JBS Carriers Greeley Colorado

This week I have noticed a dramatic difference in planning. First time ever I have had a preplan before dropping 4 loads in a row. Hell, I can't even remember 2 in a row. I don't know how to act. I am actually having to work for a living!

 

An "ELITE" Trucking Company!!!

Here is an overview of what it would take to make an "Elite" trucking company successful.

First "Central Planning" DOES NOT WORK!!!
Take a look at the United States of America post 1913 and the evidence is clear. Then take a look at the Constitution of These United States of America and apply it to the trucking industry....

I will simplify it so that the "layman" can understand.
The United States Federal Government (J.B.S. USA inc.)
The 50 States (J.B.S. Terminals and Plants)
The County government (Fleet Managers & Driver Managers)
The citizens (J.B.S. Drivers)

I want to put this into perspective as for J.B.S. to not fall as the United States is falling due to both "Central Planning" and "lack of leadership". I am in NO WAY stating that there is a "lack" of leadership, just simply stating that, although well intentioned, there are much better ways to address current problems and find solutions in a much more practical way then are being discussed in corporate.

J.B.S. USA needs to hire ONLY people they believe in and feel have this company's best interests at heart. Once the leaders are in place then it is time to trust them and let loose of their reins.

Each Plant and Terminal should have its own manager who should be aloud to make the best decisions for that Plant or Terminal. He or she should then once a month have to report back to J.B.S. USA inc and give a detailed report. This should be done with all Plant and Terminal managers in attendance. This would allow for the "BEST" Plants and Terminals to educate the less productive ones on what works best so that they could emulate them and in-turn become as successful as the most successful plants and terminals.

Trying to pass "blanket" rules and regulations to encompass EVERY plant and terminal will NOT work as each plant, although similar, is very unique unto itself and needs to be treated as such.

The important key here is "leadership". It must remain fair, consistent and loyal to both the company as well as its employees (ie: citizens).

Then we move on to the "local" governments (ie: FM & DM)

Again, first you must "hire" the best of the best and give them incentives to be the best. Hold quarterly mileage incentives and quarterly on-time and "less" waiting incentives. Give the FM & DM more authority to make better decisions as they are the eyes of the company and such the eyes and ears of the people (drivers). You must trust in the people you employ and fire the ones that are not worthy to call themselves honorable.

A FM or DM will know much more about the individual driver then someone from corporate and can make better decisions on behalf of the company as well as that driver from this knowledge.

Now we move on to the driver (or in this analogy, the citizen.)

This is the front line of J.B.S. USA inc and as such should be treated with the utmost respect from all other entities in this scenario. The driver should be one who not only has his best interests at heart, but also that of J.B.S. USA inc and should make any and all decisions, while out on the road, keeping this in mind.

There is NO NEED for an optimized "route plan" coming from corporate. There is simply a need for the understanding that if J.B.S. USA inc is not profitable, then neither is its drivers. Every driver should do their best to fuel where prices are the cheapest. This is sometimes NOT going to be where they would like to purchase full but at the same time getting 50 gals of diesel to get you to a cheaper fuel spot will also allow you to get your shower. Corporate should understand that sending an "elite" driver a "route plan" will only cause hardships on both that driver as well as the company.

More stops to get 50 gals here, 50 gals there, to take this road instead of that road, will only incur valuable resources being unnecessarily wasted when they could have been used more adequately. The shortest route is not always the quickest or safest route and I believe that a "professional" driver who is out here on the road would have a much better knowledge of this then even the "most professional" ex-driver who is sitting behind a desk. What looks good on paper may not always be the best plan of attack.

Just one quick example... Driver is dispatched from the southeast and is delivering North of Chicago. Yes you could run I90/I94 up and though Chicago or you could run what would appear to be "out of route" miles avoiding Chicago altogether and run up I39...This may appear to be a dumb thing to do on paper but if it is 5pm on a Friday then you must understand that running 100 miles "out of route" is much better for both the company as well as the driver then for that driver to be shut down and miss the appointment for being stuck in traffic for 5 hours. Again, the driver should have most of the say when it comes to the operation of his/her truck, however, it is the company's responsibility to ensure that the drivers are "true professionals".

Let's move on to some other "Centralized" concerns and ideas that are being talked about and tested then I will give you what I believe to be a much better way of addressing them.

"OUT OF ROUTE MILES"- Here we have a situation where the company is trying to eliminate the "out of route miles" it is consuming. Well, let's talk about what "out of route miles" really are. They are miles that are unnecessary to run your planned path from point A to point B.

We need, as professionals to NOT only take into consideration our needs out here on the road, but also the needs of the company to make a profit and "out of route miles" are a big deal when it comes to a company's "bottom line".

Here is where the "out of route miles" situation could be lessened very easily. As a company you want to pay "shortest miles" which is fine with me. Not what I would prefer, but I drive nice equipment and I get paid a high "CPM" and also get the miles. So what is my solution for slimming your "out of route miles"?

FIRST: Although you pay "shortest mileage", run a program against the trucks actual mileage and practical mileage for each run. You will see that your "out of route miles" will drop dramatically due to the fact that "shortest mileage" is NOT VERY PRACTICAL. It would take a driver an average of 30-45% more time to run "shortest route" as compared to a much more "practical" route. Although you may only see "out of route" miles on your spreadsheets, what you do not see is the "actual" time it would take a "truck" to travel those miles a compared to traveling mostly highway or interstates. Not only could appointments be missed and customer service start to suffer, but you would also create an unpleasant working environment with the driver as there overall "paid" miles would start to decline due to the excessive travel time not to mention the wasted resources used to call an otherwise "professional" driver in for a meeting for deviating from his/her route because he/she knew better and was only doing it to benefit the interests of the company.

Once you crosscheck your "shortest mileage" with "practical" mileage, you will then be able to see which drivers are running "good" routes and those that are running "OUT OF ROUTE". This is a suggestion and there is much greater details that would have to be discussed but it would solve your issue with "out of route" miles.

"TRAINING PAY"- I was told that .02 cpm is industry standard. Does J.B.S. USA now want to become "STANDARD"? I was under the assumption that J.B.S. USA wanted to become "ELITE", a company rivaled by none. Well here is a simple way to create "elite" drivers and have them trained by "elite" trainers.

You forget about the .02 cpm over what the trainer is already making.
You forget about the "priority" dispatch.
You forget about the 3500 miles a week.

What you put in place is this.

You PAY a trainer .50 cpm when he/she has a trainee on the truck regardless of whether that trainee is fresh out of school or just in need of a refresher.

You DISPATCH that truck on a 2500 mile week if it is a refresher and you mandate that the trainer use his/her down time to conduct backing in open truck stop parking areas and you mandate that the trainer use his/her down time to educate the new J.B.S. employee on the paperwork and the correct procedures here at J.B.S. Carriers. You also allow that trainer to schedule hometime every 2 weeks if the trainee or trainer requests it.

You DISPATCH a "new" trainee (school graduate) on a 2000 mile week and mandate the same as above however the difference here would be that on the trainees last 2 weeks with the trainer, you run them as a true team with "priority" dispatch and true "TEAM" MILES at a .50 cpm split rate. This would allow for both the trainer as well as the trainee an incentive for training, educating, and understanding of what it takes to be a professional driver at J.B.S. Carriers and would give both the trainer as well as the trainee the chance to succeed.

You may think that .50 cpm is too much. That .02 cpm = .42 cpm is sufficient and doesn't impact your bottom line as bad. Difference is that the drivers and trainers would be "elite" after you have properly "TRAINED" them with ONLY a "professional" trainer. Trainers should be "well" trained to train.

Again, this is simplified to its extreme and there would be much more detail needed for its success.

"FUEL BONUS"- What? We don't have one?
I know we don't have one here at J.B.S. and as such many drivers idle their trucks 100% of the time. I am in NO WAY implying that drivers are malicious in intent or that Corporate should come down hard on anyone or try and create their own rules for idling as again "CENTRAL PLANNING" does NOT work and Corporate has too many other things to worry about. This should be left up to the Terminals and when perfected, made into a "Federal" (Corporate) system.

My suggestions in its simplest form....

A FUEL BONUS MUST BE OBTAINABLE TO MANY FOR THE BENEFIT OF ALL!

An OTR driver with 5+ years makes .40 cpm.

A Regional driver with 5+ years makes .46 cpm. to offset the mileage he/she may not be getting.

"Fuel Bonus" to save J.B.S. USA inc millions of dollars annually.

50% idle .005 cpm bonus
25% idle .01 cpm bonus
10% idle .015 cpm bonus
05% idle .02 cpm bonus
01% idle .04 cpm bonus

This would be quarterly and would save the company millions a year while rewarding drivers and giving them incentives which can be obtained.

To reach 50% you need do nothing really but shut your truck off while you fuel and some times you are not in it. This would be obtainable by EVERY driver who has even the slightest vested interest with J.B.S. USA inc.

To reach 25% you need to do a little more. You need to shut your truck off almost every time you are not in it and some times while you sleep in good weather. This too is VERY obtainable and would save the company a lot of money in fuel costs. Would also see who is serious about making a difference in this company.

10% is also obtainable. It would require a "TRUE" want for this bonus. You would have to be diligent but would not have to suffer through extreme heat or cold.

05% is also obtainable but would not only require a "TRUE" want but you would have to constantly be maintaining a "NON IDLE POLICY". You may have to suffer through some extreme hot and cold.

01% ..... If you don't think this is obtainable, I will challenge you. You can obtain this one as well but you are going to prove to the company that you are in it with them through both good and bad and you are an employee who will do almost anything for them. To obtain this you will most definitely freeze in the winter and come almost to heat stroke in the summer. It too is a choice and if you want to obtain this your reward would be great.

Even with the highly obtainable 50% idle bonus, the company as a whole would save millions each and every year on its bottom line. Sure if you look at it as most do as more money going to the driver, then yes you would renounce this idea and that would be the end. However, if you see what its purpose is and how it would benefit both the driver and the company, you will see that it is a major beneficial player to any company who wants to become an "ELITE" CARRIER....

I will leave you for now, but I implore you to contact me and set up a meeting so I can address many other factors that would create an "elite" environment for both J.B.S. USA inc as well as its backbone (the true professional drivers)....

 

All I can say is WOW!! Well thought out!

 

Mile Hile Bud there is a Washout IN THE ELDORADO PLANT THE Security Guard Knows this and he should direct you to the Rendering Unloading dock to get washed out there when you unload.

 

About the "Fuel Optimizer"
This was a topic at the Greenbay Drivers appreciations which By the way the Shop guys did an awesome Job.

Just a FYI about the Gift bags and Give aways folks Randy K and The safety team organized all of the items for all the terminals they gave them away at.

Spoke with Todd and Randy about the Fuel Optimizer, right now there are some issues with the program and they will be beta testing it on one Fleet first.
Here is the Big thing about why it is going to be done fleet wide along with some of the positives that are involved also please read the whole post first.

One many drivers are putting Truck Fuel in their Reefers, yep you read it right several new guys said they did not know to do otherwise no comment on my part.

Second each state has different tax rate other wise cheaper fuel, I know Road tax per state but this is the good part, As a driver if the Route (which is going to be the way most of us would go any ways, but some numb skulls here just can not seem to read a map, ie the driver who left Hryum UT going to Zebulon, NC and went via Albuquerque NM, just one of many they have listed off.)
So if the Route is very close to what we normally would run they are not saying we have to run that route, nor are they going to "short" fuel us, but if a driver is in Mississippi headed west instead of getting 90 gallons in MS, it will rather send him to Louisiana to purchase fuel (LA has lower tax rate) if it is not going to work the driver simply sends a message. This is going to take months to incorporate and get it working correctly with the ELOGS, etc considering some of the old petes like mine are not able to reply to a Load header message we only get a blank screen and if I Manually enter a "begin trip" it is not attached to the load I am on in the TMW system issues like this are having to be worked out.
Not to mention HOW many roads are on the "fuel optimizer" that have been pointed out are not 53' `102'' legal. These issues have caused the program to be delayed.
Frankly I am not worried about it after talking with them as I have the tax rate per state which I got off the OOIDA web site as far as cheap fuel. Just used to doing things that way having worked on percentage for so long. It is not near as bad as it sounds and less likely to effect those who are doing the job right.
I was looking at a fuel bill with Todd Friday and we have drivers who are fueling 2 and 3 times a day (Solos no less) 25 gallons, 38 gallons and 78 gallons on one truck in 14 hours and reefer fuel was BS 3,5, and 1.45 gallons ( or something similiar) which is BS and a complete waste of a drivers time, the same driver has YET to run over 450 miles in any given day as he refuses to run nights after 7:00pm.
First thing out of my Mouth was Fire his non truck driving ###.

 

I was looking at a fuel bill with Todd Friday and we have drivers who are fueling 2 and 3 times a day (Solos no less) 25 gallons, 38 gallons and 78 gallons on one truck in 14 hours and reefer fuel was BS 3,5, and 1.45 gallons ( or something similiar) which is BS and a complete waste of a drivers time, the same driver has YET to run over 450 miles in any given day as he refuses to run nights after 7:00pm.
First thing out of my Mouth was Fire his non truck driving ###.
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Wow, is about all I can say to that

 

OK, stupid question time. I'm to understand that all lds have to be in by thursday to be paid he next Friday? If that is so then how can you get 2 wks pay on a check or am I totally misunderstanding it? As I said stupid question
If noone responds to this I can't say I blame you

 

Example.....Loads in by last thursday from the previous 2 weeks where paid THIS Friday. The week and a day from that thursday to your friday payday PLUS the following week till Thursday goes on the folowing check. Get it?

 

He told me he chatted with you. LOL No he doesn't drink but hes home for one night so I can fix that blood pressure at least for today....after that I am not responsible.

 

You are right they need to be gone, Instead of lowering the bar for all drivers because of idiots like this we need the bar put back up and if you can't or won't reach it your GONE!! drivers like that hurt EVERYBODY!!!