When you sit down with Lazer Logistics’ leadership, you quickly sense this is not a company tinkering with incremental change. It is an organization pulling at the very foundations of how yards operate and building something new in their place. Chris Bennett, Vice President of EV, Energy, and Sustainability, speaks with the pragmatic zeal of someone who knows heavy duty electrification in the yard is no longer a pilot project but a viable, scalable solution. On the technology side, Chief Information Officer, Melanie Sandlin and Chief Technology Officer, Blaine Dirker describe an approach to digital transformation that treats software and systems not as supporting tools but as the backbone of how the company runs. Taken together, their perspectives reveal a business that is simultaneously an operator and a technology builder, using both hardware and software to reimagine the yard. 

The Economics of EVs 

The EV case, as Bennett lays it out, is rooted in hard economics. Across Lazer’s operations, electric yard tractors are delivering between seventy and ninety-five per cent net energy savings. The exact figure varies depending on diesel prices and site specific operating parameters, but the operational efficiency and financial gains are undeniable. Internal combustion engines, he points out, waste most of their energy as heat, while battery-electric drivetrains channel power straight into movement. Crucially, the net energy savings are calculated after factoring in the cost of electricity. These trucks are not just environmentally friendly; they are commercially viable. 

The model of yard operations makes electrification an even cleaner fit. Unlike long-haul vehicles, spotters rarely leave their facilities and always return to base at the end of each shift. Drivers take natural breaks throughout a shift, which doubles as an opportunity to plug in. Charging in this way turns traditional fueling downtime into fully utilized time. Each truck typically needs no more than 60 to 90 minutes  of cumulative charging across a full day, meaning the electrical infrastructure requirements eto support the charger(s)  remain minimal. Bennett notes that in greater than ninety-five per cent of Lazer’s EV deployments to date, they have been able to use existing site power without transformer upgrades or costly electric utility interventions. The narrative that EVs will never scale because the grid cannot support them, he argues, does not apply to this application. 

The higher acquisition cost of an EV system (truck and charger) - often two and a half to three times more than its diesel equivalent - is offset by maintenance savings and lower operating costs. Brake systems last longer thanks to regenerative braking, and there are no oil changes, exhaust systems or emissions systems to maintain. Over time, the total cost of ownership leans decisively towards electric. Even in extreme weather conditions, the benefits hold. Bennett recalls operations in minus twenty-five degree Fahrenheit weather, where diesel engines struggled with gelled fuel and block heaters struggling to keep up, while EVs with built in battery warmers  were up and running within minutes of turning the key. The cold weather performance gap extended beyond the mechanics of movement: drivers inside the EV cabs warmed up quickly and worked in comfort, while their counterparts in diesel units fought to stay warm. As Bennett puts it, happy drivers are productive drivers, and productivity is a bottom-line consideration as much as a human one. 

Debunking the Myths of EV Safety 

Myth-busting has become a daily part of his job. Potential clients arrive with entrenched assumptions—that EVs cannot operate in extreme cold or heat cold, that batteries will explode, or that trucks will catch fire in the yard. Bennett deals with them directly through complete transparency and data. He concedes that no lithium-ion based battery vehicle technology is risk-free but explains that Lazer made the deliberate decision to adopt lithium iron phosphate battery chemistry from day one, which is far more thermally stable than the nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) chemistry used in most light duty passenger EVs. Across millions of miles and  hours of operation, neither Lazer nor any battery electric spotter OEM i has experienced a thermal runaway incident. Compared to the constant background risk of internal combustion engine fires and fuel spills, current data indicate EVs are  a safer proposition. Even the charging process is inherently cautious. Electricity only flows once a cable is fully connected and the truck and charger have exchanged a digital handshake. If a cable is disturbed or pulled loose, the session stops immediately. The contrast with fueling a diesel truck, with its ever-present risk of  spills, is stark. 

Safety runs deeper than just the technology, though. Lazer has long operated under its Big Six safety framework, and electrification strengthens it. Regenerative braking makes truck stopping distance shorter and drastically reduces wear on brakes. Quiet operation allows drivers to hear their surroundings and dispatches more clearly, lessening mental strain and improving situational awareness. Perhaps most importantly, the environmental health and safety profile changes completely. No internal combustion engine means no fuel spills, no engine oil to leak, and no  diesel emissions impacting the health of a facilities’ employees Bennett, however, is clear on this point: nobody can promise one hundred percent safety, but EVs are shown to reduce risk across human, operational, and environmental dimensions. 

Building Long Term Systems 

If Bennett is focused on reinventing the truck itself, Melanie Sandlin is equally focused on reinventing the systems around it. As CIO, she describes the Lazer Logistics Operating System as the centerpiece of a transformation aimed at both drivers and site managers. For drivers, it delivers in-cab technology that keeps them safe, connected and productive, and over time will allow real-time safety communication. For site managers, who currently toggle between paper forms and multiple systems, it replaces fragmentation with a single pane of glass. Fleet management, customer duties and safety oversight converge into one environment. The guiding principle is simplicity: the more seamless the tools, the more focus employees can place on serving customers. 

Sandlin emphasizes that the system is built for change. Logistics is a volatile business, and customer requirements vary widely from yard to yard. LLOS was designed on a durable foundation but with flexibility at the edge, so it can be quickly adapted to new workflows or expectations. That adaptability extends into the conversation around artificial intelligence. Sandlin views AI less as a replacement and more as a coach. With strong, trusted data in place, AI can nudge better decisions by learning from past choices, while also lifting low-value tasks off employees’ plates. This frees capacity for higher-value work and creates an environment where people feel more effective rather than threatened. Norman, from the marketing team, sums it up: “A lot of people fear AI will replace jobs. Melanie’s approach is pragmatic - it’s about making employees’ days better, more productive, and more fulfilling.” 

The Inside and Outside Technology Game 

The inside game Sandlin describes is complemented by the outside game run by CTO Blaine Dirker. While she ensures that technology inside Lazer supports employees seamlessly, he is focused on building software that Lazer can sell to customers. The two functions are deliberately intertwined. Dirker draws on his technical team’s subject matter expertise in yard management operations, supplemented by that of Lazer’s - the leader in managing yard operations -to craft stronger minimum viable products and to iterate quickly. His team’s software, in turn, runs on the LLOS that Sandlin’s team is developing for the betterment of Lazer’s drivers, site managers, and ultimately, Lazer’s customers. The result is an unusually tight loop where Lazer itself serves as both builder and first user of its software. 

The flagship here is the YardNexus Platform, anchored by NexusYMS. While competitors often pitch visibility platforms that track containers from the outside in, Lazer has positioned YardNexus as a yard orchestration platform centered around yard operations. Adjacent modules like NexusGate and NexusLocate expand its reach, from expediting throughput at gates to automating trailer inventory management across sites. Deployments range from simple tablets to advanced computer vision systems. Automation is a natural by-product, but the differentiator is validation at scale. With Lazer itself acting as the primary user across a wide range of facilities - distribution centers, plants, campuses - YardNexus is stress-tested in ways few rivals can match. 

Dirker is quick to highlight that the decision to build was not made lightly. Legacy YMS options were either clunky, arcane or too bloated, making them difficult to update, scale, or integrate with. After experimenting with third-party systems and even commissioning work-for-hire projects, Lazer ultimately made the long-play decision to start from scratch, relying on all of their previous learnings to build a more robust and viable yard orchestration platform. For example, Dirker chose to build the platform using a modern tech stack, accounting for security, integrability, and scalability from the outset. It was a resource-heavy choice, but one that Dirker and Sandlin believe positions the company differently. She complements the approach with a clear philosophy: where Lazer can be competitive by building, it does so; Where needs are commoditized - ERP, HR systems - it buys off the shelf. The real investment goes into the enterprise data layer, aggregating data from across the company and combining it with unique yard operations data to create insights no one else in the market can access. 

Sustainability Through Integrated Technology 

Sustainability ties the EV and technology stories together. While Bennett’s trucks slash fuel use and carbon emissions directly, Dirker’s software optimizes task assignment to reduce idle time even in diesel fleets. Sandlin underscores that by using Nexus internally, Lazer validates these efficiencies first-hand. The interplay of hardware and software makes sustainability not just a corporate promise but an operational reality. 

On the EV side, Lazer’s long-time partnership with truck and charger OEM Orange EV underscores the same principle of integration. Orange EV pioneered battery-electric yard trucks a decade ago, focusing solely on building heavy duty EV trucks and chargers and building a direct sales and service model. Lazer has built their fleet primarily around Orange EV equipment, not because other OEMs lack capability, but because Orange offers focus and iterative production speed unmatched elsewhere. Every issue identified in the field is fed straight back to engineers, closing the loop in near real-time. Lazer, as Orange’s largest client with over two and a half million miles of EV experience, is a critical part of that loop. The result is faster development of new models and a product that evolves directly in line with operational needs. 

Looking Ahead 

What emerges from all of this is a portrait of a company staking out rare territory. Bennett points out that Lazer is the only yard provider in North America with a dedicated EV executive and Science Based Target (SBTi) commitments. Add to that a CIO and CTO working in tandem to build both internal and external technology ecosystems, and you have an operator that looks increasingly like a technology firm. For customers, this means more than new trucks or new software. It means a partner that can electrify an entire network, re-architect yard management, and future-proof operations in one integrated move.