Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/740514
Cover Story 38 November 2016 BestDriverJOBS www.bestdriverjobs.com A s more carriers regional- ize their delivery pa erns, many companies have had to re-evaluate their need of large sleeper tractors. In some cases, the flexibility offered by a big sleeper makes a lot of sense, but to some customers, the efficiency gains from smaller, lighter trucks is hard to ignore. "… we've seen a more pronounced shift entirely away from any size of sleeper to day cabs over the last five years or so," says Scott Perry, vice president of supply management and global product management at Ryder. "We've seen development of more regional-based delivery operations where a driver can work a shift and then go home. This is more a func- tion of driver lifestyle quality and the ability to recruit and retain drivers versus operations where sleepers and multi-day dispatches were previously the norm." Kevin Koester, Ford's medium-duty truck and Super Duty fleet brand man- ager, says Ford has targeted those same fleets with F-650 and F-750 Super Duty models. A non-traditional player in the tractor space, Koester says the company has successfully converted customers by Jason Cannon Localiza on of trucking giving rise to day cabs, smaller engines