For the fourth consecutive year, Great Dane topped all trailer manufacturers with the most trailer shipments. In 2006, an all-time company record was set with more than 60,000 trailers shipped from Great Dane's nine factories.
"We just completed the most successful year in the history of the company," said Phill Pines, chief operating officer. "Our strong production figures are a reflection of economic growth and increased demand over the last several years, which resulted in healthy sales increases at our branch and distributor level. As we look ahead, we are confident the industry will remain healthy as the freight environment stabilizes."
Great Dane also reports monthly shipment records were set throughout 2006. More than 5,000 trailers shipped in each of the months of March, April, June, August and September. More than 6,400 trailers delivered in the month of June alone.
Last year, Great Dane fulfilled nearly 33% of the market demand for refrigerated vans and more than 28% of the market demand for all dry freight vans. Of Great Dane's dry freight sales in 2006, more than 20,000 trailers were SSL models. This accounts for nearly 15% of the industry's total shipments in 2006.