For the past several meetings, Technology & Maintenance Council (TMC) Task Forces have been evaluating various proposals for the next generation tractor-trailer electrical connector, which will be critical for the development of future combination vehicle designs. As fleets await test result data, now is the time to discuss the benefits of the potential new connector designs as well as some of the challenges that equipment userss will face if one connector is not adopted. It is also a time to ensure manufacturers are made aware of how fleets would like to see the future shaped around this new connector.

This session, organized by TMC’s S.1 Electrical Study Group, will pick up where the Council’s last technical session on this important subject — held at our 2025 Fall Meeting — left off. During this session, our panel will present data on what testing has to this point been completed on the various future connector designs. Panelists will help attendees understand how this substantial change in asset interconnectivity will affect their acquisition, maintenance costs, safety management, and legal challenges by model year 2030 and beyond, which is when whatever solution is adopted — perhaps even a “no standard” solution — is anticipated to emerge.

If your fleet relies on combination vehicles in its operation, this is a must-attend session. This is especially true for fleets that pull trailers of other fleets or operate under another fleet’s credentials. Your input is critical to shaping what the future will hold for tomorrow’s articulated vehicles. Help shape your operation’s future before it’s too late. As the old saying goes, “if you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu.”