Wednesday, April 29, 2020

Work Truck Wednesday - Challenging Places To Go And Lots Of Tools To Be Taken






Off-road or on-road, this Chevrolet Medium-Duty 5500 4x4 with a heavy-duty Knapheide 11' Service Body accepts challenging terrain with ease and carries all you need in tools and equipment to get the job done wherever the job may be. With 19,500 lbs. GVWR, this chassis is designed to carry the load effectively. With the comfort of the Silverado cab, this truck makes getting there an enjoyable experience. 

See more about this truck here.

See all our Service Body and other inventory at ParadiseFleet.com

Tuesday, April 28, 2020

Does The New 2020 Nissan Titan Crush The Chevy Silverado Trail Boss Off-Road? One Way To Find Out!


V8 Truck Off-Road Battle:
2020 Chevy Silverado 1500 Trail Boss vs 2020 Nissan Titan Pro-4X.
Selectable locker versus big ground clearance.

Sunday, April 26, 2020

GM Expands Medical Projects and Charitable Deliveries to Hospitals




Suppliers and Henry Ford Health System help scale up employee-led efforts

2020-04-19

DETROIT — With ventilators and face masks now in production, GM is expanding its manufacturing of personal protective equipment, including latex-free face shields, protective gowns and aerosol boxes. All of these supplies are being donated.
These projects have been led by employee volunteers looking to apply their automotive-production skills – from 3D printing to sewing upholstery – to help those on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic.  
Initially, these projects were grassroots efforts, with employees delivering handmade samples to hospitals for feedback and tweaking prototypes based on feedback, which fed into the final designs.
Today, with the help of suppliers, GM will apply its scale and manufacturing capabilities to amplify these efforts, mass-producing up to 50,000 face masks per week, and ramping up production of protective gowns and aerosol boxes.
“It’s amazing how much our employees have accomplished in such a short time,” said Mark Reuss, GM president. “People from all corners of the company have really stepped up to help, and to lend their talents, time, and energy to battle coronavirus.”
GM is coordinating with the State of Michigan’s personal protective prioritization team to identify which hospitals in the state need face shields most urgently. GM employees are delivering protective gowns to hospitals in the Henry Ford Health System and aerosol boxes to other area healthcare facilities.   
Face shields
GM’s Additive Manufacturing and Design Fabrication Operations teams first discussed making protective face shields on Monday, March 23. By 4 p.m. on Friday, March 27, the teams had reached consensus on a design and started manufacturing their first shields that evening.
Components of the first face shields were 3D printed at five different GM locations – three onsite at the Global Technical Center in Warren, one at the Milford Proving Ground in Milford, and one at the North Hollywood Advanced Design Center in North Hollywood, California.
Depending on the location and 3D printing technology used, the shield visors were printed from three different types of material, including:
  • Acrylonitrile Styrene Acrylate for FDM printers
  • DuraForm PA Polyamide Nylon Plastic for SLS printers
  • Accura Xtreme Gray for SLA printers
The shields were cut from clear .7-millimeter polyester sheets on an Eastman Machine Company M9000 static table cutting system that is normally used to cut trim pieces for concept vehicles.
“3D printing allowed us to react quickly to the need for face shields and get initial units to people on the front line almost immediately,” said Steve Hart, GM director of design fabrication operations. “3D printing did exactly what it’s intended to do – it let us get a proof of concept and initial production off the ground and make incremental improvements based on recipient feedback prior to mass production.”
For full production, GM is collaborating with suppliers, including Summit Polymers of Kalamazoo. Summit Polymers donated a P20 steel injection mold that will enable GM to increase production from roughly 4,000 to 25,000 units per week. GM is purchasing a second injection mold to help increase production up to 50,000 units per week.
Summit Polymers plans to donate the first 100,000 face shield components it makes to GM.
“We worked with a local shop, S&K Tool & Die, to rapidly design and develop the mold to make the visors that hold the shields in place,” said Jody Flinton, general manager of Summit Polymers Plant 18. “Summit is proud to support GM in the effort to help save lives in our community and help keep our healthcare heroes safe.”
The actual shields are made from polyethylene terephthalate (PET) by Argent International of Plymouth, Michigan. Argent International is also making the 12-inch elastic bands that hold the shields in place. The company will donate the first 2,500 shields to GM.
Shield components will be shipped from Summit Polymers and Argent International for final assembly to the GM facility in Warren that is also making face masks and filtering facepiece respirators. Once assembled, the face shields will be shipped to high-priority hospitals in Metro Detroit in cases of 100, as directed by the State of Michigan’s Personal Protective Equipment List.
Protective gowns
Under ordinary circumstances, GM’s fabrication organization – which includes metal, paint, trim, wood, mold, and plaster teams – creates one-of-a-kind parts and vehicles, like show cars. Today, the skilled tradespeople from UAW Locals 1869 and 160 who make up these teams are assembling protective gowns and aerosol boxes at the Warren facility.
“Our team members are experts at solving problems on the fly and creating things from scratch,” said Hart. “The dedication, abilities, and spirit of collaboration from our skilled tradespeople has been humbling. They are working longer hours than ever on a voluntary basis to fulfill urgent requests from doctors, nurses, and other professionals on the front lines.”
Skilled tradespeople from the color and trim departments sewed sample protective gowns that were distributed to local hospitals for evaluation. The first prototypes were made from old car covers to perfect the pattern.
The final gowns approved for use have been sewn from Tyvek supplied by Henry Ford Health System, are lightweight (approximately two ounces), breathable and protective. The completed gowns are being delivered directly to HFHS by GM employees.
Aerosol boxes
Local hospitals are also in critical need of aerosol boxes, see-through containers that protect medical personnel while they are intubating patients. GM’s design fabrication team came up with an initial concept, demoed it with local intensive care personnel, and used their feedback to come up with a design that is now being distributed to local hospitals.
GM’s aerosol boxes measure 20 inches high, 20 inches wide, and 16 inches deep, with armholes on the side to help protect doctors while treating patients. These boxes are hand-formed on a heat bar from polyethylene terephthalate glycol-modified sheets in quantities of 40-46 per day.
For more information on General Motors’ efforts to combat the COVID-19 outbreak, please visit https://www.gm.com/coronavirus.html.
Donation requests for GM-made Personal Protective Equipment can be directed to: GMCOVID19ResponseTeam@gm.com.


General Motors (NYSE: GM) is a global company committed to delivering safer, better, and more sustainable ways for people to get around. General Motors, its subsidiaries, and its joint venture entities sell vehicles under the Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, CadillacHolden, Baojun and Wuling brands. More information on the company and its subsidiaries, including OnStar, a global leader in vehicle safety and security services, and Maven, its personal mobility brand, can be found at http://www.gm.com.

Friday, April 24, 2020

2020 Message from Ed Peper | GM Fleet


Hear from Vice President of GM Fleet Ed Peper about GM’s efforts to fight against COVID-19 and ways GM Fleet is supporting our customers.

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Getting Back To Work Truck Wednesday: It's Landscaping Season!






No matter what, work goes on, work needs to be done, things need to be cared for. Here is a Landscape Dump Body or you could use it as a Debris Dump Body, and the great news about this rig is that it is a crew cab and can take people to the job and not lose any bed length in the process. Typically with a crew cab, the body must be shortened to a 10' unit, but on this truck, you get the full-size crew cab AND the full-size 12' truck body. Want more? This rig carries the weight because the body is mounted on a medium-duty Silverado 5500 with 19,500 lbs. GVWR. 

See much more about this unit here.

See our full selection of Landscaper Bodies here.

See all of our work truck inventory at ParadiseFleet.com

Tuesday, April 21, 2020

Sunday, April 19, 2020

DECKED 101 | The Nuts and Bolts of DECKED


Everything you wanted to know about DECKED: Features and benefits, construction, HOW TO ORDER, warranty and what your mom is going to think about your new purchase. As always, FREE shipping right to your door: https://decked.com/.

DECKED also makes this product for Service Bodies. See more here.

Friday, April 17, 2020

General Motors | Ventec Life Systems


We’re proud to combine our scale and spirit of innovation with Ventec Life Systems to supply healthcare providers with the lifesaving ventilators they need.

Wednesday, April 15, 2020

Work Truck Wednesday: 3500HD 4x4 Crew Cab Pickup!




Sometimes the perfect work truck is a pickup and when you need to take the crew and tow various things and carry heavy loads on and off the beaten path, this is your rig: The Chevrolet 3500HD Crew Cab 4x4 Pickup with the famous Duramax Diesel and Allison Transmission. Call this getting all the jobs done in comfort and with ease.

See more about this rig here.

See all our ready-to-go-to-work-right-now inventory at ParadiseFleet.com

Tuesday, April 14, 2020

The Difference Between Using Weight Distribution and Air Bags to Level Your Load


Fastway engineers Jason Harper and Matt Barnes investigate the difference between using either a rear axle airbag system or a weight-distribution hitch to level your load and take the sag out of the rear of the tow vehicle. Which is better, airbags or weight distribution? Watch and see!

Sunday, April 12, 2020

Chevy Cares: What We Do | Chevrolet


For more than 100 years, Chevrolet has been inspired by extraordinary acts of courage and selflessness in the face of enormous challenges. There are quiet heroes among us, and we celebrate them because it's not their nature to celebrate themselves. She is one of us. He is one of us. You are one of us.

Friday, April 10, 2020

Duramax 3.0 Maintenance and Serviceability (LM2)


A look at the typical maintenance you might undertake as the owner of a Silverado or Sierra 1500 pickup with the all-new Duramax 3.0 engine. We'll look under the hood and under the belly to see what it's like to work on this thing changing the battery, fluids, filters, and more.

Wednesday, April 8, 2020

Work Truck Wednesday? It's Work Truck Every Day!


Thank goodness for work trucks. Can you imagine going back to the work truck shown here? Hook up the horses or mules and get along little doggie. We would have to state that work trucks have come a long way. Heck, this backboard was the pickup of yesteryear and may have had one horsepower or two, or could even possibly had four, and now we laugh at such low power.

Just think about the comfort of today's work trucks and the amenities that are standard. Heck, there is no comparison except that they all have wheels.

How about this work truck?


See more about this truck here.

Or, maybe this work truck more suits your work:


See more about this great work truck here.

We have hundreds of work trucks in stock ready to go to work right now. Whether you need a pickup, cargo van, plumber body, service body, landscape dump, flatbed or stakebed, or any other work truck, we are at your service. See all our current work truck inventory at ParadiseFleet.com



Tuesday, April 7, 2020

Chevy Cares: Doing Our Part | Chevrolet


We know that these are uncertain and challenging times, and your vehicle should be the least of your worries. That’s why Chevrolet and our dealers, OnStar and GM Financial are here and committed to helping you – from answering your vehicle questions related to service and everything in-between. Dealership and service availability and hours of operations are subject to change, and all federal and local laws and restrictions. Learn More: http://www.chevycares.com

Sunday, April 5, 2020

Wednesday, April 1, 2020

Work Truck Wednesday Is Not An April Fool. It Is A Work Horse!








The Plumber-Style Truck Body has become very popular. It is essentially a service or utility body with a roof and many are high enough to stand up in. They are popular because outside there are the typical service body lockable compartments, but the inside is where this body shines. The inside has plenty of space for water heaters, HVAC equipment, pipe lengths, and all manner of out of the weather storage (and generally out of sight as well). Big doors in the back allow plenty of access along with small doors to access pipe without opening the larger doors. Interior LED lights help make things clear even at night.

These come in a wide variety of lengths and heights and this one is for those who really carry the weight and like to stand up straight. The chassis this 11' Knapheide KUV/CC is on is the new medium-duty Chevrolet 5500 with 19,500 lbs. of total truck capacity. You can load this truck with the tools and materials you need and it will handle the load with ease.

See more about this truck and body combination here.

See a wide selection of plumber-style bodies here.

See all of our ready-to-go-to-work-right-now inventory at ParadiseFleet.com