Comdata, AscendTMS provide free TMS to fleet customers

InMotion Global Inc. announced that AscendTMS will be offered to Comdata fleet customers at no charge.

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Meritor Selling Stake in Joint Venture to Wabco

Advanced safety systems were one offering of the Meritor Wabco joint venture. Photo: Meritor Wabco

Wabco Holdings Inc. is expanding its operations in North America by taking full ownership of the Meritor Wabco joint venture.

Wabco announced Monday that it has signed an agreement to Meritor's stake in the joint venture business for $250 million. The transaction is expected to close on October 1.

Meritor Wabco, employing about 200 people, is headquartered in Troy, Michigan, and had sales of $300 million in fiscal year 2016. It currently sells and distributes a range of Wabco's safety and efficiency technologies for commercial vehicles in North America.

The agreement to take full control of the joint-venture business will enable Wabco to offer, all under the Wabco brand, its consolidated portfolio of products and systems, including wheel-end solutions, air disc brakes, autonomous braking, electronic stability and active steering control systems, alongside advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and a full range of aerodynamic, air management and transmission automation control products in North America.

“The acquisition of the remaining stake in Meritor Wabco furthers our commitment to expand our presence in North America,” said Jacques Esculier, Wabco chairman and CEO.

Meritor intends to use the proceeds from the transaction toward its M2019 strategic priorities, which include paying down debt, funding strategic investments and repurchasing additional shares.

"The decision to sell our interest in the JV enables us to focus on strategic priorities that involve growing our on- and off-highway, specialty, components and aftermarket businesses, among other things," said Jay Craig, Meritor CEO and president.

Wabco says this consolidation of its business organization and broader access to market in North America will strengthen its relationships with commercial vehicle manufacturers and fleets through more simplified and direct channels.

Wabco will take over the former joint venture's application engineering and supply chain operations, ...Read the rest of this story

WABCO Holdings buys out Meritor WABCO joint venture

WABCO Holdings announced it will further expand its operations in the commercial vehicle market in North America by taking full ownership of the Meritor WABCO joint venture.

WABCO has signed an agreement to purchase Meritor Inc.'s stake in the joint venture business. WABCO's purchase price is $250 million. The transaction is expected to close on Oct. 1, 2017 and immediately prior to closing, Meritor will receive a final closing partnership distribution.

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McLeod Software 2017 User Conference

McLeod Software trucking customers and technology partners gathered at the George World Congress Center in Atlanta for McLeod's 2017 user conference, which covered a wide range of critical industry topics, from how truck driver demographics are changing and how that impacts motor carrier recruiting and retention efforts to a discussion of the latest cyber security tactics; a session that features one of the FBI's top cyber security experts. (All photos by Sean Kilcarr/Fleet Owner)

FMCSA Denies ATA Petition Regarding Truck Tire Inflation Rules

Photo: Michelin

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration denied a petition filed by the American Trucking Associations that would remove a provision of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations regarding tire inflation. However, the agency says it will work with the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance to address the group's concerns when it comes to enforcement of the rule.

According to Fleet Maintenance & Technology, the publication of ATA's Technology & Maintenance Council, ATA had filed the petition to remove 49 CFR 393.75(h), "Tire inflation pressure," in January 2014. The move was based on input from TMC, which found determining tire underinflation during a roadside inspection to be a nearly impossible task for law enforcement, because of the complexity of the many issues surrounding inflation, such as tire pressure and vehicle load.

The petition asked to amend the rules so underinflated tires would only be cited for violationg 393.75(a)(3), which would be if they were flat or had an audible leak.

ATA says the regulation as currently written doesn't say what the tire pressure is when a tire is considered flat or underflated -- only that the vehicle should not be operated when the tire pressure is less than that specified for the load being carried. In 2011, CVSA asked TMC to define "underinflation," but the group was unable to reach a consensus.

"I can't determine what the load on the tire is, I don't know how long it has been running, or even how long it might have been sitting still at the scale waiting for an inspection," said Keri Wirachowsky, enforcement officer with Ontario's Ministry of Transportation. She raised the point at TMC 2013 during as S.2 Task Force session exploring alternatives to the current regulation.

FMCSA said it agreed with ATA that proper measurement of tire inflation pressure during a roadside inspection ...Read the rest of this story

MercuryGate Offers TMS Solution for Freight and Fleets

Screenshot via MercuryGate

Transportation management system provider MercuryGate has launched MercuryFleet, a product designed to combine fleet and freight management for all modes of transportation in a single platform.

The technology helps manage drivers, equipment and operations, allowing for more informed decisions, streamlining processes, and compliance with regulatory requirements.

“The MercuryFleet solution is unique in that it allows customers to not only manage drivers, equipment, and operations using one platform, but to also optimize across all modes of transportation, and to make optimal decisions regarding whether a specific shipment should move via their private fleet or a carrier,” said Todd Bucher, vice president, fleet, MercuryGate International.

The solution uses the algorithms and logic used in the Driver Safety Management System, the system used by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to calculate measures and percentiles for each driver, allowing managers to proactively analyze driver performance and predict CSA scores.

“With ongoing changes and complexity in both driver and equipment regulations and increased demands to improve service while reducing transportation costs, supply chain managers need solutions designed to address all of their needs proactively and quickly,” said Bucher.

For more information, click here.

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Commentary: Can Autonomous Trucks Help You Attract Fresh Talent?

Deborah Lockridge

Those of us in the trucking press tend to shake our heads and roll our eyes at the breathless coverage in the mainstream and tech media about “driverless trucks” and “Uber for trucking.” We know trucking is a lot more complicated than piloting a truck down the road and getting one-off loads.

But there's one good thing about all this coverage: It's helping to make trucking look “cool” to young people who may never have thought about transportation and logistics as a career.

Brett Mowers with River Valley Foods in New York was one of HDT's Emerging Leaders last year — a new award we started to highlight some of trucking's rising stars. He agrees that technology can help make transportation and logistics seem a little more glamorous. “The thought of some driverless trucks are a little scary, but it's also a little exciting to someone like me.”

And we need to capitalize on that, because from the truck cab to the shop to the corner office, our industry is graying. We need to bring in fresh talent and new ideas to ensure the continued success of our companies. But in addition to piquing their interest in our industry, we need programs to enhance their development, their knowledge of trucking and of the company they're working for.

A Gallup poll of 1,700 U.S. workers asked Baby Boomers, Millennials, and Gen Xers to rate which factors were “extremely important” in their jobs. For Millennials, the opportunity to learn and grow was rated highly far more than for Baby Boomers or for their younger GenX counterparts. Another area that scored high for all three groups was the quality of the manager or management above them. (Interestingly, factors such as “fun place to work” and “informal work environment” earned much lower scores from all ...Read the rest of this story