EnRoute- August 13, 2020

• By: Shannon Davison
• On: 08/13/2020 17:12:11
• In: EnRoute

TOP STORIES

President Trump signed an executive order deferring payroll taxes, but the money may have to be repaid at a later date, leaving trucking companies wondering whether they should continue to withhold the tax or not. FULL STORY
 
Less than two months before the country's current highway program expires, congressional leaders and the White House are plodding through negotiations on a new highway bill. FULL STORY
 
Despite the recent ruling against Uber and Lyft, trucking continues to remain exempt from the California independent contractor law known as Assembly Bill No. 5. FULL STORY

TECHNOLOGY TRENDS

Penske Leasing and Penske Logistics are now testing Ready Road trailer telematics. FULL STORY
 
Kenworth has expanded its remote diagnostics subscription option for medium-duty trucks. FULL STORY
 
Dana Incorporated recently introduced its new Spicer Trac-Lok limited-slip differentials (LSD) for medium-duty truck applications. The Spicer Trac-Loc autonomously delivers improved vehicle handling within a lightweight and compact design for maximum traction, durability, and performance, according to the manufacturer. FULL STORY
 
Carrier Transicold has introduced its new Vector HE 19, a thin-profile refrigeration unit designed to offer sustainability, efficiency and capacity for intermodal transport. FULL STORY
 
General Motors recently announced the creation of its all-new 350 small-block engine. This new GM Original Equipment 5.7L, 350 cubic-inch V-8 replacement is never remanufactured or reverse engineered. FULL STORY
 
Freightliner's Innovation Fleet — a line of 30 battery-electric medium-duty and heavy-duty trucks — has logged more than 300,000 miles of real-world use within two years. FULL STORY
 
Michelin North America recently unveiled the Michelin X One Line Energy T2 tire, which is the company's most fuel-efficient trailer tire to date. FULL STORY

BRIEFLY

MACK TRUCKS DEALER VANGUARD TRUCK CENTERS recently opened a new facility in Georgetown, Texas, expanding their sales and service support for the rapidly growing region north of Austin, Texas. . . MURPHY-HOFFMAN COMPANY (MHC) has acquired CARRIER TRANSICOLD SOUTH (CT SOUTH), which includes nine transport refrigeration locations in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Tennessee. . . GENERAL MOTORS and EVgo plan to triple the size of the nation's largest public fast charging network by adding more than 2,700 new fast chargers over the next five years, a move set to help accelerate widespread electric vehicle adoption. . . PETERBILT now has 132 dealerships that have passed the Platinum Service Center Program certification process. To attain Platinum Service Center status, dealers must meet high levels of Paccar Solutions Service Management, reduce overall dwell time for customer repairs, prioritize Peterbilt's RapidCheck triage service, and maintain exceptional parts availability. . . PENSKE TRUCK LEASING recently announced longtime customer Core-Mark Holding Co. deployed one of Penske's Class 8 battery-electric Freightliner eCascadias into its fleet to haul between 13,000 and 18,000 pounds of food and beverages to convenience stores on the outskirts of Los Angeles. Running 130 miles, four days a week, the heavy-duty electric vehicle makes 10 to 12 stops daily. . . The DANA INCORPORATED Board of Directors recently established a standing Technology and Sustainability Committee focused on technological and environmental stewardship that will be responsible for assisting the board with oversight relating to innovation, new technologies, and sustainability and social responsibility. . . PACCAR recently opened a parts distribution center (PDC) in Brazil which has six times the capacity of the facility it replaced and is the 18th PACCAR PDC across the globe. . . THERMO KING has officially launched a new elite and standardized service model after successfully piloting the program at dealerships in North America and Europe known as Blue Track by Thermo King, which is a customer-centric service delivery model that will be integrated into participating dealer locations by the end of 2020. . . NAVISTAR INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION has partnered with GEOTAB to allow International customers to add select Geotab fleet management solutions through Navistar's factory-installed telematics device. . . PETERBILT'S manufacturing plant in Denton, Texas is celebrating its 40th year in operation. . . CUMMINS INC. and NAVISTAR INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION recently extended its partnership through the next two emission cycles, with Cummins being selected as Navistar's preferred supplier of medium-duty and heavy-duty big bore engines for International Trucks and IC Buses in the U.S. and Canada. . . MICHELIN recently introduced Maestro, a digital cloud-based platform that will help the company create a stronger, more effective working relationship between service providers, fleets and Michelin. . . CARRIER TRANSICOLD Carrier Transicold recently donated a refrigeration unit to help mid-Ohio Food Bank deliver nutritious food to those in need. . . CUMMINS INC. recently received two awards from the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy for nearly $7 million. The awards are for Cummins' continued work on fuel cell powertrain solutions for heavy-duty applications for on-highway tractor-trailers and buses.

PEOPLE

Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) recently appointed RAINER MULLER-FINKELDEI as senior vice president of engineering and technology. . . Truck Rental, LLC recently announced that ZACH MARTIN has been promoted to President effective immediately. . . Ford has named JIM FARLEY as the company's new president and CEO, succeeding JIM HACKETT who will retire on Oct. 1, 2020 after leading the company since 2017. . . Navistar International recently announced a series of new executive appointments: FRIEDRICH BAUMANN was named president of sales, marketing and aftersales; PHIL CHRISTMAN, who is president of operations, will now also lead Navistar's global operations; and ROBERT WALSH will become vice-president of emerging technologies, strategy and planning. . . Meritor recently announced that HANNAH LIM-JOHNSON joined the company as senior vice-president, chief legal officer and corporate secretary.

NUMBERS

The unemployment rate fell to 10.2 percent in July, the Labor Department reported. FULL STORY
 
FTR reports preliminary North American Class 8 net orders rebounded in July to 20,000 units, up 28% from June, and double the orders placed in July 2019. FULL STORY
 
The average price of diesel increased for the first time in four weeks, inching up four-tenths of a cent nationally to $2.428 a gallon on Aug. 10, according to the Energy Information Administration's weekly report. FULL STORY

TRALA ANNOUNCEMENTS

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Please support TRALA's Legal Action Fund by making a corporate contribution today. TRALA is engaged in significant legislative, regulatory, and legal battles that directly impact your company's bottom line. A Legal Action Fund contribution is an investment in your company's future, as it ensures that TRALA has the financial resources necessary to protect the truck renting and leasing industry as well as your company's best interests.
 
Click here to make your company's donation! Thank you for your support of TRALA's advocacy efforts.
 
Please contact TRALA's Andrew Stasiowski at astasiowski@trala.org or Elizabeth Hyers at ehyers@trala.org with any questions or if you need more information.