Decisions, decisions, decisions.
We face technology choices all the time. Any of these choices ring a bell? Eight track tapes or cassettes? VHS or Beta? Apple or IBM? Android or iOS? Great taste or less filling? LNG or CNG? Day cab or sleeper? Rail or truck? Battery or fuel cell?
Kenny Rogers' The Gambler lyrics are stuck in my head; “Know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em, know when to walk away, know when to run.”
With technology, getting from where we are to where we want to be is never as simple as Nike’s motto, "Just Do It!" We have to first answer the question, "Just Do What?" That question is made much more difficult by multiple choice answers. Throw in that these answers have some time dependency and the question becomes “Just Do What When?
Cummins appears to be taking the approach of Just Do Everything in a relentless search for future market share in an increasingly OEM-vertically-integrated domestic-centric market. Media coverage of Cummins includes evolving traditional diesel engines, CNG engines, fuel agnostic engines, battery electric powertrains, fuel cell powertrains, and various hybrid combinations of these technologies and more.
Cummins is positioning for what NACFE calls the messy middle: the transitionary period we are entering between traditional fossil fueled trucks and a zero-emission future. Covering all the bases is easier if there are only four of them, but trucking’s baseball diamond is growing rapidly into an increasingly complex polygon. Come to think of it, maybe that’s the solution to baseball’s challenge to be more appealing beyond just adding the pitching clock: add alternative bases.
Cummins' growing portfolio of solutions to help move trucks down the road reflects the challenges facing the industry. None of the paths forward are sure bets. Vertically integrated truck manufacturers like Paccar, Volvo and Daimler Truck North America are facing the same challenges as they all are looking in their crystal balls and wondering where the market really is going?
