Heavy-duty truck manufacturers and component suppliers see record or near-record shipments in 2015, thanks to strong on-highway market activity, coupled with vocational segment recovery, to which growing concrete mixer and dump truck demand are contributing.
Introduction of vocational models equal to on/off-highway duty has been limited this year to Peterbilt Motors’ 567 Set-Forward Front Axle (page 51) version, shown at World of Concrete in Las Vegas and the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville. Responding to an emerging niche—twin-steer front axle configurations for maneuverability and bridge formula requirements—Peterbilt dealer Rush Truck Centers teamed with Custom Vehicle Solutions and Link Mfg. on a model unveiled at World of Concrete.
A different take on twin steers surfaced at Mid-America, where Western Star Trucks displayed a Con-Tech mixer-bearing 4800TS, its graphics carrying a booth-wide “Tough Challenge” theme. Also in Louisville, Link Mfg. announced a partnership with Volvo Trucks North America, centered on a special liftable pusher axle for 6×2 Volvo VNM (page 36 and Mack Pinnacle (page 47) highway tractors, both suited to cement tankers.
The Volvo Adaptive Loading and Mack Load Logic technologies spell weight savings and fuel economy—value propositions heavy-duty truck interests will increasingly embrace as the Environmental Protection Agency presses standards to lower the industry’s overall diesel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions levels. Such pursuits will run across the vehicle and component spectrum, as Cummins Emissions Solutions demonstrated at Mid-America with EcoFit Single Module. An aftertreatment device set for 2017 truck models, it weighs 40 percent less than the manufacturer’s current package. As part of our annual showcase, Concrete Products examines these and other truck notables. — Don Marsh
FEATURED TRUCKS & COMPONENTS
Volvo Trucks North America | I-Shift Automated Manual Transmission
Great Dane Trailers | Freedom XP Aluminum Flatbed
Link engineers 6×2 Pusher Axle For Volvo, Mack Programs
Shell Lubricants | Nitrite-Free Rotella Coolant
Kenworth Truck Co. | TruckTech+, NAV+ HD
BorgWarner | K32 Durospeed Fan Drive
Donaldson Co. | Blue Filters/Cummins ISX
Mack Trucks | mDrive Automated Manual Transmission
Lift axle, powertrain specs net fuel savings for cement hauling
Bendix fuses collision prevention, speed limit compliance and driver coaching technologies
XL Specialized Trailers | 140 HDE 13-Axle Trailer
Link, Custom Vehicle, Rush Truck team on twin steer program
Peterbilt Motors | Model 567 SFFA
Cummins Emissions Solutions | EcoFit Single Module
Freightliner Trucks | 122SD Upgrades
Stemco | Centrifuse HD Brake Drum
Alcoa Wheel and Transportation Products | Dura-Bright EVO
Truck frame minus 900 lb.
DEF dosing maximizes NOx reduction
WABCO – Optiride Lift Axle Control
Trail King revisits Steel