Gretchen Reese (00:06):

Hey there. Welcome to Fleet FYIs, the weekly podcast by Utilimarc that reveals how you can most of your data for smarter fleet management. My name is Gretchen and every week you'll hear from me and some of the industry's finest in candid conversations that will shed some light on not only two decades worth of data insights, but some of the industry's hottest talking points and key metric analysis with the aim to help you better understand your fleet from every angle.

Gretchen Reese (00:33):

But, before we begin, if this is the first time you've heard our show, thanks for stopping by. I'm so glad you decided to come along for the ride with us. But, I've got a quick favor to ask you. Once we finish today's episode, if you could take a few minutes to leave us a review on your favorite podcasting platform, we would really appreciate it. Give us a rating, five stars I hope, (laughs), or tell us what you liked or leave us a comment or question of what you heard in today's episode, but if we haven't yet covered a topic that you're interested in hearing about, let us know. We would be happy to go over in detail in a later episode. If that sounds good to you, let's get back to the show.

Gretchen Reese (01:16):

Hello everyone and welcome back to another episode of the Fleet FYIs podcast. Today's show is a little bit different as I am on the move in Louisville, Kentucky here for the Utility Fleet Expo and, um, the exciting bit is, is I'm here with Michael Carr. And, if you've spent any time on our blog, you'll have recognized him. He actually just published a piece on take home vehicle policies and how actually the pandemic could have affected them or, you know, made, um, these take home policies actually solidify in the minds of folks that are already using them.

Gretchen Reese (01:52):

But, for a bit of context, since we're at the Utility Expo here in Louisville, what we wanted to do is a little bit of a daily recap. So, these next couple days you'll be able to tune in just to see what's going on at the show, what our best bets have been and then, you know, what we're getting up to in Louisville, which I think is kind of exciting. So, my goal since you're sitting here with now, I would love to open it up to you. What did you like about the Utility Expo today?

Michael Carr (02:19):

Yeah, sure. Thanks Gretchen. Uh, so, I mean, today was a really great experience on a lot of fronts. Um, as you know, her- this was my first time at the Expo and, uh, in the days leading up to it, flying to Louisville, I heard, like, multiple times how vast the grounds are and just how many companies will be exhibitors this week. But, wow! I mean, when we arrived this morning at the Expo, I realized my (laughs) expectations didn't nearly do it justice. The Expo grounds are huge, like, wicked huge. And, it was amazing just to see how many folks had come together to share insights into their products, services and overall operations.

Michael Carr (03:00):

Um, one thing I kept realizing while walking through those indoor sections, was just how many different pieces of equipment go into a successful fleet operation. Uh, there were amazing booths, uh, with very specific, uh, lines of product, um, from horizontal trenchers, uh, to s- just tractor treads. And, um, this place had it all. I, I'll also just, uh, quickly share a humble brag that I was lucky enough to be taken up, um ... And, this was outdoors, of course, in the tallest boom truck, at the show, this weekend. Um, it was, a, I was 103 feet in the air (laughs) sitting in the bucket of a Rothmann boom truck, um, looking over the entire outdoor yard and also being able to see into the city of Louisville, um, which was crazy. It was super cool.

Michael Carr (03:58):

Um, the operator shared a story about how they used to be able to take them up into the 150 feet range, um, but ended up getting in trouble once because they were being picked up by the nearby airport air traffic control (laughs). So, uh, an- as an unidentified flying object, which is amazing. Uh, so, unfortunately for me, but, I, I suppose, fair enough, I was only allowed to go just above 100 feet in the air. Um, but wow, those things were cool. And, they are loaded with super cool onboard technology too. It's, it's not something that just goes up and down and that's it. Like, um, one thing that was really fun is it had this little wind turbine, um, that would tell us the live wind speed, uh, so it was constantly changing and I think it got up to, like, 26 miles per hour, which didn't seem like a lot to me, but the operator said, "If you wanna feel 26 miles per hour, stand in the back of a pickup truck and tell your buddy to drive 26 miles per hour and you'll feel that wind." Um, and this thing, it, it didn't move much at all. It was incredibly impressive to be up there and to look out over everything and, uh, just understand the sheer scale of some of these units that are being used. Um, got a great use too, as well.

Michael Carr (05:17):

Um, so, he was talking about how a dam had broken and they needed something that could be parked on one side of it on the land and then go up, over and then back down the other side so that they could do the repairs, all the while water was going underneath. Um, so, they used one of this Rothmann's to do that. And so I, it, it was super cool to, not only experience it in a real life setting, uh, but also to understand just how and where those things are used, um, to do things across the world. I, they, I also learned that Rothmann's a German based company and, uh, these guys had a faint accent, but it was, it was great to chat with them. And, uh, they do shows throughout the nation, just, uh, along with everyone else that was there, like, I mean, we saw so many vendors that, um, all were, were carrying their equipment and, uh, showing off these beautiful machines, and, um, it was, it was just a great experience. I, I really enjoyed, um, chatting with these folks who really know their stuff and I, I am excited to go back tomorrow and, and learn more and, and maybe I'll see a few of my friends that I met today. And, I, I, I really am excited and it was a great time.

Gretchen Reese (06:34):

I am so with you there, Michael. Honestly, seeing you go up in that aerial lift, I think was probably the highlight of my day. I thought it was just so funny because for those of you who don't know, um, I tell people that I am a little bit afraid of heights. If it is less than my wing span, in terms of the area that you can stand on, and, um, they sent Michael about, I think it was about 100 feet up in the air, and even just filming him going up in the aerial lift was a little spooky to me because I'm just th- there thinking, like, "Oh my gosh, that's really high up." And, I wouldn't have loved that, but it was really cool to see it done. Um, and also a little bit spooky in terms of, um, being that close to the airport and all of the logistics surrounding that, but cool that it can go that high.

Gretchen Reese (07:18):

I think, for me, um, in terms of the best parts of the conference, for those of you that have been frequent Fleet FYIs listeners over the past few months and over the last year, um, you'll probably have heard the episode with Jack Johnson, who is the CTO and the founder of Volta Power Systems and it was nice to be able to connect with him yesterday at one of his, um, client's booths. So, Jack, if you're listening, hi. Nice to see you again. Um, and then, we also got to meet up with a couple of folks that we've worked with in the past, as well as a few people from the, uh, Ford and, um, the General Motor showing that was there. Those actually, were probably my absolute favorite parts of the show, only because I am, as you guys know, very, very into sustainability and new technology, new launches. So, I eat that stuff up like it's candy, right?

Gretchen Reese (08:08):

And, um, it was interesting, actually, to speak to the folks at the Ford booth because they were telling me that as of yesterday morning, Ford has made the largest investment that they ever have into sustainable technology. And, that number was somewhere around the lines, I think, 11.5 billion, yes, billion with a B dollars into electric vehicles and sustainable technology. And, the story was so big that it even made the front page of the New York Times, which was insanely cool. And, in speaking to them a little bit further, it sounds like and, you know, I think this is a ... I don't know how tight this commitment is because I'm not super involved with it. However, um, the notifying that, uh, Ford will be completely electric in all of its offerings from light duty to medium duty to even heavy duty machinery, they will all be 100% electric by 2050. Which, to me, is exciting and that means there's a lot more opportunities to learn about it and to be excited about it in the future.

Gretchen Reese (09:19):

All righty. Well, that's it for the day one weekly recap. Make sure that you tune in tomorrow morning just so you can hear just exactly what we get up to today, which is day two of the Utility Expo. I have a feeling that if yesterday was exciting and, you know, very packed in terms of information, new launches, new technology and lots more people, that today will be even better. So, we will keep you updated, make sure you check us out on LinkedIn. Um, we are talking a lot about, um, what we're getting up to as well on the Utilimarc page on LinkedIn. So, LinkedIn.com/company/Utilimarc. You know where to find us. The link is in the show description below, um, and also, you know, you know where to find us, utilimarc.com as always. And, until tomorrow, that's all for me. Ciao.

Gretchen Reese (10:09):

Hey there. I think this is the time that I should cue the virtual high five because you've just finished listening to another episode of the Fleet FYIs podcast. If you're already wanting more content, head over to utilimarc.com which Utilimarc with a C. U-T-I-L-I-M-A-R-C dot com for the show notes and extra insights coming straight from our analyst to you. That's all for me this week. So, until next time, I'll catch you later.