Blog

EnRoute - March 2, 2017

TOP STORIES - Trucking groups have united and are urging Elaine Chao, the new Secretary of Transportation, to order the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to rescind a proposed rule issued in January 2016 that would institute a new carrier rating system based on carriers' scores on the Compliance, Safety, Accountability program. FULL STORY

TOP STORIES

President Trump intends to revamp the national biofuels program to ease regulations on oil refiners while providing new incentives for ethanol and biodiesel production. FULL STORY

Congressman Peter DeFazio (D-OR) has introduced a resolution, "21st Century Workers' Bill of Rights," that includes eliminating incentives for companies sending jobs overseas, require foreign operators to comply with U.S. transportation laws, and directs President Donald Trump to initiate the renegotiation of NAFTA no later than June 1. FULL STORY




 

TECHNOLOGY TRENDS


International Truck has launched the International A26 engine, a new 12.4-liter engine which was developed through an initiative called Project Alpha. FULL STORY

Dana Inc. has unveiled its new Rhombus TireAnalytics solution. It is a cloud-based platform designed to help truck owners and fleet maintenance managers better monitor and optimize tire lifecycle management.  FULL STORY

Mack Trucks launched Mack Over The Air which enable customers to update software without disrupting their schedules, increasing operational efficiency and uptime. FULL STORY

Decisiv Inc. is pilot testing its new visualization platform, Insite 2.0. The update will be launched to all Decisiv Service Relationship Management (SRM) platform users in the second quarter. FULL STORY

Meritor introduced its new 14X HE high-efficiency tandem drive axle which is designed for linehaul applications and is 30 lbs lighter and up to 2% more fuel efficient than its predecessor.  FULL STORY

Truck-Lite has debuted its Road Ready trailer monitoring and communication system. FULL STORY   




 

BRIEFLY

MACK TRUCKS and TELOGIS, a Verizon Company, are offering a free 30-day trial of Mack Fleet Management Services with Telogis Fleet, to help improve operational performance, reduce costs and increase safety for Mack customers. . .A free oil analysis program that individually tailors oil drain intervals to a fleet's operating characteristics has been introduced by CUMMINS for its 2017 X15 Series heavy-duty engines. . .MICHELIN AMERICAS TRUCK TIRES is adding Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology to its commercial truck tires and retreads. . .EROAD will be the first tethered in-cab electronic logging device (ELD) supplier to appear on the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's registry of compliant devices. . .HENDRICKSON is introducing the Hendrickson Academy, an interactive online education portal that provides video based maintenance and or repair procedures for many of Hendrickson's suspensions and components. . .RECORD360 has partnered with GoFormz that will offer leasing and rental customers a full electronic check-in/checkout process that encompasses all aspects of the rental agreement and asset documentation. . .RUSH ENTERPRISES will full integrate its RushCare Service Connect communications platform with CUMMINS and PETERBILT SMARTLINQ. . .PETERBILT and Noregon are extending their relationship to deliver a new all-makes, all-models telematics solution to the trucking industry. . .SambaSafety has acquired VIGILLO. This acquisition will marry SambaSafety's MVR data with the CSA analytics provided by Vigillo. . .TRUCK-LITE has announced its exclusive partnership with NanoMech Industries. . .ISUZU FINANCE OF AMERICA has been in business for 10 years as the financial captive for ISUZU COMMERCIAL TRUCKS OF AMERICA, INC. As part of this year's celebration Isuzu Finance is recognizing loyal customers who have leased or financed an Isuzu truck since their inception in 2007. Additionally every Isuzu Dealer will receive a 10th Anniversary Crystal Award to commemorate their loyalty and partnership throughout the years. . .MHC'S Texas region received the prestigious 2016 Kenworth North American Medium Duty Dealer of the Year award for achieving an outstanding year of sales and increasing market share.  This is the second time MHC Kenworth - Texas has earned the award. . .TODCO is searching for the oldest TODCO roll-up door that is still in operation and on the road today to help celebrate 60 years in business. The winner will receive a check for $1,000 and a new TODCO door in exchange for the original door so it can be placed on display in TODCO's R&D department. 



 

PEOPLE

Daimler Trucks North America has made five appointments to its aftermarket and operations areas.  RICH SIMONS will take on the role of general manager of aftermarket parts sales; general manager of central service will be PAUL ROMANAGGI; CARSTEN KIRCHHOLTES assumes the role of general manager of supplier management and launch chain management; general manager of procurement will be the responsibility of CHRISTOPH MERTENS; and SUNGSOO LEE will be general manager of operations planning and quality management. . .PeopleNet has appointed ERIC WITTY as vice-president, product management.  He previously served as director of product management, he will be part of PeopleNet Transportation Group. . .Rush Enterprises, Inc. has appointed  VICTOR CUMMINGS as Vice President of Service Operations. . .JOHN CECCO has been named the new vice president of sales.  In addition to aftermarket sales, Cecco will over see Truck-Lite's customer service, pricing and forecasting departments after the retirement of BOB IVES, former VP of business development. . .Navistar has announced its president and chief executive officer, TROY CLARKE, has been elected chairman of the board. . .WILBUR ROSS was confirmed as the U.S. Commerce Secretary by the U.S. Senate.



 

TAKING STOCK

A look at truck transportation industry Fortune 500 public companies.
 

Company

Symbol

3/2 Close 

Performance

 

Allison Transmission Holdings

ALSN

$36.13

$0.83

-2.25%

Avis Budget Group Inc.

CAR

$34.18

$0.23

-0.67%

Cummins Inc.

CMI

$150.84

$2.01

-1.32%

Dana Incorporated

DAN

$19.47

$0.10

+0.52%

Eaton

ETN

$72.11

$0.53

-0.73%

Navistar International Corp.

NAV

$27.52

$1.09

-3.81%

PACCAR Inc.

PCAR

$67.38

$1.81

-2.62%

Ryder System, Inc.

R

76.62

$1.17

-1.50%



 

NUMBERS    

President Donald Trump has asked legislators to produced and pass a $1 trillion spending package that will include funds for rebuilding the country's infrastructure and rebuilding U.S. highways. FULL STORY

Navistar International Corp. and Volkswagen's Truck & Bus division completed their alliance with Volkswagen acquiring 16.2 million common shares, or 16.6% of equity, and Navistar getting $256 million. FULL STORY  




 

TRALA ANNOUNCEMENTS 


Registration is still open for TRALA's 2017 Annual Meeting. The event will be held April 2-5 at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point in Bonita Springs, Florida.  This event is one of the largest gatherings of rental and leasing executives in North America. Click here to register for TRALA's 2017 Annual Meeting.  Please contact TRALA's Shannon Davison at sdavison@trala.org with any questions regarding the meeting.