From the Covid pandemic and related supply chain challenges, to a persistent freight recession that shows little sign of letting up, the last few years have tested the mettle of fleet executives.

And several lessons learned are shaping how they do business now and into the future.

“About six years ago when we were trying to look ahead to what we thought the future of the fleet would look like and equipment should look like, we started to get close to the OEMs about new technologies,” said Bruce Stockton, chief operating officer with Wilson Logistics, speaking at FTR’s 2024 Transportation Conference. “We purposely started to get the fleet very healthy. Today the average age [of its Class 8 tractors] is 14 months and we plan to keep it to that through the end of 2025 and early 2026.”

However, Stockton is uncomfortable with what the EPA27 emissions standards will bring, and plans to defer new truck purchases initially when they take effect. “We will probably skip all of 2027 and half of 2028 and let the rest of you guys figure it out,” he said. “We won’t be early adopters.”

But Justin Weber, chief operating officer of Venture Logistics, isn’t planning to sit on the sidelines. He feels interest rates decreases will help offset the higher cost of the EPA27 equipment and isn’t concerned about the new emissions-defeating technologies.

“We will certainly buy [new trucks] during 2027,” Weber said.

EPA27 strategies vary

The challenge in getting equipment at all is fresh in Weber’s mind, as fleets were placed on allocation following the Covid pandemic and unable to secure build slots. He doesn’t want to be in that situation again.

“We faced some equipment constraints,” he said. “We took a three-pronged approach, thinking hard about our secondary and tertiary suppliers. We started to look at where we were able to extend some of our vehicles longer.”

The challenge to secure build slots – particularly for small fleets – led to growth for Transport Enterprise Leasing, a lessor that focuses on small fleets, said vice-president of asset management, Aaron Thompson.

“We saw dramatic growth in new business in 2022 and 2023,” he said, attributing it to the company’s buying power and ability to get orders filled. “We had some good suppliers that were able to keep us in the equipment and allow us to grow.”

Fresh fleet

Back at Wilson Logistics, Stockton said the key to keeping the fleet young is to flip them after about two years, with about 200,000-220,000 miles (320,000-352,000 km) on the odometer.

“We buy all the warranty we can buy,” he added. That means four years/500,000 miles (800,000 km) on the aftertreatment system and five years/600,000 miles (960,000 km) on the chassis and engine. Stockton said this makes it easy to sell the used units through its own dealership. He also limits his fleet purchases to one manufacturer and just a couple of dealers.

“We are still very much in the relationship business, not the trucking business,” Stockton said, comparing the strategy to that of Southwest Airlines, which famously only ever bought one make and model of plane to limit complexity within the fleet.

Some complexity can’t be avoided, especially in the face of new emissions regulations and alternative-fueled powertrains, said Weber. It will take savvy operators to survive those challenges.

“In 2027, where interest rates are today and the cost of equipment, if you’re not a good operator it’s going to be really tough to stay in business,” Weber said. “We will all have to be very, very good operators to stay in the business.”

No rush to buy ZEVs

Wilson’s Stockton said he’s in no rush to adopt zero-emission vehicles, unless it does so with the support of a customer willing to pay a premium to offset the additional cost.

“The way we approach the customer is, if you want to be green and sustainable, we’ll partner with you. But it’s gotta be at cost plus margin. We’ll be transparent with what the costs are and if we can make margin on that, we’ll do it. Some firms want the carrier to absorb all the cost. I learned a long time ago I don’t need that kind of practice,” he said.

Thompson said his small fleet leasing customers aren’t asking for electric trucks just yet. Each of the panelists said it will be decades before zero-emission trucks outnumber those that are diesel-fueled. And Stockton questioned why the U.S. Department of Defense isn’t subject to the same emissions regulations that commercial truck fleets are.

“Why not? Because they can’t afford the downtime,” he reasoned.