Thoughts About These Reefer Companies

I can't speak for the others, but so far Central has been good for me. They really are safety conscience and so-far haven't tried to get me to push me or the truck past our limits.

Bottom line is you need to research all of them. Pick the one that beat suites your needs and make it work for you. As I have said before this industry is whatnot is and what you make of it.. If you don't get behind the wheel with unrealistic expectations you probably won't be disappointed.

 

Stevens probably has the youngest fleet.
Also equips all their trucks with APUs and Inverters.
Excellent safety programs and good sales, so getting miles isn't a problem.
Very good training program as well.

 

JBS, had a couple of guys from my company go over there and love it..... their an in-house carrier for their own product...

 

I would say jbs.

 

The best reefer companies are the smaller ones that pay percentage.

I never enjoyed trucking more than my produce days. Long hauls, good money and other perks.

The meat business is okay for the miles, but you are always running tired. You spend more hours waiting on your loads as they chop things up. It takes alot of slaughters to get a load of one product. Then you run hard late night most times as it's a perishable that has to get there.

All those you listed Gryphon except JBS are grocery haulers. They operate just like a van operation from warehouse to customer. JBS is a meat hauler. Actually it's JB Swift of Swift meats which deal in alot of pork products from what I hauled. I use to go to the Swift plant in Marshalltown, IA all the time and absolutely hated going there. They are alot like Tyson. They take care of their own and could care less about the contractors. So if you haul meat, you are better off working straight for the company and not one of the contractors.

 

jbs drivers are treated no differently then the outside companies...im a current jbs driver...

 

I drive for US Foods and was surprised to see JB Hunt DCS (Dedicated Contract Service) delivering to a Q'doba restaurant across the street from my stop. I thought Hunt was an OTR dry haul company.

Probly don't fit here, but I thought I'd throw in my 2 cents.

 

I was looking at Central but their Idle policy really sucks ###. Let's say you are stuck in Texas on Rest or waiting for load/unload. It is 117 degrees and humid as all hell.
Central does not want you to idle. They can and will charge you to idle. take it out of your check, and they refuse to look at installing APU's. After discovering this, I chose Swift over Central.

 

All Stevens trucks have APUs and Inverters.
Stay cool in the summer, warm in the winter.