The Heavy Duty Parts Report

Send us Fan Mail Episode 380: In this episode of The Heavy Duty Parts Report, host Jamie Irvine speaks with Sri Kolluri, Product Lead at Motive, about how AI-powered maintenance solutions can help fleets reduce total cost of ownership (TCO).  The discussion highlights how rising parts costs, emergency breakdowns, and vehicle downtime significantly increase operating expenses, with emergency repair...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 379: In this episode of The Heavy Duty Parts Report, host Jamie Irvine interviews Brian Fielkow, former CEO of Jetco Delivery and author of Making Safety Happen , about why safety should be viewed as a core business value rather than a compliance requirement or a business priority.  Brian explains that strong safety cultures improve employee retention, operational discipli...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 378: In this episode of The Heavy Duty Parts Report, host Jamie Irvine speaks with Brent Dinger of SRC Reman about the challenges and opportunities associated with remanufactured parts and core management.  They discuss how inaccurate cross-references, limited industry-standard data, damaged or unidentified cores, rising freight costs, and inconsistent ERP systems create d...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 377: In this episode of The Heavy Duty Parts Report, host Jamie Irvine speaks with Jessica Crabtree, Director of Technical Services, and Garth Redifer, Vice President of Sales at Power Service, about how fuel quality directly impacts fuel economy, engine performance, emissions systems, and maintenance costs in modern diesel fleets.  They explain how changes in diesel fuel,...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 376: In this episode of The Heavy Duty Parts Report, our host Jamie Irvine speaks with Joe Steward, General Manager of Betts Truck Parts and Service, about the ongoing challenges of heavy-duty truck parts identification.  They compare the catalog-based methods of the past with today's digital tools, discussing how modern trucks have become significantly more complex....

Send us Fan Mail Episode 375: Host Jamie Irvine is joined by Katie Benet, Strategic Account Manager, and Bruce Williams, Senior Director at Marathon Brake Systems, to discuss the upcoming Brake Safety Week and the significant business and safety consequences of brake-related violations. Using industry inspection data showing that over 15% of inspected vehicles were placed out of service for brake...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 374: In this episode of The Heavy Duty Parts Report, Jamie and Jennifer Irvine discuss the challenges and opportunities of promoting employees from within a heavy-duty repair business.  Jamie emphasizes that strong performance in one position does not automatically translate into success in a leadership, supervisory, or sales role. The conversation explores how technicians...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 373: In this episode of The Heavy Duty Parts Report, Jamie Irvine and co-host Jennifer Irvine explore the problem of shotgun repairs—when technicians replace multiple parts based on assumptions rather than identifying the true root cause of a vehicle issue. They examine how modern commercial vehicles have become significantly more complex making accurate diagnostics more c...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 372: In this episode of The Heavy Duty Parts Report, host Jamie Irvine speaks with Josh Ross, CEO of Truck Genius, about how repair shops can turn operational data into profit.  Josh explains how Truck Genius helps shops unlock valuable insights from Fullbay data, making it easier to track key performance indicators, improve accountability, and identify profit leaks.  The...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 371: In this episode, Paul Kunz of Precision Fleet Maintenance discusses his journey from running a side service truck to building a full-scale heavy-duty repair, shop, and parts distribution business driven by a desire to support his family and serve customers better.  He explains the challenges of entrepreneurship in the trucking industry—from fear and long hours to mana...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 370: In this episode of The Heavy Duty Parts Report, host Jamie Irvine and guest Jason Kramer from Cultivize, discuss how heavy-duty repair shops, fleets, and service providers can dramatically improve revenue by eliminating “leaks” in their sales pipeline.  They explain the critical difference between marketing funnels and sales pipelines, emphasizing that most lost oppor...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 369: This conversation with Daimler Truck’s Mike Young explores the Detroit Gen 6 engine platform and how it prepares fleets for the EPA 2027 emissions standards by building on nearly 20 years of proven aftertreatment technology.  Young explains that the Gen 6 engines focus on reducing NOx through improved thermal management, a new pre‑SCR system, as well as incremental en...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 368: Fleet Advantage’s Brian Antonellis joins our host Jamie Irvine to break down the “procurement paralysis” many fleets are experiencing due to uncertainty, rising costs, and rapid changes in equipment strategy.  Antonellis explains how years of supply chain disruption, upcoming EPA 2027 emissions regulations, and volatile fuel prices have created hesitation around repla...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 367: In this episode, Jamie Irvine talks with Jon Barganier and Spencer Wilson from Allpart Supply about the hidden costs and operational challenges caused by truck and trailer misalignment and frame issues.  They explain how misalignment leads to excessive tire and fuel expenses, premature wear on suspension components, and even driver fatigue, while also creating major l...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 366: The episode reviews Fullbay’s State of Heavy-Duty Repair Report , with Jamie and Jennifer Irvine discussing key industry insights drawn from 900 survey respondents and data from 3,400 Fullbay users.  They explore trends such as the aging workforce, the growth of new repair shops, and the typical shop size and rates. The conversation highlights labor rate increases, te...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 365: In this episode of The Heavy Duty Parts Report , Jamie Irvine interviews Daniel Jones, Application Engineer at EnerSys, about how modern heavy‑duty trucks place far greater electrical demands on batteries than ever before.  Jones explains the evolution from flooded batteries to AGM and now to thin plate pure lead (TPPL) technology, highlighting how today’s vehicles—wi...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 364: This episode explores the evolving relationship between dealerships and the independent aftermarket in heavy‑duty parts and service, highlighting how rising equipment costs, advancing technology, technician shortages, and tight freight markets are forcing fleets to make smarter decisions about where they source parts and repairs. Jamie Irvine, joined by Jeremy Smallwo...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 363: Jamie Irvine and Jonathan Larsen explore why data standards—especially cross‑references, fitment data, and images—remain a major challenge in the heavy‑duty parts industry, despite decades of progress in automotive. They discuss how standards like PIES and ACES work, why adoption has lagged in commercial vehicles, and how better data practices can reduce friction, imp...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 362: In this episode, Jamie and Jennifer Irvine break down everything learned at Heavy Duty Aftermarket Dialogue (HDAD), exploring major industry shifts such as Daimler’s move from “e‑commerce” to a broader “digital platform,” heavy investments in facilities and consolidation, and the persistent challenges around cross‑reference data, fitment data, and images.  They discus...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 361: In this immersive episode of The Heavy Duty Parts Report, Jamie Irvine takes listeners inside HDAW 2026 in Grapevine, Texas — the premier annual event that sets the tone for the heavy‑duty aftermarket industry.  Jamie tours the venue, speaks with the three associations that co‑own the show, and uncovers the scale of the event. Through conversations with show organizer...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 360: In this episode, Jamie and Jennifer Irvine kick off 2026 by breaking down the biggest challenges and opportunities facing heavy‑duty parts businesses. They discuss the rapid rise of AI, the ongoing struggle to recruit and retain skilled people, and the critical need for strong marketing systems that actually convert leads.  They share real-world stories, insights from...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 359: In this episode of The Heavy Duty Parts Report, Jamie Irvine speaks with Aaron Rivers, CEO of Emotiv Mobility, and Tim Kelly, the company’s lead engineer, about their development of a hybrid power transfer case designed to modernize commercial vehicle electrification.  Aaron explains how the idea emerged from recognizing the limitations of all‑electric commercial vehi...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 358: In this episode of The Heavy Duty Parts Report, Jamie Irvine speaks with Bryan Thueson of OptiCat and Moritz Mahler of TecAlliance about the long‑standing challenges in warranty processing across the heavy‑duty parts industry. They explain how manual, inconsistent, and inefficient warranty workflows create high process costs, poor transparency, customer frustration, a...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 357: In this episode of The Heavy Duty Parts Report, host Jamie Irvine speaks with John Whittet, Chief Customer Officer at Fullbay, about the growing trend of repair shops expanding into parts distribution.  They discuss how shops often begin by stocking basic items for their own repairs and then evolve into full parts and service providers, driven by customer demand for o...

Send us Fan Mail Episode 356: In this episode of The Heavy Duty Parts Report, host Jamie Irvine sits down with Chris Miller, President of The Hub Corp, to discuss the launch of their groundbreaking XTRACTOR™ hubcap. Unlike traditional hubcaps that simply seal the wheel end, the XTRACTOR™ introduces a built-in multi-stage magnetic and mesh oil filtration system designed to actively remove contamina...