Work Truck Week 2024

March 5-8 brought Minnesota Clean Cities Coalition (MC3) staff to Indianapolis, Indiana, for Work Truck Week 2024. For 20+ years, the people who design, build, use, and maintain the work trucks and equipment the world relies on have gathered every March to see the industry’s latest products and technology, learn from one another, and discuss how to improve the future.

What started as a trade show has evolved to meet the changing needs of the industry. All week, its energy, scale, and intensity encompass the city — making Work Truck Week 2024 a one-of-a-kind industry experience. Tuesday kicked off with the Green Truck Summit covering clean energy trends for commercial vehicles and operational insights for vocational truck fleets. It offered perspective on work truck evolution and advanced fuels and technology development.

The audience includes thousands of industry professionals, including work truck equipment manufacturers, distributors, dealers, fleet managers, leasing companies, government buyers, and more. There are many opportunities for enhancing professional development, finding ways to maximize productivity and profitability, seeing the newest products, and learning about the latest industry developments. Established in 1964, NTEA, the Association for the Work Truck Industry, represents nearly 1,600 companies that manufacture, distribute, install, sell, and repair commercial trucks, truck bodies, truck equipment, trailers, and accessories. NTEA provides in-depth technical information, education, member programs and services, and produces the Work Truck Show.

Clean Cities and Communities, along with partners, hosted exhibits and presentations on the extensive show floor, as well as the annual regional meeting which included a floor tour introducing directors and stakeholders to partners. Here are a few of the highlights:

Clean Cities and Communities is a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) partnership to advance clean transportation nationwide. At the exhibit, coalition staff, national lab staff, and DOE staff shared resources with attendees interested in using alternative fuels and advanced technology vehicles or wanting to convert an existing fleet. Some were looking for the facts and information that would help them provide support to upper management that green is the way to go. The exhibit provided those contacts, resources, and tools for fleet managers who need information.
Drive Clean Indiana is Indiana’s designated Clean Cities coalition for the state. They oversee a variety of projects and are a great partner with MC3 regional projects.
Clean Fuels Alliance America is the U.S. trade association representing the entire biodiesel, renewable diesel, and sustainable fuel supply chain. St. Louis Regional Clean Cities executive director Kevin Herdler and Jennifer Weaver, market development manager, discussed the benefits and opportunities to work with higher blends of biodiesel and Optimus Technologies during the floor tour.
Heliox Energy partnered with Pioneer E-Boost, a company located in Champlin, Minnesota, and works to bridge the electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure gap with portable and instant off-grid EV charging solutions.
CM Truck Beds partnered with Zeus Electric Chassis. Zeus is a class 4-6 purpose-built, severe-duty, electric work truck chassis manufacturer based in White Bear Lake, Minnesota, filling fleet needs.
Work Truck Week’s Ride & Drive involved over a dozen manufacturers, including the Battle Motors EV Tractor and Eureka Recycling (a fleet based in Minneapolis), piloted their electric waste hauler!