Today at the 2011 Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Ron Huibers, senior vice president – sales and marketing for Volvo Trucks in North America, presented an upbeat view of the company’s current and future prospects. He pointed to increasingly strong acceptance of Volvo’s EPA 2010 No Regen SCR technology, record sales of Volvo engines, and growing demand for the Volvo I-Shift transmission as key drivers of the brand’s positive momentum, and cited strong increases in orders and market share as evidence that Volvo truly is on the move.
“We clearly executed on our North American turnaround strategy in 2010,” Huibers said, “and we’ve carried that momentum into 2011. Combined with our two-point market share gain last year, the 13% U.S. Class 8 share we earned in February has sent a strong message that we fully intend to be leaders in this market.”
Huibers said that Volvo has been getting overwhelmingly positive response from customers to its EPA 2010 No Regen SCR technology, which delivers a 5% or more improvement in fuel efficiency and a corresponding reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
“Our efforts when it comes to EPA’10 – being the first manufacturer to certify our engines, not using emissions credits, testing products early and often, and initiating delivery of customer production trucks as far back as late 2009 – are demonstrative of the kind of performance that’s going to drive our leadership position,” Huibers said.
Volvo introduced a series of aerodynamic and powertrain enhancements at MATS to further boost the industry-leading fuel efficiency of its VN models.
“We’re telling customers that in partnering with Volvo, they can achieve an 8% or more fuel efficiency improvement over EPA ’07 engines – and we’re doing it at a time when the cost of diesel is again on the rise,” Huibers said. “We’re also debuting a new interior for our VN models here at MATS to enhance driver productivity and comfort – just as the driver shortage has again become a significant concern. We’re continuing to deliver on the Volvo core value of safety as well, with both passive and active features like Volvo Enhanced Stability Technology and Volvo Enhanced Cruise, amidst an increased emphasis on highway safety at both the state and federal level. Volvo is doing what we’ve always done – striving to deliver the best possible transport solutions from both a customer and societal perspective. It’s extremely satisfying to see that commitment delivering results in North America today.”
Volvo Trucks North America’s operations and products are guided by the company’s three core values: Quality, Safety and Environmental Care. The Volvo VN and VHD trucks are assembled in the United States at the New River Valley Plant in Dublin, Virginia, while Volvo engines for North America are assembled in Hagerstown, Maryland. Both plants are certified to ISO14001 environmental and ISO9001 quality standards.
Volvo Trucks North America is part of the Volvo Group, one of the world's leading manufacturers of trucks, buses and construction equipment, drive systems for marine and industrial applications, aerospace components and services, and one of the world's leading producers of heavy-diesel engines (9-16 liter). The Group also provides complete solutions for financing and service. The Volvo Group, which employs more than 90,000 people, has production facilities in 19 countries and sells their products in more than 180 markets. Volvo Group sales for 2010 amounted to $36.7 billion. The Volvo Group is a publicly-held company headquartered in Gothenburg, Sweden. Volvo Shares are listed on Nasdaq OMX Nordic Exchange and are traded OTC in the U.S.
March 31, 2011
For further information, please contact Brandon Borgna, Volvo Trucks North America, phone 336-393-2143, email brandon.borgna@volvo.com