Schneider Oil Field Truck Driver Jobs/ The Texas shales and beyond

Discussion in 'Oilfield Trucking Forum' started by Rockdoctor, Jun 4, 2012.

  1. Rockdoctor

    Rockdoctor Medium Load Member

    I'm starting this thread for one simple reason- to update you on an opportunity to break into the largest energy boom in decades. You may be fresh out of CDL school, and like me you do not wish to drive OTR. I want to show you where the future jobs in trucking are and where a CDL driver with little to no experience can get started. I hope this forum becomes a place where students right out of CDL school, those who have little driving experience and no oil services experience, and those who want to leave OTR can educate themselves on this exciting opportunity.

    Shale is a rock found all over the world and some of it has been known to hold vast amounts of energy but that energy was stuck in place. Technology created right here in the USA by engineers combined horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing (fracking) to release this energy so we can harvest it.

    If you look at the map I have attached to this thread, you can see all the "energy zones" located across the USA. Some of these zones have been in production for only a few short years and new zones are coming on line at this time. We already know there is a shortage of qualified CDL drivers in America and the energy shale boom is putting a greater strain on the CDL labor market.

    Schneider National is the largest privately owned trucking company in the USA. It has been around for over 75 years. When you graduate from school with your CDL and you call around to seek employment, you will hear trucking companies say "I can't hire you because you have no experience." What they are really saying is "My insurance would be too expensive if I employed fresh CDL drivers so I'm not going to do that." Schneider is self insured so they are willing to take a chance on new drivers.

    Schneider has entered the energy services industry to fill the demand these "energy zones" have created. Some of their clients include:

    Schlumberger formed a relationship with Schneider in early 2011. At first drivers were needed to transport well services equipment. Later Schneider also began providing pneumatic sand services to Schlumberger. Through this relationship they employ drivers in the Bakken Shale (ND), Marcellus Shale (NY), Eagle Ford Shale (South Texas), and the Permian Basin (West TX & NM).

    British Petroleum formed a relationship with Schneider in early 2012. This account provides lease level loading and transportation of crude oil. Currently Schneider loads at four lease sites and delivers to four locations. This account is based out of the Eagle Ford Shale specifically in the Corpus Christi area.

    GeoSouthern formed a relationship with Schneider in early 2011. This account provides LACT loading and transportation of crude oil (condensate). What started with 2 trucks and 4 drivers has grown to over 70 trucks and 140 drivers in just under 1 year. GeoSouthern is now Schneider bulk's 3rd largest customer. This account is based out of the Eagle Ford Shale specifically Victoria and Cuero, TX.

    As this forum develops I hope to hear specifically from Schneider oil field truck drivers on these various accounts and new accounts being created so others can gain from their knowledge and enter the oil services industry.
     

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  3. Rockdoctor

    Rockdoctor Medium Load Member

    I'm on the GeoSouthern account. As I stated before I am a CDL driver who was fresh out of school. I did not attend CDL school to become a trucker, I pursued my CDL to drive a truck in the energy services industry. While in school I obtained tanker and hazmat endorsements and I applied for and received a TWIC card. After I finished school Schneider offered me an opportunity and I now live in Victoria TX and haul crude oil (condensate) from Cuero, TX to various sites. I love the job and I am thankful to have it. There are many companies out there desperate for drivers but due to their insurance issue, they simply can't hire a CDL graduate.

    The account in Victoria has grown to over 140 drivers and they are still hiring. I know at this time they would prefer to send a CDL graduate to one of their other energy services accounts and why not look into that. You can always get some great training and experience then move to an account you desire or go to another company. I hear if you have 6 months experience or more then you are what they are seeking for this crude hauling account.

    I have heard that Schneider needs to hire 90 drivers for their energy services accounts across Texas right now. They are holding a job seminar in Bay City, TX on June the 12th from 10am-4pm. They are looking for experienced drivers and recent driving school grads.

    The pay for most of these accounts is better than what an OTR driver makes. I know I would have to drive about 3600 miles OTR each week to make this kind of money. On top of that I get to sleep in my own bed every night.

    If you have any questions feel free to ask or send me a private message. If you work or plan to work on another Schneider oil services account please add your feedback and experience here.

    Thanks!
     
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  4. SJ1985

    SJ1985 Bobtail Member

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    May 3, 2012
    Westminster, CA
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    Thanks for the info. I sent you a PM with a couple of questions. Thank you.
     
  5. Rockdoctor

    Rockdoctor Medium Load Member

    I've been asked certain questions a lot so thought I would put it out there for everyone to see.

    A typical day on the GeoSouthern account we work 6 days on and 2 days off. Some go getters work 6 days on with 1 day off. We work a steady shift and you are expected to work no less than 10 hours but no more than 12 hours. The shifts start every two hours and you get assigned to a shift, say 9am-9pm, and you stay on that shift. You always know well in advance when you work and when you don't and you sleep in your own bed every night.

    During a shift you will show up at the yard 15 min before your shift starts and meet your driver leader which is your shift boss. There are about 10-12 drivers on a shift and that is your team. There are a lot of great guys on my team and they will help you out any way they can. Your driver leader will have sets of keys (we slip seat, the trucks are always moving) you sign in, pick a set of keys, and head to your truck. Sometimes your truck is preloaded and sometimes it is empty. From there you will pretrip then head out to pick up if you are empty or deliver if you are preloaded.

    We pick up in Cuero, TX 99% of the time and sometimes Yorktown. We deliver 95% of the time to the Port of Victoria or Point Comfort, TX. You may make a run to Corpus Christ or Long Mott. We use the customer's equipment to pick up and deliver. We do not use the truck's pumps or hoses, we simply hook up a couple of hoses at the site and turn about 3 to 5 valves. It usually takes about 30 min once you start loading. Some places we unload can take 40 min to an hour once you hook up.

    On a real good night where everything runs smooth I will pick up and deliver 2 loads. You should be able to do at least 1 to 1.5 loads in 10 hours. That includes driving and waiting, and believe me if you don't like waiting don't apply to this job!! Sometimes I have 12 trucks ahead of me waiting to load and it take 2 hours to get in and load. Sometimes I try to deliver and will have 18 trucks in front of me. It can take 3 hours or more before I deliver. The most I have ever waited to make a delivery was 6 hours. Usually when you wait that long people just hang out and talk, some bring guitars and learn to play them in their truck. One guy was taking online classes!

    Schneider trucks are governed at 60 MPH. Get use to other companies passing you on the highways but the good news is that you are not being rushed. When you see you have worked about 10 hours you have to decide if you can go and get another load or deliver the load you have so you stay under 12 hours. If not then head back to the yard, do a post-trip (make sure you leave the inside of your truck clean for the next driver ;) ) then drop your key and paperwork off and head home.

    As far as paperwork goes, we have three documents we fill out for each load we pick up. That takes maybe 10 min and you can do it in the staging area while you wait to go in and get loaded. Schneider uses Qualcomm so drivers are on electronic logs which is very convenient.

    I guess the most difficult part of the job is climbing up and down the ladder of your tanker several times a day, looking out for the bad drivers on the road, and waiting around a lot. Most everything else is simple and so far I really enjoy the job.
     
    Last edited: Jun 6, 2012
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  6. pokerperv

    pokerperv Light Load Member

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    Apr 23, 2012
    romeo,mi
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    Thanks Rockdoctor for starting this thread im really looking into the oil fields for Schneider once im done with my cdl school.
     
  7. kdc1899

    kdc1899 Light Load Member

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    Feb 23, 2012
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    South Central Texas is a good place for schnieder. Fairly flat. Fair weather. No steep grades.
    Hauling fluid ain't no joke. Big orange hiring newbies and illegals so they can drive down rates and put Americans out of business just so they can plunder marketshare is a reciepe for disaster on 5 - 9 percent grade lease "roads" and incliment weather.
    It's not the insurance companies so much as it is the energy companies that require companies that bid on transport contracts to have seasoned off road/bad weather drivers to haul the products that they contract out. Big energy up in the bakken and elsewhere that has similar dangerous driving conditions will not even let the big OTR rate raping companies bid on transportation contracts. Some drillers and frackers are using seasoned Swift drivers to transport equipment to well sites and to pick them up a month later when they are done.
    Energy companies will pay up for the experienced drivers now and soon enough they will have most wells pipelined to central hubs that will either load on to a train or a intrastate pipeline.
     
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  8. Rockdoctor

    Rockdoctor Medium Load Member

    kdc1899, I can tell you have lots of OPINIONS but you are short on FACTS.

    1) One of Schneider's first energy accounts was hauling/moving equipment for Schlumberger in NORTH DAKOTA. Maybe you have heard of Schlumberger they are THE largest oil services company in the world.

    2) We don't have any ILLEGALS on our account in Victoria. In fact I have been fingerprinted 3 times for HAZMAT and TWIC card. You can't work in Schneider's tanker division if you do not have citizenship here in the USA. I've met a Mexican and a guy from New Zealand, they are working in the van division LEGALLY for Schneider while they wait for their citizenship to be finalized.

    3) Schneider is not driving down wages, in fact I have only been on this account for a few months and my bonus went up 100%.

    Fact is people like kdc1899 probably shop at Wal-Mart and drive jobs overseas but if a big company gets involved in their profession they yell "HELP ME, my wages are being driven down". Meanwhile the people working at Schneider in the energy field are doing our part to help make AMERICA ENERGY INDEPENDENT.


     
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  9. pokerperv

    pokerperv Light Load Member

    240
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    Apr 23, 2012
    romeo,mi
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    I shop at Wal-Mart lol i love that phrase "the people working ar Schneider in the energy field are doing our part to make American Energy Independent"
     
  10. misc

    misc Light Load Member

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    Mar 18, 2010
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    You are slip-seating. If you weren't slip-seating, you would have an assigned truck you didn't share with anyone else.

    What is Schneider billing per hour for the truck?
     
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  11. AllieCat

    AllieCat Light Load Member

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    Apr 9, 2012
    San Antonio, TX
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    I've applied with Schneider for the tanker position, but still need to get my tanker and hazmat exam done. I work for an insurance company and am only able to take a partial day off on Friday's to get exams done. Just when I felt ready....last Friday ALL TX DPS locations computer systems were down. :biggrin_25523: Sitting around for hours getting nothing done....ugh. :biggrin_25516: I graduated from the weekend program at Roadmaster 5/17 and can't wait to get back in the truck! Was still debating on if I really want to relocate to Victoria. Rockdoctor...with all your info, it just seems to make the decision easier for me to tell SNI that I'm willing to go. Since I'm a newbie, they stated that I would not get help with relocating BUT looking forward to starting fresh in a new place.
     
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