Economy Down; Profits Up

Economy Down; Profits Up
July 28, 2008

If you're involved in the trucking industry today, it's a fact that everyone has a story to tell, especially if it relates to the economy. The rising price of fuel is a growing global concern, especially for those whose livelihood depends on daily consumption of this expensive commodity.

As America's economy continues its downward slide, due, in part, to the fuel crisis, the trucking industry has taken a beating. Many independent drivers, and small trucking companies, have been put out of business due to their inability to cope with the economic burden imposed by high fuel costs. However, all is not bleak for the industry. When the going gets tough, the tough get going. For some of America's leaders in the trucking industry, profits have never been better.

USA Truck Inc. is a dry van truckload carrier transporting general commodities throughout the continental United States and portions of Canada and Mexico. The Van Buren, Arkansas-based business, with a fleet in excess of 2,500 trucks, is traded on the NASDAQ and recently posted strong second quarter results.

As operating costs have skyrocketed over the last eighteen months, large fleet operators, like USA Truck, have learned the secrets to survival and success. Companies have adopted a different, far more economical, approach to managing their fleet.

Wall Street analysts predicted serious second quarter losses for the trucking industry. To their amazement, USA Truck's profits increased by 32 percent, compared with the same period last year. Their share prices have increased by a stunning 25.5 percent.

Their secret? The company became far more disciplined about its truck network. They placed trucks where they should be. Trucks logged shorter lengths of haul and improved the average miles per tractor per week. Careful planning shaved roughly 70 miles per trip from each truck. The company has begun to focus on serving the more lucrative shorter-haul market. They have slightly trimmed the number of trucks in use, thus maximizing the use of each vehicle. Optimum utilization has paid off, allowing the company to earn the greatest amount of revenue per hour of the driver's hours of service.

By achieving an acceptable balance between fleet capacity and freight demand, large operators, like USA Truck, are managing to keep ahead of expenses and show profits, despite the continual rise in expenses. Also, better freight selection is expected to help the carrier's improve their revenue per mile.

By going back to basics, and managing their businesses in a far more accountable manner, the larger operators will continue to keep America supplied, and their shareholders happy.

Con-way Freight Awarded Top Safety Honors

Con-way Freight Awarded Top Safety Honors
Sunday, March 30, 2008

Con-way Freight was honored at the Michigan Trucking Association (MTA) Annual Safety Awards, which was held in Lansing in late February. For the second year in a row, the MTA awarded Con-way a fleet safety plaque for Outstanding Achievement in Highway Safety in the General Commodities division in recognition of its exemplary safety record and practices.

Based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Con-way Freight is one of the leading less-than-truckload (LTL) carriers. It offers LTL freight delivery across North America as well as international less-than-container (LCL) ocean Freight delivery from Asia to the United States. Con-way Freight is a subsidiary of Con-way Inc., a $4.7 billion freight transportation and logistics services company.

Walter G. Heinritzi, executive director of the Michigan Trucking Association, said that Con-way Freight has clearly shown an on-going commitment to safety, and the MTA is glad to have the opportunity to honor the company again for its outstanding achievement. On the other hand, John G. Labrie, president of Con-way Freight, said that winning this award for two consecutive years is a living proof that Con-way regards safety as a top priority, and its drivers share this view by adhering strictly to safe driving practices.

Sponsored by the Great West Casualty Company, one of the largest insurers of trucking companies in the United States, the Annual Safety Awards are presented to their respective winners based on certain safety criteria that include covered miles, types of driving, and number of accidents, if any.

The Lansing-Based MTA has been serving Michigan's trucking industry since 1934. It aims at enhancing the trucking industry's image, promoting highway safety, and collecting, maintaining, and distributing information on the trucking industry.

Challenger Motor Freight Adds Top Awards to its Arsenal

Challenger Motor Freight Adds Top Awards to its Arsenal
March 13, 2008

Challenger Motor Freight has been winning plenty of top awards as of late. The company has been awarded Platinum status in Canada’s 50 Best Managed Companies competition, an achievement which means that Challenger Motor Freight is regarded as one of Canada’s best companies for the seventh consecutive year. The award is based on an accurate and independent analysis of management skills and practices.

Challenger has also won the prestigious Johnnie Walker Blue Award for the second year in a row. The award is presented to the overall Carrier of the Year, based on four performance criteria: timely pickup, timely delivery, load tender acceptance percentage, and EDI compliance. Adding a third award to its arsenal, Challenger has just recently won General Motors award for Best FAST Carrier Performance in 2007 with more than 98% fast shipments out of last year’s 18,288.

Dan Einwechter, chairman and CEO of Challenger Motor Freight, refuses to let the company’s business taper off now after winning those awards. Instead, he is expanding his Montreal terminal to ease the increasingly overwhelming east-west traffic and is planning a remarkable development in intermodal transportation.

Launched back in 1975 as a one-truck operation, Challenger has grown now into a company which is ranked fifth on the Today’s Trucking Top 100 list, for the second consecutive year, with 1500 tractors and 3500 trailers.

With an efficient logistics division, warehousing services, and 650,000 square feet of warehouse space, Challenger has excelled in air and sea freight-forwarding as well as third-party freight management. Challenger has been relying on the truckload, LTL, and special trucking operations as its stock in trade for so many years. Additionally, the company sells used trucks in good condition to customers all over the world.

The company is still specializing in the north-south traffic. Choosing to grow the business somewhere else, Einwechter says that he has reduced the company’s cross-border work as well as transportation of automotive parts in recent years. On the other hand, Challenger has almost tripled east-west traffic between central Canada and Alberta and British Columbia in the last 2 years. In Vancouver, the company has been doing a lot of drayage work and de-stuffing containers.

Having had to adapt to a changing market, Einwechter admits that the business environment, nowadays, does not look so promising. The company managed to replace $60 million worth of business over a 24-month period up to last year. Behind this success is a talented and hard-working staff.

Business has abated these days, and it seems like 2008 will see smaller business than usual for Challenger. However, Einwechter is still hiring drivers and is planning to buy 150 new Volvo tractors with I-Shift automated transmissions.

Challenger has always been known for its passion for new technologies. In this sense, Einwechter happily announces that the company is about to receive five new Peterbilt tractors equipped with new gadgets, including the new Paccar MX engine.

There is no doubt that the top awards Challenger has recently won is a living proof of its success as a trucking company with an entrepreneurial edge in a very wide-ranging enterprise.