Davco, a unit of Clarience Technologies, announced it is investing $3.5 million in its Saline, Mich., campus to create an advanced electronics manufacturing center.

Executives from self-driving technology companies TuSimple and Aurora during separate online events hosted by Morgan Stanley outlined ambitious plans for 2022, building on their respective success in 2021.

Class 8 orders in December were the second-weakest of the year at 22,800.

Eaton Corp. and Shell Electric Mobility separately announced charging initiatives intended to accelerate the market for zero-emission electric trucks.

The national average price of diesel nudged down two-tenths of a cent to $3.613 a gallon, according to Energy Information Administration data released Jan. 3.

The average retail price of a used Class 8 vehicle in November bounced up 11.8% compared with the previous record just set in October and soared 67.8% higher compared with a year earlier, ACT Research reported.

The year ahead promises to be a busy one for the equipment sector, as key trends such as used truck pricing and availability, parts sales, freight rates, truck electrification and new, more robust engine oils intermingle with challenging supply and demand conditions — including rising costs for raw materials — that are affecting orders for new trucks and trailers.

The year 2021 will not soon be forgotten in truck equipment circles that were buffeted by a persistent severe virus carried over from 2020, by its new variants and more related supply chain and labor disruptions.

U.S. trailer orders surged in November to 31,000, down from 39,645 a year earlier, ACT Research reported, citing manufacturers’ initial data that will be finalized soon.

U.S. retail sales in November of Classes 4-7 commercial vehicles revealed the two lighter segments propping up the medium-duty market, with overall sales in the segment rising 1.7% to 18,637 compared with 18,318 last year, WardsAuto .com reported.