Heavy-duty commercial motor vehicles, trailers, and chassis production appears poised to rebound, and one Texas town plans to fill existing demand.
“If you take where the entire U.S. chassis manufacturing industry was a year ago versus today, there has been over a 200 percent increase in total domestic production,” Stoughton Trailers CEO Bob Wahlin reportedly said. “You also have chassis suppliers from Vietnam, Taiwan, Canada, and Mexico, so the solution must include everyone.”
Stoughton Trailers recently indicated it plans to expand its intermodal chassis capability at its new Waco, Texas, facility. The manufacturer already pushes out chassis and trailers at its Wisconsin plant and reportedly built a Texas production footprint in December. Stoughton experienced increased demand as supply chain hiccups and the pandemic ground some competitor plants to a standstill.
Interestingly, the Stoughton bought a parcel on Jewell Drive in Waco, which is fast emerging as the trailer production hub. It apparently plans to compete on the trailer front with fellow manufacturers only miles away.
“The new Waco facility and Stoughton production line will help fulfill our customer production commitments for 2022 and beyond,” Wahlin reportedly stated. “By the end of 2022, the company will have invested $25 million expanding our chassis production capacity. These investments would not have been possible without the remedial relief provided by the anti-dumping and countervailing duty orders on chassis from China.”
Alcom LLC reportedly plans to ramp up trailer production at a previously vacant facility on Imperial Drive with the expectation of hiring upwards of 150 workers. Alcom, based in Winslow, Wisconsin, reportedly enjoyed a banner 2021, acquiring Triton Trailers in November. A primary competitor, Triton reportedly possessed the largest physical footprint of dealers across the United States, Canada, and international markets.
Its moves to increase market share make it a formidable and aggressive business leader. The company already employs upwards1,000 people with a trailer portfolio of 960 standard models over 10 brands. Alcom opened a 130,000-square-foot facility in Deland, Florida, and has facilities in Bonner, Montana, and Sioux Falls, S.D., as well.
Positioning plants in Waco provide manufacturers with relatively seamless access to rail opportunities and a robust customer base across the Southwest and Southern U.S. states. Given the recent Texas expansions, Waco appears to be ground zero for trailer and chassis manufacturing in 2022.
Stoughton has designs to add 125 team members as production of trailers and chassis go online. Stoughton expects to produce 20,000 to 25,000 chassis annually between the two locations. The U.S. reportedly suffered a 9,000 per month deficit during 2021.
Aspen Custom Trailers, a Canadian-based organization, also opened a 58,000-square-foot facility along the Texas Central Parkway. It announced its Waco intentions in 2020 and expects to hire more than 80 workers as operations grow.
Sources: wacotrib.com, ccjdigital.com
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