US trailer manufacturer Wabash National has introduced its first line of dry and refrigerated truck bodies at the International Foodservice Distributors Association (IFDA) Distribution Solutions Conference in Phoenix.
“We’re very conscious of a shift happening in the trucking industry, fuelled by re-urbanisation and e-commerce trends. Our mission is to help our customers be successful, and with our truck body line we can support them as they work to meet final-mile delivery needs,” Brent Yeagy, Group President, Commercial Trailer Products at Wabash National, commented on the move.
Leveraging the brand’s experience in the semi-trailer market, Yeagy said Wabash’s engineers have combined “fleet-proven equipment designs with advanced materials” to make the new product line a success.
The company’s dry truck bodies will be based on Wabash’s DuraPlate composite panel, which is said to make the new body range up to 25 per cent more thermally efficient when compared to conventional designs, and save up to 15 per cent in weight.
“As the transportation industry is faced with increasing regulations and rapidly changing shipper needs, we’re focused on supporting customers with breakthrough designs that reduce weight, improve thermal and fuel efficiencies, reduce material costs, enhance corrosion resistance and improve safety,” Yeagy added.
“Earlier this year we opened a dedicated facility in Lafayette, Indiana, for the production of truck bodies and other final mile equipment. Although we’re in a limited production phase currently, we will continue to ramp up production for both dry and refrigerated truck bodies over the next 18 months.”