Fleet Owner

Jim Mele

Editor-in-chief

Email jim.mele@penton.com

Nationally recognized journalist, author and editor, Jim Mele joined Fleet Owner in 1986 with over a dozen years’ experience covering transportation as a newspaper reporter and magazine staff writer. Fleet Owner Magazine has won over 45 national editorial awards since his appointment as editor-in-chief in 1999.

Articles by Jim Mele

Fleets online: Record building

Company: City of Hoboken, Hoboken, NJ

Operation: Midsized municipal fleet serving small but dense urban area

Tough quarter, good year for truck sales

Los Cabos, Mexico. While the first three months of medium- and heavy-duty truck sales in North America will be “the toughest quarter,” the rest of the year should see steady growth. Total sales for the year “should be within 10% up or down of 2012,” according to Mark Lampert, sr. vp of sales and marketing for Daimler Trucks North America.

“It’s far from dead out there,” he said at a press briefing. “We’re not saying it’s strong, but there is a pretty good level of order [intake] and quote activity.”

The 2013 Fleet Owner 500 1

Much like the overall economy, status quo is the overriding theme for our 10th annual Fleet Owner 500 ranking of the top private fleets in the U.S. Just like America’s sputtering economic growth in 2012, there’s little change from last year in the rankings and equipment totals among the country’s largest private fleets.

Doing nothing is expensive

It’s commonly accepted that our highways, bridges and other public infrastructure components are deteriorating. In 2009 the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) handed out a failing grade of D when it released its “Report Card on America’s Infrastructure.” And when its next report card is issued later this year, I wouldn’t be surprised to see that failing grade fall to an even more dismal F.

Different fleets, same concerns

LAS VEGAS. While a truckload carrier is a very different from a waste collection business, there are common concerns among all types of fleets when it comes to issues of maintenance and keeping trucks on the road.

Any and all ideas welcome

Our annual outlook analysis for the coming year has tapped drivers as the one issue that will overshadow all others for trucking. The question is, how will you deal with it?

It’s widely anticipated that qualified drivers are going to be in short supply, especially for heavy-duty, long-haul fleets. The individual factors behind that shortage have been widely recognized for some time, but for a variety of reasons they will converge in 2013 to create a situation that can no longer be ignored.

Helping drivers live longer

If you know anything about trucking, you won’t be surprised to hear that over-the-road truck drivers have a life expectancy that’s 12 to 16 years shorter than the average American man. It’s a job that combines long, sedentary hours behind the wheel; the constant high stress of piloting a large, heavy combination vehicle in traffic and at high speeds; shifting sleep cycles in a 24/7 business; and limited choices as to when, where and what to eat.

Volvo Trucks president Nyberg looking for growth

GREENSBORO, N.C. The new head of the Volvo brand in North America has set his eyes on a 13% to 15% share of the heavy-duty market, a significant jump from the 12.1% share it held in 2011 and the 10.7% recorded through the first 10 months of 2012. Only on the job as president of Volvo Trucks North America (VTNA) sales & marketing since Oct. 1, Goran Nyberg has taken stock quickly and believes Volvo has both the dealer network and heavy-duty products to move beyond its long-haul niche and take that next step.

New year’s wishes

If I had to describe 2012 in one word, it would be meh. Whether it’s originally one of those great expressive Yiddish words, or first fell from the animated lips of Homer Simpson, it perfectly embodies this year’s neither-here-nor-there, uninspiring slog through issues and conditions that never reach crisis status, but also never seem to be resolved. Or to paraphrase one executive, there’s been nothing to really complain about, but no one’s dancing on the table. So as trucking readies itself for a new year, here are my wishes to deliver us from meh in 2013.

Shell adds premium ATF for heavy-duty Allison Transmissions

NEW YORK. A new automatic transmission fluid from Shell Lubricants for heavy-duty Allison transmissions meets that company's specifications for extended warranty and drain intervals.

Shell Spirax S6 ATF A295 is a synthetic ATF that meets Allison Transmission's TES-295 specification, allowing drain intervals to be stretched as long as 300,000 mi. depending on the application, according to Stede Granger, OEM technical services manager for Shell Global Solutions (US).

Shell’s Arcy: Two separate oils on track for 2016

NEW YORK. A replacement for the current API CJ-4 heavy-duty engine oilspecification is not scheduled to be on the market until Jan. 1, 2016, but the first new heavy-duty engine oil classification in 10 years will in all likelihood be two separate oils, one of which may not be compatible with current truck engines.

Green Fleet of the Month: A good neighbor

In New York City, it seems like every time you look up, you’re standing next to a Duane Reade store. That’s not quite true, but the local drug store chain does have some 200 outlets spread among its five boroughs and the surrounding metro area, making it almost as common a sight in the Big Apple as a hot dog cart.

Data, data everywhere

There’s been a quiet revolution in trucking, and we are just beginning to explore what it means for the industry.

The Blue Fleet: A Practical Guide to Natural Gas

Up to this point, most of the attention has been focused on how a fringe energy source for vehicles is turning into both a practical and irresistibly attractive option for truck fleets. In the past few years, a great deal has been written about the development of new natural gas (NG) engines capable of drawing acceptable performance for trucking applications and about better on-vehicle storage opertions.

Fiscal cliff fears will keep freight ‘going sideways’

Las Vegas. Congressional inaction on the “fiscal cliff” - expiration of tax cuts and automatic budget reductions schedule to take effect in January - is creating overall economic uncertainty that could limit GDP growth to under 2% next year and limit freight growth, according to Bob Costello, chief economist of the American Trucking Assns. (ATA).