EnRoute
Headlines From The Vehicle Renting and Leasing Industry
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Top Stories
New York State has forfeited receiving $354 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation since the state legislature could not agree on the merits of the congestion pricing plan that the New York City Council had already approved. FULL STORY
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Legislation has been introduced in Ontario that would require mandatory speed limiters for trucks operating in the province, including out-of-province Canadian and U.S. registered trucks traveling into Ontario. FULL STORY
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A proposed rulemaking has been instituted by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) that will require retailers of certain biodiesel blends to specify those blends by labels on their fuel pumps. FULL STORY
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Friday, April 11 is the deadline for companies to submit funding requests to the California Air Resources Board (CARB) for retrofitting or replacing their trucks to reduce emissions. FULL STORY
Technology Trends
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Horton, Inc. has introduced its Stratis viscous fan drives which are designed to cool higher-horsepower, hotter-running engines through the engine’s electronic control unit. FULL STORY
Karmak has released a major update of it’s INFO 5 dealer management system which will include enterprise-wide enhancements for more efficient management of heavy-duty truck or trailer dealerships or rental and leasing companies. FULL STORY
A “revolutionary” composite trailer weighing only 9,000 pounds yet featuring an80,000 lb. distribution frame capacity and the Revolution Combo featuring 23-inch steel main beams combined with an extruded aluminum floor for maximum strength and support at a lower overall weight, are the two new trailers that Fontaine trailer unveiled at the Mid-America Trucking Show. FULL STORY
Webb Vortex, a patent-pending new brake drum technology from Webb Wheel, is designed to utilize full cast iron metal technology. FULL STORY
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Double Coin and CMA have unveiled the Double Coin RT606+ solid-shoulder regional steer tire which takes the core specifications of the RT606 and upgrades it to enhance performance and durability for the regional pickup and delivery trucking segment. FULL STORY
Briefly
Eaton Corporation and Dana Corporation announced the two companies have agreed to renew the Roadranger marketing organization for an additional five years. . .Bridgestone Firestone North American Tire LLC’s Aiken, South Carolina, plant is using clean-energy forklifts to transport tires and other items. The new forklifts, which use hydrogen fuel cells, will replace traditional battery-powered forklifts used at the facility. . .Fontaine International has been named a “Diamond Supplier” by International Truck and Engine Corp. for 2007, making it one of the three suppliers to win the award in five consecutive years. . .D. Mike Pennington, ArvinMeritor’s senior director of global marketing and communications and industry relations for Commercial Vehicle Systems, was awarded the 2008 Lifetime Achievement Award by the Truck Writers of North America (TWNA). . .J.J. Keller & Associates has received a Gold World Medal in the New York Festivals 2008 International Film and Video Competition for it ‘s Eye on Speed & Space Management training program. . .Pressure Systems International presented Great Dane Trailers with its 2007 Customer Excellence Award during an awards ceremony at the Mid-America Trucking Show. . .Ryder Supply Chain Management Solutions has received the Superior Award in the area of value improvement from Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America Inc. . .SkyBitz has announced that Bulk Transportation, Corsicana-Bedding Inc., Willoughby, HMD Trucking, Inc. and Taylor Truck Line are the newest customers deploying the companies tracking solutions. . .Bridgestone Firestone North American Tire LLC is combining its Truck and Bus Tire sales and marketing groups with Bridgestone Bandag LLC’s North American retread operations to form a new division of BFNT called Bridgestone Bandag Tire Solutions. . .PeopleNet has announced a new focus on French-speaking markets in North America, releasing a French version of PeopleNet BLU. . .Cummins has created a driver training audio CD about key topics and engine features that will help familiarize drivers with what they need to know about its on-highway engines. . .PLM Trailer Leasing has opened a new Customer Service Center in Dallas, Texas, which was created to offer customer service, maintenance and repairs for the refrigerated trailer market. . .SAF-Holland S.A. has acquired Austin-Westran’s China-based landing gear product line and plant. . .Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has been recognized as one of America’s most trustworthy companies by Audit Integrity Inc. and Forbes magazine. The company ranked sixth on the magazine’s second annual listing of companies with market capitalization of $5 billion or more.
People on the Move
Josef “Joe” Kory has joined Navistar as vice president of Global Distribution Operations, Navistar Parts. . .Caterpillar, Inc. has appointed Bill Fulton as marketing manager for Global On-Highway. . .J.J. Keller & Associates has hired David Rydzewski as a database programmer/analyst; Debra Moyle as a supervisor for J.J. Keller’s log audit staff and Larisa Hartman as a recruiting specialist for the company’s human resources services. . .Karen Battin has been promoted to vice president and controller for Cummins engine business. . .Fleet One has hired Allen Goetz as a new product specialist; Todd Marzano has a regional account executive for the over-the-road sales department; Jamie Bell as an account executive for Iowa, Wyoming, Colorado, Washington and Oklahoma; Russell Denny as an account executive for the Southeast region and promoted Sean Root to inside local account manager. . .Andrew S. Park has been named executive vice president of information technology and emerging products for Comdata Corp. . .Key Equipment Finance has appointed Susan Taldone as vice president and director of the construction and industrial group and Melvin Ong as general manager, Asia Pacific.
Taking $tock
A look at truck transportation-industry Fortune 500 public companies:
| Company | Symbol (Click for Chart) |
04/09 Close | Two Week Performance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ArvinMeritor | ARM | $12.45 | $0.17 | 1.35% |
| Avis Budget Group Inc. | CAR | $12.05 | $0.16 | 1.31% |
| Caterpillar Inc. | CAT | $76.16 | $1.43 | 1.84% |
| Cummins Inc. | CMI | $49.46 | $1.77 | 3.46% |
| Eaton | ETN | $79.77 | $1.42 | 1.75% |
| General Electric | GE | $36.44 | $0.51 | 1.38% |
| Goodyear Tire & Rubber | GT | $25.48 | $1.72 | 6.32% |
| PACCAR Inc. | PCAR | $46.16 | $1.35 | 2.84% |
| Ryder | R | $61.29 | $2.80 | 4.37% |
SOURCE: Yahoo! Finance and bigcharts.com
Money Matters
With higher sales in Indonesia and Latin America, Hino Motors Ltd., is expected to beat its own forecast by 4.5 percent, increasing total operating profits to about $458 million. FULL STORY
Manufacturers are beginning to see some positive signs that the industry is coming back, however they still see challenges ahead for trucking over the next two years. FULL STORY
Eaton Corporation has won permission from the European Union to proceed with buying the Moeller Group, a German electrical components maker. FULL STORY
Caterpillar Inc. has made a deal estimated at $500 million with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. that will allow Caterpillar to take control of a joint venture known as Shin Caterpillar Mitsubishi Ltd., by increasing their holdings from 50 percent to 67 percent. FULL STORY
News From TRALA
Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund in Need of Custom-Built Trailer
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (VVMF) is in need of national sponsors to help provide for a new custom-built trailer as part of its traveling educational exhibit, The Wall That Heals. This exhibit has traveled to more that 250 cities and towns since its inception in 1996 and attracted more than two million visitors. After over ten years of travel, the miles have taken a toll on the mobile museum. The size needed is 53 ft. x 13 ft. 6 in. Benefits would accompany the donation, including signage, and recognition at VVMF events. For more information on the exhibit, go to http://www.vvmf.org/index.cfm?SectionID=3. If you are interested in finding out more about this opportunity, please email Mr. Bernard Gluckstern, bgluckstern@vvmf.org. (Photo courtesy of VVMF)