Penske Logistics customer Cardinal Health has been employing a pair of Kalmar T2E electric truck yard tractors at its Riverside, California, facility for the last year. The overarching goal is to assess how implementation of electric vehicles can establish more efficient and sustainable operations.

The EV trucks feature Kalmar's latest lithium-ion battery technology and a fully electric powertrain that produces zero emissions at source and have combined to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 79 metric tons, equating to 9.5 homes' energy use for one year (on average). The trucks operate within Cardinal Health's yard and transport a daily average of 120 trailers and ocean containers containing essential medical products and supplies to and from their docking area.

"This electric yard tractor pilot is part of our strategic focus on emerging technologies in transportation and logistics," said Katie Blohm, director of logistics at Cardinal Health. "We are committed to exploring, testing and learning how we can apply new capabilities within our supply chain to drive efficiencies and sustainability, reduce costs, and improve service and reliability for our customers and their patients."

The Cardinal Health Riverside facility houses two EV charging stations to help ensure ongoing usability of the trucks during its 24/7 operations. The location serves as a replenishment center for their western U.S. forward medical distribution center locations and large high-volume customers.

"This is the latest development in an ongoing collaborative effort to bring continuous innovation to Cardinal Health," explained Marc Althen, president of Penske Logistics. "We work to ensure that customers like Cardinal Health can achieve greater efficiencies through sustainable technology opportunities."

Cardinal Health is a distributor of pharmaceuticals, a global manufacturer and distributor of medical and laboratory products, and a provider of performance and data solutions for healthcare facilities.

This project was supported by the California Climate Investments (CCI) program and the California Air Resources Board CORE program.

By "Move Ahead" Staff

From the time he was four years old, Joe Dezotell knew he wanted to grow up to become a soldier and serve his country.

Now, the retired U.S. Army veteran helps military families navigate the challenges of military moves as a Rental Support Coordinator with Penske Truck Rental's specialized Military Call Center.

Created in 2014, the call center is staffed by associates who understand the challenges of military moves, which helps them to reduce the stress for military families.

"It is a specialized team of Penske associates who all have a direct connection to the military from either their own service or a direct family member's service," Dezotell said. "You have someone who understands your needs and can help relate to you better to make sure this goes as flawlessly as possible."

Thousands of military families move each year either through a government-arranged move, where a contractor packs and ships their items, or through a Personal Procured Move (PPM) – formerly known as a DITY or do-it-yourself move.

For families choosing a PPM move – where the customer arranges to rent a truck to move their items – Penske's Military Call Center team can help.

"Our associates understand the special needs that go with a military move as far as how to weigh the vehicle, load it and unload it, and the need to save all of their receipts for their reimbursements from the government," Dezotell said. "Whether it is someone doing their first PPM move or their eighth or ninth one, we are there to guide them."

That guidance includes helping military families through the emotions of saying goodbye to family and friends and heading to a new destination with unfamiliar surroundings. "You have to understand the emotions that go along with that. It can be unsettling for the family," Dezotell said.

A military move – just like other household moves – provides key family time that can be used for activities, including sightseeing along the journey.

"We always tried to make it an adventure as we moved," Dezotell said. "We'd try to see something we would normally not have the opportunity to see."

Once arriving at the destination, military families – especially arriving on military installations – should prepare to receive a warm welcome and many helping hands.

"The loading and unloading tends to be easier for military members, especially if they are on base. Every time we moved on base, even though the neighbors didn't know who we were, we backed that truck up and everybody would come out and help," Dezotell said.

Penske is a proud supporter of the military, both active duty, reserves and veterans.

Penske Truck Rental, a division of Penske Truck Leasing, joined with Paralyzed Veterans eight years ago to create the #OneWay4PVA campaign, which encourages rental customers to donate $1 to Paralyzed Veterans Mission: ABLE campaign.

Penske associates regularly volunteer for organizations that support and honor our troops and veterans, like the Paul R. Gordon Veteran Social Center of Berks County in Reading, Pennsylvania.

In addition, Penske offers discounts on truck rentals for active military members and veterans when reserving one-way truck rentals online.

If you are in the military and need assistance with a move, call Penske's Military Call Center at 1-844-4TROOPS (1-844-487-6677).

By Bernie Mixon

Penske Truck Leasing customers who have not done so already are encouraged to transfer their fleet telematics systems to 4G or 5G networks, as 3G networks will be retired in the coming months by major U.S. mobile carriers.

The providers are expected to disconnect their 3G networks as early as February and as late as the end of 2022.

Here are the planned 2022 disconnect dates for the following carriers, according to the U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA): AT&T 3G, February 22; Sprint 3G (T-Mobile), March 31; Sprint LTE (T-Mobile), June 30; T-Mobile 3G, July 1; Verizon 3G, December 31.

For Penske customers who are not yet using telematics, Penske can aid fleets in evaluating service providers. The connected fleet team provides consulting services at no charge. Contact Penske at success@penskeconnectedfleet.com or dial 844-426-4555.

By "Move Ahead" Staff

Penske Truck Leasing is adding to its industry-leading electric truck fleet by piloting the new light-duty preproduction Ford E-Transit truck. Penske is currently operating an E-Transit in its home market of Reading, Pennsylvania.

E-Transit, the first all-electric cargo van from a full-line automaker in North America, is the electric version of the Ford Transit.

Assembled alongside Ford Transit at the Kansas City assembly plant, E-Transit is designed to serve a wide range of commercial industries, providing its customers a choice of eight configurations, including a cargo van with three roof heights and three lengths, chassis cab and cutaway models.

"Penske and Ford have a longstanding and valued relationship," said Art Vallely, president, Penske Truck Leasing. "We're excited to collaborate with Ford Pro on the introduction and real-world testing of these new electric vehicles as the first truck rental and leasing company to do so. We expect to see strong utilization and interest from customers making final-mile deliveries, regional deliveries, and eventually consumer use for smaller household moves."

This unit will be rented to regional small- and medium-sized commercial businesses. Penske's long-term electric vehicle plans include adding units throughout its wider network, including Southern California.

Paul Rosa, Penske senior vice president of procurement and fleet planning: "We are very pleased to expand our electric vehicle learnings with the addition of the Ford E-Transit to our fleet."

"Our customers are telling us that they have ambitious corporate sustainability goals to reduce their fleet's carbon emissions through the integration of all-electric vehicles," said Ford Pro CEO Ted Cannis. "E-Transit and supporting Ford Pro ecosystem, especially end-to-end charging, play a critical role in achieving those goals and maintaining their business operations without disruption."

The E-Transit is expected to begin arriving at Ford dealerships in Q1 2022.

By "Move Ahead" Staff

Penske Logistics celebrated 22 winners virtually today during its second annual Freight Management Carrier Awards program. Category winners were selected from among Penske's expansive base of trucking carriers operating within its freight management operations. There are several award qualifications: A Penske Logistics enterprise scorecard combined with customer, operations and sourcing feedback.

"It is my pleasure to hand out these deserving honors to our 2021 winners," explained LeAnne Coulter, vice president of freight management for Penske Logistics. "These transportation leaders are especially impressive in supporting our freight management customers by going above and beyond during these challenging times."

These are the 2021 Penske Logistics Freight Management Carrier Award recipients:

U.S. Less-Than-Truckload National Carrier Award

• Estes

U.S. Less-Than-Truckload Regional Carrier Award

• Dayton Freight +
• PITT-OHIO

U.S. Truckload National Carrier Award

• Crane Transport +
• Mercer Transportation

U.S. Truckload Regional Carrier Award

• A.D. Transport Express
• Carter Express
• GSA International +
• Pete & Sons Association
• Select Dedicated Solutions +

Canada Truckload Award

• Charger Logistics
• Hunter Express
• Lion Force Transport

Broker Services Provider Award

• Kirsch Transportation Services
• Spot +

Flatbed Services Provider Award

• Buchanan Hauling and Rigging +
• Keim TS +

Liquid Bulk Services Provider Award

• American PetroLog
• Andrews Logistics +

Refrigerated Services Provider Award

• Southland Transportation +

Intermodal Provider Award (new category)

• Alliance Shippers Inc.
• Hub Group

+ indicates a two-time winner

Penske Logistics has more than $6.1 billion in freight under management. When there are supplemental freight needs, customers want to know that their freight will reach its destination safely while on time and on budget. Penske Logistics offers award-winning freight management and brokerage solutions to help manage transportation networks, and handle seasonal needs, capacity surges and challenging lanes.

Please click here to learn more about joining Penske's carrier network.

By "Move Ahead" Staff