TRUCKMAKERS NEWS WORLDWIDE * Italy - Renault Trucks eyes Fiat's Iveco Daily

The Italian press has speculated Fiat may sell Fiat Industrial to help it fund its acquisition of U.S. carmaker Chrysler...  

Milan,TOR,Italy -Reuters -Jun 3, 2011:  --  Renault Trucks would be interested in light commercial vehicle brand Iveco Daily if Fiat Industrial were to sell it, the chairman of the French unit of Sweden's Volvo told an Italian paper on Friday...  Iveco is the truck and commercial vehicle unit of Italy's Fiat Industrial -- the truck and tractor maker which Italian carmaker Fiat spun off in January...  Stefano Chmielewski the chairman of Renault Trucks said, his company had made no formal offer because Fiat had officially not put anything up for sale...  Chmielewski said, Iveco would have to be broken up and sold separately and Renault Trucks would be interested in Iveco's medium and light commercial vehicles segment...  (Image from trucktrend: Ieco Daily van front view)

* Germany - Public takeover offer by Daimler and Rolls-Royce for Tognum successful

Stuttgart,Germany -Transport Weekly -6 June 2011: -- Following the expiry of the acceptance period for its public takeover offer for Tognum AG, Daimler AG and Rolls-Royce Holding plc now hold a total of 59,87 per cent of Tognum shares through their Joint Venture Engine Holding GmbH... Daimler and Rolls-Royce are very pleased with this convincing result. It represents a milestone in the takeover process of Tognum AG and lays a strong foundation for the future co-operation of the three companies. Daimler and Rolls-Royce expect further shares to be tendered during the additional acceptance period... By combining their respective technological strengths and market access, Daimler, Rolls-Royce and Tognum will establish a leading industrial engine systems and solutions company, offering a broad portfolio of products, services and integrated solutions on a worldwide basis...


* Japan - Cat's facilities spared disaster in, but impact will be felt. Despite the devastation - to the country and its economy - the Caterpillar CEO believes that Japan will bounce back.

(Photo: COURTESY OF CATERPILLAR INC: Caterpillar Inc. CEO Doug Oberhelman inspects the damage at a Caterpillar dealer located near the Sendai Airport, close to the epicenter of the earthquake that resulted in the devastating tsunami that hit Japan in March. Last week, Oberhelman visited Caterpillar facilities in Japan, where the company maintains two factories, a design center and 5,000 employees)

Peoria,ILL,USA -The Peoria Journal Star, by STEVE TARTER -Jun 01, 2011: -1 June 2011:  --  After a recent review of his company's operations in disaster-stricken Japan, Caterpillar Inc. CEO. Doug Oberhelman. is optimistic that the country will make a comeback from the March earthquake and tsunami that took an estimated 23,000 lives...  The island nation is an important cog in Caterpillar's worldwide production setup with two factories, a design center and 5,000 employees, said Oberhelman... Caterpillar equipment produced in Japan is marketed throughout Asia and to the United States...  Oberhelman visited a Caterpillar dealer that was hit hard by the tsunami...  "  The dealer was located near the Sendai Airport (north of Tokyo). They lost everything. I saw a D-8 tractor and a 40-ton truck tossed around like Tinker Toys," he said. Oberhelman added that two employees from the dealership died trying to help people during the early recovery efforts"   ...

* Japan - Mitsubishi Fuso earns ISO first

(Photo from Wikipedia: FUSO's Supergreat truck model FU07)

Saiwai-ku,Kawasaki-shi,Kanagawa,Japan -Fleet Owner (USA) -Jun 3, 2011: -- Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corp. (MFTBC) has become the first automotive manufacturer in Japan to earn the ISO/TS 16949 international standard for quality management... Developed specifically for the automotive industry, ISO/TS 16949 certification requires meeting stringent standards covering global parts procurement, prevention of failure, reduction of wastes and limiting variations in quality... The MFTBC certification covers all of the company’s truck and component operations, including the manufacturing facilities for the vehicles, engines, transmissions and axles in its North American truck lineup...

* India - MNAL eyes sale of 50,000 HCVs and 20,000 LCVs in three years

Mumbai,Maharastra,India -Business Standard and Truck Driver/Truck India on Linkedin -7 June 2011: -- Mahindra Navistar Automotive which has recently added heavy commercial vehicles (HCV) of various range in its portfolio, which earlier consisted of light commercial vehicles (LCVs) only, is aiming to sell 50,000 heavy commercial vehicles (HCVs) and 20,000 light commercial vehicles (LCVs) in the next three years... While 160,000 units HCV market in the country is growing at 40 per cent per annum, LCV market of 240,000 units is growing at 15 per cent...   The company, a joint venture between Mahindra & Mahindra and Navistar of the US, manufactures vehicles above 3.5 tonnes gross vehicle-weight to 49 tonnes. Vehicle under 3.5 tonnes are produced by Mahindra & Mahindra... (Picture from dancewithshadows: A Mahindra-Navistar truck)

WEATHER TROUBLES * USA - Storms continue a rampage; hundreds remain missing in Joplin

Severe storms and vicious tornadoes continued to wreak havoc on communities in the Midwest and throughout the nation

 (Photo by Nikohle Ellis)

Joplin, MO,USA -Land Line Magazine -May 27 2011:  --  This truck was damaged, but still sunnyside up after a tornado ripped through Sedalia, MO. The owner is John McFail Jr. of Houstonia, MO...  At least three people were killed in the Atlanta area by storms this week. Tornadoes killed at least 16 people in Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas on Tuesday and Wednesday. 3-year-old Ryan Hamil’s body was found Thursday morning along a lakeshore near his home in Piedmont, OK...  The boy’s 15-month-old brother, also died during the tornado, and the AP reported that his sister and mother were injured...  The damage in last week’s Minneapolis tornado, which claimed one life and decimated hundreds of homes, is estimated at $166 million...  The Missouri Department of Public Safety is keeping a list of names updated. No rescues have been made since Tuesday, but the search and rescue work continues. According to the City of Joplin, more than 600 volunteers and more than 50 dog teams are working today...

WEATHER TROUBLES * UK - Farming community comes to aid of stricken tanker

London,UK -Transport Engineer -10 Feb 2011: -- Adversity can bring out the best in people and companies – as two South East firms proved during the recent weather, when a fuel tanker got stuck in the snow... The tanker was one of Sprint Fuels' Mercedes-Benz vehicles, which has ground to a halt on a hill as it was making deliveries... Sprint managing director Henry Drake called the RAMSAK (Ring of Agricultural Machinery in Sussex and Kent) co-operative of farmers and landowners, which shares resources, including machinery and skilled labour...   At the time RAMSAK members were on 24-hour call out, helping each other clear snow, so one member turned up with a winch to help shift the stricken tanker, and get Sprint Fuels on its way again through the snow...

WEATHER TROUBLES * USA - Ice slows I-40 traffic in E. Arkansas to a crawl

Little Rock,AR,USA -AP/KAIT8 -Feb 11, 2011: -- State police say travelers on Interstate 40 between Little Rock and Memphis should prepare to slow down - a lot - or find some other highway to travel on... The agency said in a news release Thursday evening that traffic on I-40 from the Lonoke-Prairie county line east to the White River Bridge has slowed to a crawl because of ice that formed on the highway shortly after sunset... State troopers estimated that traffic was traveling at approximately 10 miles per hour or less. Several trucks have become disabled and lost traction and troopers are working to clear the blockages... State police said Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department crews were attempting to get sand to the area...

WEATHER TROUBLES * USA - Truckers beware: More snow heading for the East

Harrisburg,PENN,USA -Fleet Owner, by Brian Straight -Jan 25, 2011: -- While many people along the Eastern seaboard are growing quite tired of snow, there may be plenty more coming in the next few weeks if an Accuweather.com short-range forecast proves correct. And that is not good news for the trucking industry-- or the consumers who rely on trucks to bring virtually everything they need to market...  Many states throughout the Northeast have already seen snowfall totals above their yearly averages. Boston, through Monday, had seen 49.6 in. vs. a yearly average of 41.8; Hartford, CT, is at 57.2 vs. 45.3; New York has seen 36.1 in. vs. an average of 22; and Philadelphia is also above average with 22.7 in. vs. an average of 19.3. The coastal region from New York City to the northeast was expecting anywhere from a dusting of snow to 3 in. in many areas today...  And now the East is bracing for another big storm, expected to hit Wednesday night into Thursday with forecasts ranging from 1-3 in. of snow in the Tennessee Valley up to 16 in. or more in parts of New England, according to Accuweather.com... (Photo from assets.nydailynews)

WEATHER TROUBLES WORLDWIDE * Australia - Patience needed in flood crisis

David Simon: “As the floods recede there will be a vast number of damaged roads and bridges”

Sydney,Australia -ATA Friday Facts -14 Jan 2011: -- The ATA is urging trucking operators to be patient as the effects of the devastating floods in Queensland, northern NSW and the Gascoyne region of Western Australia continue... With a major clean up now underway in some areas, ATA Chairman David Simon said it’s important operators work with road authorities and to understand it will take time for roads to be reopened... The ATA has released a fact sheet setting out the flood assistance for small trucking businesses available from the Australian, Queensland and New South Wales governments... The Australian Government has announced a Disaster Income Recovery Subsidy of about $500 per fortnight for employees and small business operators who live in or derive an income from a flood affected area and have lost their income... The NSW and Queensland governments have announced grant schemes for small businesses who have directly suffered damage to their premises and equipment as a result of the floods. Low interest rate loans are available for small businesses that have exhausted all other sources of finance... The Australian, NSW and Queensland governments have also announced a range of hardship payments to help individuals and families... The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has deferred the December Business Activity Statement deadline for flood affected businesses until 21 February 2011... The Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads (DTMR) has considered a request for a relaxation of the registration requirement for vehicles registered under the FIRS scheme in the current flood recovery period... The request would permit FIRS registered vehicles to undertake intrastate delivery activities during the current state of emergency... The ATA has called on Australia’s banks to be understanding in the way they deal with owner drivers and small fleet operators affected by the floods... In a letter to the Australian Bankers’ Association, ATA Chief Executive Stuart St Clair said many small trucking businesses were currently unable to generate revenue because of the floods...

* Toowoomba,Australia - Honouring trucking bravery in the flood crisis

Toowoomba,Australia -ATA Friday Facts -14 Jan 2011:  --  The ATA is looking to recognise acts of bravery by the country’s truck drivers during the flood crisis... ATA Chairman, David Simon, said there are many stories of truck drivers going above and beyond the call of duty to ensure the safety of people trapped in the flood waters... The ATA and Continental Tyres Australia are presenting the new award as part of this year’s National Trucking Industry Awards... David said the ATA was seeking stories such as the one of the John Kelly & Son Transport driver who helped rescue a motorist during the flash floods in Toowoomba on Monday (see image above)... “The driver displayed remarkable bravery in driving his truck into the flood water to rescue a woman at the corner of James and Kitchener streets,” David said. “Despite the attention, this driver doesn’t consider himself a hero. He told me he just drove the truck into the water and threw a strap to the car driver to secure around herself, in case the car was washed away..."

* USA - Massive Nor’easter snowstorm forces road closures as it tracks north

(Video from YouTube, by RiverheadLOCAL -28 Dec 2010: RiverheadLOCAL photographer rode on a Riverhead Town plow truck with Highway Superintendent Gio Woodson during the blizzard on Monday, Dec. 28, 2010, as highway crews struggled against the wind to keep town roads passable)

New York,NY,USA -Fleet Owner, by David Cullen -Jan 12, 2011: -- A powerful snowstorm that developed in the Southeast and is now in its third day is leaving road closures and snarled traffic in its wake as it tracks north today into New England, where Boston is experiencing blizzard conditions...  Even 48 hours after the storm barreled through Albany in southwestern Georgia, a report posted this morning on local TV news station WALB Channel 10 stated “the remnants of the storm are still affecting travel. That's hurting some businesses in south Georgia. Operations at area trucking companies slowed down tremendously because many drivers simply can't get where they need to go” ...   The report went on to note that Atlanta highways are still backed up as well ...   It’s much the same story straight up the East Coast, as the storm came out of Georgia and began steaming northeast hugging the coast. The heavy snows it dumped along the way put at least 10 states under winter weather alerts, from Delaware and Maryland out to Pennsylvania and up into coastal New Jersey and the New York City metro area and on into Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Maine and New Hampshire...

* UK - Pre-Christmas snow cost Stobart Group £1.5m

Langford Way, Appleton Thorn,WA,UK -Road Transport, by Christopher Walton -21 January 2011: -- The extreme weather before Christmas cost Stobart Group an additional £1.5m in running costs, according to an interim statement released to investors today...  However, the multi-modal operator says its performance is continuing at a rate that is "significantly ahead" compared to last year and it has met the majority of its revenue expectations for its current financial year, which ends on 28 February...

* Canada - Truckers delayed by avalanche risk

Video from YouTube, by CanadaManDan -31 March 2010: -- Kicking Horse Pass (5339 feet) is a high mountain pass across the Continental divide of the Canadian Rocky Mountains

Golden, B.C.,CAN -Today's Trucking -17 Jan 2011:  --  Trucks are still lined up on the side of the Trans-Canada Highway, waiting for the section between Lake Louise and Golden, B.C. to reopen...  The stretch of highway was closed last week due to risk of avalanche ... and officials say it may stay that way until Tuesday...  The main risk is in the Kicking Horse Canyon. Semi trailers lined the highway through the mountain parks...  Highway 93 is usually the detour around Trans-Canada closures, but this road is shut down too...  An avalanche buried the road Saturday night...  On Sunday afternoon a section of the Trans-Canada from Golden to Revelstoke was reopened to traffic...   But for all the travelers and truckers on the east side of the B.C. border that's small consolation, and they prepare to wait another day or two, before restarting their trips... 

WEATHER TROUBLES * USA - Winter storm bears down on U.S. East Coast

Icy roads, strict security

San Francisco,CAL,USA -MarketWatch -Dec. 25, 2010: -- A snowstorm moving up the East Coast from the South is threatening air and ground transportation as travelers return home from their Christmas holidays... The storm has prompted forecasters to post a winter storm watch through Monday for the East Coast from Georgia to Maine... It is predicted to dump as much as a a foot or more in some areas by Monday morning, including the Boston area... The weather service was forecasting possible snow for the New York and Boston areas, starting Sunday and continuing into Sunday night, with overnight temperatures in the 20s and wind gusts up to 30 miles an hour... Many travelers across the Midwest are struggling with icy roads. The storm produced a rare white Christmas in Georgia... The National Weather Service said the storm could bring more than 5 inches of snow to the Washington region... The weather is the result of a low-pressure system moving along the Gulf Coast. It is expected to intensify and move northeast on Sunday to the mid-Atlantic states and New England... (Picture from newsoftworld: Amazing pictures ice storm USA)

WEATHER TROUBLES * Canada - Snowstorm blasts SW Ontario

Sarnia,ONT,CAN -Today's Trucking –14 Dec 2010: -- About 300 motorists and truck drivers were stranded on the highway near Sarnia overnight and this morning as severe winter weather pummeled southwestern Ontario... Drifting snow and zero visibility trapped about 360 vehicles, including some commercial trucks, on Highway 402 between Sarnia and County Road 22... According to the CBC, Military helicopters flew to the scene today to airlift stranded drivers – some of who spent 25 hours in their vehicles... There are no reports of serious injuries... As of this morning, Hwy. 402 to the Michigan border was still shut down... As much as 20 cm of snow is expected to fall on the region by Tuesday night...  (Picture from monctonblogger: snowstorm)

Snowstorm * USA - Closes section of NYS Thruway near Buffalo

An official described the scene as "13 miles of bumper-to-bumper cars, two lanes each — three lanes each depending on where they are"

Buffalo,NY,USA -The Associated Press/The Trucker -2 Dec 2010: -- A section of the New York State Thruway in suburban Buffalo was closed Thursday after a lake-effect storm dumped up to 2 feet of snow on the area, stranding hundreds of motorists who spent the night in their vehicles...  State Trooper Daniel Golinski said a 10-mile section of Interstate 90 remain closed in both directions between exits 50 and 55 along the city's eastern suburbs as the Thursday morning commute began. He said the highway was closed shortly before 3 a.m. Thursday after vehicles backed up behind a truck accident became buried in blowing snow...  The truck jackknifed around 8 p.m. Wednesday and has been removed, but crews were still working to free the stranded vehicles, Golinski said...  The lake-effect storm that began Wednesday dumped up to 23 inches on the Buffalo area, according to the National Weather Service. Buffalo city schools and dozens of other school districts in the region canceled classes Thursday...   Power remains out for about 10,000 utility customers in eastern New York. Most of the outages were National Grid customers in central New York and the Adirondacks... (Photo by jeanmiele: Bryant Park Blizzard)