Penske has been named to G.I. Jobs magazine’s Top 100 Military Friendly Employers® list.
The magazine recognizes military friendly companies that demonstrate commitment to recruiting America’s veterans.
Truck Leasing
With a fleet of approximately 212,000 vehicles operating across the roads of North America, Penske knows its customers expect theirlease, rental and contract maintenance light-, medium- and heavy-duty trucks will perform at the highest levels. These trucks are critical tools in helping businesses move their freight on-time and helping consumers move their belongings safely to their new residences.
Maximizing a fleet’s up-time and minimizing its down-time all begins with Penske’s industry-leading preventive maintenance practices. A year ago, Penske Truck Leasing created a technical training board to ensure its maintenance workforce of more than 5,400 associates has access to state-of-the-art training.
“The industry is changing so fast we have to keep pace with these changes,” said technical training board member Ed Glaessmann (pictured right), a high-level technician in Pennsylvania. Glaessmann, paired with Robert Anthony (now a Pa. maintenance supervisor), won back-to-back titles at Penske’s national technical challenge event, a competition designed to test preventive maintenance knowledge.
Part of Holly Gerke’s job duties as technical training manager at the company’s Reading, Pa. headquarters is to manage the board.
“We created this board to connect more closely with the training needs of our service associates who are working with our customers and their vehicles every day,” she said. “This board helps us get relevant recommendations as to what types of training programs work, and which don’t work, so we can help continue to drive improvement and enhance our customer experience with their vehicle performance.
“We also want to continue to identify and train high-performance associates so they can become more well-rounded, and to ensure that relevant training is made more accessible to all associates,” she said.
An area maintenance manager in Connecticut, board member Tom Anderson is drawn to the group’s synergy. “We discuss a myriad of things,” he stated. “We assess the training skills needed in our service locations and the different levels that are needed to help our customers.”
Tim Burke is an Ohio-based Penske area vice president and a fellow board member. “Our whole approach to vehicle preventive maintenance practices and the extensive training programs we have in place for our technicians are important differentiators in the market place.”
Burke has learned more about the training process during his time on the board, and is looking forward to helping ensure “that we’re lining up our training with the changing needs of our businesses.”
As Jeff Scott, a board member and Washington state branch service manager for the company explains it, the board provided parameters to identify qualified associates to serve as internal trainers. “I do believe the key to our success as a company is constantly improving ourselves, and also cross-training others.”
The board features rotating members serving two-year terms from all levels of leadership: area vice presidents, district managers, branch service managers and technicians. Permanent members include technical training and quality leaders, both at corporate and in the field.
Penske’s maintenance training practices have twice been certified by the National Institute of Automotive Service Excellence (ASE). All Penske maintenance technicians annually complete 40 hours of training, and have access to a voluntary program known as TCP, as in Technician Certification Program.
Technicians entering the voluntary TCP program not only greatly enhance their skill sets, but place themselves on a track to progress within the company’s ranks, where many senior maintenance leaders got their starts in Penske service bays across the country.
By Alen Beljin
Penske Truck Leasing once again is championing safety in the transportation industry through its support of the 25th Annual International Foodservice Distributors Association (IFDA) Food Industry Truck Driving Championships. Penske is the leading sponsor and primary vehicle provider.
The event will take place at the Disney Coronado Springs Resort from Sept. 23-25 in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
Drivers representing food service distributors, food service manufacturers with private fleets, retail/wholesale distributors, self-distributing retail supermarket companies and other types of food companies across North America gather to compete each year in this important industry safety event.
Stated Britt Wood, IFDA vice president of industry programs and services: "The IFDA Truck Driving Championship is the only national event held for an industry in North America, and we are very proud to have Penske supporting this event. Penske's participation is a clear reflection of the company's support for a strong safety culture for drivers across the food industry."
The IFDA is a trade organization of food service distributors serving operations throughout the U.S., Canada, and other countries.
Penske Truck Leasing and Penske Logistics are strong advocates of truck safety on North American roadways. Penske is in compliance with regulatory agencies and is a partner in the Smith System driver training program.
By Alen Beljin
The start of the school year brings with it heavier traffic and professional drivers will want to be even more aware of their surroundings while navigating residential areas, traveling the interstate and making deliveries at the nation’s big box retailers.
“That route you easily navigated this summer will be more congested and take longer to run, so you’ve got to plan ahead and be prepared,” said Keith Bain, commercial auto specialist for Chubb Group of Insurance Companies.
Last year 475,000 school buses took to the roads. “That is another half million commercial vehicles added to our roads, which we all know are already congested,” said Herbert Mayo, vice president of risk control for Lockton Companies, a national insurance broker.
In addition to buses, moms driving small children to and from school and teenagers and college students driving themselves increase the number of vehicles on the road. “When kids head back to school there are more people that are more active in vehicles,” Mayo said.
While all roads will see an increase in traffic congestion, secondary roads near neighborhoods and schools typically see the greatest traffic increases. “Try to make the most use of interstate highways and freeways and avoid or minimize your travel on secondary roads,” Bain said. “Avoid metropolitan areas during rush hour and have a heightened sense of awareness on rural highways and state routes. There may be a school bus stopped just over the hill or around the next curve.”
Teenage students driving with their friends in the car can be more distracted and warrant extra attention from professional drivers. “I want my professional drivers to know that those are student drivers are out there and to be aware of that. They’re exploring their newfound freedom with their vehicle,” Mayo said.
In residential areas, drivers will also want to be alert for children playing. “When they get home in the afternoon, they want to go out and play with their friends,” Mayo said.
Back-to-school season hits at the same time as big-box retailers are stocking their shelves for school-bound and holiday shoppers alike.
“Parking lots and delivery points around retail stores are always a dangerous place to drive your truck, even without the added pressure and frequency of back-to-school deliveries and the added hazard of back-to-school shoppers,” Bain said.
Bain explained, drivers in parking lots “often take shorts cuts, drive too fast, treat right-of-way rules casually, and they’re frequently backing up.” He recommends drivers in retail settings slow down, increase their following distance, communicate, and continue checking their mirrors and blind spots.
Retail docks can be difficult to access and retail service roads are typically narrow, Bain said. “Remember your backing rules and practice them and be prepared for more truck traffic. It’s always a good idea to ‘get out and look’ or use a spotter before you begin backing at retail docks and any delivery point,” he said.
While drivers are always conscious of safety, it is important they not take it for granted. “Don’t be tempted to text, surf the net, dial your cell phone, read, or fall victim to other distractions that take your eyes off the road. Remember that driving your truck is one of the most dangerous activities you do every day. Treat it with the respect that it deserves,” Bain said.
By “Move Ahead” Staff
Longtime Penske Truck Leasing customer East Penn Manufacturing of Lyon Station, Pa. now has in its fleet a Freightliner truck containing the one millionth 3000 series transmission from Allison Transmission Inc.
“We’re very pleased to be in receipt of a milestone Allison 3000 series transmission,” said Brian Hard, Penske Truck Leasing president and CEO. “Allison and Penske have enjoyed a long and successful working relationship. We are fortunate to provide this leased vehicle to a valued customer like East Penn Manufacturing.”
Photo ID, from left: Mike Dietrich, operations manager, East Penn Manufacturing; Isabelle Moon, executive account manager, Penske; Paul Rosa, vice president of vehicle supply and planning, Penske; and Scott Hubbard, area sales manager for East region, Allison Transmission. 
For more information, please click here.
By Alen Beljin
The newest Penske Truck Leasing facilityofficially opened its doors in Garner, N.C. this afternoon as part of a grand opening event.
Located in North Carolina’s Triangle region, near Raleigh, the state-of-the-art 12,000 square-foot building was constructed at a cost of $3.3 million. It sits on 8.5 acres and offers full-service truck leasing, consumer and commercial truck rental and contract maintenance services.
Stated John Crockett, senior vice president – Southeast region, Penske: “Strategically this location allows for access to the major entry points in the Raleigh market. Some of our largest customers in the food and newspaper industries are now within close proximity.”
The town of Garner was instrumental in ensuring the long-term success of this facility.
“There have been a lot of great days in Garner in the last couple of months,” stated Garner mayor Ronnie Williams in his remarks to the grand opening attendees. “We’re very pleased to welcome Penske, with their stellar reputation.”
As Chris Anderholm, area vice president – Carolinas, Penske Truck Leasing, stated: “Ideally, business and government should be able to work together, to help remove any barriers. I could not be more positive about the help that the town of Garner has given us, especially economic development director Tony Beasley. Garner is a very business-friendly place.“
During his ceremony remarks, Anderholm thanked Sen. Richard Stevens, Sen. Dan Blue and Rep. Deborah Ross, Rep. Darren Jackson and Rep. Rosa Gill for sponsoring key legislation that was quickly enacted by the state legislature and signed by the governor earlier this year, to prevent an expansion of the local Triangle Expressway from possibly running through Penske’s facility.
“The town of Garner was strong advocates for both the businesses and residents of Garner when the Turnpike Authority was considering the Red and Pink routes,” said Anderholm.
Situated in the Greenfield South Business Park, there are six service bays, a two-lane fuel island and a wash bay. Expected to employ 15 associates initially, the maintenance shop also uses leading-edge wireless technology that enables Penske’s service technicians to automatically connect vehicles for service with diagnostic and analytic software.
Photo ID, from left to right (top photo): Garner mayor pro-tem Kathy Behringer, Garner mayor Williams, Garner councilman Buck Kennedy, Anderholm, Penske district manager Mike Cox and Penske branch manager Mike Parker and Garner councilman Ken Marshburn. In the second photo, Anderholm speaks at the ribbon cutting.
Photos courtesy of Michael Lentz of Garner Portraits.
By Alen Beljin, from Garner, N.C.
Penske Truck Leasing held a ribbon-cutting ceremony earlier today to commemorate the opening of a new location in the Buffalo, N.Y. suburb of Cheektowaga.
Pictured in the photo are Penske executives, from left: district manager Dwight Kruep; Dan O’Boyle, senior vice president for North Central region; and Great Lakes area vice president Jeff Schoen.
The $7 million state-of-the-art facility is a 14,000 square-foot building housed on eight acres and offers full-service truck leasing, consumer and commercial truck rental and contract maintenance services. It contains four service bays, a two-lane fuel island and an automated wash bay.
The rental office can be reached at 716-681-4106. For all other inquiries, please call 716-824-2244.
The facility was profiled in the Buffalo News, and by various local television stations, including WIVB. Click here to view the complete news release.
By Alen Beljin