Company offers to make trucks more aerodynamic
Truckload carrier Transport Corp. of America is testing a new package of deflector panels attached to the front, undercarriage and rear of the trailer designed to reduce drag and improve fuel economy.
The panels, or fairings, are being brought to market by Freight Wing Inc., which developed the product with the help of a grant from the Department of Energy. The company claims that results on a test track showed a seven percent reduction in the full consumption for a fully loaded tractor-trailers, equivalent to about 1,100 gallons of diesel fuel every 100,000 miles. Depending on the price of fuel, the fairings could save $1,500 to $2,000 per truck during that period.
Transport America, which operates more than 5,000 trailers, spends $48 million per year on fuel, according to a Freight Wing news release.
Trucking companies can also use the fairings to qualify for the Environmental Protection Agency’s SmartWay Transport initiative, a voluntary program that encourages carriers to adopt more efficient technologies and management practices to reduce diesel fuel emissions.