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[sweetbillebob]

How about the fact that there are a variety of trucks out there. If you are W/G, TVAL, L/G equipped, the truck probably cost a minimum of $180,000 this year if it is a "C". Could be as high as $250,000 nicely equipped "D". And yet Express still gets their hands on you and offers you a load at $1.04, even if you have a W/G lock. You have to turn down virtually all Express loads if you want to stay profitable. My boss has very specific average numbers he needs the truck to run, based on the truck investment and operating costs. If Fedex wants the TVAL truck, they need to pay a rate that reflects the cost of doing business for that truck, whether it is a TVAL load or not. Our acceptance rate is below 30%. I flat out tell dispatch what my bosses numbers requirements are and I have not gotten any flack. Our gross is a little less than the target, but I attribute that to slow freight, not our acceptance %. If would prefer them not sending us Express Dispatch Offers/Load Opportunities. This truck was not equipped to service that market, and cannot profit taking that freight.

 

[davekc]

How about the fact that there are a variety of trucks out there. If you are W/G, TVAL, L/G equipped, the truck probably cost a minimum of $180,000 this year if it is a "C". Could be as high as $250,000 nicely equipped "D". And yet Express still gets their hands on you and offers you a load at $1.04, even if you have a W/G lock. You have to turn down virtually all Express loads if you want to stay profitable. My boss has very specific average numbers he needs the truck to run, based on the truck investment and operating costs. If Fedex wants the TVAL truck, they need to pay a rate that reflects the cost of doing business for that truck, whether it is a TVAL load or not. Our acceptance rate is below 30%. I flat out tell dispatch what my bosses numbers requirements are and I have not gotten any flack. Our gross is a little less than the target, but I attribute that to slow freight, not our acceptance %. If would prefer them not sending us Express Dispatch Offers/Load Opportunities. This truck was not equipped to service that market, and cannot profit taking that freight.

I would have to think that on every ten load offers you are turning down at least 7 of them, that would be cause for concern.
However, you can't run any straight truck at 1.04 per mile and expect to keep it.
That rate sounds more like a van load rate.
To be fair, is it just the result of their new dispatch system that sends multiple offers?

 

[ATeam]

My boss has very specific average numbers he needs the truck to run, based on the truck investment and operating costs. If Fedex wants the TVAL truck, they need to pay a rate that reflects the cost of doing business for that truck, whether it is a TVAL load or not.

Be careful about developing a sense of entitlement to high-paying loads.

Buying an expensive truck in no way obligates any carrier to come up with expensive freight to put on it. Nor does it in any way place you higher in a dispatch order when ordinary freight is the only freight available to haul. It will not prohibit competitors from entering the lucrative market and driving prices down. It will not assure a ready supply of expensive freight to haul in these recessionary times.

It is not true that "If Fedex wants the TVAL truck, they need to pay a rate that reflects the cost of doing business for that truck, whether it is a TVAL load or not."

No shipper of non-TVAL freight will agree to a higher price so TVAL trucks can be subsidized. FedEx has already attracted TVAL trucks into the fleet without paying special rates on non-TVAL freight. (The slight spiff paid to reefer trucks at FDCC goes to all reefer trucks, not just TVAL. It recognizes and helps offset reefer costs.)

There is a waiting list to get into White Glove reefer work. When a waiting list exists, there is no market need for FedEx or any other carrier to pay more to attract a certain type of truck and high-quality teams.

Key concept: Market need

Dangerous concept: Entitlement

What is true for a full-featured TVAL truck is also true for a low-end dry (non-reefer) truck. When you enter a market with a piece of equipment, you become eligible to haul certain kinds of freight, but you do not become entitled to haul it.

To succeed in this business, you have to do more than buy a truck and wait for the roast chicken to fly into your mouth.

A White Glove truck is not a liftgate-equipped truck entitled to liftgate loads. It is not a reefer-equipped truck entitled to reefer loads. It is not a security-cleared-team truck entitled to certain types of loads. It is not a HAZMAT-endorsed-team truck entitled to certain HAZMAT loads. It is not a dolly-equipped truck entitled to inside pickup and delivery loads.

A White Glove truck and team is a package of truck equipment and driver credentials best seen as designed to do one thing; help FedEx Custom Critical provide solutions to its White Glove customers. To that end, Diane and I have several times equipped and re-equipped our truck, and credentialed and re-credentialed ourselves.

We manage our business such that revenues are maximized and the costs of providing the package we offer (not the liftgate, not the furniture pads, not the reefer, not the credentials, but the package) are kept low enough to not price ourselves out of the market and to also provide a healthy profit.

 

[davekc]

To succeed in this business, you have to do more than buy a truck and wait for the roast chicken to fly into your mouth.

=============================

Phil,

You are starting to sound like the Colonel.

But, that quote is spot on.

 

[ATeam]

I believe the Colonel borrowed the quote from me. I borrowed it from one of my college professors who says he borrowed it from Martin Luther (1483 - 1546). The quote is modified a bit. Luther was talking about Christians saying "The Lord will provide." and then waiting for the roast chicken to fly into their mouths.

 

[davekc]

One thing for sure, it still applies

 

[iceroadtrucker]

One thing for sure, it still applies

Ya your right sure does so When am I going to get a load????

 

[pjjjjj]

No shipper of non-TVAL freight will agree to a higher price so TVAL trucks can be subsidized. FedEx has already attracted TVAL trucks into the fleet without paying special rates on non-TVAL freight. (The slight spiff paid to reefer trucks at FDCC goes to all reefer trucks, not just TVAL. It recognizes and helps offset reefer costs.)

That's interesting..
At least they're not getting the whole fleet of OOs to subsidize the higher price for the TVAL trucks.

 

[sweetbillebob]

Okay,
I certainly see the logic of what Phil is saying. And, it begs a question. Obviously every owner tries to equip their truck to maximize their profits if they have the money to do so. And, is trying hard to maximize profits(or at least make a profit) based on the decisions they have made regarding the investment in their truck. So, investment aside, given "Todays" fuel prices, and a fully equipped truck, and the knowledge that the high paying freight is not going to be there on a day in day out basis. What is the market bearing today for a fully equipped truck carrying both high and average priced loads. Or more simply put, what average will the market bear as opposed to what do you need to average to pay the bills.
I have certainly seen that the bosses need to receive a certain $$/mile rate impacts our ability to hit the monthly gross goal. And have subsequently been accepting loads that do not meet his target $$/mile goal. The result of using our current selection criteria is that we turn down and sit, waiting... And the waiting is really starting to get to my wife and I and of course to our bottom line. As drivers, we get a % of gross, we have no costs to cover, but we do have bills to pay. And right now, credit card balances are going up.

So, if you could, a little advice in load selection for a fully equipped truck would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in Advance

 

[TeamCaffee]

We have never run for an owner and that changes the equation greatly. I spend a great amount of time working on our cost per mile and that is what sets what we will accept a load for. When we receive a load offer we first look to see where the load in going, if we know of any tolls, and also what the fuel prices are in that area of the country.
I use Quicken and each month I run a P & L Statement, I also keep a log of all fuel purchased and our cpm of just fuel. I have found for us I need at least a minimum of one month to get a good cost per mile and I prefer to use at least the six month P & L statement.
With the fuel prices fluctuating so quickly I can just run a quick cost of our fuel and know when we need to adjust what our bottom line will be to accept a load offer. With the TA discounts we are receiving our CPM has decreased so we can accept a load for a little less money then we could have a month ago. With the national fuel prices dropping our FSC is also dropping which will then decrease the load offers somewhat. Our largest cost is fuel and with that the better we can do with our fuel mileage the lower we can also accept a load for and still stay profitable.

 

[ATeam]

So, if you could, a little advice in load selection for a fully equipped truck would be greatly appreciated.

It is not easy to give specific load-selection advice because people's circumstances and needs differ. And depending on the week or month they are having, may change as circumstances change.

Our strategy is similar to the Caffee's. We track our costs per mile, adjust it as fuel prices change, and accept loads at a profit margin that keeps us in business.

As time builds between loads, decision making becomes clouded as the cost of sitting becomes part of the mix. The longer you sit, the more likely emotional restlessness is to creep into the mix and prompt thoughts and doubts you would not have if you were running strong. If you have a lot of bills to pay, sitting is more difficult still.

It is easy to turn down loads that would require you to run at a loss. It is less easy to turn down loads that are below your target price but not much below.

How low can you go and still run profitably? How low should you go to keep running at all? When the freight is slow, these questions haunt us all.

 

[davekc]

sweetbillebob

I wouldn't recommend taking loads that are unprofitable just for the sake of moving the truck unless its to a more profitable area. I think the answers you get are going to be very generalized because everyone operates at different levels.
I think you wold be better served to distinguish what you do accept and don't.
Obviously 1.04 per mile loads aren't very doable for a WG truck.
I would scratch my head as well as to why they would send you something at that rate.
One maybe shouldn't feel "entitled", but one should be able to have certain expectations. If the carrier can't any longer provide them, then its time to move on.
But...nevertheless,
I would also add what you need as a rate per mile whether loaded or ALL miles. That makes it easier for your peers to figure whether your evaluation of loads is realistic.

 

[ATeam]

I would also add what you need as a rate per mile whether loaded or ALL miles. That makes it easier for your peers to figure whether your evaluation of loads is realistic.

We do not have all the information to go on here so anything we offer is speculative at best. But it sounds like the limits are coming from the fleet owner, not the team. It may be the fleet owner's expectations that are the issue. The team sounds ready, willing and eager to work.