Thankfully, we avoided having to deal with a tariff with Mexico, but how intertwined are we with our Southern neighbor? There was a great deal of anxiety over the last two weeks regarding the possibility of tariffs to be imposed on goods imported from Mexico. Fortunately, that did not happen, […]
Industry News
28 posts
Technology has changed everyone’s expectations and that has made it increasingly a challenge for those who deliver the goods. Last week, I wrote an IdeaXchange blog on the need to train technicians for today’s trucks, specifically due to the complicated technology. That technology includes electric vehicles, hybrids, fuel cells, CNG/LNG […]
With the local weather teams predicting the coldest day in recorded history in Chicago, it seemed like a great time to go to Charlotte. Sleet and snow were falling as I slowly made my way to the airport for an early morning flight. I checked my phone repeatedly for alerts that my […]
There is no disputing the fact that e-commerce has completely upended the retail industry; but it’s also affected every aspect of their supply chain … including shipping and delivery. If you had searched for the term “final mile” as it pertains to shipping a decade ago, you would have had […]
How can you tell there’s a desperate shortage of truck drivers? See how much Walmart is offering. Those of us involved in any way in the trucking industry have long been aware of the immensely troubling shortage of qualified drivers. As current drivers age out of the industry, the situation […]
In 1944, the heads of seventeen independent truck leasing companies from all over the US met in Chicago and formed the National Truck Leasing System, which became NationaLease. Although the overarching goal was to promote the truck leasing industry, members soon realized that each of them was also benefitting from […]
A true infrastructure plan that will be carried out seems to be as illusory as a unicorn. But the need has never been greater. Every administration in recent memory has talked about the need for infrastructure repairs. Yet many of our roads and bridges normally get patched up rather than […]
A new Administration is coming in as the outgoing head of FMCSA offers encouraging words to the industry. I’ve always adhered to the notion that good communication is the pathway to better relationships and this article in last week’s fleetowner.com proves that point. In his last conference call with trade […]
Fleet leasing and maintenance outsourcing continues to increase as companies direct a laser-like focus on growing their core business. If you look at the trucking trends for 2017 and beyond, the main ones remain consistent with the last couple of years: Increasing truck technology (which also means more expensive vehicles) […]