T h e B u s in e s s Of D a ir y already achieve, while meeting rigorous autonomous driving safety and food transportation compliance standards.” As the pandemic winds down, progress on autonomous vehicles is certainly winding up. How exactly that will work still remains unclear. Many companies are working on similar systems where a lead truck controls the acceleration and brakes of a fleet of trucks that follows, so that they all accelerate or decelerate together. Some systems require a driver to be in place in a lead vehicle, while others let software take the wheel. This concept of “platooning” is thought to reduce air resistance and decrease fuel costs. Many systems are designed for trucks to drive autonomously on highways, while leaving the more intricate beginning and end of the trips under human control. Other companies are experimenting with removing truck cabs and using “drivers” who monitor, control and supervise a number of trucks away from the vehicle. Most people embrace advances in technology, but there is a stop gap between what is deemed an inconvenient technological glitch (e.g., your Wi-Fi is down) and what might pose a life and death safety concern (e.g., an 80,000-pound autonomous tractor trailer in the next lane). Drivers of all kinds don’t yet trust that this kind of technology can make necessary decisions on its own, and some companies interested in using these kinds of vehicles are still working through liability concerns. Until there is a greater level of confidence in autonomous vehicles, it is unlikely that they will be used to their full potential. Many in the autonomous trucking sector, however, believe that implementing more dependable and functionally safe algorithms and electronics will eventually win over the skeptics and result in a safer, more efficient and more cost-effective driving experience for everyone.
2021 C ALENDAR OF
DA I RY EV E NTS SEPTEMBER SEPT. 3: National Food Bank Day SEPT. 5: National Cheese Pizza Day SEPT. 6: National Coffee Ice Cream Day SEPT. 12: National Chocolate Milkshake Day SEPT. 15: National Cheese Toast Day SEPT. 16: Queso Day SEPT. 18: National Cheeseburger Day SEPT. 20: National String Cheese Day SEPT. 22: National Ice Cream Cone Day SEPT. 27: National Chocolate Milk Day SEPT. 29: World School Milk Day
OCTOBER OCT. 7: National Frappe Day OCT. 9: Moldy Cheese Day OCT. 15: National Cheese Curd Day
NOVEMBER NOV. 9: National Greek Yogurt Day NOV. 11: National Sundae Day
DECEMBER DEC. 13: Ice Cream Day DEC. 13: National Hot Cocoa Day DEC. 24: National Eggnog Day NED Magazine | Third Quarter 2021 • 33
