Not long ago spec’ing a vocational truck meant going to a dealer, picking from a limited list of wheelbases and axle ratings, selecting a few options for the cab and then welding, drilling and cutting until all your equipment fit. Those were the Dark Ages of truck building. What we have now is a period of Enlightenment where customers work with dealers and body builders to create trucks that perform exactly as intended with minimal modifications.
Rather than delivering a chassis cab to be used as a blank slate, manufacturers now create the truck equivalent of a site plan with multiple views and often a 3D rendering of how the truck will be built. All components, from hydraulic tanks to air lines to outriggers, are placed on the schematic before any work begins. This greatly improves efficiency for the body builder, reducing build time and increasing customer satisfaction.
To make the most of this system, customers must have a complete and accurate understanding of how and where the truck will be used and then share that understanding with dealers.
Dave Schmitz, product manager with Caterpillar, says contractors “must not be married to the specs but be open-minded in seeking solutions.” They need to know what the application requires, the required gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR), the type of material or equipment to be hauled, operational requirements, fueling stations and regulatory considerations, such as the Bridge Formula. Schmitz says spec’ing starts with the foundation of the truck: the frame and cross-members and the suspension and weighting of the axles.
Customers should also know what image they want to project and keep that in mind when spec’ing trucks. Flash and bling, such as chrome wheels and external air cleaner canisters, are part of this strategy. So is dual exhaust. “Dual exhaust creates an image,” says Schmitz, “and even though there’s no performance advantage, customers will spec dual exhaust just because it looks tough.”
