Stoughton Adds PureBlue Refrigerated Trailer to Product Lineup

Stoughton's new PureBlue refrigerated trailer. Photo: Stoughton

ATLANTA — Stoughton Trailers, as part of its effort to offer a complete product line to customers, introduced a refrigerated trailer line – PureBlue.

This gives Stoughton a full line of trailers, including dry van, grain, livestock, intermodal chassis, and now refrigerated trailer that debuted at the North American Commercial Vehicle Show.

The company spent two years developing the trailer, using proven components, customer input, and thorough testing,

Stoughton officials told reporters that PureBlue's innovative design and attention to detail provide lightweight trailers without sacrificing strength, with features that help maintain more consistent temperatures, reduce maintenance, and improve safety.

An aluminum scuff and integral composite scuff liner help prevent damage while loading and unloading the trailer. The sidewall and scuff have no rivets that loads can snag and tear out.

Stoughton is providing a heavy-duty non-skid duct floor as the preferred floor in the new refrigerated trailer. This durable floor provides optimum support to loads even in high-use areas. The fully enclosed floor design has a knurled edge top surface for skid resistance. There is no wood in the entire structure, which extends the life of the trailer.

Stoughton offers several additional optional floors. The 5.25-inch extruded aluminum cross members in the bay area provide a strong yet lightweight floor substructure, and steel cross members are an available option.

Stoughton has included several design elements to protect the trailer against air loss and to keep out water.

The platen foamed sides and roof ensure that the trailer is fully insulated in 360 degrees with no voids or uneven areas to further increase its thermal efficiency. In addition, Stoughton designed a composite mounting box for the refrigeration unit to help keep the heat of the reefer's diesel engine from penetrating into the trailer.

Stoughton's composite rear door design optimizes thermal efficiency plus it reduces ...Read the rest of this story

Accuride Introduces Hub Wheel End System

Neil McIrvin, vice president/OEM sales, trailer and municipal. Photo: Evan Lockridge

ATLANTA — Accuride Corp. introduced a new hub system for trucks and trailers on Wednesday at the North American Commercial Vehicle Show in Atlanta.

The Rolliant system is from the wheel end component supplier KIC, which Accuride acquired earlier this year and is reportedly the first long-life, low maintenance hub system to come with a 10-year warranty for trailer applications and a seven-year warranty for trucks.

The technology has been designed for North American commercial vehicle fleets seeking long-life hub performance, and truck and trailer OEMs who want to simplify wheel end installation and boost throughput during assembly, according to Accuride.

“We think it's a game changer, giving our customers a hub system for the life of their trailers,” said Neil McIrvin, vice president/OEM sales, trailer and municipal.

He said the Rolliant system was developed in response to industry demand for a more affordable hub system that was easy to install and maintain and could last the life of both trucks and trailers.

“Its patent-pending technology maintains tight wheel-bearing tolerances for safe, reliable performance and enables us to offer industry-leading warranties for truck and trailer applications,” said McIrvin.

Proper wheel bearing adjustment is critical to achieving safe, reliable performance that enables long-life truck and trailer operation, according to Accuride. A deviation in adjustment, even the width of a human hair, can mean the difference between safe, reliable hub system performance and premature tire wear, wheel seal failure, and premature bearing failure.

The Rolliant system's extended bearing cone technology improves on existing precision bearing systems to keep wheel bearings in tight, consistent alignment. It works with both straight-spindle and tapered-spindle hub designs and does not need specialized spindle nuts or extra parts.

Each hub is assembled with 100% endplay inspection and serialization for complete traceability ...Read the rest of this story

Michelin Unveils New Dual-Position Drive Tire

Michelin says its new XDA Energy + dual-position tire was designed with both fuel and maintenance costs in mind. Photo: Michelin Americas Truck Tires

ATLANTA — Michelin Truck Tires unveiled its newest dual-position drive tire for line-haul operations today at the North American Commerical Vehicle Show (NACV) in Atlanta. The new XDA Energy + tire is designed for fleets and owner-operators who are focused on fuel savings to reduce their operating costs.

Adam Murphy, vice president of marketing for Michelin Americas Truck Tires, said the fuel savings generated by the new tire are driven by an innovative FuelSaver compound formula for ultra-low rolling resistance. The tire is compliant with SmartWay, California Air Resources Board, and can help fleets by being a significant contributor to Greenhouse Gas Phase II regulations and the tire supports fleet sustainability and green initiatives, Murphy added.

Murphy says the tire's design will also help fleets contain maintenance costs. The XDA Energy + features wide circumferential grooves for efficient water evacuation and grooved, angled walls to help resist stone retention that can lead to stone drilling that potentially damages the casing. The sidewall also features TW6 OzoneShield technology for increased protection against weathering. The tire features a durable Michelin casing capable of supporting multiple retreads while further reducing maintenance costs.

Confident in the tire's fuel-efficiency capability, Murphy said Michelin will offer a limited guarantee of $400 per truck in fuel savings. Fleets can contact their local Michelin representative to schedule a fuel evaluation of the XDA Energy+ versus a competitive product.

“Helping fleets to increase their competitiveness in the market is our goal,” Murphy said. “One of the main levers fleets have to improve their competitiveness is improving their fuel efficiency, and tires like the new Michelin XDA Energy + can play a key role. With rolling resistance accounting for approximately 35 ...Read the rest of this story

Mitchell 1 Enhances RepairConnect Diagnostic Software for Truck Repairs

Scott DeGiorgio, general manager at Mitchell 1. Photo: Evan Lockridge

ATLANTA — Repair information provider Mitchell 1 announced at the North American Commercial Vehicle Show in Atlanta it's rolling out enhancements to its RepairConnect diagnostic truck repair software for all makes and models of Class 4-8 trucks.

In addition to engine diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs), users may now access ABS and transmission DTC diagnostic and repair information in a single location through TruckSeries, Mitchell 1's repair information software suite for commercial vehicles.

RepairConnect is fully integrated with all major scan tools and supports medium, heavy duty and school bus SAE protocols.

The system provides the ability to access accurate diagnostic repair procedures in seconds whenever a Class 4-8 truck vehicle requires service.

RepairConnect eases the complexity inherent in commercial vehicle systems, according to the company, by delivering clear and specific information, including component location photos, color wiring diagrams, and testing steps and procedures, in 30 seconds or less, to help technicians work more efficiently and accurately.

“Every feature in RepairConnect has been developed with the goal of increasing technician productivity, helping ensure that repairs are completed correctly the first time, to ultimately reduce vehicle downtime,” said Scott DeGiorgio, general manager at Mitchell 1. “The addition of ABS and transmission codes in RepairConnect gives truck repair shops immediate access to comprehensive service information and eliminates the ‘replace and pray' scenario that can result in a comeback for the same problem.”

TruckSeries is the only comprehensive repair information software suite of its kind available for Class 4-8 trucks, according to Mitchell 1, delivering a one-stop, single log-in, all-makes data resource with scalable wiring diagrams, digital pictures, DTC-to-diagnostics, mechanical labor time estimating, and more.

TruckSeries is integrated with Manager SE Truck Edition, Mitchell 1's truck shop management software.

Related: TruckSeries Repair Software Comes to International Truck Dealers

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OOIDA Supports Coalition Asking for 2-Year Delay of ELD Mandate

A coalition of 31 transportation associations including the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association is opposing the implementation of the ELD mandate and is backing proposed legislation that would delay the rule by two years.

Industries represented in the coalition include agriculture, pyrotechnics, utility contractors, livestock and several others that could be negatively impacted by the mandate. The OOIDA is been one of the most vocal groups in the trucking industry to oppose the electronic logging devices being made mandatory.

“The electronic logging device mandate is written so broadly that it has far-reaching implications well beyond the traditional trucking industry,” said Todd Spencer, executive vice president of OOIDA.

The group supports a bill (H.R. 3282, the ELD Extension Act of 2017) proposed by Rep. Brian Babin (R-TX) that would delay the ELD mandate for two years. Earlier in September, another bill proposed by Babin that included an amendment to defund the ELD mandate (H.R. 3354, the Make America Secure and Prosperous Appropriations Act of 2018) was voted down on the house floor.

The coalition believes the mandate should be delayed until the FMCSA addresses what it says are numerous unresolved issues identified by impacted stakeholders. The group's concerns include the certification of devices, connectivity problems in remote areas of the country, cybersecurity vulnerabilities, and the ability of law enforcement to access data.

The coalition also believes that the ELD mandate will impact stakeholders with costs of more than $2 billion while failing to improve safety, productivity, or profitability. OOIDA contends that requiring electronic monitoring devices on commercial vehicles does not advance safety since they are no more reliable than paper logbooks for recording compliance with hours-of-service regulations.

In response, David Heller, vice president of government affairs for the Truckload Carriers Association stated that sticking to the Dec. 18 deadline will give the industry time to generate ...Read the rest of this story

Study lays out high cost of limited, safe truck parking

There is a high cost for not having enough safe places for commercial truck drivers to park and rest, according to a pilot study by Oregon State University.

Over a seven-year period on one 290-mile stretch of highway alone, at-fault truck crashes resulted in about $75 million of “crash harm,” research conducted by the OSU College of Engineering for the Oregon Department of Transportation shows.

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Mitchell 1 enhances RepairConnect

ATLANTA. Mitchell 1 announced upgrades to its RepairConnect diagnostic truck repair software, including anti-lock braking system and transmission diagnostic trouble codes and repair information in a single location through TruckSeries.

RepairConnect is integrated with all major scan tools and supports SAE protocols. The system provides the ability to access accurate diagnostic repair procedures in seconds, the company said.

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