With its entry of a roll-up garage-style door application for vans, Crown N.A. of Wooster, OH won the first Upfitter Innovation Award, sponsored by Automotive Fleet magazine. The award was presented in conjunction with Fleet Expo 2000, a fleet show and conference geared toward fleets of all sizes. The intent of the award was to offer upfitters across the country an opportunity to showcase what they felt was their most outstanding contribution to their industry during the last year.

Second place in this close competition went to Stahl Commercial Truck Equipment of Wooster, OH, for its entry of a dump truck body.

Third place went to Morgan Corp. of Morgantown, PA, for a custom-designed route delivery truck.

Crown North America Grabs the Trophy and the $1,000 Check

Crown N.A. won for its entry of a roll-up garage style door application for vans such as Ford’s E350 Cargo Van and Chevrolet/GMC’s Savanna-type van. The concept came from a suggestion from Gerry Madrid of Airborne Freight. Crown engineer, Todd Sturgin took on the challenge and the result, the first place winner, is currently running evaluation tests on some of Airborne’s routes.

“The advantages of the roll-up door over standard swing doors is very evident, from ease of operation, to safety in backing, and security in day-to-day operation,” said Mark Gordon, VP of vehicle conversions for Crown. Gordon said “the jury is still out on this conversion since it’s so new, but if initial response means anything, it’s hit. It’s a clean, very functional and cost-effective conversion.” On hand to receive the award for Crown North America, were Gordon, Regional Sales Manager Jim Scott, and Sturgin, the engineer on the project. Gordon accepted the first place trophy on behalf of Crown and Sturgin picked up the check from Bobit Publishing for $1,000.

Scott related later in the day that “The new configuration was receiving a lot of positive comments from Fleet Expo visitors.” Second place in this close competition went to Stahl Commercial Truck Equipment of Wooster, OH, for its entry of a dump truck body. Third place went to Morgan Corp. of Morgantown, PA, for a custom-designed route delivery truck.

Second Place Wasn’t Exactly a ‘Gimmee’ Either

Second place in this close competition went to Stahl Commercial Truck Equipment of Wooster, OH, for its entry of a dump truck body. This dump body carried through with the chassis lines and colors and produced a very sleek-looking piece of equipment. Stahl calls it the “Grand Champion,” in case you’re in the market for one. John Ricker, product marketing manager, said, “The design was not only intended to be eye-catching, but it’s also one of the most rugged dump trucks in today’s market. It was designed to complement small to midsize businesses where owners are looking for a strong and durable product blended with a recognizable image,” Hidden in the contoured lines are numerous built-in storage compartments for the many necessities of everyday work. Some of the other new features include; easy-to-release-grab-handle tailgates, various side height configurations, and fold-down sides for loading and unloading of materials.

Third Place No Easy Decision to Make

The judges commented that it was hard to choose just three from the submissions, since all entries had some stellar qualities. However, as the saying goes, “There can be only one,” so third place went to Morgan Corp. for a custom-designed route delivery truck, designed for Superior Coffee of Bensenville, IL. Superior Coffee requested a box that would meet its varied delivery requirements and also present a good professional image to the public. “One that would provide a good service life at a fair market price,” said John Kocinski, VP of purchasing for Superior Coffee, a division of Sara Lee.

Judges Had Their Hands Full with Very Competitive Submissions

As the entries began arriving, it was very evident there would be some close competition and the judges would have a real job on their hands selecting a first- , second- , and third-place winner from the diversity of submissions. A group of judges (all volunteers and industry peers) were under pressure to not only pick the winners, but to do it in a rather short time. The grading was on a total points system derived from using the individual submissions and based on innovation and imagination, practicality, and functionality.”

Plans are already in the works for another Fleet Expo, at the same location in 2001. There will also be a Second Annual Upfitter Innovation Award at that Expo, so watch for information in future Bobit publications. Get with your vendors and convince them to submit one or more of their most innovative time- and cost-saving ideas during the year.