Isuzu Commercial Truck of America Inc., distributor of America’s bestselling low cab forward trucks, has announced its first all-electric production model, the N-Series EV. The 2025-model-year Class 5 truck – featuring a full 19,500-pound gross vehicle weight rating, a battery electric platform developed by Isuzu Motors Limited and an all-new cab design – will be available in the first half of 2024. Isuzu Commercial Truck introduced the breakthrough model during NTEA’s Work Truck Week 2023 trade show. The N-Series EV will also be available in Canada and Japan. This marks the first time tha…

Terramac, a leading manufacturer of rubber tracked crawler carriers, has expanded its production capacity to deliver an increasing number of machines for the North American and international markets with the unveiling of its new assembly facility in St. Louis. This announcement follows on the heels of Terramac opening their new headquarters outside of Chicago in Sugar Grove, Illinois. Terramac produces the world’s leading crawler carriers, according to the company. Units are sold through its dealer network, which offers easy-to-locate parts and service support throughout the world. The uni…

ATSSA’s 53rd Annual Convention & Traffic Exp Feb. 17-21, 2023 in Phoenix, AZ Kurt Moreland, Associate Publisher of Utility Fleet Professional attended the American Traffic Safety Services Association’s (ATSSA) 53rd Annual Convention & Traffic Expo in Phoenix, Feb. 17-21, 2023. Here are images from the event. 334687722_134120959586853_6740675379265397920_n 335275237_148023224834686_3274908109566368211_n 334670906_257934…

Work Truck Week – North America’s largest work truck event – returns to Indianapolis March 7-10. Education sessions run March 7-9; the exhibit hall will be open March 8-10; and the Ride & Drive is scheduled for March 8 and 9. Also part of Work Truck Week is the Green Truck Summit, which takes place March 7. Produced by NTEA – The Association for the Work Truck Industry, this year’s Work Truck Week will feature extended exhibit hours, providing attendees additional time to check out the latest commercial vehicles, technology and equipment on display from 500 companies. According to NTEA…

Fuel cells powered by hydrogen have become an attractive technology because hydrogen powers an electric motor – without plugging in, as you do with a battery-electric vehicle – and the only emission out of the tailpipe is water. Big-name truck makers including Toyota, Kenworth and Navistar have entered the fray. And then there are new entrants like Nikola Motor Co. and Hyzon Motors.

As you evaluate your truck and van specs, where do you see the best opportunities for improvement? Perhaps you could take weight out of the vehicle to reduce fuel costs or increase legal payload. Or upgrade your equipment to be more efficient and ergonomic, improving crew productivity and safety. Or electrify your onboard equipment to cut fuel consumption and carbon emissions. Whatever your specific goals, here are seven new developments from truck and van equipment manufacturers to help you achieve them.

The outlook for fleet maintenance costs and shop operations in 2023 is again influenced by the state of the economy and the supply chain, as well as by the ongoing nationwide tech shortage. To help pinpoint the leading challenges the year ahead poses to utility fleet managers, UFP spoke with Chris Foster, manager of fleet management services for Holman (www.holman.com), one of North America’s largest providers of fleet management services. Supply Chain Kinks Starting out with the remaining kinks bedeviling the supply chain, Foster pointed out that while “the entire automotive supply cha…

Ready or not, EVs are coming to your fleet. Governments have mandated it. Automakers have committed to it. And recent federal legislation has earmarked billions of dollars for it. But the colossal changes in vehicle design and “fueling” infrastructure will undoubtedly create numerous potholes on the road to electrification. Will there be enough models available to make the shift in time? Will charging times become faster and more practical? Will utility fleets be able to manage emergency response situations when there is no electricity?

Like most everything else that’s installed in the manufacturing and outfitting of a utility truck, there’s no one-size-fits-all choice when it comes to spec’ing a truck-mounted compressor to best meet the demands of a given application. There’s a lot to think about, ranging from the compressor’s placement on the chassis to ensuring the correct flow rates. Insights for the following eight-point checklist to help fleet managers spec the right compressor are drawn from information from two leading air compressor manufacturers, Vanair (https://vanair.com) and VMAC (www.vmacair.com):