Lightning striking: Electrification is coming, but where will it be put to work?
Consider the July magazine Fleet Equipment‘s unofficial electrification issue. Four out of six editors agree—there’s something electric crackling in the air. Alex Crissey reviews electrification in refuse applications; Seth Skydel hooks you up with electric power takeoff technology; John Martin name-drops UPS experimenting with fuel cell technology; and for my part, I caught up with
Building on the foundation: Freightliner Custom Chassis sets its sights on expansion
Vocational trucks adapt to their applications—one day a box-truck is called upon to tackle P&D; the next, a dump truck is need to haul dirt to a jobsite. Regardless of the truck’s body, all vocational workhorses share a common steel skeletal structure and fuel-fired heart. Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp. (FCCC) has been crafting truck, bus
Refining growth: Ford continues to evolve and support its F-650, F-750 lineup
Have you driven a Ford lately? No, seriously—that’s not a marketing tagline. It’s a real question because Ford has sold more redesigned 2016 F-650/F-750 medium-duty trucks in the past year than any year since 1997. Ford medium-duty trucks are also the fastest growing volume Class 6-7 brand—so chances are that you have driven one. What
A diverse offering: Western Star sharpens its vocational focus
In addition to her duties as Western Star’s president, Kelley Platt is also the chief diversity officer for Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA). It’s a position that urges the company to reach out beyond the normal channels one would think to pull from when hiring and promoting. “Daimler Trucks North America, as a company, wants
The driving factor: Kenworth stays focused on driver-centric features
Standing in the center of Kenworth’s massive booth at the equally massive Mid-America Trucking Show, it wasn’t hard to pick out the OEM’s primary focus: the driver. You know there is a driver shortage threatening the industry, so we won’t rehash the numbers. The OEMs are also all too well aware of the impact.
Martin Daum appointed Member of the Board of Management for Daimler Trucks and Buses
Martin Daum, who for the last eight years has been president and chief executive officer of Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) and its affiliated companies Freightliner Trucks, Western Star Trucks, Thomas Built Buses, Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp., and Detroit Diesel Corp., has been appointed to the position of Member of the Board of Management with
Setting the pace: Volvo Trucks drives equipment advancements forward
Volvo Trucks is setting a blistering pace as the OEM continues to unveil equipment advancements, updated integrated technology and business partnerships that aim to grow its offerings. Last fall, Volvo pulled the sheet off its futuristic SuperTruck, which boosted fuel efficiency by 70%—exceeding 12 MPG, with some test runs showing more than 13 MPG—in road
Evolving the experience: Hino Trucks invests in dealerships, connectivity to strengthen partnerships
“The momentum from November to December has carried over into January and early signals are that it is going to be another growth year for medium-duty truck sales,” said Dominik Beckman, Hino Trucks’ director of marketing and dealer operations. “Taking into account that housing values and consumer confidence are returning to pre-recession levels, unemployment is
Freightliner begins production on new Cascadia
Freightliner Trucks has announced that it has begun production on the new 2018 Cascadia. The new Cascadia (equipped with AeroX and Integrated Detroit Powertrain (IDP) includes a GHG17 Detroit DD15 engine, DT12 with Intelligent Powertrain Management (IPM4) and 2.16 direct drive axle ratio) boasts up to an 8% fuel economy increase over a similarly spec’d 2016 Cascadia
Writing the rules of the autonomous road
Welcome to 2017—the future is coming fast and furiously. In the trucking industry, automated truck technology has gone from sci-fi-esque, space age technology to an equipment reality. The next challenge is how to bring that technology to today’s highways. Last September, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) published its “Federal Automated Vehicle Policy: Accelerating
