EMU
Keeping Trucks Rolling Amid Pandemic
American Trucking Associations’ Technology & Maintenance Council is now serving as a conduit of information as to how maintenance operations can sustain, protect and facilitate trucking’s critical role in fighting the novel coronavirus pandemic.
April 24, 2020Taking a Look Under the Hood of Electric Trucks
Electric trucks feature new components such as lithium-ion batteries and electric motors. (Mindy Long for Transport Topics)
The introduction of electric-powered trucks represents a new frontier for the transportation industry, but this new breed of commercial vehicle will not be completely unfamiliar to fleets and maintenance shops.
April 24, 2020Technician Career Development: An Endless Journey
Skills competitions can boost technician recruiting and career development. (Erik Fossum)
Professional development is a journey without an end, a task that is never truly complete. That’s true for most any profession, and commercial vehicle technicians are certainly no exception.
January 24, 2020Suppliers Invest in Industry’s Future Despite Market Slowdown
An employee works the assembly line at an Allison Transmission manufacturing plant. (Allison Transmission)
On the heels of a booming 2018, truck manufacturers and their key Tier 1 suppliers powered through a slower equipment market in 2019, continuing to invest in new products and preparing for a future when tightening emission standards and the electrification of trucks will provide both challenges and opportunities.
January 24, 2020Aftertreatment Upkeep Starts With Relationships
Bryan Stewart, of Jones Logistics, says he spends more time on vendor relations than spec'ing equipment. (Jones Logistics)
Building positive relationships with dealers and independent maintenance shops is one of the keys to successfully maintaining complex engine exhaust aftertreatment systems, according to several fleet representatives.
October 25, 2019APUs: Diesel or Electric?
The climate control panel for the Volvo parking cooler can be seen on the wall to the right in a Volvo truck sleeper. (Volvo Trucks)
Auxiliary power units allow truck drivers to have climate control for their sleepers and electricity for hotel loads without needing to idle the tractor engine, but fleets that elect to add APUs to the cab must decide how those APUs will be powered — by a small diesel engine or by batteries.
January 19, 2018Some Small Carriers Embrace Glider Kits to Avoid Costs of Emissions Systems
Elkhorn Valley Trucks offers a variety of glider kits, such as this one. (Photo by Elkhorn Valley Trucks)
Like some other small trucking firms, Old Forge Services of Mogadore, Ohio, has turned to glider kits to reduce maintenance expenses and downtime.
January 19, 2018Industry Eyes E-Axles
Hyliion says its e-axle will produce up to 15% fuel savings as it captures regenerative energy that will be stored in the battery pack. (Photo by Hyliion)
Tesla’s announcement in November that it will produce an all-electric Class 8 tractor by 2019 helped highlight the potential for electric power in commercial trucking. But while Tesla and others are electrifying the entire truck, some companies are focusing on the axles.
January 19, 2018Truck Safety: Human and Equipment Factors
The intersection of the human and equipment-related elements of truck safety is reflected in the two cover stories in this issue of Equipment & Maintenance Update.
July 24, 2017Truck Techs Keeping Busy With Aftertreatment Issues
In the wake of federal clean-air mandates in 2007 and 2010, maintenance technicians are working furiously to keep the aftertreatment systems of their fleets’ trucks operating.
August 12, 2016