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UK-based Ricardo, like Austria's AVL, is a premier for-hire engineering house. Torotrak (mentioned in the article) is supplying the Flybrid KERS (flywheel hybrid kinetic energy recovery system) for the Nissan GTR LM Nismo Le Mans race car.

Reuters / June 8, 2015 U.S. safety officials called on automakers to begin installing collision avoidance systems in all new passenger and commercial vehicles, saying existing technology could save lives and avoid injuries by reducing rear-end collisions. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said in a 63-page report on Monday that rear-end crashes kill about 1,700 people and injure half a million annually. It said more than 80 percent of the human toll could be mitigated if vehicles were equipped with collision avoidance systems. Collision avoidance systems use radar, lasers or cameras to detect potential crash situations and either warn the driver or apply the brakes automatically. NTSB, whose recommendations are not binding, wants the technology included as a standard feature in new cars, trucks and buses, and criticized federal auto regulators for taking "slow or insufficient action" to require the innovation. "Currently available forward collision avoidance technologies for passenger and commercial vehicles still show clear benefits that could reduce rear-end crash fatalities. However, more must be done to speed up deployment of these technologies in all vehicle types," the NTSB report said. Only four out of 684 passenger vehicle models in 2014 included a complete forward collision avoidance system as a standard feature, NTSB said. The systems are often made available as options that can make a vehicle more expensive. "You don't pay extra for your seatbelt," NTSB Chairman Christopher Hart said in a statement released with the report. "And you shouldn't have to pay extra for technology that can help prevent a collision altogether." NTSB, which has issued a dozen recommendations on collision avoidance over the past 20 years, called on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to include performance ratings for collision avoidance systems in its safety evaluations of new automobile designs. NHTSA welcomed NTSB's recommendations and said it has taken a number of steps to promote advanced safety technologies, including addition of automatic emergency braking as a safety performance measure for new car designs. "We look forward to further discussions with NTSB, industry, safety advocates and others about ways to make advanced safety technologies broadly available," the U.S. auto safety regulator said.

Press Release / June 3, 2015 Relating to a purchasing agreement concluded with Mercedes-Benz last year, Hankook tires are now available as original equipment on the award-winning New Actros. The all-position Hankook AL10 is designed to provide users with excellent durability and prevent uneven wear across the tire’s surface with its advanced tread designs. Maximizing handling and control, the reliable AL10 boasts improved stability for greater cornering performance and will be supplied in two sizes – 295/80R22.5 and 385/55R22.5. The Hankook DL10 drive axle tire prevents uneven abrasion from occurring, all while maintaining an outstanding driving performance. The DL10 provides increased long-term longevity by providing high grip and enhanced traction. This model is released in the sizes 295/80R22.5 and 315/70R22.5. Both the AL10 and DL10 are Euro-6 optimized, providing New Actros operators with higher mileage, extra high fuel efficiency and low rolling resistance. Designed for on/off road service, Hankook’s all-position AM06 and DM03 drive axle vocational tires deliver enhanced toughness, longer tread-life and improved traction under the most inhospitable road conditions. Both the AM06 and DM03 resist cutting and chipping with their split- and bruise-resistant side wall rubber, are designed with a thicker, extended shoulders to prevent sidewall failures and offer outstanding casing durability owing to their computer-optimized construction. AL10 - http://www.hankooktire.com/global/truck-buses-tires/hankook-e-cube-al10.html DL10 - http://www.hankooktire.com/global/truck-buses-tires/hankook-e-cube-dl10.html AM06 - http://www.hankooktire-eu.com/tires/tire-presenter-single-view/view/singleView.html?aoetirepresenter[offset]=20&aoetirepresenter[tire]=88&aoetirepresenter[back]=213&cHash=1053e2b5e924af1d3c4413a48b7f81f1 DM03 - http://www.hankooktire-eu.com/tires/tire-presenter-single-view/view/singleView.html?aoetirepresenter[offset]=20&aoetirepresenter[tire]=90&aoetirepresenter[back]=213&cHash=850ee65253936605be4f0c043cae667b

Press Release / June 8, 2015 The International Exhibition for Rescue, Fire Prevention, Disaster Relief, Safety and Security will be held from June 8 to 13 in Hannover, Germany. TATRA TRUCKS will participate in collaboration with THT Polička, a major manufacturer of fire fighting superstructures on TATRA vehicles. Our stand No. A15 can be found in Hall 24. At the fair we will introduce the TATRA FORCE vehicle in 6x6 version, with the CAS 30 fire tanker, supplied by THT Polička, a traditional manufacturer of firefighting superstructures for the TATRA chassis. The vehicle with the type designation T815-731R32.6x6 is based on a unique concept of Tatra chassis with powertrain consisting of a 12.7-litre, air-cooled, 8-cylinder TATRA engine with a power output of 325 kW at 1,800 rpm and the automatic TATRA-Norgren transmission. The fire superstructure is made up of tanks with a capacity of 9,000 liters of water and 540 liters of a foam extinguisher and a lot of storage space for firefighting equipment, incl. the pump of flow rate 3,000 l/min in the low-pressure mode or 300 l/min in the high-pressure mode. The vehicle is designed primarily for missions off-road - in the forest and difficult to reach terrain. Thanks to its low overall height, it can also be applied in urban and built-up areas where the extinguishing equipment must cope with a number of obstacles in the form of various underpasses or passages. Thanks to the chassis air suspension that provides the crew with comfort and the vehicle with greater speed even in rough terrain, the overall height can be changed further - reduced by 120 mm or, if necessary, on the contrary increased (ride height increase) by 90 mm. These vehicles are very popular among the Czech and Slovak units, which obtained over 260 vehicles in recent two years. The second exhibit will be a TATRA TERRA model series vehicle with the type designation T815-231R55.4x4 with a crew cab for the team of 2+4. Again, the vehicle is based on a Tatra chassis equipped with an 8-cylinder, air-cooled TATRA engine with the power output of 325 KW and TATRA-Norgren transmission. The fire superstructure comprises a 4,000-litre water tank and a 240-litre foam compound tank, and also features a number of storage areas that are accessible, as in the previous vehicle, from the ground without tilting stairs. Also this model enjoys great favor of the Czech and Slovak firefighters. Both vehicles are equipped with the Euro 5 engines based on the exceptions that apply to the fire brigades in the European countries. We believe that the interest comes from Germany and Austria where the TATRA brand is still well known. We have verified this during the presentation in Bad Kleinkirchheim in Austria where we tested TATRA watertenders in hard Alpine conditions. It will be our pleasure to meet you at the stand of THT Polička and TATRA TRUCKS at the INTERSCHUTZ Fair on June 8 to 13. .

Press Release / June 8, 2015 Fire brigades and disaster relief organisations rely on emergency vehicles from MAN. MAN is presenting a wide range of rescue vehicles which meet sector requirements at Interschutz 2015 in Hanover, the world's international trade fair for fire prevention, disaster relief, safety and security. The innovations exhibited by MAN at the trade fair include many sector-specific features: Euro 6 engines for rescue vehicles, integration of Allison automatic gearboxes in the driveline, electronic stability programme (ESP) for rescue vehicles with engageable all-wheel drive, crew cab combined with Euro 6 emission control system and payload optimisation in the TGL series. Details: http://www.corporate.man.eu/en/press-and-media/presscenter/Reliability-in-fire-service-operations-MAN-at-Interschutz-2015-208512.html

“The Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration, having been asked to issue a report on the potential impacts on safety, infrastructure and freight movement if size and weight limits permitted larger, heavier trucks, says in its report that there are “significant data limitations” in finding answers to the questions surrounding a size and weight limit increase, and that thus it cannot make a policy recommendation to Congress until more data can be found. “Importantly, the Department finds that the data limitations are so profound that no changes in the relevant laws and regulations should be considered until these limitations are overcome,” the DOT says in its report summary.” Is one to believe that Federal Highway Administration employees (i.e. employees of the American people) are so supremely unqualified for their assigned job task of federal highway administration that they are actually unable to report on the potential impacts on safety, infrastructure and freight movement if longer and inherently heavier truck combinations are allowed ???

Area Development / June 2, 2015 D & B Trucks and Equipment Sales, which builds and sells truck gliders, plans to invest $575,000 to expand its manufacturing plant in Glasgow, Kentucky. The company plants to add up to 50 new associates to its workforce in Barren County. The company purchases old or wrecked semi-trucks, deconstructs them to the framing and re-assembles them on a new chassis and shell with rebuilt engines, transmissions and clutches. These gliders are also customized with more user-friendly components than brand new trucks, which give them a competitive edge. D & B plans to add 9,600 square feet to its current 15,440-square-foot operation on Burkesville Road. The expansion, which will be completed this fall, will allow to the company to more than double its monthly production. “We are very excited about our expansion and the opportunity to provide more jobs in Barren County,” said Owner Dale Clark. “After construction is completed in late October, we will begin the hiring process. We are grateful of the support we have received from our local and state government and are looking forward to this new venture and continued growth.” To encourage the investment and job creation, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority preliminarily approved the company for tax incentives up to $400,000 through the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based incentive allows a company to keep a portion of its investment over the term of the agreement through corporate income tax credits and wage assessments by meeting job and investment targets. In addition, D & B is eligible to receive resources from the Kentucky Skills Network. Through the Kentucky Skills Network, companies are eligible to receive no cost recruitment and job placement services, reduced cost customized training and job training incentives. Last year, the Kentucky Skills Network trained more than 84,000 employees from more than 4,100 Kentucky companies. “The evolution of D & B Trucks and Equipment in Glasgow is a great success story in south central Kentucky,” said Governor Steve Beshear. “Over the past 14 years, the company has blossomed into a booming truck glider assembly business. I congratulate D & B for this expansion and for creating dozens of jobs in the region.” Related reading: http://migration.kentucky.gov/newsroom/governor/20150602trucks.htm .

Southern California Port Truckers Say Inspection Program Causing Congestion Heavy Duty Trucking / June 8, 2015 The California Trucking Association recently came out against a new chassis equipment inspection process at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, saying they are causing congestion problems, according to a report in the Long Beach Press-Telegram. The inspections are carried out by members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, who approve chassis and trailers at the port for roadability. This step slows down the process for drivers finding a chassis to carry out cargo, causing truckers to have to wait, according to the CTA. The trucking association attacked the practice in a statement saying the inspections inefficient and unnecessary. It called for the ILWU and Pacific Maritime Association to work with the trucking community to resolve the issue. The CTA represents more than 200 trucking companies that service ports across California. "The PMA and ILWU both claim they want to work to resolve congestion, but the implementation of inefficient, unnecessary chassis inspections says otherwise,” said Alex Cherin, executive director fo the Intermodal Conference of the CTA. “Chassis should be repaired and inspected before they are provided to truckers, not after.” Responding to the statement in the Press-Telegram, a representative of the ILWU said that the inspection program was necessary for safety. Chassis inspection and repair was a major point of contention in the labor negotiations between the ILWU and PMA that caused work stoppages at the ports earlier this year, according to an early report. In the meantime, the CTA says it is looking at the legality of ILWU inspections and is seeking input from federal regulators on the matter.

Transport Engineer / June 2, 2015 Flywheels are among the simplest of devices ever considered for storing energy – but not when it comes to running them at 60,000rpm. Brian Tinham reports on technology spinning off into commercial vehicles soon. Often described as mechanical batteries, but with characteristics more closely resembling those of super-capacitors, flywheels are closer than ever to rolling into mainstream road transport. On the face of it, that's a strange assertion: records of flywheels in machines stretch back more than 1,000 years and they have been mainstays of steam engines almost since their invention – and latterly also internal combustion engines, regardless of fuel. So, surely, these are neither novel inventions, nor old technologies condemned to wait in the wings for unforeseen applications? Indeed, but the point is that, to date, flywheels have been exploited almost exclusively for their ability to regulate rotational speed, harnessing what can best be described as their rotational inertia, or, if you prefer, angular momentum. However, the flywheels we're getting excited about today draw upon their complementary property to store – albeit only for short periods – vast kinetic energy, and then release it to vehicles' drive wheels on demand in a controlled fashion to assist with acceleration. We're talking about mechanical, as opposed to electrical, KERS (kinetic energy recovery systems). Granted, the physics remain the same: in the end, all flywheels store kinetic energy in proportion to the square of their angular velocity and radius (the latter determining moments of inertia). But the new function's focus is profoundly different. And so, accordingly, is the mechanical engineering required to deliver it. Hence the observation that flywheels as now conceived are recent in concept, ingenious in execution – and just around the corner for commercial vehicles. So let's take a look at two quite separate developments: those of Torotrak's Flybrid and Ricardo's TorqStor. Both rely on flywheels' fundamental dependence on speed squared to store power, so have been designed to rotate at tens of thousands of rpm. To minimise drag and heat losses, each also runs in a vacuum – which is where much of the ingenuity comes in. And, since mass is not a major contributor to energy capacity (being only linearly proportional), each has been engineered for low weight. That sits well with potential vehicle operators fixated on payload, and it confers the engineering advantages that flow from relatively small, low-torque rotating components – including small gyroscopic forces. But that's where the similarities end. Flybrid first, and Torotrak sales and product development director Jon Hilton is the driving force here, having masterminded the project since he started Flybrid Automotive in 2007. That move followed his exit from Renault F1 after 17 years in motorsport (his formative years were in helicopter engine design with Rolls-Royce Aerospace), in the wake of the 2006 rule change prohibiting engine enhancements. "We were making our engines go 5% faster every year and had been considering KERS. But when all that stopped, Doug Cross and I had a novel idea and started our own business," he recalls. That idea was a fully mechanical direct-drive KERS that, at a stroke, would eliminate any reliance on the cost, complexity and weight that arise from high-power electrics, electric-hybrid technology and batteries. But it wasn't without its challenges. "Among the key issues we had to overcome was how to run the flywheel in a vacuum," states Hilton. "Yes, we could maintain an evacuated chamber using an internal vacuum pump, but we had to prevent air ingress via the spinning flywheel shaft, even at 60,000rpm. So we developed a rotating seal mechanism, which has since joined our list of around 60 patents, along with the vacuum pump, bearing lubrication system, etc." Interestingly, those bearings are off-the-shelf hybrid units, selected for their steel race and ceramic balls. They don't fail, because they run outside the vacuum chamber – not subjected to temperatures and pressures of 100C and 1mbar – meaning Flybrid can also use conventional oils without risk of boil-off. That pragmatic engineering typifies every aspect of this KERS system's development. Hilton is reluctant to provide too much detail, but says: "Everything is designed and manufactured in-house: the gearbox, clutches, even the splined shafts and the rest of the transmission – as well as the pumps, electro-hydraulic controls and the software. And he insists that this approach has been vital to building a system that not only works efficiently and cost effectively, but is also bullet proof. So far, so good. How about TorqStor? David Rollafson, Ricardo's vice president of global innovation and TorqStor project director, explains that this too had its origins in Formula One and at much the same time as Flybrid. It was never used in anger, but Ricardo kept the concept under development and, although faced with precisely the same engineering challenges, two years ago went public with a very different solution to Torotrak's. Its designers had gone for a robust, permanently sealed vacuum chamber containing the flywheel – meaning no pump or rotating seal – with the torque then transferred via close-coupled magnets. "Our flywheel has a set of magnets embedded in the outer edge matched by magnets outside the chamber on the drive cup," explains Rollafson. Making that work has been challenging, he concedes, with much of the effort revolving around materials science and magnetic control. The result: TorqStor's outer casing is fabricated from aluminium, while the vacuum cartridge itself is 10mm rigid composite. Inside the vacuum chamber, static ferrous pole pieces form a central magnetic gear, interacting with the rotating flywheel magnets on the inside and those forming the drive coupling on the outside. "Think of it as a magnetic version of planetary gears in an epicyclic arrangement, with the magnetic flux rotating around the poles," suggests Rollafson. As for the flywheel itself, that comprises two parts – a shaft and hub made from nothing more fancy than high-speed gear steel, and the circumferential magnets, electrically isolated from the steel. Given that the flywheel is designed to rotate at 45,000rpm, the magnets are retained in place by tensioned carbon fibre filaments. Complex? Yes. Esoteric? Actually, no. And by applying industrial design techniques to this prototype, Ricardo has come up with a modular system capable of storing 4.5MJ by the simple expedient of expanding the sealed housing and extending the spinning axle to accommodate a secondary simple carbon fibre flywheel, also in the vacuum. Sizing this latter mass is then about using a software design tool in combination with an assessment of the vehicle application – the point being that you can never recover more than the energy available to harvest. And as for maintenance: the whole capsule is removable as a bolt off/on service replacement item. Moving on to the power transmission method and control system, Rollafson explains that there are several options, depending on duty cycle (constant or variable speed/torque output, auxiliary or drive power, etc) and the drivetrain configuration. That might involve using a variator to mitigate for decaying flywheel speed – in Ricardo's case, a variable displacement pump motor for off-road vehicles, or a CVT (continuously variable transmission) for on road. Alternatively, the company has investigated using motor-generators with power electronics, although that clearly adds to the costs. Whatever the engineering selection, the control system then has to be tuned to the precise requirements. So much for the engineering design. Turning to applications, Ricardo has focused initially on the off-highway and rail industries. "We bought an excavator, disassembled its hydraulics, built in the KERS flywheel and then reassembled it with our own controls to demonstrate a working vehicle. That was important, not only because potential users want to see the real thing and assess real fuel savings, but also because we needed to demonstrate that a hybridised system could maintain its 'feel' for professional excavator drivers," says Rollafson. So Ricardo's excavator has spent the last 12 months digging sand, gravel, etc, and providing evidence that flywheels save money. "Now we're working with Tier One suppliers and OEMs who will hopefully be taking our systems and building them in volume for the off-highway plant market." As for the rail industry, development to date has been under an InnovateUK (formerly the Technology Strategy Board) project with Bombardier and Artemis, together building a rail simulator. "To go further, we'll have to adapt a locomotive with our KERS and implement a new control design – and we may have a few announcements to make shortly," smiles Rollafson. What about Torotrak? Hilton explains that, like Ricardo, interest in Flybrid started in motor racing, with Honda, Jaguar and Volvo among big names signing up to early projects. However, the focus has since shifted to buses and off-road vehicles, with Wrightbus and JCB (the latter also under an InnovateUK project, with £7.3 million funding) going public. Indeed, back in March, Wrightbus announced that its first Flybrid KERS StreetLite bus had gone into full-service trials with Arriva in Gillingham, Kent. That system, developed with Arriva, Productiv and Voith Turbo, was fitted in parallel to the transmission on the driveline and linked directly to the rear axle by an additional prop shaft. It also communicates with the vehicle's transmission to manage shifting and engine torque-down to achieve synchronisation and gain the fuel benefits when the flywheel is providing motive power. Wrightbus engineering director Brian Maybin reveals that this project began two years ago, stating that tests on a retrofitted Arriva bus at the Millbrook test chamber had been "very encouraging". He reckons that "significant" fuel savings are available – enough to give bus operators a five year payback, which is way better than the 12 years typically achievable with diesel-electric hybrids. Is that realistic? Hilton is unequivocal: if the duty cycle involves urban driving, then absolutely yes. "It's not about stopping at bus stops: it's variations in running speed that are most worthwhile, because energy stored is proportional to speed squared. Unlike electric-diesel hybrids, we capture much more energy as vehicles slow from 30 to 25mph under normal driving conditions, than we do from five to zero." That fact alone points to the sheer potential for flywheel-based KERS across other urban vehicles. Another is that the Wrightbus-Arriva system is capable of delivering 150bhp for short periods, yet the flywheel weighs just 8kg. "Batteries will never touch the power to weight ratio of flywheels," enthuses Hilton. "Admittedly, power delivery is short-lived, but if you installed a 25kg flywheel on a truck, you could comfortably get 1,000bhp." Incidentally, reaction times are also extremely fast – from zero to full torque in 12msec and back to zero in 9msec. "So we can easily react to instantaneous throttle demand by ramping up torque ahead of turbo lag, so avoiding fuel-rich spikes on the engine when it's at its least efficient and so minimising tailpipe NOx and particulates." And you can see the scope for remapping engine strategies vehicle-by-vehicle not only to reduce fuel consumption at a macro level but also to slash emissions at the micro level. Hence the existence of several demonstrator vehicles on behind-the-scenes trials now, says Hilton, and not just buses – although he is reluctant to name participants. "KERS packages designed for buses can fit more or less straight into trucks – just outside the chassis rail, and with the KERS prop shaft driving through a pillar bearing into the differential. That would be pretty universal for long wheelbase trucks, such as RCVs [refuse collection vehicles], but also delivery trucks on urban duties." When can we expect series production? Hilton says Torotrak will be shipping Flybrid KERS packages for buses next year and that trucks will be next. "We have been talking to truck manufacturers for some time. This will be a good application behind Wrightbus." http://www.transportengineer.org.uk/article-images/83807/Spinning_wheel.pdf

Fleet Owner / June 8, 2015 The Dept. of Transportation on Friday released the technical reports of its congressionally mandated study on truck and size weight limits to mixed reviews: While the preliminary release comes with a call for peer review and public comment, highway safety groups praised the report and called on Congress to reject any truck size increases; big trucking “lambasted” it and decried DOT’s conclusions as political; and big shippers found the report “neither surprising nor unexpected” and encouraged Congress to support more productive trucks as a solution to truck capacity shortages. The hubbub, essentially, is because the report couldn’t come up with any definitive conclusion due to insufficient data—and, given the insufficiency, DOT recommended lawmakers should not consider changes to the status quo until more research could be done, according to the summary provided in a Q&A posted along with an executive summary and the five “comparative assessment documents,” or the technical reports mandated by Congress in MAP-21, the 2012 highway bill. In a letter to Congress explaining the findings, DOT Under Secretary Peter Rogoff suggested that “a more robust study effort” would be needed to “advance the state of practice.” “At this time, the department believes that the current data limitations are so profound that the results cannot accurately be extrapolated to predict national impacts,” Rogoff writes in a highlighted conclusion. “As such, the Department believes that no changes in the relevant truck size and weight laws and regulations should be considered until these data limitations are overcome.” The Truck Safety Coalition, made up of several highway safety and trucking watchdog groups, encouraged Congress to follow the recommendation and oppose a policy rider in the current DOT funding bill that would permit twin 33-foot trailers on the nation’s Interstates. “Congressional backroom deals that result in policy changes which will increase truck crash deaths and injuries should be based on scientific data and objective research and not generous campaign contributions from powerful corporate interests,” said Joan Claybrook, chair, Citizens for Reliable and Safe Highways. “Congress should not buy a pig in a poke and impose heavier trucks on the American people with no evidence they are as safe as trucks today.” American Trucking Assns. (ATA), which supports permitting the longer trailers, said their safe and efficient use in Florida and North Dakota demonstrate “the obvious benefits,” including saving consumers “billions of dollars.” “Given the timing of the release of this study, it is an obvious attempt to promote administration policy, rather than give Congress the unbiased information it requested,” ATA President and CEO Bill Graves said in a statement. “It is appalling that after years of saying the study would not make recommendations, DOT officials would release this report—and recommend no change in current law—just days after the White House came out opposing truck productivity increases.” A group of shippers organized to advocate for bigger trucks found the policy glass half full, however, and said the findings actually contribute to the “growing list” of research which “debunks several major points of opposition” to six-axle truck weight reform. “U.S. DOT officials began this study process with the intention to only release technical findings and make no policy recommendations,” said John Runyan, executive director for the Coalition for Transportation Productivity (CTP). “The department’s inability to endorse gross vehicle weight reform without a more robust study is neither surprising nor unexpected, especially given the highly charged atmosphere surrounding this study.” The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Assn. has long opposed bigger trucks, maintaining that increases would not only compromise highway safety and infrastructure, but also lead to significant new cost increases for small-business truckers. .

Customer needs drove design of Kalmar Ottawa T2 Fleet Owner / June 8, 2015 Introduced earlier this year, terminal tractor offers quicker hook-up, other advantages over using tractors. When Kalmar Ottawa decided it was time to develop a new terminal tractor, the company went straight to its customers for help. The company invited a range of customers – 60 drivers, maintenance technicians, safety directors and management people from over 25 companies – to the plant in Ottawa, KS, to discuss what would eventually become the T2 Terminal Tractor. Overall, reliability, serviceability and driver productivity topped customers’ list of musts for the T2. To gain input, the company created a white-walled idea room that contained a full-scale cab mock-up and a 50% chassis model for customers, sales, service and parts professionals, and Kalmar Ottawa representatives to collaborate and exchange ideas. “We wanted them to touch and feel, sit in the driver seat, and talk to us about all of their ideas,” said Dave Wood, vice president of sales and marketing, during last week’s press event and T2 Ride and Drive in Kansas City. “We challenged them to think down the road 10 or 15 years and try to visualize the tractor configuration and the technologies they would need then.” Technical features of the T2 include: A modular frame design with an open C-channel frame rail chassis conceptPowder-coated frames to resist corrosionA steel cab to reduce corrosionA wider rear door opening that is almost 20% larger for easy entry and exitA cab that is 5 in. wider and taller at the front for driver headroom, and 5 in. deeper for driver gear stowageLift cylinders that include standard spherical bushings at the top and bottom of the cylinders to improve durability and performanceFour-inch cylinders lift trailers faster by 18%Added roll-over protectionImproved driver visibilityTwo-year, 6,000-hour warrantyAccording to Jacob Sipple, who works with marketing and dealer operations manager Bob McTernan, in order to enhance serviceability and keep drivers safe, the T2 was designed to keep drivers from climbing on the truck for routine maintenance checks. The T2 allows drivers to check engine oil, windshield washer fluid and transmission fluid while standing on the ground, eliminating the chance of slips and falls, Sipple said. During the event, company representatives also said that “trusted durability” and maximizing uptime also came up as key requests during the research phase for T2. “With our trucks you can move a trailer in about one-third of the time,” according to a company video that compared the T2 to over-the-road tractors. “We put complete control in the drivers’ hands. T2 provides maximum maneuverability and control to move the heaviest loads across challenging terrains. It can provide more than 20% in fuel savings a year.” The fifth wheel allows drivers to control the trailer lift, the company said. And the total time it takes to hook up a trailer is less than 50 seconds, according to the company. “It is about getting more done in less time and meeting your bottom line,” Sipple said, noting that the T2 has made trailer movement and maneuverability easier. Since Kalmar’s T2 market launch in January, it has built 625 T2s and has another 800 on order, selling more than 1,400 of the new tractors. In its newly renovated plant, the company produces as many as 22 tractors a day. “To stay at the head of the competitive pack, our factory production processes and equipment had to be updated,” Wood said. “We invested heavily in factory and process improvements, training and equipment to enable us to increase our production capacity and capabilities – ensuring that we continue to lead the industry for many years to come.”

Transport Topics / June 8, 2015 The Port of Los Angeles, the largest U.S. container cargo facility, announced testing of a load-matching service that is designed to speed container cargo shipments through the port. The agreement was made with Cargomatic Inc., a Venice Beach, California-based company that also is advancing efforts to match package and less-than-truckload shipments after it was launched last year. The initial target is 1,000 container moves per week. Last year, Los Angeles port terminals handled more than 80,000 loads on average each week. Cargomatic markets its highway shipment approach as similar to Uber’s ride-sharing service. The port service, known as Cargomatic “Free Flow,” is designed for participation by any cargo owner, motor carrier or owner-operator. “We’re an operating system,” said Chief Operating Officer Brett Parker, a co-founder of Cargomatic. “We provide the technology and do all the coordination between shippers and carriers so cargo can get where it needs to go.” The new program is being offered at the West Basin Container Terminal, with participation by terminal operator Ports America. Customers served include retailers such as Williams Sonoma. Cargomatic checks drivers to ensure proper licensing, insurance and other qualifications, including compliance with the Uniform Intermodal Interchange and Facilities Access Agreement, which is managed by the Intermodal Association of North America. The port’s statement said a smartphone is used to document the pickup and delivery, with rates set by Cargomatic, which committed to paying the drivers or companies in eight to 15 days. The program also includes other Los Angeles area cargo terminals and the Port of New York and New Jersey, according to the California port’s statement. Steps to speed cargo shipments by private companies and trade groups previously have focused on other portions of the shipping process, including chassis management and gate procedures. Congestion and delays peaked earlier this year during the latter stages of contract talks between the Pacific Maritime Association and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union. Slowdowns preceded labor talks and persisted because of the advent of larger ships and vessel-sharing that has taxed terminal-handling capability. “We have forged an important relationship between Cargomatic and the Port of Los Angeles that will help our city effectively compete in today’s technology-driven marketplace,” said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. The load-matching move was announced amid other attempts to improve shipment handling. Earlier this month, Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) introduced legislation that would give state governors, rather than the president, the ability to help resolve port labor disputes by intervening to impose a settlement. Presidential action wasn’t used to resolve the most recent talks that consumed more than nine months, but a tentative deal was reached after Labor Secretary Tom Perez told the parties to settle or face having the talks moved to Washington from San Francisco. Related reading: http://www.bigmacktrucks.com/index.php?/topic/40220-uber-like-app-cargomatic-bringing-truckers-more-business/?hl=cargomatic

Detroit Exhibit Celebrates Invention of Semi-Trailer Transport Topics / June 8, 2015 An exhibit has opened in Detroit that celebrates the invention of the semi-trailer a century ago. The Detroit Historical Museum on June 8 opened “Fruehauf: The First Name in Transportation.” It recognizes the creation of August Fruehauf, a German blacksmith and wagon maker, who along with Otto Neumann built the first semi-trailer in 1914 for Detroit businessman Frederic Sibley, who wanted a trailer that could be towed behind a Ford Model-T to transport a boat. After that proved successful, Sibley asked for trailers that he could use in his lumber yard. As interest grew, Fruehauf launched Fruehauf Trailer Co. in 1918. Businesses seized on the idea for hauling goods, and for decades, Fruehauf had a thriving enterprise. Wabash National acquired the retail network and other assets of Fruehauf in 1997. The Detroit Historical Museum exhibit features photos and memorabilia from the Fruehauf family's collection, including innovations to the trucking industry. A restored 1916 Fruehauf trailer and matching Ford Model-T are on display. The exhibit, developed in partnership with the Fruehauf Trailer Historical Society, will be open until June 2016.

Forbes / June 6, 2015 A new exhibit, "Fruehauf: The First Name in Transportation," opens on June 7 at the Detroit Historical Museum, telling the story of an automotive company that changed the transportation landscape. Growing up with the last name “Fruehauf” made Ruth Fruehauf feel responsible for her family’s legacy. “When people recognize my last name, they always ask me what happened to the company,” she said. “When I start telling them little nuggets of what happened, they are always on the edge of their chair, and they always say, ‘My gosh, this should be a book.’” Now it is a book called “Singing Wheels: August Fruehauf & The History of the Fruehauf Trailer Company.” And starting on June 7, 2015, a display of Fruehauf artifacts and innovations will open at the Detroit Historical Museum, 5401 Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. The exhibit, entitled “Fruehauf: The First Name in Transportation,” runs through June 2016. Ruth Fruehauf will appear at the exhibit’s opening on June 7 at 2:00 pm to present “a historical overview of the display exhibition.” In a phone interview, Fruehauf described the origins of the book, and of the company itself. “When my mother died, I found thirty boxes of my father’s office archives just stored in her attic that probably hadn’t been gone through since he died in 1965,” she said. Those archives revealed a remarkable history of engineering innovation, including many firsts in the transportation industry. “There were over 1,000 patents for Fruehauf Trailer Company, but there are over 150 Fruehauf patents for military inventions alone. I had no idea that Fruehauf was so involved in defense work.” Heavy-duty Fruehauf trailers were designed for World War II and the Korean War, many with special purpose provisions. “Completely armored trailers wore radar units. Trailers wore anti-aircraft missiles and served as command centers,” said Fruehauf. “There were even trailers designed to go out into the front lines and tow back disabled tanks.” A big discovery in the archives surprised Fruehauf. “We traced the invention of the shipping container to Fruehauf Executive VP Keith Tatlinger,” she recounted. “Malcolm McLean, a customer, came to my dad with a problem in 1956. Everyone was pilfering booze from his shipments.” Tatlinger developed the enclosed shipping container in standard dimensions, an innovation that revolutionized and simplified global shipping. “My dad actually financed Sea-Land, so that was a huge discovery for us,” said Fruehauf. (After a series of mergers and acquisitions, Sea-Land was operated as Horizon Lines, Inc. The company is currently in the process of ceasing operations.) Fruehauf has compiled the information that she discovered in her father’s archive, as well as numerous other materials relating to the family business, on a website, http://www.singingwheels.com. The companion book, “Singing Wheels,” is a 130-page collection of images and history about the business, and is available for $29.95 (softcover)/$39.95 (hardcover) at the Fruehauf Trailer Historical Society website. Related reading: http://detroithistorical.org/detroit-historical-museum/exhibitions/special-exhibitions/fruehauf-first-name-transportation http://www.forbes.com/sites/jasonfogelson/2015/06/05/fruehauf-the-first-name-in-transportation-exhibit-opens-at-detroit-historical-museum/?slide=1

Forbes / June 7, 2015 In the late 1990s, Allentown, Pennsylvania native and former Chrysler CEO Lee Iacocca handed more than $10 million to Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) scientist Denise Faustman and instructed her to transform an ancient tuberculosis vaccine into a cure for type 1 diabetes. Today, Faustman announced the latest milestone in that project—FDA clearance to launch a large trial in people based on what her lab learned from that early research. And the 90-year-old auto magnate continues to fund her studies through the Iacocca Family Foundation, which he founded in 1984 in memory of his late wife, Mary, who died of complications from diabetes. The trial, announced at the American Diabetes Association conference in Boston, will investigate whether treating patients with the vaccine, bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG), will improve natural insulin production in adult patients whose pancreases still produce small but detectable levels of the hormone. If it works, BCG might one day be used to essentially reverse the disease in some patients—even adults who have suffered from diabetes from childhood—says Faustman, director of MGH’s immunobiology laboratory and the study’s principal investigator. And it wouldn’t cost much, either, since BCG has been around for nearly a century and is available in generic form. “We’re not only going for something cheap and safe, but also trying to figure out a good treatment that might reverse the most severe form of the disease in people who are 15 or 20 years out,” Faustman says. Here’s how BCG works: The vaccine prompts the immune system to make tumor necrosis factor (TNF), a protein that destroys the abnormal T-cells that interfere with the pancreas’s ability to make insulin. That elevation of TNF has already been well-proven to be quite therapeutic in some settings—BCG, in fact, is approved by the FDA not only to prevent tuberculosis but also to treat bladder cancer. Faustman’s lab spent years doing basic science experiments to show TNF can temporarily eliminate the abnormal T-cells that cause type 1 diabetes. Iacocca’s foundation, which had been supporting some of that work since coming across the lab’s earliest studies, invited Faustman to present the results of her research at a board meeting in 1999, she recalls. Iacocca asked Faustman why she wasn’t using BCG to cure diabetes in mouse models of the disease. “I said, ‘It’s too early. We need to do more basic science,’” Faustman recalls. “He looked at me and said, ‘You know, it’s my money.’ We made a deal that if I would aggressively go forward in the mouse he would support me. He gets the credit for supporting the basic science that led to the discovery that TNF is needed in type 1 diabetes.” With continued funding from the foundation and other supporters, Faustman launched a small phase 1 clinical trial in people designed to prove that BCG would kill the bad T-cells and stimulate good T-cells in a way that would restore insulin secretion. It worked, though the positive effects were transient. So Faustman started planning a larger phase 2 study to prove that regular injections of BCG, followed by periodic booster shots, would produce a sustained response, and to determine whether that response might improve over time as the pancreas regenerates. Still, Faustman’s team had to overcome one big hurdle before the FDA would approve the phase 2 trial: a massive shortage of BCG. Two of the biggest producers of the vaccine, Merck and Sanofi , have suffered production problems, leading to huge manufacturing delays. The issue has left some bladder cancer patients in the lurch, as reported recently in the Wall Street Journal. Faustman and her colleagues, who had been using Sanofi’s vaccine, had to go looking for an alternate supplier. So MGH collaborated with a division of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the World Health Organization to secure the vaccine for the trial from a drug manufacturer that’s run by the Japanese government, Faustman says. “We had to get the FDA to certify that [the manufacturer's] processes are up to U.S. standards so the BCG can be used for trials,” she says. “This is not something that academics normally do, but we were determined.” Faustman’s team has raised $19 million of the $25 million needed to complete the phase 2 study, thanks largely to the Iococca Family Foundation, which continues to be the project’s biggest source of support. “I made a promise to my late wife to find a cure for type 1 diabetes,” Iococca said in a statement. “Now my family and I look forward to the continued progress and are proud to support this effort to get closer to that goal.” Faustman’s plan is to enroll 150 adults with diabetes, some of whom will receive BCG, with the others getting a placebo. The patients will have two injections four weeks apart and then annual injections over four years. They will continue to take insulin, though the research team will be watching closely to see if the BCG reduces the amount of insulin needed to maintain blood-sugar control, Faustman says. “We expect the metabolic effect to occur gradually over five years,” she says. However it turns out, Faustman says, she will always be grateful to Iacocca for having the patience to continue funding the BCG research. “Many other people support us now, but the Iacocca Foundation makes a huge contribution to these trials,” she says. “He sees the big picture and is willing to look for ways to change the paradigm.” .

Heavy Duty Trucking / June 5, 2015 Terminal tractor manufacturer Kalmar Ottawa hosted a number of industry journalists for a tour of the company’s Ottawa, Kan., facility and some time behind the wheel of the T2, its newest terminal tractor introduced last year. “Given our relatively small industry, common sense suggested that a more hands-on research approach would be in order, with a lot of personal contact with our end customers themselves,” explained Dave Wood, vice president of sales and marketing, discussing the development of the T2. That research began with bringing Kalmar Ottawa customers out to Kansas and into a “white-walled” idea room which had a full-scale cab mock-up and a 50% scale chassis model. The team interviewed 60 drivers, as well as maintenance technicians, safety directors, and fleet managers from more than 25 companies. The T2 is exclusively being built at the Kansas plant, which was also redesigned to improve workflow and productivity. While the frame for the original terminal tractor arrives preassembled to the plant, the T2 frame is built on-site. According to Production Supervisor Mark Wright, the process, which initially took more than an hour to complete, now only take approximately 25 minutes. After a look at the build process, editors were given some time behind the wheel of the T2, which is now in full production and has already pushed out 625 units, with 800 more on order. “The T2 accounts for about half of our daily build in our transition, which means we’re currently building about seven T2 trucks each day,” said Wood. “We expect to be at virtually 100% T2 production by year end.”

Today's Trucking / June 5, 2015 Despite still dealing with financial problems, the truck and engine manufacturer Navistar International Corp. is rapidly gaining market share in the North American medium-duty market. That was one of several nuggets the company discussed in a conference call with analysts on Thursday. According to Troy Clark, president and CEO, Navistar’s medium duty market share increased six percentage points in its fiscal second quarter over the first quarter to 27%. “In fact one of our major leasing customers recently shared some data with us that shows that DuraStar chassis and ISB engine combination delivers the best fuel economy and lowest cost of ownership across their entire fleet,” he said. “Our leasing and rental customers are increasingly happy with our performance. Our share is growing with these very important buyers. Notably we've also seen a significant increase in dealer wide sales. That's key to our success in the medium-duty segment.” Growth for Navistar, compared to a year ago, is also happening in the heavy-duty truck market arena with dealer led sales up 36% year-over year, which has also resulted in the company taking in more used trucks. “We expect that we'll continue to manage our higher than normal used truck inventory over the next few years. That said, our used truck team continues to create opportunities to address the issue,” Clark said. “One way is through our Diamond Renewed program that provides a new truck experience to used truck buyer. Diamond Renewed sales are growing and were up 150% [in the second fiscal quarter compared to the first quarter.]” He noted in addition to this, its dealers are increasing their activities in used trucks. “We've also been successful finding some new markets for these vehicles globally. Its just a fact the faster we sell or turn our used truck inventory more used trucks we can take unlocking more market share and we're encouraged by our progress,” Clark said. According to Navistar, it held US$375 million in gross used truck inventory at the end of the second quarter, US$10 million more than in the previous quarter, though its used truck sales increased 26% during the comparable time periods. It expects this level of used trucks held in inventory to go higher, peaking next year. Despite this better news, Navistar still is in the red, reporting a net loss of $US64 million, but that’s down considerably from US$297 a year earlier, while revenue fell slightly to just below US$2.7 million. In releasing these figures before the conference call, in a statement Clark said the results reflect continued progress in and positive momentum in the North American industry “Revenues from the truck segment grew 4% compared to a year ago,” said Walter Borst, executive vice president and chief financial officer, during the conference call “The growth was primarily driven by a 14% increase in our core truck markets which included a 1,700 unit increase in chargeouts. Upsetting the growth in the core markets were lower sales in our export and Mexico businesses.” He said the results of Navistar’s truck segment profit improved by US$78 million compared to last year. “Contributing to this improvement were higher truck sales in North America, lower warranty expenses and cost reduction,” Borst said. “These improvements were partially offset by losses from our used truck operations.” Also helping improve Navistar’s numbers, according to Borst, is the quality of new products has improved significantly along with warranty expense, the latter of had been much higher due to a high number of warranty claims by customers. “For the second quarter of 2015 warrant expense excluding preexisting adjustments as a percentage of manufacturing revenue was 2.9% compared to 3.1% in 2014,” he said. “The decrease reflects quality improvements and more recent model years and continued efforts to reduce overall repair costs.”

Owner/Driver / June 5, 2015 When he couldn't get a T409 made to order, James Aquilina decided a custom K200 8x4 was the way to go. It’s hard to miss James Aquilina’s blue Kenworth K200 8x4. It’s not only purpose-built but an eye-catching rig as well. James, who hauls scrap metal as a sub-contractor to Sims Metal Management, was in the market for a new cab-over, so he went for a Kenworth. Initially, he spotted a T659 8x4 at last year’s Melbourne Truck Show and made a few inquiries to Kenworth salesman Steve Connally. "I was told it was going to NZ [New Zealand], so I went to the Steve and told him that I wanted a T409 with a 21 IT sleeper with 550hp [410kW]. I thought I had found my new truck," James says. However, a chat with Kenworth’s engineering department revealed that the T409 would be too long. "I went back to Steve and asked him what my options were. It was either lose the sleeper or change to a K200," James says. "I was told that the Kenworth cab-overs had changed a bit from what I remembered, so I went for a drive and was quite impressed." Kenworth built James’ custom K200 truck in seven weeks. "The salesman Steve Connally had been selling Kenworths for over 10 years. The truck was his first 8x4 K200, as most of the 8x4s either go west or across the ditch to New Zealand. This one is something different," he says. James opted for a sleeper cab on the K200 due to the large amount of country work he does. He also had the Kenworth specced with an 18-speed, double overdrive gearbox with 4.11 ratio, which keeps the engine speed down while returning good fuel consumption figures. "I go as far west as Terang, Ballarat, Nhill and a couple of jobs in Horsham that I do, so I get around," he says. James says he would have loved to add some bling to the K200, but he adds that it was bought to work. When it gets down to the job, shiny bits don’t count. But he remains proud of his fleet. "Each truck is washed every week and we look after them," James says. Related photographs: http://www.ownerdriver.com.au/industry-news/1506/custom-kenworth-k200-hits-the-right-note-for-james-aquilina/

Fleet Owner / June 5, 2015 This week at the Waste Expo show in Las Vegas, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. showed off a new waste haul tire it said will become the “go-to” tire for waste hauling fleets in North America. The Endurance WHA features a combination of a new, scrub-resistant compound and a deep, 24/32-in. tread depth to deliver more miles to removal, the company said. “Goodyear wants to help waste haul fleets lower their operating costs, and the new Endurance WHA will do just that by offering more miles to removal and other important benefits,” says Andrea Russell, brand manager for Goodyear Commercial Tire Systems. The tire is optional with Goodyear’s DuraSeal Technology, which seals nail-hole punctures of up to ¼ in. in diameter in the repairable area of a truck tire’s tread. “Our goal is to provide the Total Solution for waste haul fleets, including premium new tires and retreads, world-class service and support, and smart business tools to help fleets become more profitable,” said Russell. The WHA also features: New sidewall protector shingles to help resist sidewall scuffing in high-scrub applications, which will help enhance casing life;A steel belt and casing package for enhanced toughness, endurance and retreadability;An optimized shoulder design to help direct pressure away from the tire’s outer tread, which promotes uniform tread wear;Four wide circumferential grooves for all-season traction on wet, snow-covered and dry roads in stop/start waste haul truck applications;A wide footprint to enhance cornering and handling when used on local streets.The tire will be available in the fourth quarter of this year in size 315/80R22.5 in Load Range L.

Whitworth (British Standard Whitworth), that's a term I haven't heard in a while. There was a time, indeed decades, when the Queen's truckmakers were among the most innovative in the world. I don't know what view you hold, but I believe Thatcher destroyed industry in the UK. Besides the wonderful ERF E16, here's a picture of a 1945 Mack EQT, operated out of Greensboro, North Carolina by Turner Transfer, retrofitted with a Gardner 6LW (They ran Gardner-powered Corbitts as well). http://www.commercialmotor.com/big-lorry-blog/-rich-stanbier-aka-the

The Financial Times / June 5, 2015 The leaders of Sweden’s legendary business family, Jacob, Peter and Marcus oversee an empire worth €250bn (US$277.8 billion). One wears his protective helmet askew, like a rap star. All three jostle and bump into each other playfully as they wait for the photographer to be ready. As the trio line up in a dark mine underneath a Stockholm suburb, they appear less like serious businessmen and more as boisterously close relatives. They are, of course, both. Together, brothers Jacob and Peter junior and their cousin Marcus are the public face of the fifth generation of the Wallenbergs, the Swedish dynasty that can arguably be called Europe’s pre-eminent business family. Others may be older or richer but none can combine the Wallenbergs’ longevity with the breadth of their holdings. Their company stakes range from drugmaker AstraZeneca and white-goods manufacturer Electrolux to defence group Saab and telecoms-equipment maker Ericsson. Together, they add up to an empire that controls businesses worth €250bn. Even the mine they are standing in today is a test facility for equipment belonging to their biggest holding in monetary terms, industrial group Atlas Copco. Rather incongruously, you reach the mine’s labyrinthine tunnels using a lift from the main entrance to Atlas Copco’s headquarters. Back above ground the three Wallenbergs are similarly jovial. As Jacob struggles to coax coffee out of a high-tech device, his brother and cousin crowd around to help. “How many Wallenbergs does it take to work a coffee machine?” I ask. Jacob, the eldest at 59 and chairman of Investor — the listed holding company that is their main investment vehicle — raises three fingers as the others giggle. But they soon become serious, convening for a brief huddle in their almost matching dark suits before heading into a small and anonymous meeting room for this, their first joint interview. In keeping with the Swedish bent for modesty, the Wallenbergs prefer to stay out of the limelight and so getting all three of them on the record is big news, and not just in Sweden. “The Wallenbergs are one of the principal families of the business world, not just in Europe but globally. There is almost no industry they do not have an interest in,” says a German chief executive who knows them well. Their holdings add up to a third of Sweden’s entire stock exchange. I start by asking whether they feel the burden of their history, given their great-great-grandfather founded the bank that became SEB nearly 160 years ago. There is a long pause: with typical Swedish reserve, none of them wants to speak first. So I pick on Marcus, the 58-year-old chairman of SEB (among many other roles) who is known almost universally by his nickname, “Husky”. He answers in typical Wallenberg fashion: with a look to the future as well as the past, all of it wrapped up in family. “We’ve known each other for our whole lives. We’ve grown up together. And this is a discussion about what is needed for the future — a discussion that we’ve had for decades among each other — not from the perspective of burden but rather from that sense that tradition has been to reinvent and to grasp new opportunities and form what is there today into something that will be appealing and fruitful and good for the future,” he says. The success of the Wallenbergs points to the endurance of dynastic power in business. While European families such as the Agnellis of Italy (Fiat) and Quandts of Germany (BMW) are still powerful in global business, many of the newcomers in recent years are backed by Asian families. Indeed, Jacob says they have a particular focus on the long term. “For companies that we are close to, that is the reality of the future, that’s where the competition lies, that’s where lots of the market growth will be found in the future. And then one has to learn that this long-term perspective becomes very, very important. That is a challenge,” he adds. Although there is plenty of debate about the wisdom of each individual action of the Wallenbergs, there is no doubting their extended track record. Investor has enjoyed better returns than the Swedish stock exchange over the past 20 years. The family approach of long-term, active, engaged ownership of companies has gained plaudits from around the business world. What lies behind their success, and can it continue? When asked to reflect on their family history, each Wallenberg picks a different date. For Marcus, it all began in 1856, when André Wallenberg, a former naval officer, founded Stockholms Enskilda Bank, which began to accumulate industrial investments. For Jacob, things really started in 1916, when Swedish law made it difficult for banks to own industrial companies. Instead, SEB’s stakes in itself, Atlas Diesel and truckmaker Scania were placed in a new holding company: Investor. Peter junior, a 56-year-old known as “Poker”, as his grandfather thought he had a poker face as a child, talks about 1917. This is when the Knut and Alice Foundation was set up, of which Peter is now the chairman. Knut was André’s son. He and his wife Alice were childless so they pooled all their investments into what remains the Wallenbergs’ biggest foundation. Strikingly, Jacob, Marcus and Peter own no personal part of the family empire. Instead, stakes in companies such as airline SAS, stock market Nasdaq and industrial group ABB are owned directly or indirectly via family foundations. “Frankly, some of the other family companies cannot understand. [They say] ‘Why are you doing this? You have no stake in the game?’” says Marcus, who is married to architect Fanny Sachs and lives in the family villa Täcka Udden on the Stockholm island of Djurgården. While comfortably off, the trio do not even make rich lists in Sweden and insist they still have to work to make a living. But the 20 family foundations have freed the Wallenbergs from the sort of bickering and fighting that often blights family businesses by the time they reach the fifth generation, when there are often hundreds of relatives as shareholders. “I can only speak for myself,” says Jacob, a keen sailor and golfer who headed Sweden’s bid to hold the 2018 Ryder Cup, “but I must say that I feel blessed that I have the opportunity to participate in [world-leading companies] and not to have to get into the personal squabbles about personal wealth.” The three of them, who meet every Monday for three or four hours to discuss family business, were in no way predestined for the roles. Jacob and Marcus began their careers in banking before ending up at SEB while Peter, also known for racing Porsche Carreras, was a manager of one of Stockholm’s most luxurious hotels, the Wallenberg-owned Grand. The family has faced its fair share of tragedy: Marcus’s father, Marc, committed suicide in 1971, while his cousin Raoul, a diplomat famous for saving thousands of Jews during the second world war, is presumed to have died under KGB detention in 1947. But they have survived, in large part thanks to what Peter calls the “closed circuit” system of the foundations. There are two sides to their success. On the one hand they own vast swaths of European industry including ballbearings maker SKF, paper company Stora Enso and power systems group Wärtsilä. Together, their holdings employ about 600,000 people and have sales of SKr1.3tn ($154bn). On the other, they are the second biggest donors in Europe to research, giving away about SKr2bn in 2014. Better performance at their companies feeds bigger grants to Swedish research, which in turn boosts the competitiveness of local business. The Wallenberg model revolves around a few core principles. One is that the family are long-term owners. Jacob likes to say they “buy to hold”, where hold can mean more than 100 years. But he adds that it is no excuse for poor performance: “The long term also consists of many short terms and you have to perform in every short-term period as well.” A second is that they are active, engaged owners. Jacob and Marcus sit on eight corporate boards between them and play a key role in discussions on strategy and the choice of directors. They also focus on people. “This is maybe the single most important ingredient in our business venture — the fact that we can never, given the size of the companies and the complexity of the businesses, stay on top of all the issues, all the details ourselves. We are dependent on a great group of people,” Jacob says. Richard Twomey is one of them. The Welshman is sitting in a boardroom in Gothenburg surrounded by wound dressings, surgical outfits and other medical paraphernalia. He is chief executive of Mölnlycke Health Care, a relatively obscure medical-equipment company that is nonetheless described by one Wallenberg associate as perhaps the family’s most important investment. Wholly owned by Investor, some analysts value it more highly than the stake in Atlas Copco. Twomey’s very presence in Sweden demonstrates the pull of the Wallenbergs. A keen surfer, he was happily based in California when he got the call in 2013 about the Mölnlycke job. His initial reaction was not positive. “When I was being called about the job I went: Sweden, you have got to be joking. Cold and wet, and there’s no surf. But the determining factor was the ownership structure. They hold for the long term, they invest, they want to build value… If you want to be a CEO this is a dream environment to do it in,” he says. Twomey, who passionately extols the science behind the five layers of a specific dressing, has a mandate to boost sales growth. He shows product after product, all backed by Wallenberg investments, to demonstrate how he hopes to achieve it: a dressing to help prevent pressure ulcers for bed-ridden patients; a one-use pack for a hysterectomy, which for about €80 offers all the clothing, instruments and materials needed for the operation. Sales growth was falling when Twomey took over with an anaemic increase of 3 per cent in 2013. By the first quarter of this year, sales were rising by 12 per cent. “Having worked in US publicly traded companies where it’s quarterly pressure, your long-term strategy becomes the next three months. A big reason I came here was the ownership,” he adds. Ronnie Leten is another outsider brought in by the Wallenbergs. A native Belgian, he became chief executive of Atlas Copco in 2009. His first culture shock came when he realised that in Sweden everybody’s income is checkable thanks to publicly available tax returns. “A transparent society is a fast-changing, fast-adapting society. The governance structure is embedded in that,” says Leten, who recently became chairman of Electrolux as well. Atlas Copco’s mining-equipment business is currently in the doldrums due to depressed commodities markets. But Leten says the Wallenbergs’ long-term focus allows him to keep investing in the knowledge that markets will bounce back. “Their message is, ‘Don’t jeopardise the future’ . . . I would like to have the Wallenbergs in Belgium too,” he adds. A third non-Swede close to the family is Josef Ackermann. A former chief executive of Deutsche Bank, Ackermann also sits on Investor’s board, from where he has come to admire greatly the Swedish and Wallenberg model. “I like the board environment a lot. Everyone is contributing. No one is playing an ego game. It is to the point, a very performance-orientated atmosphere. You feel you are not just controlling [management] but co-managing the portfolio.” Of the Wallenbergs themselves, he says: “It’s a relatively modest culture. You don’t see the family living a luxury life. They are very much focused on the companies. In the board, of course they have the final say, but you don’t feel it.” Not all of the Swedish system is that way. The other big owner of Swedish listed companies is Industrivärden, which has controlling stakes in the likes of Handelsbanken, Volvo, Ericsson and Sandvik. It was plunged into scandal earlier this year by a series of reports about private jet trips at SCA, the paper company that is another of its holdings. Family members and even pets were flown to sporting events and a corporate hunting lodge — something that did not go down well in egalitarian Sweden. But the Industrivärden scandal also exposed deeper weakness in its corporate governance. Two men — chairman Sverker Martin-Löf and chief executive Anders Nyrén — controlled many of the most important board seats and there was sometimes cross-signing of each other’s expenses. Both men have since had to resign as Industrivärden seeks to improve its governance. The case raised some doubts about the Swedish model and whether its system of holding companies created too cosy an atmosphere between management and the biggest shareholders. Both the Wallenbergs’ Investor and Industrivärden benefit from the dual-share system, under which, for instance, the latter owns just 2.6 per cent of Ericsson’s capital but controls 15.2 per cent of its votes. Christer Gardell, a Swedish activist investor, likes the system but argues enhanced voting rights can entrench incompetence. Unsurprisingly, the Wallenbergs disagree. Jacob says the academic debate has moved away from insisting on one share, one vote towards accepting there is a freedom to contract as parties see fit. “We have a system that works,” he adds. As proof, he even cites Industrivärden. Its main shareholders did take action. “Isn’t part of it the whole question about self-regulation? As much as it took a while in the situation of SCA, eventually it did happen.” Marcus says that unlike Industrivärden, where power appeared too concentrated, the Wallenbergs have consciously over generations sought to find the right people to support them. But he is anxious to avoid any thought that the family is resting on its laurels. “Are we aware of an understanding that there is a risk of becoming complacent or cosy? Yes, we are very much aware of that. Will we always make the right decisions? No, probably not. We will also make decisions that later turn out not to be the best but at least you can rest assured that this is something that stays with us on a daily basis.” Few pursuits are more beloved in the Stockholm business community than minutely analysing the Wallenbergs’ latest moves. And few of their decisions are so picked over as those to sell out of truckmaker Scania and approve the 1999 merger that created AstraZeneca. “Scania and Astra were gobsmacking decisions. They were crown jewels and I think the sales are seen by some as a sign of the decline of the Wallenbergs,” says the head of one investment bank in Stockholm. Partly this comes with the territory: when Jacob and Peter’s father, Peter senior, took over the empire in 1982, newspapers quickly speculated about the end of the family. Marcus, who was himself chief executive of Investor from 1999 to 2005, says: “I learnt one thing as CEO of Investor and that is I woke up most mornings with some sort of a comment on what was done or not done at the company. At the end of the day, I think it comes down to where lies true north? Where are we heading?” He adds, in something of a family motto: “My grandfather used to say that you have to play the ball where it lies.” Some argue the sales of Scania and Astra undermined the story of the Wallenbergs’ long-term interest: Scania, now owned by Volkswagen, is still one of the best-performing Swedish industrial groups. Astra, the Wallenbergs’ drugmaker, merged with Zeneca, the pharmaceuticals assets of UK chemicals group ICI and set up its headquarters in Britain. Swedish scientists still bemoan the decline of the local pharmaceuticals industry. But Jacob argues the sales actually reinforce the long-term thinking: “Even if we lost influence, we felt that it was in the interest of the company and we always try to think along those lines.” “Rightly or wrongly,” adds Marcus, “the view was that both of these companies needed some sort of a larger base from which to compete in a very, very competitive industry at the time.” Today, a more frequent complaint is that the Wallenbergs have stuck to staid industries, leaving a smaller Swedish holding company, Kinnevik, to invest in internet and telecoms groups. Ackermann retorts: “The Wallenbergs are not conservative but they know where their strengths are.” Investor’s shares are up 170 per cent over the past five years, compared with 140 per cent for Kinnevik and 70 per cent for the Stockholm stock exchange. As in any family business, there is always the question of the next generation. Jacob, Marcus and Peter do their best to look offended by the thought — Peter senior carried on into his eighties. But the trio have started preparing the 30 or so members of the sixth generation — currently aged between three and 35 — for possible work in the family firm. Peter says they try to inculcate the next generation with the history and methods of the Wallenbergs but without forcing them to do anything. At least three have jobs in the family empire already. He thinks that getting one or two of them sufficiently interested to devote their lives to the business will be harder than in the past. “Today it’s a global world: the next generation has so much more input in their lives than we ever had. We are competing with so many more interests and challenges,” he adds. Asked if they are sick of the sight of each other after so long together, an awkward silence ensues until Marcus replies to general laughter: “We don’t live together.” He adds: “I think actually we’ve come a long way in terms of understanding each other. We’ve known each other from being kids… but more as grown-ups and professional people we’ve spent a lot of time together to figure out what our priorities are and where our interests lie.” The three of them all nod in agreement. Peter adds: “We have grown into working with these questions and we love it.” Facts: 600,000 - the number of people employed by Wallenberg-owned companies. 170% - Investor’s share rise over the past five years, compared with 70 per cent for the Swedish stock exchange. .

Speaking of powerplants, what were your personal thoughts on Rolls Royce, Gardner and Leyland (eg. TL12) For others, this link gives insight of what I'm speaking of. http://www.aronline.co.uk/blogs/commercials/trucks-t45-leyland-roadtrain/ In my humble opinion, today 45 years since its introduction, the Leyland T45 cab still looks relatively modern. Note the similar cab design cues between the Leyland Constructor and the current Renault Kerax. http://www.aronline.co.uk/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Cons6TL11-BLPUB-e1327431426254.jpg http://www.motorstown.com/images/renault-kerax-380-06.jpg http://www.aronline.co.uk/blogs/commercials/leyland-commercials/t45/unsung-heroes-leyland-roadtrain-interstate/ http://www.aronline.co.uk/blogs/commercials/blog-meet-essex-boy-whos-leyland-man/ ERF's were always a looker. http://www.aronline.co.uk/blogs/facts-and-figures/essays/unsung-heros/unsung-heroes-erf-ec-range-the-plastic-fantastic/ Created in 1968, the AEC "3TVG" prototype's Motor Panels-produced cab reminds of me of a Diamond Reo Royale and Peterbilt 352. Unfortunately, Leyland management mistakenly wouldn't let AEC put it into production. http://www.aronline.co.uk/blogs/facts-and-figures/essays/commercial-vehicles-the-great-fightback-a-marathon-task/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/blackcountryman/4369092612 The quintessential AEC with the Ergomatic cab, a Mammoth Major (Leyland acquired AEC in 1962) - http://static.commercialmotor.com/big-lorry-blog/IMG_8265.jpg AEC down under - http://static.commercialmotor.com/big-lorry-blog/aec%20ad%20-%20sept%201959.jpg http://static.commercialmotor.com/big-lorry-blog/AEC%20ad%201961.jpg (The legendary "Routemaster" double decker buses associated with London from 1955 thru 2005, and Hong Kong, were built by AEC. Fortunately, good sense has prevailed bringing a next generation Routemaster into service.....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Routemaster ) This is one I never saw, the Leyland Redline using the BMC-designed FJ cab. http://www.aronline.co.uk/blogs/commercials/archive-cheaper-blmc-truck-range-for-europe/

Press Release / June 4, 2015 The Red Bull formula 1 racing team has taken delivery of seven new 520 horsepower Renault T Range 4x2 tractors. Normally, there would be nothing unusual about seven articulated lorries carrying seven containers across Europe. Unless the seven containers are 'parts' of the Red Bull Tree House, an extended pit lane for the Infiniti Red Bull Racing Formula 1 team. This is also true for the Formula 1 drivers and their cars travelling across Europe from one race weekend to the next. The Tree House is a mobile workshop and office for supporting the Red Bull team at each European race weekend. If you look in the four containers for the mobile workshop, you will see, not only conventional tools such as a lathe and drill press, but also a 3D printer for printing the required parts. During a race, it is important to react quickly. So the Tree House is a logical extension to the Red Bull Box. The remaining three containers are used as a mobile office to accommodate 35 people. 100 percent Renault fleet The seven new Renault Trucks T 520 High represent a continuation of the long-standing relationship between Red Bull and Renault Trucks and are spec’d with the latest features including Euro-6 13-liter 520 horsepower engines paired with Optidriver AMT transmissions. Optibrake+ exhaust brakes and Voith hydraulic retarders (http://resource.voith.com/vt/publications/downloads/1564_e_g_2097_en_vk_hilfe_renault_2013-10.pdf) dramatically lower life cycle costs while adding safety. A high-roof sleeper cab configuration boasts an interior height of 2.05 meters. Supporting photographs: http://corporate.renault-trucks.com/media/image/CP-jpg/renault_trucks_t_red_bull_racing_f1_team_1.jpg http://corporate.renault-trucks.com/media/image/CP-jpg/renault_trucks_t_red_bull_racing_f1_team_2.jpg http://corporate.renault-trucks.com/media/image/CP-jpg/renault_trucks_t_red_bull_racing_f1_team_3.jpg

Transport Engineer / June 5, 2015 Allison Transmission is teaming up with MAN and Mercedes-Benz to demonstrate its products at Interschutz 2015, the exhibition for the fire protection and rescue sector, taking place in Hannover, Germany from June 8th thru the 13th.. Allison's 3000 Series and 4000 Series automatic transmissions will soon be available in MAN TGM and TGS trucks. Visitors to Allison's stand can see a MAN TGS 18.400 4x4 chassis, produced to operate in the Austrian Alps. Its 400 horsepower engine is coupled with an Allison 4000 Series automatic transmission. Also at the Allison stand will be a Mercedes-Benz Econic 1830L 4x2 vocational chassis equipped with a HLF 20/16 firetruck body and Allison 3000 Series automatic transmission. The vehicle, currently operating in the City of Hannover, has a small turning radius of 13.5m thanks to its rear steering axle, compared with the standard vehicle radius of 16.5mm, allowing the Econic HLF to easily negotiate narrow roads or alleyways. Allison's patented torque converter enables precise low-speed maneuvering. In addition, Allison offers a top-mount, engine-driven power take-off (PTO) provision, for easy integration of emergency equipment. .