Built to Deliver: How Wheeler’s Fleet Boosts Productivity with Miller

With a fleet of over 500 vehicles and 192 field service trucks operating across Utah, Nevada and Wyoming, Wheeler Machinery Co. is a heavy equipment powerhouse. Backed by more than 70 years in the business, their expertise extends far beyond renting and selling Caterpillar® and light construction equipment to mining, construction, and oil and gas industries. Wheeler’s true purpose lies in helping customers make every hardworking minute count with exceptional vehicle service and support. 

Wheeler’s technicians aren’t just dealing with tough repairs in the field — they’re constantly on the move in harsh conditions, logging over 8.5 million miles annually to keep customer equipment running. In these rugged environments, downtime isn’t just inconvenient; it’s costly. “Our job is to arrive, solve the issue and get our customers back up and running as fast as possible,” says Scott Cline, fleet manager at Wheeler. “We need to take the pressure off them and allow their companies to thrive.”

To meet these demands, Wheeler turned to Miller to unlock integrated solutions that enhance the performance of their service vehicles and empower the company to deliver on its mission to support the industries that build our world.

Reducing Service Truck Downtime

Operating across a vast geographic area, Wheeler can’t afford to lose its service trucks to downtime. “Downtime is any time that a truck is not being productive. Whether it’s at the gas station, getting tires or an oil change — we consider that downtime,” Cline explains. Downtime can also occur when a truck is in need of repair, and one cause of vehicle damage is excessive idling. For a company that relies on its fleet, eliminating idling as much as possible is an important focus to prevent:

• Premature wear on the engine
• More frequent maintenance
• Increased fuel consumption
• Increased emissions and emissions test failures

Enter EnPak® A60. To meet ambitious company goals of just 5% idle time, Wheeler worked with Miller to incorporate the all-in-one work truck power system into its fleet. The single, compact unit provides technicians with compressor, hydraulic pump, generator and welding capabilities, reducing engine idle time while improving fuel efficiency. “When we started using the EnPak, our focus was on saving fuel. And it did,” recalls Cline. “But over the years, we’ve found that the fuel savings is just the cherry on top.”

Cost savings in the form of efficiency and vehicle maintenance quickly followed. “The EnPak helps us be responsive to our customers. Our technicians are prepared with everything they need, right at their fingertips, and we know that with this premium product, we don’t have to worry about downtime or needing additional equipment,” Cline says.

In the event that a machine needs to be serviced, Wheeler mounts the EnPak on a dock system, enabling the team to swap it out within an hour versus a traditional power takeoff (PTO) that would typically result in three to four days of downtime. “That was a huge game changer for us,” Cline says.

For each EnPak-enabled truck, the Wheeler team was able to control idle time, resulting in:

• Downtime reduction from an average of 42 days to just 11–15 days annually
• Extended chassis life from 8–9 years to 12–14 years
• Fuel savings of $5,000 per truck annually over a PTO truck 

With more than a decade of adopting EnPak into its fleet, Wheeler is seeing both short- and long-term equipment savings — and it couldn’t come at a better time. “Everything is more expensive these days,” reflects Cline. “So, truck fleet managers need to think of strategies to keep their vehicles lasting longer.”

Built for the Job, and the People Who Do It

As a company that puts its people first, technician safety is another major benefit of EnPak. The all-in-one, compact system maximizes payload and enables work from the back bumper. “Our technicians are no longer climbing in and out of the bed. Keeping them on the ground is much safer,” says Cline.

Technicians like Stephen Hull echo the impact: “I don’t have to climb in and out of the truck to start anything. Everything’s right there in my bin. It’s quieter, easier and just works.” Wheeler’s team appreciates the easy-to-navigate alerts and intuitive menus that make it easy to stay on top of preventative maintenance.

EnPak has proven so valuable to Wheeler that they’ve standardized the units across truck classes — from half ton to Class 7 — streamlining training, boosting equipment reliability and improving technician comfort. “The operations are the same across the board,” says Cline. “It makes our techs more comfortable, reduces equipment abuse and helps them take care of the customer faster because they know they're going to have equipment that works every time they need it.”

Comfort in the Harshest Conditions

Wheeler’s service trucks aren’t the only thing experiencing harsh conditions. For the company’s 200 field service technicians, rugged outdoor worksites are exposed to the area’s extreme temperatures and high altitudes. To provide employees with the best possible work environment, Wheeler introduced the Miller® CabEn™ Climate Solutions to its fleet. 

Integrated directly into truck cabs, CabEn gives drivers the power to control the internal temperature without idling the truck engine, ensuring a cool oasis in the summer and a cozy break in the winter. “Being able to warm or cool the cab within minutes has completely changed how I work, and it eliminates unnecessary idle time,” says Hull. “It makes a big difference in productivity and comfort, keeping me focused and helping to get the job done more efficiently.”

Not only do technicians appreciate their improved working conditions, but the company is also seeing benefits to the bottom line. Before CabEn, techs left trucks running in extreme weather. With heating and cooling available without idling, the company hit 5% or lower idle rates on over 80% of its trucks. “We started saving fuel right off the bat,” Cline recalls — a true win/win for technicians and the business.

Portability Meets Power

Weather is just one extreme Wheeler’s technicians face on the road. With customers in the construction and mining fields, repairs frequently occur in remote or hard-to-reach locations. “You might be in the sand or on the side of a freeway — I’ve even ridden a snowmobile to service a ski lift,” recalls Hull.

The introduction of the ArcReach® SuitCase® 12 wire feeder enables technicians to weld in these unpredictable conditions, far from their trucks, controlling the feeder hundreds of feet away from the power source. The combination of portability and high-quality welds makes it a game changer for the Wheeler team.

“With the SuitCase feeder, I can move away from the truck without toting everything with me,” says Hull. “And as far as durability, I’m hard on equipment — and it stands up to being bumped and banged around.”

Delivering Uptime, Every Time

For Wheeler Machinery, investing in Miller products isn’t about just having the right equipment; it's also about working with a company that helps put their customers first.

“These solutions put our vehicles out in the field more consistently,” says Cline. “The reliability is a wonderful thing, and Miller has been a great partner in increasing our uptime.”

From reduced idle time and extended truck life to improved weld quality and technician safety, Wheeler’s fleet optimizations have transformed their technicians into a responsive, resilient service force — ready to support those who build the world.