The Food Service Rant thread

Cardfan I'll let you know when the first draft of my book comes out LOL! I should put something together using Microsft word see how many people read it. I don't want to make some big boring dissertation though talking about the history of the frozen french fry, which actually has quite the history.

In other news went to the gun store today got my new flashlight it's super cool. Still waiting for my Bell+Howell Tac-Lights to arrive.

Did some other odds and ends stuff today as well nothing great. Have to finish packing for next week. Just need to wash a uniform and that's about it. Watched the 1999 Stanley Kubreck Film "Eye's Wide Shut" today gosh I don't know all the "Steamy" Movies on Netflix are rated at one star or worse and I've seen some especially the foreign one's and that's about what they deserve, gosh just some bad film making. To much angst for me. I'll have to switch on a real film like Top Gun instead of these French and German "artists" films although the sub titles do not bother me I try to listen to the words and see how much of it I can pick up. Anyhow that's enough boring nonsense from me.

 

Mike, I'm curious what the perception is of the DV branch. I know we sent out a request for support to the whole company recently and go no responses so I was curious what kind of word is starting to spread out in your area. I've been here since before the warehouse was built, it's been interesting to watch the changes.

 

Douglasville? I don't know anything about them really. I thought they were mostly chains or at least that's what they were looking for. Seriously nobody ever talks about Douglasville or either warehouses that came along with the Glazier Foods Buy Out. I know Tennessee I think gets loads from Douglasville, and not Sheaprdsville anymore. When I signed up to go help I swear the choices they gave me were Boston, Aberdeen and Huston I don't remember Douglasville even being a choice.

Douglasville and Greeneville are two warehouses who's names are never mentioned, Green Oak isn't talked a lot about either, but Green Oak is just I think for the most part a volume truck warehouse same with Greeneville which is just a chain warehouse mostly.

I heard Douglasville or Atlanta? Has some 36' which is not real real common for GFS, but GFS has bought out it's fair share of companies and because of that equipment gets mixed and matched.

 

That's interesting that DV/Atlanta wasn't mentioned as a location needing support. Yes, we send loads to the Manchester drop yard to run routes that we used to run (I actually used to do several different Huntsville, Nashville, and Knoxville routes that they all do now.). DV is about 50/50 chain and SS, with the SS side growing and Chain stagnating. Chain just lost Hooters and PF Changs but picked up Jim n Nicks.

We were supposed to be automated from day 1 but that seems to be being pushed further and further out now. SS got some (3 I think) 36s, bought them new for school routes. It's been a real rough go with management changes down here and lack of cases/pay. Do you guys have much competition for business or drivers out there in Ohio?

 

Well Ohio and Michigan and all of it up north in the midwest is all old school GFS with 28' trailers. We have a major warehouse in Springfield, Ohio as far as Cleveland were just a drop yard and as far as competition goes were not small potatoes, but our market share isn't huge huge huge Cleveland is a major market every major food service company US Foods, Sysco they both have actual warehouse warehouses here in Cleveland. Sysco Cleveland does half the state of Ohio and is every bit of 100 trucks if not more. US Foods is probably 40-50 trucks not really sure, but they have a warehouse in Twinsburg, Ohio and have a yard there full of tractors and trailers.

We also are home to local and regional companies like Northern Haserot Brandt and big time local supplier Hilcrest Foods as well as Atlantic and Avalon from the Akron-Canton, Ohio area. Were only 23 routes in northern Ohio. However there is a lot of GFS cross traffic volume truck and chain runs from Imperial, Brightion, Springfield and Shepardsville.

We do not really do much with chains at all that's all volume truck and warehouse stuff run directly out of the warehouse. Were just pretty much broadline accounts. In the school year our case counts go up and we do alright. Usually 600-900 900 being on the heavy side though and not the norm usually 600-700 during the school year. Now when schools out those numbers can go up down and all around. For a while I was riding two days in a row however that hasn't happened for the past couple weeks now with guys being on vacation etc etc.

Our warehouse that we get our loads from in Imperial, PA has been opened a couple months over a year now it was a little rough at first, but things have gotten better however they seem to go through good and rough patches there. They will do good for a while then they will go through a rough patch and then they start doing good again, but for the most part there work is passable and our 23 code numbers are actually pretty low sooo I guess it's alright.

We haven't had anyone quit lately so I guess our driver roster isn't to bad so were holding steady.

School start up though might be a bit rough though, but usually it levels out after a while.

I'm shipping out to Aberdeen, Maryland today so I'll be working down there this week see what they have me doing.

 

Alright guys I'm out I'll see you all later today or later in the week be safe out there and have a nice rest of the weekend.

 

Alright hi everyone I'm back. Had all kinds of things going on this past week in Maryland it was a pretty productive week learned a whole heck of a lot.

They have a yard full of brand new trucks and trailers down there in Maryland. Friday morning were getting ready to leave the warehouse, the trailer is loaded up cubed to the back and it's strange because the total cube was only 600 something which is only a little over halfway, but that loading just had the whole trailer cubed all the way to the back.

Anyhow we get into the truck and the previous driver had run it out of oil and washer fluid and diesel fluid. So were off to a real good start. After farting around as an old boss of mine used to say I said enough of this go to the Sunoco Truck Stop on Maryland state route 40 I'll set this right. I've got special super powers that the warehouse drivers don't have LOL!

So I went in and threw $200.00 on the Comdata card and then went on my company credit card and bought a couple gallons of oil. Got the truck a full tank and enough oil to get through the day even though 2 gallons probably barely enough to touch the dip stick, but that's how it goes.

Anyhow got some more cool picture for my book about food distribution you guys will love it when the first volume comes out!

 

Well back at work today, back here at home, fun in the sun. My truck had some unauthorized body work done to it while I was away *sigh* .

Oh well, what are you going to do...

 

Tomorrow I'm going to try to go to Columbus, Ohio to get a new two wheeler they have a place that has Wyse hand trucks on sale I need another one for the upcoming year.

 

Myself and two other drivers were assigned to other trucks on Saturday because our boss had gotten a call from Penske saying the trucks had too many miles on them. I got my regular truck the beginning of last August and had racked up 61k miles in that year. I had yesterday off and come back in this morning and find myself back in normal truck. I asked what was going on and all I was told was "somebody misunderstood something". Fine. Whatever. I'm just glad to be back in "my" truck.
As for hand trucks, I'm on my second one in the two years I've been there. The first cart I had came with one tire that could pass for a racing slick. When I asked the boss if they had any spare tires for the cart he pointed at a line of "beater" carts and told me to take my pick and that would be my new cart. So a year later and making a few repairs to it(new bushings, new rear supports and some screws and nuts to fix a piece of metal that ran down the front of the cart) and she is as good as new.