position.

The A26 engine and the Eaton Advantage 10-speed AMT were very nicely paired, and the shift calibrations favored low-rpm shift points and skip shifting, as they should. Engine braking was quite adequate even in the second position, and downright aggressive in the third position. That variable-geometry turbocharger ups the engine brake’s game on what many would consider a medium-displacement engine.

The power curves on my engine gave me the full 1,700 lb-ft of torque from 975 to 1,200 rpm, and with the gearing I had, I cruised at 50 mph at 975 rpm. That was fine on flat road, but on hilly road I’d have been inclined to drop it into 9th gear for better driveability. I was running 1,075 rpm at 62 mph, and 1,100 rpm at 65 mph — a very economical cruising speed.
Much of my route was on two-lane road, even some nice twisty ones, which provided a better impression of the truck’s steering and handling. Here, the stiffer cab suspension became obvious, and the mildly stiff steering was a joy to drive. 

There’s not much I would change on the LT. The noise attenuation was great, the performance and handling was top-notch, and the overall driving experience was, as I said, very satisfying. The ProStar was never one of my favorite trucks, but the LT has boosted my opinion several notches. I’d take the helm of one of these anytime.

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Put another way, going green is not just a matter of tailpipe emissions, according to Kary Schaefer, general manager of marketing and strategy at Daimler Trucks North America. It’s also about efficiency and uptime, and everything stands on three pillars: safety, connectivity, and propulsion systems. The truly green fleet is one that wastes as little as possible, in every sense.

The keynote speaker at the recent Green Truck Summit in Indianapolis, Indiana, ahead of the Work Truck Show, Schaefer cited a major fleet that used to see one in every four of its trucks involved in an accident each year. After installing advanced safety systems such as stability control and collision mitigation, that ratio became one in 19. Rear-end collisions dropped dramatically. Such gains in uptime, in productivity, make a very good business case for safety, Schaefer said.

Connectivity is a means to an end, she continued, one key result being mounds of data that offer “significant opportunities” in many operational areas. And it’s not a technology restricted to highway trucks, she added. Connectivity is just as useful in the vocational world, for example in driver coaching.

The buzz around electric trucks suggests they’re being seen as the ultimate in “green” trucking, but don’t hold your breath. There are hurdles to leap, Schaefer said, in moving the idea forward: range, weight, cost, and charging.

Battery costs have been diminishing, she said, but could well go up as demand increases. The high cost of replacing a battery pack is another issue, and we’re a long way from figuring out residual values for electric trucks.

Another key matter is the price of electricity, which changes almost daily and ranges widely from region to region. Typical costs go from five cents per kilowatt hour all the way up to 13 or 14 cents, she said.

And of course there’s no meaningful charging infrastructure at the moment, which presents a big question mark as to when and where.

Diesel remains king in terms of efficiency, she concluded, because of its high energy density that isn’t matched by any other fuel, electricity included. Natural gas has a place, too, where noise abatement is an issue or where near-zero emissions are mandated, but “diesel is here to stay for a long, long time.”

What we can do right now to go “greener,” she said, is renew the fleet to modern emissions standards. There remain too many older trucks on the roads adhering to pre-EPA2010 rules.

To which I’ll add an observation: On the 1,100-mile round trip that took me to Indianapolis, most of it on I-69, I passed hundreds of ordinary tractor-and-van-trailer units. Just four of them had trailer boat tail devices of one description or another, three of them deployed, one of them broken. And at best, only about 15% of the van trailers I saw had skirts. These are simple, effective aero tools that save fuel and money with short payback times, but we don’t seem to be spec’ing them.

My “study” was anything but scientific, but I was left with the impression that we’re not taking this green thing very seriously.

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Noël Perry, Truckstop.com’s chief economist and former longtime analyst for FTR Transportation Intelligence, has launched a new website called Transport Futures that will serve as a platform to share industry insights.

A key component of Transport Futures will be Perry’s blog, The Transport Navigator, which will be available through a subscription and will offer his analysis of breaking stories.

“If it moves, I’m watching it – and thinking deeply about it. I wanted a place where I could share information as soon as good data is available, allowing my readers to react to market pressures right now,” said Perry.  

Perry will continue his affiliation with Truckstop.com, using the company’s data in his analysis on Transport Futures. The Transport Navigator blog is an enhanced version of his long-running FTR newsletter, State of Freight, according to Perry. However, Perry is no longer associated with FTR.

Perry indicated that his new work will reflect the additional time and creative freedom he now has to devote to his analysis and will be available exclusively through Transport Futures.

“I’ve always been fascinated by the radical changes that have revolutionized the transportation industry,” said Perry. “My choice in naming my new site Transport Futures is a pointed reminder of that interest.”

To view Perry’s website, go to www.transportfutures.net.

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The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s Operation Safe Driver Week has been set for the week of July 15-21, 2018, with law enforcement around the country joining in on the effort to spot unsafe driving behaviors by commercial vehicle drivers and passenger vehicles.

The CVSA continues to target unsafe driving behavior because it remains the leading cause of highway crashes according to a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration study. That study cited driver behavior as the critical reason behind 88% of large truck crashes and 93% of all passenger vehicle crashes.

The Operation Safe Driver Program was created to help reduce the number of crashes, deaths, and injuries involving commercial vehicles due to unsafe driving behaviors. During the week, there will be increased commercial vehicle and passenger vehicle traffic enforcement. Enforcement personnel will be targeting unsafe driving behaviors such as speeding, distracted driving, texting, failure to us a seatbelt, following too closely, improper lane change and failure to obey traffic control devices.

Last year’s Operation Safe Driver Week saw nearly 39,000 citations and warnings handed out to commercial vehicle drivers. State and local moving violations made up the bulk of warnings and citations followed by speeding, failing to use a seat belt, failing to obey traffic control devices and, using a cell phone. Only 18 commercial drivers were cited for operating while ill or fatigued, while a total of 86 were given warnings. 

Operation Safe Driver Week is sponsored by CVSA, in partnership with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and with support from industry and transportation safety organizations, and aims to help improve the behavior of all drivers operating in an unsafe manner – either in or around CMVs – through educational and traffic enforcement strategies to address individuals exhibiting high-risk driving behaviors.

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An Auto Switching Power Control unit allows the DCS to automatically switch from charging pallet jacks to liftgates, depending on what is plugged into the unit. Topping off liftgate and pallet jack batteries with solar power extends the life of the batteries from months to years, according to Go Power! The DCS eliminates the need for idling while operating a liftgate, saving up to $25-40 per day in fuel costs.

Minimal modifications are required to the truck or trailer and only basic tools are needed to secure the solar panels and wire them into the truck's electrical system.

The kid includes Go Power's low-profile solar panels, which are 1/8-inches thick and lighter weight than traditional panels. The modular panel design allows for easy expansion if required for service routes with limited daylight locations. Panels are covered by a standard five-year warranty.

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The somnum adjustable twin XL sheet sets are made from brushed microfiber. A drawstring integrated into the fitted sheet, promotes a snug fit for unconventional mattress sizes and shapes up to 42-inches wide.

The sheets were designed by LCI to address driver complaints about the lack of suitable, commercially available bedding accessories that fit a sleeper mattress.

“In most every conversation we have with truck drivers, they mention that they can’t find sheets that fit their sleeper mattress,” said Mike Padrnos, business development manager at LCI. “We’ve designed this product to address the common issues drivers have with standard bedding.”

The somnum adjustable fitted sheet cinches to the actual size of the mattress, helping it stay in place without excess sheet material needing to be knotted, folded or tucked away under the corner of the bed.

The somnum adjustable twin XL sheet sets include:

• One extra-large top sheet
• One adjustable bottom sheet with an integrated drawstring
• Two standard pillowcases

The sheets sets are available through all Freightliner and Western Star as well as select somnum distributors.

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The Prop 1B Program is intended to reduce diesel air pollution from goods movement operations and achieve the earliest possible health risk reduction in nearby communities. Fleet owners seeking to replace diesel trucks may be eligible for up to $100,000 towards the purchase of a new natural gas truck.

SoCalGas representatives provided assistance on 400 Prop 1B applications throughout its service territory. If all these applications are accepted and receive funding, SoCalGas customers will replace at least 400 diesel trucks with near-zero natural gas trucks.  Replacing 400 diesel trucks with near-zero natural gas trucks is the equivalent of taking more than 22,000 passenger cars off the road.

For the SCAQMD solicitation, SoCalGas customers submitted more than 150 applications, with many of these requests coming from fleets smaller than 10 trucks. These dependable, clean trucks cut smog-forming emissions by more than 90% compared to the cleanest heavy-duty diesel trucks on the road today. When these near-zero natural gas trucks are fueled by renewable natural gas, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are reduced by 80 percent. Already, 60% of natural gas fleets in California are fueled with renewable natural gas and this number is expected to climb to about 90% by the end of this year.

The SCAQMD solicitation is one of many incentive programs SoCalGas customers used in 2017. More than 225 applications were submitted to the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District and San Diego Air Pollution Control District from SoCalGas customers. This demand far exceeded the $14 million in available incentive funding. 

The transportation sector is responsible for about 40% of California's GHG emissions and more than 80% of the state's NOx, or smog-forming, emissions. Making the switch from diesel to near-zero natural gas trucks is vital to achieving the state's GHG reduction goals and cleaning the air around California's transportation corridors.

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Cloud-based storage and applications have been with us for some time. Increasingly, more and more fleet-generated data is stored and processed in what’s called a “cloud environment.” Because cloud-based systems are somewhat invisible, many users are uncertain exactly what that means.

Technically, the cloud is a network of internet-connected computer servers used for data storage and computing. There are different types of clouds. Private clouds are just that. For instance, many telematics and transportation management software providers use a private cloud where customers store and access data. Some large trucking companies maintain their own private clouds within their data centers. Public clouds are those offered by third parties, with the most advanced being cloud services from technology giants such as Amazon, Microsoft, and IBM. Anyone can rent storage space and computing power in public clouds, and many technology companies do just that.

For trucking companies, even if your operation still runs the bulk of your business on servers based on-site, chances are you still have data collected in the cloud — whether you are aware of it or not.

“Many fleets have been in some form of the cloud for years through the products they’re using,” says Chris Sandberg, vice president of information technology, PeopleNet. This includes telematics products as well as software-as-a-service, or SaaS, applications. “Any time they’re using a SaaS offering, it’s more than likely in a cloud infrastructure of some type,” he explains. As a result, “their data has been stored and processed in the cloud for years now.”

Why the cloud has become more common

The bottom line reason cloud-based computing and storage have grown within the industry is the value it adds to a fleet’s business in terms of helping to reduce cost, says John Molamphy, vice president of engineering, Verizon Connect.

But the change has also come about as companies have changed their mindset on cloud computing. “In the trucking industry, we are coming into the age of the cloud every single day,” says Ben Barnes, vice president, IT services, McLeod Software. While the technology has improved, one of the more important changes, according to Barnes, is that most IT staff no longer view the cloud as a threat. Instead, companies are finding that they can “put the ‘keep the lights on’ tasks in the cloud and allow their IT staff to be more innovative,” he explains.

Kevin Haugh, chief technology officer for Omintracs, agrees. “The market is increasingly understanding the potential and reliability of the cloud and its ability to support critical business operations.” He says that telematics providers were among the first private clouds. “A lot of that has transferred over to the public cloud,” he notes, as fleets have opted for public systems such as Amazon Web Services or Microsoft’s Azure rather than installing software on premises.

What it comes down to is where a trucking company feels the data is secure and safe. That used to mean a data center, or even just a closet, on premises. Now, the data might be stored there or in an off-site data center or in multiple data centers.

“The world has changed, and it’s not about what is inside of your walls,” says Ron Godine, vice president information technology and cloud services, TMW. “Small guys got a head start on the cloud because they didn’t have the resources larger fleets did to maintain IT departments — but they could work with vendors that provided those things for them.” This enabled them to compete with larger fleets without large outlays for computing hardware and IT staff.

Companies are more comfortable with the concept than they were 10 years ago. “One of the things we’re finding, there is no challenge as far as having fleet data stored in the cloud,” says Philip Poulidis of Blackberry BTS. Instead, concerns revolve around the accessibility of the data, limited downtime, and security.

Better technology hasn’t hurt the trend. The cloud has become faster and easier to use. With high-speed internet connections, and the vast computing power available in the cloud via Amazon, Microsoft or IBM, it is easier for software providers to provide more robust products, Poulidis says. “Bandwidth, computing power and development advances are all factors.”

The stronger third-party cloud providers “make it easier for companies to scale up and down,” adds Pete Allen, chief client officer, Mix Telematics.

Another factor driving the adoption of cloud-based systems is that they are getting cheaper. It comes down to economies of scale, says Mark Sievers, architecture team lead, Eroad. The advantages offered by cloud computing have led to more adoption, which has led to continued growth in the major public cloud providers. “Cloud providers are constantly reducing the cost of infrastructure while improving the performance.”

The services available continue to expand, allowing more complex data processing and analytics with faster response times.

The benefits of cloud computing go beyond faster, quicker and more powerful computing, however, and include “a bunch of things,” Allen says. For one, a trucking company’s IT requirements for supporting and maintaining servers is reduced, or in some cases, eliminated.

Sandberg points to the transportability and availability of the data as key benefits.

That includes being able to access the data from any device with an internet connection, says Steve Wen, business development and strategy, Dray Alliance, a B2B platform streamlining the drayage process, says that, “Multiple users could edit on the platform without delay.”

Barnes agrees that the ability to access the data from anywhere is a huge benefit. “You were confined to working in one place, but most cloud solutions are accessible anywhere.”

Or as Verizon Connect’s Molamphy puts it, “the benefits are endless, with fleets able to easily access data on route, mileage, speed, road conditions, idle time, and other critical information that allows fleet managers to be more efficient and productive.”

The cloud and data backups

Most public cloud systems provide inexpensive backup options, often with redundancy so there are multiple backups available if something goes wrong. But should all your data be backed up this way? For Sandberg, it comes down to the question: How critical is the data? Backups on a public cloud might take “24 hours or longer to recover data, which can halt a fleet’s operations,” he explains. “If you need it faster, consider other backup methods.”

Barnes, who comes from an IT security background, believes the more backups, the better. “You can have as many backups as you want and you can still make more.” The cloud has made this easier, he added, with some cloud companies offering disaster recovery services as well as backup vaulting. These types of services are more readily available today, Barnes says. A few years ago, such services were beyond the reach of all but the largest companies in terms of cost.

Having both types of backup — in the cloud and on-site or nearby — is an option that many recommend. Again, it depends upon the data, but for critical data, “the best thing is to have both,” Poulidis says.

Jerry Robertson, chief technology officer for TMS provider Bolt System, admits to being “old school,” and suggests keeping both types of backups. “Some things, like compliance or financial records, I’m going to keep it somewhere in a secure vault in my area.”

Dick Hyatt, president and CEO of Decisiv, thinks the backup trend is pointing more toward the cloud. “The economics of cloud-based storage are driving a mass transition away from on-site storage,” he says. But again, each company will have different requirements for backup, storage and recovery.

The bottom line is that cloud computing offers numerous advantages to trucking companies and to their technology vendors as well. But before rushing to put all your systems and data in the cloud, keep in mind that the best, most sophisticated cloud system is only as good as the internet connection. Without that, you could be out of business.

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Yikes! A 32% grade in the midst of a city? That’s what Baxter Street in the Echo Park neighborhood of Los Angeles is said to be.

One section begins and ends abruptly, causing faint-of-heart drivers who’ve never been on it to panic upon encountering a blind apex. Sometimes they roll backwards downgrade, coming to grief and damaging neighbors' shrubs, planters and other property items, according to local media and a CBS News report last week.

Baxter is actually composed of a series of up- and downgrades – your basic roller coaster profile. And it’s not only steep but increasingly well-traveled during rush hours, due to its listing as an alternative commuter route by Waze, the smart phone traffic-assist app. Evidently Waze’s programming looks at street maps but not topographical charts, thus does not see the hilly terrain. That makes it not so smart.

It’s not just cars that blunder up and down Baxter, but also stretch limos and long buses and trucks -- like this beer-delivery tractor-trailer, which almost hung up on the apex. It made it, as did a long rental truck – barely (think of the strain on their powertrains!). Other vehicles in recent months have gotten high-centered there, though, and had to be towed off.

This is another reason for drivers of trucks and other large and heavy vehicles to avoid using navigation aids not meant for them, especially when truck-specific products are available.

Residents have complained to city officials about the situation and transportation staffers are debating what to do about the onslaught of traffic and the real and present danger. CBS asked Waze if it would change its by-ways, so to speak. Maybe it has delisted Baxter by now.

Meanwhile, here’s a YouTube video for your viewing amusement.

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President Donald Trump has nominated Heidi King to lead the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration more than a year after taking office. King has been serving as the interim head of the nation's top road safety agency.

King, a former health and safety risk executive at GE Capital, has been serving as deputy administrator since September.

Prior to coming to Washington, King has alse serves as the chief economist for the House Committee on Energy and Commerce from 2011 to 2013. She worked as a regulatory policy analyst in the White House's Office of Management and Budget under former presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama.

King's nomination will need to be approved by the U.S. Senate.

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ERoad, a provider of fleet management, electronic tax reporting and ELD compliance solutions for the transportation industry, has announced integration with the Descartes MacroPoint multi-modal supply chain visibility platform.

ERoad said the integration will allow their customers “to share real-time visibility with shippers while reducing the costs of satisfying the growing shipper demands for visibility and status alerts.”

“Real-time load tracking is an integral part of having end-to-end supply chain visibility,” said Scott McCollister, senior product manager at ERoad. “With freight tracking essential to improving delivery performance and customer satisfaction, this integration will allow our customers to easily have real-time load location information so shipping and receiving locations can plan for arrivals, streamline loading and unloading, reduce wait times, and get trucks back on the road faster.” 

With ERoad’s real-time location tracking feed to Descartes MacroPoint, carriers can provide their shippers with truck location and ETA information using GPS data. The company said that MacroPoint retrieves the real-time location of trucks at customizable intervals and provides dynamic alerts based on truck specific routing, live traffic and weather, as well as delay alerts, and pickup and delivery confirmations.

The platform also consolidates tracking data to allow shippers to view, analyze, predict and report visibility in real time.

“With ERoad and Descartes MacroPoint we are now able to provide our customers and brokers with real time tracking without relying on or bothering our drivers,” said Tony Knowles, operations manager at Super K Express, a Georgia-based dry van carrier. “We just provide the truck number and the load is tracked from start to finish. It is an effortless transaction. Before this integration I would get calls and then my drivers would get calls – all of this is now done with a click of the button. This has saved us time and headaches.”

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TMW has integrated its TMT Fleet Maintenance Purchase Order module with Navistar’s OnCommand Connection/Part Information System. TMW said the integrated solution will increase Navistar dealers’ ability to meet TMT Fleet Maintenance customers’ parts ordering needs by providing easier online access and expedited parts ordering. 

Through the integration, Navistar customers with TMW’s TMT Fleet Maintenance software will be able to send electronic purchase orders directly to Navistar instead of using email, fax, phone or other traditional methods to order parts. These orders are then sent to the customer’s dealer for fulfillment. 

In addition, the integrated solution, using usage formulas and automatic purchase capabilities, will allow the dealer to replenish low stock based on use rate over time or identify other parts ordering opportunities with customers.

TMW said that by ordering parts through the system, Navistar customers will save money by taking advantage of bigger discounts and save time and reduce errors by eliminating manual ordering. Since Navistar offers an accounts payable interface, credits will be posted faster to improve cash flow and eliminate mistakes, the company noted.

“By adding our fleet maintenance parts ordering module, we are enabling eCommerce between TMT Fleet Maintenance customers and Navistar. Our goal is to improve collaboration between fleets and OEM’s. TMT Fleet Maintenance customers’ operations will be more efficient, and Navistar will better serve their customers while giving their dealers greater visibility into customer’s ordering behavior,” said Scott Vanselous, executive vice president, Marketing & Strategy for TMW.

“Overall, the Navistar integration will improve the Trimble customer parts ordering experience and give dealers more opportunity to engage more closely with combined TMW and Navistar customers,” he added. 

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The Utah Department of Transportation has appointed Teri Newell as an additional deputy director for the department. In her new role, Newell is charged with helping guide UDOT as it works on issues relating to the state’s growing population, advances in technology, and the evolution of the transportation industry.

The newly created position resulted from passage of a bill that addresses the governance of transportation in Utah.

Newell joins UDOT Executive Director Carlos Braceras and Deputy Director Shane Marshall in leading the department’s more than 1,600 employees. The executive team oversees the design, construction, and maintenance of Utah’s 6,000 miles of state roads and highways.

“Teri has proven herself as an innovative leader,” Braceras said. “Her work as Region Three Director and as the project manager for the Mountain View Corridor has helped to prepare her to take an active role shaping this new position and in helping to lead UDOT into its exciting transportation future.”

Newell begins her new role immediately. For the past five years, she has served as UDOT’s Region Three director, where she was responsible for the construction and maintenance of state roads in Utah, Juab, Wasatch, Duchesne, Uintah and Daggett Counties.

Prior to her role as UDOT’s first female region director, Newell spent 10 years taking the Mountain View Corridor from a concept, through the environmental process, to completion of the initial phases. Before joining UDOT, Newell was the operations director for Salt Lake County, and she held other positions in the private sector.

Newell is a native of Iowa, and holds a civil engineering degree from Iowa State University.

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Michigan has been working steadily to establish itself as a leader in emerging transportation technology. And this week, Gov. Rick Snyder, along with business, government, and academia leaders from throughout Michigan, celebrated a new partnership with Microsoft with the grand opening of the American Center for Mobility. 

Microsoft is the exclusive data and cloud provider for the mobility center at the historic Willow Run bomber plant site in Ypsilanti Township.

John Maddox, ACM president and CEO, announced that Microsoft will provide the Center with cloud resources and data infrastructure to advance the testing and development of connected and automated vehicles (CAV) as well as mobility technologies.

"We are excited to collaborate with Microsoft in our efforts to lead the world in the safe development of CAV technologies and to enable the safe deployment of these vehicles onto the nation's roads," Maddox said.

"By adding big data to our diverse and growing group of stakeholders and world-class partners, ACM is staking its claim as the preeminent global hub for mobility companies to develop and test their connected technologies and vehicles in a safe and controlled environment," he added.

Gov. Snyder said the Center's grand opening combined with the announcement that Microsoft is the exclusive data and cloud provider, represents a pinnacle moment for the state in the mobility revolution.

"Intelligent vehicle technology is evolving rapidly and Michigan is the world leader in making sure the mobility technologies driving the future are safely developed, tested and eventually deployed," Snyder said. "This important partnership with Microsoft will provide the American Center for Mobility with the proper digital capabilities to help translate testing data into technology innovations that will make transportation safer for all and fuel further economic growth across the state."

ACM will collaborate with Microsoft to design a cloud-based Data Management & Analytics Platform solution to collect, store and analyze data from tests conducted at the Center. The solution will be based on the trusted Microsoft Azure cloud platform, which offers extensive capabilities for quickly developing and deploying new use cases. Using Azure and the DMAP solution will enable ACM and its partners to accelerate the development of CAV technologies, apps, and industry standards, to create a safe environment for testing, validating, and enabling collaboration across all members.

"Vehicles are quickly becoming data centers on wheels, and the opportunity to use the vast amounts of information generated to fuel innovation is unprecedented," said Kevin Dallas, corporate vice president, artificial intelligence & intelligent cloud business development, Microsoft. "We're proud ACM has selected Microsoft Azure as its exclusive cloud provider for its intelligent capabilities and the enterprise-grade security and compliance required to develop comprehensive solutions that help drive the future of mobility."

Microsoft joins a long list of companies supporting ACM, including its founders AT&T, Visteon Corporation, Toyota, Ford and Hyundai America Technical Center Inc., and sponsors Subaru of America, Inc., and Adient. In addition to serving as the Center's exclusive data and cloud provider, Microsoft will also hold a position on ACM's Industry Advisory Board.

Located on 500 acres that once was the site of Ford Motor Co.'s fabled Willow Run Bomber Plant, the American Center for Mobility opened its doors for testing in December.

One of 10 federally designated proving grounds for developing and testing self-driving vehicles, the Center provides a myriad of real-world environments with the ability to test under a range of driving environments and infrastructure that includes a 2.5-mile highway loop, a 700-foot curved tunnel, two double overpasses, intersections, and roundabouts.

Gov. Snyder’s announcement and the grand opening celebration coincides with the start of ACM's next phase of construction, which will add an urban intersection by this summer, followed by a series of building facades and additional urbanized infrastructure expected by the end of the year. The expansion project also includes a headquarters and lab with demonstration space.

The Center is a joint initiative with the State of Michigan via a partnership with the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT), the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), the University of Michigan, Business Leaders for Michigan, Ann Arbor SPARK and Ypsilanti Township.

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Electric vehicles. Driverless trucks. Platooning. Drones. Bicycles. You may think, to paraphrase the show Sesame Street, that one of these things is not like the others. Yet for parcel and logistics giant UPS, using regular and electric bicycles for delivery in some congested urban areas is just as much a part of its innovative thinking as its order of Tesla Semi heavy-duty electric tractors.

Last month’s annual meeting of the American Trucking Associations’ Technology & Maintenance Council was themed “Driving Excellence Through Expertise.” Yet some fleets may feel overwhelmed by all the new technology coming at them because they don’t have the expertise. Let’s face it, at the rate new technology is rolling in, no one really has the expertise yet. We’re all making it up as we go along.

But sitting still and worrying about it is not an option, said Carlton Rose, UPS president, global fleet maintenance and engineering, speaking during the kickoff breakfast. “You cannot be a linear thinker in an exponential world,” said Rose, who worked his way up through the UPS ranks after serving as a driver and technician.

Excellence, he noted, evolves, pointing to some of the earliest mobile phones as an example. “Today’s excellence is tomorrow’s mediocrity,” he said.

The first step to seeing what the excellence of tomorrow looks like, he said, is to grasp what mediocrity looks like today, citing polluted air and vehicle crashes as examples. “Today’s mediocrity is standing still, watching and worrying, as technology moves ahead faster than ever before.

“It’s understandable to be afraid of all this change,” Rose said. “In fact, it’s smart. But fear of the unknown discourages investment.”

When you know it’s the right thing to do, but you’re waiting around for the technology to be better proven, don’t sacrifice the good for the perfect. Sometimes, we need to take a cue from Nike’s slogan “Just Do It.”

So how do we break though that fear? “It’s as simple as ABC: Adaptability, bravery, and commitment,” Rose said.

That adaptability was definitely seen in another session, where UPS’ Duane Lippincott spoke on a panel on last-mile delivery. Lippincott, who oversees training for UPS’ maintenance personnel at more than 1,400 shops in the U.S., spoke about how the company’s adoption of everything from bicycles to natural gas and electric trucks has changed things on the maintenance side, from stocking bicycle tire tubes to figuring out charging and training strategies.

It may even mean thinking about different ways of training techs and running shops. Maybe you’d want to outsource the maintenance work on bicycles or drones, for instance.

“It’s going to be very difficult to hire enough technicians and have highly technical people” in all your tech positions, he said. Perhaps we’ll need a hierarchy, with an entry-level tech handling basic jobs like oil changes and tires on one end, and a highly skilled, trained, and technical expert on the other end of the scale.

“Maybe we would develop a call-in number where less-skilled techs call in and the highly skilled ones help diagnose the problem by phone,” he suggested. “We don’t need virtual reality glasses for that; we can do that today, every one of us, with an iPhone, just using Facetime, so you can show him the problem you’ve got.”

UPS, for one, is practicing what it preaches. “We must be willing to change as technology changes,” Rose said. “Far too often we’re mentally enslaved to the familiar. Freeing ourselves may allow us to take the first step.” And who knows where all those first steps may lead.

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A new full-service truck stop and travel center has opened in Oregon. The Plateau Travel Plaza on U.S. Highway 26 near Madras, Oregon, is owned by the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs.

The center features parking for up to 70 trucks in a secure lot, laundry facilities, full-service and self-serve fueling, a 3,000 sq. feet convenience store stocked with favorite items, homestyle seated dining and takeout food, a convenient off highway location, and a variety of gaming options at the indoor casino. 

Eric Angel, general manager of the new facility, estimates that the nearest truck plaza with comparable amenities is 120 miles away from Plateau Travel Plaza. 

"That's quite a distance when a trucker has a deadline to meet," said Belinda Chavez, director of marketing for Indian Head Casino. "So, we invite all drivers to stop and visit when traveling north or south on U.S. Highway 26 near Madras.  You'll find friendly faces, competitive fuel prices, the freshest coffee around and so much more."

Plateau Travel Plaza is owned and operated by the Confederate Tribes of Warm Springs, which represents the Warm Springs, Wasco and Paiute tribes. The building concept mirrors the warm and welcoming nature and traditions of the Warm Springs people. Alive with earth tones coupled with blue and teal hues of the life giver, "water." Plateau Travel Plaza is located in the Jefferson County Industrial Park of Madras, Oregon.

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E.L.M. was chosen for its excellent customer satisfaction and technological advancements, according to HDATP. The shop’s was also recognized for its focus on training and continual improvement. Owner Evan Lang and his son Jonah Lang accepted the award.

“It takes an entire team to make this business operate day in and day out with a strong focus on the customer and doing a thorough and accurate job the first time,” said Evan Lang. “Our employees are highly trained, passionate about their work, and the success of our customers. That takes training and discipline. I might lead this team, but every single employee is responsible for our growth and success. I graciously accept this award for all of our E.L.M. team.”

Established in 1996 by Evan and Mary Lang as a mobile air conditioning specialist, E.L.M. has expanded its operation to a 21-bay, full service truck and trailer repair facility. E.L.M was also recognized for its work in community service, supporting local charities such as Keeping Kids Warm, Toys for Tots, and the Edgar Lions Club.

“HDA Truck Pride is honored to have E.L.M. Repair and Refrigeration and the high standards that they uphold as part of the TSE network,” said Tina Hubbard, HDA Truck Pride’s vice president of marketing and product management. “Thank you for your relentless efforts to your customers and your employees. Congratulations on your well-deserved 2017 Truck Service Expert of the Year award.”

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Ford Motor Company is recalling an estimated 350,000 2018 F-150 and 2018 Expedition vehicles with 10-speed automatic transmissions as well as 2018 F-650 and F-750 vehicles with six-speed automatic transmissions because a clip that locks the gear shift cable may not be fully seated.

Over time, this scenario may allow the transmission to be in a different gear state from the shift position selected by the driver.

A possible consequence is that a driver may move the shifter to "park" and remove the ignition key, but the transmission may not actually be in park, which could potentially result in unintended vehicle rollaway, which increases the risk of an injury or crash.

Ford is aware of one reported accident and injury related to this condition.

To fix the problem, dealers will inspect and verify that the shift cable locking clip was properly installed. If the clip is not properly seated, technicians will adjust the shifter cable and secure the locking clip at no cost to the customer.

Affected vehicles include:

• 2018 Ford F-150 vehicles built at Dearborn Assembly Plant, Jan. 5, 2017 to Feb. 16, 2018
• 2018 Ford F-150 vehicles built at Kansas City Assembly Plant, Jan. 25, 2017 to Feb. 16, 2018
• 2018 Ford Expedition vehicles built at Kentucky Truck Plant, April 3, 2017 to Jan. 30, 2018
• 2018 Ford F-650 and F-750 vehicles built at Ohio Assembly Plant, April 25, 2017 to March 9, 2018

The recall involves vehicles in North America, with 292,909 in the United States and federalized territories, 51,742 in Canada and 2,774 in Mexico. Ford's reference number for this recall is 18S10.

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Overall, 103,000 jobs were added for the month, far short of analysts’ expectations of a 185,000 gain, and well below February’s jump of 326,000 new jobs.

Also, the total number of job additions for January and February were revised downward by 50,000 jobs. Despite this and the March performance, employers have added a healthy average of 211,000 jobs per month in the past six months.

All this kept the nation’s unemployment rate at a 17-year low of 4.1%, where it’s been for six straight months.

In for-hire trucking, there were 6.700 job additions in March, following the 6,000 added during February. The wider transportation and warehousing sector added 9,800 jobs in March, due not just to trucking, as the couriers and messengers, and warehousing and storage categories also reported solid gains.

March for-hire trucking employment totaled nearly 1.48 million-- that's up 23,000 jobs from the same time a year earlier.

Employment also grew in manufacturing, health care, and mining. Manufacturing jobs rose by 22,000, with all of the gain in the durable goods component. Year over year, manufacturing has added 232,000 jobs. The durable goods component accounted for about three-fourths of the jobs added, according to the department.

Some overall moderation was widely expected going into the report given the surge in February, according to Paul Ferley, assistant chief economist at RBC Economic Research.

“More robust employment gains were also expected to be reflected in the unemployment rate dropping to 4.0% from February’s rate of 4.1% though today’s report indicated that this rate remained unchanged,” he said. “That said, the current unemployment rate still remains below the Federal Reserve’s assumed long-run range of 4.3% to 4.7%.”

Ferley said this new report provides confirmation of tight labor markets, as the annual increase in wages rose to 2.7% in March from 2.6% in February and a 2017 average of 2.5%.

“The likelihood of labor markets operating beyond capacity is possibly starting to limit firms’ ability to find new workers, particularly after outsized gains in recent months,” Ferley said.

The report follows ones from a couple of days earlier showing private sector employment increased by 241,000 jobs in March and that manufacturing in March remained strong.

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Opting to acquire power units through a finance or full-service lease in lieu of ownership has long been seen as a financial decision, typically based on how standard a fleet’s trucks specs are and how quickly it cycles out trucks.

Today, however, fleet managers may have other good reasons to consider leasing over owning, namely as a strategy to deal with the galloping arrival of new equipment technologies (everything from electronic logs to advanced emission systems to alternative power) and the ever-growing shortage of qualified technicians.

While leasing historically has been favored by sizable fleets running fairly standard equipment on shorter trade cycles, full-service and finance lessors say such marketing distinctions are not so cut and dried anymore. More fleets are looking more closely at all their options, from outright ownership to finance leasing to full-service leasing, even opting to own some trucks while leasing others.

“Typically, larger fleets, driven by an interest in tax benefits and the company’s cash flow, choose a leasing model,” says Steve Goodale, vice president of Daimler Truck Financial, which provides services for customers of Freightliner, Western Star, and other Daimler Trucks North America brands.

“For example, a larger fleet may not need the depreciation benefit that comes with financing [by loan] and will decide to take advantage of [finance] leasing’s lower payments, which allows them to simply expense the monthly lease payment. This also offers them shorter equipment life cycles and allows them to adopt the newest technology as it becomes available.” In addition, he notes that a finance lessor can offer “customized deal structures, such as seasonal payments, balloon payments, and extended terms that work for the needs of the specific customer.”

On the other hand, Goodale points out that “smaller fleets tend to gravitate toward retail finance because they are more comfortable with the product, want [to outright own] the asset, or have a longer trade cycle planned.” That last element is often a congruent factor for fleets that run specialized truck equipment.

Buying power

“Full-service leasing from a third-party provider continues to have an advantage over the ownership model for a variety of reasons,” says Jason Leon, group director, product management for Ryder ChoiceLease. He says chief among those are buying power and an expansive, reliable maintenance network.

“Also with leasing, there’s the residual advantage element. Each organization has unique needs, which is why Ryder, for example, offers a flexible leasing solution, ChoiceLease, that lets customers select from three different levels of maintenance.” He adds that with leasing, “it’s never a one-size-fits-all scenario, which is why we provide our customers with the ability to determine the term, financing arrangements, and the service delivery method of their choosing.”

“Full-service leasing is a growth market and has been for quite some time now,” says Joseph Gallick, senior vice president of National Account Sales for NationaLease, an association of independent full-service lessors and sister operation to finance lessor AmeriQuest. “In our case, we see customers that need to do two things at the same time – heighten the efficiency of their drivers and maximize their fleet investment.”

He says the driver turnover/shortage issue is being exacerbated by hours of service constraints and CSA requirements, “so fleets want productive vehicles to increase driving time and so do drivers. The same thing goes for the rising cost of equipment, mainly due to emissions rules and to new technology that does promise tremendous progress. The truck costs more but the technology’s benefits haven’t accrued yet, although they will. And they may need to be in the shop more as well.

“All that puts a lot of focus on maintenance,” Gallick continues. “Then there’s the need for more technicians and more training as data coming off the trucks has to be interpreted. Trucks are talking to us now, and fleets have to learn to understand what they are saying to act on it.” The upshot, he says, is that “more companies are seeing that trucking is not their core competency and they are becoming more comfortable with turning that over to a specialist in buying, spec’ing and maintaining trucks and recruiting and training technicians.”

The reasons why

“Lease vs. buy is not as simple as it once was,” says Jake Civitts, director of franchise operations for Paccar Leasing Co. (PacLease). “There are different reasons to buy, and there are different scenarios for going with a finance or full-service lease. We have some customers who do all three — buy some trucks, attain others on a finance lease, and have others on a full-service lease. The decision really depends on the organization — how many trucks they need and what resources they can devote to owning and maintaining them.”

Civitts says typically a fleet pays cash or finances ownership if its primary source of revenue comes from trucking. “Those choosing full-service leasing tend to operate trucks to support their business operations, like a company that sells fuel and needs trucks to get it there.”

According to Brian Holland, president and CFO of Fleet Advantage, which provides equipment financing and lifecycle-cost management to fleets, basing the lease vs. buy decision on “functional obsolescence and for how many years trucks can be operated” is outdated.

Instead, he contends fleets should “look at economic obsolescence, which uses data and analytics to determine how many years each individual truck should be operated. We call this the ‘tipping point,’ that point in time where it costs more to maintain and fuel an existing vehicle than it does to replace it with a new, more fuel-efficient model.” Under this approach, a fleet would move to “a shorter asset lifecycle to lower their total costs by utilizing flexible leasing.”

Holland holds that leasing provides the flexibility to run newer equipment more frequently. “That provides many benefits, including lower total cost of ownership, reduced emissions, safety improvements, and better driver retention and recruitment, since drivers prefer to operate newer trucks,” he says.

When deciding whether to lease or own, fleets “need to recognize their true cost of doing business vs. spreading out the overhead costs,” says PacLease’s Civitts. He says lessors are also doing “more and more with technology” for their customers, noting that the cost of compliance now includes “dealing with ELDs, various emission systems, and stopping distances. And we definitely have seen the annual hours it takes to keep new trucks maintained increasing.

“A good full-service lessor can handle all this for a known amount,” he continues, “and other services can be ‘bundled’ in as the customer chooses, from washing trucks and replacement vehicles when needed to fuel-tax reporting and compliance management. A lease can truly become a one-stop transportation solution.”

Fresh wrinkle

Ryder’s Leon says there’s a fresh wrinkle that may influence the lease vs. own decision in the coming years. “We have entered a new landscape with the lowered tax rate, now a flat rate of 21% [per the new tax reform bill that became law in January], which favorably leans toward equipment leasing.” Under the new scenario, he explains, the “timing advantage of accelerated depreciation is diminished, and interest expense will no longer automatically be 100% deductible.” In addition, businesses “may no longer use like-kind exchange programs for vehicles, and therefore, no longer defer taxable gains on the sale of vehicles.”

Penske Truck Leasing Senior Vice President Jim Lager expects that in most cases, the tax changes will tip the scale in favor of leasing. “There are, if you will, ‘moving parts’ within this [tax reform]. It’s not just about gaining bonus depreciation, because on the other hand, you can only take so much. That is, the rules on pass-through [earnings] limits the benefit of bonus depreciation. We can conduct a comparative value analysis for customers using their information to calculate all this for them.”

Lager explains further that bonus depreciation will come into play only if assets are carried on the fleet’s books, whether by owning or financing equipment. By contrast, “if the fleet has an operating [full-service] lease, that benefit is baked into our rates.”

Sunshine rule

On top of the new tax law, there are new accounting rules coming into play that may impact leasing decisions, says Patrick Gaskins, senior vice president of Financial Services for AmeriQuest, a finance lessor and sister operation to NationaLease.

He explains that the Financial Accounting Standards Board has issued a new standard (initial effective date is Jan. 1, 2019). The new FASB 13 will require companies that lease assets “to recognize on the balance sheet the assets and obligations created by those leases,” according to FASB.

“It’s a ‘sunshine rule,’” explains Gaskins, “intended to make these transactions more transparent to investors. In practical terms, it means equipment leased [for more than 12 months] must be reported. It will require ‘unbundling’ the cost of the finance portion from that of the maintenance charges etc. that would be part of a full-service lease — those would then be listed as ‘expense’ items.”

In the past, he explains, the costs of finance leases — whether FMV (Fair Market Value) or TRAC (Terminal Rental Agreement Clause) leases — were always ‘”off the balance sheet.” That is, they were treated like debt, as liabilities secured by the trucks as assets. “Those costs were hidden, in that they were reported in footnotes. Now, everything has to be in black and white, right on the balance sheet.” Gaskins stresses that “the mechanics of a lease are not changing. Only how the details have to be reported, per this light-of-day rule.”

“The lease vs. buy calculation continues to be a very simple process,” says Ryder’s Leon. “The biggest change has been around the increasing cost of equipment and the growing complexity of new vehicle technology, plus the maintenance associated with it all.  These changes require that you have qualified, trained technicians to ensure proper diagnosis and repair.”

But, he says, recruiting techs and providing up-to-date training is “not something most fleet owners are equipped to handle, from a financial, time, and expertise standpoint. And in this ever-changing technological and regulatory environment, this challenge has only grown. Relying on an experienced third party provider ensures greater consistency, fleet uptime, and ultimately, peace of mind.”

Speedy obsolescence

Penske’s Lager puts it this way: “Today, equipment is becoming more obsolete faster. Start back at the electronic engines of the 90’s and now truck tech has caught up with that of cars. That is pushing more fleets to leasing.” He says there is more recognition by fleets that while “they need trucks for a job, they don’t need to own the trucks. Leasing avoids the highs and lows that come with rising maintenance costs and trading trucks out that comes with ownership. We flat-line those costs for customers. Also tipping the scale is that it’s hard to run a trucking business and stay on top of changing truck technology.”

While full-services leasing is often seen as a business model for large private over-the-road fleets, Lager says the marketplace is more varied than that. “We have private and for-hire customers. We have customers with one, two, or three trucks who do not want to work with a dealer. And we have large fleet customers, including for-hire carriers running thousands of vehicles. Our scale allows for more options than owning trucks or bank-financing them.”

He says in some cases, Penske may provide “all or some of the maintenance work in certain places” for large for-hire fleets. “It is getting harder to hire and retain techs, but we can come in and operate shops on their behalf. And they can go back to focusing on hauling freight.” Langer notes that Penske has been doing more business with for-hire fleets over the last four to seven years. “The fleet has to see it [maintenance] as a core competency. Some can and do it very well [and so keep owning their trucks].”

End of the road

“The ability to get the expected resale value [trading out trucks] is a very important factor in the lease vs. buy decision,” adds Ryder’s Leon. “With technological advances that are moving at a constant and rapid pace, the leasing option is becoming more and more attractive to fleet owners, who are less willing to take on resale requirements in future, uncertain used truck markets.”

Penske’s Lager notes that “lease rates are predicated on [truck residuals]; we have a whole department devoted to that. Fleets find that it’s very hard to dispose of used trucks, except at a rock-bottom price through a dealer. It’s a real crapshoot on valuation today. But we have the history and expertise to handle that risk.”

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Doughty previously served as Help’s vice president and COO. He succeeds Karen Rasmussen in the role of president. She will continue to serve as Help’s chief executive officer.

“Mr. Doughty’s promotion was a unanimous decision of the HELP Board of Directors,” said Help chairman John Esparza, Texas Trucking Association. “After he was recruited in March 2013 by Ms. Rasmussen to serve as Help’s chief operating officer, Mr. Doughty quickly proved himself and soon began to take on additional responsibilities. In 2015, he was promoted to the role of vice president.”

Prior to joining Help in March 2013, Doughty served as the COO of Contractor Management Services, helping to lead the company’s growth through creative strategic and business planning. He also managed the introduction of service offerings for new vertical markets in the transportation sector.

Doughty serves on the board of directors and executive committee of the Intelligent Transportation Society of American and chairs its governance committee. He also serves on the board of directors of the Arizona Trucking Association and on the technology and engineering policy committee of the American Trucking Associations.

Doughty’s professional experience in transportation includes a decade as president of Moody’s Quick Inc., and Quick Product Solutions, providers of nationwide transportation services as well as warehousing, packaging, and distribution. Doughty began his career at Discover Financial Services, where he held several executive positions over a 13-year period.

“I am extremely pleased that the Help board recognized Mr. Doughty’s value in assisting in fulfilling our mission of truck safety and efficiency,” said Rasmussen. “He is a man of great integrity whose knowledge of the transportation industry, along with safety and tolling technology, will serve Help well in the coming years.”

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Written by HDT Editor in Chief Deborah Lockridge, Executive Editor David Cullen, and Equipment Editor Jim Park, the Alt-Fuels Update that ran in the September 2017 print edition garnered the Neal Award for Best Subject-Related Package. The articles within the alternative fuels update package delved deeply into such topics as the state of electric trucks, why some fleets still embrace natural gas, how to tap solar power onboard, and smart trucks.

Deborah Lockridge was honored individually with the Neal Award for Best Commentary/Blog for three of her monthly print magazine editorials:

• Is Your Lease-Purchase Program a Problem?
• A Whirlwind of Last-Minute ELD Preparations
• It's Time to Think About Hourly Pay

HDT editors were also named finalists in two other categories. The 10-part series Trucking in the 21st Century was named a finalist for Best Series. The series of articles explored the technologies that are impacting the trucking industry and what it means for the success of our readers’ businesses. The series consisted of features written by Deborah Lockridge, David Cullen, Jim Park, Senior Editor Jack Roberts, and Technology Contributing Editor Jim Beach, as well as additional online content.

HDT was also named a finalist in the Best Instructional Content category for three articles offering how-to advice. The recognized articles were:

• 6 Steps to Thwart Cargo Theft by David Cullen
• 4 Ways to Control Creeping Maintenance Costs by Jack Roberts
• Outside Service: Evaluating the Options by Aftermarket Contributing Editor Denise Rondini

To date, HDT editors have collectively won 29 Neal Awards and received 37 Certificates of Merit/Finalist honors. In additon, HDT editors have twice been named the recipient of the annual Grand Neal Award.

The Jesse H. Neal Awards were created by the American Business Media trade association (now known as Connectiv) in 1955 to recognize and reward editorial excellence in business-to-business journalism.

All Neal entries are put through a two-tiered screening process to reach the final judging. Entries are scored in three areas: journalistic enterprise, extent of service to the field, and editorial craftsmanship. A board of 12 to 18 journalism professionals goes through each of the finalists to make the final determinations.

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A Chinese joint venture has announced plans to begin development of “next-generation, smart, heavy trucks” powered by autonomous vehicle technology and featuring “new energy technologies and logistics big data.”

According to financial news reports, G7 Networks, a China-based company that provides fleet management and logistics technologies, has formed a joint venture with GLP, a “logistical solutions provider,” and investment firm NIO Capital, focused on developing “next-generation smart heavy-duty trucks powered by autonomous driving, new energy technologies and logistics big data.” Both GLP and NIO Capital are Chinese companies.

According to reports, the proposed trucks will be designed and operate using G7’s data and fleet management capabilities, GLP’s logistics ecosystem and NIO Capital’s automotive industry partnerships.

The joint venture’s goals will be to “pursue autonomous-driven electric heavy-duty trucks" that are “highly efficient, safe and easy to manage and to build innovation in ‘asset-as-a-service’ for the logistics and transportation industry via artificial intelligence,” according to G7.

Additionally, G7 said it has invested in additional emerging technologies, including big data, AI and smart equipment in order to promote intelligent transformation, connectivity and sharing for logistics assets, including trucks and trailers. Currently, G7 says, its logistics platform serves more than 50,000 customers and connects more than 600,000 vehicles.

“We will work closely with the automotive industry to achieve seamless integration of AI, trucks and logistics scenarios and will challenge ourselves with a goal of developing a dream truck for logistics companies,” said Xuehun Zhai, G7’s founder and CEO.

The companies did not announce a time frame for development and production of its autonomous truck line.

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Phillips Industries will once again be the exclusive sponsor for Heavy Duty Trucking’s 2018 Truck Fleet Innovators Award.

The award was founded in 2006 to honor fleet executives and leaders for their leadership and forward thinking in many diverse areas, such as new technology adoption, driver recruiting and retention, fuel economy, and maintenance.

The 2018 Truck Fleet Innovators will be announced in April and profiled in the May issue of Heavy Duty Trucking magazine. Winners will also be honored at the Heavy Duty Trucking Exchange networking and education event, being held May 9-11 at the Scottsdale resort at McCormick Ranch outside Phoenix, Arizona, and will participate in a panel discussion led by HDT's editors.

“Phillips Industries has built its brand on creating innovative solutions that solve our fleet customers’ challenges," commented Rob Phillips, president and COO. “And now, with all the attention and traction we’re getting from Phillips Connect Technologies’ TrailerNet system, it’s more fitting than ever to sponsor HDT’s Truck Fleet Innovators Award.”

Last year’s Truck Fleet Innovators were:

• Kirk Altrichter, vice president of fleet services, Kenan Advantage Group, North Canton, Ohio
• Ralph LoPriore, director of fleet assets and processes, Stoneway Concrete/Gary Merlino Construction, Seattle, Washington
• Randy Obermeyer, terminal manager, Batesville Logistics, Batesville, Indiana
• Randy Swart, chief operating officer, A. Duie Pyle, West Chester, Pennsylvania

“We are pleased to be associated with Heavy Duty Trucking’s Truck Fleet Innovators Award and look forward to meeting this year’s honorees,” said Phillips.

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As impressive and multifaceted a company as Tesla is, its financial health has been subject to vigorous public debate for over a year now. So it was only a matter of time before its competitors in the rapidly expanding electric truck market began taking jabs at the tech company founded by Elon Musk.

In a Tweet on Wednesday, April, 4, electric truck OEM Nikola announced that it would refund 100% of the deposit money invested by customers with no loss of place “in line” for trucks ordered. “We don't use your money to operate our business. We want everyone to know we have never used a dollar of deposit money in the history of our company," the Tweet said – an apparent jab at Tesla, which financial analysts widely suspect is using millions of dollars in deposit money placed by Semi electric truck customers to simply keep the company’s lights on and doors open.

In a subsequent Tweet, Nikola boasted that new customers would be able to pre-order a Nikola truck without placing a deposit down, adding that with over “8+ billion” in pre-order reservations in-hand, it did not need deposits “any way.” Presumably, Nikola means that it has $8 billion worth of orders for its truck already on the books, although in the past Nikola has said it has 8,000 pre-orders in hand for its Class 8 electric truck, which it plans to build in a $1 billion manufacturing plant in Arizona with serial production slated to begin in 2021.

Tesla has previously announced that it will being serial production of its Semi electric truck next year. Musk’s company has not been as forthcoming concerning Semi orders, although the company is requiring a $5,000 deposit for each Semi ordered before production begins. According to published reports, Tesla’s Top 10 largest orders total 327 trucks, totaling more than $2 million in deposits, assuming those customers paid the publically announced amount for each truck reserved.

Tesla’s Semi truck features an all-electric drivetrain, while Nikola has announced it will use a combination of hydrogen fuel cells and electric motors to power its trucks.

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The lighter a vehicle is, the better fuel efficiency it generally gets. And according to a financial analyst’s report this week, Navistar will soon be looking at new, lighter-weight materials as a way to further boost Class 8 fuel economy.

According to a report by the investment firm Zacks, Navistar has signed an agreement with TPI Composites to design and develop Class 8 trucks with lighter-weight frame rails and body panels crafted from composite materials.

The agreement comes on the heels of Navistar’s award-winning participation in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Super Truck II program, a collaborative effort between government and private industry to explore cutting-edge methods to boost fuel efficiency for Class 8 commercial vehicles.

TPI Composites is a leading company that engages in the development of composite materials based on advanced technologies and manufacturing procedures.

According to the report by Zacks, both Navistar and TPI are seeking to reduce the weight of a Class 8 tractor by approximately 30% in order to improve freight efficiency, while reducing the number of body parts required on the vehicle and extending vehicle life with the use of non-corrosive materials.

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Volvo Trucks has named S&S Volvo of Lima, Ohio as its 2017 Dealer of the Year for North America. Volvo Trucks also honored its top dealers in Canada and Mexico. The 2017 Canada Dealer of the Year is Mid-Ontario Truck Centre of Regina, Saskatchewan, and the 2017 Mexico Dealer of the Year is Tractocamiones y Refacciones de Chihuahua SA de CV of Chihuahua.

The annual North American Dealer of the Year award recognized S&S Volvo of Lima, Ohio and its employees for outstanding performance in a number of key areas, including new truck sales, market share, parts sales, customer satisfaction, dealer operating standards, franchise investment and support for other dealers. Nearly half of the technicians at S&S Volvo maintain Volvo Master Technician certification.

“S&S Volvo excelled in a strong market in 2017 and consistently exceeded their organizational goals while delivering outstanding service and support to Volvo Trucks customers,” said Bruce Kurtt, senior vice president of sales for Volvo Trucks North America. “Dealer principal Todd Schaub and the whole S&S Volvo team maintain a strong commitment to the success of their customers and are an exceptional representation of the Volvo brand.”

Volvo cited S&S Volvo, which has been in business for more than twenty years, for “greatly exceeding its sales objectives, nearly doubling their 2017 sales plan, and supported a wide range of customers and applications with products across Volvo’s Class 8 product lineup.” In addition, the OEM noted, S$S Volvo is a leader on the telematics front, strongly utilizing Volvo’s ASIST online service management and communication platform.

Volvo Trucks’ 2017 Dealer of the Year award recipients include:

• North America                       S&S Volvo – Lima, Ohio
• U.S., Central Region              M&K Truck Centers – Alsip, Illinois
• U.S., Northeast Region           S&S Volvo – Lima, Ohio
• U.S., Southeast Region           Action Truck Center – Dothan, Alabama  
• U.S., Southwest Region          Volvo Trucks of Waco – Waco, Texas
• U.S., Western Region             Mobile Fleet Service – Yakima, Washington
• Canada                       Sterling Truck & Trailer Sales – Regina, Saskatchewan
• Mexico                        Tractocamiones y Refacciones de Chihuahua SA de CV, Chihuahua

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Full enforcement of the electronic logging device mandate that went into effect April 1 will no doubt result in a great many fleets wanting to challenge incorrect citations and inspection reports. Filing DataQ challenges is something John Seidl, a former commercial vehicle enforcement official turned transportation and compliance consultant with Integrated Risk Solutions, does frequently.

One of the biggest areas of confusion at roadside inspections, Seidl says, is enforcement officials trying to hold automatic onboard recording devices (AOBRDs) to the same standards as the new ELD rule. AOBRDs are allowed to be used instead of ELDs under a grandfather clause up until December 2019, if fleets were using them before the 2017 ELD deadline. And the latest guidance allows a motor carrier that installed and required its drivers to use an AOBRD before Dec. 18, 2017, to install and use a new ELD-capable device that runs compliant AOBRD software until the December 2019 full compliance deadline.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s frequently asked questions on ELDs states that if you are operating a grandfathered AOBRD, “authorized safety officials will enforce … the requirements in 49 CFR 395.15 for ‘grandfathered’ AOBRDs,” while ELDs are to be enforced under the ELD regulations.

However, Seidl says, “there are many inspectors that are writing AOBRD devices up for ELD-related violations, thus prompting me to do a bazillion DataQs.”

One example? Data transfer. An AOBRD is not required to be able to transfer data to enforcement officials at roadside like ELDs are. “It doesn’t have the programming embedded in it, nor was it required to so; it is impossible to make an AOBRD transfer a data file…. You can’t make an AOBRD transfer a file that doesn’t exist.”

Even if it’s an ELD, FMCSA’s FAQs say the ELD will not be deemed non-compliant if the data cannot be sent electronically, if the driver can show either a printout or the actual ELD display of their RODS.

You can file Data Q challenges online at https://dataqs.fmcsa.dot.gov. Look for the Analyst Guide on this page for a how-to publication on Data Qs. But here are a few real-world tips from Seidl.

1. Know the commercial vehicle regulations

Before you can challenge a citation, you need to understand the regulations. You probably have a copy of the green federal motor carrier safety regulations, Seidl says. But you’ll also want a copy of the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s out-of-service conditions guide, updated every April 1 – something he says many fleet safety people don’t even realize exists. “This lists every out of service condition. Every inspector has it, and that’s what determines whether you get put out of service or not.”

In fact, he says, he has won challenges not to the violation itself, but to being put out of service. “Say you are in violation – you screwed up. You agree you were in violation But you don’t agree you should have been placed out of service. Then you would use the CVSA out-of-service book.”

You can order a hard copy of the out-of-service guide or buy a downloadable PDF at www.cvsa.org; click on the “Store” tab.

Other regulations you need to have access to are the hazardous materials ones if you haul hazmat, and applicable state regulations.

2. Provide supporting documentation

One of the common mistakes Siedl sees in DataQ challenges is failing to provide adequate supporting documentation.

“You can’t just write it up without having evidence,” he says. “You shouldn’t be disputing violations without evidence to the contrary. You can’t just write up a summary and hope it goes well.”

Part of that evidence, he says, can simply be citing the appropriate sections of the regulations (back to our first tip above), if you prove that why they wrote you up is contrary to the regulation.

“Always get a copy of the actual driver vehicle examination report,” Seidl says. Don’t just get a screen shot. On the inspection report are additional notes that won’t be on the online summary, which may help you direct your challenge. Your driver should give you the copy of the inspection report, but if they don’t, Seidl says, you can request a copy through the Data Q website.

3. Challenge citations in court

“Many companies don’t know this, but if you get a citation and you take it to court, and they dismiss the ticket, that state is required to remove it from your CSA scores,” Seidl says. “If you get a citation and they reduce it to a lesser charge, the state is required to turn that violation in CSA into a 1-point CSA effect.”

So one key way to manage your CSA scores through Data Qs is to go to court. This is why in many cases, a ticket is actually better than a warning – because you can’t fight a warning in court.

“Are enforcement officials writing more or less tickets? They’re writing less, because if you fight it, you get rid of it,” Seidl says.

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Staroba has more than 20 years of experience in the transportation industry, recently serving as president of CFI. In addition to working for CFI, he also spent time at XPO logistics.

“With the extent of Tim’s background and his enthusiasm, I’m extremely confident the he will bring great value to both our clients and our Navajo team,” said Don Digby Jr., president of Navajo Express.

Navajo Express’ services include dedicated fleets, intermodal, specialized equipment, and truckload. Navajo Express’ headquarters are located in Denver, Colorado with six other terminals nationwide including Salt Lake City, Utah, Tolleson, Ariz., and Rockwall, Texas.

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Some 20 states still lack texting while driving bans for all drivers or total cellphone bans for teens and novice drivers, according to the National Safety Council (NSC).

Four states — Florida, Arizona, Montana, and Missouri — don't have any laws addresses either area, and 16 states have laws in only one of the two areas, according to the NSC's State of Safety report.

Since its State of Safety report was released last year, New Mexico, Texas, and Iowa have joined 27 other states and the District of Columbia in passing legislation in both areas.

However, the agency believes more work is needed and is urging lawmakers to enact comprehensive laws to prevent further injuries and fatalities caused by distracted driving behaviors.

Each day in the U.S., approximately nine people are killed and more than 1,000 injured in reported crashes that involve a distracted driver, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The council believes too many states are woefully behind in addressing distracted driving and the group advocates for a full ban on using electronic devices behind the wheel. The council timed its current push for legislation to coincide with Distracted Driving Awareness Month in April.

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Schneider is offering owner-operators with 2000 or newer model-year trucks a lease-on opportunity with access to select van truckloads.

The lease-on opportunity allows qualifying owner-operators to select van truckloads moving in the eastern 37 states on Schneider’s Percentage Lease Program. Owner-operators with 2010 or newer trucks will also be able to take advantage of the company’s Percentage Lease Program for van truckload or tanker loads across the U.S. and Canada.

Also referred to as the Choice Program, Schneider’s Percentage Lease Program gives owner-operators more control over picking loads and planning tours. It offers access Schneider’s large freight base without having to deal with dispatchers and brokers.

Owner-operators leased with Schneider can also save through the Purchase Power Program, which provides ways to lower business costs on items such as tires, glass, chains, fuel, maintenance and insurance. Additional advantages include access to Schneider’s e-logs, trailers, and facilities.

“With Schneider, owner-operators have the buying power of a large, stable trucking company in their corner,” said Rob Reich, senior vice president of equipment, maintenance and driver recruiting. “The new and expanded lease-on opportunities help more owner-operators keep their business moving and revenue growing.”

For more information, click here.

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Truckstop.com has announced an integration of its payment platform LoadPay with transportation management software provider, McLeod Software.

By integrating McLeod’s PowerBroker with the LoadPay payment platform, PowerBroker customers will be offered a method for streamlining the payments process.

“For brokers and 3PLs, their TMS is the backbone of their entire business,” says Paris Cole, CEO at Truckstop.com. “Now, McLeod PowerBroker customers can manage their entire payments process from within one platform without having to involve an additional platform.”

LoadPay increases back-office efficiencies and provides simplified payment reconciliation for PowerBroker. The integration also allows for increased visibility and control on the broker’s side, and quick payment options for the carrier. This can improve carrier retention and capacity generation, while creating a new source of revenue for brokers and shippers.

"Our goal is to provide our customers with everything they need to keep their business running in an efficient and profitable manner,” said Robert Brothers, manager of product development for McLeod. “LoadPay aligns with that goal with their ambition to wipe out payment inefficiencies in the transportation industry.”

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Troubles continue to mount for Indiana-based trucking company Celadon Group Inc. after it launched an internal investigation into its accounting practices nearly a year ago. Celadon’s stock will be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange after the company announced the accounting errors are so extensive that it will have to restate its financial results going back to 2014 and will not be able to issue revised results by an NYSE deadline.

Last May, Celadon’s auditor raised questions about its finances, especially those involving a joint venture and the sale of leased equipment.

At that time Celadon said financial statements for 2016, when the deal with completed, could no longer be relied upon. This week it announced the internal investigation and management review have identified errors that will require adjustments to the previously issued 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017 financial statements.

“The income statement impacts relating to these adjustments are expected to reduce net income before income taxes by a range of $200 million-$250 million cumulatively over the three-year period ended June 30, 2016,” Celadon said this week in a statement. “In addition to considering the impact on these periods, the company is reviewing the impact for the first two quarters of 2017.”

Most of the accounting adjustments relate to equipment sales that took place between former Celadon subsidiary Quality Cos. and 19th Capital, a joint venture between Celadon and the Pennsylvania-based private equity firm Larsen MacColl Partners, according to the Indiana Business Journal. Also involved was another joint venture formed by Celadon and Canada-based Element Fleet Management.

Since that time, Celadon has disposed of Quality Cos., and most of the company’s senior leadership team has been replaced.

In the meantime, trading in Celadon stock has been halted, with it closing at $3.45 per share on Monday, the last day it was traded. That’s down from a 52-week high of $8.53 per share a little more than $27 per share nearly three years ago.

Before this week’s developments, the financial information website Seeking Alpha said Celadon’s stock was worthless.

The Wall Street Journal reported this week Celadon had about $380.5 million in total debt as of December 2016, the latest date for which figures are available, and about $136.7 million in liquidity, according to information it obtained.

Celadon has not publicly reported its earnings since it did so for the final quarter of 2016 in February 2017.

At least two law firms announced they are launching their own investigations into Celadon to determine whether previous management may have issued materially misleading business information to the investing public.

Last October, Celadon announced it was under investigation by the Securities Exchange Commission.

At one time it was estimated Celadon was the 33rd largest for-hire carrier in the U.S. based on annual 2017 revenue of a little more than $1 billion, with 6,000 employees, 7,050 tractors and 15,000 trailers, according to Transport Topics newspaper’s rankings. This week the company said it has cut its domestic truckload division fleet size by 20% to approximately 1,900 seated tractors, excluding those it owns but run under a banner other than Celadon. Last year it got out of the driver training business and sold its flatbed division.

Company founder Steve Russell died in April 2016 at age 76 after stepping away earlier from the business, which he started in 1985.

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Lightning Systems’ battery-electric Ford Transit LightningElectric will provide a fuel economy rating of 61 MPGe in the city and 66 MPGe on the highway, according to the vehicle modifier, which will display it for fleets around the U.S. in April and May.

Two Ford Transit LightningElectric vehicles with battery-electric drivetrain packages will begin the showcase tour at Lightning Systems’ headquarters in Loveland, Colorado. Then, one will go westbound to California and throughout that state, while the other will travel eastbound through Detroit to New York, according to Lightning Systems.

The westbound tour will end at the Advanced Clean Transportation (ACT) Expo in Long Beach, California, while the eastbound tour culminates at the 30th Annual Equipment & Vehicle Show in Queens, New York. Following the tour, Lightning Systems will make deliveries of the LightningElectric to Halo Event Group, a FedEx Ground contractor in New York City, and to XPO Bus Sales in Los Angeles.

Results from Lightning Systems demonstrated that a Ford Transit 350HD equipped with the zero-emissions LightningElectric drivetrain achieved 61 MPGe on EPA City routes and 66 MPGe on EPA Highway routes, compared to 13 and 15 MPG respectively for the identically configured gasoline Ford Transit 350HD, said the company.

The LightningElectric battery conversion package is available for Ford Transit as part of Ford Motor Company's eQVM program. The product will be available first on heavy-duty Transits with a 10,360-pound gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR). Conversions and service are performed by Ford QVM-certified upfitters and dealers around the world.

The all-electric Lightning product features a liquid-cooled lithium-ion battery from a volume-ready battery supplier that can be fast-charged in 30 minutes on DC fast charging and in six hours with Level 2 charging, said Lightning Systems. Depending on battery option and drive cycle, LightningElectric has a payload capacity of up to 4,000 pounds.

Lightning Systems also recently announced that it has developed a hydrogen fuel cell version of the LightningElectric developed in partnership with several industry partners that will extend the range of the vehicle to over 200 miles, the company said.  This product will be available in summer 2018 with a focus on the California market where significant vouchers for fuel cell vehicles and infrastructure are available.

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Great Dane has appointed two new vice presidents of manufacturing, Axel Gros and Jim Stevenson. The positions are focused on accelerating Great Dane’s implementation of continual improvement and lean manufacturing initiatives.

Gros has been with Great Dane for five years, serving as director of manufacturing for five of the company’s trailer manufacturing facilities, which he will continue to oversee. Stevenson has previously worked with Great Dane in a consulting capacity and will now be responsible for overseeing the company’s other four trailer manufacturing facilities.

Gros has been in the transportation industry for 20 years and has experience in general management, business turnaround, and product management. Stephenson has over 30 years of experience in leadership, global lean transportation, production systems, quality management and operational management. In previous roles, he has been responsible for managing remanufacturing and fabrication facilities, leading production quality programs, and guiding lean transformations at more than 40 facilities in six countries.

“We continue to recruit leaders with proven track records of lean transformation to join our highly experienced executive team to accelerate our critical initiatives,” said Brian Sage, Great Dane’s executive vice president of manufacturing. “Creating sustainable improvements in safety, quality, on-time delivery and cost reduction are essential in establishing a competitive advantage in the future.”

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Horvath is a 2017 LEAD ATA graduate who was the director of compliance and safety at TransForce – a national provider of workforce solutions for commercial transportation and safety compliance consulting. The LEAD program offers educational opportunities for up-and-coming trucking industry professionals.

“ATA is a safety-first organization, and having Dan on board will allow us to maintain our position as the leading voice advocating for the safety of the trucking industry,” said Chris Spear, ATA president and chief executive officer. “Dan has a wealth of experience with highway safety issues and we are happy that he is part of the ATA team.”

Horvath also worked for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration as an auditor and worked for Mlaker Transportation in the operations and safety department. He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown.

“Safety is critical to the work we do at ATA, and having Dan’s perspective as someone who has lived with these rules and created a safety culture in the field will be of vital importance to us,” said Bill Sullivan, ATA executive vice president for advocacy.

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There were 241,000 private sector jobs additions during the month, according to the latest figures from ADP, the fifth straight month the level was at 200,000 or better. The February total of jobs added was revised up from 235,000 to 246,000 by the payroll processor.

“We saw impressive momentum in the first quarter of 2018, with more jobs added per month on average than in 2017,” said Ahu Yildirmaz, vice president and co-head of the ADP Research Institute. “Midsized businesses added nearly half of all jobs this month, the best growth this segment has seen since the fall of 2014. The manufacturing industry also performed well, with its strongest increase in more than three years.”

The report came two days before the Labor Department releases unemployment figures for March.

Story continues below graphic.

Commerce Department factory report

Meantime, a Commerce Department report showed new orders for U.S. factory-made goods in February increased nearly 1.2% from the month before, nearly erasing January’s 1.3% decline. Despite the improvement, it was below a consensus estimate from Wall Street analysts, who expected a 1.7% gain.

When compared to the same time a year earlier, February’s gain was still impressive, rising 7.9%, boosted in large part to a spike in civilian aircraft orders. There were solid gains in orders for electrical equipment, machinery and primary metals, which offset a slip in computer-related electronics.

Shipments of factory orders recorded their 14th gain in the past 15 months, rising 0.2% in February following January’s 0.7% increase.

Both new orders and shipments of long-lasting manufactured durable goods also moved higher, as new orders also rebounded from a decline in January. Nondurable goods orders declined 0.5% after rising 1% in January

The Commerce Department also revised downward orders for nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft, an indicator of business investment, to show a 1.4% rise, down from a first reported 1.8% improvement. Shipments of these core-capital good increased 1.4% in February, the same as reported a month earlier.

Wells Fargo Securities said the rise in both new orders and shipments of core capital goods “bodes well for equipment spending” when it comes to upcoming first quarter U.S. gross domestic product numbers, but believes it will be less of a boost than the double-digit gains seen in the last half of 2017.

Econoday said “the overall order rise and especially the order rise for capital goods point to manufacturing momentum."

Will tariffs slow growth?

It’s worth noting this report was for the final full month before new tariffs were imposed by the Trump administration on $50 billion worth of Chinese made goods, with China responding with a similar move against U.S. produced items.

Some analysts are concerned this could lead to an escalating trade war between the world’s largest two economies and could also slow down worldwide economic growth.

“Ultimately, this tit-for-tat strategy is to the detriment of both economies. The hope is that tariffs are being used as a tactical approach to force a dialogue regarding the continuous violation of intellectual property rights of U.S. firms that operate in China,” said Beata Caranci, senior vice president and chief economist at TD Economics. “The conciliatory tone of Chinese authorities and the willingness of the U.S. administration to continue with dialogue are positive signs that a further escalation of a trade war can be averted.”

The positive news about manufacturing in February follows reports released a few days earlier that showed March was another good month for the sector.

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Penske Logistics is introducing the next generation of truck fleet safety technology through a video-based safety program in more than 2,800 of its heavy-duty trucks across the company’s North America operations. The foundation includes event-triggered onboard cameras from SmartDrive that face inside the truck cab, and outwards to the road, along with an ongoing driver safety coaching program.

“We’re committed to running a safe fleet and strive to ensure that our truck drivers are equipped with the latest fleet safety technology, late model vehicles, and ongoing safety coaching,” explained Penske Logistics President Marc Althen. “This new safety technology allows us to take our dedicated carriage fleet safety to another level to the benefit of the motoring public, our drivers, and customers.”

The new video-based safety program further enhances other safety-related technologies increasingly deployed within the Penske Logistics dedicated carriage fleet including backup alarms; collision avoidance and lane departure systems; stability control systems; air disc brakes; electronic driver logs; onboard telematics and vehicle diagnostics systems; speed governors; and advanced visibility LED headlights.

Penske Logistics Vice President of Safety Jason Herr noted: “A key component of this technology is the ongoing driver safety coaching program that accompanies it. Using the footage, we’re able to review incidents and coach drivers to be better and safer drivers. During a pilot program last year, results of the video-based safety program proved promising, as we saw significant reductions in total incidents and improved safety scores for our truck drivers at all locations.”

Truck drivers for Penske Logistics are also continually trained using the Smith System, widely recognized as a leading transportation industry defensive driving program.

The new cameras do not record unless triggered by an event when the vehicle is in operation, often leveraging the fleet’s active safety technologies. The combination of inward and outward facing cameras provides a wide-ranging view of the driver’s behavior. The footage can also be used for exoneration and reconstruction purposes.

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For approximately $120 million, Ryder will acquire all of MXD Group’s e-commerce fulfillment facilities in the U.S. and Canada, including 21 MXD-operated cross dock hubs, 16 dedicated operations, and a network of 72 third-party agent facilities.

The acquisition also includes order management and visibility technology, such as real-time tracking and a customer service portal for rapid response and resolution. This significantly expands Ryder’s omni-channel fulfillment capabilities in two key areas:

Ryder e-Commerce Fulfillment – With the additional 109 facilities, Ryder’s network now includes 121 e-commerce hubs covering more than 95% of the U.S. and Canada within a two-day delivery timeframe. The network can serve any industry, as it can handle big and bulky products as well as small and large parcels.

Ryder Last Mile – A last mile solution for retailers and shippers of big and bulky products will include home delivery and white glove installation with multiple tiers of service and a network of carriers throughout the U.S. and Canada.

“The acquisition of MXD is one of several strategic investments we are making to overcome the disruptions we are seeing in the market today and to position Ryder for future growth,” said Steve Sensing, Ryder President of Global Supply Chain Solutions. “E-fulfillment has become more critical to our customers than ever before, and with this new, expanded footprint, we’ll be better positioned to lead the charge in delivering a complete turnkey solution that not only includes warehousing, distribution, and transportation management, but also home delivery and white glove installation.”

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Combined Class 5-8 truck orders rose 55% compared to March 2017 and were 11% better than the previous month.

“For only the fourth time on record and for the second time in Q1’18, medium duty and heavy duty orders combined to exceed 70,000 units in a month, as activity in both the medium and heavy duty vehicle markets remained strong,” said Kenny Vieth, ACT’s president and senior analyst.

Orders for Classes 6-7 reached 18,600, while Class 5 reached 8,800. The medium-duty increase was "purely seasonal" in that March orders typically run about 19% above average, said Steve Tam, ACT's vice president.

Class 8 Orders alone, rose to 46,900 units, marking the third straight month with orders over 40,000 units. Heavy duty truck orders more than doubled in volume from a year ago. ACT Research noted that these high volumes are coming ahead of full ELD implementation which could constrain capacity further.

The first quarter of 2018 has seen the best Class 5-7 truck order volume since 2006 when the industry was pre-buying for EPA ‘07 regulations.

 “As March is traditionally the strongest month of the year for MD orders, seasonal adjustment takes a bite out of the month’s intake, dropping the relative volume to 23,100 units,” said Vieth.

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There is a lot of talk lately about increasing the amount of spending on the nation’s infrastructure, especially for roads and bridges. Report after report details why this needs to be done – because our roads and bridges are crumbling and too congested, and there is not enough money to pay for improvements.

How to pay for it, however, is another question. Some in trucking, such as the American Trucking Associations, are calling for an increase in the fuel tax. Of course, there are opponents to this, even in trucking, an industry that relies on roads and bridges like no other. However, the simple fact is that trucking can’t afford not to pay fuel taxes for road projects.

The Infrastructure Funding Plan

To begin with, a little background: More than $1.5 trillion in infrastructure funding has been called for by the Trump administration, while the American Society of Civil Engineers says $2 trillion is needed over the next 10 years just for roads – well short of current funding levels. 

Also, the way we pay for federally funded road and bridge projects hasn’t changed over the past 25 years. Yep, the nation’s gas tax is still 18.4 cents per gallon and diesel is at 24.4 cents per gallon. And like everything else in this world, from healthcare and groceries to new vehicles, (whether four wheels or 18), the cost of building and repairing roads and bridges isn’t as cheap as it was in 1993.

The state of the nation’s roads also is costing trucking a lot in terms of traffic congestion. An American Transportation Research Institute study found traffic congestion added up to an increase of more than $22,000 in operational costs for each truck that travels 100,000 miles annually. For the entire trucking industry, that’s $63.4 billion in additional operational costs.

Funding Through Fuel Taxes

One plan that’s been floated is to gradually increase the fuel tax by 20 cents per gallon, to raise $340 billion over the next 10 years. Unfortunately, that’s not enough. Fifty cents per gallon, on the other hand, would take that figure to $850 billion over a decade, and that’s much closer to the amount of money that’s needed.

Opponents say trucking can’t afford such a hike. Yet diesel prices have increased by far greater amounts in just a matter of months and the wheels of the trucking industry kept turning. And no one’s calling to increase the fuel tax by that much all at once.

In fact, this might be a perfect time for fleets to absorb a fuel tax increase. Economists both inside and outside of the trucking industry are upbeat on the general condition of trucking and what’s expected to come the remainder of this year.

Many trucking operations had a stellar 2017. In addition to seeing healthy business levels, they got a hell of a holiday bonus in terms of tax reform, which pushed their profits much higher – and they will continue to enjoy its financial benefits.

Now is the Time to Invest

The bottom line is we have a healthy economy and good freight demand (some would argue the latter is among the best ever), so it’s not a bad time to deal with a fuel tax increase. At the same time, trucking is plagued by delays in terms of congested highways that’s costing billions of dollars and cutting into capacity to haul all that freight.

Economists are more mixed on the effects of infrastructure spending on the economy as a whole. But if we were to use a fuel tax to pay for it, rather than deficit spending, it could help avoid potential problems. Some economists are concerned that deficit spending, even if it spurs economic growth in the short run, may also cause an uptick in inflation, pushing the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates faster – potentially causing the economy to slow and making money more expensive to borrow.

You can’t tell me with a straight face that now isn’t a good time to invest in the nation’s roads and bridges, and that it doesn’t make economic sense. Unless of course you like paying for congestion and think a dollar today goes as far as it did more than two decades ago, which was the last time federal fuel taxes were increased.

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Originally launched for the heavy-duty aftermarket, the PowerEdge line of diesel particulate filters and diesel oxidation catalysts now covers light- and medium-duty Ford, GM, Sprinter, Dodge, and Ram trucks.

Denso offers nine part numbers that cover most popular light- and medium-duty trucks. With few part numbers covering a wide range of applications, All PowerEdge DPFs and DOCs for light- and medium-duty applications come with a standard warranty of two years or 36,000 miles.

Installation gaskets are included with each filter. Clamps are also included with each filter, with the exception of applications that don’t require them. Replacement clamps and gaskets for the heavy-duty market are also available for purchase. Specifications are listed in the PowerEdge aftertreatment cross reference guide.

Denso has also extended its warranty on aftertreatment products for the heavy-duty market to three years, up from the standard two-year coverage.

“As the demand grows for aftermarket DPFs and DOCs, we’re excited to expand the PowerEdge line to cover the bestselling trucks on the road today,” said Frank Jenkins, senior manager of Denso’s commercial and heavy duty division. “And with the increased importance of reducing emissions from the largest trucks in operation, we’ve extended the warranty to better serve the heavy-duty industry.”

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Volvo Trucks has completed its transition from production of the outgoing VNL 670 model to the full production of the new VNL 760.

The VNL 670 has been in Volvo Truck’s lineup since 2002 and was its highest production volume model in North America, according to Goran Nyberg, president of Volvo Trucks North America. The VNL 760 was touted as Volvo’s first new Class 8 tractor design in 20 years when it was unveiled.

“Transitioning from the legacy VNL 670 into full production of the innovative new VNL 760 signifies the latest milestone on our long journey to deliver the safest, most comfortable and most efficient long-haul trucks on the market,” said Göran Nyberg, president of Volvo Trucks North America. “Exceptional design, efficiency and productivity-boosting interior features make the VNL 760 a fitting successor to the VNL 670.”

The VNL 760 builds on Volvo’s established design and includes new aerodynamic designs to reduce turbulent airflow. Driver productivity and comfort were also key to the VNL 760’s design with a more driver-centric interior, controls and gauge cluster.

The VNL 760 comes standard with the 13-liter Volvo D13 engine and I-Shift 12-speed automated manual transmission. It is also available with the D13 Turbo Compound engine which features a mechanical waste heat recovery system to capture wasted energy from the engine’s exhaust. It results in 50 additional horsepower fed back to the crankshaft and an improvement in fuel efficiency. The VNL 760 is also available with the 15-liter Cummins X15.

Volvo Active Driver Assist featuring Bendix Fusion is standard on all VNL models. The camera and radar-based system combines forward collision mitigation warnings and active braking, even with stationary vehicles. Volvo Enhanced Stability Technology, an electronic stability control system, is also standard on all VNL models to help detect imminent loss of control, jackknife, or rollover events.

All Volvo VNL models come standard with Volvo Remote Diagnostics, Volvo’s factory-installed telematics hardware that provides connectivity for proactive diagnostics and monitoring of critical engine, transmission and aftertreatment trouble codes. The same hardware also allows customers to perform powertrain software and parameter updates over-the-air with Remote Programming.

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Baumann will lead Navistar’s strategic planning, product planning and analytics teams and will also oversee Navistar’s alliance with Volkswagen Truck and Bus.

"Friedrich is a proven leader whose breadth of international, corporate and operating experience in our industry will serve Navistar well as we build on our momentum for continued long-term success," said Troy A. Clarke, Navistar's chairman, president, and chief executive officer. "We are confident that Friedrich will drive great ideas and bring new perspectives to our strategy and planning function as we pursue sustainable, profitable growth."

Prior to joining Navistar, Baumann worked for 24 years at Daimler Trucks where he most recently served the role of senior vice president at Daimler Trucks North America.

"I am eager to be joining Navistar at this exciting time in the company's history," said Baumann. "Troy and the team have done a great job of positioning Navistar for long-term success and I look forward to doing my part in further developing this winning culture and working with the entire team to drive growth, market leadership and sustainable profitability because of uncompromising customer dedication."

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The number of trucks on the spot truckload freight market did not keep pace with demand from shippers wanting to move goods before the end of the first quarter and the start of Easter holidays, sending rates and load-to-truck ratios higher.

Truck capacity on DAT network of load boards fell 3.1% while the number of loads jumped 3.5% during the week ending March 31, which included Good Friday, when freight traffic is typically low.

Van and refrigerated load-to-truck ratios remained solid and the flatbed segment hit another record high.

• Flatbed ratio: 101.5  available loads per truck, up from 87.7 the previous week
• Van ratio: 7.2, up from 6.9
• Reefer ratio: 10.4, virtually unchanged from 10.5

During this time national average spot truckload rates changed little as vans moved up 2 cents to $2.15 per mile while flatbeds gained a penny for $2.53 per mile. Reefers were unchanged for the fifth straight week at $2.40 per mile. All reported rates include fuel surcharges.

In the flatbed sector, after a 5.6% increase in load volume the previous week, freight availability jumped 7% while capacity fell 7.5%. The flatbed load-to-truck ratio increased 16% and has risen steadily since November, when it was as low as 26.

The number of available van loads increased 1% while truck posts declined 3%. Spot rates were higher on 65 of DAT’s Top 100 van lanes, and the national average rate increased for the fifth consecutive week. Key van markets included:

• Los Angeles: $2.32 per mile, up 3 cents compared to the previous week. The average outbound rate has increased 5.2% over the past four weeks
• Dallas: $2.08 per mile, up 5 cents
• Memphis: $2.68 per mile, up 6 cents

Heading into Easter weekend, the number of reefer load posts dipped 1.2% while truck posts fell 2%. Reefer rates were lower on 37 of the top 70 reefer lanes. Pricing from the Southeast and West showed that shippers in the Southeast and West have produce to move, according to DAT.

Other reefer lanes worth noting include:

• Miami-Baltimore, up 24 cents from the week before to $2.28 per mile
• Los Angeles-Portland, Oregon, up 21 cents to $2.96 per mile
• McAllen, Texas-Elizabeth, New Jersey, up 20 cents to $2.64 per mile, back to where the rate was three weeks ago
• Imperial Valley (Ontario, Calif.)-Chicago, up 29 cents to $2.14 per mile

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The fleet industry stands at a crossroads of rapidly evolving technology and new demands for safer, more efficient, and more accountable operations. Fleet managers and business owners are connecting with their vehicles, drivers, and customers in new and exciting ways, uncovering new efficiencies and spurring innovation.

Enter Verizon Connect, a new division that unites the brainpower and technological capacity of Verizon Networkfleet, Fleetmatics, and Telogis on a single platform. Automotive Fleet and affiliated Bobit Business Media fleet publications met with Verizon’s executive leadership team to learn more about Verizon Connect and ask how they plan to help commercial fleet managers meet new challenges and seize new opportunities — today and in the near future.

Automotive Fleet: Can you share some insight into the new subsidiary and how Verizon Connect is positioning itself within the fleet industry?

Verizon Connect: Verizon Connect marks the full integration of three best-in-class companies — Networkfleet, Telogis, and Fleetmatics — into a unified, connected commercial vehicle software company. The commercial telematics market in 2016 was very fragmented, and we found that there were two companies that stood out: Fleetmatics and its ability to provide a world-class fleet management platform for the small to medium-sized business (SMB) market, and Telogis, whose partnerships with the OEMs and ownership of the large enterprise space was bar-none.

What Verizon Connect represents is the coming together of all the talent, technology, innovation, and infrastructure of these three companies — Verizon Networkfleet, Fleetmatics and Telogis — to create the world’s leading platform for automating, optimizing, and revolutionizing the way people, vehicles, and things move through the world. In doing so, we’re able to deepen our customer relationships while adding more value through an equal amount of automation and insight.

Our focus on enabling safety, compliance, and operating efficiencies remain. Simultaneously, we’re expanding our software platform to go beyond the vehicle to include both the worker and work being done. We tap into important data, expertly analyze it, and deliver insightful, actionable solutions to customers. Because of this, our customers are able to move their vehicles, people, products, and services through the world in more efficient, cost-effective and smarter ways.

AF: How does Verizon Connect differentiate itself among fleet solution providers?

Verizon Connect: Over the past few years, we have invested more than $5 billion in assembling this unique set of assets that included an amazing group of dedicated professionals, world-class platform solutions and services, and the reliability, scale, and global reach of a company like Verizon.

Since the close of the Fleetmatics acquisition in November 2016, we’ve invested more in R&D than ever before in order to be a lifelong partner for our customers. In fact, we grew our investment in R&D more than 35% in 2017 alone. It’s our mission to future-proof our customers’ businesses and continue to innovate and bring to market the new technologies and software solutions that help them stay ahead of the competition, better serve their own customers, and add to the bottom line.

The Verizon Connect team has also been working hard to simplify access to our technologies by making vast improvements to the user interfaces you’ll see in our apps, working to deliver insights instead of just data, and, most importantly, offering customers a one-stop-shop approach to purchasing from us.

We know that having multiple vendors, suppliers, logins, platforms, and technologies can slow productivity and add complexity to our customers’ businesses, which is why Verizon Connect is the only partner that has everything they need in one place — from embedded and aftermarket options for hardware and installations to comprehensive mobile workforce and fleet management software solutions and Verizon 4G LTE connectivity.

Verizon Connect is also made up of more than 3,500 of the most dedicated and experienced professionals in the business who are in the trenches with our customers every day, helping them succeed. We grew our customer success organization by more than 65% in 2017 and we are continuing to add new talent.

AF: What major influencing factors do you see impacting the fleet industry over the next five to 10 years?

Verizon Connect: It is the inevitable ubiquity of autonomous vehicles that will, without question, affect all aspects of daily life; the only questions are how long it will take, and in what form it will arrive. While consumers have the luxury of gradually warming up to the idea, businesses have no choice but to plan for the future or get left behind in the market. As companies wade through the various predictions and prognostications of the autonomous future, they should zero in on the effects that the connected vehicle ecosystem can have now to increase the efficiency, productivity, and safety of their fleets and mobile workers.

Autonomous technology is both newsworthy and exciting, but like all radical technologies, it will take time to fully take hold. In the same way that broad market penetration of the internet took years, autonomous vehicles will similarly require an active change in both consumer and business behavior. It may be that autonomy’s promise of a safer tomorrow will accelerate adoption, but given concerns around today’s safety, control, regulation, infrastructure, and insurance, it will take legislation and broader agreement among government agencies and multinational corporations for autonomous vehicles to be fully embraced.

In the interim, companies should look to advancements in connected commercial vehicle technologies and related applications for strategies they can apply to boost safety, productivity, and efficiency for the entirety of their mobile operations — people, vehicles, and assets. Not only will expanded connectivity and smarter applications increasingly remove the guesswork from mobile and field operations, but the increased agility that comes from embracing these advancements will future-proof our customers’ organizations and prepare them for what lies ahead.

AF: What changes do you expect to see specifically related to fleet telematics solution providers over the next two to five years?

Verizon Connect: Many of our customers have already enabled smart load tracking, routing, and other connected solutions. In recent years, major advancements driven by faster connectivity and hardware innovation, have improved cost, compliance, and safety that traditional fleet and workforce management systems provide. Examples include compliance systems, driver behavior monitoring, and coaching, AI-powered predictive maintenance, real-time GPS-enabled parking, advanced traffic, and more.

Traditional fleet management systems also share a natural adjacency with field service management (FSM) solutions that enable enhanced productivity and communication for mobile workers as they perform their work, typically outside their vehicles. This is an area that is ripe for innovation, driven equally by demand for cloud-based solutions and the availability of new technologies. Examples include in-field quoting and work order management, real-time reactive scheduling, and customer coordination, mobile time- and cost-tracking, field service inventory management, electronic data capture for compliance and administration and even mobile invoicing and payment.

AF: How do you see Verizon Connect’s solutions evolving with all these changes in mind?

Verizon Connect: The rise of big data has been a game-changer for businesses of every type, and the connected commercial vehicle industry is no different. In the past, telematics software had only been capable of processing data from individual companies. With Verizon Connect’s ability to store and process data at a much larger scale today, we can now build machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) tools that become more effective with greater scale. What was once basic dots-on-a-map reporting has progressed to become near-real time business analytics. As predictive and prescriptive software continue to advance, the promise of further innovation is both inevitable and significant.

Every company looks for opportunities to improve efficiency, safety, and the bottom line, but we are seeing the tip of the iceberg in terms of what big data will ultimately deliver. Since its inception, improvements in both technology and techniques have regularly brought innovation to the field of big data analytics. Taking recent developments into account, we can expect this trend not merely to continue, but to accelerate.

AF: Are there other implications to these advances we haven’t discussed?

Verizon Connect: One of the things we’re most proud of at Verizon Connect is the potential our current and future technologies have for massive societal impact.

In 2017 alone, we fielded more than 122,000 customer distress calls and dispatched emergency services more than 20,000 times. We regularly help customers maintain cold chain integrity in order to ensure fresh fish and other perishable items make it from ocean or farm into restaurant refrigerators safely.

In law enforcement, more officers lose their lives in vehicular crashes than by any other means. With the goal of saving officers’ lives, the Snohomish County Sheriff’s office in Washington installed our software to help them identify and eliminate dangerous driving practices including speeding, hard braking, harsh acceleration and not wearing seat belts. A year after they introduced their comprehensive driver safety program — of which Verizon Connect was a component, they had zero significant injuries, down from 11 the year prior.

AF: How would you describe your core daily responsibility to your fleet customers?

Verizon Connect: Every day, we help our customers identify key insights that enable them to route their vehicles and drivers more efficiently and safely, vehicle diagnostics that help them reduce fuel and maintenance costs, and opportunities to reward their best drivers. We also built driver-centric apps from the ground-up with user-friendly and simple ways to track hours of service so drivers can focus on what’s important: servicing their own customers and getting home safely.

AF: What key pain points are you identifying and helping solve among your commercial fleet customers?

Verizon Connect: Commercial fleets face mission-critical issues daily relating to scheduling, dispatching, improving safety on the road, reducing fuel and maintenance costs, and managing accurate payroll for service fleets. Verizon Connect helps mobile workforces solve these problems so that they can focus on what’s important: providing extraordinary service to their end customers and getting home safely after their shift.

AF: What changes or benefits can current commercial fleet customers expect to experience in light of your acquisitions and rebrand?

Verizon Connect: The launch of Verizon Connect represents the completed integration of three best-in-class companies into a single operating unit that can put the right solutions in the hands (and vehicles) of our customers. Under one company, new and existing customers will have easier access to broader solution options. Also, customers will certainly see clear benefits with the scale, reach, and reliability of Verizon and its network.  

Editor's note: Read Heavy Duty Trucking's April issue for exclusive content.

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If you’re using automatic onboard recording devices to track driver hours of service under the grandfather clause of the electronic logging device mandate, there’s something very important you need to do by mid-June, says a former commercial vehicle enforcement official who’s now a transportation consultant.

AOBRDs are allowed to be used instead of ELDs under a grandfather clause up until December 2019 – if fleets were using them before the 2017 ELD deadline of Dec. 17. And the latest guidance allows a motor carrier that installed and required its drivers to use an AOBRD before Dec. 18, 2017 to install and use a new ELD-capable device that runs compliant AOBRD software until the December 2019 full compliance deadline.

But consultant John Seidl, who works with Integrated Risk Solutions, notes that driver logs are only required to be kept for six months. How will a trucking company be able to prove that it was requiring its drivers to use AOBRDs prior to the 2017 ELD compliance deadline, once we’re more than six months past that December 2017 date?

That’s why Seidl is recommending that every trucking company using AOBRDs under the ELD grandfather clause print a driver’s log for every truck they operated in December prior to the deadline and put those in a file called “AOBRD evidence.”

“If you don’t do that by June, how are you going to prove to an investigator that you installed and used them?” Seidl asks. “If you don’t, you’re going to have to depend on the vendor.”

Proof at Roadside, for Data Q Challenges

Each truck with a grandfathered AOBRD that was in use before December 2017 should have a copy of that prior-to-the-deadline log on board to use to show roadside inspectors that it’s a grandfathered device and thus not subject to ELD specifications, such as data transfer.

These printed logs also can be used as evidence for DataQ challenges for citations where enforcement officials are trying to claim that AOBRDs must meet ELD rules. And this confusion is very common, Seidl says.

“There are many inspectors that are writing AOBRD devices up for ELD-related violations, thus prompting me to do a bazillion Data Qs,” he says.

One example? Data transfer. An AOBRD is not required to be able to transfer data to enforcement officials at roadside like ELDs are. “It doesn’t have the programming embedded in it, nor was it required to so; it is impossible to make an AOBRD transfer a data file…. You can’t make an AOBRD transfer a file that doesn’t exist.”

Seidl contends that if you don’t retain this kind of evidence that you were using AOBRDs prior to the December 2017 ELD deadline and thus are grandfathered, “you could have an issue during a compliance review until June 2020.”

Wait a minute, you say – doesn’t the grandfather period end in December 2019? Seidl points out that the investigator can pull logs from the previous six months. “So, if I’m an inspector and I grab November 2019 logs, and I want to say [you weren’t running the required] ELDs, you have to prove [the AOBRDs] were installed prior to December of 2017,” he explains.

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The M20388 Series is available in amber, red, white, or blue. Each light has six high-performance LEDs to deliver superior brightness and performance in steady-on or flashing modes. The durable polycarbonate housing and clear lens are just 0.5 inches deep—a low-profile design made for vehicle applications where safety, visibility, durability, and reliability are critical.

Other features include:

• Dimensions: 3.3 x 1.2 x 0.5 inches
• 12/24 VDC
• Amp draw: 400ma 12V/240ma 24V
• Connector: 3 blunt-cut 7-inch leads
• Surface or tape mount (hardware included)
• Steady-on mode allows optional flasher module control (M50910)

Maxxima’s new emergency/warning LED lights have a five-year warranty. They are available now through the company’s network of aftermarket distributors in the United States and Canada.

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The American Transportation Research Institute's top research priorities for 2018 include smart cities, autonomous vehicles, and cannabis intoxication testing procedures, among others.

Each year, ATRI’s research advisory committee develops the list of topics at the group’s annual meeting. The topics are then vetted and approved by the ATRI board of directors, which announced its approval of this year's list. The list for 2018 mirrors new technological and societal changes that may have an effect on the trucking industry.

This year, ATRI listed urban planning and smart city design for trucks as a top research priority. The group wants to examine how and where truck freight delivery can be effectively incorporated in urban planning and smart city design approaches.

ATRI also wants to research the consistency and accuracy of commercial motor vehicle crash data. In looking at how crash data is currently being used, ATRI wants to identify ways to improve CMV crash data collection, quality, management and submission at the state and local levels.

Commercial driver’s license testing is another focus for ATRI in 2018. It will review the range of requirements for CDL testing across states and identify best practices in order to develop an effective set of testing requirements.

With the rise of autonomous vehicle testing and development within the trucking industry, ATRI plans to analyze how these technologies will change the operational environment and driving requirements for all commercial drivers.

Lastly, ATRI is looking into best practices for cannabis intoxication testing. By exploring best practices in the U.S. and abroad, ATRI plans to benchmark recommended maximum intoxication levels and identify recommendations for driver sobriety testing.

ATRI is a non-profit research organization affiliated with the American Trucking Associations that gathers and analyzes data on a wide range of transportation industry issues.

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The Trump administration began the process of revising Obama-era fuel economy standards for vehicle manufacturers today, and announced it may revoke California's waiver that allows that state to set its own emissions rules.

The move would roll-back more stringent regulations in the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards that were enacted during the Obama presidency. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt announced the decision in an April 2 statement obtained by Bloomberg. The move had been expected.

"Obama's EPA cut the midterm evaluation process short with politically charged expediency, made assumptions about the standards that didn’t comport with reality and set the standards too high," Pruitt said.

The Obama-era rules had rankled automakers because they aimed to reduce emissions from cars and light trucks by requiring a fleet average of 50 miles per gallon by 2025.

Pruitt said the EPA will draft new rules for 2022 to 2025 with National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

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The ebright Smart Control System has been integrated into the company’s battery-operated cable mobile column lifts as well as the ultra-shallow, full-rise, axle-engaging in-ground scissor-lifting system, the Ecolift.

Through ebright, technicians and managers can see in real time how the lifts are being used, observe warning and service alerts, and monitor the lift’s motor run timer.

“Stertil-Koni has brought the very best in engineering, digital control and continuous operator feedback to heavy duty vehicle maintenance shops across North America with our distinctive, 7-inch, full-color touch-screen control system,” said Jean DellAmore, Stertil-Koni president.  “Now, we are extremely pleased to bring the ebright Smart Control System to the Diamondlift—delivering intuitive ease-of-use in an extremely familiar, operator- friendly format that resembles today’s most popular tablet devices.” 

Stertil-Koni has recently made several new changes to its Diamondlift system in addition to the ebright upgrade.

Additions include an optional continuous recess system that allows the bolster to recess flush to the floor anywhere in the horizontal range of piston travel.  The company has debuted a differential adapter, an accessory that “cradles” the differential and is self-centering thanks to spring loaded ball bearings (meaning it centers itself underneath the differential), making the setup and use quick, easy, convenient, and safe.

The Diamondlift is a high-pressure in ground telescopic piston lifting system designed to accommodate vehicles with extremely low ground clearances. It has a lifting capacity up to 35,000 pounds per piston, or a total of 105,000 pounds in the three-piston configuration. It is available in two versions: “cassette” and “frame." 

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Because the 116 and 126 Cascadia models feature a different cab interior than the 113 and 125, which are also still in production, a different set of mats had to be designed for the different models.  

“Cascadias are among the most popular trucks on the road, and with Freightliner releasing these two new models in 2018, we have our bases covered,” said Craig Kruckeberg, Minimizer CEO and Chief Visionary. “Freightliner continues to make the Cascadia 113 and 125, so we now offer Floor Mats for every Cascadia on the road.”

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Rich Clair has been named president of Solar Transport, a Midwest tank truck carrier and logistics provider. Clair previously served as the chief operating officer at Trinity Logistics, where he still sits on the board of directors. While there he helped expand earnings and revamp the company’s strategic plan to focus on capital allocation, business development, and technology, according to an announcement.

In his 38-year career, Clair also has held executive positions at Ryder System, Highway Technologies, Mail Contractors of America, and First Transit. Clair has a Master of City Planning with a Transportation Concentration from Harvard University and a Bachelor’s in Political Science from the University of Massachusetts.

“Rich has a proven track record of building growth-oriented logistics companies that deliver value to their associates, customers and shareholders,” said Mike Clausen, chief direct investments officer of parent company Krause Holdings. “The depth and diversity of executive leadership experience Rich brings will allow Solar to further refine our position in the logistics marketplace.”

Solar Transport manages, transports, and delivers petroleum products such as gasoline, ethanol, diesel, and jet fuel. The company has 27 terminals in 19 states with regional offices in Iowa, Colorado, California, and Missouri.

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Now that the April 1 "hard enforcement" deadline has passed on the electronic logging device mandate, property-carrying commercial motor vehicle drivers operating their vehicle without a required registered electronic logging device (ELD) or a grandfathered automatic on-board recording device (AOBRD) will be placed out of service for 10 hours.

The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance said in an announcement that ELD violations will be recorded on a roadside inspection report and the driver may be cited (issued a violation ticket or a civil penalty) for failing to have a required electronic record of duty status.

After 10 hours out of service, the driver may continue to his or her final destination, provided the driver has accurately documented hours-of-service requirements using a paper log and has a copy of the inspection report and/or citation.

If the driver is stopped again before reaching his/her final destination, the driver must provide the safety official with a copy of the inspection report and evidence (e.g., bill of lading) proving that he/she is still on the continuation of the original trip.

After reaching their final destination, if the driver is re-dispatched again without obtaining a compliant ELD, he/she will again be subject to the out-of-service process outlined above, unless the driver is traveling back to the principle place of business or terminal empty to obtain an ELD.

All ELD violations will be counted against a motor carrier's Safety Measurement System (SMS) score, which will drive selection for investigation within the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) program. FMCSA will determine appropriate action against non-compliant motor carriers.

Please note that motor carriers that installed and used an AOBRD prior to Dec. 18, 2017, may install and use additional ELD-capable devices with complaint AOBRD software after Dec. 18, 2017. These AOBRDs may be used until Dec. 16, 2019, and must meet the requirements of 49 CFR 395.15.

The ELD footnotes 11-14 in Part I of the North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria are now in effect, which means that drivers operating CMVs with violations related to ELD compliance in those footnotes will be placed out of service for 10 hours, then permitted to continue, as outlined above.

CVSA emphasized that the ELD mandate does not change the underlying hours-of-service requirements.

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The report also showed $27.1 billion worth of truck freight moved between the U.S.-Canada border and $33.5 billion worth of cargo moved between the U.S.-Mexico border. This translated into increases of 6.2% and 13.6%, respectively when compared to January 2017. 

In contrast, total U.S. rail moved freight moved between the U.S. and Canada along with Mexico was valued at $13.3 billion, up 0.6% during the same period. Movements by pipeline, vessel and air were even less in value.

The top states for truck shipments flowing through their ports:

• Texas with $24.8 billion of truck freight, up 14.3% from 2017
• Michigan with $13.3 billion up 5.3%
• New York with $7.4 billion up 3.2%

Busiest truck border crossings:

• Laredo, where the top commodity was computers and parts, accounting for $3.1 billion or 21.7% of the $14.4 billion total
• Detroit, where the top commodity was motor vehicles and parts, accounting for $2.6 billion or 28.3% of the $9.2 billion total.

The top commodities moved by truck were computers and parts valued at $11.5 billion, electrical machinery at $9.8 billion and motor vehicles and parts at $9 billion.

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Economic activity in the nation’s manufacturing sector remained solid during March, while construction spending was nearly unchanged in February. The latest reports show the nation’s overall economic health was stronger in the final quarter of last year than earlier indications.

Manufacturing Activity Still Expanding

Manufacturing activity continued expanding in March, but at a slower rate than the month before, according to latest figures from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM). Its Purchasing Managers’ Index registered 59.3%, a decrease of 1.5 percentage points from the February reading of 60.8%.

A reading above 50% indicates manufacturing is expanding, while below 50% signals contraction.

The New Orders Index registered 61.9%, a drop of 2.3 percentage points from the February reading. The Production Index registered 61%, a 1 percentage point decrease compared to the month before.

Despite the overall downturn, comments from the panel of purchasing executives reflected continued expanding business strength, with 17 of the 18 manufacturing industries surveyed reporting growth in March.

“This indicates strong growth in manufacturing for the 19th consecutive month, led by continued expansion in new orders, production activity, employment and inventories, with suppliers continuing to struggle delivering to demand,” said Timothy R. Fiore, chair of the ISM Manufacturing Business Survey Committee.

A separate but similar survey from IHS Markit indicated manufacturing growth was at its highest level in three years.

Its U.S. Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index registered 55.6 in March, up from 55.3 in February. The latest PMI reading indicated the strongest improvement in manufacturing business conditions since March 2015. The average PMI reading over the opening three months of 2018 meanwhile indicated the best quarterly performance since the third quarter of 2014.

Like the ISM gauge, the one from IHS Markit indicates manufacturing is expanding when it is above a level of 50, although it's not expressed as a percentage.

The report showed output levels at manufacturing firms continued to expand strongly in March. Although the rate of growth softened to a four-month low, the pace of expansion remained comfortably above the long- run series average. Panelists commonly reported that the latest rise was driven by firmer client demand.

“Optimism about the year ahead has meanwhile also risen to its highest for three years, generating yet another solid payroll gain and suggesting strong growth momentum will be sustained in the second quarter,” said Chris Williamson, chief business economist at IHS Markit. “Companies cited rising demand at home and abroad plus recent government policy announcements as helping shore up confidence in terms of their future production levels.”

However, Williamson noted that recent tariff announcements by the Trump administration were already reported to have added to inflationary pressures, and have led to the stockpiling of goods expected to rise further in price in coming months.

“Input cost inflation consequently hit the highest since 2012. Increased costs were often passed on to customers, meaning prices charged for goods at the factory gate showed the steepest rise in over four years,” he said.

Construction Spending Edges Higher

A new Commerce Department report on U.S. construction spending showed it increased just 0.1% in February from January’s revised level.

However, the February level of $1.27 trillion was 3% better than the same time in February 2017. During the first two months of the year, construction spending increased 4.4% from the same time a year earlier.

A 0.7% gain in private construction in February from January was outweighed by a 2.1% decline in public construction projects.

Analysts at Econoday noted that despite the overall soft month-over-month performance, there is strength in the homebuilding sector, and building for transportation projects and commercial projects have also improved lately.

Final 2017 GDP Performance Pushed Higher

All of these reports follow one from late last week showing the overall U.S. economy grew more in the final quarter of last year than earlier estimates.

The Commerce Department reported in its third estimate that the nation's gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 2.9% in the last three months of 2017. This compares to its second estimate of 2.5% and third quarter 2017 growth of 3.2%.

According to MarketWatch, this upward revision was due to the biggest increase in consumer spending in three years and higher investment in business inventories.

The U.S. GDP increased 2.3% in 2017 from the year before, compared with an increase of 1.5% in 2016 from 2015.

While the U.S. economy ended 2017 on fairly high note, MarketWatch noted it may have gotten off to a softer start in 2018. Most economists predict the GDP will grow less than 2% in the first quarter due to slower spending by consumers and businesses. The first government estimate for first quarter GDP performance is expected to be released late this month.

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The Harbor Performance Enhancement Center has secured capital for the development of a 5.5 million square foot container staging hub at the Port of Los Angeles.

The new project will transform 110 acres into the container staging facility, incorporating new technologies with the goal of addressing problems that constrain freight flow at the busiest port in the Western Hemisphere. HPEC secured capital for the project through a transaction with Macquarie Principal Finance.

When complete, the project will take 3,500 truckloads per day from nearby container terminals to the HPEC staging area. HPEC aims to improve flow, increase velocity, reduce emissions, add jobs, and increase efficiency of imported containers passing through the 14 terminals at the San Pedro complex.

The container staging facility will use a hub-and-spoke distribution model to improve efficiency, using the same system already in use by FedEx, UPS, and Yellow Freight. With its central location to the largest container terminals at the Port of Los Angeles, the project will affect critical truck-based cargo movements and potentially augment core cargo handling functions, according to HPEC.

"HPEC’s innovative approach will relieve congestion throughout the region, increase cargo velocity through the Port, lower handling costs, reduce emissions, and dramatically improve freight flow efficiencies in the San Pedro Bay complex”, said Alex Cherin, executive director of the California Trucking Association's Intermodal Conference. 

"With HPEC coming online, the trucking community and its customers will have one start-stop location to pick up and drop off containers, distributing to regional hubs around the clock," Cherin added. "This is one of the most important projects in the nation and will be a real game-changer.”

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A newly proposed bill would allow truck drivers a daily break of up to 3 consecutive hours that would not eat into the 14-hour on-duty allotment afforded them by federal Hours of Service rules. 

Rep. Brian Babin (R-TX), a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, introduced the Responsible and Effective Standards for Truckers (REST) Act (H.R. 5417) on March 29. According to Babin, the legislation would “modernize hours of service regulations for truck drivers.” 

The REST Act calls for a single off-duty rest period that would not be counted toward the driver’s 14-hour on-duty allowance nor would it extend the total, allowable drive limits.  

However, drivers would still need to log ten consecutive hours off duty before the start of their next work shift. And the bill would eliminate the existing 30-minute rest break requirement.  

“I’m proud to introduce the REST Act and give America’s truckers the options they need to safely operate under today’s rigid federal regulations,” said Rep. Babin. “This bill is an important step in making the way for improved highway safety.”  

The REST Act requires the Department of Transportation to update the Hours of Service regulations to allow a rest break once per 14-hour duty period for up to 3 consecutive hours as long as the driver is off-duty, effectively pausing the 14-hour clock, said Babin. 

“We thank Rep. Babin for recognizing the need to address the lack of options for truckers trying to safely operate under today’s overly rigid federal regulations,” said Todd Spencer, acting president and CEO of the Owner Operator Independent Driver Association.  “We want to see improvements to highway safety and what we have right now isn’t going to get that done.”

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Melton Truck Lines, a flatbed carrier based in Tulsa, Okla., has announced pay increases for all of its company drivers as well as a performance-based bonus.

Melton drivers will receive a 2 cents-per-mile pay increase, a 25% increase in tarp pay to $50, and repower pay. This starts student drivers at 43 cents per mile and gives experienced drivers up to 56 cents per mile.

“In designing this pay increase, we conducted a companywide driver pay survey to gain further insight into what our drivers would like to see changed in their overall compensation package,” said Bob Peterson, chairman and CEO of Melton. “Our leaders reviewed these suggestions carefully and feel these changes reflect our drivers’ requests, resulting in further financial success for them.”

Melton drivers will also be able to earn additional pay through a $5,400 performance bonus. The company also offers an additional 8 cents per mile for over-dimensional loads and an extra 6 cents per mile for Canada and Hazmat loads.

Melton also offers drivers guaranteed pay for their first 90 days to provide financial security for new drivers as they learn the job.

For benefits, Melton also offers drivers free onsite clinics and dentists, a 401(k), and opportunities for profit sharing.

“Our professional drivers have certainly earned this well-deserved raise,” said Peterson. “They are continually striving for excellence in a demanding, yet highly rewarding career path.”

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Schilli Corporation has adopted the SmartDrive Transportation Intelligence Platform with SR4 hardware and video-based safety program to help improve fleet safety.

After reviewing four different safety systems and conducting an extensive pilot, Schilli chose to deploy the SmartDrive program across its fleet of more than 300 vehicles in its five operating companies: Contractors Cartage, Inc., Material Delivery Service, Inc., Bulk Transport Co., Truck Transport, Inc., and Keightley Bros., Inc.

“After evaluating video-based solutions from four providers and completing a successful pilot, the SmartDrive program proved to be the best fit for meeting our business needs today, and preparing us for future challenges as the industry continues to evolve,” said Bob Schilli, Jr., vice president for Schilli Corporation.

Since adopting the SmartDrive program the fleet has already seen a reduction in collisions. Additionally, the company said drivers have embraced the SmartDrive Safety Scores — which it calls "consistent, objective measurements of each driver’s performance." 

“We appreciate the opportunity to coach those drivers who may not know they are engaging in a habit that could potentially lead to a collision,” said Ken Humphries, vice president of safety and employee relations for Schilli Corporation. “When we presented the SmartDrive program and the coaching opportunities it affords to our drivers, they accepted it and understood it’s there to protect them. In fact, we didn’t lose a single driver as a result of the rollout.

"Another significant benefit is that when drivers are involved in an incident that’s not their fault, we’re not wasting time or money fighting claims because we can prove exactly what happened with video," he added. "We’ve already found that these exonerations are paying for the system.”

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This Sunday, April 1, will roll in cold and hard for motor carriers and drivers who are not yet compliant with the electronic logging device mandate. That’s when the so-called “soft enforcement” period for ELD violations comes to a screeching halt for all but those exempt from the game-changing rule.

But not just the illegally unprepared could feel the shock of the new day’s dawning. That’s because everyone required to operate with an electronic logging device will face “a firehose of violations” issued roadside by law enforcement, predicts Steve Bryan, president of Vigillo.

Bryan used that arresting metaphor to drive home his point: Data collected during the soft enforcement period indicates that law enforcement is more than ready and able to start assigning Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) points and issuing of out-of-service citations for any violation of the ELD mandate once April 1 arrives.

Full enforcement of the ELD rule will “not be limited to smaller carriers, as already brand-name carriers are being written up” during the ongoing soft enforcement period, he said during a panel on the topic during the Truckload Carriers Association’s annual convention this week in Orlando, Florida.

He said those violations include ones being racked up by ELD-compliant fleets because they may have “drivers who are not using their device correctly or not turning the device on correctly for inspectors” to examine their records of duty status.

According to Bryan, from the start of the mandate on Dec. 18 through the end of February, some 27,000 ELD violations were recorded. He said if that paces holds going into April – and there is no reason it won’t – carriers and drivers will feel like “a fire hose of data has been turned on them.”

On a more positive note, he said that once full enforcement kicks in, hours of service violations tied to the keeping of paper logs should drop off, thanks to the greater accuracy of ELDs – which of course is the whole point of the new rule.

Bryan’s forecast of where enforcement is headed is based on his combing through nearly three months of ELD citations that were being parked in “a holding place,” a temporary violation category, set up by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance to be used during the soft enforcement period so that they wouldn’t ding CSA scores.

But, he stressed, come April 1, those violations will “start to go into their real hours of service violation category,” where they will pack their maximum wallop on CSA points.

“’Soft enforcement’ seems to have gone as planned,” said Bryan. “It was only ‘soft’ because points were not assessed. But when it ends on April 1, a lot of carriers will see a dramatic impact. That even large carriers compliant on ELDs are getting these [violation] numbers [now] means you can’t be complacent about full enforcement.”

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Telematics provider Geotab has begun offering the Geotab Garmin ELD bundle, which it says is a driver-friendly and durable solution for ELD compliance that helps fleets improve productivity, increase driver safety, and strengthen compliance.

As part of the Geotab Cloud ELD solution, the Garmin ELD bundle offers a reliable platform for tracking, managing and sharing Records of Duty Status (RODS).

Helping enable fleets to strengthen compliance through HOS reporting, automatic duty status changes and alerts for driver violations, the Geotab Garmin ELD bundle also includes features to help businesses improve driver safety and maximize uptime.

The Geotab Garmin ELD bundle includes the Geotab Cloud ELD, Garmin Fleet 790 android tablet with Wi-Fi, HD dash camera, LTE connectivity, vehicle charger, and suction cup mount.

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Elon Musk has a new customer. FedEx announced it has placed a reservation for 20 Tesla Semi trucks. The fully electric trucks, scheduled to begin production in 2019, will be operated by FedEx Freight, its less-than-truckload unit.

FedEx joins other regional-haul, urban- and last-mile delivery fleets in reserving Tesla Semi electric trucks. UPS announced in December it was placing an order for 125 of the trucks. PepsiCo also placed an order for 100 Tesla trucks that month, as did Anheuser-Busch, which put 40 on reserve. All told, industry analysts say Tesla has orders for several hundred Semis on the books now.

When the Semi was launched in Hawthorne, California, last fall, Tesla CEO Musk said his new truck model would have a working daily range of 500 miles, telling attendees, "You can go out to the middle of nowhere and come back.” Other key selling points mentioned by Musk included:

• 400 mile-range charge in 30 minutes, leveraging a global network of "megachargers/"
• Electric drivetrain guaranteed for 1 million miles, and brake pads may last as long as truck.
• Musk said diesel trucks are 20% more expensive per mile than the Tesla semi in total cost of ownership.
• Enhanced Autopilot autonomous controls will be standard.
• Production to begin in 2019.

Musk also said Tesla engineers would spend the bulk of 2018 refining the Semi design ahead of the start of production. Apparently that effort is proceeding well, with Semis spotted earlier this year driving on public roadways in California.

“FedEx has a long history of innovation and incorporating sustainability efforts throughout its global network,” said FedEx Freight president and CEO Mike Ducker on the company’s order. “Our investment in these trucks is part of our commitment to improving road safety while also reducing our environmental impact.”

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More than three-quarters of transportation companies surveyed by HireRight expect to growth their workforce this year, but finding and retaining employees remains a concern.

The employment solutions company released findings from its 2018 Annual Employment Screening Benchmark survey showing that transportation companies are trying new strategies to overcome shortages of drivers and other employee types in a year when they intend to expand. Most companies listed recruiting qualified candidates as a top challenge for the industry.

Investing in Employee Recruitment

Companies revealed plans for overcoming employment challenges, with 40% responding that they were planning to invest in retention programs, as well as training and development programs. The percentage was higher among employers with more than 2,500 employees.

Other planned investments included implementing recruiting at more trade events and improving the candidate experience. Some companies planned to introduce new hires to company executives, extend orientation and training periods, and use existing employees as liaisons and mentors.

HireRight found that with a quarter of drivers leaving the industry because of retirement, transportation companies were having to change hiring strategies to attract a younger and more diverse audience, because the old methods were becoming less effective.

New Driver Recruiting Strategies

Referrals remained the most effective way to find candidates for most fleets, and more than half of fleets said that they were using social networks to find talent, up from only 42% in 2017.

Print media recruiting has seen a precipitous decline in the past four years, dropping from 57% of companies using it in 2015 to only 38% in 2018. Outreach through job fairs was down 8% from last year and outreach with corporate websites also declined.

The HireRight 2018 Annual Employment Screening Benchmarking Report is based on a survey of 5,886 U.S.-based professionals who indicated they were knowledgeable about employment screening and recruiting. Of the total survey respondents, 18% indicated that their primary industry was transportation. The results in this report were compiled from those respondents.

“This year’s survey results demonstrate that the transportation industry is embracing innovative strategies to recruit new talent and is truly listening to what candidates want from application to onboarding, including benefits,” said Kent Ferguson, director of transportation solutions at HireRight.

For more information from HireRight’s transportation spotlight from the survey, click here.

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Les Schwab is recalling 41,336 steel-belted radial retread truck tires because the vulcanizing compound used during the process may not have been completely cured, which can lead to incomplete adhesion of the tread to the tire casing.

This scenario means the tire tread may potentially separate from the tire casing, increasing the risk of a crash. The commercial tires are in use on medium-duty and heavy-duty trucks and fit wheels with sizes from 17.5 to 24.5 inches. A full list of SKUs can be viewed here.

To fix the problem, Les Schwab will notify customers that had their tires retreaded and will exchange the affected tires for properly retreaded ones, at no cost to customers. Les Schwab is an independent tire chain operating in the western U.S. with about 470 retail locations. The Bend, Ore.-based company also operates several tire production facilities.

The retreaded tires involved in this recall were manufactured at Les Schwab's three retread facilities between Oct. 16 and Dec. 17, 2017, and have DOTR numbers that include RDNJ4217RS-RDNJ5017RS, RNVK4417RS-RNVK5017RS, and RCEE4217RS-RCEE5017RS. Customers can reach Les Schwab at (541) 416-4136.

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Denso has launched a satellite research and development team in Israel, aimed at accelerating advanced technologies such as automated driving, cybersecurity. and artificial intelligence.

In April, Denso’s R&D satellite will begin collaborating with local startups to pioneer new technologies. Denso is looking to tap into Israel’s technology strengths to quickly develop more competitive technologies, both internally and through collaborative research with local companies and universities.

Denso’s satellite R&D activities in Israel build on the country’s surge in surge in innovative technologies in fields spanning cybersecurity, telecommunications, AI, sensing, and software. According to Denso, Israeli companies and tech startups have an established track record for successful collaboration with companies overseas, and are expected to play a major role in global innovation across a number of fields.

Denso is in the process of establishing global satellite R&D operations in key regions. The company recently announced an initiative to broaden R&D capabilities outside Japan, and in 2017, started satellite R&D activities in Helsinki, Finland, focusing on creating advanced technologies and services.

The Japanese company distributes R&D functions around the world and works with universities, research institutions, startups, and other partners to develop competitive products and technologies tailored to customers and regional characteristics.

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Troy Geisler, vice president of marketing and sales for Talbert Manufacturing, and Lloyd Hair, director of maintenance for Keen Transport, offer the following tips for proper heavy-haul trailer maintenance.  

1. What are the key areas drivers should regularly inspect on heavy-haul trailers?

Talbert: Owners should conduct a pre-trip inspection of the trailer and key wear parts before taking off with each load. This includes looking at the brakes as well as ensuring the tires are in good condition and properly inflated to the right PSI. Also, check hydraulic hoses for damage or cracks, which could cause the system to fail if a leak occurs. When it comes to detachable and rear-load models, maintaining proper hydraulic pressure is important to keep in mind regardless of whether the system is self-contained or a wet line. This ensures proper operation of the components and reduces potential for overheating or other issues caused by low hydraulic fluid.

In addition, walk around the trailer and inspect the frame, chains and straps for damage. Trailers see a lot of use and abuse, particularly in harsher weather conditions, so repairs or replacements could be needed sooner rather than later. Keeping an eye on these components and replacing any that begin to show wear will help keep your trailer ready when you need it.

Keen Transport: It’s critical to establish a preventive maintenance program that includes lubrication intervals to prevent wear and ensure that the brakes and components operate correctly. A good maintenance program will reduce breakdowns and increase the life of the trailer.

Use dielectric grease on lighting connections, electrical components, lights and lighting harnesses to reduce corrosion.

Brakes, cams and slack adjusters need to be lubricated. Always refer to the manufacturer’s recommendations and grease guidelines.

Owners should also inspect their trailers for damage to the structure and make repairs as soon as possible to extend the life of the trailer.

2. Which parts wear fastest and how can fleet owners minimize or prevent this wear?

Talbert: Because of the sheer amount of use, parts such as wheel ends, tires and brakes will wear faster and need to be replaced sooner than other trailer components. But, there are things you can do to get the greatest longevity out of these features. 

Keep wear components in mind when purchasing a trailer. Models made with high-quality materials and finishes will last longer than those with traditional paints and standard materials. Select units with high-strength steel, such as 12-inch-deep I-beams with a minimum yield strength of 100,000 PSI, for long-term durability. Choose a trailer with premium primer and topcoat finishes. Choosing quality from the beginning ensures you’ll have a trailer that looks great for years to come and will, as a result, have a higher resale value.

Keen Transport: Regularly check tire pressure and keep them properly inflated, either manually or with an automatic tire inflation system. Traveling with underinflated tires is one of the biggest culprits of premature wear, so keeping them properly inflated will allow them to last longer and boost fuel efficiency.

It’s just as important to replace tires when they become worn to avoid a blowout and downtime. Always select the right size and rating to ensure optimal performance and keep tire pressure equalized for the greatest longevity.

Talbert: Wheel-ends can also wear quickly and must stay lubricated to prevent gear oil leakage and ensure proper and safe operation.

Trailers haul some heavy loads, so it’s no wonder brakes are also among the top components that can wear the fastest. They take a beating and will need to be replaced depending on use.

To get the most longevity out of your trailer brakes, ensure you follow the right loading capacity for the trailer. Overloading or unbalancing loads will put added stress on the brakes, causing them to wear much faster. Proper loading techniques also go a long way toward preventing premature trailer wear, so be sure to follow the right recommendations for your type of trailer and equipment. 

Hydraulic cylinders should also be fully retracted when not in use to minimize exposure of the stainless steel rams to the elements and maximize their longevity.

3. What should fleet owners keep in mind when implementing a preventive maintenance plan?

Keen Transport: One of the best ways to see a direct reflection of the success of your maintenance program is through the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s inspection program. The nonprofit organization scores commercial motor vehicles based on inspection procedures and CVSA criteria — the lower the number the better.

Trailer fleet owners should also match their equipment needs to a maintenance schedule. For example, will the trailer need to be on the road all the time or will it sit idle for longer periods of time? Developing a preventive maintenance program that aligns with an owner’s business needs will optimize longevity of trailers and their components. It also will enhance safety.

Get to know the trailer components and which ones work best for your operation. Manufacturers are usually happy to answer questions and provide the best recommendations based on your specific needs and applications. 

Talbert: Proper recordkeeping is also important so you know when preventive maintenance is needed and what has already been done. This helps prevent any small issues from becoming larger headaches down the road. Putting proper procedures in place will keep appropriate personnel accountable for performing the maintenance when needed.

Trailer owners should also ensure anyone involved with any aspect of the trailer’s use has proper training, not only to prevent damage to the trailer, but also for their safety and the safety of others.

Keen Transport: Drivers and maintenance technicians should have open lines of communication in regard to trailer issues or required maintenance. This will ensure the right kind of maintenance is performed and that it’s done in a timely manner.

Having mechanics who are well-trained on maintaining heavy-haul trailers is a good way to ensure the maintenance your company is doing is the right type of maintenance.

About the Authors

Troy Geisler is the vice president of sales and marketing for Talbert Manufacturing. He has more than 10 years of experience in trailer sales, including three years with Talbert. Troy earned a bachelor’s degree from Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana.

Lloyd Hair is the director of maintenance for Keen Transport, a heavy-haul logistic and transportation service provider.

This article was authored under the guidance and editorial standards of HDT’s editors to provide useful information to our readers.

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VoicR's “Internet of Everything” (IoE) style publication and subscription network opens up an unlimited number of user-defined channels based on user interests, including friends’ lists, destinations, events, shared interests and specific services. Certain closed channels can also be used for business, public services or governmental use. Subscribers can choose to join public channels and listen to or respond to voice messages about upcoming travel events, conditions and activities. This information and more can be shared far beyond the broadcast range of traditional analog radio to help drivers stay safe and informed about the road ahead with the click of a button.

“At Continental, we are always looking for ways to improve the driving experience and we are excited to be the first to transform a vintage technology into a modern cloud-based social network using GPS location,” said Johann Hiebl, executive vice president of Continental's Infotainment and Connectivity business unit. “We think of VoicR app as CB radio 2.0. With an easy and safe user interface, it allows the driver to stay focused on the road while still connected to what matters most while traveling."

VoicR supports Bluetooth hands-free operation in vehicle and push-to-talk via the wireless smart button known as Flic button. Continental is also investigating the possible integration with existing CB radios and the implementation of the software into embedded automotive infotainment systems, the use on special products in the area of commercial vehicles, public services and fleet management. With the integration of VoicR on a next-generation fleet management tablet solution like Continental’s Zonar Connect™, the software can even be used to replace old CB radios, add value and offer a smooth and enriched communication between the managers and drivers, the company says.

Another example of how VoicR can enrich the driving experience among private vehicle owners is by allowing them to join brand specific channels. For example, if a user of VoicR has purchased a motorcycle and wishes to find some other riders of the same brand to go on a weekend ride, he or she can search through the list of brand-related channels. Among the list, he or she can find two different results: a channel with the same OEM brand of owners that are planning a trip to a national motorcycle rally or a channel of a local group of the OEM brand owners. The user is able to connect with either group or both to share ride details, coordinate group trips and more.

VoicR was introduced at the 2018 Mid-America Trucking Show. It's available on Google Play or the App Store

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• Driver name or fleet-assigned identification number either on the document or on another document allowing the fleet to link the document to the driver. The vehicle unit number can also be used it if can be linked to the specific driver.
• Date
• Location (including name of nearest city, town, or village)
• Time

In the case of a driver having fewer than eight supporting documents that include all four elements, a document containing all of the elements except “time” will be considered a supporting document.

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