Crown North America has received top honors for outstanding achievement in the vehicle upfitting industry with its roll-down door for full-size vans.
The Upfitter Innovation Award, sponsored by Bobit Publishing's Automotive Fleet, was created to recognize the most significant development in new engineering and design by manufacturers and installers of custom components for commercial trucks and vans.
Crown submitted as its entry a solution for delivery fleet customers that wanted to be able to back full-size vans directly up to a dock to access cargo - something they couldn't do with standard factory-installed swingout doors. The Courier Door designed by Crown consists of a roll-down door, a torsion spring to assist with lifting, door tracks, and custom fiberglass conversion panels that preserve factory vehicle styling and appearance.
Airborne Express provided a van to prototype the system and is currently field-testing it. Meanwhile, Crown is refining the design for both Ford and Chevy vans.
Crown was awarded first place by a 16-judge panel made up of fleet managers and fleet management company truck specialists.