Disgusted owner in need of help

Everyone on here is so negative...... This forum makes better entertainment than anything. If it was that bad how are there still trucks on the road? You need to make money to drive those trucks whether they are o/o's or company drivers. I dont believe it is as bad as everyone says. I'm assuming it is only bad to some of these guys because for whatever reason their business isnt working. They might spend too much time on the trucking forums and not enough time trying to get costs down or work on their equipment. Maybe it's harder for some than others, but if on company can do it and make decent money and another company can not and they are hauling the same freight, than the only problem left would be the owner. This is no comment to anyone specific, but a a whole, this forum starts to get way too negative and depressing.

 

Here's my pull on it:

It sounds like you have a decent relationship with the driver and his wife, and that's important. You may want to sit down with them (in person or on a speakerphone), and discuss what everyone's thinking about the situation it's in. What is their uptime ratio, and how long do they sit somewhere waiting for something to happen? If they're sitting too long, then it's costing you far too much in fuel, and them too much in spent time without revenue.

Figure out what your true cost per mile is, including everything going out - and I mean everything - including a brake job the next time it's needed, tires estimated, etc. This is important for everyone involved, for future maintenance and repair planning, and to keep the truck running through a breakdown. Once you have that true cost per mile estimated, it will explain alot about what you need to get per mile, per day, per week, etc. in order to cover the next set of expenses - and what you should make in profit. Unless you need a tax break for something - make sure you're making enough to cover the depreciation on the truck, as they don't get any newer over time.

It sounds like the truck is in decent shape, how capable is the driver about keeping it up - and how much input (oversight) do you have on it? Real daily inspections, and a firm maintenance calendar costs a little to save a LOT. There may be some things that the driver can do himself (like the between service lubes at 8,000 miles) which will give him more exposure to anything going on underneath. Plus, if he knows how to do it properly, you'll both know it was actually done - instead of someone wiping grease on the fittings because he doesn't want to reload the greasegun.

One thing that's imperative is the simple stuff in daily operations - strike the tires when they stop for fuel or whatever - check for leaks under the truck every single day - check the tires with a gauge at least every few days (when they're cold). This stuff may sound obvious, but I feel like the lone ranger when I walk around the truck every stop and bat the tires - few others do it - and just wait until an inner dual comes apart and takes the air bag and lines with it.

The term "over-advanced", and the 50% fuel limit on advances per load may explain themselves, depending on the MPG the truck is turning in. There's been more than a few loads I've run that were close to 50% in fuel alone - and that's at 6mpg. It just depended on when I fueled (might've run the last load without fueling and had it hit the next one), and what the current load was paying. Figure out what the truck is getting overall, and when moving, if it sits too long idling the overall MPG goes into the toilet.

Last, I don't know flatbed freight, and I'll tell you that upfront. Everyone else is saying that it's slowed down alot, and I believe that. If the truck isn't running at least 2k miles per 7 day week, you're probably not making much no matter what - freight doesn't pay what it should.

Forgive me if any of this is obvious, but fuel mileage and proper maintenance is going to get alot of us through this freight slump. Personally, I'd doubt you have any problems right now other than getting enough good paying miles to keep the books rolling. It's a common theme, and I hope it gets better, and fast, for all of us out here.

Best to you and yours!

 

Don't shop at truck stops either. A strap there will cost you up to $50 where Kenworth has the same one or longer for as low as $7.99. Get a national tire account with a real tire store, like Continental. Tires at the truck stops can be nearly $400 each. We get ours for around $260.