In an effort to showcase the full spectrum of what it means to be a manufacturer, NATM has debuted its #WomanCrushWednesday series. Each month, a woman from the manufacturing floor to the C-Suite in the trailer industry who has demonstrated excellence in their role will be featured on NATM’s Facebook & Instagram.

Know someone at your company who should be NATM's next #WomanCrushWednesday? Simply send the following information to Marketing Director Savana Morrison to be included in this social media series:

• First & Last Name
• Position Title
• Brief explanation of the work they do at your company 
• Picture of nominee
• Anything else you'd like to include!

Gold: 1- 2 Trailer Manufacturing Companies Referred

• Free quarter-page ad in Tracks magazine
• One free social media mention
• Listing in Tracks article as supporter of the Convention
• For Suppliers - Early booth selection for next year’s Trade Show
• For Trailer Manufacturers - One free Trailer Manufacturer Trade Show Only registration at next year’s Convention.

 
Platinum: 3-5 Trailer Manufacturing Companies Referred

• Free quarter-page ad in Tracks
• One free social media mention
• Free company or product profile in Tracks and eNews
• For Suppliers –
  • Early booth selection for next year’s Annual Trade Show (earlier than Gold Tier)
  • One free complimentary booth worker or one free upgrade booth worker at next year’s convention. 
• For Trailer Manufacturers - One free Trailer Manufacturer Full registration at next year’s Convention.

 
Diamond: 6 or more Trailer Manufacturing Companies Referred

• Free full-page ad in Tracks
• Two free social media mentions
• Free company or product profile in Tracks and eNews
• For Suppliers –
  • Early booth selection for next year’s Annual Trade Show (earlier than Platinum Tier)
  • Two free complimentary booth workers or two free upgraded booth workers at next year’s convention
• For Trailer Manufacturers - Two free Trailer Manufacturer Full registrations at next year’s Convention.
• Special ribbon on badge at Convention

 
Companies must inform NATM of their referral at the time of registration in the space provided on the form for a referral to be counted. For more information, contact NATM Membership & Events Director Kelli Maydew at Kelli.Maydew@natm.com.
 
*Please note, all incentives are available for 12 months following the convention or the following year’s convention. Any incentives not used will expire. 

The National Association of Trailer Manufacturers (NATM) has been committed to trailer safety for more than 30 years. While NATM has long
worked with trailer manufacturers, industry suppliers and service providers, trailer safety can only be improved through dealer interaction and consumer education. The launch of the NATM Dealer Affiliation is an opportunity to unify the trailer industry in an effort to improve trailer safety.
 
NAT​M Dealer Affiliates will experience a host of benefits, with an emphasis on education and resource access.

NATM is collecting the contact information for trailer dealers across the country in order to distribute safe trailering resources. For every 50 dealer contacts that your company sends to NATM, you can receive a $100 discount on advertising with NATM! 
 
To learn more, please visit our Dealer Affiliate page. 
​
 Tier 1: 1- 4 Companies Referred 

• Buy one get one free Convention Registration (limit 3)
• One free half page ad in Tracks magazine

 
Tier 2: 5-9 Companies Referred

• One free full page ad in Tracks magazine

• 1 complimentary Convention registration
• 1 complimentary Dealer Summit Registration

 
Tier 3: 10+ Companies Referred

• Two free full page ads in Tracks magazine

• 1 complimentary Convention registration
• 1 complimentary Dealer Summit Registration
• Company entered into raffle for a 1-year complimentary NATM membership

 
Companies must inform NATM of their referral on the Dealer Affiliate Application in the space provided on the form for a referral to be counted. For more information, contact NATM Membership & Events Director Kelli Maydew at Kelli.Maydew@natm.com.
 
*Please note, all incentives are available for 12 months following the convention or the following year’s convention. Any incentives not used will expire. 

Understanding all the writing on the sidewall of a tire can be overwhelming. It helps to know what characters you are searching for in order to obtain the tire information you desire. For example, if the tire code was 225/45R17 75L, then 75 would signify the load index and L would signify the speed rating of the tire. 

The load index tells you how many pounds a tire can safely carry. As you can see on the load index chart below, the 75 in the example above has been assigned a load carrying capacity of 853 lbs per tire. Multiply the load carrying capacity by the number of the tires on the trailer. As long as that sum is greater than or equal to the assigned GVWR of the trailer, then the tire’s load index is sufficient for its application. 

Speed ratings are based on laboratory tests and were established to match the speed capability of tires. In the same tire code example stated previously, L would signify the tire speed rating. According to the attached chart, the speed rating
​for L is up to 75 mph. It has been proven under testing conditions, that tire can operate for a certain period of time up
to 75 mph.
​
Motor vehicles should always be operated according to the speed limit of the roads they travel on. Never exceed the speed rating of the tow vehicle tires or the trailer tires; drive according to whichever rating is lower. Trailer tires commonly have tire speed ratings in the 65 – 75 mph range. Unless otherwise noted, the speed rating for trailer tires is 65 mph. 

​In the trailer manufacturing industry, a successful business is dependent upon an educated, highly skilled workforce. Does your company have the necessary tools to keep up with the demanding job market? The answer lies in workforce development – a necessity for both employees and businesses to remain competitive, particularly in today’s economy.
This winter, NATM will host a three-part webinar series, focusing on workplace hot button issues.
​
Webinar series discussion points will include:

• Employee Policies
• Retention Strategies
• Workplace Culture
• Productivity
• Local Resource Utilization

 
*MORE DETAILS TO COME *
 
Questions? Please contact NATM Membership & Events Director, Kelli Maydew at Kelli.Maydew@natm.com or (785) 272-4433. 

​Last updated in 2004, earnings thresholds necessary to exempt executive, administrative and professional employees from the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA) minimum wage and overtime pay requirements have been raised to account for growth in employee earnings. The final rule is effective beginning January 1, 2020.
 
In short, the final rule is:

• raising the “standard salary level” from the currently enforced level of $455 per week to $684 per week (equivalent to $35,568 per year for a full-year worker);
• raising the total annual compensation requirement for “highly compensated employees” from the currently enforced level of $100,000 per year to $107,432 per year;
• allowing employers to use nondiscretionary bonuses and incentive payments (including commissions) paid at least annually to satisfy up to 10% of the standard salary level, in recognition of evolving pay practices; and
• revising the special salary levels for workers in U.S. territories and the motion picture industry.

 
While the final official rule is under review, the announcement found here, will give employers additional time to plan accordingly for 2020. The official final rule will be published in the federal register following review.

On August 22, 2019 the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) seeking comments on proposed changes to the Hours of Service regulations. The proposed changes are intended to provide flexibility in several areas following concerns raised by industries and commercial drivers. These include:
​

1. Extend the maximum duty-period allowed under the short-haul exception from 12 hours to 14 hours,
2. Extend the maximum distance for short-haul drivers (subject to existing exception requirements) from a 100 air-mile radius to a 150 air-mile radius,
3. Modifying the exception for adverse driving condition by extending the maximum driving windows by 2 hours,
4. Making the 30 minute rest break applicable only in situations where a driver has driven for a period of 8 hours without at least 1 30 minute break, which can be satisfied with a period either off duty, in the sleeper berth, or on-duty not-driving,
5. Modifying the sleeper berth requirements such that the required 10 hours off duty could be split into two periods, provided one off duty period is at least 2 hours long (either in or out of the sleeper berth) and the other involves at least 7 consecutive hours in the sleeper birth,
6. Adding an additional optional under § 395.3 (a)(3)(iii) that would allow one off-duty break of at least 30 minutes, but not more than 3 hours, during the course of a 14-hour driving window to extend that period for the length of the break, provided the drivers take at least 10 consecutive hours off duty at the end of the work shift.

 
The entire notice can be found here including additional discussion about comments received and Agency reasonings.
 
Originally, the NPRM noted a due date for comments of October 7th, however, that deadline has been extended to October 21. FMCSA is seeking comments from the industries and drivers impacted by these potential changes. More information on the topic can be found here and comments may be submitted to FMCSA here.