MARKET INDICATORS:
BACKLOG: The backlog is the number of vehicles that have been ordered but have not yet been built. Backlog is calculable: Past backlog + current net orders – current build = new backlog.
BUILD: Build, or production, pertains to the number of vehicles produced for a given market, NOT the country in which the actual production takes place. When a unit leaves the assembly line it is counted in the build data.
NEW ORDERS: New orders are the total number of orders received by the industry each month. Also referred to as gross orders.
CANCELLATIONS: Cancellations are units that have been ordered previously and are then cancelled. Order and cancellation cannot occur in the same month. NET ORDERS: New Orders – Cancellations = Net Orders.
INVENTORY: Inventory is the number of units that have been built, but for which no factory shipment has yet taken place. Inventory is a calculable number, rather than an additive, number: Past inventory + current build – current factory shipments = current inventory.
FACTORY SHIPMENTS: Units that have been built and have left the factory.
TRAILERS: A trailer is a vehicle without motive power designed for carrying property and for being drawn by a motor vehicle. The following are sub-groups within trailers:
Dry Vans: Totally enclosed trailer for dry cargo.
Reefer Vans: A refrigerated van trailer. Used for hauling any product that is temperature-sensitive, such as food, film, and medications.
Platforms: A trailer chassis consisting of a flat loading deck without permanent sides or roof.
Low Beds: A trailer designed to carry large and heavy loads where loaded height is critical. Typically see moving large construction equipment.
Dumps: Three types of dump trailers: side, bottom, and end. Used in basic industries and construction. Used for aggregates, such as stone, coal, and sand.
Tanks: A trailer with a liquid-tight vessel to carry liquid or dry bulk freight
Containers: Containers are the boxes that are used in intermodal service to haul either domestic or international goods. Due to international freight flows, there are no international 20’ or 40’ containers built in North America. The containers produced in the North American market are for domestic freight only and are produced in both dry and refrigerated configurations.
Chassis (aka: container chassis): Chassis are the means by which containerized intermodal freight is delivered from steamships and railroads to customers. A container/chassis combination is basically a two-piece dry van.
Dolly, Converter gear: An auxiliary undercarriage assembly consisting of a chassis, fifth wheel, and tow bar used in combination trailer service.
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