The Fleet Lead

Mack Trucks has called the Allentown area home for more than a century. Doug Maney, curator of the Mack Trucks Historical Museum in Allentown, Pennsylvania, discusses the company's innovations, the origins of the Bulldog mascot, and why Mack's history remains closely tied to American manufacturing and trucking today.

Here are the headlines from this week in trucking as of July 16
The Gordie Howe International Bridge may finally open this month
EPA appointed a new aftermarket emissions certificate authority
Spot market rates are dropping
In fuel this week, diesel increased 22 cents

How does one of the nation's largest carriers manage a dashcam deployment across more than 8,000 trucks?
Adam Cassidy, senior director of safety at Werner Enterprises (No. 11 on the FleetOwner 500: For-Hire), breaks down Werner’s five-year evolution with Samsara's camera technology, moving from basic forward-facing dash cams to an advanced AI multicam setup.

Here are the headlines from this week in trucking as of July 9:
EPA is weakening the upcoming NOx rule and removing DEF derates
Rhode Island is preparing for truck-only tolls
USMCA is in an awkward position
Diesel fell 9 cents, but oil futures spiked

Here are the headlines from this week in trucking as of July 2
Illinois Tollway is planning a 30% increase in toll rates
FedEx is selling its 3PL arm for $1.4 billion
Cargo thieves stole $1.7 million in condoms and lubricant
Diesel prices fell 16 cents
Have a happy 4th of July!

In this episode of The Fleet Lead, Jeremy Wolfe sits down with Arpan Podduturi, VP of product for transportation tech company Samsara, fresh off the Samsara Beyond user conference in Las Vegas.
The tech company announced a suite of new cutting-edge technologies for fleet management: from new pedestrian detections to AI dispatch communication, LLMs, and beyond.

As downstream fuel margins tighten and market volatility grows, relying on manual spreadsheets and tribal knowledge may no longer be enough for modern fuel haulers. Bulk Transporter's Jason McDaniel sits down with Mike Scharf, CEO of fuel supply chain tech company Gravitate, to discuss how specialized software is transforming the sector.
Timestamps:
01:55 — Gravitate's market footprint
02:35 — From consulting to software
04:40 — Price volatility pushing fleet innovation
08:14 — How generic freight tools fail fuel
14:44 — Autonomous dispatch
21:50 — How software helps smaller fleets
30:27 — Debunking AI misconceptions

It's not rocket science, but people management can be a difficult skill to grasp—especially for those technical employees trained to solve machines rather than personnel.
A former pilot instructor and SpaceX training head, Matt Gjertsen has plenty of experience building teams with stellar technical skills. While techs have many attributes that make them ideal managers, they may not realize that management often means stepping away from problems.
Gjertsen is promoting his upcoming book based off just that experience: In this episode, Fleet Maintenance's John Hitch asks Gjertsen how to step back from the wrench, build genuine trust, and help technical management truly blast off.
Check out Gjertsen's podcast, Leadership Launchpad, here.
Timestamps:
01:16 – Introduction
02:39 – Matt Gjertsen’s Background
06:59 – Shift from technical expert to people leader
09:54 – The delegation doom loop
14:21 – Building trust in diverse
17:33 – First principles leadership Framework
24:47 – Navigating generational shifts and labor shortages
30:25 – Root cause analysis for people problems
42:34 – Technique vs. procedure management

Here are the headlines from this week in trucking as of June 18:
Dana Inc. is purchasing Eaton Mobility
Nearly 800 Mack and Volvo trucks have “do not drive” warnings
Autonomous truck company Einride goes public
Diesel falls 22 cents, ceasefire hopes rise

What happens when commercial electric vehicles move past the pioneer phase? Paul Gioupis, founder and CEO of Zeem Solutions, has a front-row seat. Managing the ZEV fleet management company, Gioupis sees the massive data behind Zeem's over 350,000 charging sessions.
In this episode, FleetOwner's Josh Fisher talks with Gioupis at the Advanced Clean Transportation Expo, discussing how the Tesla Semi is shattering range expectations and how the total cost of ownership (TCO) narrative is changing.