We know it’s not easy to keep up with everything that happens in the world of trucking. So here are the biggest stories from July focused on the latest truck trends, all in one place.
5. It’s summer, and the heat is the real killer of batteries
If you want to avoid dealing with dead battery headaches when the weather gets cold, you need to focus on your battery maintenance and service processes as the mercury rises.
4. There are potential benefits of replacing truck mirrors with cameras
In today’s Fleet Future podcast, FE spoke with two members of Stoneridge, a company that makes MirrorEye, a system through which mirrors on the sides of trucks are replaced by cameras, which the company says provides greater visibility and improved aerodynamics.
The system received an FMCSA exemption, meaning fleets can replace mirrors on their trucks with these cameras without being in violation of any regulations, and Stoneridge says it is working with several OEMs on offering retrofits of the system.
Jon DeGaynor, president and CEO of Stoneridge; and Brad Corrodi, vice president of fleet products and services, joined the podcast to talk over the benefits of the system and the experience that fleets and drivers have had so far. Hear what they had to say in the episode below, and catch up with past podcasts here.
3. The ADAS impact on truck service
Advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) offer a host of potentially life-saving, collision-mitigating features such as emergency brake assist and lane-keeping assist. Advanced radar and camera systems integrate into the truck’s braking and steering controls, providing an increasingly impressive amount of automated control. While there’s not a lot of preventative maintenance that fleets need to keep an eye on when it comes to ADAS, there is a need for investment in equipment and tools to make sure the systems are updated and calibrated properly.
Even as something as seemingly simple as a windshield replacement is complicated by cameras that are built into glass. The same goes for bumper replacement—that’s where the radar components are typically mounted. Calibration and correct software operation are paramount in keeping ADAS working as intended. For a deeper dive into the impact on fleet service operations and needs and thoughts from Scott Bolt, Noregon vice president of product management, watch the video below.
2. Catch up with FE‘s (ever-evolving) list of battery commercial EV charging station OEMs
EV charging stations are a huge business. Some reports expect the market will be worth as much as $103.6 billion by 2028. That means there are dozens of options when it comes to finding a partner to help develop a charging station infrastructure for your fleet. Below, we’ve rounded up as many OEMs that we could find that specialize in charging battery electric trucks. Read the full list here.
1. You should be paying attention to the 3G sunset
Chances are, despite the slew of headlines, you likely aren’t aware of the looming 3G sunset. It’s understandable, but as these older networks are slated to go dark that means your data-driven truck solutions could too if you don’t update your hardware. Luckily for you, you landed on this story, and to hammer home how important it is for you to update your truck devices, KRP Rentals and Trucking’s Kris Poole, health, safety and environment (HSE) director, shares his device upgrade experience in the video below.
