Swift Orders 3,100 Trailers From Wabash

Swift Transportation Co. has ordered 3,100 dry van trailers from Wabash National Corp., with deliveries scheduled to be spread over 12 months, the companies said.

Swift is purchasing DuraPlate HD trailers from the Lafayette, Ind., manufacturer, according to a March 9 statement from Wabash National. Production will begin later this month.

Swift ranks No. 10 on the Transport Topics 100 list of the largest for-hire carriers in the United States and Canada. It is the nation’s second-largest truckload carrier behind Schneider National Inc. and runs a fleet of 55,240 trailers and intermodal containers.

The deal illustrates a shift in purchasing by Phoenix-based Swift. In mid-January, Swift Chairman and CEO Jerry Moyes told an industry gathering his company would purchase only 15 to 20 tractors this year (1-25, p. 5; click here for previous story).

Moyes said he anticipates trucking will expand over a grim 2009, but he would be conservative about buying expensive new tractors that feature engines rede-signed to comply with new federal emission standards. That retrenchment on tractors clearly left room for trailer purchases.

“Our goal is to continue to offer our customers the most reliable and efficient equipment, so that they experience outstanding overall performance from Swift Transportation,” Richard Stocking, Swift’s chief operating officer, said in the Wabash statement. “We believe the DuraPlate HD from Wabash National is the best trailer equipment option to help us achieve that goal.”

Wabash was the third-largest trailer maker in 2009, according to data from R.L. Polk & Co. Only Utility Trailer Manufacturing Co. and Great Dane Trailers sold more, Polk said.

By Jonathan S. Reiskin
Associate News Editor