A recent fleet survey predicts that both Class 8 and trailer orders will improve in the second quarter over the January-March time frame. The survey was conducted by CK Commercial Vehicle Research.

The survey calculated the amount of orders planned for the next three months and foundg a marked increase from first-quarter activity.

The CKCVR Buying Index, which measures the number of fleets planning orders for trucks and trailers rose by 19% over last quarter to a reading of 112.0.

The fleets that participated in the survey represent a mix of profiles operating 42,000 tractors and 105,000 trailers. The survey also addressed other industry issues to get a sense of the overall business in the quarter. It calculated the responses into a “how’s business” rating on a scale of 1-5, giving the second quarter a 4.17.

The driver shortage is still a top issue with fleets, especially as it relates to freight capacity. Currently, freight is plentiful and several companies surveyed indicated they would buy more trucks if they had good drivers to fill the seats.

The survey asked participants about equipment utilization, average age of trucks versus target, replacement cycle adjustments, preferences of near-shoring of components, and a snapshot view of consumed preventative maintenance parts.

CK Commercial Vehicle Research has been surveying fleets for over a decade and the data in the Fleet Sentiment report tracks activity from 2006.

For more information on the report, click here.