Dana CEO: Inventories Led It Past Competitors

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HICAGO — Michael Burns, chairman and chief executive officer of vehicle component supplier Dana Corp., said a strategic increase this year in his company’s inventory of heavy-duty axles and drive shafts had allowed Dana to take away business from other suppliers that were unable to fill truck makers’ orders during a surge in demand for Class 8 trucks.

With U.S. demand for heavy-duty trucks expected to accelerate even more over the next two years, the nimble jockeying by suppliers for larger market share is likely to intensify, as well.

“That’s what I like about this heavy-duty truck piece of the business, you have interchangeability with other manufacturers,” Burns said here in an interview with Transport Topics Oct. 26.

For the full story, see the Nov. 1 edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.