Work Truck Week 2023 was back to full strength as a verified 14,885 industry professionals gathered at Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis March 7–10, 2023 for North America’s largest work truck event, according to NTEA, Association for the Work Truck Industry.
Attendance returned to pre-pandemic levels, setting a new record with a 17% increase over the 2022 event. Green Truck Summit, NTEA’s full-day advanced fuels and vehicle technology conference, was sold out for the second year in a row, with nearly 1,000 attendees.
Work Truck Week, which includes The Work Truck Show, Green Truck Summit and Ride & Drive, has been produced annually by NTEA since 2000. The event was held virtually in 2021.
The New Exhibitor Pavilion, returning for the first time since 2020, and the Work Truck Show exhibit hall were packed with new commercial vehicles, equipment and technology from 507 companies, according to NTEA. As the industry’s transition to electric power accelerates, much of the news coming out of Work Truck Week was related to electric vehicles, including the launch of eight commercial EVs, as well as associated auxiliary power solutions, bodies and equipment.
Eager to give potential customers the opportunity to experience their technical advancements, 19 companies participated in Ride & Drive, offering attendees the chance to drive a variety of all-electric and internal combustion engine commercial vehicles.
“The work truck industry has a long history of evolving and innovating to keep the world moving,” says Steve Carey, NTEA president & CEO. “This was clearly demonstrated at Work Truck Week 2023 where we had some exhibiting companies marking business milestones of a century or more while others were just getting started. Attendees were able to reflect on where we’ve been while looking to the future through exhibits and educational programming featuring the movement toward electrification, as well as the latest developments in vehicle equipment and components emphasizing productivity and safety.”
Additional highlights provided by NTEA included:
–Isuzu Commercial Truck of America and Hino Trucks both chose Work Truck Week 2023 to announce their first all-electric trucks, Isuzu’s N-Series EV and Hino’s M5e and L6e.
–Mack Trucks unveiled its first electric vehicle in the medium-duty segment, the Mack MD Electric.
–Shyft Group revealed the new Blue Arc Class 5 All Electric Crew Cab
–Ideanomics and VIA Motors introduced the VTRUX electric work truck.
–Workhorse Group pulled the silk from its new W56 zero-emission step van.
–JB Poindexter & Co. business units announced several new products and developments, including Project ZEVX, an EAVX, Reading Truck and ZEVX electric concept, and an all-electric C250 postal truck demonstration vehicle developed by Morgan Olson for Canada Post.
–Ram Commercial showcased its new Ram 1500 Battery-electric Vehicle Concept
–Bollinger Motors provided updates on its new B4 all-electric fleet truck.
–Ford Pro marked the one-year anniversary of the Ford E-Transit all-electric van.
For additional details and other product introductions, visit worktruckweek.com/coverage.
