Heavy-Duty Truck Dealers, Makers to Gather in Las Vegas

This story appears in the Jan. 30 print edition of Transport Topics.

Manufacturers and sellers of heavy-duty trucks will take stock of industry and the economy at the annual American Truck Dealers Association meeting in Las Vegas, Feb. 3-6.

For the first time, ATD’s convention will be held in conjunction with the National Automotive Dealers Association annual meeting.

This year, the annual ATD Convention and Exposition will bring together more than 2,000 dealers, dealership managers, manufacturers and related-industry representatives, the McLean, Va.,-based group said.

Eric Starks, president of FTR Associates, will discuss the state of the truck industry and offer his views on trends in freight demand on the afternoon of Feb. 3. Starks is expected to detail how the commercial vehicle industry has turned the corner as order volumes exploded last week.

ATD Chairman Kyle Treadway delivers his address to conventioneers on of Feb. 4. Treadway, is president of Kenworth Sales Co.

Treadway’s address will be followed by Daimler Trucks North America CEO Martin Daum, who will give his industry message to attendees. That’s the also the day the ATD unveils the winner of its annual Truck Dealer of the Year Award.

This year’s nominees are: John Arscott, president of Pete Store LLC, Baltimore; Steve Bassett, president of General Truck Sales, Muncie, Ind.; Terry Dotson, chairman of Worldwide Equipment Enterprises Inc., Prestonburg, Ky.; Eugene Hieber, president of Bucks County International Inc., Langhorne, Pa.; Brent Leach, president of Custom Truck Sales Inc., Saskatchewan; Trey Mytty, president of Omaha Truck Center Inc., Omaha, Neb.; and Timothy Reilly, president of Miami Valley International, Dayton, Ohio.

Richard Ryan of South Carolina was named the 2011 winner.

Barbara Windsor, immediate past president of American Trucking Associations, and president of Hahn Transportation Inc., highlights the Commercial Trucks of the Year, representing both the heavy-duty (Class 8) and medium-duty (Classes 3-7) weight classes on Feb 5.

The heavy truck nominees are: Freightliner’s 114SD conventional dump truck; International ProStar+ tractor with MaxxForce 15 engine; Kenworth’s T660 regional hauler with Paccar MX engine and Peterbilt’s 587 SmartWay conventional tractor.

The Kenworth T700 with a Paccar MX engine won the 2011 heavy-duty award while and the 2012 Hino model 338 won the medium-duty last year.