Probably 'most everybody already knows, but for those who haven't seen the new Weekly Fleet Bulletin, we have 4 new centers. Portland, OR (POR), Salt Lake City (SLC), Albuquerque (ABQ) and Las Vegas (LSV). I've been wondering for at least 2 yrs why they didn't make SLC and LSV EC's, 'cause they both have considerably more business than some of the ones in the east - like Montgomery, where you can die of old age waiting for a load.
New express centers
- Thread starter Special K
- Start date
We were just up in Portland 2 weeks ago, it did not work then.
We have done ok out of all of them. This year has been off and on. First time out to the Seattle/Portland we did really good. Delivered in Seattle on a Friday, good load going there, and then out of Portland with a good load the following Monday. The last trip was the bad. Had one short run on the Monday and then nothing.
We tried checking the truck status in Portland last night, works now.
We do better in Portland than we do in Seattle. Salt Lake City is great for Military freight. We have had hit and miss luck in Las Vegas but part of that was due to being checked into Ontario and taking the hit on to far out to be picked for a load. We have delivered in Albuquerque and dead headed almost to Phoenix to go back to Albuquerque to pick up a load.
We would like to see an express center in Tucson as well. We often do good out of there. We tend to go to the truck stops near Eloy. Too far for either Phoenix or Tucson but sort of in range for either.
Reading this post truly points out the big differences between truck types, like between an express, White Glove or temp controlled trucks. We might do quite well out of Portland or Seattle with temp control work but hardly ever go into or out of Salt Lake City. We do very little work out of Vegas any more but much more into and out of Portland.
Reading this post truly points out the big differences between truck types, like between an express, White Glove or temp controlled trucks. We might do quite well out of Portland or Seattle with temp control work but hardly ever go into or out of Salt Lake City. We do very little work out of Vegas any more but much more into and out of Portland.
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A while back, Diane and I were near Spokane getting the truck washed when a neighboring business owner approached us to ask about the truck. "What do 'ya haul in that thing? I've never seen a FedEx truck like that before." You know the questions. We all get them.
Anyway, as we visited, he got to talking about his business and, learning from us about expedited freight, he said he might need an expediter some day. I notified FDCC and was put in touch with our sales rep on that area. He had just moved there and was excited about building business in the Northwest. Yahoo! I said. More power to you!
Maybe the guy is having an effect and the new express centers are an indicator.
Anyway, as we visited, he got to talking about his business and, learning from us about expedited freight, he said he might need an expediter some day. I notified FDCC and was put in touch with our sales rep on that area. He had just moved there and was excited about building business in the Northwest. Yahoo! I said. More power to you!
Maybe the guy is having an effect and the new express centers are an indicator.
We have one REALLY good load out of Spokane. It was a nice reefer load, paid well. I won't give exact figures but it was well worth a 600 mile DH to pick it up!!
There are several shippers and consignees in OR and WA that Diane and I have served. In 2008 and 2009, we picked up or delivered 14 times in those two states, serving 10 separate customers. I know an expediter who lives in California and he frequently runs freight in and out of OR and WA.
With demand for trucks seemingly picking up, going to the Northwest does not seem as problematic as it did when the recession was in full swing. As long as the money was good going in, Diane and I would not hesitate to haul freight to Portland, Spokane, Seattle or anywhere else in WA and OR.
I know of one team that immediately heads to the Bay Area to wait for freight there after making a delivery in Spokane, and of another team that immediately heads to Spokane to wait for freight there if they deliver in WA, OR or Northern California.
Different teams have different results in the Northwest, and of course, different needs. Each forms an acceptance and deadhead strategy that makes sense to them. Neither of the two teams mentioned above see anything wrong with their strategy, even though they are exactly opposite.
I don't know there is anything wrong with either strategy. Even though we run with the same carrier in similarly-equipped trucks, variables among teams vastly differ. It may well be that a strategy that is totally wrong for one team would be totally right for another.
The important thing is to have a strategy. Know ahead of time why you are taking a load to the Northwest. Once you are back east, back home or back to wherever you want to be, take a good look at that Northwest turn; what you did, why you did it and how it worked. Use that information to refine your load acceptance and deadhead strategy.
With demand for trucks seemingly picking up, going to the Northwest does not seem as problematic as it did when the recession was in full swing. As long as the money was good going in, Diane and I would not hesitate to haul freight to Portland, Spokane, Seattle or anywhere else in WA and OR.
I know of one team that immediately heads to the Bay Area to wait for freight there after making a delivery in Spokane, and of another team that immediately heads to Spokane to wait for freight there if they deliver in WA, OR or Northern California.
Different teams have different results in the Northwest, and of course, different needs. Each forms an acceptance and deadhead strategy that makes sense to them. Neither of the two teams mentioned above see anything wrong with their strategy, even though they are exactly opposite.
I don't know there is anything wrong with either strategy. Even though we run with the same carrier in similarly-equipped trucks, variables among teams vastly differ. It may well be that a strategy that is totally wrong for one team would be totally right for another.
The important thing is to have a strategy. Know ahead of time why you are taking a load to the Northwest. Once you are back east, back home or back to wherever you want to be, take a good look at that Northwest turn; what you did, why you did it and how it worked. Use that information to refine your load acceptance and deadhead strategy.
Well put Phil. The northwest is improving for freight to say the least. We have not put together any patterns yet but I am sure that they will start to show soon.
Humble2drive
Expert Expediter
This begs the question. Why not give the number of temp control and T-Val trucks in an express center on the VRU. This little bit of additional information would help the reefer trucks make a layover decision.
Just sayin.
Better yet, how about also adding to the extranet so in a few seconds we can see online how many of each type unit are in a center rather than having to spend several minutes listening on the phone to what should be a few seconds to look up? The VRU is an excellent tool but just as the QC should be doing some jobs that are only done by telephone now, the extranet should also be doing some things that are currently only available by phone.
I do believe that the extranet could and should be used for real time work. The truck counts should include ALL information, like mentioned above. Not only temp controlled or TVAL but things like DOD clearances, ART team etc.
Yes Humble2drive! Yes, LDB! Yes, Layoutshooter! The more information that can be made available to trucks, the better deadhead and layover decisions can be made. I believe this would serve the carrier well too as the trucks will tend to go where other trucks aren't.
If Diane and I had been sitting in Seattle for a day and saw four TVAL trucks in San Jose, we would think more about staying put or moving no further south than Portland and less about moving to San Jose, which might otherwise be the smart move.
If Diane and I had been sitting in Seattle for a day and saw four TVAL trucks in San Jose, we would think more about staying put or moving no further south than Portland and less about moving to San Jose, which might otherwise be the smart move.