TRUCKING TO AUCTION

Over 50 semi-trucks and 70 trailers and tankers should be sold at the auction, which attracts buyers from all over the country.

MAP -- AUCTION SITE MAP

Peterbilt, Western Star, Freightliner, White, Dorsey, Great Dane, American, Fruehauf, Spicer.

These names may not be familiar to most American businessmen, but they're well known to a crowd who will gather at the former site of Potashnick Construction on Highway 74, a mile west of Interstate 55 at Cape Girardeau this week.

The event is the Taylor & Martin Truck Auction, where more than 50 semi trucks and more than 70 trailers and tankers will be available for purchase Thursday.

Buyers from more than 30 states, Mexico and Canada are expected for the 10 a.m. auction of tractor trucks, trailers and hundreds of miscellaneous items, including fuel tanks, motor oil, and other truck and trailer equipment.

"We conduct truck and trailer sales every week," said Haines Hill, of Taylor & Martin Truck Auctioneers, headquartered in Fremont, Neb.

The company has conducted a number of auctions in the Cape Girardeau area.

"We usually hold three or four auctions a year here," said Hill. "The volume has been good and we hope to keep returning."

Hill added that the company is looking at some industrial land for a possible permanent facility here.

Because of its draw, the auction provides a big economic boost to the community's motels, restaurants, service stations and other retail outlets when it comes to town.

Besides the 250 to 400 buyers who attend the sales, Taylor & Martin Inc. brings in a staff of about 15 people.

"Four or five of the company's staff are here for a week or more," said Jim Curtsinger, who is in Cape Girardeau from the home office.

The auction can also be a boost to area tractor-truck dealers. "Buyers usually look around before the auction," said Curtsinger. "If they can't find what they want at the auction here, they may find something at a local dealer."

Unlike many car auctions, buyers don't have to be a dealer at the Taylor & Martin truck auction. "Anyone interested in a truck can purchase equipment here," said Curtsinger.

Truck cabs and trailers start arriving late last week. The bulk of the them arrived over the weekend and are ready for inspection by potential buyers today.

Interested buyers can begin inspecting the equipment, during daylight hours, today. Buyers are expected to remove their purchases by Oct. 25.

Equipment for the sale belongs to fleets, owner-operators and leasing companies who either are reducing the size of their fleets or are selling equipment as part of a routine replacement program.

Maintenance histories of many of the vehicles are provided by the owners.

"We usually register from 250 to 400 buyers for our auctions," said Hill. "All the equipment sells to the highest bidder. There are no bid-ins or reserves. Everything sells "as is" and "where is."

One of the items on the current sale bill is a 1993 Peterbilt 379 tractor, with walk-in sleeper and many comforts such as air conditioning, a cellular phone, radio and tape deck.

Also on the list are a 1989 Peterbilt 377 with walk-in sleeper; a 1990 International with walk-in sleeper; 1987 Freightliner cabover and a 1989 White. All of these big rigs have air conditioning.

Other makes and models include a 1983 International, roll-back-bed truck; a pair of 1987 International non-sleeper semi cabs; two 1979 Ford non-sleeper trucks.

A number of 1990 Great Dane trailers are listed. Also available will be 20 matched units of 45-foot-long trailers, 1980 Fruehauf aluminum van trailers, seven matched units of 1978 Fruehauf aluminum trailers and four matched 1990 Great Dane drop-deck trailers.

Among the miscellaneous items are drums of motor oil, 40- to 130-gallon fuel tanks, drums of grease and gear oil, assorted trailer parts, wheel drums, hydraulic jacks, brake kits and an assortment of office supplies.

Trucking is a major industry, and the nation spends about $110 billion a year to transport goods by the more than 40 million trucks, ranging in size from the tractor-semitrailer, commonly called an "18-wheeler" to the largest "triple trailer" trucks that operate in some Western states.

The triple trailer truck, by the way, is just that. It consists of three trailers pulled by a tractor.

Recent statistics show trucks haul 75 percent of the nation's industrial products and carry most of the goods moved short distances.

The trucking industry employs more than 7 million people. Only about a third of the employees are truck drivers. Other workers include dispatchers, freight handlers, shipping clerks and other office workers.