Summer is here, and the heat is on across the country. With triple-digit temps and the rising heat index, it’s a challenge to keep you and your crew cool on the jobsite. It’s also hard on your service truck!

Tires, Brakes, and Batteries

Hot weather puts added stress on your truck, especially the tires, brakes, and battery.

If tire pressure is too low, the tire can sag because of how the sidewalls are flexing. This can weaken the rubber’s bond with the tire’s layers and lead to a blowout. Check your tires at least weekly using a quality digital gauge and inflate to the manufacturer’s recommended cold PSI, not what’s printed on the tire sidewall.

Brakes also struggle under high temps as friction between the pads and rotors decreases. To keep [...]

When you get to a jobsite and realize you could use some extra muscle, you’ll be grateful you’ve got a Tiger 2060 Crane on board.

Built as sturdy as its larger lifting brothers, the 2060 Tiger Crane can lift up to 2,000 pounds within a 3- to 5-foot zone, with a boom angle of 0°, 21°, or 45°. The onboard 12-volt D/C winch, operated with a corded remote, is perfectly sized to winch at full capacity. Equipped with a heavy-duty slew bearing and hand brake, the 360 degrees of rotation are smooth—making it easy to position and control movement.

“With the smallest overall footprint in the Tiger Crane lineup, don’t underestimate its capability. You’ll never go back to a liftgate after owning a Tiger 2060,” said Tim Henrich, STI’s National Sales Manager.

Ask our Sales Team [...]

We are in the busiest stretch of the year for many service truck owners and downtime isn’t an option. Your hydraulic system is the muscle behind every job. That’s why routine fluid changes and component inspections aren’t just good practices, they’re essential to getting peak performance out of your truck.

Why Regular Fluid Changes Matter

Hydraulic fluid isn’t just a lubricant; it’s the lifeblood of your truck’s hydraulic system. Over time, this fluid degrades. Heat, moisture, and contamination from wear particles slowly break it down, reducing its ability to protect internal components.

Here’s what happens when fluid is ignored:

• Sluggish performance: Viscosity loss leads to poor pressure control.
• Increased wear: Contaminants act like sandpaper on valves and seals.
• Overheating: Degraded fluid can’t dissipate heat, stressing the entire system.

Changing hydraulic [...]

When it comes to building a custom service truck, one size definitely does not fit all. Whether you’re maintaining heavy equipment in a wide-open jobsite or troubleshooting in tight, urban areas, your service truck needs to match your work style, load requirements, and day-to-day environment. Before you start picking out body styles and crane types, consider these essential questions to ensure your build is truly work-ready.

How Close Can You Get to the Work?
Your work environment will directly influence the layout and size of your truck. If you typically have easy access and can park close to the equipment you’re servicing, a standard-length body may suffice. But if you’re often stuck working from a distance — say, across a trench or behind fencing — you may need a longer crane reach or even a truck with enhanced [...]

STI, manufacturers of custom service truck bodies and telescoping cranes, has added reconditioning services to their lineup of offerings. Reconditioning includes a wide variety of options, including remounting a truck body on a new chassis, collision repair, repainting, replacing old or damaged components, and adding options such as a new compressor, welder, lube skid, or cabinet configuration.

“Service trucks are made to work hard and they sometimes take a beating on job sites. It’s just the nature of the business. Then there are cases when a used service truck is purchased and the new owner wants to fix it up and make it their own. We can do all of that, plus more,” said Walt Van Laren, president of Service Trucks International. Van Laren said reconditioning services will only be available for [...]

This May marks a major milestone at Service Trucks International—35 years of manufacturing and selling Tiger Cranes. What began as a bold move to secure a reliable crane supply has evolved into a legacy of strength, innovation, and craftsmanship. From humble beginnings to hitting a monumental 10,000-unit milestone this April, Tiger Cranes has become a recognized leader in the service crane industry—and we’re just getting started.

Tiger Cranes was born in 1989 when Service Trucks International, Ltd. (STI) purchased the assets of Pacific Crane of Oregon. The goal? Ensure a steady crane supply for our custom-built service bodies. Early on, cranes mounted on STI truck bodies carried the STI brand, while “loose” cranes sold to other truck body builders were branded as Tiger Cranes. That first year, four models launched—2k, 3.5k, 6k, and [...]

April brings two important reminders to everyone on the road—especially service truck operators: it’s National Work Zone Awareness Week (April 21–25) and Distracted Driving Awareness Month. That means it’s the perfect time to hit the brakes and think about safety.

If you’re operating a service truck, you already know that navigating through work zones requires your full attention. Add in the fact that many service truck drivers operate their businesses from the cab—answering calls, checking schedules, or looking at maps or computer screens—and it’s easy to see how distractions can sneak in.

Distracted Driving: It’s More Than Just Texting
When we talk about distracted driving, it’s not just texting or scrolling. It’s anything that takes your eyes, hands, or mind away from driving. That includes:

• Looking at a GPS or [...]

STI has completed a significant upgrade in its paint department with the installation of a new Accudraft bake oven, part of an ongoing commitment to increasing efficiency and streamlining production.

Installed in line with the existing paint booth, the fully insulated bake oven measures 40 feet long, 14 feet wide, and 14 feet high. It reaches 180 degrees Fahrenheit in under 10 minutes and cures freshly painted service truck bodies and parts in just 45 minutes. The system recirculates 90% of the heat it generates, helping to minimize natural gas usage and reduce emissions.

The STI paint team can now move freshly painted bodies and parts racks from the paint booth right to the oven, immediately freeing up the paint booth for the next project. Before this new Accudraft oven addition, the paint booth served as both a painting and baking space, limiting the amount of [...]

Your service truck is your mobile office, toolbox, or both — and keeping it clean and polished is more than just about looks. A well-maintained rig reflects your professionalism, protects your investment, and helps you spot issues before they become problems (hello, rust and wear).

To help you with the fun task of cleaning and shining, here’s your go-to guide for making everything shine — inside and out — with some of the best products and tools out there. (See link for a printable product/tool list!)

First Things First: When washing your STI body, be sure doors are latched tightly and run the pressurization system to prevent water infiltration.
Body Wash & Polish: Start with a two-bucket wash system and a high-quality pH-balanced car shampoo like Chemical Guys Mr. Pink [...]

When you custom-build a service truck with STI, the options are nearly endless—tool drawers, custom lighting, air compressors, E-track, cranes—you name it. But one accessory that sometimes flies under the radar (and shouldn’t) is spray-on bedliner.

At STI, we offer spray-on bedliner not just for the truck bed, but also for steps and deck surfaces—and for good reason. The textured finish adds serious grip, helping operators stay safe while climbing in and out, especially in wet or dusty conditions.

Here’s something you won’t find everywhere: We apply bedliner directly to the metal, not over paint. That means better adhesion, longer life, and more reliable protection in the spots that take the most abuse.

And that protection goes a long way. Whether it’s heavy tools sliding around or everyday wear and tear, bedliner shields high-traffic areas from [...]