International Advantage

At this year’s Mid-America Trucking Show (MATS), Navistar demonstrated the many ways it is using emerging technology to forge new connections with customers. In one innovative example, two Facebook fans were selected to attend MATS as VIP guests and “New Media Journalists.”

The two fans, Tim Maddox and Lisa Frigm, were chosen after responding to a post on the MATS discussion forum of the International Trucks Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/internationaltrucks). The pair enjoyed VIP access at the Navistar media event on March 30 in Louisville, Ky. And throughout the show, they submitted pictures, video, and updates to Facebook from the floor.

“Their enthusiastic reports helped bring the excitement of the show to customers who were unable to attend,” says Dan Dykstra, Interactive & Digital Marketing Manager, Navistar.

In addition, the MATS tab on the International Trucks Facebook page—much like the similar tabs for the recent ConExpo-ConAgg and NTEA Work Truck Show—kept online fans and followers in the loop during the events. Every day, visitors discovered updates on the many product and feature announcements, alongside images and video posts from Navistar executives.

Along with the trucks, engines, and content showcased at MATS, the company also utilized technology in new and innovative ways at the show booth. All booth workers were equipped with iPads loaded with a special app to help direct visitor traffic, provide videos and presentations, and gather information about customers. International customers and loyalists were also invited to login and “Like” International on Facebook to stay connected with the company.

The iPad app was created in cooperation with several International Trucks business units, including Used Trucks, Navistar Capital, and Parts and Service. According to Dykstra, the goal was to provide a virtual version of the booth’s many offerings.

In other technology news, International recently launched a robust iPhone app designed to further link truck owners with dealers. The application makes it easy to find a dealer location, no matter where drivers are on the road. Advanced search criteria are available for those needing dealers that offer road service, for example; or dealers enrolled in the myEdge® parts program.

“Users can find the closest dealer that provides a specific service they need,” Dykstra says. The iPhone app, which can be downloaded for free at the iTunes store, also offers information on parts and service specials.

“We’re really trying to push the envelope with technology. It gives us so many platforms for real-time dialogue with our customers,” Dykstra says. “It’s all part of the bigger picture, which is to listen to those who drive our trucks and respond to their needs as quickly as possible.”

For a complete MATS roundup, visit: Trucking Show.

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Truck buyers now have a one-stop-shop for everything they need from their International dealers. Thanks to new-and-improved dealer microsites, customers can locate dealer locations through Google Maps, browse parts and service specials, book an appointment, and search new and used inventory all in one place.

According to John O’Reilly, interactive and digital marketing director, Navistar, the new functionality comes after more than a year spent working with key International dealers. The result is a platform that provides everything a customer needs, including a central place to view real-time inventory. Along with providing an online snapshot of the trucks available for purchase, the dealer microsites also offer convenient features like printable spec sheets, and the ability to forward truck photos and profiles to colleagues.

“We can now provide customers with a complete picture of the inventory on dealer lots,” O’Reilly says. “It will reflect any new International vehicles delivered. It will include feeds from TruckPaper.com if applicable. It used to be very cumbersome for dealers to perform inventory management; typically, each one had their own system. Now, all of our dealers have access to a powerful, web-based tool that they can use to oversee and edit inventory for the benefit of the customer.”

Visit the “dealer locator” section on InternationalTrucks.com for a quick link to the nearest local dealer microsite.

In addition, the microsites feature tools such as a Payment Estimator to help customers simplify their financing decisions. Truck buyers can plug in the truck sale price and trade-in allowance to quickly determine their estimated monthly payment.

Online parts and service information includes details on available specials and a feed from MyEdge®, the virtual parts counter offering thousands of all-makes parts from more than 150 International dealers. Information on national sales promotions—like the current “Drive It To Believe It” promotion, which offers a free Meritor Wabco OnGuard™ System or $3,500 off an Eaton Ultrashift when you buy an International® ProStar®+—are also featured.

The new dealer microsites also provide a direct link to International truck online configurators. These easy-to-use tools lets truck buyers pre-build their own trucks digitally by plugging in factors like usage, drivetrain, cab, suspension, and trim and interior options. With another click, the truck can be viewed in a 360-degree profile. The custom truck can then be forwarded directly to the dealer.

“With its inventory-searching capabilities and the ability to connect our customers with sales and service reps, the microsites are a complete business tool,” says Rick Walters, service manager at Bluegrass International Trucks in Georgetown, Kentucky. “It delivers amazing efficiencies, and it’s strengthening our relationships with the fleets that count on us every day.”

“We incorporated feedback from our dealers, who told us that their customers were looking for a seamless experience,” O’Reilly says. “The new sites give customers a complete view of the offerings available at their International dealer. It’s all about convenience.”

For more information, find your local dealer’s microsite via the “dealer locator” on International Trucks.

All marks are trademarks of their respective owners.

All International® commercial vehicles powered by 2010 MaxxForce® engines use MaxxForce Advanced EGR to meet emissions standards. With many customers re-entering the new truck market, it’s important to understand how the technology works and how it can help you reduce weight and improve productivity.

First, a little background: While the EPA’s target in 2007 was particulate matter, the focus in 2010 was the reduction of NOx (nitrogen oxide), with approved levels lowered by 83 percent from previous generation engines: from 1.20 grams per horsepower to 0.20 grams.

The market features two distinct approaches to meet 2010 standards: International trucks with MaxxForce engines utilize the proprietary MaxxForce Advanced EGR (exhaust gas recirculation) system to reduce NOx inside the engine itself. It simply recirculates part of an engine's exhaust back to the cylinders, slowing and cooling the combustion process and burning off pollutants. MaxxForce Advanced EGR achieves greatly reduced emissions through a combination of increased injection pressure, improved exhaust flow and refined calibrations.

In contrast, the SCR system filters diesel exhaust through DEF (diesel exhaust fluid), a urea and water solution that is injected into an additional aftertreatment device called an SCR catalyst.

For most of the past decade, Navistar has pursued its in-cylinder emissions solution path. The goal was to provide the most customer-friendly powertrain, in terms of fluid economy (a measurement of diesel fuel plus liquid urea), performance and overall ownership costs. “We developed a high-pressure fuel injections system years ago, knowing that this technology would allow us to deliver an effective emissions solution,” says Tim Shick, director of business and product strategy, Navistar.

With MaxxForce Advanced EGR, you don’t have the worry about the inconvenience of finding and filling up with liquid urea. There’s no additional equipment and no maintenance or technician training. No driver-interface changes such as new gauges and warning lights. No risk of the engine de-rating because of liquid urea issues. Most importantly, MaxxForce Advanced EGR provides customers with a no-hassle solution that keeps responsibility for emissions compliance with the manufacturer—not the vehicle owner or driver.

The simplicity of the MaxxForce Advanced EGR approach can help keep operating costs down because, from a packaging standpoint, no additional equipment is needed. The truck configuration stays essentially the same. In general, more work for the body maker typically translates to more complexity—and higher operating costs—for the end-user.

Another factor truck buyers need to consider when diving into the post-2010 emissions market is weight; the lack of additional equipment with MaxxForce Advanced EGR means increased payload capacity, saving 300 to 400 pounds on a truck with a midrange chassis and 400 to 500 pounds on a heavy duty chassis.

“[A heavier chassis] would affect us, because we try to give the end-user the lightest truck possible,” notes the vice-president of sales for a leading maker of beverage and regional dry van truck bodies. “Generally, our customers are working with a 33,000-pound weight limit, and they could easily exceed that if they weren’t paying attention.” “We’re committed to bringing customers a no-hassle emissions solution today and into the future,” says Shick. “Because MaxxForce® Advanced EGR technology doesn't require you to do anything differently than you do today, you can stay focused on your business.”

For more information on MaxxForce Advanced EGR, go to: Advanced EGR

Two years ago, the parts department for Blue Bell Creameries was cluttered with unneeded truck parts—most for equipment no longer in the company’s fleet. But thanks to the OnCommand™ Parts Return Program, the Brenham, Texas-based ice cream maker was able to eliminate excess inventory while generating more than $20,000 in real working capital.

Like most companies with sizeable trucking operations, Blue Bell relies on its parts department to keep its fleet rolling. But according to parts manager Daryl Ganske, maintaining the appropriate inventory levels is a constant battle. “You have to have your reorder levels set so you have parts on hand,” he says. “But if the mechanics don’t end up using certain parts, you have to make good decisions about what to get rid of and what to keep.”

“It’s a big challenge,” he continues. “If you end up sticking parts on the shelf, they’re easy to forget about and can sit there year after year.”

Even the most disciplined repair shops end up with stacks of obsolete or overstock parts due to sudden trade-ins, or when fleets transition to newer or different truck models. And after the parts collect dust for months at a time, getting a full refund from suppliers can be a difficult task.

The resulting clutter can decrease a shop’s productivity while also tying up financial resources in dead assets.

Previously, fleets had few choices when it came to ridding themselves of this excess inventory, none of them good. “We could let them sit on the shelf, we could sell the stuff on the Internet, or we could send it out for scrap, which basically means we’re throwing it in the trash,” says Ganske.

Fortunately, the Parts Return Program—part of the OnCommand by Navistar suite of business tools—came along. The innovative program gave Blue Bell an avenue to do something constructive with its surplus parts: Turn them into credit towards purchasing the parts they really need.

Here’s how the program works:

• First, return your obsolete or unneeded parts to one of two processing centers in the U.S. and Canada. (You do not need a prior purchasing history with an International dealer to participate.) The parts are valued at your carrying cost; typically, this will be the original purchase price.

•Once the returned inventory is processed, you’ll receive a credit equal to 25 percent of its value. During the first year of the program, you agree to purchase three times the returned inventory amount, plus your annual base purchases.

•Over the life of the program—a maximum of five years—you’ll earn back the remaining 75 percent of your credit by meeting your base purchase requirements and purchasing a total of 12 times the amount of the returned inventory.

In the case of Blue Bell’s two-year-long program, the company received more than $22,000 in purchase credits in exchange for buying more parts from International. To meet its purchase requirements, Ganske says he simply shifted some purchases from other vendors to International, which currently provides access to more than 700,000 part numbers.

“The pricing on the International parts was very competitive,” he says. “We’ve already got some more parts that we’ve collected, and we’re going to do this again at some point.”

Blue Bell currently has more than 50 branch locations, with a fleet spread out from the Carolinas to Phoenix to as far north as Indianapolis. Beyond the Parts Return Program, the company also takes full advantage of the far-reaching International dealer network. With nearly 600 International dealer locations, Blue Bell is able to get parts wherever they’re needed, no matter where a breakdown occurs. And if for some reason a part is not immediately available from a particular dealer, Blue Bell’s Navistar parts representative does what it takes to quickly locate what’s needed.

“It’s good to know that International goes the extra mile, and has our best interests in mind,” Ganske says.

“The Parts Return Program is another example of how we’re listening to the needs of our customers,” says Aveline Hauser, senior marketing manager, Navistar Parts Group. “Fleets told us they’re constantly looking for ways to cut costs and generate capital. For them, storing obsolete and surplus parts is like leaving cash on the table.”

The Parts Return Program provides credit to participating customers through any card in Navistar’s Fleet Charge® network, which can track parts purchases and corresponding credit amounts. Customers interested in participating should contact their parts sales manager at their local U.S. or Canadian International truck dealership.

For more information on the OnCommand Parts Return Program, go to: Navistar Parts and Service