EnRoute
Headlines From The Vehicle Renting and Leasing Industry
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Top Stories
The U.S. Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administrator (FMCSA), John Hill, is looking at ways to expand the rule on electronic onboard recorders to include all carriers, rather than just those who persistently violate the hours of service rules. FULL STORY
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The fourth largest city in the United States, Houston, Texas, has reported that Harris County Commissioners Court have begun debating whether or not to impose congestion pricing when four toll lanes open on the rebuilt Katy Freeway in October. FULL STORY
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A biodiesel quality survey conducted in 2007 by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to determine if the fuel is meeting ASIM International D6751 specifications, reported that about 90 percent of the sample collected met the specifications. FULL STORY
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U.S. Congress authorized almost $50 million for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to provide grants to help fleets replace or clean up older diesel engines. FULL STORY
Technology Trends
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Kidron has introduced two new versions of the PackStar truck body which will offer increased durability and cater to the professional moving and storage industry. FULL STORY
The Super 50 Junction Box developed by Truck-Lite, is designed for trailers that operate in chemically harsh environments. FULL STORY
Corcentric’s Electronic Invoice Presentment and Payment (EIIP) system has added ReadSoft’s Optical Character Recognition (OCR), which will digitize invoices all the way down to the line item detail. FULL STORY
The 4000A flatbed trailer is Utility Trailer Manufacturing Co.’s newest trailer, which debuts 400 pounds lighter than the 2000A flatbed and offers equal beam strength with higher-strength steel. FULL STORY
Briefly
International Trucks has been named the official truck of the Kentucky Derby and Churchill Downs. . .Maxon Lift Corporation opened its new liftgate plant in Tijuana, Mexico. . .PHH Arval has signed an agreement with J.J. Keller & Associates by which J.J. Keller will provide regulatory compliance services for PHH clients. . .SAF-Holland has acquired the landing leg (trailer support) product line from Austin-Westran, including its China-based production operation. . .Daimler Trucks North America has selected PPG Industries as its OEM and aftermarket paint supplier for the Sterling manufacturing facility in St. Thomas, Ontario. . .Penske Logistics has received the Premier Supplier Excellence Award from Eaton Corporation for the second consecutive year. . .Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems LLC and Bendix Spicer Foundation Brake LLC have put out a warning about a fraudulent sweepstakes that has appropriated the companies’ identities. Please click here for more information on this scam. . .Detroit Diesel Corporation has announced it will soon make available to customers a free software release that will enhance the fuel economy of EPA ’07 series 60 engines by up to 2.5 percent. . .AmeriQuest Transportation Services, formerly known as AmeriQuest Transportation and Logistics Resources, has changed its name and identity to better communicate the diversity of its comprehensive fleet management services. . .Volvo Trucks North America’s New River Valley Plant (NRV) won Virginia’s highest environmental award for employing advanced technology to recycle and reuse 70 percent of the wastewater generated by the plant’s production activities. . .International Truck & Engine Corporation has named Fontaine International as a Diamond Supplier for 2007, making Fontaine one of only three suppliers to earn this award five years in a row. . .Cummins Inc. celebrated the production of its 1 millionth engine at the company’s Jamestown Engine Plant. . .Hendrickson published its updated Global Ride Solutions brochure which provides an overview of products that the company says supports every major North American heavy-duty truck and trailer manufacturer, as well as many in Europe, Australia, Japan, China, Latin America and Africa.
People on the Move
Navistar International Corp. has named Jim Hebe as senior vice president, North American sales operations; Bernardo Valenzuela has been promoted to the new position of vice president, global operations; and Carlos Currlin will take over as managing director, CMI. . .Tom Hujik has been appointed to director of aftermarket/field sales for North America. . .Hendrickson has hired John Parr as vice president of International Business Development. . .Gary Convis has been named chief executive officer of Dana Holding Corporation. . .Key Equipment Finance has appointed Adam J. Berman as regional sales director for the southeast region of the direct sales group. . .Victor Marquez has been named global vice president of marketing for Alcoa Wheel and Transportation Products (AWTP). . .Yokohama Tire Corp. has hired Thomas Masuguchi as corporate controller. . .Women in Trucking has named its former chairwoman, Ellen Voie, as the president of the organization.
Taking $tock
A look at truck transportation-industry Fortune 500 public companies:
| Company | Symbol (Click for Chart) |
04/23 Close | Two Week Performance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ArvinMeritor | ARM | $12.64 | $0.21 | 1.63% |
| Avis Budget Group Inc. | CAR | $12.11 | $0.22 | 1.78% |
| Caterpillar Inc. | CAT | $81.69 | $0.32 | 0.39% |
| Cummins Inc. | CMI | $54.33 | $0.33 | 0.61% |
| Eaton | ETN | $84.39 | $0.70 | 0.82% |
| General Electric | GE | $32.36 | $0.03 | 0.09% |
| Goodyear Tire & Rubber | GT | $26.70 | $0.29 | 1.10% |
| PACCAR Inc. | PCAR | $47.25 | $0.53 | 1.13% |
| Ryder | R | $65.23 | $1.69 | 2.66% |
SOURCE: Yahoo! Finance and bigcharts.com
Money Matters
Ryder System, Inc. has announced they have reached an agreement to acquire all of Gator Leasing, Inc.’s 2,300 full-service lease and rental units and about 300 contract customers in an acquisition that is expected to be finalized in May. FULL STORY
Over $2.2 million has been approved in rebates through the industry’s first Hybrid Rebate Program offered by GE Capital Solutions. FULL STORY
Industry suppliers are faced with the choice of either increasing prices or running on smaller profit margins as a result of the prices of commodities such as steel, iron and aluminum having substantially increasing since January. FULL STORY
Volvo Trucks showed volume growth for February with total delivery of trucks amounting to 8,907 vehicles, a 23 percent increase from the year-earlier period. FULL STORY
News From TRALA
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