Truck drivers can sometimes feel part of a workforce that, despite its size and importance, is seldom asked for its opinions.

That might be true in Washington D.C., but it’s certainly not the case when it comes to product development for truckers.

Manufacturers of everything from the trucks themselves to in-cab cooking equipment turn to drivers to find out what equipment they need and how to make their products useful. After all, there’s no room in the cab for something that doesn’t help get the job done.

“If truckers tell us it’s a good idea, we pursue it. If they tell us we’re not seeing its purpose, there have been times we’ve killed projects,” said Les Willson, Vice President of Global Sourcing & Logistics for the RoadPro Family of Brands, which makes and distributes a variety of trucking products, from clothing to electronics.

Just as RoadPro has its Pro Drivers Council vet its products, headset manufacturer BlueParrott formed a Driver’s Club whose members are encouraged to critique its gear and request new features. Customer input has led to advancements like the programmable Parrott Button, which has grown from four features at its introduction to more than a dozen.

“There are real benefits to working with your customers because no one knows better what works for them,” said David Jaques, BlueParrott director of product management.

Truck drivers in Georgia are different than truck drivers in Germany. That’s why Stoneridge, which is experienced in the European Union market, held workshops across the U.S. with truck drivers, owner-operators, fleet owners and others in the industry before entering the market this year with its EZ-ELD™ product. “Everybody had an opinion and everyone wanted to share,” said Stuart Adams, head of Stoneridge’s North American Aftermarket Business Unit.

Crowdsourcing is an increasingly popular way to gather information from a large number of people and is used for everything from marketing and problem-solving to product development. Navigation device manufacturer Rand McNally puts its new products in the cabs of hundreds of drivers to get their feedback, good and bad.

“Functional testing and feedback from real drivers ensures that all features on our devices are working properly in a real truck cab/work environment,” said Venkatesh Rao, director of product management. “A positive user experience is our number one priority and this testing phase allows us to efficiently solve any issues so that a finished product has the best performance possible.”

The feedback does not end once the product is installed, either. All devices include a “Tell Rand” feature which allows users to submit feedback on everything from missing addresses, changing road conditions, overall improvements and more.

So, while politicians and regulators might not listen to truckers, gear manufacturers do.