September 2015 Volume 35, Issue 9
TRUCK NEWS Taking home the hardware
Nosediving loonie
Canada’s dollar has reached its lowest value in more than a decade, making new iron much more expensive.
Delivering daily news at trucknews.com
Cat to go it alone
Caterpillar has announced it is ending its truck partnership with Navistar and will bring production in-house.
Page 59
Andreea Crisan, EVP of Andy Transport, is doing her part to make the industry more attractive to women.
Page 52
Breaking barriers
Page 21
Page 10
Canada’s Trucking Newspaper Since 1981
Lovin’ the LNG
Vedder Transport has bought Bison’s LNG trucks, even though they come with a discontinued engine.
Home Hardware drivers shine in Ontario Truck Driving Championships
By James Menzies
Continued on page 14
Careers: 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59
PM40063170
Ad Index: 65
pg 1, 14-15, 18-19 tn sept v3.indd 1
Or go to List of Advertisers at trucknews.com
May-15
Apr-15
Mar-15
Feb-15
Jan-15
Dec-14
Nov-14
Oct-14
Sep-14
Aug-14
Jul-14
Canada’s GDP growth is in decline, pushing the economy to the brink of a recession.
Jun-14
A prizefighter, looking for a reason to drag himself out of bed at some god-awful hour on a blustery morning to get in his roadwork, might cite for motivation the adage: ‘When I’m not training, my opponent probably is.’ But could anyone have guessed that the Thursday night before the Ontario Truck Driving Championships, at around 9 p.m., when the sun was setting on an already long day, Home Hardware’s entrants in the competition were just wrapping up a marathon six-hour practice session in the company’s yard? Their preparation paid off. Home Hardware drivers won nine of 22 awards presented at the provincial competition July 11, including the Highest Points of the Day and Grand Champion awards, both of which went to Joe Kuntz, winner of the single-single division. Home Hardware drivers will make up three of the five competitors who will go on to represent Team Ontario at the national championships in Regina, Sask. this fall. And none of this was by chance. “The last couple Saturdays, I was
May-14
LONDON, ONTARIO
Recession-ready? All signs are pointing towards a Canadian recession. Are you equipped to survive it?
By James Menzies
T
ake a deep breath, plug your nose and get ready to go under. The Canadian economy seems poised to enter recession, even though the ‘R’ word is not being uttered in Ottawa, with a federal election now scheduled for Oct. 19. A recession is widely defined as two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth. Canada is edging dangerously close to this territory, with negative growth in each of the first five months of 2015. Canada’s real GDP fell 0.2% in May, the latest figures available at press time. While some economists aren’t yet ready to declare the economy in recession, others say it would take a June GDP miracle to avoid slipping into recession. The Bank of Canada in July attempted to resuscitate the Canadian economy by way of an interest rate reduction. That move alone was seen by many as an admission the economy is in trouble, if not officially in recession. However, while a recession would be bad news for the Canadian trucking industry, there’s still hope among some leading economists that it can be skirted. Carlos Gomes, senior economist with Scotiabank, told Truck News economic fundamentals are still strong. Asked if Canada is in recession, Gomes instead re-
ferred to the current economic situation as a “two-speed economy.” “If you look at domestic activity, it remains very resilient. Consumer spending is doing well. Auto sales are at record highs. Housing activity is buoyant. Employment conditions have actually accelerated over the past year to about an average of 16,000 jobs created each month,” Gomes explained. “That’s a significant improvement from an average of about 10,000 during the previous two years. One part of the economy is doing well, however there is significant weakness on both the business investment side and the export side. That’s really the concern.” Gomes suggested some one-time events – extreme cold weather last winter and forest fires and drought conditions this summer – have dampened economic growth. “We are basically in the midst of somewhat of a slower pace of growth, but we do still have some positives out there,” he said. “I wouldn’t say we’re in the midst of a broad, generalized slowdown. The reality is that the pace Continued on page 18
15-08-10 12:35 PM