Roeth: Staying competitive in trucking requires tracking new technologies

It seems lately that there is so much happening in the trucking technology space. Whether it is a new powertrain technology, a new product launch, or even a development in autonomous vehicles, there seems to be a new announcement every day about something that will improve the efficiency, safety, or profitability of trucking.

NACFE is well aware of the fast pace of change, and we are in the process of assessing whether our existing Confidence Reports should be updated due to substantive changes in a technology we previously wrote about. We’ve already updated our idle-reduction report and are in the process of doing research for an updated report on trailer aerodynamics. Dean Bushey, NACFE’s director of programs, has been tasked with determining which Confidence Reports need to be updated and whether there is a completely new technology that we need to do a Confidence Report on.

I know that the amount of new information can feel overwhelming, and it can be tempting to opt out of keeping up on the latest technological developments, especially if your fleet seems to be operating efficiently and profitably.

And while that might seem like a good idea and likely falls under the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” adage, the reality is that it could “get broken” at any time. What I mean by that is that if you ignore technology that is under development, in beta testing, or in limited production, you could get left behind if that technology takes off—either because it proves to be a game changer, because it gets a boost from a change in the regulatory environment, or because circumstances change in your own operation and you suddenly need a new technology solution.

When you delay exploring a technology's potential role in your operation, you may not be able to fully benefit from that technology. In addition, you may find other fleets that have already done their due diligence are able to integrate that technology more quickly into their operation, gaining a competitive advantage over your fleet.

I know it is time-consuming to keep on top of the myriad developments in the trucking technology space, but avoiding them is not a good long-term strategy. Here is one way you can keep up with what is occurring in the trucking technology space: Find someone within your organization who loves technology, and assign them the task of giving you regular updates on what they are learning. Let that person or group of people be the point person for sorting through all the information on technologies and making some initial decisions on which technologies might be beneficial for your operation.

You do not have to start by assigning this task to a senior-level person. Choose someone among the rank and file and have them report to a senior-level manager who can review the findings and determine next steps and whether to bring a given technology into your fleet on a trial basis.

We are in the Messy Middle of trucking, and I believe the pace of technology developments is not going to slow down. Avoiding the topic altogether could have disastrous results for your operation.

To put it another way, if you have been operating with your head in the sand, it’s time to pull it out or, at the very least, assign someone else to be your technology maven.