Great Dane Highlights Technologies of Today and Tomorrow at 2018 TMC Exhibition
Great Dane showcased technologies of today and tomorrow at the 2018 Technology and Maintenance Council (TMC) Annual Meeting and Transportation Technology Exhibition. The event was held at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, Georgia, from March 5-8.
Great Dane’s display introduced its “Innovation that Moves You” campaign and will feature several pieces of equipment as well as an Innovation Center that highlights current and future technologies Great Dane is researching and testing alongside some of its supplier partners. These innovations look to advancements in trailer technology that increase safety, efficiency, utilization, and weight and energy savings. The booth also showcases Great Dane’s reefer lining exclusive, Microban® technology, and offers an inside look at its newest product innovation, FleetPulse, a trailer telematics system scheduled for market release in Summer 2018. “At Great Dane, we are driven to deliver innovation that moves our customers’ business forward, helping them achieve new levels of safety and efficiency,” said Chris Hammond, Great Dane’s executive vice president of Sales. “Since TMC is a technology-focused show, we wanted our booth to reflect the many ways we are using technology to move our customers’ business forward day-in and day-out. We are highlighting many of the new technologies we are working on with our supplier partners for future innovations as well as some of the exciting new innovations that are already available to our customers.” The equipment displayed in Great Dane’s booth included:
This lightweight composite trailer weighs in at 12,580 pounds and features lightweight 6-millimeter panels with a high base rail design for extra interior protection. While maintaining a light weight, the trailer features an extremely strong Prolam Wingolite composite floor to best serve Pepsi’s heavy haul needs. The floor features Prolam Waxin top coating on the rear 8 feet of the trailer for additional protection against the elements. The trailer also features several aerodynamic solutions, including a nose cone with side burns, Transtex Edge side skirts and a Stemco Trident three panel aerodynamic trailer tail.
Great Dane’s “Innovation That Moves You” campaign is centered on the company’s commitment to goods mobility and using the most innovative solutions to move its customer’s products to market safely and efficiently. The Innovation Center in Great Dane’s booth reflects this commitment to innovation by highlighting several new and in-development technologies from Great Dane and its supplier partners to give visitors a chance to explore some of the products that are currently available and what will be coming later this year. Great Dane’s partner Microban International showcased some of the odor- and stain-prevention benefits of Great Dane’s exclusive antimicrobial reefer linings with a unique smell bar where visitors will be able to take sniff tests to observe the effectiveness of Microban technology. The booth also featured eNow’s solar panel technology. Great Dane and eNow teamed up to put solar panels on its Johnson C-Series truck body to help power Great Dane’s Johnson AE Series refrigeration system. The companies are now working with Carrier to mount solar panels on a trailer to help power Carrier’s new all-electric refrigeration unit for trailers. Great Dane has partnered with ConMet to explore regenerative braking solutions using ConMet’s new PreSet Plus Electric Hub, which is currently in development. Regenerative braking technology uses the electric drive system to capture the energy that is created when the brakes are applied and uses that energy to supplement the drive power. Visitors to Great Dane’s booth learned more about this exciting technology and ConMet’s electric hub. Another innovation featured in Great Dane’s booth was Plasma Stream aerodynamic solutions. Plasma Stream and Great Dane are working together to test and further develop a unique system that uses plasma actuators to create an active flow system, allowing a vehicle to be streamlined independent of its actual shape. This system reduces costly drag at the rear of trailers without limiting accessibility. Great Dane and Arconic have partnered to explore the benefits of using aluminum alloys to reduce weight. The companies worked together to design an aluminum truck body rear frame that weighs 24 percent less than a traditional stainless steel design, providing a savings of 84 pounds. Since safety is Great Dane’s top priority, the Innovation Center features new technologies that will enhance safety for Great Dane’s customers and those on the road with them. Great Dane and JOST have partnered together to work on building trailers that can automatically couple with tractors, ensuring greater safety and efficiency in modern fleets. Great Dane is also working with Volpe to research and develop side guard devices. Side guards physically cover the exposed space between the front and rear wheels of a vehicle and are designed to keep pedestrians and cyclists from being run over by the rear wheels in a side impact collision. Finally, the booth featured information about Great Dane’s AdvantEDGE National Aftermarket Parts & Service Program, which gives members access to its 24/7 Emergency Roadside Service (ERS) program, controlled ordering and invoicing, competitive labor rates and more. In addition, visitors to the booth can learn about Great Dane’s trailer service technician program, which is accredited by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE). Great Dane is the first semi-trailer original equipment manufacturer to receive ASE accreditation. About Great Dane Great Dane is the leading manufacturer of high-performance commercial transportation equipment, including dry and refrigerated trailers and truck bodies, as well as steel, aluminum and combo platform trailers. Great Dane has a storied history in the commercial trucking industry and is a driving force in trailer technology, innovation, quality and customer service. Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, and with additional corporate offices in Savannah, Georgia, Great Dane has manufacturing plants strategically located throughout the United States. The company’s network of corporate-owned branches, full-line independent dealers and parts-only independent dealers offers a broad range of distribution points for new and used trailers as well as aftermarket services across North and South America. Visit Great Dane online at www.greatdane.com. |