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  • Sign of the Times
    By Mark O'Connell - Thursday January 29, 2009
    This week, in what is surely a sign of the times, Kenworth and Peterbilt, the two American truck brands of PACCAR, Inc., announced that they would not have exhibits at the Mid-America Truck Show (MATS) in Louisville, KY, perhaps the biggest truck show in the country. So what, you say? This is like the NFL bowing out of the Superbowl, or Madonna taking a pass on the Grammies, or Matt Kenseth skipping the Daytona 500. It's just not done. What's really scary is that MATS is still two months away as I write this, and as there's not much hope of the economy turning itself around in the next eight weeks, it's a pretty sure guess that PACCAR's announcement will just be the first of many. MATS is one of the busiest weeks of the year for a...

  • Selling Isn't Just for Girl Scouts
    By Amanda Schuier - Wednesday January 21, 2009
    I’ve never sold anything in my life. Except a few boxes of Girl Scout cookies in the fourth grade. However, I have morphed into a salesperson role since September, after I witnessed the SuperTech competition for the first time.  What am I selling? Not a brand new truck or service to keep the truck on the road. I’m selling SuperTech.  Every industry meeting I attend, I make it a point to wear my 2008 SuperTech pin. I make it a point to bring up SuperTech in conversations. I hand out flyers. I tell people to tell their friends, or other service managers. People seek me out at meetings and ask questions about SuperTech.  Just this last week, I was able to present about the Nebraska SuperTech competition to the Metropolitan...

  • Introducing... the Fiat Ram?
    By Mark O'Connell - Wednesday January 21, 2009
    Maybe it's not that crazy... Fiat, Chrysler (and Cerberus, Chrysler's owner) issued a joint press release today stating that the Italian automaker will be taking a 35% stake in the troubled American firm. In exchange for that stake, Fiat will provide Chrysler/Cerberus with "product and platform sharing, including city and compact segment vehicles, to expand Chrysler's current product portfolio; technology sharing, including fuel efficient and environmentally friendly powertrain technologies; and access to additional markets, including distribution for Chrysler vehicles in markets outside of North America..." While this is, undoubtedly, good news for Chrysler and its owners, I can't help but wonder where it might lead... Will we someday see...

  • The High Cost of High Mileage
    By Mark O'Connell - Wednesday January 14, 2009
    The other day I attended a presentation by Jim Hebe, the Senior Vice President of North American Sales for Navistar, Inc., about International Truck's decision to buck the industry trend and avoid using a Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) aftertreatment system in its 2010 heavy-duty diesel engines. New diesel emissions standards from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for 2010 have pushed most diesel engine manufacturers to adopt SCR systems for their new engines, so International's stand is bold and somewhat risky. Hebe knew that, and to his credit, he didn't shy away from it. What surprised me the most about his presentation was that he directly confronted the now-famous SCR benefit of improved fuel economy. Hebe said that the...

  • Why a Technician Competition?
    By Amanda Schuier - Wednesday January 14, 2009
    From an outsider’s perspective, it may be easy to think SuperTech is just a frivolous, expensive idea. But as I’ve learned from many Technology and Maintenance Council members, this is absolutely incorrect.  In a conversation I recently had with Nebraska Trucking Association president Larry Johnson, he mentioned how excited he was to have the competition in the state. He said it’s a great way to highlight the professional skills of our hardworking technicians in Nebraska, and definitely long overdue.  But what else can it add to your company? From a recruiting and retention standpoint, a lot. Instead of focusing on mistakes our technicians make, we are now rewarding them for the hard work they do. Technicians are increasing their...

  • Rest Stop
    By Amanda Schuier - Wednesday January 7, 2009
    July is months away, and I’m certainly aware that the date is only getting closer. But, since we’re enjoying a little break in the planning, I thought this would be a good opportunity to go “behind the scenes” to introduce you to the rest of our steering committee, and what they’ve been working on.  Jeff Hoefer from Nebraska Truck Center and Dave Jacobs from Wick’s Sterling Trucks are heading up the judging rules and recruitment of volunteers. They are working hard to get knowledgeable people to work the stations.  Kevin Ingalls from Werner Enterprises is heading up publicity, promotions and sponsorships. He serves as president of Metropolitan Community College’s Diesel Advisory Council, so he is good at getting people...

  • Do You Network?
    By Mark O'Connell - Wednesday January 7, 2009
    We like to start out every new year with a fresh view of the fleet maintenance industry, and one way we do that is to survey our readers, to get their thoughts on industry issues and trends. We recently surveyed readers on their involvement in maintenance councils, both the national Technology & Maintenance Council (TMC) and their own state maintenance councils. One hundred and sixteen readers completed the survey, and the results were both expected and surprising. About 1/4 of the respondents were TMC members, and 3/4 were not. Of the TMC members, 100 percent intend to renew their membership, and 65 percent attend TMC meetings. Among those who indicated that they were not TMC members, only 15 percent belonged to a state maintenance...

  • Merry Christmas!
    By Mark O'Connell - Thursday December 18, 2008
    It's a little hard to concentrate on work this week, with Christmas now exactly one week away. The biggest excitement of all is that in two days my oldest daughter will be coming home from college, and bringing her roommate with her. The fact that her roommate, who is Jewish, has never celebrated Christmas, has had an unexpectedly fantastic effect on the whole family: it has made us all really think about our Christmas traditions, why we do them, what they mean to us, and what they might mean to someone who has never experienced them before. It's actually created a buzz of excitement over and above the usual holiday anticipation, and I am thoroughly enjoying it! Every aspect of our holiday celebration is going to have heightened meaning...

  • Date, Location... Now What?
    By Amanda Schuier - Thursday December 18, 2008
    After the first couple of meetings of the SuperTech Steering Committee, we found ourselves a little overwhelmed. We have the date and we have the location, but now what?   As we sat down around our long oval table, the one problem we got stuck on was “how do we actually figure out the scenarios to create for the competition?” We glanced around, waiting for the answer to magically make itself known to us, but it didn’t come. As we all shook our heads, I said, “it’s time to call in the reinforcements.”   Actually, I didn’t really say that, but you get the idea. It was the perfect moment for me to pull out the stack of business cards I gathered at TMC's SuperTech in Nashville.  Fortunately for me, I didn’t have to twist...

  • Booked Solid
    By Mark O'Connell - Thursday December 11, 2008
    I had an interesting experience this week. I drove south to Woodstock, Illinois, with a winter storm warning hanging over my head, to pay a visit to Gordon Botts, owner of Botts Welding, an independent heavy-duty truck shop. The primary reason for my visit was to interview Gordon for an upcoming story, but I was also interested in hearing his take on the future of the fleet industry. Over the phone he had come across as strangely optimistic about the current business climate, and I wanted to find out why. Botts Welding was founded by Gordon's father, and the company has been in business for 80 years. So to say that Gordon has seen his share of ups and downs in the industry is an understatement. This man has weathered every storm to hit the...