There’s a lot of well-founded discussion in the trucking industry about the shortage of technicians. I believe an even bigger potential impact on fleet performance, however, is the lack of qualified maintenance managers.

At Palmetto Yacht Management, we have experience with GM, Ford and Dodge heavy duty trucks in hauling very large and expensive yachts up and down the East Coast.

Driver shortages . . . it’s a huge topic of discussion at every trucking conference, including the recent CCJ Spring Symposium held in Birmingham which was co-sponsored by Double Coin Tires.

Darry Stuart has helped numerous trucking fleets, both large and small, reduce their tire operating costs by focusing on three essential elements:

Robert Benz has built a successful 19-year trucking career because his customers can count on him. In turn, he relies on his 2003 Kenworth T800 and Double Coin RLB400 drive tires to deliver mile after mile of hassle-free service.

Double Coin truck tires are an easy sell for Sapp Bros. Travel Centers, which began carrying the brand about one year ago.

Fred Schmidgall knows a thing or two about retreading. After all, he and his team have grown Morton Supplies into the 35th largest retreader in the country.

Remember when tennis star Andre Agassi said “image is everything” in the Canon TV ads back in the 90’s? That certainly applies to the current perception problem for technical careers in the trucking industry.

Tom Anthony, fleet operations manager for Smith Hauling, Inc., likes the fact that Double Coin tires “come at a good price and last just as long as the more expensive tires.” So he was thrilled to learn that he was the winner of Double Coin’s second “Smart Money Tire Drawing.”

This is the second in my series of reviewing the trucks we use to haul very large and expensive yachts up and down the East Coast.