Stevens Transport aviary

Hello kirk cullum how do you like driving for stevens? Have they been good to you for the most part?

 

Well, to catch you all up on my story ...

I was accepted to attend Stevens Driving Academy and went to Dallas to start school.

On the 3rd day we had our DOT physical and I was put on Medical Hold.
I was told that, because of my BMI and neck size, that I would need to go home and have a sleep study done, and then I could come back to school.

I did exactly as they told me to do.
Came home, had a sleep study done.
I do have sleep apnea so my autoCPAP machine arrives this coming Monday.

I call to get set up to come back to school ....

Guess what? She says, "You have to have 6 months of data on the machine before we can bring you back"

WTF?

This is ridiculous !!! Why not tell me that BEFORE I spend all that money?

/Bangs Head Against Wall/

 

yes ive been very happy here,plenty of miles,some of the nicest equipment on the road,for the most part a good company.every transportation company has its bad pts,and its good.its how you adjust to the system that makes the difference.

 

to update on my school loan fiasco.the recruiting department got a hold of the lender and as of today zero balance on my loan,and the negative report on my credit is supposed to be removed,at least that is what i have been told.it takes a while for the credit reports to update,well see what happens.

 

sitting in mt comfort outside of indy.have to drop this hershey load manana at midwest,and my manager keeps telling me im getting a load back to the yard and home.of course thats what he told me on the last delivery,lol.we will see.you know what,im getting tired of watching truck drivers speed through construction zones.thats just total irresponsibility.

 

Congrats kirk on waiting, clearing the head and talking calmly with stevens. Truly hope the bad mark is removed from the credit reports..."trust but verify"

Understand the getting home, Asked for a load out of dallas 2 weeks ago that would allow me to swing by the house for a day, but they would not dispatch me on it...ended up in amarillo.

Started this week in the Northeast, asking to go home, willing to be out for thanksgiving, and let my DM know. He says cool will do. Make my delivery in Mt Sterling IL, plenty of loads around this area going to Cheyenne Wyoming. Champagne IL, Decatur IA, but what do I get, a meat load going to Boston...but wait, I don't have the hours to do it, so they change the load again, Waterloo to Laredo, deliver anytime. Drop at JO's. Still not home, but works with my hours...From laredo...to home only in another universe. Heck at this rate, I will be home for thanksgiving...does me no good, I need to take care of some business, and need to be home during the week, not a holiday.

Stupid drivers, speeding in work zones, and cussing at me to go faster...makes for a interesting conversation on the CB.

 

Finally got my clearance tonight. Took them a couple days to find a part. The exhaust flange just after the recirc pump had failed and I was losing manifold pressure. They tell me this was the reason for the poor performance and my mileage dropping. I was down to 6.5. Was around 7.2.
Exhaust smell is gone from the cab.
Hooked up to a load here in the yard. Leave at 0300 for an 0400 delivery up the road 30 miles in McKinney. Then either a load to Apple Valley or Seattle.
Sure looks strange here with no trailers. Understand there's a bunch of new ones on their way.There is only one partial row of trailers on the lot right now.
They are paranoid about the trailer tires. I see them red tagging virtually every trailer coming on the lot over tires. Mine has 4 brand new ones.
As for the shudder, they think it was related to the exhaust problem. We'll see.
Had a big dog and pony show here yesterday with two trucks and trailers (with skirts) parked at an angle, facing the old man's office. Rumor is they had PacCar in there negotiating another deal for another 500 tractors. Lights were on late in those upper offices. I went to bed at 9PM and they were going strong.
Pat Yarborough told me that while the APUs haven't worked out the way they hoped, they would be keeping them due to all the places with idling restrictions. Seems CSA helped them make that decision.

 

Kirk cullum does stevens hire from michigan? I have seen stevens trucks in Michigan.

 

What's the shift pattern like on the Kenworths compared to a Freightliner or Volvo? Is it tight or loose etc. ?

 

Glad to hear they're getting picky on the tires. I've been riding them on that. As far as paccar goes, if they're going after another 500 tractors, I hope this time they dangle the check in front of the guys and ask for wind tunnel and dynamometer performance tests. In my t2000 I was able to average between 7.8 and 8.2 mpg. This new t700 had been as low as 4.8 and nas never been above 6.8 even when empty. According to sources asked, the company average for the t700 is 6.1. It's putting me out of business fast. I can only imagine what the cost will be to the company.

The story of the guy who just bought the clap and was told to then get six months of data is indicative of planning or the lack of it at stevens. These trucks were apparently purchased without performance data even though it can be scientifically estimated and tested on a dynamometer and wind tunnel. Stevens should know at exactly what rpm and speed will this model of truck perform best. They don't.

Cleggs clap situation should also not have happened. But that's part of the "culture" at stevens that u had been trying to improve since I got here. But alas, it won't change and it will eventually kill the company. If someone I side the walls at stevens is reading this, remember two things. Proper prior planning prevents poor projects.

And...

No one has ever been able to make a great profit with a mediocre product. Eventually the customer wants value, not price. Learn to deliver value and the price will become less important. Think about that the next time you're at a good steak house and say to the family, that you could have had a similar meal at mcdonalds.