Results of the Q4 2014 Fleet Sentiment Report survey by CK Commercial Vehicle Research (CKCVR) show solid fleet purchasing plans for the first half of 2015 Class 8 deliveries.
The Q4 FSR buying index (which measures the number of fleets planning to place orders for trucks and trailers in the next 3 months) is up 2% year-over-year.
Even those the numbers are strong, fleets have reported that their hands are tied when it comes to adding capacity because of the lack of qualified drivers.
Chris Kemmer, consultant at CKCVR said: “over and over we hear from the fleets reporting ‘we’d buy more equipment if we had more drivers’. Most are in a good place financially with plenty of available freight but without drivers, additional trucks don’t make sense. Replacement demand for the time being remains strong.”