Freight Efficiency with NACFE‘s Mike Roeth & Friends

Emily Long, events & partnerships manager at NACFE, talks about her career, her fame in a small mountain town for one week out of the year, and the importance of storytelling and trying to bring the right people together. She also talks about how by understanding and meeting people’s need you can make magic happen, her focus on issues that matter, and her love for unique convenings like NACFE’s data potluck and about her superpower.

Ep. 136: Matt Srnec, principal engineer at Thermo King, talks about why he got involved with TMC, what drives him to take on the work of electrifying refrigeration and about Thermo King’s early investment in electrifying refrigeration. He also talks about Themo King’s product portfolio including the company’s heating product and some of the challenges we’re going to see with refrigeration going forward. He also explains why he thinks we need to help fleets learn what they can to operate the equipment they already have more efficiently.

Ep. 135: Steve Mignardi, prior executive at Daimler Truck and NACFE board chairman, talks about his career including work as a truck technician, his time in Mexico and his love of trucks. He also talks about the importance of being resilient and shares his thoughts on what success will look like for NACFE and what people can do to help trucking be more efficient.

Dakota Semler, chief amazement officer at Xos Trucks, talks about his 10 years at the company, why the company pivoted to medium-duty trucks, and the company’s focus on markets that were going to grow and see tremendous conversion to zero emissions vehicles in the near term. He also talks about how he got into trucking, how he pivoted into electric vehicles and the beauty of the simplicity of BEVs. He shares information on the Xos-Windrose collaboration, and talks about the importance of constantly learning.

Tom Lincoln, national sales and service manager at Dana, talks about Dana’s claim to fame, Dana‘s place in the marketplace today and the company’s Fleet Council. He also talks about what he is learning from fleets, the downspeeding trend, how he looks at the future while dealing with the here and now, what’s going on with maintenance and uptime and how to handle the complexity of the market.

Derek Turbide, senior vice president of sales at Greenlane, talks about how he can bring what he learned from his time with natural gas to the battery electric side. He also shares how charging sites are selected, Greenlane’s Colton, California site, and the importance of making the charging experience better than the status quo. He also shares Greenlane’s near-term plans for charging hubs, the impact of federal, state and local policies and why now is the best time to be planning for the future.

Chris Hammond, executive vice president, industry affairs and strategic accounts at Great Dane, talks about the 126 year history of the company, the various roles he has held during his long tenure with the company and his new role. He also talks about where trailers are headed in the future, what the industry needs to know about trailers and shares advice he would give to his younger self and people who are new to trucking.

Chris Guerrero, vice president of marketing at ENGIE Resources, talks about his work with Starship, the three main positions in the energy space and green hushing. He also talks about his love of storytelling, why it is important to share good stories and what is keeping him confident during the energy transition.

Susan Fall, owner of LaunchIt PR, talks about her work during the pioneering days of telematics in trucking, the importance of messaging when introducing a product and she shares some of her success stories with clients. She also talks about why it’s wrong to cut marketing and PR when times are slow and she offers advice to both tech companies and fleets to help the industry stay strong.

Blair Hefty, senior media manager at Coyne PR, talks about his career in public relations, how things have changed in in that industry in the past 20 years and his love of the motor sports industry. He also talks about the importance of the personal touch in business, the need for in-person events, what he likes about the trucking industry, what frustrates him about it and how we should deal with change. He also shares his thoughts on what makes a good event, including the mixing business with some social and fun time.

Mark Willis, host of Road Dog Trucking News on Sirius XM, talks about his show and how he finds guests, his background in hard news, and the biggest stories of 2025. He also talks about his passion for safety, what drivers are saying about technology and the elements of a good story.

Zhe Wang, principal of RMI’s China program, talks about China’s focus on decarbonizing trucking, the fast growth of what he calls new energy trucks, and what is driving this growth. He also talks about the recent Rush to Zero program, which was modeled on NACFE’s Run on Less, and the program’s role in increasing the confidence in the viability of new energy trucks in the Chinese market.

Adam Klauber, chief sustainability officer at World Energy, talks about the rebirth of World Energy, the importance of education about fuel types and the need for voluntary choice when it comes to fuel solutions. He also talks about the benefits of drop-in fuel solutions, why renewable diesel is a good solution for trucking and about why a diverse approach to decarbonization makes sense.

Matt Schrap, chief commercial officer of Forum Mobility, talks about his career and his special area of expertise in regulatory policy He also talks about why trucking means so much to him, shares his thoughts on the drayage portion of trucking going electric and explains the goal of Forum Mobility. He also talks about HVIP vouchers in California, Tesla and how BEV technology will continue to evolve.

Don Baldwin, retired from Michelin, talks about the origins of NACFE, why he put his personal stamp on starting NACFE and the fuel agnostic Challenge Bibendum. He also talks about the importance of passion in your work, the value of bringing unbiased information to decision makers and the need to establish some guiding principles for your life. He comments on his role as a recruiter/interviewer for the Naval Academy and where he thinks the trucking industry is today.

Graham Richard, advisor to CEOs and founders leading innovation clean economy companies, talks about his affinity for the clean economy, his time in the Indiana State Senate, and his time as mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana. He also talks about work he has done on energy and its impact on the environment and about implementing an idle reduction solution for his city’s fleet of trucks. And finally, he shares the theme of his life and talks about one of the proudest moments of his life.

Mike McHorse, NACFE’s director of industry engagement, explains why he has diesel in his blood and his family’s long history in trucking. He also talks about his involvement with the launch of the Freightliner Cascadia, Team Run Smart and some of the initial work with autonomous technology. He explains what makes a good value story, what brought him to NACFE, and his love for emerging technologies.

Dan Gage, president of The Transport Project, talks about the process of rebranding an organization, explains what a sustainability solutionist is, and why he thinks now is the perfect opportunity for natural gas. He also explains the different types of feedstocks for RNG, the economics of the fuel and clears up some of the misconceptions.

Rachael Nealer, energy and transportation leader, former executive director of the U.S. Joint Office of Energy and Transportation, talks about why it is important to break down silos, new models for momentum, and the importance of making research actionable. She also talks about what she thinks can be applied from passenger cars to trucks, and why money is not the only thing needed to transition to a new technology. She also shares what she sees as some of the less common benefits and challenges of EVs and gives some advice on approaching the future.

Dan Priestley, Director, Semi at Tesla, talks about the early days of the Tesla Semi, why they are focusing on the on-highway segment of the market, the truck’s development and what were some of the lessons they learned in the early days. He also provides an update on where Tesla is today, why he loves working with fleets, why sometimes it can be challenging for fleets to make a big commitment on a new technology and why he thinks in the future fleets will appreciate the longevity and potential of EVs.

John Walters, vice president and general manager, heavy-duty, Americas for Valvoline, talks about his love for technology, how fate brought him to trucking, and why we all have a stake in making the trucking industry more efficient. He also talks about the work Valvoline is doing to prove to the heavy-duty market that it belongs. And he shares his thoughts on the Messy Middle, why he welcomes it and wants to be a part of it and explains how the trucking industry is like an elephant.

Leia Guccione, managing director of Carbon-Free Transportation at RMI, talks about her career in the Navy and the Naval Reserve and how the skills she learned there transferred to her job in the civilian world. She also talks about the value teams bring to problem solving, her passion for working on a problem from a variety of angles, what excites her about working in transportation, the transportation transformation that is taking place and how BEVs have the potential to make it easier to make the grid green.

Cliff Campbell, managing director and industry liaison officer for the Center For Freight and Logistics Efficiency With Electrified and Automated Trucking, explains what the organization does to bridge the valley of death in innovation and how the center leverages the research dollars of its members. He also talks about the three projects that are currently underway at the center which include an EV case study, development of a new type of motor and 3D printing of EV parts. He also shares his views on autonomous trucks including why he thinks there will always need to be a human in the cab.

Jason Morgan, content director at Fleet Equipment, talks about how the pandemic shaped Fleet Equipment’s direction and his move from magazine editor to digital content producer. He also talks about his desire to tell a great story, what keeps him in trucking and his impressions of ACT Expo. He also shares his thoughts on what it’s going to take to get us through the next several years.