According to the research firm, the production in March was the highest since March 2016, and was mostly due to the additional build days.
“Roughly 60 per cent of the month-over-month gain came from the additional build days in the quarter-ending month, while the remaining 40 per cent improvement came from a 94 upd sequential jump in the build rate,” said Frank Maly, Director–CV Transportation Analysis and Research at ACT.
“Even with that surge, it appears that the industry’s additional production capacity is still not being fully utilised.”
Trailer shipments closed the first quarter with a 26 per cent increase from February, with every trailer category being up from last month.
“The 26 per cent sequential gain was almost exactly aligned with seasonal expectations,” said Maly.
“The strong order board turnaround that began in December is finally being reflected in build and shipments.”
Also in March, Utility Trailers’ facility in Clearfield, Utah, presented its 250,000th refrigerated trailer to Colorado-based transport company, Navajo Express.
