Class starting 25 Oct 11

One thing that has been frustrating me is time wasted. You know, that time between your depart receiver and the time you get your next load? Sometimes we wait up to 12 hours to get a load, then find out that we pick up the load in the morning (or evening) pushing the wasted time clock up higher. There are alot of haters that will chastise or even vilify the company for not caring enough. I am more of a business man that troubleshoots the problem to find out what's really going on.

SURPRISE SURPRISE SURPRISE: Prime gave me a tour of our sales department (kinda like an open door policy thing) and let me sit down with a sales rep for TN AL MS (a very busy area) for an hour or so to see how things work.

I sat watching him move from screen to screen looking at each load for each truck that was empty. He looked at the revenue on the load, the drivers HOS clocks, delivery and pickup times and deadhead distances.
* He spent about 3-5 minutes on each truck, and double that for anyone that had home time counters set. I can honestly say that these sales reps have zero time to single out one of five thousand or six thousand trucks to mistreat them. (the opportunity might be there, but I will talk about that later)
* We looked at each truck one by one, checking their HOS, and only once the were empty. Those that were getting unloaded took a second priority, and for good reason. (this is why preplans are so rare)
* Once he checked the truck out, he looked at the computer generated load (they have a program that supposedly finds a good match, but the sales guy says it only finds a good match about 50% of the time) and decides if it is a good load, or if there is a better load.
* He considers pick up and delivery times, revenues, HOS times, and home counters. That's all he really has time to look at, although sometimes he read any FM notes on the truck or pushes questions back to the fleet manager. (another delay)
* Once he picked the best load available, he pushes it to the FM, who is supposed to double check the load, the drivers HOS, and any notes and home counters. It is ultimately the FM's responsibility to catch any problems with the load before it gets to the driver.

While analyzing his operations I had three notes to ALL DRIVERS that slow down the process and increase their wasted time clocks:

1. Make sure that you do your "pick up trailer report" macro 41 as soon as you can. If you do not have a trailer attached to your truck, the sales rep will not look for a load for you.
2. Make sure that your HOS logs are straight. If you don't have hours to pick up any loads available (like 2 hours left on your 11 or 14 clock) you are going to have to wait. Those stops you had and left yourself "on duty" and were going to change them later could cost you a good load. Scrub your logs while you are waiting to be unloaded. If you need a 10hr break, go find a place to park and give the guy a chance to find you a good load while you are sleeping. The sales rep is going to take care of those drivers with hours first. (and that's only fair)
3. Your PTA is set by the FM. Once the sales rep gets done with all of the MT trucks, he starts working on those trucks that are unloading, then the trucks that are close to the receivers. If you don't communicate with your FM about your arrival time (and be honest, because the computer is going to show your distance from the receiver and these guys are not dumb) so that your PTA is accurate. The better you are at estimating your ETA, the more confidence your FM will have in setting your PTA to get that next load.

These sales guys see about 150 trucks every day, and over 1000 in a week. They really don't have time to read QC messages or keep track of one guy that gave them a hard time. They will see a truck with a history of turning down loads, and that is not good. The sales situation is also a very dynamic one, with new loads being posted to their area all the time. The guy I sat with received about one email per minute, most of which were from customers either booking loads, changing appointment times, or creating excuses for drivers missing their appointments. Sometimes waiting on your 10hr break allows the sales rep to receive one of those nice paying loads.

I have been around enough to hear alot of drivers complain about sales and how they hate the drivers, or don't care, or are giving all the good paying loads to the company drivers ETC. After learning what they do I can say that is NOT the case. Sales people don't have a job if you, the DRIVER, are not there to pull the loads that they book. They know this. Their success hinges on YOUR success. Period. They are human, and sometimes make mistakes, but don't we all. Your FM is your go between, and good communication is key to success. Speaking of communication, when you QC bad statements about sales (or anyone else in the company) in caps they can read this. I don't know about you, but if someone is talking bad about me, I am probably not going to try to help them out much. If you want to know more about how things work in the company, just ask. I am sure that if you are looking forward and being positive, the people at Prime will be glad to show you how things work.

 

A couple of new milestones reached recently. My truck has turned over 200k two weeks ago. Had the PM done at the FL in Springfield MO. Found out that there are a few DEF fluid filters on the system and after asking questions found out that they are supposed to be changed every 2 years (regardless of miles). Then I found out that they cost around $115 to change, even though I didn't have 2 years on the truck. (they missed the memo NOT to change them, but hey.. it's done)

Today I picked up my first HAZMAT load. Still waiting on confirmation of the rates, as Prime did not know it was a HAZMAT load. Picked up a spare placard, made sure the bills were correct, got my HAZMAT book in the door and inspected the trailer thoroughly.

 

Shipper refused to open the load to loadlock the load. I did secure the signs. My trainer then told me if you take a small pebble and put it behind the crossbar, then slide it to the edge it secures the sign.

 

A lot has happened since my last post. I have now trained 3 students through the PSD program with 2 of them scoring the Trifecta on their CDL hands on test. One fumbled on the road test, but recovered the next day. I am now training my 4th permit holder, with the challenge of having a student with English as a second language. So far, not much of a barrier but I am always watching for any misunderstanding.

As for the truck, I am at 249,000 miles and just upgraded to a fully synthetic oil on my PM. It cost $200 extra, but I will soon start testing the oil before I change it.

I finally had to change my drive tires at 217k for my front drives and 227k for my rear drives. I opted for used tires, half way down the tread. This is better, because first: I know the tires are not out of round, second: they are half the price, and third: I won't lose 0.5 MPG like with new tires.

 

I am hoping... We will see after 30 days.