News
IN PRINT — Gold Star: Western Star turns 50
TORONTO, ON -- Western Star Trucks is now 50 years old, an iconic brand in Canada, if a little less so in the U.S. That difference isn't surprising because the truck was born here when White Motor Company built a plant in Kelowna, B.C., and launched what was called the White Western Star. A tough truck, it was essentially hand-built, and if you wanted holes in the frame here as opposed to there, you had only to ask. Its initial target was the forestry world. A logging truck par excellence, as it remains, it also found favor in the oil patch and in mines.
IN PRINT — Tanks a Lot: Leave some tanker spec’ing to experts
TORONTO, ON -- There used to be good money in the liquid bulk business. The required equipment is so specialized that it presented somewhat of a barrier to entry into the market. That's still the case, but there are more players in the game now, and competition is keeping rates at near-1980s levels. Fleets, both private and for-hire, are now trying to make up for the low rates by optimizing their trailer spec's to increase utilization and carrying capacity.
