I hate to ask this, question, but are yall able to make it with these crazy fuel prices. I just had to make some fairly "drastic" changes to my fleet due fact that the company I work for is starting to scale back thier operation due to the "projected" fuel prices in the coming months. I tried to warn the ones that pull the trigger that these figures are mostly doom and gloom, but its got this 27 state company seriously sweating the future. Just wondering how the OO's are doing.
surviving
- Thread starter pinnacle1
- Start date
If your carriers FSC is configured properly the cost of fuel is not the issue.
The issue is the probable slowdown, as shippers due to the high cost of shipping re-evaluate their needs. I think carriers should stop putting trucks on and adjust accordingly...if a carriers load count is dropping....to replace the ones that leave is just irresponsible at this time...To have 20 extra trucks just so they don't miss 1 or 2 loads is stupid. It's fine for the carrier but the 8 others will starve.
The issue is the probable slowdown, as shippers due to the high cost of shipping re-evaluate their needs. I think carriers should stop putting trucks on and adjust accordingly...if a carriers load count is dropping....to replace the ones that leave is just irresponsible at this time...To have 20 extra trucks just so they don't miss 1 or 2 loads is stupid. It's fine for the carrier but the 8 others will starve.
A carriers business is to move freight. It is not irresponsible of them to add as many trucks or vans as they want. It is also of no concern to the carrier if a o/o fails as there will be 3 or 4 others to replace that o/o. The carriers are doing what they feel they need to do and there is nothing wrong with that. It is probably better for the carriers to have to many trucks on because drivers taking about any load offered to make some money will make it easier to cover all loads.
fastrod...true...its a carriers job to cover loads any way they can..BUT if they want quality O/O's they could always subcontract the load out to a partner carrier and still cover the load. ohhh wait! They don't want quality O/O's they just want the load covered. They speak the speak but they don't walk the walk.
See also the thread, "Have Fuel Prices Changed How You Run?"
http://www.expeditersonline.com/dcforum/DCForumID1/6533.html
http://www.expeditersonline.com/dcforum/DCForumID1/6533.html
riverrat2000
Seasoned Expediter
the way I figure it is that come the first of the year expedite and trucking as a whole will lose rather significant percentage of O/os and also drivers, this will continue for however this slowdown will last, if it extends into 2009 the rate will increase as the O/o's that were able to hold on finally run out of funds and call it quits. the driver loss will start to level off. As freight becomes more available things will level off even for the O/o's however I do not see a lot of new entries into the O/o field as the profits will not be there, the large companies as stated are at least trying to cut into the expedite market and with the rates as low as they are will succeed in convincing the customers that they are almost as good,fast,and reliable as the traditional expeditors,so why pay the extra premium. Eventually unless something fundamentally is done the O/o's are going to be swallowed up by the large companies and independence as an O/o will be a thing of the past. Look back at what this business was like 8 or 10 years ago, the profit margins were in the 60bto 70 % range, today it is in the 30 to 40% range and dropping quickly, every slowdown has seen a very large drop in profits and when things got better the profits never quite got back to where they were there are lots of reasons for it but mainly greed is the culprit corporate greed form the companies that most are leased too but also from each and every company that touches this business, truck stops,restaurants,shops,part suppliers,ect. Then throw in 3pls and 4pls all wanting a cut I wonder how much of the actual price of the load is really left to the person actually doing the work and owning the equipment. Its been mentioned that there are always 3 or 4 people waiting in line to take someones place, well it used to be that way but I think the companies have a suprise in store for them, that well is going to dry up, it just costs to much to start up today and the people in the business well take a look around the equipment is getting older, it is being taken care of but eventually it is gonna wear out,even if it doesn't the federal government will mandate so many upgrades needed for environmental and fuel efficiency reasons that it will become unfordable in the near future to compete with the large companies that get huge discounts, better tax breaks, and exemptions from the government that we as O/o's don't get. I am of the school that this has been a long term plan by the large companies aided by government to do away with the independent O/o's so that the freight industry can be more centrally controlled. Before you dismiss that out of hand consider what happened to the independent farmer, yes there are still a few left but today corporations own and control most farming operations and are working hard to drive the few left out of business the next generation isn't going to know what a family farm is,the same is happening to the trucking industry.