BUSINESS ISSUES
BUSINESS ISSUES
place to create the utility demand.
Lieberum: We are observing a significant shift in purchasing trends with increased adoption of electric and hybrid models. Business owners and fleet managers are increasingly seeing the benefits of hybrid and electric vehicles related to total cost of ownership, vehicle efficiency and the added benefit of reduced emissions. This shift is driven by factors such as environmental regulations, corporate sustainability goals and the desire to maximize vehicle output to improve the average total cost of ownership per vehicle.
What economic
Q: issues and financial considerations are driving fleet purchasing plans?
Bistritz: Higher overall interest rates are a factor. There have also been numerous electric utility rate increases that haven’ t been approved. The investment promised in the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program hasn’ t been deployed as quickly as some initially thought so all of this impacts utility customers.
Wrinkle: Government initiatives, such as the Green New Deal, are major contributors. For instance, many trucks are specifically dedicated to the construction and maintenance of windmills.
Lieberum: Economic considerations such as fuel savings, lower maintenance costs, and potential tax incentives are influencing fleet purchasing decisions.
Caywood: The impacts include lingering effects and lessons learned from the post-pandemic restricted supply chain and inflation. Fleet managers now have to plan further out and inflationary increases make their purchasing dollars less predictable.
Are fleets continuing to
Q: replace older models that were left in service longer than originally planned due to supply chain issues?
Given the number of large infrastructure projects and billions invested in building out new energy sources, the demand for trucks is expected to remain strong, said Kevin Lieberum, Commercial Truck Brand Manager, Ford Pro.
Lieberum: While we cannot definitively say if fleets are replacing older models due to the supply chain, we do have data showing that Class 2-5 chassis cabs have grown 14.6 % year-to-date from 2023.
Caywood: Utilities did operate equipment longer than planned due to availability, and they are now playing catch up to balance the age of their fleet. Everything changed from the supply chain disruptions. Now, the supply chain is normalizing but purchases are typically being made two or more years in advance.
Utility fleets are focusing on idle mitigation and ePTO options when applicable and leveraging telematics data to drive better purchasing decisions, related John Bistritz, Regional Vice President Sales & Marketing, Altec.
Bistritz: To some extent this is occurring. However, in a world where capital budgets remain stressed due to inflationary pressures, the speed at which older models are replaced isn’ t at the pace that many of our fleet
24 l November-December 2024