International Advantage

Marshall Cymbaluk, owner of Motor Trucks, Inc., an International truck dealer from the Pacific Northwest, recently made a $5 million donation to the Providence Regional Medical Center in his hometown of Everett, Wash. The generosity from the longtime local business leader marks one of the largest philanthropic gifts ever made in the area.

Cymbaluk, 71, first established Motor Trucks in downtown Everett in 1974, purchasing the dealership from a previous owner. Just last year, the business moved to a new location in a former lumber mill site. His son, Jeff, helps run the business, serving as general manager. In addition to two additional Motor Trucks locations in Mount Vernon and Bellingham, Wash., Cymbaluk also owns and operates Kenworth dealerships in Washington state and Alaska.

The Cymbaluk family has a long history of involvement with Providence Regional Medical Center, dating back more than three decades. Marshall’s wife, Katherine, worked as a registered nurse for many years at General Hospital before it merged with Providence Hospital in 1994. Marshall helped to found the Providence Hospital Foundation and served on the Board of Directors in the mid-1980s. The donation comes at a much-needed time, as charitable giving is down across the country.

The extraordinary donation will be honored by Providence Regional Medical Center with the naming of the new Medical Tower as the Marshall and Katherine Cymbaluk Medical Tower, according to David Brooks, CEO, Providence Regional Medical Center.

Marshall Cymbaluk said of the gift, “We have lived in Everett and Snohomish County for nearly 40 years. We’ve also built a successful business here. We are grateful for everything this community has given to us. Our gift to Providence is one way we felt we could give something back.”

Dan Ustian, Navistar chairman, president and chief executive officer, added: “Marshall’s donation speaks volumes about the greatness of Motor Trucks, Inc., and his leadership. The unprecedented $5 million commitment to Providence Medical Tower is corporate citizenship at its best. It will change lives for a long time to come.”

The Cymbaluks’ commitment is part of Providence General Foundation’s recently launched capital campaign, The Campaign for Providence, which will help fund Providence Regional Medical Center’s new $500 million Medical Tower. The tower is scheduled to open June 14, 2011.

“They have given a magnanimous gift to the community that will touch many people who come to Providence Regional Medical Center for care,” said Randy Petty, Chief Development Officer of Providence General Foundation. “This awe-inspiring commitment clearly demonstrates strong community support for bringing the best in healthcare excellence to families in this community.”

Today’s rapidly changing vehicle technologies require the latest repair skills. With Customer Education Portals, part of the OnCommand™ customer solutions by Navistar suite of business tools, operators, technicians, and fleet managers have online access to the same training used by International technicians—fully customized for their needs.

Chris Disantis, director of training and technical field support for Aim NationaLease, has been relying on the web-based training for the past two years to keep his 280-plus technicians up to speed on everything from engine emissions technology to air conditioning and APU systems.

“Every technician we have is enrolled in the system,” he says, speaking from the company’s headquarters in Girard, Ohio. The core of his leasing business is built around International® ProStar®+ tractors and International DuraStar® straight trucks. For the former, he began buying tractors powered by MaxxForce® 13 engines last year. With the Customer Education Portals, his techs didn’t have to deal with a long learning curve with the new engines.

“There’s a lot happening, and a lot happening fast in our industry,” he says. “I have two corporate trainers who work for me. So for us to go to 40 different shops and train 280 technicians on what comes out, as fast as it comes out, is a daunting task. But we can have an online class in our portal that the technicians in the field instantly access to train on the products we’re putting into the shop. It’s been a tremendous benefit; we can get our technicians what they need to diagnose vehicles very quickly.”

Engine service and maintenance training provides a general overview of how the engine works, details any special features, and also goes through specific diagnostic steps that are unique compared with previous generation engines. Other types of training focus on vehicle service and maintenance, general diagnostics, and vendor products such as ArvinMeritor Braking Systems.

“The path that manufacturers had to take to meet 2010 emissions was a tremendous change for us, and Navistar has some wonderful classes that got us up to speed rapidly,” says Disantis, who notes that his regional sales representative from Navistar visits every month to ensure the system is meeting their needs. “He’s a tremendous asset. He makes course recommendations based on what we’re buying every year, and paces out the training accordingly,” he says.

One of the best things about the online learning system is it allows technicians to go through the training on their own schedule. “They can do it at home, they can do it at work. Being web-based, it can happen from anywhere,” says Matt Krump, from the Navistar Customer Service group. The system also offers robust reporting capabilities; student course completion data can easily be downloaded to an Excel spreadsheet for management to track progress, and to support development and career advancement programs.

Herb Kramer, supervisor of fleet maintenance services for Oklahoma City-based OG&E Fleet Services, oversees 25 technicians. His fleet runs International DuraStar trucks, along with digger derricks, bulldozers and other machines that support utility crews throughout the region. He notes that the system’s ongoing Quick Tips feature provides a helpful snapshot of any changes happening with his trucks and engines. And the online courses are a big part of the company’s performance management program.

“We’ve looked at other training courses and, by far, Navistar’s is the best. I recommend it for anyone running International trucks,” says Kramer. “It helps us solve problems that could have taken five times longer. It’s one of the things that keeps us buying International [trucks].”

For more information on OnCommand Education, go to: OnCommand Education.

Benny Whitehead, Sr., the owner of BWI Trucks, squeezes every mile he can from his fleet. So when it was time to invest in 60 new 2010-compliant vehicles, he bought comparable test trucks from three different OEMs and tracked their dependability and fluid economy over several months. The winner would get his business.

“Our thinking was, we’re going through changing times when it comes to trucks, so we wanted to make an educated decision,” says Whitehead. “We did a study based on the price of the vehicles, but also the costs of operation and, most importantly, fuel costs.”

With one of the three trucks, aftertreatment problems resulted in shutdowns on the highway; drivers commented that another featured too much bumpiness in the cab. Only the International® ProStar®+ with the MaxxForce® 13 engine scored high across the board, delivering dependability, a comfortable ride, and easily beating the other two contenders with 7.5 miles-per-gallon in fluid economy.

“Our goal with the ProStar+ is 8 miles-per-gallon,” says Whitehead. “We think that’s very achievable.”

BWI has been in business for 45 years, providing refrigerated transport of everything from fresh food to pharmaceuticals across routes from the southeast to up and down the west coast. Headquartered in Eufaula, Ala., the carrier has a reputation not only for on-time delivery but also for closely monitoring its fuel costs. In fact, Whitehead, 66, frequently hosts seminars where he shares fuel-saving tips.

In addition to conducting his own research before purchasing new trucks, he is a big proponent of lower highway speeds. At a time when the federal government is considering limiting the speed of all heavy trucks to 68 miles-per-hour, BWI claims that, by requiring its drivers to go from a top speed of 68 mph to 59 mph, he’s reduced his fuel costs by 30 percent.

“It’s amazing; the numbers will blow you away,” he says. “We run 80 trucks. When you start talking about changing that speed, it’s good for at least a half-a-mile to the gallon. We’ve monitored our fuel costs and found that when fuel hits $3.50 per gallon, we’re saving $1,500 per trip. That’s major bucks every year. It’s helped us stay in the black and make money, even during the hard times.”

Another key to BWI’s success: Sharing that money with its drivers. Those who hit the required fuel savings benchmarks get 33 percent of the money, or approximately $500 extra per trip. “When you drop several thousand dollars in their pockets every month, they don’t mind driving a few miles-per-hour slower,” adds Whitehead. “They’re motivated.”

The fluid economy savings was the most important, but other factors contributed to this longtime Freightliner customer’s decision to purchase 60 International ProStar+ trucks.

Whitehead cites the quietness and how easy it is to drive. And because his fleet runs teams of drivers, the comfort and layout of the cab help keep both drivers fresh and rested. And he stresses that the 13-liter engine is plenty capable during regular runs through the Rocky Mountains, offering the horsepower he needs along with stellar fluid economy.

He’s also a fan of the MaxxForce engines’ less-is-more design, which attacks emissions in-cylinder—as opposed to SCR-equipped engines that utilize additional aftertreatment systems and fluids to meet 2010 standards.

“The less systems you have on the truck, the less you have to manage and the less trouble you’re going to have,” he says. “And we don’t have to deal with urea. That’s a good thing.”

For more information on Benny Whitehead, Inc. go to Benny Whitehead, Inc.

To learn more about the International ProStar+, go to International Prostar+

Last month, Navistar-Modec EV Alliance, LLC announced several additions to its sales, service and support network for the eStar™ all-electric truck. New dealers include locations in the Chicago, Florida, Baltimore/Metro D.C., and New England markets.

“Expanding our service and support for eStar customers to the Midwest, Southeast and Northeast is a great opportunity to continue growing our business,” says Mark Aubry, eStar vice president, sales and marketing. “The eStar all-electric truck is an exciting new product with amazing potential to revolutionize the industry and transform thinking when it comes to clean, efficient transportation.”??

Chicago International Trucks (Chicago market), Rechtien International Trucks (Florida market), K. Neal International Trucks and Beltway Companies (Baltimore/Metro D.C. area) and DATTCO (New England area) are now part of the distribution network for the eStar.

The eStar all-electric truck is the first medium-duty commercial vehicle to receive U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) certification as a clean fuel fleet vehicle as well as California Air Resources Board (CARB) certification as a zero-emissions vehicle. This Class 2c-3 electric truck—the first in its category—has a range of up to 100 miles per charge, making it ideal for many urban applications. When it returns to its home base at the end of the day, it can be plugged in and fully recharged within six to eight hours.

Unlike other electric trucks that are reconfigured models of fossil-fuel trucks, the eStar truck has been purpose-built for electric power, providing a competitive advantage with a low center of gravity (the battery placement is between the frame rails, not mounted on top) and a 36-foot turning circle. The eStar is engineered with superior aerodynamics and features a walk-through cab.

With zero tailpipe emissions, each eStar truck can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 10 tons annually. Drivers will be able to experience the ultimate in ergonomic design as the windshield provides nearly 180-degree visibility, the low-floor design provides easy loading/unloading and the noise level is near zero, which makes this nimble vehicle ideal for urban areas facing noise challenges.??

The eStar all-electric truck transitioned from concept to reality in August 2009, when President Barack Obama traveled to a Navistar manufacturing plant in Wakarusa, Ind. and announced a grant of $39.2 million to be awarded to Navistar. The grant is part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and administered by the U.S. Department of Energy to develop and deploy electric trucks in the United States.??

“The collaboration between Navistar and the Department of Energy demonstrates the importance of business and government working together to make energy-efficient vehicles a reality, and the continued need for research and development of advanced commercial vehicle technologies,” Aubry added. “As eStar units make their way into the day-to-day operations of leading fleets, Navistar continues to demonstrate its leadership in building a sustainable commercial electric vehicle market. We’re providing customers with the best technology available and helping create jobs throughout our supply chain while also reducing America’s dependence on foreign oil and preserving our environment.”

For more information on the eStar all-electric truck, go to: eStar all-electric truck.