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Volvo Group to reorganize truck businesses Fleet Owner / January 27, 2016 Volvo Group plans to reorganize its global truck operations into four separate units – Volvo Trucks, UD Trucks, Renault Trucks and Mack Trucks – starting on March 1 this year, giving each profit and loss responsibility while shuffling its executive board to include representatives from those units. “This is an important change in how we conduct our truck business, with an expanded mandate for our sales organizations to control and develop their businesses with an explicit responsibility for profitability and organic growth,” noted Martin Lundstedt, president and CEO of Volvo, in a statement “We will gain a simpler organization in which decisions are made more quickly and in closer cooperation with the customer,” he explained. “Each truck brand will also be represented on the group executive board with shared responsibility for optimizing Volvo Group’s overall truck business.” Lundstedt said those efforts are in response to a “new phase” the company is entering, one demanding “more intense customer focus” plus organic growth and improved profitability. “The goal of the new governance model is for all of the group’s business areas to be driven along the same distinct business principles, whereby each area can follow and optimize its own earnings performance in both the short and long term,” he emphasized; a new direction required after “several years of growth through acquisitions,” followed by major restructuring programs and cost savings, Lundstedt pointed out. He noted that Volvo’s technology and product development organization and production organization for trucks will remain responsible for common development and production, while “specific resources” will be allocated to each brand. At the same time, purchasing for the truck operation will form a separate unit and will join the group executive board, though Lundstedt stressed those moves will “not have any planned effect on the number of employees” within the Volvo Group. “In the short term, this won’t be experienced by customers as a major change here in North America,” John Mies, VP-communications for Volvo Group North America, told Fleet Owner. “Organizationally, it means that Göran Nyberg will continue to lead the North American commercial organization for Volvo Trucks, but will now report to Claes Nilsson, the new global president of Volvo Trucks, rather than to Denny Slagle,” he said. “In the longer term, the reorganization will benefit customers by allowing the Volvo Group to combine the best of two worlds: synergies by having global organizations for manufacturing and product development, combined with clear leadership and responsibility for each brand, to ensure that customer needs are understood throughout the entire organization,” Mies noted. Once the reorganization is complete, Volvo Group will be comprised of 10 total business units: the four aforementioned truck units (Volvo Trucks, UD Trucks, Mack Trucks, and Renault Trucks) along with Value Truck & JV:s, Volvo Construction Equipment, Volvo Buses, Volvo Penta, Governmental Sales and Volvo Financial Services. Volvo’s reshuffled executive board will be eventually comprised of 13 executives, with its “group trucks purchasing” position currently unfilled. Those executives are: Martin Lundstedt, president and CEO Jan Gurander, deputy CEO and CFO Claes Nilsson, Volvo Trucks Joachim Rosenberg, UD Trucks Bruno Blin, Renault Trucks Dennis Slagle, Mack Trucks Martin Weissburg, Volvo CE Torbjörn Holmström, Group Trucks Technology Mikael Bratt, Group Trucks Operations Sofia Frändberg, Group Legal & Compliance Kerstin Renard, Group Human Resources Henry Sténson, Group Communication & Sustainability Affairs

Volvo Group's Lundstedt Reorganizes Company Transport Topics / January 27, 2016 Approximately 100 days into his tenure as CEO of Volvo Group, Martin Lundstedt announced changes in the Sweden-based manufacturer that emphasize brand names over market geography. In a Jan. 27 conference call and press statement, Lundstedt, formerly CEO of Scania Group, said he is creating a “mandate for our sales organizations to control and develop their businesses with an explicit responsibility for profitability and organic growth.” The truck maker’s heavy-duty North American operations, Volvo and Mack Trucks, will be more separate starting March 1. Dennis Slagle will remain a member of Volvo Group’s executive board but only as the head of Mack’s worldwide sales. Slagle has been in charge of Volvo and Mack in North America, with Mack President Stephen Roy and Volvo President Göran Nyberg reporting to him. Slagle and Roy will remain together at Mack, which has headquarters in Greensboro, North Carolina, as does Volvo in North America. Nyberg will stay in the United States, and his new boss will be Claes Nilsson, the global chief of Volvo Trucks, based in Gothenburg, Sweden. Volvo Group’s two other major truck brands are UD Trucks, originally Nissan Diesel, which no longer builds new vehicles in North America, and Renault Trucks, primarily a European manufacturer. While Volvo Group is emphasizing responsibility for its brand divisions, the company also has three truck group segments that will provide services for the four big brands: technology, purchasing and operations. The company also makes construction equipment, buses and marine and specialty engines. Olof Persson was Volvo Group CEO until April of last year, when he was dismissed by the corporation’s board. Chief Financial Officer Jan Gurander took over on an interim basis, but Lundstedt was picked as the permanent replacement with an October starting date. Reports at the time of Persson’s dismissal said some of Volvo’s major shareholders wanted new management that would streamline operations and increase profits. After 100 days in charge, Lundstedt unveiled his changes and Gurander is CFO and deputy CEO. “We will also make sure that the brands will get the stronger voice in developing and adapting our customer offers when it comes to the product development, but still using the leverage of having a global product development organization," Lundstedt said during the call. "But I also want to be clear here, it means also a very strong responsibility, that each brand will stand on its own commercial and profitability merits going forward, in both the short and the long term.”

Heavy Duty Trucking / January 27, 2016 Fontaine Modification Vocational Services has opened a modification center in Avon Lake, Ohio, to provide modifications for Ford's 2016 F-650 and F-750 medium-duty trucks, including an exclusive tractor package for beverage fleets, the truck upfitter has announced. The center is located in close proximity to the Ohio Assembly Plant where Ford began building the redesigned trucks, after shifting production from Mexico. "Fontaine has put significant effort into developing modifications specifically for the all-new F-650/F-750 platform, including an exclusive tractor package for beverage fleets that we developed in conjunction with our sister company Fontaine Fifth Wheel and Ford Motor Company," says Steve Boyer, president of Fontaine Vocational Services. "Our new Avon Lake location will enable us to complete these modifications efficiently, taking advantage of our ship-through agreement with Ford to provide customers with their vehicles quickly and efficiently." Fontaine will also use the modification center to install all-wheel drive systems, make wheelbase changes and perform CNG tank upfits on the F-650/F-750 trucks. Fontaine has established a ship-through agreement with Ford that eliminates additional shipping costs to fleet customers. Fontaine operates other modification centers in Charlotte, N.C.; Dublin, Va.; Garland, Texas; Springfield, Ohio; and Williamstown, W. Va. .

Volvo Group Press Release / January 27, 2016 The Volvo Group is introducing a brand-based organization with clearer commercial accountability for the Group’s various truck brands. Four separate units will be created: Volvo Trucks, UD Trucks, Renault Trucks and Mack Trucks, each with profit and loss responsibility for their respective business. Volvo’s Group Executive Board will be changed to include representatives from some of the Group’s business areas. “This is an important change in how we conduct our truck business, with an expanded mandate for our sales organizations to control and develop their businesses with an explicit responsibility for profitability and organic growth,” says Martin Lundstedt, President and CEO of Volvo. “We will gain a simpler organization in which decisions are made more quickly and in closer cooperation with the customer, while each truck brand will be represented on the Group Executive Board with shared responsibility for optimizing Volvo Group’s overall truck business.” After several years of growth through acquisitions, followed by major restructuring programs and cost savings, the Volvo Group is now gradually entering a new phase with more intense customer focus and focus on organic growth and improved profitability. “The efforts in recent years to realize synergies between our various brands have yielded results and created the possibility to now make the Volvo Group the most desired transport solution provider in the world,” says Martin Lundstedt. “The goal of the new governance model is for all of the Group’s business areas to be driven along the same distinct business principles, whereby each area can follow and optimize its own earnings performance in both the short and long term.” The Group’s technology and product development organization and production organization for trucks will remain responsible for common development and production. In addition, specific resources will be allocated to each brand. At the same time, purchasing for the truck operation will form a separate unit and will join the Group Executive Board. These organizational changes will not have any planned effect on the number of employees in the Group. The new organization will come into effect on March 1, 2016, when the Volvo Group will comprise ten business areas: Volvo Trucks, UD Trucks, Mack Trucks, Renault Trucks, Value Truck & JV:s, Volvo Construction Equipment, Volvo Buses, Volvo Penta, Governmental Sales and Volvo Financial Services. From March 1, 2016, Volvo’s Group Executive Board will comprise the following members: Martin Lundstedt, President and CEO Jan Gurander, Deputy CEO and CFO Claes Nilsson, Volvo Trucks Joachim Rosenberg, UD Trucks Bruno Blin, Renault Trucks Dennis Slagle, Mack Trucks Martin Weissburg, Volvo CE Torbjörn Holmström, Group Trucks Technology Mikael Bratt, Group Trucks Operations (Under recruitment), Group Trucks Purchasing Sofia Frändberg, Group Legal & Compliance Kerstin Renard, Group Human Resources Henry Sténson, Group Communication & Sustainability Affairs .

I'm glad that someone is preserving the documentation. However, I've never cared for the tone over at the ATHS. Though lacking the ATHS's wealth, the ATCA is a much warmer group of people.

Hillary Clinton’s historical problem with honesty The Washington Post / January 26, 2016 The first question to Hillary Clinton from an audience member during Monday night’s Democratic town hall in Iowa must have been a blow from one so young — a potential new voter — this close to the caucuses. The query came from a fellow who asked what her response is to his friends who say she’s dishonest. There was no beating around any bushes, so to speak, on that one. Flinching slightly, Clinton rested her expression somewhere between sadness and weariness. Ever the pro, she rallied: “I’ve been around a long time. People have thrown all kinds of things at me,” she said. “They throw all this stuff at me, and I’m still standing.” Clinton offered a similar response when asked about Benghazi: “I understand that they will try to make this an issue — I will continue to answer, and my defense is the truth.” “They” presumably are Republicans and others who for decades have pointed out discrepancies between Clinton’s version of the truth and reality as checked against facts. She has, indeed, been around a long time, probably before her first questioner was born. In one of her political ads, Clinton is shown repeatedly giving more or less the same speech about helping children realize their full potential — beginning in her college days through her various iterations to the present day. Her efforts on behalf of women and children are consistent, admirable and irrefutable. Yet one can’t help thinking upon seeing this ad, Boy, she’s been around a long time. If you’re 22 or younger, your parents hadn’t brought you forth in time for Bill Clinton’s first presidential inauguration. If you’re at least 30ish, you probably heard grown-ups talking on TV about oral sex in the White House while your parents scrambled for the remote. I f you’re a baby boomer, you remember all of it and, if you’re not a member of the Clinton club, your memories are probably not fond. Questions about Hillary Clinton’s honesty did not start with Benghazi or with emails and a private server, but began ages ago with any number of fabricated — or at least exaggerated — stories. Many may remember what New York Times columnist William Safire wrote about Clinton in 1996: “Americans of all political persuasions are coming to the sad realization that our First Lady — a woman of undoubted talents who was a role model for many in her generation — is a congenital liar,” he said. “Drip by drip, like Whitewater torture, the case is being made that she is compelled to mislead, and to ensnare her subordinates and friends in a web of deceit.” There “they” go again? Safire’s concerns at the time — Whitewater, Travelgate, “lost” records — may seem remote and trivial to some, but the drip-drip he identified didn’t stop with the White House years. Subsequent to the various “-gates” were, for example, the story of coming under fire on a tarmac in Bosnia or about her having been named for the explorer Edmund Hillary, the first person to reach the summit of Mount Everest, despite her having been born about six years before his history-making climb. These are such trivial stories to invent that one wonders why she bothered. The answer can’t be easily divined except as Safire suggested. Or, is it that she is reflexively prone to dissemble? Would this be a matter of habit, or something else? An innate need to inflate one’s status — even when it isn’t needed? Even though these stories have been well-known at different times, they eventually fade or are dismissed as politically motivated. Politicians can reasonably bank on voters’ ever-shrinking memories, especially in the 140-character era of Twitter and YouTube, when most people would rather watch a leopard stalk and devour a crocodile. Well, I mean, who wouldn’t? It’s a pretty safe bet few enough will care what happened in 1996. But more recent issues of inaccuracies are both concerning and consequential. We now know with certainty (thanks to an email from Clinton to daughter Chelsea the night of the Benghazi attacks) that the then-secretary of state knew it was a terrorist attack, contrary to official reports, in the days following, about street riots that escalated. We also know from the intelligence community inspector general that her private server contained information ranked beyond top secret, contradicting her assertions to the contrary. What difference, at this point, does any of it make? When it comes to public trust in a presidential candidate — everything.

French Justice Minister Christiane Taubira has stepped down in protest of the French government's plan to strip people convicted of terrorism of their citizenship. Go figure. Whose side is she on? The citizenship plans were put forward after the 13 November Paris attacks in which 130 people were murdered by Muslim terrorists. http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-35417732

Reuters / January 27, 2016 U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said on Tuesday that she would consider making investment income taxable through Social Security deductions in a bid to keep the government program afloat. “I am worried about certain recipients because I think it’s important to enhance the benefits,” Clinton said. “We do have to extend the life of the trust fund and that’s going to take some new funding,” she said. Clinton would consider raising to an undisclosed amount the maximum income that would be subject to the 6.2 percent Social Security tax. Under the current rule, money made from investments, as well as pensions, annuities and interest, are not considered income, and only the first $118,500 wages are subject to the tax. Fears over the solvency of the Social Security system have made it an important election issue. Clinton's main rival for the Democratic nomination, Bernie Sanders, has described Social Security as the nation's "most successful government program," and has called for its expansion, which he says will be paid for by lifting the cap on taxable income above $250,000.

Although I'm firmly partial to the Trident for its versatility, it's always good to see a sharp Super-Liner.

Mack Trucks Australia Press Release / January 26, 2016

Speaking of inversions again (U.S. companies moving their legal home abroad to reduce their taxes) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- China’s Zoomlion bids $3.3 billion for Terex The Financial Times / January 27, 2016 Caterpillar-like Chinese construction machinery maker Zoomlion has made a $3.3 billion attempt to gatecrash a deal between its US and Finnish rivals that would create one of the world’s biggest cranemakers. Zoomlion, which makes everything from cranes to pile-drivers, has offered to buy US-based Terex, in a move that would scupper the latter’s proposed merger with Finland’s Konecranes. Zoomlion has offered to a pay $30 per Terex share, in a deal that would value the US company’s equity at $3.3 billion. The approach, which happened in the past several weeks, is being evaluated by Terex, even as it continues to work on closing its merger with Konecranes. In a statement, Terex said on Tuesday that its board of directors had not changed its recommendation on the proposed merger with Konecranes. But it added: “Terex has entered into a confidentiality agreement with Zoomlion and is in discussions with Zoomlion regarding the proposal . . . the Terex board of directors, in consultation with its legal and financial advisers, is carefully reviewing the Zoomlion proposal to determine the course of action that it believes is in the best interests of Terex shareholders.” One person familiar with the matter said Shenzhen-listed Zoomlion is being advised by Goldman Sachs. When Terex and Konecranes unveiled their merger last August, the transaction was poised to create a company with a combined market value of $5.7 billion and annual revenues of more than $10 billion. Terex shareholders would own 60 percent of the combined group, while their counterparts at Konecranes would hold the remainder. Stig Gustavson, chairman of Konecranes, would have the same role at the enlarged group. Importantly, the transaction was structured as a so-called tax inversion. This would allow Terex to reduce its corporate tax rate by redomiciling to Finland, where Konecranes is headquartered. But shares in Terex and Konecranes had previously fallen 44 and 41 percent respectively since last August due to concerns about slowing economic growth and the effect that would have on manufacturers of industrial equipment. On Tuesday, shares in Terex rose 36 percent to $20.48 in New York after the company’s statement about the Zoomlion offer. Konecranes’ stock had earlier closed 9.1 percent higher at €20.79 in Helsinki.

Oregon militia standoff: One dead after Ammon Bundy and others arrested The Guardian / January 27, 2016 The FBI has arrested the leader of the armed militia occupying the Malheur wildlife refuge and several others, and one person was killed during a shootout with federal agents An associate of the armed Oregon militia occupying a wildlife refuge was shot dead on Tuesday after a shootout with federal agents that resulted in the arrest of the group’s leader Ammon Bundy and a group of protesters. The shootout appears to have taken place on a highway in rural Oregon – away from the federal refuge the armed militia have been occupying. FBI officials said they arrested Bundy, his brother Ryan Bundy, Bryan Cavalier, Shawna Cox and Ryan Payne on Tuesday afternoon after they stopped them along the highway. The agency described the shootout and arrests as resulting from “an enforcement action to bring into custody a number of individuals associated with the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge” that occurred at 4.25pm PST. It was not clear how many rounds were exchanged during the incident. Police say militia spokeman LaVoy Finicum was killed in the shootout while resisting arrest. Ryan Bundy suffered non-life threatening injuries and was transported to a local hospital for treatment. He was arrested and is currently in custody. Members of the militia had planned to attend a community meeting in the town of John Day, which is north of the Malheur national wildlife refuge that militiamen have been occupying since 2 January. In a separate incident, Joe Oshaughnessy – another rightwing activist who earlier claimed he was trying to prevent violence from erupting at the refuge – was arrested in Burns, the closest town to the wildlife refuge. At 6.30pm PST, FBI officials also arrested Pete Santilli, a conservative Ohio radio host who has been a vocal supporter of the Bundys and was earlier live-streaming the chaos outside of a hospital in Burns. Santilli, Oshaughnessy and the men arrested on the highway are all facing federal felony charges of conspiracy to impede officers through the use of force, intimidation or threats. Jon Ritzheimer, another prominent occupation leader who often helped run the militia’s “security” team, was also arrested late Tuesday night. Officials say Ritzheimer turned himself in at a police department in Peoria, Arizona, and that he was arrested without incident. He is also facing a federal felony charge. Harney County Judge Steve Grasty, who has for weeks demanded that Bundy and the militia end the protests, said he was saddened to hear that there has been a death. “I’m deeply disappointed … that it looks like there has been a fatality,” he told the Guardian by phone. “This is so hard on everybody – our community and even the occupiers.” Grasty said he couldn’t say yet whether the standoff was over. “I don’t know that it’s over. I have no idea what is happening at the refuge.” He added: “I’m glad to see this winding down, but we wanted this to come to a peaceful end and it didn’t.” Bundy and a group of rightwing protesters stormed the refuge to protest the federal government and the imprisonment of two ranchers in rural Harney County.

I like the optional "grate type" clutch pedal, frequently ordered on MR refuse chassis.

If need be, one could buy a Scania DC16 V-8 as a replacement, which shares the E-9's 16.4 liter displacement, with ratings from 550 to 770 horsepower. http://www.scaniausa.com/industrial-engines/

Renault Trucks Press Release / January 26, 2016 Related reading - http://www.bigmacktrucks.com/index.php?/topic/39998-volvo-unveils-automatic-all-wheel-drive-truck-tech/?hl=optitrack#entry289755

The sad story of the Mack V-8 is that Volvo killed the planned electronically-controlled E9 in favor of their D16. The MH Ultra-Liner was the most advanced truck that Mack Trucks ever produced. In a manner of speaking, a second generation Ultra-Liner II should be in production today commanding an impressive market share in the global market. Your truck is cherry, and it has the 450hp E9, Maxitorque 18-speed and air-ride. At $12,000, you're giving it away.

The Ultra-Liner, my favorite Mack product, only tied with the Value-Liner. Very nice specs. I hate to say it, but the problem is two-fold. 1. Parts availability. 2. Volvo's stratospheric pricing structure on the V-8 parts that remain available. A 20+ year old V-8 is going to require repair at some point. It would cost you a fortune to stock up now (on what you can still get). And in 5-10 years, you won't be able to get anything. .

Fleet Owner / January 26, 2016 Two new synthetic transmission lubricants and a replacement clutch for the Volvo I-Shift transmission where announced by Eaton during the 2016 Heavy Duty Aftermarket Week conference. The two new lubes are part of a move to rebrand the company’s entire lubricant offerings under the Eaton name and standardize labeling. That line also includes two axle fluids and multi-purpose grease. Designed for late model Eaton heavy-duty transmissions, the new Eaton PS-386 is backward compatible and mandatory for the Eaton Fuller Advantage Series of automated mechanical transmissions as well as its heavy-duty manual transmissions. It replaces the company’s PS-164rev7 spec lubricant and is said to improve fuel economy in manuals by 1.5%. The new Eaton PS-278 lube has been formulated for the medium-duty Eaton Procision transmissions and their wet dual-clutch design. It is not intended for any other Eaton transmission. The metric sized Eaton 430mm Push Wear-Thru clutch is designed to be a direct aftermarket replacement for Volvo I-Shift automated mechanical transmissions. Initially it will be offered in 232mm and 254mm damper sizes with a softer rate damper design intended to reduce vibrations and extend driveline component life, according to the company. Maintenance free, adjustment free and lubed for life, the new clutch is built with all new components that include premium organic driven disc facings. It will be available starting in March through OEM dealerships, distributors and Eaton’s Factory Direct program.

Accuride’s New Steel Wheel Has Corrosion Warranty; Lighter Weight Brake Drums in Development Transport Topics / January 26, 2016 Heavy-duty supplier Accuride Corp. introduced EverSteel, a new steel wheel that uses a four-phase coating technology and comes with a five-year warranty against corrosion, both industry firsts, the company said. Also, Accuride said its recently acquired patented metal matrix composite technology plays a central role in its research and development of advanced lightweight Gunite brake drums and wheel end components, a process expected to last 18 to 24 months before commercialization. Meanwhile the EverSteel wheel, in independently performed cyclic corrosion testing,based on an accelerated laboratory test standard, demonstrated six times longer life than its North American and offshore competitors and double the operational life of Accuride’s Steel Armor steel wheels, the company said. Rick Dauch, Accuride’s CEO, said in a statement, “Corrosion is an ongoing and costly issue for fleets working in harsh operating environments across North America. Never before have steel wheels received warranted corrosion protection like that offered by our EverSteel technology. It sets a new standard of performance and durability, and will enable our fleet customers to achieve significant savings in wheel refinishing costs and the associated downtime.” Traditional steel wheels are subject to corrosion from road salt and harsh de-icing chemicals and must be refinished about every three years in order to maintain their performance and appearance, Accuride said. By delaying the onset of corrosion for up to eight years, EverSteel extends the usable life of the truck or trailer wheel prior to initial refinishing, Accuride said. It estimated each EverSteel wheel could save customers about $105 in wheel refinishing and maintenance costs, as well as the downtime associated with taking the wheels out of service. Accuride said EverSteel wheels employ a four-step treatment process, including a surface treatment applied to the bare steel, then a zinc phosphate pre-treatment that prepares the metal for maximum adhesion. Next, an enhanced cathodic epoxy electrocoat optimized for sharp-edge and overall corrosion protection is applied. Finally, Accuride’s Steel Armor premium powder top coat is applied. The company said the technology is available initially on two Accuride 22.5 x 8.25 steel wheels: the 50408 and 50487. The wheels will be produced at Accuride’s Henderson steel wheel facility in Henderson, Kentucky, and available for customers to order effective Feb. 1, 2016. Turning to the upcoming brake drums, Accuride said metal matrix composite technology combines highly-engineered cast aluminum with a selectively reinforced MMC wear surface to form a durable and resilient yet lightweight brake drum. It said the pending brake drums are intended to provide a weight reduction of as much as 100 pounds per axle over standard cast drums, or a 300-pound savings for a typical 3-axle Class 8 tractor. The company said its lightweight Gunite-brand brake drums are an integral part of its component lightweighting initiatives to help the commercial vehicle industry comply with upcoming Phase II greenhouse gas regulations from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Dauch said, “Through our lightweight MMC brake drum development and wheel lightweighting programs, we’re focused on creating industry-leading technologies that provide our customers with solutions to the requirements of increasingly stringent fuel economy and emissions regulations.”

Truck News / January 26, 2016 Accuride announced at Heavy-Duty Aftermarket Week that it’s developing a lightweight Gunite brake drum, using patented metal matrix composite (MMC) technology it acquired the rights to develop last July. The company says its new Gunite aluminum brake drum will help OEMs achieve GHG17 fuel economy targets. The technology was acquired from Century-3 Plus LLC last year. At a press briefing during HDAW, Accuride president and CEO Rick Dauch said the new drum will weigh about 61 lbs (a 46% reduction compared to currently available products), totaling a weight reduction of 100 lbs per axle or 300 lbs on a typical three-axle truck. It will also be available for trailers for further weight savings. Meanwhile, testing has shown the aluminum drum demonstrates more rapid heat dissipation, offers shorter stopping distances than current drum brakes and will last longer than traditional drums. Dauch admitted he was initially skeptical of the claims made by the drum’s initial developer, but thorough testing by Accuride determined they were true and resulted in the company investing in the technology. Initial development of the lightweight brake drum was funded in part by the US military, and Gunite will offer the finished product for military applications, Dauch said. The MMC drum combines cast aluminum with a selectively reinforced MMC wear surface to form a durable, yet lightweight patent-protected brake drum, the company announced. Dauch said the MMC drum will restore Gunite to a position of technological leadership. Prototypes are being built and fleet testing will begin later this year. Dauch indicated it will be 18-24 months before the product hits the market.

Note how the bad air cleaner location on that pre-production model.

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Today's heavy truck disc brake designs, perfected by European manufacturers, are the best way to go. But back in the late 1970s and 80s, Goodrich's fast wearing disc brakes gave U.S. operators a bad experience. The bad memory lasted in the US for quite a while. Even today, most cling to drum brakes. http://www.bigmacktrucks.com/index.php?/topic/34358-disc-brakes-in-north-america-the-first-time-around/?hl=goodrich

Abe Vigoda, sunken-eyed ‘Godfather,’ ‘Barney Miller’ actor, dies at 94 The Washington Post / January 26, 2016 Abe Vigoda, an actor who used his sunken eyes, gravelly voice and projection of gloom to memorable effect as characters on both sides of the law, from a doomed mafia capo in “The Godfather” to a worn-down police detective on the sitcom “Barney Miller,” died Jan. 26 at a daughter’s home in Woodland Park, N.J. He was 94. His daughter, Carol Vigoda Fuchs, confirmed the death to the Associated Press but did not cite a cause. On “Barney Miller,” in his best-known television role, Mr. Vigoda cultivated an appearance just shy of rigor mortis. Perhaps for that reason, an erroneous 1982 reference to him in People magazine as “the late” Mr. Vigoda became a running gag that the actor gradually embraced on late-night talk shows and in comedies such as “Good Burger” (1997), in which he played an ancient fry cook. He was the unlikely inspiration for a punk band and played his age for laughs in a Super Bowl commercial for Snickers candy bars, alongside his contemporary Betty White. Mr. Vigoda’s widespread recognition was a testament to his patience, having toiled in near-obscurity for the first half of his life. He began working in television during its infancy in the late 1940s and had a long stage career, including a few short-lived Broadway roles. In casting “The Godfather” (1972), filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola went looking for little-known stage actors to play in supporting roles. He tapped Mr. Vigoda to portray Salvatore Tessio, an underworld figure who betrays Al Pacino’s Michael Corleone and pays the price. As he’s led away to his execution, Tessio tells Corleone family consigliere Tom Hagen (Robert Duvall), “Tell Mike it was only business.” Mr. Vigoda was Jewish but had a visage that Coppola apparently found authentic for a mafioso — and that also seemed to draw the curiosity of New York mob members who showed up on the set one day. “They kept looking at me, as if to say, ‘What family is he from?’ ” the actor recalled years later on CNN. The film, based on a Mario Puzo novel, won Academy Awards including best picture, helped redefine the gangster genre and remains one of the seminal movies of its era. “The Godfather” elevated Mr. Vigoda’s career, but he became a household name in 1975 with “Barney Miller,” the long-running ABC sitcom about a New York precinct house. Hal Linden, in the title role, was officially the star, but Mr. Vigoda proved the sleeper in the cast, portraying the weary, hemorrhoidal Phil Fish, a detective with nearly 40 years on the force. Fish deals dyspeptically with calls from his wife, Bernice.

RT / January 26, 2016 Israeli defense minister Moshe Yaalon says ISIS has long been funded with “Turkish money.” "As you know, Daesh (a.k.a. Islamic State,ISIS/ISIL) enjoyed Turkish money for oil for a very, very long period of time. I hope that it will be ended," Moshe Yaalon told reporters in Athens on Tuesday after meeting his Greek counterpart, Panos Kammenos, Reuters reports. It's up to Turkey, the Turkish government, the Turkish leadership, to decide whether they want to be part of any kind of cooperation to fight terrorism. This is not the case so far," he said. Yaalon’s counterpart, Greek Defense Minister Panos Kammenos, made similar statements, saying that a large part of the Islamic State’s oil trade, as well as the financing of terror, is going through Turkey. Earlier, Russia had accused Turkey of shady dealings with ISIS. In December, the Russian Defense Ministry released maps and satellite images it said proved that Turkey was the main consumer of oil smuggled out of Syria and Iraq by the terrorists. The ministry also stated that the Turkish president and his family were involved in the criminal dealings. Iran has also said it was in possession of photographic and video evidence of ISIS oil entering Turkey in trucks. In December, Syria’s envoy to the UN Bashar al-Ja’afari also accused Turkey of supporting terrorist groups. The diplomat appealed to the UN, urging it to end Ankara’s "violations and crimes." READ MORE: ISIS oil trucks cross into Turkey every day, captured terrorist admits Turkey has denied the accusations, while the United States last month rejected Russia’s claims that the Turkish leadership was linked to ISIS oil smuggling. Turkey has "permitted jihadists to move from Europe to Syria and Iraq and back, as part of Daesh's terrorist network, and I hope this will stop, too," Yaalon added. Another force fighting against ISIS, an Iraqi Shia militia, says ISIS militants are freely crossing back and forth across the Turkish border, with Ankara providing militants with logistical support. Citing evidence gathered from prisoners and on the battlefield, the Popular Front’s Badr Organization said the data they've gathered directly implicates Turkey's involvement with Islamic State.