How to Get an Easier Upfit For Your Niche Market

Do you remember those flip books from when you were a kid that allowed you to mix an alligator’s head with a zebra’s body and a lion’s tail? Vocational trucks are similar in that you can mix and match our trucks and chassis with different work bodies for segment-specific tasks and operations.

In the world of vocational trucking, the upfit is arguably the most important component, while the trucks simply empower the equipment to maintain powerlines, haul heavy loads, and pour cement. At Freightliner, we know and embrace this fact, so we make it a priority to work with truck equipment manufacturers (TEMs) across industry segments to make the upfit process as easy as possible.

Purchasing an off-the-rack truck is not going to work for everyone. We offer a myriad of options and technologies to customize trucks for niche markets and applications. This helps to reduce the time and costs of the upfit and extends the longevity of the truck for your company’s specific use.

“We were looking for a chassis that could fit in a niche market and we went to Freightliner,” said Jeff Irr, director of sales with Jerr-Dan, a TEM in Hagerstown, Md. “Their response was, ‘What can we do to make this happen?’ Together we developed an option package for the M2 106 that streamlined our upfit process and met the needs of the end user.”

The process of building the right work truck starts with spec’ing the right chassis and powertrain. Different trucks are better suited to certain applications, which a Freightliner rep can help walk you through. However, all severe duty trucks have some consistent features to help streamline the upfit process:

• SmartPlex™ Electrical System: This is a multiplex electrical system that simplifies chassis-to-body electrical integration and reduces the number of wires needed. It also adds expansion capabilities and allows for custom programming without the purchase of software or additional tools.
• PTO Packaging: Front engine, rear engine, and transmission power take-off (PTO) options allow hydraulic packaging and provide an efficient factory chassis layout that helps TEMs to easily and cleanly install the body.

“When we receive a Freightliner truck, we know we’re going to have little to no extended time to upfit the truck, so we can meet or exceed our customers’ delivery expectations,” said Irr. “That equals more uptime for the customer.”