Truck makers should focus more on long-term solutions rather than short-term profits, Mack Trucks president Michel Gigou told industry suppliers recently.

Speaking at the Heavy Duty Manufacturers Assn. breakfast in Lousville, KY, last week, Gigou said the industry's current used truck problem was self-inflicted and won't go away if long-term changes aren't made.
"OEMs have to absorb more of the risk and cost involved in the life of a vehicle," he said. "Eighty percent of the vehicle's second owners will use it the same way as the first owner, but when it reaches the third owner, the use will likely change. We need to keep that in mind when we build the truck. It doesn't matter how good a used truck is or how it is spec'd, if it's not what I need as a second or third owner, it has no value."
Gigou said there was no silver bullet for the upcoming emissions challenges but said it will be easier and cheaper for manufacturers which take an integrated approach. "You have to look at the entire vehicle and understand how all the components work together," he said.
Gigou said the rising costs to meet emissions and develop new products will likely lead to just four or five global truck manufacturers. "We intend to be one of them," he said of Mack's French parent RVI.
But he said a successful global manufacturer could not build a standard truck and sell it in many markets. "There will still be a need to have a close relationship with customers in each market. OEMs will need to give regional managers the autonomy to decide what products and services are best for their markets. The balancing act for a manufacturer is to rationalize this with the need to cut product costs."