Commercial Truck Success

IdeaLetter
 
Visit the Ever-Growing Commercial Truck Information Source:
CommercialTruckSuccess.com  or comtrk.com May 11, 2009  -  Number 44
  
"The aim of argument, or of discussion, should not be victory, but progress."
- Joseph Joubert
 
"If you want to achieve excellence, you can get there today.
As of this second, quit doing less-than-excellent work."
- Thomas J Watson
 
"Your business and results are a reflection of you. Your business and
results will grow in direct proportion to your own growth." 
- James Arthur Ray
 
"Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work."
- Aristotle
 
"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait
a single moment to improve the world."
 - Anne Frank
 
"Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement.
Nothing can be done without hope and confidence."
- Helen Keller
 
"Achievement is largely the product of steadily raising
one's levels of aspiration and expectation."
- Jack Nicklaus
 
In This Issue
Johnson Electric Refrigeration Systems
Landing On A Body Near You
It's Landscaping Time!
Ya Gotta Love It
Cone Truck Innovations
Black Beauty from Caseco
Dumps and Liftgates?
Here's Something Fun!
Need Some Ideas?
New Commercial Truck Dealer Success Website
4x4 Van
More Favorite Links
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Knowledge Cafe
 
 
 
From the forward: "These pages have been written for the purpose of furnishing you a key to the attainment of your desires, and to explain that Fear should be entirely banished from your consciousness in order for you to obtain possession of the things you want. . ."
 
From the back cover: "From 1912 to 1914, Behrend's life focused solely on the wisdom and philosophy of the man who's influential and compelling ideas provided much of the groundwork to the spiritual philosophy known today as New Thought. As the awareness of "mental science" was taking shape, Thomas Troward (1847-1916) imparted his personal insight to only one pupil who could perpetuate this knowledge and share it with the world.
 
 Not long after her time with Troward, Behrend began her mission in New York City where she established and headed The School of the Builders up until 1925. She then established another school in Los Angeles before touring other major cities throughout North America for the next 35 years as a celebrated lecturer, teacher, and practitioner of Mental Science."
 
This is a powerful little book that you can read in an hour or so and you will want to read again and again. I highly recommend it. An incredible bargain at $6. Easily worth millions. Buy at Amazon or Barnes & Noble.
 
 
Here is a free bonus:
 
Download a pdf copy one of Thomas Troward's works titled, "The Spirit of Opulence." It is an awesome short work! Believe in Abundance!
 
 
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Have A Great Day!
 
 
 

Welcome! 

CartoonMe
Welcome to the Commercial Truck Success Idealetter!
 
Published every other week, the Idealetter is be a brief one-page thought starter and news source for busy commercial sales professionals and managers with numerous links to the Commercial Truck Success website and many other links to useful information, tools and inspiration!
 
Please feel free to offer comments and suggestions for future topics that are of interest to you. Also, please forward this to others you wish to share it with. There is a forward email link at the bottom of this page. I wish you success! Keep up the good work! And, never stop learning! - Terry Minion, Editor
Johnson Electric Refrigeration
 
 
JOHNSON TRUCK BODIES' LATEST REFRIGERATION SOLUTION
DELIVERS CHILLING RESULTS
 
ELECTRIMAX, ALL-ELECTRIC TRUCK REFRIGERATION DELIVERS
SIGNIFICANT COST SAVINGS, FLEXIBILITY AND ZERO CARBON EMISSIONS

RICE LAKE, WI, - Johnson Refrigerated Truck Bodies' (www.johnsontruckbodies.com), an industry leader in thermal efficient truck bodies and trailers, announced their latest all-electric truck refrigeration solution - ElectriMaxTM. The new solution provides outstanding flexibility and operational savings for the refrigerated transport industry. ElectriMax does not have an integral combustion engine; therefore, it is exempt from transport refrigeration unit (TRU) diesel emission regulations in California.
 
ElectriMaxTM
demonstrates flexibility by serving a vast array of delivery needs - from single temperature to multiple temperature bodies with compartments for medium, frozen and dry goods to versa-temp applications that transport frozen one day and fresh the next. Furthermore, ElectriMax - operates with electricity instead of diesel fuel, which saves companies as much as 1,400 gallons a truck per year in diesel fuel, and its simple design, increases savings even more by significantly lowering maintenance costs and downtime.
 
The Johnson fiberglass composite truck body equipped with ElectriMax, all-electric refrigeration, requires a truck chassis standard or hybrid) with an automatic transmission and a PTO gear option. The mobile power source is integral to the operation of the truck and provides power for the refrigeration. The active forced air cooling component provides high performance cooling capacity through an active evaporator, while recharging cold plates and the back-up power source en route. The result is pure performance, very little downtime and minimal recharge time.
 
ElectriMax refrigeration has received very positive reviews across the country from leading food distributors of dairy, fluid milk, juice, cookie and ice cream products. The ElectriMax solution delivers unsurpassed evaporator airflow and temperature recovery after door openings, making it the ideal refrigeration solution for a host of refrigerated and frozen products including dairy, ice cream, produce, confection, bakery goods, frozen foods, ice, seafood and meat, pizza and other sensitive frozen foods.
 
"ElectriMax gives Johnson customers a new way to provide more value and cost savings to consumers which are especially important in today's economy," said Mayo Rude, Johnson director of sales and marketing. "We are pleased to deliver a proven refrigeration solution that offers significant fleet operation savings, lower maintenance and the same flexibility as diesel-powered truck refrigeration." ElectriMax is an efficient and economical alternative, saving companies thousands of dollars annually in refrigeration operation costs.
 
"Johnson fiberglass truck bodies paired with ElectriMax refrigeration meet the needs of our customers by reducing their overall fuel consumption and carbon footprint," said Ron Ricci, Johnson president. "We're proud of our innovative achievements. We'll continue to develop reliable, light-weight composite body designs and clean and green refrigeration solutions to pursue value-added and environmentally friendly solutions for our customers."
 
For decades, Johnson Refrigerated Truck Bodies has demonstrated its commitment to clean and green refrigeration technologies that benefit the environment. Johnson is the leader in cold plate technology, and the
inventor of RouteMax, clean and green refrigeration, which features a combination of evaporators and cold plates and ElectriMax, designed with and without cold plates, is well suited for truck bodies ranging in length from 12 to 26 feet.
 
RouteMax
is an all-electric refrigeration solution offered exclusively through a partnership with Navistar. Today there are over 400 RouteMax refrigerated Johnson bodies on the road. In first quarter, Kraft
Foods, who has RouteMax refrigerated truck bodies in their fleet, worked with Navistar to put a RouteMax body on an International� Durastar� Hybrid chassis. The Durastar� hybrid truck with the latest in all-electric
refrigeration technology is a truly green truck fleet solution for Kraft Pizza Company.
 
About Johnson Refrigerated Truck Bodies
Johnson Truck Bodies is recognized as the industry leader in refrigerated transport. With headquarters in Rice Lake, Wisconsin, Johnson is the innovator and manufacturer of molded fiberglass refrigerated truck bodies and specialized trailers that range from 8 to 36 feet in length. Johnson has a reputation for quality, durability, and innovative all-electric refrigeration solutions that are designed for many years of maintenance-free delivery. In business since 1932, Johnson Refrigerated Truck Bodies is a CARLISLE Company.  For more information, visit
www.johnsontruckbodies.com.
Landing On A Body Near You

Building truck bodies can be very interesting. For example, it is not every day that you get to build a "helicopter body." Notice the extra length, the specialized support structure, and the special posts to hold on to the rotor blade. Notice also, it is mounted on a cutaway chassis. Keeps it low to the ground and tighter turning radius, I'm sure. Now, that's a picture going down the road! It's not every day the public gets to watch a helicopter go by on a truck. Kind of looks like it could just take off any time.

Thanks to North Bay Truck Body and owner, Bob Dias for this great shot. Bob specializes in custom flatbeds and much more. This one is pretty custom--or, at least the cargo is.
Air Pressure Simply & Effectively
 
 Efficient & Effective Mobile Air Compressor from Voltair
 
 
Fuel Tank Systems
 
 
 
It's Landscaping Time!
 
 
 
There's usually a number of ways of getting a thing done and landscaping is such a large area of different tasks that there are quite a number of different trucks, trailers and equipment that will do the job. These shots are two of the most popular--at least in California. I do especially love the Knapheide Landscaper at the top. What a great truck! The 1/2-ton with the mower trailer is great also and very popular with lawn maintenance crews.
 
I've also seen a number of landscapers using service bodies, contractor bodies, combo bodies and more. Crew cabs are popular to carry crew to jobs, but most landscape trucks are not crew cabs, so there is a large market in regular cabs.
 
Try stocking both of these examples from April through October. It's Landscaping Season! And, it's a long one!
Ya Gotta Love It. The KSS!
 
 
Innovation. I just love it. Here is a perfect example of innovation. This body is an idea that has been done before and marketed widely. Yet, Knapheide took the idea and made it considerably better. This is a tough challenge to succeed with, but Knapheide has done it in my opinion. Welcome to the KSS.
 
The rounded side body that is too rounded doesn't look right. The one that matches the cab lines is over-the-edge expensive because it must be redesigned with each OEM sheet metal change. Knapheide got it just right. This will look great on a Ford, Chevy, Dodge, whatever. It's still a heavy duty truck body, and with lots of class and style. It's just gotta go on an uplevel cab with nice wheels and all the options. This will be a cherished truck, not a plain old work truck!
 
Great job Knapheide! Another success under your 161 year old belt!

Cone Truck Innovations by WCTE

 
 
 
 
I'll let an owner of West Coast Truck Equipment, Jack Schmidt, tell you about this innovative solution:
 
"Something new that we are excited about at West Coast Truck Equipment is what we refer to as the Cone Truck. We have been working with our client, Centerline Striping, who is a company that paints lines on anything from highways to parking lots. For about a year now, together we have been designing a specialty truck for their needs. We have come up with a safer solution for them to place cones on a jobsite. This truck has been designed with lots of structural stability and storage capability.

The truck bed will hold about 400 cones which, enables the customer to set up an entire jobsite in one trip. There are special compartments to hold flags and flag stands. The platform on the back is low enough that a man can stand up and place cones with ease. They are secured by a 2 ft. lanyard hooked to a 5 point harness, so there is no way they will fall out. All of this has been inspected and approved by OSHA. We feel this is a much better solution than the typical truck where a man needs to sit low to the ground which, can be a dangerous situation. 

The rear platform is removable which, makes the truck versatile in its usage. The bolts that secure it to the truck body have been recessed for the safety of the men working on the platform, along with the grip strut platform floor. There is a pullout rear step for easier access to the truck bed.

In all the different phases of the manufacturing process, the customer was on site and involved in the decision making. This guaranteed that this truck was exactly what they needed. As this first truck is used on the job, we will continue to improve things and have future plans to continue with the manufacturing of many more of its type."
 
I love all the storage Jack has built into this truck. It even has expanded metal locking compartments on top--a unique idea. Jack is planning more innovation by making the rear platform moveable in that it will raise and lower electrically as needed, allowing more ground clearance in normal traffic situations. See more at www.westcoasttruckequipment.com.
Black Beauty from Caseco

 

   

No matter how many times I look at these photos, this is a sweet rig. It is a black beauty and loaded to the hilt with great accessories. Look at all those great drawers! It is a heavy duty work truck but doesn't look like it.
 
One of the best things about vehicles in general is how they can be customized to serve everyone differently. It is even more so in commercial trucks. It is all about solutions and there are a lot of great solutions here. It certainly doesn't hurt to throw it great looks, some sweet Alcoa wheels, running boards, uplevel trim and a customized body.
 
This sweet piece is from Caseco Truck Body located in Claremore, Oklahoma. You can reach them at 918-283-2999 or www.caseco.us.com
Dumps and Liftgates?

 

 

 
 
 
 
 
Installing a liftgate on a dump has always seemed kind of odd to me, but it seems that it is becoming a more popular option. In our multi-tasking world, we want vehicles that can multi-task along with us, and thanks to Tommy Gate with their Lift-N-Dump liftgate, which is specifically manufactured for installing on dump bodies, your customers can keep on multi-tasking.
 
The first three shots above are of an interesting flatbed dump with 36" permanent sides, liftgate and tarp. This body was built by North Bay Truck Body in Cordelia, CA.
 
The second two shots is a typical fold-down sides steel dump from Rugby Manufacturing with an "L-Pack" storage box in front of the dump and the liftgate. This units was built by Cascade Truck Body in Eugene, Oregon.

Here's Something Fun!

Unbelieveable! 

The Courage To Try!

 
Here's something else:
 

One more for the road:
 
 

Redesigned and Improved


Check out the redesigned and improved Commercial Truck Success reference website at www.comtrk.com. New larger size, center line main menu, easier navigation. Growing daily with currently over 120 pages, over 1,000 photographs and hundreds of links to suppliers and product websites all across the country for common and not so common bodies and other applications.
 
 
Keep telling us your thoughts on making it better and we'll keep changing it for the better. It will be expanding dramatically in the next 30-90 days, so keep looking! 

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Thank you for your time!
I wish for you an exciting and successful week!
 
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