My New Adventures At Beacon Transport

So day 2 is in the books and orientation is done. All is left to do is to apply for my TWIC card tomorrow which should be no problem. I have to say it is quite a change for me. I am used to all the technology in the trucks and so much I guess you would call it automation. There is definitely a small company feel here. I like what I have seen so far but I will admit it will be a major adjustment for me. I will try to list a few of them here. To start with there is no navigo system on the Qualcomm. You must Supply your own GPS. We have preferred fuel stops however they are not mandatory you may fuel at any Flying J or Pilot location outside the state of Georgia. They give you a fueling handbook that basically list every Flying J and pilot in the United States. I was amazed at the simplicity of the macros on the Qualcomm system. We had 76 macros at my old job. Here we only have 22. There is no information to enter into the system when you are picking up or dropping off a load. All the information is already there. You will simply enter arrived or departing. Very simple. At CT I had to enter the BOL and numerous other BS. Having said that you are required too write the mileage and Interstate every time you cross a state line. They are Petty about sealing the trailers. They like for you to have a witness sign the bills that you Sealed the trailer. You are also issued a padlock. Any trailer that is sealed must also be pad locked. I thought it was kind of weird butt I know every company has their own way of doing things. No truck is driven more than 400,000 miles before it is traded. Mine currently has 178,000. We have very few 10 speeds left. And by spring the fleet will be 100% automatic. The people here are really nice. If there is an A-hole here I haven't met them. If you're looking for a company with a small company feel where everyone knows who you are and everyone will listen to what you have to say I think Beacon is the place to be. I am not saying they will agree with you every time but at least they will let you speak your peace. As I stated in my previous post. The trucks have very few driver amenities. There is no refrigerator. There is no GPS. There is no satellite radio and there is no satellite TV. They have no objection to the driver supplying these things himself. They only ask that there is no physical modifications to the truck such as cutting cabinets and drilling holes. If you're looking for a company that is up-to-date with the latest cutting-edge technology Beacon is not where you will want to be. Personally this will be an adjustment for me. I really don't mind supplying my own stuff. Surprisingly the mattress that is supplied with the truck is relatively thick and comfortable. Your truck is washed and detailed if you request it when you hit the yard. Drivers here seem to be pretty happy with the job. I have yet to talk to One driver who complains about low miles. There is no chaining at this company. If it's bad enough to chain it's too bad for you to be on the road. I found the benefits to be pretty average. The medical insurance sucks which is true about anywhere these days. The vacation is not awful but it is one week after one year two weeks after five years and three weeks after 8 years. Personally I think five years is too long to wait for 2 weeks vacation time. But like I said I'll take the good with the bad. If I can stay moving every week and earn a nice paycheck I can live with the small things. As promised my first dispatch is through the house. I rode the bus so it was not feasible for me to bring the things I need for my truck. So I would sum it up like this. If you're looking for a company that pays reasonably well and gives you plenty of miles per week and you don't mind supplying your truck with the things you need then I think most drivers would be happy here. Unlike my last company I have noticed there is very little micromanagement going on at Beacon. At CT I was not allowed to drive my truck home. When I asked Beacon where I needed to park my truck they said as long as you have room park it at your house. Now I'm looking forward to not having to drive 60 miles one way to get my truck. Their philosophy is pretty simple. The operations manager said to me today you are the professional not me. You sit behind the wheel I sit behind a desk. I'm not questioning your judgment call. If you don't tear up the truck and keep the customers happy I promise you will never hear a word from us. I should also mention the Comdata cards. Your Comdata card is loaded with $100 every Thursday. You may use that hundred dollars anyway you want. If you are running a little short on cash that week you can simply borrow it from the Comdata card and of course they will deduct it from your next check. You may also use it for things like tolls or to scale loads. Simply turn in the receipts to get reimbursed. We use EZ Pass but of course some of you know it is not accepted in all states. I like what I see so far and I am excited for the new adventure and hopefully make a steady paycheck.

 

Nope. It's basically any pilot or Flying J. But they do have some of those that are preferred and they ask that you use them if you can. Butt it's not a requirement. They just want you to save them a little money when you get the opportunity.