And now for the rest of the story

Nov. 1, 2014
Trailer/Body Builders November 2014 editorial

THE late Paul Harvey entertained millions of radio listeners over the course of five decades with his “The Rest of the Story” stories.

It was great radio.  But for those of us who push radio station buttons frequently while driving, it was not unusual to tune in after the first part of the story had already been told.  The only thing left to hear was “the rest of the story.” 

One of the limitations of radio as a communication medium is that we sometimes tune in in the middle of something or we arrive at our destination and have to turn the radio off before our program is over.

Imagine how much we would lose out on if we only heard one portion of Harvey’s daily musings and we missed “the rest of the story.” 

There are many methods for delivering information these days.  You can read Trailer/Body Builders from cover to cover, but even when you do, you will not have read all that we have written for you this month.  Likewise, you can visit our website daily and miss out on things that only appear in print.

We have multiple means to deliver information to you, and we strive to select the appropriate medium to do that.   We continue to put as much as we can on the printed page.  You have told us you still like reading the printed word, and you can keep on reading Trailer/Body Builders even during a power failure or when a flight attendant orders everyone to put the power switch of all electronic devices in the “off” position.

One of the big advantages of electronic media is immediacy.  If you need to know a story fast, or if the information has a limited shelf life, we may only be able to get it on our website or our weekly e-mail newsletter.  The speed of electricity doesn’t match that of the speed of light, but it moves a lot faster than your mailman.

Very shortly we will be taking advantage of the capabilities of the internet to put you in closer contact with a wide range of industry leaders. We are in the process now of assembling a team of experts who will be sharing their thoughts and ideas with you. 

When the core team is formed, we will have experts representing all segments of the commercial truck and trailer industry—truck body and equipment manufacturers, upfitters, trailer dealers, manufacturers, along with consultants who have a proven track record of providing their vision of what’s happening—and what will happen—in their segment of the industry.

It promises to be a diverse group of individuals with their own perspectives.  Some will share thoughts that are timeless—tried and true suggestions on how to do a particular job more effectively.  Other topics will include advanced notice on key issues that affect you, such as upcoming trends, rules, or regulations that are being considered—giving you the opportunity to weigh in before the proposal is cast in stone.    

The program is called IdeaXchange.  Look for it soon on the Trailer/Body Builders website—www.trailer-bodybuilders.com. The “under-the-hood” stuff required for the website to work has been completed.  We are in the final stages now of gathering photos, biographical information, and preliminary ideas that these experts will share with you.  When those pieces are gathered, we will immediately have IdeaXchange up and running. 

In the constantly changing world of commercial truck bodies and equipment, there will always be new stories to know.  Some are quick bits of information.  Others are the detailed features that work best when presented in print.  Either way, we promise to do our best to provide the best information we can using the best method available.  We invite you to learn the rest of the story. ♦

About the Author

Bruce Sauer | Editor

Bruce Sauer has been writing about the truck trailer, truck body and truck equipment industries since joining Trailer/Body Builders as an associate editor in 1974. During his career at Trailer/Body Builders, he has served as the magazine's managing editor and executive editor before being named editor of the magazine in 1999. He holds a Bachelor of Journalism degree from the University of Texas at Austin.