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Contents April 2019 | VOLUME 33, NO.4

7 John G. Smith 9 Rolf Lockwood 29 Mike McCarron NEWS & NOTES

Dispatches 10

17 Learning the Lessons Ontario’s mandatory driver training continues to evolve

22 23 24 25 26 27 54

Truck Sales Stat Pack Pulse Survey Trending Logbook Heard on the Street Faces

In Gear

Features 10 Protest Vehicles A cross-Canada convoy pushed for pipelines, but ‘Yellow Vesters’ wanted more.

By John G. Smith

32 Sparking Interest There’s plenty of interest in electric trucks, but they’re not perfect. Not yet.

By John G. Smith

42 Hold Tight … But Not Too Tight 38 The Modern Oil Change Are you getting the most out of that little jug of oil? By Jim Park

Adjusting wheel bearings can be a finicky process, but it doesn’t have to be.

By Jim Park

46 My Truck is My Co-Pilot The latest level of automation is to support drivers, not replace them.

By John G. Smith

51 Product Watch For more visit www.todaystrucking.com APRIL 2019

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Letters The Business Magazine of Canada’s Trucking Industry

PUBLISHER Lou Smyrlis lou@newcom.ca • 416/510-6881 VICE PRESIDENT, EDITORIAL Rolf Lockwood, MCILT rolf@newcom.ca • 416/614-5825 EDITORIAL DIRECTOR, TRUCKING AND SUPPLY CHAIN John G. Smith johng@newcom.ca • 416/614-5812

Column on Humboldt driver sparks plenty of feedback Few columns generate more feedback than equipment editor Jim Park’s opinion about Jaskirat Singh Sidhu, the truck driver involved in last April’s Humboldt Broncos bus crash. Here are excerpts from just a few that were submitted through our inbox last month.

CONTRIBUTORS: Steve Bouchard, Mike McCarron, Jim Park, Sonia Straface, Nicolas Trepanier DESIGN / LAYOUT Tim Norton, Frank Scatozza production@todaystrucking.com • 416/614-5818 SALES AND MARKETING CONSULTANT Anthony Buttino anthonyb@newcom.ca • 514/292-2297 SALES AND MARKETING CONSULTANT Nickisha Rashid nickisha@newcom.ca • 416/614-5824 QUÉBEC ACCOUNTS MANAGER Denis Arsenault denis@newcom.ca • 514/947-7228 CIRCULATION MANAGER Pat Glionna 416/614-2200 • 416/614-8861 (fax) PRODUCTION MANAGER Samantha Nagy samantha@newcom.ca • 416/510-5196

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Today’s Trucking is published monthly by NEWCOM MEDIA INC., 5353 Dundas Street West, Suite 400, Toronto, Ontario M9B 6H8. It is produced expressly for owners and/or operators of one or more straight trucks or tractor-trailers with gross weights of at least 19,500 pounds, and for truck/trailer dealers and heavy-duty parts distributors. Subscriptions are free to those who meet the criteria. For others: single-copy price: $5 plus applicable taxes; one-year subscription: $50 plus applicable taxes; one-year subscription in U.S: $90 US; one-year subscription foreign: $180 US. Copyright 2019. All rights reserved. Contents may not be reproduced by any means, in whole or in part, without prior written consent of the publisher. The advertiser agrees to protect the publisher against legal action based upon libelous or inaccurate statements, unauthorized use of photographs, or other material in connection with advertisements placed in Today’s Trucking. The publisher reserves the right to refuse advertising that in his opinion is misleading or in poor taste. Postmaster: Address changes to Today’s Trucking, 5353 Dundas Street West, Suite 400, Toronto, Ont., M9B 6H8. Postage paid Canadian Publications Mail Sales Agreement No.40063170. ISSN No. 0837-1512. Printed in Canada.

Member

Well written. I get the opportunity to work with new drivers all the time in my position, and now more than ever try to take a few extra minutes and help. If this tragedy has taught the industry anything it’s that we need to be better. — Joel Neily

Email: johng@newcom.ca

SEND YOUR LETTERS TO: Newcom Media Inc., 5353 Dundas Street West, Suite 400, Toronto, Ontario M9B 6H8

Anyone who climbs into the cab of a semi – and does not dread the incredible responsibility, the terrifying physical powers created by the weight and speed of the truck, and the many freak hazards which can result from the environment and the actions of others – does not know what he/she is doing and really should not be driving a truck.... I think that Humboldt has, in one fell swoop, done more damage to our recruiting efforts than any of us can imagine. — Mike Hertwig Very well done, sir! I concur completely with both the tone and conclusions in your essay. Thanks for writing it. — Bill Wallace This makes me sick! Why not play the race and discrimination card, too. Give me a break. You are in control of the truck. Pay attention and do your job. — Shawn Marcil Get real. Nothing will return lives and health to the people who suffer, because of his ignorance and stupidity, so stop finding excuses for the very small percentage of professional drivers and companies who never should be allowed on the road in the first place. — Adam Kos As a now-retired longhaul driver, I think this article is spot on. This fellow should be given no jail time. He’s as much a victim of this tragedy as were the people on that bus. Things are going to get worse if the government doesn’t step in. Too little experience, too much rush. — Ross Thompson Rumble strips should have been ground into the highway 20 years earlier, when a father annihilated his entire family in the same intersection. Someone in the government [must have] thought rumble strips were too expensive or unnecessary for some other reason. They should be locked up, too! — Rick Blatter This story could not have been written better. No one intentionally causes an unfortunate incident like this. My heart goes out to all. There needs to be more education and maybe a graduated system put in place starting at Day 1. — Lynden Barker APRIL 2019

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Editorial By John G. Smith

Semi Autonomous Today’s automated controls are there to support drivers, not replace them

t’s easy to become excited by all the talk about autonomous controls. If you buy into the hype, you might convince yourself that trucks will soon be able to accelerate, brake, and steer on their own. Daimler Trucks North America has gone so far as to unveil a truck that can do all three things, after all. The latest updates to Freightliner’s new Cascadia include Level 2 automation, drawing on signals collected through bumper-mounted radar and a windshield-mounted camera. Closing in too fast on the vehicle ahead? The truck will slow and brake. Straying across a lane marking without a signal applied? The steering wheel will nudge the vehicle in the other direction. If someone walks in front of the bumper? Full brakes are applied. (See My Truck is My Co-Pilot, page 46.) All the while, the system continues to track up to 40 objects within 800 feet of the bumper, refreshing data about 200 times per second. Its digital eyes don’t blink and are not distracted. But the electronic vision is hardly foolproof. There are still plenty of times when a driver’s watchful eyes are superior. The pedestrian detection system can spot swinging hips, but would miss someone who’s standing still. The camera might struggle to pick up some fading highway markings, or be confused by overlapping lines in a construction zone. Imagine how it would work on a snow-covered highway. Even the fully autonomous Freightliner Inspiration Truck, first showcased in 2015, made its turns with the help of a highway ramp’s special markings, which had to be repainted once the demonstration was completed. The latest generation of equipment would best be described as an evolution of cruise control. Rather than replacing a driver, it’s like having someone in the passenger seat who could shout out a warning before it’s too late. Maybe they could even grab the wheel to help in a pinch.

It’s why we’re still in the era of technology that can “mitigate” collisions rather than eliminate them. If anything, the emerging systems introduce the need for a new layer of driver training. Each manufacturer’s equipment approaches warnings and settings in a different way. Those who take the wheel will need to know what the individual bells, buzzers, and lights actually indicate. There’s no denying we’ve come a long way, though. Gone is the need to cancel and resume cruise control in stop-and-go traffic. Emergency braking can be applied even if a driver happens to be distracted. I’ve heard reports from several fleet managers who report double-digit reductions in rear-end collisions after adopting collision mitigation systems. Such systems continue to evolve, too. Today’s warning systems are no longer triggered by every bridge abutment or limited to tracking moving vehicles. I have to imagine that tomorrow’s systems will be able to more accurately define their lanes or identify hazards of every sort. There will continue to be movement on things like related legislation, public acceptance, and even infrastructure markings in the years to come. But such changes take time. Don’t expect to see an empty driver’s seat anytime soon. TT

“The electronic vision is hardly foolproof. There are still plenty of times when a driver’s watchful eyes are superior.”

John G. Smith is the editorial director of Today’s Trucking. You can reach him at 416-614-5812 or johng@newcom.ca. APRIL 2019

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Lockwood By Rolf Lockwood

Training, Post Humboldt There has been much talk about driver training, but little has changed

an, I am so fed up with the utterly endless discussions about driver training in this country. I’ve heard the mostly empty chatter for 40 years now, with precious little to show for all the wear and tear on my ears. Sure, back in the 1990s we had Earning Your Wheels, the first and so far only attempt to produce a national standard for training entry-level drivers, with curriculum attached. It was developed by smart people at the industry’s request by the Canadian Trucking Human Resources Council, which later morphed into Trucking HR Canada. And it was good, though not mandatory. Sadly, practicality wasn’t part of the mix. Or perhaps the developers simply over-estimated the industry’s willingness to spend money on the task of developing fully competent drivers. Both, I guess. It was a heavy course – 255 hours’ worth, plus a further 100 hours of supervised workplace assessment. It was pretty much everything we wanted, and would have made a “professional” designation actually mean something, which we need badly. But it was too long, thus too expensive for either fleets or individual students if they couldn’t get some sort of grant, and it fell by the wayside. I have no idea how many students took the course and graduated, but I believe only six schools were ever accredited to deliver it. It cost something like $13,000 back then, which was a lot of dough. Even now, a good course is maybe $5,000 cheaper. In the years that followed, absolutely nothing happened except the unfettered growth of irresponsible licence mills. Fast forward to 2017 and we finally got Ontario’s Mandatory Entry-Level Training (MELT) program that sets minimum standards like 103.5 hours of classroom and truck time. Alberta has since followed suit and the program seems to have become the model for other provinces to follow. But 100 or so hours are not enough, many observers say, me included. And not soon enough, I say. I was a small part of an effort way back in 1980 to create standards for Ontario driver-training schools along with a training curriculum. The province’s Ministry of Colleges and Universities didn’t want to know. Nor did it want

to police existing training facilities, so schools were effectively free to do whatever they wanted. Some tried to do a decent job, and some succeeded, while many others prepared people for the written and road tests and nothing more. It was no different elsewhere in the country. But now, in the wake of the Humboldt horror – where driver training played a role – we finally have national chatter about what skills our drivers should have and how they should get them. I’m ashamed for our industry and our political leaders that it took such a tragedy to get the needle moving. Again. Federal Transport Minister Marc Garneau announced last year that a national entry-level training standard for commercial drivers would be in place by January 2020, to become part of the National Safety Code. It’s a good first step, but it’s fraught with weaknesses. As editor John G. Smith pointed out last month, the feds don’t have the regulatory muscle to make anything mandatory because training is a provincial matter. So good old Balkanized Canada will produce… um, what? Frankly, I think we need to do more than demand adequate driving skills. We also need to ensure that trainers themselves can do the job and that road-test examiners hold licences. That awful crash in Saskatchewan also showed that carriers need training just as much as anyone else. Enforcement at that level is weak at best, so we clearly can’t rely on it. Let’s start earlier and make it harder to put trucks on the road. Drivers don’t deserve to take the whole rap. TT

“That awful crash in Saskatchewan… showed that carriers need training just as much as anyone else.”

Rolf Lockwood is vice-president, editorial, at Newcom Media Inc. You can reach him at 416-614-5825 or rolf@todaystrucking.com. APRIL 2019

The first trucks in the United We Roll Convoy for Canada roll up to Parliament Hill.

Protest Vehicles Cross-Canada convoy pushes Ottawa for pipelines, but ‘Yellow Vesters’ wanted more than that By John G. Smith The United We Roll Convoy for Canada wanted to make some noise, and on Feb. 16 it did that very thing as it rolled up to Parliament Hill. About two dozen commercial vehicles and twice as many pickups – many of which began their journey in Red Deer, Alta. – completed the final leg in a five-day trip,

TODAY’S TRUCKING

announcing their arrival with the blast of horns. One of the first protesters to step onto Wellington Street began playing the theme to Convoy over his megaphone, lest anyone forget the role of trucks in this protest. The core messages were clearly supporting the energy sector. No to the carbon tax;

no to Bill C-69, designed to overhaul the review of energy projects; no to Bill C-48, which looks to ban crude-carrying tankers along sections of B.C.’s coast. And there was a resounding yes to the idea of building pipelines that would carry Canadian oil to tidewater. “We cannot say how amaz-

ing it was to see the reception and the thousands of people that met us on the road,” coorganizer Glen Carritt told about 200 supporters. “Our voices are going to be heard. They heard our horns coming up … The politicians need to start listening to us.” Brad Schell of Schell Equipment in High River, Alta., suggested it was hard to ignore trucks like his, with a trailer proclaiming that Canadians need pipelines. “It sends a big message.” “We drove here for all you folks,” a yellow-vested Mark Friesen added when it was his turn at the microphone. He was clearly happy with the sound of the horns. “Listen to that!” Convoy organizers had at one point tried to distance themselves from the Yellow Vest movement known to promote extreme, nationalist views. Any talk of calling it the Yellow Vest Convoy was officially set aside. But the protest was later opened up to “everyone” who wanted to participate. It meant the official business of fighting the carbon tax was joined by protesters calling for things like “closed borders and open pipelines”. One woman grabbed a megaphone to offer an acronym for

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Mandatory Lessons PG. 17

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Carrying a pro-oil and gas message.

Signatures of support from across Canada.

Mixed messages from protesters.

Anti-pipeline protesters had to compete with the sound of truck horns on Wellington Street.

Organizer Glen Carritt.

APRIL 2019

Dispatches “racism”. Her R stood for “rational”. “We’re just carrying Canada on our backs with this convoy, and we’re reaching the small communities that are ignored by Ottawa,” Friesen said. “We’re frustrated, and we’re angry, and we’re standing up for what we as Canadians need. It’s been a great way to bring people together.” This was clearly an anti-Liberal crowd. Chants echoed messages like “Hey hey, ho ho, Justin Trudeau’s got to go.” One protester wore a cap with the Trudeau name and a finger flipping the bird. There were signs that simply said “Trudeau out. No Trudeau,” and a button saying “Never elect a Trudeau again.” Trucks represented the biggest symbols of all, decked out with signs expressing messages like “we love oil and gas”. The number of trucks was clearly lighter than original projections, though, and even lighter than the numbers seen during recent provincial convoys across the Prairies. About 160 trucks had originally departed from Gort’s Truck Wash in Red Deer. Carritt and fellow organizer Jason Corbiel had suggested upwards of 400 trucks would make the journey. When one protester took to a megaphone to praise “thousands” of supporters in Ottawa, a nearby police officer quipped, “I think their count’s a little off today.” But there were supporters along the route, with a rally held in nearby Pembroke, and hundreds of supporters in Sault-Ste. Marie. The drivers were even met with food, drinks, and letters for the prime minister during an unscheduled stop in Terrace Bay. Carritt’s lead truck was covered in signatures by those who support the cause. The numbers that made it to Ottawa dwindled further as Tuesday morning wore on, to a point where they were matched by the number of anti-pipeline protesters that police corralled on Wellington Street. But chants of “take your dirty oil off indigenous soil” were still drowned out by the trucks. “This is not about Bill 68. This is not about Bill 48. This is not about Bill 69. This is a clear attempt of the government

to destroy the energy industry,” said Senator David Tkachuk, one of the first politicians to address the crowd. Federal Conservative leader Andrew Scheer added his voice of support for Canada’s oil industry. “I am sick and tired of people, you know, chaining themselves to trees and laying down in front of bulldozers trying to block Canadian

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energy from reaching markets,” he said. In an earlier tweet, he called the convoy a “testament to the importance of Canada’s energy sector and the crisis it’s facing.” Participant Jason LeBlanc of Estevan, Sask., referred to it all as a warning shot. “Our little, peaceful convoy made it,” he said. TT

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Dispatches News Briefs

TFI acquires Schilli, Toronto Tank Lines TFI International (TFI) acquired two more fleets in February, with one on each side of the border. Toronto Tank Lines assets included

storage facilities and a fleet of 75 tank trailers and 45 power units. It will operate as a standalone business unit. In the U.S., TFI picked up Schilli Corporation, which transports dry and liquid bulk commodities throughout the Midwest, Southeast, and Gulf Coast regions. It has 22 facilities and a fleet of more than 340 tractors and more

than 500 trailers. Schilli will run as a standalone business unit within TFI’s Specialized Truckload group.

Kriska acquires Puslinch’s Icon Kriska Transportation Group has acquired Icon Transportation Logistics (ITL) of Puslinch, Ont. The company will continue to be led by general manager Alen Delija and its current management team. Icon Transportation Logistics offers domestic and cross-border truckload and expedited services. It operates 46 trucks, including 12 teams, and 78 dry van trailers.

Transtex looks to secure SmartTruck Transtex is negotiating to acquire the assets of SmartTruck, a South Carolina maker of trailer aerodynamic devices. A notice of the discussions was first published on the Transtex website on Feb. 15. The deal is focusing on the TopKit roof and trailer side kits, which collectively promise fuel savings of 4-6%.

3 new rest areas in Alberta Alberta has announced plans to construct three new rest areas to support the province’s highway network. Two of the rest stops will be built along the Yellowhead Highway west of Hwy. 43, both for eastbound and westbound traffic. The other will be along Hwy. 2 at Wolf Creek, just north of Lacombe. The province is also supporting a private-sector rest stop near Bowden on Hwy. 2. The locations are to be fully equipped, with washroom facilities, food, and stalls for truck parking.

Work truck group cites Canadian wins The NTEA opened its annual meeting with the singing of O Canada, and there were plenty of references to Canadian initiatives being tackled by the international

TODAY’S TRUCKING

Dispatches association dedicated to the work truck industry. “Last March, NTEA quickly and publicly came out in opposition to the steel and aluminum tariffs that place additional burden on our industry. We made our concerns known at the Department of Commerce in the U.S., and submitted testimony in the House of Commons in Canada, regarding the effects on companies on both sides of the border,” said chairman Todd Davis. Davis gave the NTEA credit for securing Canadian emissions standards that are similar to the U.S., allowing for the delegated assembly process that recognizes the work of multi-stage truck manufacturers. “Also in Ottawa, NTEA has undertaken a project looking at work truck fuel-efficiency strategies, and how public-private partnerships might be beneficial,” he said.

Animal transportation regulations updated The federal government has updated Health of Animals – Transport Regulations, governing everything from loading and feeding practices to the design, condition, and maintenance of equipment. The government estimates the changes will affect several commercial carriers, including 470 cattle carriers, 480 that transport pigs, 135 poultry carriers, and around 84,000 livestock and poultry producers. The amendments come into effect in February 2020.

International program to support TEMs International Trucks has unveiled its new Diamond Partner program to establish closer connections to Truck Equipment Manufacturers (TEMs). Support will include free access to Diamond Logic Builder software, engineering guidance, custom engineering support, and other resources to support body integrations. In just 1-1/2 weeks, 50 partners had already been secured. “This industry goes through TEMs and dealers,” says Mark Stasell, vice-president

as VIP tours of Navistar headquarters or ride and drives. Fees have been waived for the Diamond Logic training and builder software, which will also be set up for automatic renewals. And a cross-functional spec’ing of the chassis will evaluate orders and offer ways to reduce costs, improve delivery times, and optimize vehicles.

– vocational truck business. Increasing collaboration between the two groups are believed to be a secret to success. “We believe we’re off to a really fast start.” The interactions begin with an application engineer assigned to each account, offering expertise in applications and chassis alike. The manufacturers will also have access to joint customer events such

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Dispatches delivers the tests, has enhanced its own internal training to address inconsistent approaches, too. “In the early days there’s going to be differences. It’s going to happen. It’s going to exist,” he said. Another complex issue involves the concept of auditing and overseeing the province’s program. “We’re working in a regulated field here, and we don’t regulate the private career colleges,” Harbottle explained, referring to a role that belongs to the Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities. Any change in public policy involves “learning elements”, but Ontario should be congratulated for the gains that have been realized, said Stephen Laskowski, president of the Ontario Trucking Association and Canadian Trucking Alliance. “What we’re talking about is mandatory pre-licensing training and raising the floor, which was a huge issue for safety.” Mike Millian, president of the Private Motor Truck Council of Canada, put entry-level training into perspective by asking why fleets expect newly licensed drivers to be able to do everything as soon as they come out of school. “You added. Ongoing discussions are explorhave a responsibility,” he said of the fleet ing qualifications for driving instructors, training that should follow licensing. the potential for standardized tests, and “All the regulation is is a minimum the use of automated versus manual standard, not a best practice,” he added, transmissions. noting how the TTSAO itself wanted a “We do not have full agreement at the minimum of 200 training hours. “It may table, but we are getting close to getting not be what we like consensus,” he said. but we have to start There’s also a debate somewhere. Nobody around the approach should ever reach for to advanced standing, the minimum.” which allows students Harbottle said that to fast-track the minOntario continues imum 103.5 hours of to play a leading role training depending as discussions about on their past experia national standard ence – usually with Paul Harbottle, MTO begin as well. another class of But the Canadian commercial vehicle. Council of Motor Transportation Today’s approach has been criticized as a Administrators (CCMTA) – which potential loophole for training operations includes representatives from each looking to slash costs and attract stuprovince and territory – has yet to begin dents with shorter courses. meetings on the national standard. “It’s important to the industry. It’s “Let’s not go back to ground zero,” important to the program. It’s crossHarbottle said, referring to the value of jurisdictional as well,” Harbottle said. building on Ontario’s experience. “We’re DriveTest centers have hired additioncommitted, and we remain committed, to al examiners and are relying on overtime TT the MELT program.” to schedule more road tests. Serco, which

Learning the Lessons Ontario’s mandatory entry-level driver training continues to evolve By John G. Smith About 10,500 would-be truck drivers have passed through Ontario’s mandatory entry-level training (MELT) program, but the province’s transportation ministry is still learning lessons along the way. “We know that with a new program there’s going to be a learning curve. There’s going to be some hiccups,” said Paul Harbottle, director of the Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO) program development and evaluation branch, stressing the experience has been “positive” overall. The program has become a model for mandatory driver training regimes in Alberta and Saskatchewan, and is also expected to play a key role in discussions to establish a national training standard, now promised for January 2020. Ontario’s test failure rates did climb when MELT was first established in July 2017, but they are beginning to come down and stabilize, he told delegates at an annual meeting of the Truck Training Schools Association of Ontario (TTSAO). A series of other topics continues to be debated by different stakeholders, he

“We know that with a new program there’s going to be a learning curve. There’s going to be some hiccups.”

APRIL 2019

Dispatches of Greentree Advisors, a former Eaton executive. Truck owners might be willing to wait for an expert to fly in to repair a single prototype, but the demands of working fleets are more immediate. “There are going to be internal combustion engines on this planet for a long time,” Davis added. It would have been a comforting thought for many of those in the crowd who supply combustion-related parts.

Telematics and diagnostics In the meantime, increasingly complex telematics systems are helping to reshape diagnostic procedures. “We see more predictive maintenance, John Blodgett of MacKay and Company says Canada’s heavy-duty aftermarket more Internet of Things,” said John was worth about $4 billion last year. The business is also being transformed. Blodgett of MacKay and Co. “The trucks may identify the problems themselves and they may be able to service themselves.” Over-the-air updates, for example, already alter electronic engine parameters without requiring a vehicle to enter a service bay. Imagine a transmission being able to identify that it will overheat in 500 miles, mused Sandeep Kar, the chief strategy officer at Fleet Complete. Such information could allow a shop to keep a required part at the ready, charge a premium for it, and send the repaired truck on its way before the unit is actually stranded at be built using something closer to 7,000 roadside. “We’re talking about a move The repair and upkeep of Canada’s Class pieces. No more valves to replace. No from restrictive to prescriptive.” 6-8 trucks and trailers is no small matter. combustion-related repairs at all. Increasing integration makes it all posAnalysts at MacKay and Company estiGranted, widespread electrification sible. “That is the power of big data, which mate the work is now valued at $4 billion isn’t about to occur drives big knowledge, a year and growing. overnight. which drives big deciThis hardly means that those in the “There is no busisions,” Kar said. “It’s heavy-duty aftermarket can take it easy, ness case out there creating volumes of though. Emerging trends threaten to for electric,” stressed data that the afterupend traditional business models and Roger Nielsen, presmarket can leverage.” tranform the equipment being repaired. ident and CEO of Of course, Nielsen Consider the evolving equipment alone. John Blodgett, MacKay and Co. Daimler Trucks North said manufacturers Today’s telematics systems bring us ever America, referring to will also need to closer to prognostics that will determine the need to increase battery ranges and “have the guts” to pull equipment in for if components are about to fail before lower costs. The OEM will roll out an warranty work while a truck is still rolling. anything actually breaks. Advanced driver electric test fleet this year, but any sales There are data privacy issues to considassistance systems promise to reduce the in the short term are expected to rely on er here as well. While a truck’s operating need for collision-related repairs. And government incentives. environment can help to make equiprecent announcements about plans to Emerging manufacturers like Thor, ment-related decisions, some fleets still electrify vehicles were clearly at the top Tesla, and Nikola will also need to estabhold GPS data tight to their chest, the of mind during the recent Heavy Duty lish new aftermarket models to keep their Daimler executive explained. Aftermarket Dialogue in Las Vegas. electrified vehicles running. Asked Mike Foster, the chief technology A diesel over-the-road tractor might “You absolutely have to have some officer at Allison Transmission: “There’s include more than 30,000 individual type of service network,” said Ken Davis going to be public data, there’s going to parts, but electric trucks are expected to

Big Parts of the Economy

Electrics, electronics, and e-commerce transforming the heavy-duty aftermarket By John G. Smith

“We see more predictive maintenance, more Internet of Things.”

TODAY’S TRUCKING

Dispatches be proprietary data. Who’s going to want to be in charge of that?”

The Amazon effect In the midst of it all, traditional aftermarket players need to consider the threat of new competitors including the e-commerce behemoth that is Amazon. “Amazon is selling my product and I don’t sell it to them direct,” explained Walt Sherbourne, vice-president of marketing at Dayton Parts. If the wrong part is purchased and returned, his personnel are the ones who are left with the task of identifying what business actually supplied the product. It’s easy to see how this can happen. The e-commerce platform’s algorithms don’t have the equipment-related expertise found at a traditional parts counter. There’s nobody to ask questions that might steer a purchasing manager in a different direction. Regardless of where something is purchased, customers are also coming to expect ever-quicker deliveries and seamless business transactions they’ve enjoyed with consumer goods. This has led to changes in brick-and-mortar operations. The increasing demand for speedy deliveries is already reshaping the location of parts distribution centers. Stefan Kurschner, senior vice-president – aftermarket at Daimler Trucks North America, referred to his company’s commitment to service trucks in 24 hours or less. This requires ready access to parts. “Product availability is always a struggle,” added Carl Mesker, SAF Holland’s vice-president of sales – Americas. “Distributors can no longer stock your entire product line.” The focus instead is on tailoring local inventories for existing customers, and then drawing on support from suppliers. “This is why we have distribution centers we didn’t used to have.” But while some transactions require consultations, there are some that simply require a part to be delivered at a specific moment, he admitted. This is where Amazon’s strengths could steal a share of the business. Blodgett added the concept of 3D printing into the mix. With that, parts could be produced on demand, even if they’re not exactly completed while a customer waits.

Blockchains could introduce yet another business model that pre-qualifies those who can service a truck, tow it to the shop, or complete a transaction. Dayton’s Sherbourne refers to the “omnichannel” sales model that could affect things sooner than that. Retailers like Lowes already allow shoppers to collect their online purchases at a store. “Is

that going to come to us? Probably in the near future it will,” he said. “The customer always makes the choice of where to order and how to fill an order,” Kurschner said. Then again, there are also customers who still like to work with fax machines. “The aftermarket has to serve both sides of the equation,” he added. TT

APRIL 2019

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Dispatches

Freightliner ‘effectively sold out’ for 2019 If you want to order a new truck from Daimler Trucks North America, you’re going to have to wait awhile before it rolls down an assembly line. “We’re effectively sold out for 2019,” says Richard Howard, senior vice-president – sales and marketing, referring to current orders on the books. The company found itself in the same position early in 2018, a year in which it sold a record 175,950 units. Of the 1,986 Class 8 trucks sold in Canada this January, 903 had Daimler nameplates – accounting for 45.5% of the market. Across NAFTA countries, it sold 11,520 of the 24,303 trucks overall, holding 47.4% of the business.

first production truck in North America to boast Level 2 automation – supporting drivers with a combination of automated

braking and steering corrections. “Accident-free driving is ultimately our vision,” Howard told journalists, referring to the automated controls anchored in a system known as Detroit Assurance 5.0. The new Cascadia will be launched in Australia in coming months, while the classic Cascadia will cease production at the end of this year. TT

NO MORE

DEFLATED PROFITS.

Richard Howard

with The strong market shares hold for Class 6 and 7 on a continental basis. Of the 12,941 units sold across NAFTA countries this January, the OEM secured 5,250 sales. But in this class, it holds 25.4% of the Canadian market, with 166 of 654 sales. In the midst of it all, Daimler says it has taken several steps to ensure existing orders will translate into actual sales, purging orders that were simply reserving spots on assembly lines just in case they were needed. A “deep review” of dealer orders last July led the manufacturer to cancel 45,000 orders, Howard says. That was followed by another review in October. Typically about 3% of orders are canceled in a year, he said. “We have a lower-than-normal cancellation rate on our backlog.” Daimler also enters 2019 with a significant refresh of the new Cascadia, now the

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APRIL 2019

Dispatches

Truck orders slow, but sales are strong Truck orders appear to be slowing when compared to the record-setting pace of 2018. ACT Research reports that 15,800 Class 8 truck orders were booked across North America in January. That’s down 26% when compared to December, and 68% lower than last January – a month when orders spiked. “During [January 2019], North American Classes 5-8 vehicle orders fell to an 18-month low 39,200 units,” said Kenny Vieth, ACT’s president and senior analyst. “We view this January’s order softness as having more to do with pulled-forward orders and a very large Class 8 backlog than with the current supply-demand balance.” Retail sales continued to enjoy a strong footing this January, though, with 1,986 Class 8 sales in Canada and 20,192 in the U.S. This compares to January 2018 totals of 1,803 units in Canada and 14,458 in the U.S. Freightliner accounted for 37% of Canada’s Class 8 totals, more than doubling the 15.5% secured by Kenworth and 14% by International.

Canada – January 2019 SALES CLASS 8

U.S. – January 2019

MARKET SHARES

SALES

Jan.

YTD

Jan. %

YTD %

CLASS 8

Freightliner Kenworth International Volvo Truck Peterbilt Western Star Mack Other Total CLASS 7

737 307 279 214 170 166 113 0 1,986 Jan.

737 307 279 214 170 166 113 0 1,986 YTD

37.1 15.5 14.0 10.8 8.6 8.4 5.7 0.0 100.0 Jan. %

37.1 15.5 14.0 10.8 8.6 8.4 5.7 0.0 100.0 YTD %

International Peterbilt Freightliner Hino Kenworth Ford Total CLASS 6

167 156 109 40 35 8 515 Jan.

167 156 109 40 35 8 515 YTD

32.4 30.3 21.2 7.8 6.8 1.6 100.0 Jan. %

Freightliner Hino International Isuzu Ford Kenworth GM Peterbilt Total CLASS 5

57 42 30 4 3 3 0 0 139 Jan.

57 42 30 4 3 3 0 0 139 YTD

Ford Isuzu Hino Dodge/Ram Freightliner Mitsubishi Fuso GM International Kenworth Peterbilt Total

152 103 83 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 343

TODAY’S TRUCKING

www.total-canada.ca

MARKET SHARES

Jan.

YTD

Jan. %

YTD %

Freightliner International Peterbilt Kenworth Volvo Truck Mack Western Star Other Total CLASS 7

9205 3150 2469 2273 1597 1019 479 0 20,192 Jan.

9205 3150 2469 2273 1597 1019 479 0 20,192 YTD

45.6 15.6 12.2 11.3 7.9 5.0 2.4 0.0 100.0 Jan. %

45.6 15.6 12.2 11.3 7.9 5.0 2.4 0.0 100.0 YTD %

32.4 30.3 21.2 7.8 6.8 1.6 100.0 YTD %

Freightliner International Peterbilt Kenworth Ford Hino Total CLASS 6

2683 1344 545 375 341 102 5,390 Jan.

2683 1344 545 375 341 102 5,390 YTD

49.8 24.9 10.1 7.0 6.3 1.9 100.0 Jan. %

49.8 24.9 10.1 7.0 6.3 1.9 100.0 YTD %

41.0 30.2 21.6 2.9 2.2 2.2 0.0 0.0 100.0 Jan. %

41.0 30.2 21.6 2.9 2.2 2.2 0.0 0.0 100.0 YTD %

International Freightliner Ford Hino Kenworth Isuzu Peterbilt GM Total CLASS 5

2533 2320 1116 443 224 71 3 11 6,721 Jan.

2533 2320 1116 443 224 71 3 11 6,721 YTD

37.7 34.5 16.6 6.6 3.3 1.1 0.0 0.0 100.0 Jan. %

37.7 34.5 16.6 6.6 3.3 1.1 0.0 0.0 100.0 YTD %

44.3 30.0 24.2 1.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 100.0

Ford Dodge/Ram Freightliner Isuzu Hino GM Kenworth Peterbilt Mitsubishi Fuso International Total

3549 686 486 313 101 11 5 2 0 0 5,153

68.9 13.3 9.4 6.1 2.0 0.2 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 100.0

Source: WardsAuto

Dispatches

StatPack

LOAD VOLUMES UP 31% TransCore Link Logistics says its Canadian spot market recorded a robust start to the year. Month-over-month, January’s posted load volumes were up 31%, but down 43% year-over-year when compared to January 2018’s historic high. Intra-Canada loads accounted for 27% of the total volumes and were down 21% year-over-year. 2%

27%

85 FUEL-SAVING TECHNOLOGIES The North American Council for Freight Efficiency (NACFE) is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. Since being founded, it has offered insights into more than 85 technologies that help improve fuel economy. The organization has: conducted seven annual fleet fuel studies; published 16 confidence reports on various technologies; and hosted more than 30 workshops.

Total Volumes 71%

Category

Percentage

Cross-border Loads Intra-Canada Loads Other

71% 27% 2%

$5,000 FOR SICKKIDS Highlight Motor Group recently presented Toronto’s SickKids Foundation with a $5,000 donation, contributing to a planned upgrade at the hospital. The fleet matched the amount that employees raised during their annual company Christmas party. “We’re very proud of our employees for their participation and for donating so generously,” said president Kirk Kalinitchenko.

96% OF WASTE DIVERTED 125,000

Bendix is inching ever closer to a goal of sending nothing to the landfill. It diverted 96% of its waste in 2018, representing more than 25.5 million lb. overall. In the last four years, the company has also saved about 9 million kilowatt-hours of energy. This year it has a goal of ensuring energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions are 10% lower than recorded in 2014.

REFRIGERATED TRAILERS Great Dane’s facility in Wayne, Neb., recently produced the company’s 125,000th refrigerated trailer. “We’re extremely proud to reach this historic milestone here in Wayne,” said Lee Byers, plant manager. “It’s a clear testament to the high quality of the product we produce and to the spirit of the hundreds of hard-working craftsmen.” APRIL 2019

Dispatches

Pu se Reader Survey Tell us your thoughts on ... Licensing Discussions to strengthen entry-level driver training requirements are underway, but that is just part of the equation. In this month’s Pulse Survey, we asked you about the process used to license drivers.

Does a driver’s licence indicate someone has the entry-level skills needed to operate a commercial vehicle on their own?

YES

Should truck drivers be required to have a minimum amount of experience with lighter vehicle classes before “graduating” to the licences needed to run heavier equipment? (i.e. delivery vans before tractor-trailers, or single trailers before B-trains)

YES

NO %

YES

55 %

81 % 19 %

83 % Should newly licensed drivers be required to work alongside formal trainers and/or mentors?

Does your fleet have a formal training or onboarding program to prepare newly licensed drivers for work?

How long should a newly licensed driver be on the job before being allowed to work on their own? 34% 25% 20% 14% 3% 3% 1%

1-6 months 1-4 weeks 1 month 6-12 months 1 year + Within one week As soon as they arrive

45 % Did you earn your own licence on the first attempt?

YES

88 Next month:

NO %

Employee happiness

Today’s Trucking Pulse surveys are conducted once per month, covering a variety of industry issues. To share your voice in future surveys, email johng@newcom.ca.

TODAY’S TRUCKING

12 %

Dispatches

Trendingg on The teams working at Mammoet Canada must think tandem trailers are quaint. Even B-trains and long combination vehicles pale in comparison to the loads they’ve been hauling. Early in January the company pulled the heaviest load ever hauled on Alberta’s highway network, moving an 820-ton, 96-meter splitter – equipment used in the petrochemical industry – between Edmonton and Fort Saskatchewan. That’s six times bigger than the largest Caterpillar mining truck currently used in the oilsands. The trip had to be completed in different segments for obvious reasons. At 179 meters long, 9.5 meters wide, and 13 meters high, it was as wide as a two-lane highway, including the shoulder. At times the load had to travel against the traditional flow of traffic, blocking lanes and following escorts. Just over a month later, the operation was pulling the second-largest load in provincial history, moving a polypropylene reactor from Edmonton to Strathcona County.

@todaystrucking Your go-to social media source

Second-largest load in provincial history

▲

Record loads hit Alberta roads

.com

▲ Heaviest load ever hauled on Alberta’s highways

It was 48.5 meters long and weighed in at 725,000 kg. This equipment converts polypropylene into a polypropylene resin that is kneaded into pellets. Once it arrived, the reactor had to be raised into position using a 430-foot crane. Has your business been involved in an unusual move? We’d love to hear about it. Email johng@newcom.ca

25K

FOLLOWERS

If you’re not following us on Twitter, you’re missing out on some interesting discussions in the world of trucking. From regulations to product news, we have you covered.

HERE ARE A FEW EXAMPLES OF TWEETS POSTED BY TODAY’S TRUCKING THIS MONTH

KEEP IN TOUCH facebook.com/ TodaysTrucking

Feb. 22

Feb. 20

Feb. 6

@todaystrucking

Alex Kris of #Manitoulin Transport is a rare example of a young, female #truck technician. She’d like to see more follow the same career path www. todaystrucking.com/alex-kis-embracesrare-role-as-a-female-truck-technician/...

. @unitedconvoy returns to Parliament Hill for a second day today, carrying a pro-pipeline message among other positions. #yellowvest supporters will be among them.

Talk of a national #truckdriver training standard is welcome, but the provinces hold the real power over training and licensing, says John G. Smith. Any successes will depend on specific changes. Read more at https://buff.ly/2HXTJnG

TodaysTrucking1

APRIL 2019

Dispatches

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26-27 Alberta Motor Transport Association Leadership Conference Pomeroy Kananaskis Mountain Lodge Kananaskis, Alta. www.amta.ca

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Truck Renting and Leasing Association’s Annual Meeting Ritz-Carlton Grande Lakes, Orlando, Fla. www.trala.org

Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators Annual Meeting Ottawa, Ont. www.ccmta.ca

TODAY’S TRUCKING

JULY 12-14 519 Loud N’ Proud Truck Show and Shine Orangeville Fairgrounds Orangeville, Ont. www.519loudnproud.com

AUGUST 1-4 Rodeo du Camion Notre-Dame-du-Nord, Que. www.elrodeo.com

13-17 Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance North American Inspectors Championship Pittsburgh, Pa. www.cvsa.org

22-24 The Great American Trucking Show Dallas, Texas www.truckshow.com

Dispatches

Heard Street on the

Kenworth names Canadians to councils Three Canadians have been named to the 2019 Kenworth Parts Council. Samuel Letendre of Kenworth Maska in La Presentation, Que., is joined by Clayton Zuchotzki of GreatWest Kenworth in Calgary. Rounding out the group is Boyd McConnachie, a Kenworth Dealer Council representative, who is based at Inland Kenworth in Burnaby, B.C. Adam Burrough of Edmonton Kenworth in Leduc, Alta., will join Nicolas Letendre of Kenworth Maska in Sherbrooke, Que., as Canadian members of the Kenworth Service Council. The Kenworth Dealer Council, meanwhile, will include Mike Nagle of Bayview Kenworth in St. John, and Boyd McConnachie of Inland Kenworth in Burnaby, B.C.

Jogovic the new top dog at Mack

Kenworth Maska named top dealer Quebec-based Kenworth Maska has won the coveted 2018

Kenworth Dealer of the Year Award for the United States and Canada. The business operates dealerships in La Présentation, St. Mathieu de Laprairie, and Sherbrooke. “The dealer ranked high in market share, technician training, customer satisfaction, Paccar Parts performance and growth, as well as overall facilities excellence,” said Mike Dozier, Kenworth general manager and Paccar vice-president.

Eric Smith

Mack Trucks recently named Steve Jugovic as regional

Steve Jugovic

vice-president for Canada. Jugovic will be responsible for the end-to-end sales cycle for new business transactions, including dealer and fleet sales, full-service lease, rental and contact maintenance services. Prior to joining Mack, Jugovic worked at Mack Financial Services Canada, where he led operations as managing director for nearly eight years. Shigehiro Matsuoka

Sheehan’s named top Volvo dealer Sheehan’s Truck Center of Burlington, Ont., has been named Volvo Trucks’ 2018 Canada Dealer of the Year. General Truck Sales of Muncie, Ind., earned the top North American honors, while the 2018 Mexico Dealer of the Year is Tractoautobuses Del Norte S.A. de CV of Chihuahua.

Hino names Canadian president

Nikola names Russell as president Nikola Corporation, which plans to bring a hydrogen-electric truck to market, has named Mark Russell as its new president. Most recently, Russell served as president and chief operating officer of Worthington Industries from 2012 to 2018, and prior to that he was president of Worthington Steel.

Oldham is new man at Arrow Jeffrey Oldham, once John Deer Financial’s director of sales for the U.S. and Canada, has been named president of Arrow Truck Sales. He most recently served as chief operating officer and general manager of Ag-Power, which sells new and used agricultural equipment. Jeffrey Oldham

Eric Smith has been named president and chief operating officer of Hino Motors Canada (HMC), and Tony Caldarone has been appointed senior vice-president of sales and customer support. Smith succeeds Yumiko Kawamura, who held the position for three years and has now returned to Japan to become general manager for Hino Motors’ North American division. In related news, Shigehiro Matsuoka has been appointed president and CEO of Hino North America. APRIL 2019

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Open Mike

National driver training standard a positive step By Mike McCarron

t was great news to see Federal Transport Minister Marc Garneau and his provincial cohorts promise a national training standard for entry-level truck drivers by next year. Raising the bar for driver skills and professionalism can only help the industry attract better candidates in the future. By all accounts, Ontario’s mandatory entry-level training (MELT) program – until recently the only mandated program in the country – is working. It’s producing drivers who are better prepared for life on the road, while weeding out the dud applicants. Success is by no means a sure thing. There’s a risk that this federal legislation turns into political pandering as a reaction to Humboldt. And relying on Prime Minister Trudeau for help during an election year when he’s fighting for his political life is a mistake. But we have to start somewhere. I believe this standard can be the first step on the road to producing safer, more qualified truck drivers in this country.

Something to build upon Reducing expensive new-hire churn is one of the many benefits of MELT. It gives carriers more confidence about investing in driver training because there’s a better chance that newbies will stick around. I talked to a few progressive

fleets that are using mandatory training as a foundation for their own four-year journeyman “apprentice-like” programs. New hires start in the office and over the next two years work at every job except the one inside a truck cab. Not only are the carriers developing well-rounded workers, they ultimately turn out truck drivers who have a better understanding of the business and the industry when they get behind the wheel. The same can happen at the federal level.

More hours I fell off my chair laughing when I heard that Ontario’s legislation would require “at least 103.5 hours of instruction to cover the knowledge and skills needed to safely operate a large truck.” I don’t know where they came up with such an offthe-wall number, but that’s basically two weeks of driver training. Most of the truckers I spoke with think it’s woefully short but don’t want to be negative under the circumstances. I’m in agreement that there is not a hope in hell that anyone can safely operate a truck after 103.5 hours. Even more reason for carriers to supplement the requirement in this legislation with a solid in-house training program.

Enforcement and policing This training standard will be put to the test when it

comes time to enforce it. Currently in Ontario, training falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities. Unfortunately, like too many government agencies, it is painfully understaffed and overwhelmed. I spoke with many legitimate training schools that haven’t been audited in years and are concerned that more resources are being allocated for policing. It’s the main reason why some industry insiders believe that self-policing is the only way to give the legislation any teeth.

Training school dilemma Anticipating an influx of business (and to hide Driver Inc.), new training schools are popping up all over the country. Many are non-registered and are backed by carriers that are more interested in

helping someone pass a test than making roads safer. I’m also concerned about how easy it is to become a trainer. I was blown away to learn that you can get your truck driver’s licence one day and be teaching people the very next day. Yes, there’s work to be done, but big kudos to the Canadian Trucking Alliance for keeping the process moving. If you have ideas, or an opinion, your provincial trucking association is one way to make sure the next steps we take are toward a standard that works for everyone. If you haven’t joined up, what are you waiting for? TT Mike McCarron is the president of Left Lane Associates, a firm that creates total enterprise value for transportation companies and their owners. He can be reached at mike@ leftlaneassociates.ca, 416-551-6651, or @AceMcC on Twitter.

APRIL 2019

Long haul or short, nothing comes easy working behind the wheel. And the rest of the world, it’s not going to do you any favors. The only one looking out for you is you. So get the truck that’s built to work as hard as you do, and built to help you win. Settle for nothing less. YOU CAN FIND YOURS AT WESTERNSTAR.COM

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Western Star - A Daimler Group Brand WS/MC-A-579 Speciﬁcations are subject to change without notice. Western Star Truck Sales, Inc. is registered to ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 14001:2004. Copyright © 2019 Daimler Trucks North America LLC. All rights reserved. Western Star Truck Sales, Inc. is a subsidiary of Daimler Trucks North America LLC, a Daimler company.

Electric Truck

Lion Comes to Life Lion 8 urban electric truck developed with Quebec expertise By Steve Bouchard Quebec-based Lion Electric Company is already known for its electrified school buses, but has now added a batteryelectric Class 8 truck to the lineup in the form of the Lion 8. “There is something extraordinary about this truck,” said president and founder Marc Bedard, referring to how it was developed entirely with Quebec expertise. And rather than outfitting an existing truck with an electric drivetrain, the Lion 8 was designed with electrification in mind. The model has a 400-km range, which aligns with the work completed by about 45% of the Class 8 trucks sold in North America, Bedard said. It offers up to 480 kWh of power, with an electric motor rated up to 350 kW and capable of delivering up to 3,500 Nm (about 2,580 lb-ft) of torque. The electric system is rated at 750 volts. The truck was developed with support of the Quebec government, which contributed $8.6 million to the project. The electric motors come from TM4, the fast charging station from AddEnergie Technologies, and the telematics system from Solution Centrum Adetel Transportation. All three companies are based in the province. A pre-production version of the truck was presented to the Saint-Jerome Road Transport Training Center, while production of a Class 8 tractor is scheduled for 2020. Bedard admits the equipment comes at a premium pricepoint when compared to a diesel-powered truck, but

stresses the extra cost is amortized over time. After repeated questions, he indicated the retail price will run between $250,000 and $400,000 depending on spec’s. In applications such as waste collection, the return on investment is realized in four years, he said. “Compared to a diesel vehicle that will spend $50,000 a year on fuel, the electric model will cost $10,000 a year.” Yves Provencher, senior director – business development, confirms about 10% of the potential range is lost in cold weather. But Lion has minimized such losses by manufacturing its own battery management system. Maintenance costs are predicted to be around 60% cheaper than a diesel-powered truck because there is no exhaust system, diesel particulate filter, transmission, or engine oil to consider. Regenerative braking activities are also expected to triple the potential brake life. The Lion 8 comes with a gross vehicle weight rating of 55,000 lb. The tare weight itself is around 25,000 lb. There is a 19.2 kW AC onboard charger meeting J1772 standards, while DC-based fast charging with a 100 kW connection can be completed in about 90 minutes. The first Lion 8 truck is scheduled to be delivered this fall to the Société des Alcools du Québec, which distributes alcohol in the province. “We have no limit to our production capacity,” Bedard said. “In the next year, we could build 1,000 Lion 8 trucks before we have to think about getting off the accelerator.” TT APRIL 2019

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UPS has about 1,000 electric and hybrid-electric vehicles.

Sparking Interest There’s plenty of interest in electric trucks, but they’re not perfect. Not yet. By John G. Smith UPS has long been known for its brown delivery vehicles, but the fleet is clearly focused on finding greener options when it comes to the underlying powertrains. “The way of the future is electric,” UPS president – global fleet maintenance and engineering, Carleton Rose, told the recent Green Truck Summit in Indianapolis. “All-electric drive by wire, I believe that’s the way.” The fleet has about 1,000 electric and hybrid-electric vehicles on the road, part of a rolling laboratory experimenting with an array of propulsion systems. Such vehicles are not perfect. Not yet. Rose calls electric trucks a “work in progress” even though maintenance costs are lower than those linked to internal combustion engines. As for

TODAY’S TRUCKING

an electric semi that could run 950 km between charges, he doesn’t expect that to come anytime in the near future. “Range has certainly been an issue. We’ve had range anxiety,” Rose added, describing the early experience. The concerns don’t end there. The fleet is also looking for upgraded electrical infrastructure and predictable fees. “Fleets need to know how much electricity is going to cost all the time,” he said, referring to demand-related pricing. “Would you buy a car if you couldn’t find a gas station, or if the price of gas doubled or tripled depending on the time of day?” Rose asked. “Utilities should be playing offence. This is a golden opportunity for them to secure customers.” For its part UPS is participating

in a consortium based in the United Kingdom, exploring the promise of smart grid technologies. Such approaches are expected to help charge a large number of vehicles at the same time, without requiring significant upgrades to fleet facilities or electric grids. While UPS has reserved 125 Tesla Semis, Rose clearly sounded skeptical about promises that these models will enter production next year. “We hope,” he said when repeating the manufacturer’s commitment, adding a chuckle whenever the timeline was referenced. But he did give Tesla credit for generating broader interest in electric trucks. “When Tesla entered, other OEMs came in.” Recently announced models were hardly the first, though. There were others.

Shorter ranges Darren Gosbee, Navistar’s vice-president of engineering, refers to the 120 eStar delivery vans produced with 80 kWh batteries and 160-km ranges. Their $130,000 price tags were largely dictated by batteries that cost $54,000. The early experiment was a proving ground of sorts. It showed that most of the vans actually operated within

Sparking Interest 40-km ranges. Had this been known ahead of time, smaller batteries would have been possible. A large share of goods – about half the overall weight, and 37% of the value – will move less than 160 km between their origin and destination, noted Michael Berube, the U.S. Department of Energy’s acting deputy assistant secretary – sustainable transportation, energy efficiency, and renewable energy. There is clearly an opportunity for shorter hauls. “It wasn’t the right time for this product,” Gosbee said, referring to the eStar’s 2010 launch. “Is it the right time [for electric vehicles] now? We’ll see.” He suggested medium-duty and pickup and delivery applications will be the first to experience a “tipping point” for the broader use of electric trucks. “Now we’ve moved to a point where there’s a lot more confidence.” But that confidence will only carry the industry so far. Gosbee refers to factors including high battery costs, the weight and payload implications of large battery packs needed to generate 300-km ranges, the lack of charging infrastructure to support commercial operations, and the unknown residual values. None of today’s electrified trucks have been on the road long enough to address the latter issue. Battery prices also play an increasingly important role when larger vehicles and longer ranges are considered, said Tim Reeser, CEO of Lightning Systems, which builds electric powertrains for vehicles from the Class 3 Ford Transit to the Class 6 GM 6500XD. “It very much is dependent upon the product.” This is where the power of information plays a role. Early experience and telematics data could lead fleets to accept shorter ranges, as long as they understand how the energy will be used. It can also identify other power needs that exist. Reeser refers to one bus in Colorado that, during a particularly cold day, used about 38% of its energy to power a heater. They’re the kinds of factors that can help a user decide whether to spend another $25,000 to double a vehicle’s battery capacity. “Ultimately data is what will rule this

world,” Reeser said. “We really want to understand how to right-size the batteries for customers.”

Battery costs Battery costs still need to reach $80 to $100 per kWh before they are on par with combustion engines, Berube said. Earlier this year the prices were closer

to $197 per kWh. “It is now entering that horizon where you can see it becoming really cost-competitive.” For his part, Reeser bristles at pricepoints like these because there are so many factors at play. “Is that a thermally managed battery?” he asked. Other costs include the labor for installations, and discounts for volume purchases. His

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Sparking Interest company sees prices closer to $400 per kWh when all factors are considered. Tesla’s numbers are reportedly closer to $300. Active thermal management systems and high-quality battery cells all affect the total cost of ownership, Reeser said. “There’s pumps, there’s control systems, there’s hoses, there’s cables, there’s radiators.” One bus that his company works on requires a $13,000 wiring harness. Still, cases for electrification can be made even with the higher price points. “Once we’ve got all that on-board power, what can we do with it?” Reeser asked, referring to options beyond turning a wheel. Food trucks could use the onboard power for cooking, eliminating the need for propane generators. Utility trucks might use it for on-site power generation and backup power. In construction and mining, the onboard power could enable off-grid tools without the need for fuel-burning generators. This is where specialized companies could continue to find a market, even in the face of investments by global OEMs. “All of those are very small niche markets,” Reeser explained. Even massive customers like FedEx, UPS and DHL customize their step vans in different ways. “There will continue to be room in this market for all of these niche players.” The barriers are not all limited to the vehicles themselves, of course. “[Charging] infrastructure for cars is not the same as infrastructure for commercial vehicles,” said Tim Campbell of Vahana Automotive Consultancy. He referred to a time when he was at the wheel of a high-roof van while a nearby charging station was inside a parking garage. There was no way to reach it. Another time, the cord for a DC charger wasn’t long enough to reach down the side of the truck. But there is plenty of pressure to find solutions. This spring, trucks entering London will have to pay a fee of $12.50 per day. Those without Euro 6 engines – diesel designs with the latest emissions technologies – will pay $125 as the city looks to reduce truck-related carbon dioxide emissions 1% by 2025 and 30%

by 2030. “They brought it forward by a year – that’s the real frightening thing,” Campbell said. Another 22 cities in the United Kingdom are following a similar path to zero emissions. It seems a world away, but he sees the focus on electrified vehicles as an increasingly global affair – as it is with trucks of any form.

“U.S. and Europe are coming together,” Campbell said, “whether you’re looking at light vans or you’re looking at heavy vans.” Berube remains confident that change will come, too. “The future is not going to look like the past,” he said. “That’s the nature of disruption.” TT

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A row of Sumo motors from TM4 await shipping. They may be similar in appearance, but could have different ratings that increase the motor’s length but not the diameter.

Right-sizing the motor

Motoring Along The electric motors in electric trucks will require a new approach to selecting powertrains By Jim Park Do you know who makes the motor in your washing machine? Do you care? Do you know who will make the motor on your first electric truck? Will you need to care? That’s just one of the many paradigm shifts we’ll be dealing with as electric drivetrains emerge in the trucking industry. North American fleets have always had vehicle spec’ing choices. From engines and transmissions to wheel seals and cab lighting options, OEM data books list dozens of options for even a single component. Will we have the same options when spec’ing electric powertrains? Probably not, and we probably won’t need them. Motors will be sized for the application, with certain engineering spec’s such as rpm, input voltage, and output torque and horsepower already considered. The OEM will just install the motor from a supplier that meets the need. “You’re talking about an industry where for 50 years truck buyers could pick any component they wanted,” says Rick Mihelic, director of future technologies studies at the North American Council for Freight Efficiency, and a former vehicle

TODAY’S TRUCKING

development engineer at Peterbilt. “To not get their way with the truck builder will be a major change in behavior for North American fleets. In Europe or China, you get the truck that the maker gives you. It will take some getting used to here.” It’s likely OEMs will have a portfolio of options based on the application – stop and go, straight on-highway, length of haul, terrain, and its inherent regenerative charging abilities – and the output to get the job done. Fleets will care what goes onto their trucks once there’s some field history on components. Right now, it’s crystal ball territory. Differentiators will include batteries and power management systems, probably not the motors, Mihelic believes. “It will be different for everybody, because just like the [electronic control module] on a Cummins engine, probably there’s something completely different than a Paccar MX engine,” he says. “They’ve all tuned and optimized the performance toward what they think is important to their customers. And it’s not the same thing on every engine. So I bet the battery trucks will be the same way.”

At a basic level, an induction motor (or brushless motor) contains two main parts: a stator, which is stationary and contains the wire windings that carry alternating current through the motor; and a rotor, which is basically the driveshaft. The rotor also has a series of wire windings and magnets that respond to the magnetic field produced in the stator when current is applied to those windings. In the simplest terms, this causes the rotor to turn. Other types of electric motors have contact points called brushes that induce the current. The induction motor has no friction points other than the rotor bearings. Electric motor manufacturers have proprietary rotor and stator designs that each company believes will handle a specific task most efficiently. This would be like two diesel engine manufacturers each using different-shaped piston bowls and different injection rate-shaping strategies to achieve their goals. The principles are the same, the execution is a little different. That’s one ingredient in the secret sauce. The physical shape and size of the windings (the all-important secret sauce) also influences efficiency and power output. The motor’s output can be tailored to an application by increasing the number of windings, and thus the “length” of the motor. Motor design diameters tend not to change within a series because the shape and length of each leg of the stator winding play a role in the design’s efficiency. This would be something like comparing one manufacturer’s 13-liter engine to its 15-liter engine. The basic design doesn’t change much, but it’s sized for a particular application. “To make an electric motor more powerful or less powerful you have to change the thickness, [some might be inclined to refer to this dimension as the length] of the motor,” says Patrice Dupont, business development manager at TM4, Dana’s now in-house motor provider and business partner. “To get more torque out of an electric motor you need

Motoring Along cases those gear sets can be integrat“Using a city transit bus as an example, to be able to put more current through it. ed into the axle or the shaft side of the if we know the average speed of that bus More current means more windings. For motor, so there’s a big gain in packaging is 16 kilometers per hour and the motor example, a 90-kilowatt motor that might efficiency as well. is turning at 1,800 rpm at that speed, we generate 1,000 Newton-meters of torque And when it comes to higher-rpm can move the power map of the motor might be 100 millimeters thick [long]. motors, the range is probably 5,000-6,000 towards 1,800 for best efficiency without A 400-kilowatt motor that can generate rpm with final drive reductions of someusing any gear reduction. But it’s a design – I’m just throwing out numbers here – where between 5:1 and 10:1. That’s actually change at the engineering level. You can’t 2,500 Newton meters [Nm], might be 355 fairly slow on the electric motor speed do on the fly,” Dupont says. millimeters [long]. So we will modify the spectrum, but there are certain mechanSimilarly, in a medium-duty package internal dimensions of the motor, but the ical limits to transmission input speeds delivery van that runs at typical road diameter doesn’t change. Only the length that will likely force designers of electric speeds in an urban environment, the in this case.” powertrains to constrain output speeds. motor can be engineered to efficiently To get the right motor for the “That will be one of the limiting factors in operate within that range and without application, an OEM will define certain diminishing the size of the motor because, any gear reduction – as long as the parameters like gross vehicle weight, as I said earlier, the faster you spin, the vehicle doesn’t wildly exceed that speed desired gradeability, and top road speed, smaller the motor can be,” Dupont adds. and doesn’t stay at elevated speeds for while the motor manufacturer will offer The other wild card in an electric prolonged periods. a motor or line of motors that meet the powertrain is the battery. criteria. Engineers will be working very In TM4’s case, the Sumo hard to optimize the charge MD product line for mediand discharge cycles of the batum-duty vehicles includes tery, and the motors obviously nine models with outputs Motor output is usually referred to in kilowatts (kW) rather have a large role to play there. ranging from 162 kw and than horsepower. Torque output is often referred to in “How you pull energy turns 1,590 Nm at 3,250 rpm, to Newton-meters (Nm) rather than foot-pounds. into a big impact [on] the life 265 kW and 2,760 Nm at One horsepower is equal to 0.745699872 kilowatt. of the battery,” Mihelic says. 3,500 rpm. For example, 350 kw = 470 hp “Everybody may be doing “The OEM defines what that a little bit differently. You they need, and we make sure One Newton-meter is equal to 0.7375 foot-pounds. know, one vehicle may get that the right motor is selectFor example, 1,000 Nm = 737 lb-ft super acceleration and anothed for the end user or the er guy will say, ‘Trucks don’t platform,” Dupont says. need motorcycle-like acceleration.’ They A transit bus or package van can get You might see parallels with diesel may favor their batteries more and tune by without a transmission because the engines here. In the case of a diesel, a down that acceleration so it’s a more reavehicle’s speed range and the engine 13-liter engine would come in a variety of sonable energy draw. Those are the sort of sweet spot are fairly well aligned if the ratings the customer can select, but with choices that I think motor and truck makmotor has been properly designed for electric motors it’s more of an engineering ers will be making to differentiate their the application. decision. You can’t vary the output of an products, because it will all come down to With a vehicle that operates at higher individual motor, but you might be able battery range.” speeds most of the time, like highway to spec’ a different motor if the OEM will Today, the diesel engine could be seen trucks, gear reduction will be needed allow it. as the heart of the powertrain, with other to maintain the motor’s efficiency and Size and speed components like transmissions and rear torque output. And there’s another advanaxles complementing what the engine tage to using gear reduction in high-speed Electric motors, like diesel engines, have does. In an electric system, the motor is applications. It allows for smaller, lighter, sweet spots of efficiency. Because diesel part of a bigger puzzle with several other and more electrically efficient motors. engines have very narrow sweet spots for components factoring into the motor “The amount of current going through torque and fuel efficiency, transmissions choice, like the power electronics, batterthe smaller motors required to generate are used to match engine speed with ies, and cooling needs. the torque is much higher,” says Dupont. road speed. Electric motors have much My washing machine motor has been “Therefore, the power electronic packbroader sweet spots, but there are still purring away down in the basement now age will grow in size and cost. The trend practical limits. for almost 20 years. I have no idea who today, whether it’s commercial or passenDupont says electric motor makers, made it, what color it is, or how many ger, is to go towards higher-rpm motors.” knowing certain things about the kilowatts it needs. And that suits me just When we speak of gear reduction, we intended application, can configure the fine. Maybe electric truck motors will be are talking about two or three gears – not motor so that the efficiency zone matches TT the same. the 10 or 13 like a diesel needs. In many the duty cycle.

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The Modern Oil Change Oil drain intervals have soared since the ’90s. Are you getting the most out of that little white jug? By Jim Park The last truck I owned was a 1991 Peterbilt 379 with a Detroit Series 60 engine. I had to change the oil in that thing every 10,000 miles (16,000 km). At about $200 a pop every time I pulled the drain plug, oil changes took a significant bite out of my maintenance budget. I’m not in a big hurry to buy another truck, but I have to say I’m envious of current truck owners who can get away with two or three oil changes per year – in some cases, maybe only one. Through a combination of design

TODAY’S TRUCKING

changes to the engines to meet the GHG17 standards, new oil formulations, and a recognition that different applications and duty cycles affect the oil differently, owners of newer trucks running recommended lubricants can run out to as far as 97,000 km when a sampling program is followed. Cummins, along with the other engine makers, sets standard drain intervals based on application and fuel consumption. No longer are drain intervals based on a set distance or time period, and

vehicles with less-strenuous duty cycles are granted more leeway than those running heavy loads or having a high percentage of idle time. In Cummins’ case, the advertised drain interval for a truck in severe service that averages less than 5 mpg (47 liters/100 km) is 40,000 km. For trucks in short-haul service averaging between 5 and 5.9 mpg (39.8 L/100 km), oil drains can go out to 64,000 km. Drains for engines in “normal” service with fuel economy between 6 and 6.9 mpg (39 and 34 L/100 km) may stretch to 80,000 km, while trucks with better than 7 mpg (33.6 L/100 km) can run up to 97,000 km between oil changes. Paccar bases its MX-13 oil drain intervals on application and idle time. In typical linehaul service with less than 20% idle time, the drain interval is set at 120,000 km. For such trucks with more than 20% idle time, the interval is cut to 80,000 km, while severe-service and vocational trucks are limited to 48,000 km. Detroit Diesel, Mack/Volvo, and International all offer similar three-tier oil-drain programs, albeit with slightly different mileages. Some, like Mack, require customers to use an in-house brand of oil to ensure product quality. “There is a misconception that Mack Engine Oil EOS-4.5 is simply a rebranded version of the other engine oils on the shelf, and nothing could be further from the truth,” says Scott Barraclough, Mack technology product manager. “Mack Engine Oil EOS-4.5 is a proprietary formula that is tested and approved with Mack equipment, which allows us to extend drain intervals.” Cummins allows approved customers to take drain intervals even further if they participate in the OilGuard program. It starts with a selection of test vehicles, with engine data and oil samples analyzed every 16,000 km during the testing period. Once approved, periodic

In Gear testing and reporting may be required, but that bit of extra effort will get you a 128,000-km oil change interval.

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Your oil’s Total Base Number (TBN) isn’t what it used to be

Keep on Sampling It wasn’t long ago that you would have needed a sampling program and OE approval to achieve drain intervals of that magnitude. Today, the OEs must be pretty confident in their oil recommendations and engines to offer such drain intervals, but there’s always the possibility of missing a drain deadline. So a sampling program can provide a buffer of sorts. This will provide some assurance that it’s still good to go even a little beyond the maximum recommended mileage if you’re caught on the opposite side of the country at drain time. A typical sampling program tests for the following: wear metals, contaminant metals, additive metals, fuel dilution, soot loading, viscosity, presence of water and coolant, oxidation/nitration, and Total Base Number (TBN). According to Gloria Gonzalez, general manager of Ontario-

otal Base Number (TBN) has been used for years as a key indicator of when engine oil needs to be drained and replaced. Measuring the rate at which TBN depletes indicates how much of the oil’s original additive package remains, to help neutralize organic and inorganic acids. While the TBN is still a critical reference in used oil analysis, there’s another equally important number to watch: TAN, or Total Acid Number. TAN measures the acidity of the oil; TBN measures the additive that neutralizes the acid. Think back to high school chemistry class. Acidity and alkalinity are measured using the pH scale. Acidic substances like battery acid or vinegar are said to have a low pH value, while alkaline (base) substances like bleach have a high pH value. Water is considered neutral, with a pH of 7, while battery acid has a pH of 0 and drain cleaner, 14. Emissions systems that emerged in 2007 required ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD), which slashed sulfur levels to 15 parts per million from 500. In the past, high-TBN oils were needed to neutralize the sulfuric acid produced by burning by high-sulfur fuel. Lower levels of sulfur in diesel were accompanied by oils with a lower TBN. In the past, a low TBN would suggest the additive package was depleting and the oil was finished. It’s now being suggested that low TBN numbers don’t necessarily indicate the oil should be changed. Some oil companies, Chevron and Phillips 66 among them, are saying a better way to determine the overall health of the oil is to use a more comprehensive mix of indicators – including TAN, wear metals, oxidation, viscosity and TBN retention.

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In Gear based WearCheck, TBN measures the oil’s ability to neutralize acidic material – something you’ll clearly want to avoid. “In a newer, well-maintained engine, you really shouldn’t have any contaminants like fuel, coolant or wear metals, so TBN is the important thing to check for,” she says. “As the engine ages, you may reach a point where seals fail and some contaminants could enter the engine. Sampling and analysis will alert you to such a condition and give early warnings about the condition of the components inside the engine as wear metals begin to appear.” Taking one oil sample every now and then may identify an existing problem – such as the presence of fuel or coolant – but it won’t identify trends. “It’s the trends that are important,” says Jack Fasoli, heavy-duty national key account manager at Total Canada. “Each brand of engine will have its own signature of wear metals, and you’ll see them right from Day 1 in minute quantities.

And as the engine ages, each engine will display its own wear characteristics. You can track these over time and if you see a spike in certain metals, for example, that will alert you to a potential problem. “It’s the same for engines in different applications, like highway compared to city driving or high idle time,” he adds. “There’s a difference in the way the oil degrades and is consumed. They will have different trends, and a good sampling provider will take that into account.”

New oils go further In today’s engines, higher pressures inside the fuel injection systems – combined with higher temperatures in the combustion chamber and the aftertreatment systems – have put a lot of stress on oils. Today’s new oils not only have better additives to prevent oxidation, but they also have better base stocks, new additives, and better shear stability improvers. These CK-4 and FA-4 formulas

are at least partially responsible for the extend drain intervals now being offered by OEMs, but not everyone is ready to jump onto that bandwagon just yet. Brian Humphrey, OEM technical liaison for Petro-Canada Lubricants, says the top misconception fleets have about oils, especially the new categories, is that low-viscosity oils don’t protect as well. “The introduction of CK-4 and FA-4 was a big step forward in the evolution and acceptance of lower-viscosity engine oils,” he says. “We know that there are a number of misconceptions surrounding low-viscosity oils across the industry, particularly the belief that they are not as protective as an SAE 15W-40, despite the fact that all major North American engine OEMs have been factory filling with 10W-30 oils for many years.” It’s been nearly two years since the formal introduction of CK-4 and FA-4, and fleet uptake has been slow, the oil companies say. Despite the documented advantages. TT

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In Gear Properly adjusted wheel bearings minimize irregular tire wear, reduce the potential for wheel-separations, and may even help improve fuel economy.

Hold Tight … But Not Too Tight Adjusting wheel bearings can be a finicky process. There are simpler ways to do the job better. By Jim Park The tolerable end play for truck wheel bearings lies somewhere between the thickness of a human hair and a sheet of paper. Various sources put the diameter of an average strand of hair at 0.001 inches and a sheet of standard office paper at 0.005 inches. In other words, it’s perfectly acceptable to adjust wheel bearings so that they are just a little bit loose, but not too loose. The American Trucking Associations’ Technology and Maintenance Council’s (TMC) Recommended Practice 618B will ensure a standard wheel bearing is tightened to 0.001 - 0.005 inches of end play (also expressed as 1 - 5 mil or 0.025 - 0.127 mm) if the process is carefully followed and verified by a dial indicator. It’s actually better for the bearings if they are a little bit tight, but since it’s impossible to actually measure tightness – known as preload – the industry

TODAY’S TRUCKING

developed the recommended adjustment procedure as a “good-enough” solution. While endplay is not the perfect wheel bearing condition, it can be accurately measured and repeated by skilled technicians who are willing to spend about 10 minutes per wheel end, getting the adjustment as close to ideal as possible. Ideal, of course, is zero end play or a slight preload. Bearing makers at Timken say a slight preload can improve bearing, seal and tire life, but only if the entire process can be controlled and results in a consistent bearing setting range. The difference between end play and preload from the bearing’s perspective is significant. (See Figure 1.) The potential for reduced bearing life at excessive preloads is far higher than life reduction at excessive clearance, says Divjot Singh, an applications engineer at NTN Bearing Corporation of America.

“Excessive preload will cause excessive friction and the bearing will run hot, compromising lubrication and eventually leading to flaking [material coming off] at the large end of the rollers/races,” he says. “On the other hand, adjusting the bearing too loose causes excessive looseness and vibration in the system. This could lead to a multitude of issues such as, but not limited to, wheel wobble and seal leakage along with ABS and braking problems. Eventually a too-loose setting will cause flaking at the small end of the rollers/ races, which can lead to failure and possible wheel loss.” With endplay, you’re essentially measuring a gap. From 0.001 to infinity, it’s still a gap. A gap means there is “zero” force applied against the bearing. The width of the gap matters, as Divjot explains, because it allows for movement in the bearing, which can produce undesirable results. With preload, the two surfaces are in contact and the nut exerts force on the bearing. The problem lies in determining the strength of the force. There is no correlation between the amount of torque used to fasten the nut and the amount of force applied against the bearing. And the force applied to the bearing with a torque wrench is exponential rather than linear. In other words, once the gap is

In Gear eliminated and the two surfaces contact, even a slight increase in torque applied to the nut will cause the force applied to the bearing to skyrocket, increasing the risk of excessive preload. You could say that RP 618B or any other procedure that results in 0.001 to 0.005 inches of endplay is a compromise that errs on the side of caution to keep excessive preload from damaging the bearing.

Pre-adjusted or preloaded TMC’s RP 618B is widely used in trucking, but manually adjusting wheel bearings is a finicky procedure. Many fleets and most OEMs are now using pre-adjusted hubs and bearing sets from the likes of Com-Met and Stemco. These designs use an engineered spacer between the bearings to achieve the correct bearing settings by simply applying a certain amount of torque when installing the outer nut. The bearings are forced together by tightening the nut, but only as far as the spacer will allow. With the correct amount of torque, the bearings are set as close as possible to zero end play or with a very slight preload – the optimal condition for bearing life. Pre-adjusted hubs relieve the technician of the need to measure end play, and generally save a great deal of installation time while providing greater accuracy and repeatability. Still, technicians need to be aware of the procedures associated with the various systems and use properly calibrated tools. “Our 200 lb-ft torque requirement is the recommended minimum torque value. If an end user would prefer to torque the system to up to 250 lb-ft, that is permissible to account for torque wrench torque setting variations,” says Jim Rosema, category director for wheel end products at Stemco. “But if a technician inadvertently torques the Trifecta system to a higher value, the system will still operate as designed.” With standard wheel end systems, different spindle nut types have different torque procedures. So there’s risk there in the technician confusing one procedure for another. “It’s important for technicians to be knowledgeable in order to not only identify the different spindle nuts styles, but

to also be educated on the correct procedure for each type,” cautions Tony Ryan, technical service and training manager at SAF-Holland. “A common mistake made by technicians is using multiple extensions on torque wrenches while tightening the axle spindle nut. Extensions can compromise the accuracy of the torque wrench reading.” The other alternative to RP 618B and pre-adjusted hubs is to set a slight preload on your bearing with a patented tool called Dr. Preload. It’s designed by Temper Axle and distributed by Meritor. It simplifies the process, cuts installation time to just a few minutes, and sets a measured and repeatable amount of preload on the bearings. “SAE’s recommended procedure, J2535, provides target and maximum preload settings for Class 8 tractor and

seal failure in more than a year. “In a fleet our size, five or six failures a year wouldn’t be unusual, but we haven’t had a single problem since we stated using Dr. Preload for bearing adjustment,” he says. Jim Pinder, corporate fleet director at Ontario-based Erb Group of Companies, is an RP 618B man. It’s the way they have always done things under his leadership at Erb and the results are good. “We stick to TMC’s RP 618B for the most part because it works for us,” he says. “We are very careful with the installation procedure and don’t take any short cuts. We also use only one type of seal here. Our people are familiar with it, they know how to install it. That helps minimize problems further out in time.” He said he has experimented with the Dr. Preload tool, and the results have

Fig. 1: The difference between endplay and preload from the bearing’s perspective is significant.

trailer axles as a guide to any supplier that would develop systems for setting wheel end bearings to preload,” says Ray Piascik, director of marketing and sales at Temper Axle, makers of the Dr. Preload system. “Our system was designed to meet those targets when installing bearings with slight preload.” Among the other touted benefits of the Temper Axle system are longer seal life and reduced irregular tire wear due to bearing adjustment. Joel Morrow, head of research and development at Norwalk, Ohio-based Ploger Transportation, has been using the system for several years and says his 50-truck fleet hasn’t had a

been good so far. He has also worked with unitized hubs and preset hubs, and found each to have their own pros and cons. More to the point, he says the number of seal and bearing failures has dropped overall in recent years, and he attributes at least some of that to better equipment. “Seals usually don’t fail because the product is bad, it’s technicians not following procedures,” he says. “You also set the bearing up to fail if you don’t install it properly. So yes, there’s a lot riding on proper wheel-end maintenance, and we have trained our people to do it properly. I think that’s what makes the difference.” TT APRIL 2019

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In Gear The updated new Cascadia is the first production truck to offer SAE Level 2 automation.

My Truck is My Co-Pilot Freightliner’s Level 2 automation is more about supporting drivers than replacing them By John G. Smith It can be a little disconcerting to watch a steering wheel move back and forth on its own, but there it is. One of the latest new Cascadias to roll off Freightliner’s assembly line nudges left and right to keep within tracked lane markings, even when hands are off the wheel for a few seconds. Welcome to an era of SAE Level 2 automation, courtesy of the Detroit Assurance 5.0 suite of safety systems. Daimler Trucks North America is the first manufacturer to offer this level of automated control, combining radarbased sensors and a windshield-mounted camera to decide when to adjust speeds, apply brakes, and make minor steering corrections to keep the truck in its lane.

TODAY’S TRUCKING

“Imagine you’re driving, you’re in in a high-wind situation, you have high side winds,” says Brian Daniels, product marketing manager – Detroit components. Lane Keep Assist, activated when the cruise control is enabled, can help keep things centered. The more aggressive turns of Lane Departure Protection, activated at speeds above 60 km/h, will help to keep the truck from drifting off the road entirely. The automated steering hardly replaces the need for a driver, though. Stretches of highway might be marked by faded lines that the high-definition camera can’t register; certain curves can be too tight; a layer of snow might

obscure the all-important lane markings altogether. The system can account for lane markings that disappear for a few feet but will rely on the driver if the lines are obscured over longer distances. But this isn’t about replacing drivers. It’s about offering an extra layer of support for those behind the wheel. Nothing emphasizes this better than the sensors used to track whether drivers are truly in control. Lift your hands off the wheel for 30 seconds and a yellow icon appears in the driver information display. At 60 seconds the image turns red and is accompanied by warning sounds that beep at an increasing rate. If all that is ignored, Lane Keep Assist is de-activated, signaled by a blue truck icon that turns grey. Another sensor will shut down the system if a seat is vacated for more than 15 seconds. The technological support of Lane Departure Protection remains active, though. Daniels insists drivers won’t be able to fool the system by wrapping tape around a steering wheel or jamming something else up against it. But neither will drivers have to maintain a death grip on the wheel. A light touch and the subtle amount of movement that comes with it are recognized. “The driver needs to be engaged,” adds Luc Leblanc, a Canadian-based technical sales representative, as warning buzzers sound inside the cab during a test run. Drivers even remain in control of the automation itself. Just a minor amount of pressure can override automated steering adjustments; final production models of the truck will include a switch on the dash to deactivate the lanekeeping assistance. Lane departure warnings can also be paused for 15 minutes at a time with the push of a button on the dash, silencing the digitized sound of rumble strips when traveling through construction zones, or anywhere new and old lane markings intermingle.

Adaptive cruise control The sense of control is not limited to the lane-focused support. Optional settings for adaptive cruise

In Gear control can be used to adjust following distances to somewhere between 2.6 and 3.6 seconds, even when the truck is rolling. But the new Cascadia is not limited to the traditional concept of cruise control. Detroit Assurance 5.0 introduces a system that can be used in stop-and-go traffic. The cruise will remain activated right down to a complete stop, and automatically moves the truck forward if the vehicle stopped in front of the bumper begins to roll within two seconds. “We can ensure nothing or no one has entered between the vehicle and the car ahead of us,” Daniels says, referring to the importance of the tight timeline. Even after a longer pause, the cruise can be re-engaged through the simple tap of the accelerator or the resume button on the steering wheel. “The important thing here is reducing driver fatigue,” Daniels says. “We want them to be in cruise control longer when they’re in that open-road situation.” The overall system tracks up to 40 objects within 800 feet of the truck’s bumper, using radar to prioritize six objects, and the camera to focus on four. The data is refreshed about 200 times per second. Combining the radar and camera realizes the best of two worlds. “A camera has shorter visibility than radar,” Daniels explains. But its lens offers

Icons in the driver information display will warn drivers if their hands need to return to the wheel.

added confidence that the thing being tracked requires attention. By focusing on closing rates rather than specific distances, the cruise control is also able to make subtle throttle adjustments and avoid slamming on the brakes if a faster-moving vehicle cuts in front of the truck. But when the new Cascadia needs to come to a stop, it can. First the fuel is reduced, and then the engine brake is engaged. Foundation brakes are applied as the final step. Even if the cruise control isn’t engaged, Active Brake Assist will step in to help if a truck looks like it’s about to hit a standing object.

Evolving systems The safety systems have certainly evolved in recent years. The first Detroit Assurance systems delivered warnings about threats detected through the bumper-mounted radar alone. Version 2.0 offered partial braking when detecting a stationary object, while 4.0 increased that to full braking. Fusing the radar with a camera mounted in the windshield, Detroit Assurance 5.0 can actually track the hip movements of a moving pedestrian, applying emergency braking if it appears someone is in the truck’s path. Still, such systems are described as collision “mitigation” rather than outright “prevention” for good reason. While the technology can track moving pedestrians, it can’t spot those that are standing still. Leblanc agrees that it might also have trouble registering the limited mass of a small child.

Side Guard Assist

The addition of a road-facing camera is one of the keys to detecting pedestrians.

Other new Cascadia options are meant specifically to improve a driver’s vision. Side Guard Assist, a radar-based device mounted on the passenger side of the cab, will track traditional blind spots along the entire length of a 53-foot trailer. Its related warnings come in several forms. Lane Changing Assist and Turn Assist will shine a yellow triangle in the A-pillar and instrument cluster if APRIL 2019

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In Gear a moving object is detected along the passenger side of the tractor-trailer. The light turns red and is joined by an audible alert in this situation if the turn signal is activated or a driver begins to steer to the right. Trailer Sweep Assist calculates if the back of the tractor or trailer might hit a stationary object like a traffic sign or light pole, triggering a red triangle and warning sound. “It is simply a warning. There is no steering, no braking,” Daniels stresses. “They just need to know it’s an object they don’t want to make contact with.”

Tracked events Fleet managers have the option of tracking many of the safety-related events. Images from the front-facing camera, for example, can be uploaded to the Bendix Safety Direct portal. The side guard’s warnings are not tracked, though. For good reason. “Sometimes the driver knew the whole time,” Daniels says, referring to the example of a driver who might apply the right turn signal while waiting for a cyclist to pass. “We don’t want to ding that driver because there’s no context.” And the in-cab warnings are not limited to flashing lights and buzzers. Images of traffic signs are captured and displayed in the gauge cluster, serving as a helpful reminder of warnings that might otherwise be missed or forgotten. But while the system will display speed limits, and signs that ban passing or large trucks, some signs don’t register. It doesn’t capture signs to stop, yield, or do not enter, or warnings about ramps and curves. “That is a passive system. It’s simply displaying the sign,” Daniels says. “The idea here is to supplement that driver experience.” Another option to enhance the driving experience comes in the form of an intelligent high beam system, a carryover from the automotive sector. This will automatically apply high beams, switching back to low beams when detecting oncoming traffic or overhead lights. Even wipers can be automated. A sensor in the windshield recognizes dusk or reduced visibility, engaging the lights and wipers where needed. “You can leave the wiper switch perpetually in auto,” Daniels said.

Growing interest in safety systems Interest in automated safety systems has climbed dramatically. In 2015, 29% of Cascadias were equipped with collision mitigation systems. By 2017 the take rate had climbed closer to 50%, and at the end of last year three in every four new Cascadias came with the equipment. “The public perception, the legal perception, all these things are changing,” Daniels says. But one thing remains unchanged. “The driver is still the primary safety feature of this truck,” he says. “All these things were talking about are supplementing [the driving experience].” TT

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APRIL 2019

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PRODUCTWATCH WHATâ€™S NEW AND NEWS FROM SUPPLIERS

For more new product items, visit PRODUCT WATCH on the web at todaystrucking.com TRAINING

CarriersEdge course in time for fall(s)

Western Star 4700

TRUCKS

Western Star 4700 sees several upgrades Western Star is enhancing its 4700 model, introducing a series of changes in the name of productivity, safety, upfitting time, and weights. Cummins X12 engines are now available under the hood, and at 2,050 lb. theyâ€™re 600 lb. lighter than other medium-bore engines in the 10-13-liter category. That engine delivers 500 hp and up to 1,700 lb-ft of torque. Another new option includes the Detroit DT12 automated manual transmission that can be specâ€™d with Detroitpowered models. It features a creep mode, hill start aid, and a pneumatic shift and clutch control. Answering a request from the Canadian market, wiring harness routing, clipping and wrapping no longer relies on plastic tubing â€“ something thatâ€™s meant to help battle corrosion associated with de-icing chemicals. Inside the truck, gauges have been enlarged, more information is delivered through a new LCD driver information display, and LED indicators help

to track various functions and alerts. Controls on the standard steering wheel offer access to functions including cruise control, radio settings, and phones, too. Itâ€™s also the first time the 4700 can be specâ€™d with a 40-inch low or ultra-lowroof StarLight sleeper, or similar space for storage. Safety-related systems include the radar-triggered braking of Wabco OnGuard, and Bendix lane departure cameras. www.westernstartrucks.com

CarriersEdge has introduced an online course to help protect drivers from hazards including slips, trips, falls from heights, and stresses from repetitive motion. The Fall Protection for Drivers course focuses on how to become aware of such hazards and how to avoid them through practices such as safe entry and exit from vehicles, the proper use of ladders, and working with fall-protection equipment. There are three half-hour modules in all, combining text, images, interactive exercises, and real-life examples. www.carriersedge.com TRAILERS

Rocketail Wing re-thinks boat tails

WHEELS

Minimizer fender bracket for Watson Chalin axle Minimizer has a new steerable axle fender bracket kit for those with a Watson Chalin SL20K-2065 axle. The axle design itself is fairly new, but Minimizer said it was already receiving requests for a kit that would work. The steerable kits are made to bolt on using existing holes on the brake assembly, which allows the fender to raise, lower and steer with the axle, the company adds.

The Rocketail Wing system is a SmartWay-certified rear trailer fairing that its makers say will save 8.42 liters of fuel per 1,000 km. The airfoil design is said to redirect rearward airflow behind the trailer while also producing lift â€“ much like the wing on an aircraft. Placing the device an inch from the trailer wall also supports a uniform airflow. Integrated with the trailer door, it APRIL 2019

Product Watch extends just 14 inches from the rear of the trailer, eliminating a common source of damage. And the system is always deployed, using swing hinges that lock the wings in an open position when the doors are closed. When doors are open, the wings sit flush to the side of the trailer, allowing the doors to swing a full 270 degrees without being blocked. www.rocketail.com

TRAILERS

Pintle hook body built to ‘work harden’ When it comes to a pintle hook, much of the strength comes through the choice of materials. SAF-Holland’s new PH-405 pintle hook features an austenitic manganese steel body that supports wear resistance. It “work hardens” at the contact surfaces with the drawbar’s eye.

Building on features found with the PH-400, this model is the longest-lasting hook for 2-3/8-inch drawbars, and it’s backed with a two-year warranty. The maximum gross trailer weight is 100,000 lb., while the maximum tongue weight is 20,000 lb. The maximum eye X-section measures 1-5/8 inches, and the minimum eye opening is 2-3/8 inches. Its eight-bolt mounting pattern is compatible with the PH-400, Premier 2400, 100-4, and 470 models. www.safholland.us GREASE

SAF-Holland unveils landing gear lube SAF-Holland has unveiled a new layer of protection for landing gear in the form of the purpose-made True Lube grease. Operating temperatures range from -40 to 65 Celsius to help ensure smooth cranking. Compared to previous greases, this formula better controls oil bleed, reducing leaks and keeping the grease from hardening, the company says. It also promises excellent salt-water resistance, as well as anti-wear and load-carrying properties to protect gears and screws under heavy loads. True Lube comes in 14-ounce tubes, five-US gallon pails, and 120-lb. drums. www.safholland.us TIRES

Goodyear’s Ultra Grip RTD made for Canada Goodyear has released a made-forCanada regional haul tire in the form of the Ultra Grip RTD drive tire. The all-season tire achieved a threepeak snowflake rating, verifying its traction capabilities. Features contributing to its grip include: a tread design and compound that offers long, even wear; a 25/32-inch deep tread for long miles to removal; complex sipe geometry with variable tread depth to maximize traction as the tire wears; and conical stone ejectors to limit stone trapping. The tire will roll out during the fourth quarter in a 11R22.5 size. www.goodyeartrucktires.com

TODAY’S TRUCKING

National Advertisers CAT Scale 33 www.catscale.com Chevron 2 canada.deloperformance.com Continental 13 www.continental-truck.com Eaton 41 eatoncumminsjv.com/endurant Eberspaecher 14 www.eberspaecher-na.com Enbridge 20 NGTransport@enbridge.com ExpoCam 44-45 www.expocam.ca Great Dane 48 info.GreatDane.com/reefer Haldex 39 www.haldex.com

Hendrickson www.hendrickson-intl.com Hino www.hinocanada.com Imperial Oil mobildelvac.ca ISAAC Instruments www.isaac.ca Mack MackTrucks.com/Nationwide Manac www.manac.com Mann+Hummel Filtration (Wix Filters) www.wixfilters.com Meritor meritor.com/brakes North American Commercial Vehicle Show www.nacvshow.com

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Peterbilt back cover www.peterbilt.com PMTC 52 www.pmtc.ca Prolam 40 www.prolamfloors.com SAF-HOLLAND 21 www.safholland.ca Trailcon Leasing 19 www.trailcon.com Trailer Wizards 35 www.trailerwizards.com Total Canada 22, 49 www.total-canada.ca Volvo Trucks North America 55 www.volvotrucks.ca Western Star/ Detroit Diesel Engines 30, 31 www.westernstar.com

COMPANIES IN THE NEWS A Allison Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Amazon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Arrow Truck Sales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 B Bayview Kenworth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Bendix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23, 49 C CarriersEdge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Cummins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 D Daimler Trucks North America. . . 7, 18, 21, 46 Dana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Dayton Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Detroit Diesel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 DHL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 E Eaton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Edmonton Kenworth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Erb Group of Companies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 F FedEx . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Fleet Complete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Freightliner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7, 22, 46 G Goodyear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 Great Dane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 GreatWest Kenworth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

H Highlight Motor Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Hino Motors Canada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 I Icon Transportation Logistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Inland Kenworth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 International Trucks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15, 22 J John Deere Financial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 K Kenworth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22, 27 Kenworth Maska . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Kriska Transportation Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 L Lightning Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Lion Electric Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 M Mack Trucks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27, 38 Mammoet Canada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Manitoulin Transport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Meritor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Minimizer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 N Navistar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Nikola Corporation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18, 27 NTN Bearing Corporation of America . . . . . 42

P Paccar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36, 38 Petro-Canada Lubricants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 Ploger Transportation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 R Rocketail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 S SAF Holland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19, 43, 52 Schilli Corporation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 SmartTruck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Stemco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 T Temper Axle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Tesla . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 TFI International . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Thor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Timken . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 TM4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Toronto Tank Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Total Canada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 Trailcon Leasing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 TransCore Link Logistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Transtex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 U UPS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 V Volvo Trucks North America . . . . . . . . . . .27, 38 W Watson Chalin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Western Star . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

APRIL 2019

Faces Al Boughton

Stepping Down Al Boughton hands Trailcon to a new president and CEO By Sonia Straface It’s next to impossible to mention Trailcon without speaking of its outspoken founder, Al Boughton. His name is virtually synonymous with the trailer leasing empire he established some 26 years ago. But on Jan. 31, the company announced that senior vice-president and general manager Jerry Brown would take over as president, marking the end of an era with Boughton at the helm. Trailcon started from humble beginnings in October 1992, just after Boughton himself left as president of Provincial Trailer Rental. “Was I scared? Yeah. I didn’t know what a panic attack was until that first morning in 1992,” he says. “It was easy to summarize Trailcon that day. One employee, me. No trailers. No revenue… I had a wife at home, and a five-year-old and 9-year-old. So yeah, it was a pretty scary time.” Today, Trailcon has five locations across the country, a fleet of 8,500 trailers, 150 employees, and 85 technicians, with sales hitting $100 million per year.

TODAY’S TRUCKING

Boughton’s larger-than-life personality has played a role in the company’s direction. He’s an exuberant straight-shooter who isn’t afraid to tell it like it is, and refuses to sit back in his office while business goes on as usual. Boughton personally meets with all new hires, and has gained the respect of his technicians and office staff because he knows how to turn a wrench (he’s an avid car collector) and because he’s been in their shoes. “There are no jobs at my company that I haven’t done,” he says. “I’ve cleaned the washrooms, I’ve checked the trailers in, I’ve changed the tires, I’ve gone out to customers to try and sell trailers. I’ve done it all.” Boughton recalls several times when he would hire what is known internally as a “yard ape” – a staff member who checks the trailers in and out. “So when I’d meet with them, I’d ask,

‘So how anxious are you to assume your career as a yard ape?’ and they’d really be taken aback by it. You could see it in their face. And I’d ask, ‘You know why I can say that?’ And they’d say, ‘No’. And I’d say, ‘Because that’s where I started.’…I’d tell them, ‘There is a path way from that job right to my office. And anyone can do it, the only person stopping yourself is you. Because if you’re good and work hard, I’ll be there pushing you forward.’” Boughton’s own business instincts have left their mark on Trailcon’s success as well. “The first customer is a customer we still have today, Atripco,” he says. “Account retention is probably the key to success. It takes so much energy and money to bring in new customers, that once you’ve got them that worst thing in the world to do is lose them…I think consistency and the way we approach the customer with honesty is why we’ve been so fortunate.” He’s also been committed to ensuring that Trailcon chases its customers rather than the other way around. “We know who we want to do business with,” he said. “We don’t sit and wait for the phone to ring and Billy Bob Trucking calls. We target the accounts we want to do business with. They are accounts that are sustainable and appreciate the work we do and know we’re going to be a part of their solution down the road. It’s why we have Walmart from coast to coast, it’s why we’re the provider for Canadian Tire…because we want to deal with them.” Even though he’s no longer at the helm of the business, Boughton says he’ll still be involved in some Jerry capacity going forward. Brown “I tell my staff I’m not going to stay beyond my best-before date,” he said, adding that Trailcon hopes to open five more branches in the next five years. “And we’re going to stay in the trailer business,” he added. “We’re not going to be selling trailers. We rent, lease, and do fleet management, and we are going to stick to that and keep doing what we’re great at.” TT

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