I have a question, a new job that I got, P&D Freight.

Discussion in 'Questions From New Drivers' started by boojes11, Mar 1, 2015.

  1. boojes11

    boojes11 Bobtail Member

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    I got this new job, been doing for around a month, I'm used of doing, food service, I used to work for Sysco foods
    here in California, east bay, so I got tired of all the back breaking and being micro managed for time,food service
    so now I got into freight,I do P&D work in the city,San Francisco,ya I was the new guy so got stuck with San Francisco rout,
    okay the question is before I leave I inspect the freight to make sure its secure and everything is loaded in the wright place
    so what could I do if lets say I have to big crates on the back of my truck and its my first stop, I'm talking about crates
    that weigh about five hundred and something pounds a piece, and there wright at the tail of my trailer blocking all of
    my other stops, I know that I'm going to need some help with theses and I look and see that there the extra long crates
    I don't know if the place I'm going to is going to have a forklift to get them out so I pay it no mind and I leave with them,
    and I fined out that there being delivered to a restaurant and no dock no forklift and the lift gate on my pup is not that big
    so I ask the person if he can give me a hand and the guy is already upset cause ,come to find out he was supposed to get them
    the day before and so he had a few men there and he said he would get them, and he couldn't really do anything with him and
    two other men so the only way is to unscrew the crates and so that's what we did but I had called the boss up and asked and the boss
    said he under stood the product was supposed to get delivered the day before just get them off so i end up staying there for around one
    hour and a half first stop on a Friday, but good thing I only had like 6 or else,then the guy,I had told him that the garbage is staying here
    that's part of his delivery I had told him when he was half way with taking apart the first one,and he said that he has no place for them then
    I told him I'm not keeping them I have no room for them and he told me will figure something out and long story short,he end up
    taking his four tables out and then going into his restaurant and not coming back out and I ended up having all that mess at the end of my trailer
    having to fight with all that wood and screws.
     
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  3. G.Anthony

    G.Anthony Road Train Member

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    If you have freight blocking what needs to come off first, then you have at the very least 3 choices.

    Go to deliver out of order, to those places to get thier freight off.

    Have the first stop remove the blocking freight, and reload

    DO not leave your loading dock, until you check that all your stops are in order, and if not, have YOUR dock workers change them, BEFORE you leave?
     
  4. KW Cajun

    KW Cajun Road Train Member

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    OP, you really need to break that into coherent sentences. I'm bug-eyed from trying to read it.
    G.Anthony, I don't think that was what he was primarily asking. Seemed more about the crating 'trash'.

    The receiver should have had ample arrangements to receive the crates, even if shipment was delayed by one day.
    The crates are the receiver's responsibility, not yours. The crate pieces/trash should have been left with him, whether he likes it or not.
    The crates were part of HIS product and HIS delivery.
     
    bubbagumpshrimp Thanks this.
  5. bubbagumpshrimp

    bubbagumpshrimp Medium Load Member

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    The most important piece of advice that I can give you about P&D driving (was given to me on day one)...is that customers will abuse you if you let them. Many of them are inconsiderate people that don't give a flying **** that you have 15+ stops to get off and need to make 5+ pickups. Many of them have never worked a blue collar job, are incapable of empathizing with someone that they view as "the help," and they only care about their piece of freight. They'll ask you to stand around 20+ minutes while they call a shipper about their order screw-up and not give it a second though.

    If you give them an inch...they'll take a mile. If we're talking about a big/important client...sure...flex on some things. i.e. Generally...LTL freight = curbside delivery. However, if it's not a huge issue for you (you can roll the pallet an extra 20' and make their day)...do it. If you can take an empty pallet and it's not a huge imposition...do it. However, for MOST stops...the customers freight is the customers freight. That includes the pallet.

    Hanging out while the customer breaks down their freight...big no no. Not just in my opinion, but in the opinion of MOST experienced P&D drivers that you'll talk to. Sure..if there's visible damage to the customers freight and it's obvious that they'll need to file a damage claim...sure...hang out for a few minutes while they remove the packaging, call your terminal to get a claim number, and go from there.

    As far as large crates go (so large that you can't possibly maneuver them out onto the lift gate)...don't leave the terminal without your freight loaded in a location to where you can get to it. That's been a big issue for my terminal lately (some shake-ups for the dock crew) and it becomes a HUGE headache for the drivers once they get out on a route if the trailer isn't loaded properly. Sure...the dock guys screwed up your load-out, but as the driver...you're responsible for ensuring that all freight is loaded and you can get to it prior to departing the terminal.
     
    KW Cajun Thanks this.
  6. KW Cajun

    KW Cajun Road Train Member

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    bubbagumpshrimp nailed it! Heed his words or forever be making P&D harder on yourself, than it needs to be.
     
  7. G.Anthony

    G.Anthony Road Train Member

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    Oh, ok, as you say to the o/p, be more coherent, so like I do "skip shifting", I had to do "skip reading"!!
     
    KW Cajun Thanks this.
  8. Allow Me.

    Allow Me. Trucker Forum STAFF Staff Member

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    That's one of the hassles of P&D or LTL freight. You will have various types of freight and delivery locations. Some have docks, some are "inside" deliveries, some have forklifts, some are curbside deliveries while double parked. The receiver only knows that he ordered some tables from the manufacturer with a Thursday delivery. Now they're showing up a day late VIA truck. In a perfect world you would unload his crates to his backdoor and get signed paperwork and leave. The other thing is your dock workers load the trucks, so complain to them if not loaded correctly. I remember one company I did LTL deliveries, we had a customer who received cases of wine. His wine store was downtown La Jolla near San Diego upstairs from some narrow alley entrance. We loved that place. We had to put his 25 cases of wine in a pick-up truck to make the delivery, get as close as possible to the walkway to his store wheel in 5 cases at a time by hand truck, all the while keeping an eye on the cases in the back of the pick-up truck un-attended so no one would steal them.
     
  9. boojes11

    boojes11 Bobtail Member

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    Oct 5, 2013
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    thank you very much that was some good information,I can use that in the future.
     
  10. boojes11

    boojes11 Bobtail Member

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    Oct 5, 2013
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    true true to that thanks buddy.
     
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