China heavy-duty truck demand declines

Sales of heavy-duty commercial vehicles totaled 204,250 units in third quarter 2010, a 16% increase from third quarter 2009 but a 36% decline from the record sales of the second quarter of this year. ...

December Class 8 preliminary orders surge

December preliminary net orders of heavy-duty Class 8 commercial vehicles for North American markets were 25,500 units, according to ACT Research Co. ...

PTDI recertifies three training programs

Three driver training programs concerned with driver safety and offering quality training recently received recertification of their courses from the Professional Truck Driver Institute (PTDI): ATDS, Elm Mott TX; Baker College of Cadillac MI; and Houston (TX) Community College Commercial Truck Driving Center. The current list of all schools with PTDI-certified courses can be found at www.ptdi.org. ...

Westport Innovations announces Vedder
order for 50 Peterbilt 386 LNG trucks

Westport Innovations Inc announced that Vedder Transport Ltd of Abbotsford, British Columbia has issued a purchase order for 50 Peterbilt 386 liquefied natural gas (LNG) trucks featuring Westport HD Systems....

Biodiesel tax incentive gains an extension

On December 17, President Barack Obama signed HR 4853, the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010. The legislation, among its provisions, retroactively extends the biodiesel tax incentive through 2011. ...

PHMSA may hand off cargo tank rulemaking to ASME, National Board

An end-of-the-year Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) laid out the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration’s (PHMSA’s) plan to turn over regulation writing responsibility for cargo tanks to a couple of industry organizations. The ANPRM was published in the December 29, 2010 issue of the Federal Register...

LongMile DPF achieves CARB verification

Detroit Diesel announced that Cleaire Advanced Emission Controls’ LongMile diesel particulate filter containing Detroit Diesel’s sintered metal filter technology has been verified by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) as Level 3+....

Support grows for Keystone XL project

The active and growing campaign in support of a new pipeline connecting secure sources of energy in Canada to consumers in the United States has gotten a huge boost, as members of Congress from Florida to Utah joined together on a letter to the US State Department urging the agency to approve the final permitting documents for the Keystone Gulf Coast Expansion....

ATA assails Obama Administration proposal for revising HOS regulations

In a self-described effort to get the hours-of-service rules “right” for professional truck drivers, the Obama Administration missed the mark in many ways with its December 23, 2010 proposal, according to the American Trucking Associations (ATA)....

Eaton hybrids chalk up 100 million miles

Eaton Corporation announced that customers of its hybrid systems have collectively accumulated more than 100 million miles of service, reducing fuel consumption by 4 million gallons of diesel fuel and harmful emissions by 40,000 metric tons....

Griswold provides 17-inch 811 pumps

Griswold Pump Company is offering three new 17-inch 811 Series pump models. These new models complete the ANSI B73.1 product line and are 100% compatible/interchangeable with many competitive B73.1 pump models....

Littelfuse acquires Cole Hersee

Cole Hersee Company has been acquired by Littelfuse Inc of Chicago IL. The combined company will be well-positioned to better serve OEMs and aftermarket customers in the heavy vehicle sector. ...

Price of diesel fuel registers
its fifth straight increase

Diesel started the new year with a 3.7-cent increase to $3.331 a gallon, according to US Department of Energy information....

FMCSA issues proposal
on hours-of-service rules

The US Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has issued a regulatory proposal that would revise hours-of-service (HOS) requirements for commercial truck drivers....

Commercial Vehicle Group revises website

Commercial Vehicle Group Inc has launched a new version of the company's website. The new site's design features more ways for distributors, retail, and...

Diesel price up 1.7 cents

The average price for diesel fuel in the U.S. increased 1.7 cents to $3.248 per gallon this week, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA). That’s up 5.1 cents from $3.197 two weeks ago...

Economic outlook for US chemical industry improving, ACC report finds

The outlook for the US chemicals manufacturing sector is improving gradually and global production is set to increase in the coming year, thanks in part to dramatic growth in export markets for the products of chemistry...

Longwei Petroleum announces new Gujiao facility contracts

Longwei Petroleum Investment Holding Ltd, an energy company engaged in storage and distribution of finished petroleum products in the People’s Republic of China, announced annual contracts with two new customers for its Gujiao petroleum storage facility representing sales of 19,000 metric tons of petroleum products. The company estimates that the contracts will be worth approximately $20.1 million based on current pricing levels...

Carriers expect to replace aging tractors, but fleet capacity expansion plans lag

Transport Capital Partners LLC (TCP) has completed its Business Expectation Survey for the fourth quarter of 2010 and found that those carriers surveyed have shifted to more aggressive acquisition/replacement plans compared with the previous four quarters...

Economic trends buoying Class 8 demand

The freight segments of the economy continue to display signs of stability and growth, which along with other factors, is providing a solid lift in demand for commercial vehicles over the next couple of years, according to ACT Research Co. Demand for both heavy-duty (Class 8) vehicles and commercial trailers will drive significant production gains for North American OEMs in the next two years...

Flint Hills opens central Texas fuel terminal

Flint Hills Resources has opened a new fuel terminal in Mustang Ridge TX to serve central Texas customers...

Miller opens New Orleans LA facility

Miller Transporters Inc announces the opening of its newest facility in New Orleans LA. Brandon Mosley, formerly a dispatcher at Miller’s Mobile AL facility, has accepted the position of terminal manager. A Daphne AL native, Brandon has been with Miller since December 2005...

Bendix applauds passage of state laws limiting copper in brake friction materials

Bendix Spicer Foundation Brake LLC applauds the recent state laws passed in California and Washington that reduce the amount of copper allowed in brake friction materials beginning in 2021. The company’s lineup of Bendix brand foundation drum brakes—available on a full range of OE models—currently meets the new state mandates...

EPA gives $5 million to finance clean diesel

The US Environmental Protection Agency has awarded $5 million to the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy (SACE) to help Southern truckers and small businesses buy cleaner big rigs...

Schneider National participates in DRII business continuity certification program

Moving freight through the supply chain requires great attention to risk management on the road and rails and in the back office. Any disruption to the flow of goods...