SmartWay Finance Center Technology

Trailer aerodynamics can be improved minimizing the gap between the tractor and the trailer, to reduce air turbulence. Specifying wheelbase and fifth-wheel settings that position the trailer as close to the rear of the tractor as possible can reduce tractor-trailer gap. Reducing trailer gap from 45 to 25 inches could improve fuel economy as much as 2 percent. Another innovative trailer option is to use side skirts. These panels hang down from the bottom of a trailer to enclose the open space between the rear wheels of the tractor and the rear wheels of the trailer. Cargo “profile” is also important. On flatbed trailers, reduce drag by arranging cargo as low and smooth as possible, securing loose tarpaulins and closing the curtains on empty curtain-sided trailers.