YRC Worldwide Schedules Third Quarter 2016 Earnings Conference Call

Vipar Focuses on Future at Young Leaders Forum

John Egan is the headline speaker at this year's Young Leaders Forum. Photo courtesy of Vipar Heavy Duty

Vipar Heavy Duty will host its fourth Young Leaders Forum and Lunch during the 2016 Vipar Heavy Duty Annual Business Conference, Oct. 16-21, 2016 in Orlando, Fla.

Scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 18, the event is open to Vipar Heavy Duty stockholders and suppliers. In addition to fostering networking and collaboration among industry peers, the goal of the Young Leaders Forum is to provide the next generation of leaders with content to further personal development and gain leadership and success strategies to apply to their businesses.

The event will be headlined by John Egan, an instructor for the American Management Association and a co-founder and principal at Workforce Innovations, a Maryland-based management and organization development consulting firm.

Egan's keynote presentation is titled “Achieving Leadership Success Through People”, focusing on applying specific people skills to achieve desired results.

In addition to the luncheon, a Young Leaders reception will be hosted with GenNext during the Vipar Heavy Duty Annual Business Conference. New to this year's reception is a GenNext speed-mentoring session to give young leaders the opportunity to ask questions of industry veterans to gain insight and advice on how to be successful in the independent heavy-duty aftermarket.

This group is considered the up-and-coming leaders of tomorrow in the aftermarket truck parts industry. The core goal of GenNext is to educate, mentor, and recruit the next generation of heavy-duty aftermarket leaders.

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Related: Vipar Heavy Duty Names New Controller

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Move It, Buddy!

The American Trucking Associations has taglines such as “Trucking Moves America Forward” and “If You Bought It, a Trucker Brought It.” For over 125 years now, the trucking industry has been moving freight including the necessities of life and the luxury items of our desire.

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One Stop Shop Super Suppliers

Not only do we have consolidation in the commercial vehicle market globally, and the continued push for proprietary components that are vertically integrated, we now have suppliers pushing into the realm more than I anticipated. Back in the 90's, the vehicle OEMs were little more than assemblers of the parts provided by all the different tier 1 suppliers. When electronic engines started, the engine control became a vehicle control. This worked will for a number of years. Mack was one of the few vehicle OEMs that had its own engine, as did Navistar for some vehicles.

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Kenworth Offers Several New Options for T680 and T880

Kenworth now offers the FlowBelow Tractor AeroKit as a T680 option. Photo: Kenworth

Kenworth is offering a few new options for its heavy-duty trucks, including a new natural gas engine and bunk heater system fo the T680 and T880 and a FlowBelow AeroKit for the T680.

Kenworth will offer the Cummins Westport ISL G Near Zero NOx emissions natural gas engine on its T680 and T880 model. The engine produces emissions that are 90% lower than the current NOx limit of 0.2 gram per brake horsepower-hour and it meets the 2017 EPA greenhouse gas emission reduction requirements.

The 8.9-liter Cummins Westport ISL G Near Zero comes with ratings up to 320 horsepower and 1,000 lb-ft. of torque. The engine can operate on 100% natural gas, which can be carried on the vehicle in either compressed natural gas or liquefied natural gas form. The ISL G Near Zero is also compatible with renewable natural gas, which allows for even further reductions in GHG emissions.

“The Kenworth T680 and T880 equipped with the ISL G Near Zero emissions engine is well suited for regional haul, vocational and refuse fleets focused on the reduced environmental impact of natural gas use and reducing their operating costs,” said Jason Skoog, Kenworth assistant general manager for sales and marketing.

Kenworth is also adding cab temperature monitoring for the T680 and T880 with its Auto Start and Stop Capability and an optional Espar Airtronic D4 fuel-fired bunk heater. The Espar bunk heater produces nearly double the BTUs of Espar's previous generation heater.

“For operators who run in cold temperatures, or shut down for a 34-hour reset, our new offerings give a one-two punch in vehicle performance and driver comfort,” said Kevin Baney, Kenworth chief engineer. “We've built our power management system into what we feel is the most comprehensive system in the market. And, ...Read the rest of this story

Schneider National Planning to Go Public

Photo: Schneider 

Mega-carrier Schneider intends to pursue an initial public offering of common stock next year, per a statement it released on Oct. 7.

According to the privately held motor carriage and logistics firm, the IPO will facilitate “continuity of controlling ownership of Schneider by the future generations of the Schneider family… and to maintain and further investments in its long-term positioning. The Schneider family and the board of directors believe the planned transaction is in the best interests of Schneider, its associates, customers, and shareholders.”

Green Bay-based Schneider reportedly recorded $4 billion in revenue for 2015.

Back in June, the company announced the simultaneous acquisitions of specialized carrier Watkins & Shepard and supply-chain tech firm Lodeso to strengthen the carrier's Final Mile+ offering, which provides customized home, commercial and retail delivery services. “The ability to provide differentiated experiences for retailers, manufacturers and consumers is a primary area of strategic growth for Schneider,” Chris Lofgren, Schneider president and CEO, noted at the time.

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Parts of I-95 in North Carolina Still Closed

Clearing a road of debris from Hurricane Matthew. Photo: South Carolina Dept. of Transportation

Interstate 95 is closed in multiple locations between Exit 77 (Dunn, N.C.) and the South Carolina state line due to flooding in the wake of Hurricane Matthew, according to the latest update issued by the North Carolina Department of Transportation. In addition, I-40 West is closed between Exit 341, NC-55 to Exit 334, NC-96 between Newton Grove and Benson, also due to flooding.

NCDOT added that all lanes of I-95 in South Carolina between Exit 68 SC-61 and the Georgia State line are open. Indeed, South Carolina DOT's latest update shows all Interstates are open. However, numerous stretches of U.S. and state highways there remain closed due to a variety of causes, including road washouts, flooding, fallen trees, and downed power lines.

Georgia DOT stated this morning that I-16 Eastbound is now open. I-95 is also open. The department has set up a special hurricane page to provide the latest information on road closures and other public services impacted by the hurricane.

In Florida, which was hit first by Matthew on Friday, only two road closures were noted as of this morning by the state's DOT. A portion of FL A1A in Flagler Beach remains closed as does a bridge on FL 206 in Crescent Beach.

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