Did all engine manufacturers stop producing when the emissions standards changed?

@leslie110 :No, but Caterpillar deemed it not worth the investment in part because was less dependent on the engine business in 2008 (when the announcement was made) than in prior periods. Also, the Tier 3 engines were disasters, so there was no incentive (nor time) to try again. The company did develop Tier 4 compliant engines for its own off-highway machinery, however. Other engine manufacturers (Cummins, Detroit Diesel, Navistar, Paccar, Volvo, etc.) were dependent on truck engine sales and had to develop a Tier 4-compliant engine to remain in business.

@bn13814 :

@bn13814 :Correct, it was not profitable because they couldn't figure out how to build an on-highway that would meet T4F at the time. Not to mention the enormous Acert warranty obligations. It was near the beginning of this journey to the bottom they are on now.@bgbird
There are some good comments on the WSJ article, a few are spot. on.What's happening is basically a culmination of promotion of mediocre middle managers, allowing and encouraging risk-taking by these same dim bulbs and a culture of very little accountability. At the same time though, these poor managers have to attempt to run a successful program whilst under near-constant pressure to cut budgets and eliminate staff relative to the most recent quarterly report.

@skutfarcus :Not if you cannot sell it because your competitor is willing to sell an engine for $1000 less profit.

@Mahkno
But they were selling engines. A lot of engines.

@skutfarcus :Not enough tho. There were changes occurring in the on-highway truck industry that made exiting that market the right decision.

@skutfarcus :Not sure where you got that number, but its not correct.
They took a loss on the production of the engine and then made up the difference in parts sales.

@joepyeweed
I got that number at an All-Employee meeting. Shame on me for listening to those lying bastards.

Well that $2,000 number may have been the profit from the parts sales per engine?

@joepyeweed
I'm not gonna argue about it. I've always said; If you really want to know about Cat, don't ask anybody that's ever worked there.

@skutfarcus :LOL. I've worked there. And My husband worked there for 33 years. He is the one says Cat didn't make any money on the engines themselves. The profit was from the parts sales. The truck engine division was gone before I worked there.

@joepyeweed
My info came from a Cat meeting. Your info came from your hubby. Like I said, I'm not gonna argue. FWIW I worked there for 36 years.

I think that it is interesting that someone from the Blackstone Group, who is also on the board, is going to become Chairman of the Board.

Dave Calhoun
Sr. Managing DirectorPrivate Equity — New YorkDavid L. Calhoun is a Senior Managing Director and Head of Private Equity Portfolio Operations of Blackstone and a Member of Blackstone’s Management Committee.Mr. Calhoun joined Blackstone in January of 2014 and oversees a team within the portfolio operations group focused on creating and driving added value initiatives with Blackstone portfolio company CEOs.Since the beginning of 2014, Mr. Calhoun serves as Executive Chairman of the Board for Nielsen, a company he joined in 2006 as Chief Executive Officer, shortly after it was acquired by a consortium of private equity investors including Blackstone. Throughout his seven years’ tenure, Mr. Calhoun led Nielsen’s transformation into a leading global information and measurement company listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NLSN) and Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.Before Nielsen, Mr. Calhoun served as Vice Chairman of The General Electric Company and President and Chief Executive Officer of GE Infrastructure, the company’s largest business unit. During his distinguished twenty-six year tenure at GE, Mr. Calhoun ran multiple business units, including GE Lighting, GE Employers Reinsurance Co., GE Aircraft Engines, and GE Transportation (Aircraft and Rail). Earlier in his career at GE, he held a wide range of operating, finance, and marketing roles across the company, including within GE Plastics and GE Capital.In addition to Nielsen, Mr. Calhoun also serves on the Board of Directors of The Boeing Company and Caterpillar. He is the co-author with Rick Kash of the book “How Companies Win.” Mr. Calhoun is a 1979 graduate of Virginia Tech, and is a member of Virginia Tech’s Pamplin Advisory Council, which advises the university on student and alumni issues.

When Oberhelmans retirement was announced, some people thought it was a sign of more dismal earnings reports that were going to be announced. Some people also thought that it as absolutely impossible that there could be more job cuts without cost savings at the very top and that the board certainly knew it. This morning earnings were announced for the third quarter and they were not good. Furthermore, guidance was given for expectations going forward for the rest of 2016 and the first half of 2017 and it was not good. So maybe, there certainly was something about the timing of Oberhelmans retirement announcement.