Building the perfect work truck
Building the best truck for the job begins with knowing all the options. We asked the experts to tell us what fleets need to know to get the most of their buying decisions.
In-house vs. outsourced fleet maintenance
Increasing adoption of onboard technology has been a boon and a bane for fleets. The boon is greater transparency between the fleet maintenance manager and driver/vehicle—that provides information on how vehicles are being driven and access to more and better data for maintenance and repair decisions. The bane is that the increased sophistication can make
Determining ROI to Lower TCO
“Fleet managers have only so much time,” notes Kirk Altrichter, vice president, maintenance at Crete Carrier Corp. “We need to prioritize when we are spending time making return on investment [ROI] determinations for new equipment. There may be an ROI that will help lower our total cost of ownership [TCO], but as technology changes, products
Sound specs, timed maintenance spell success
With a focus on counseling, NationaLease’s 600 service locations throughout the U.S. and Canada (with a combined customer fleet of over 125,000 tractors, trucks and trailers), newly-named Vice President of Truck Technology and Maintenance at NationaLease, Joe Puff, offers valuable observations on how truck maintenance has changed for the better. “The fundamentals are changing,” Puff
Oakley Transport is taking advantage of new technologies to grow its operation
“Our plan is right on target,” says Peter J. Nativo, director of maintenance at Oakley Transport. “We have a three-year business plan to grow in the market for the transportation of liquid bulk food grade products. Included is replacing all of our tractors with new units so we can take advantage of the cost savings
Calculating cost of ownership
Especially for a private fleet, this is a figure that’s important to know, but not one that’s easy to calculate.
Natural gas: a fuel to consider
When compared to diesel or gasoline as a fuel for commercial vehicles, natural gas is cleaner burning, is domestically produced, is here for the long term and can save you money.
Pioneering spirit
Saddle Creek Transportation is fielding over 100 natural gas-powered tractors
Natural gas, hybrid trucks continue to grow as viable options
For the last few decades, truck manufacturers have been investing in technology related to alternative fuels. Early on, natural gas-powered vehicles gained acceptance for certain fleet applications. While they remain viable options, diesel-electric hybrid technology for commercial trucks has been gaining ground.
It pays to outsource tire maintenance
When it comes to outsourcing tire maintenance, the best programs are “custom-built” in conjunction with service providers.