Owners of start-up Holland company aim to revolutionize the North American truck industry

Two Holland entrepreneurs are aiming to revolutionize the North American truck industry by introducing drivers to an innovative Austrian-designed truck trailer with side panels that lift up with a push of a button.

Bob Hakken, 52, and Duke De Leeuw, 47, signed a deal this month with Wingliner International to become the sole distributors of Wingliner System kits for sale in Canada, Mexico and the United States.  The start-up venture, Wingliner North America Inc., would produce and sell the kits used to transform new truck chassis into a Wingliner truck, bringing jobs to West Michigan and helping truck owners greatly reduce transportation operating costs.

The partners hope to begin contracting out the manufacture of component parts and the assembly work to local Holland-Zeeland companies in early 2010. Visits to Plascore, Inc. in Zeeland, Genzink Steel of Holland and BuhlerPrince Inc. of Holland  have taken place but no deals have been signed, Hakken says. He estimates the work could result in creating five to 10 new local jobs next year.

"We just really believe in this product and see a bright future," says Hakken.  "This could really snowball into something really big because it's cost effective. We're very excited."

Unlike traditional truck trailers seen on North American roads, the side walls of a Wingliner can be moved into any position. They can be brought to rest flat on the truck roof in 10 seconds using an hydraulic circuit started by a push of a button. Loaded goods can more readily be accessed in the shortest possible time from the trailer's sides and back.  The company says there can be an enormous reduction of time and operating costs with every loading and unloading process compared with conventional trucks.

Wingliner North America plans to produce a variety of Wingliner kits containing the components needed to transform the chassis of any type of new commercial vehicle -- truck, trailer, semi-truck, swap trailer, container or dump truck -- into a Wingliner.

Only a handful of Wingliner trucks exist in America.  One has been used since 2004 by another Holland company owned by Hakken and De Leeux:  Wagner Wood Products.   The demo Wingliner vehicle was discovered while the pair was searching for a better delivery system for their newly purchased distributorship of small hardwood and plywood goods at 80 W. Lakewood Blvd. Hakken says company drivers immediately recognized a "tremendous impact" on time-saving efficiencies while making loading and unloading products. "It's all about efficiencies," he says.

"In the trucking industry, pent-up demand is growing," Hakken says. "So many fleet owners have been sitting on the sidelines due the economy.  But as that turns, they'll be faced with replacing equipment on the road.  They'll be looking for ways to become more efficient."

Wingliner International was started in 1996 in Salzburg, Austria after Johann Strasser Sr. invented the Wingliner System. Since then, thousands of Wingliner kits have been sold all over the world, including China, Europe, Japan, South America and Australia.

Source: Bob Hakken, Wingliner North America, Holland; Wingliner International website

Sharon Hanks is the innovation and jobs news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].