For nearly 40 years, the National Association of Trailer Manufacturers (NATM), the only not-for-profit trade association in the light- and medium-duty trailer industry, has been dedicated to improving trailer safety and performance. NATM’s mission of promoting trailer safety and the success of the trailer manufacturing industry through education and advocacy has largely been done through its work with manufacturers, suppliers, and more recently, dealers. It is only natural then that NATM’s next step in promoting safe trailering would focus on consumers.
Part of the Plan
In the NATM 2023-2026 strategic plan, the NATM Board of Directors established that a key directive of the association’s ongoing work should be education, and more specifically that NATM will work with staff and members to generate educational content that is intended to assist end-users in safely towing their trailers. One aspect of this goal is to work with NATM’s Dealer Affiliate members, the industry’s more public-facing outlet, to establish a deeper connection and broader network to then be able to relay educational content to consumers.
Going Direct
The other way to achieve this goal is by educating end-users and consumers directly. NATM has already taken the first step by establishing Trailer Safety Week, the annual nationwide awareness campaign which is aimed at the following:
- Increasing awareness of the importance of being committed to trailer safety
- Educating end-users about proper trailer maintenance and usage
- Creating a stronger partnership and alliance between stakeholders of the industry including trailer dealers, manufacturers, and end-users
Trailer Safety Week has garnered tremendous support from those in the industry, as well as from legislators at the state level. This awareness campaign has started to establish NATM and its members’ reputation as the standard for safety in the industry, but an additional push is needed to hone that message with consumers.
Establishing a Voice to Reach Consumers – National Safe Trailering Council
To achieve this goal of educating consumers directly with a specific voice and entity geared toward end-users, NATM has begun the process of establishing a new 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, which will be known as the National Safe Trailering Council (NSTC). While still in the very early stages of development, NSTC will be positioned as the national hub for consumer education and awareness of safe trailering practices. And structuring this new entity as a 501(c)(3), will allow for its programming to be focused specifically on its mission, rather than focusing on generating profits for investors the way a for-profit company would.
NSTC Board of Directors
NATM has appointed the following leaders from within the light- and medium-duty trailers industry to provide oversight and serve as the NSTC’s Board of Directors in the organization’s initial years of operation:
- Daniel Luby, President
- Logan Mesenbrink, Secretary
- John Kerr, Treasurer
- Marco Garcia, Director
- Rick Huddleston, Director
