National Tank Truck Carriers leaders aim to “Drive the tank truck industry forward” in the trade association’s first trip to Indianapolis for Tank Truck Week—the industry’s biggest and best conference and trade show—where new partnerships, presentations, and NTTC campaigns also are expected to drive record attendance.
More than 1,000 industry stakeholders showed up for Tank Truck Week’s Bulk City edition last September in Houston.
“Last year, we were excited going into Houston,” Ryan Streblow, NTTC president and CEO, told Bulk Transporter in August. “We had been to Houston previously and our numbers were tracking at record levels, but when you take a look at where we are this year, in comparison to 2022, from the number of exhibitors that are coming in, along with our registrations and commitments, we are way ahead of where we were in 2022.”
Tank Truck Week 2023 is packed with segment-specific content, the long-awaited launch of NTTC’s industry branding campaign, new regulations training for hazardous materials haulers in association with the North American Transportation Management Institute (NATMI), an event-first Solutions Showcase featuring key suppliers, a Sunday Night Football-themed Political Action Committee (PAC) reception, a keynote by Rudy Ruettiger of Notre Dame football fame—whose story inspired the 1993 film Rudy—and much more.
This year’s show is Oct. 8-11 at the JW Marriott and Indiana Convention Center.
“Our staff has done a really good job of lining up the agenda, which is becoming more and more robust every year,” Streblow said.
“That is a huge driving force behind our attendance numbers.”
So is the event’s central location. Tank truckers convened in Indianapolis for NTTC’s 2021 Annual Conference with positive results largely because it’s within an eight-hour driving radius of many tank truck carriers, Streblow said. “When you look at the tank truck industry as a whole, the Greater Chicago market is a huge hub for us, and Indy is not that far of a drive for a lot of those operations,” he said. “It allows us to have a small footprint, too. The downtown area is easy to navigate, and we’re at the same JW Marriott that did an exceptional job for us in 2021, which was a major factor as to why we went back there for this event. And with the Indiana Convention Center right across the street, it really works out well.”
NTTC has over 200,000 sq. ft. contracted for Tank Truck Week, including general-session space. The convention floor features 57,400 sq. ft. of sold-out exhibit space, with 75 exhibitors registered by Aug. 21. Selected suppliers will highlight their work in the first Solutions Showcase at 2:15 p.m. Oct. 10. “You’ll have the opportunity during that time to learn about their solutions and services, and the processes behind them,” Streblow said.
The event also features the annual Safety and Security Council recognition dinner, where NTTC will honor its safety professionals of the year, segment committee meetings filled with guest speakers, and educational sessions covering everything from rear-impact guards and roadside tank inspections to data-driven safety contest insights and innovative technology that promises new levels of “visibility and transparency” in tank cleaning.
The latter session, “Seeing Through Stainless Steel,” features Brandon Johnson, president of the International Milk Haulers Association, and the Hagen Johnson Group, which includes Liquid Freight and Vessey, the company’s proprietary blockchain system that digitally documents the life of a food-transportation vessel with immutable records accessed via any device. “Our part of the supply chain doesn’t have enough visibility right now, and what’s there is fragmented,” Johnson told Bulk Transporter. “Half the rejections we experience, as a carrier and as a brokerage, involve situations where, if there had been a ‘go/no-go gauge’ at the point where the vessel was loaded, we could have avoided any problems,” he said.
Amanda Brewster, American Transportation Research Institute president and COO, will break down ATRI’s latest Operational Costs of Trucking report during Tuesday’s general session.
“There is so much packed into this show,” Streblow summarized.
Tank Truck Week 2023 schedule
Sunday, Oct. 8
- 4-5 p.m.: Tank Cleaning and Maintenance Council meeting
- 4-5 p.m.: Nominating Committee meeting
- 4:30-6:30 p.m.: Cargo Tank Risk Management Committee (CTRMC) meeting
- 5-6:30 p.m.: Young Executives Committee and first-time attendee meeting (under 45 and/or first-time attendees)
- 6:30-8 p.m.: PAC reception, JW Marriott
Monday, Oct. 9
- 8 a.m.-5 p.m.: NATMI hazmat regulations training
- 9-10 a.m.: Workforce Development Committee meeting
- 10:15-11:15 a.m.: Energy Services Committee meeting
- 12:30-1:30 p.m.: Dry Bulk and Food Grade Committee meeting
- 1:45-2:45 p.m.: Chemical Committee meeting
- 3-4:30 p.m.: General session, tank truck industry branding launch
- 4:30-6:30 p.m.: Exhibit hall open, ACT 1 grand opening reception
Tuesday, Oct. 10
- 8 a.m.-5 p.m.: NATMI hazmat regulations training
- 8:45-9:45 a.m.: Educational sessions—“Seeing Through Stainless Steel: Bringing Visibility and Transparency to the Tanker World” with Brandon Johnson; “Rear Impact Guards, the New Canadian Harmony Rule, Venting Upgrades, and HM-265A: A TTMA Update” with John Freiler; and “Become a Trainer! Deliver Distraction Free” with Jessica Williams and Ike Iketani
- 8:45-9:45 a.m.: Budget and Finance Committee meeting
- 10-11:30 a.m.: General session
- 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m.: Exhibit hall open
- 2:15-3:15 p.m.: Solutions Showcase
- 3:30-4:30 p.m.: Advocacy Committee meeting
- 4:30-6:30 p.m.: Exhibit hall open, reception
Wednesday, Oct. 11
- 9-10 a.m.: Educational sessions—“Roadside Inspections on IM/UN Portable Tanks” with Kevin Hogan; “NTTC Driver of the Year Panel” with Dan Horvath, Kenneth Tolliver, and Will Lusk; and “Operation Clean Sweep: A 360 View and the Role of Tank Truck Carriers” with Charlotte Dreizen
- 10:15-11:15 a.m.: “Understanding How Predictive Repairs and Maintenance, Optimized Diagnostics, and Analytics-Based Repairs Can Minimize Technician Training Requirements and Ease the Technician Shortage” with Kerry-Leigh Goodier; “NTTC North American Safety Contest” with Robyn Kinsley and Matt Wise; and “Protecting Your Company and Assets from Cyberattacks” with Antwan Banks
- 10:15-11:15 a.m.: Executive Committee meeting
- 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.: Exhibit hall open, prize drawings
- 1:45-3 p.m.: NTTC Board of Directors meeting
- 3:15-4:15 p.m.: Safety and Security Council meeting
- 6-9 p.m.: Safety and Security Council recognition dinner, Indiana Rooftop Ballroom
