TMC Fall Meeting to Provide Technology Assessment and Failure Analysis

ARLINGTON, Va., June 26 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Technology &
Maintenance Council (TMC) of American Trucking Associations will hold its 2009
Fall Meeting -- along with TMCSuperTech2009 -- Sept. 14-17 at the Raleigh
Convention Center, Raleigh, N.C.

The meeting theme, High Performance Maintenance Strategies, will be carried
out through technical sessions on new fuels, propulsion technologies and how
to assess and reduce vehicle down time with failure analysis.

Technical Sessions

Three full-technical sessions offer timely and much needed detail on clean
vehicle technologies, new California rules impacting trucking, and access to
OEM repair information for increasingly complicated power systems.

A Comprehensive Review of Clean Vehicle Technologies will provide a rundown on
the various hybrid technologies coming online and on the way, as well as the
pros and cons of many fuels being used and considered for these technologies,
including liquefied and compressed natural gas, a variety of bio-diesel
products, along with fuel-cell and hydrogen-based technologies.

California Regulatory Tsunami: How New California Rules Will Impact Fleets
Nationwide will detail the latest in a growing list of environmental
regulations in California, from trailer refrigerant unit retrofitting,
emission caps, mandating retrofit of pre-2007 model year trucks and tracks
with diesel particulate filters, and mandating use of approved tires and
aerodynamic features, such as trailer side-skirts.

The full-technical session Fleet Challenges Regarding Access to Repair
Information looks closely at the problem some fleets and repair facilities
have in getting service necessary service information to make vehicle repairs,
the Right-to-Repair Act now before Congress, and what one TMC Study Group is
doing to help remedy the problem.

Study Group technical sessions include:
-- Electrical Technician Training Skills;
-- Prevention Tips for the Industry's Top 10 Tire and Wheel Issues;
-- Diesel Exhaust Fluid for 2010 Engines;
-- The Numbers Behind the Failure -- Knowing When Parts Will Fail;
-- Wheel End Maintenance and Failure Analysis Strategies;
-- Making Your Trailers More Fuel Efficient -- CARB Compliance and
Beyond;
-- New Developments in Onboard Vehicle Diagnostics; and
-- Specialty Vehicles and Failure Analysis -- What Fails and Why.

Fleet Operator's Forum, Fleet Talk and Shop Talk will again provide the
opportunity for maintenance and equipment professionals to seek redress to
equipment problems and exchange information related to equipment problems.

More than 100 Task Forces will meet on Monday, Sept. 14, to continue work on
Recommended Practices. TMC's new Service Provider Committee will meet formally
for the first time as it begins working to improve efficiencies and
communication between service providers and fleets. TMC's Corrosion Control
Committee and Future Truck Committee will also meet.

Tuesday's Industry Luncheon speaker will be Jack Conlan, senior vice
president, customer support, Daimler Trucks North America, LLC.

Wednesday's TMCSuperTech2009 Awards Luncheon will include the announcement of
the nation's top truck technicians. Luncheon speaker will be TMCSuperTech2007
and TMCSuperTech2008 Grand Champion Bryan Lewis of Wal-Mart.

Technician Training Fair

In addition to TMCSuperTech2009, TMC's Professional Technician Development
Committee will hold a Technician Training Fair on Monday and Wednesday. The
hands-on training sessions are designed for technicians, shop supervisors and
fleet managers. Other TMC meeting attendees are also welcome to attend the
training.

The training qualifies for National Automotive Technicians Education
Foundation continuing education credits. The sessions will be repeated to
maximum training opportunities.

Training sessions include:
-- Basic HVAC Principles;
-- Basic Electronics;
-- Proper Tool Usage and Repair Orders;
-- 2010 SCR Update;
-- Proper Electronics and Wiring Repair; and

-- Enhanced Safety Systems.

Meeting and registration information is available online at
http://tmc.truckline.com.

TMC, a technical council of American Trucking Associations, is North America's
premier technical society for truck equipment technology and maintenance
professionals. TMC features a diverse membership of equipment managers,
service-dealers, owner-operators, industry suppliers and manufacturers,
educators, academia and others that support the trucking industry. TMC member
fleets represent the broad range of industry vocations, including truckload,
less-than-truckload, municipal, private, on/off-highway, construction and
other operations. Find out more about TMC online at http://tmc.truckline.com.

American Trucking Associations, Inc., the national trade association for the
trucking industry, is a federation of affiliated state trucking associations,
conferences and organizations that includes more than 37,000 motor carrier
members representing every type and class of motor carrier in the country. ATA
serves the interests of more than nine million people and 420,000 companies
involved in trucking before Congress, the courts and regulatory agencies.
http://www.truckline.com

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TMC Meeting Dates

TMC's 2009 Fall Meeting
& National Technician Skills Competition
Raleigh Convention Center
Raleigh, North Carolina
September 14-17

TMC's 2010 Annual Meeting
& Transportation Technology Exhibition
Tampa Convention Center
Tampa, Florida
February 9-12

TMC's 2010 Fall Meeting
& National Technician Skills Competition
Raleigh Convention Center
Raleigh, North Carolina
September 20-23

TMC's 2011 Annual Meeting
& Transportation Technology Exhibition
Tampa Convention Center
Tampa, Florida
February 8-11

SOURCE Technology & Maintenance Council

Marsh Galloway of Technology & Maintenance Council, +1-913-498-2162,
mgalloway@trucking.org