A Story of Shortages and Price Fluctuations It starts with the turn of the key, and in a flash – potential energy is converted to kinetic energy. A distinct smell of diesel fills the air as professional drivers begin their journey – all thanks to the firing of a few cylinders beneath the hood. For
By Frank Gambino The 732-billion-dollar question on everyone’s mind…where is the trucking industry really headed? After all, it’s no secret that most forecasts have looked something like a heart monitor at a haunted house with rising and falling that has experts scratching their heads at what could possibly come next. There are many factors that
Ready for Prime time While online shoppers wait for Amazon to release official dates for Prime Day, shippers have a deadline to work with: sellers that use Amazon’s fulfillment program (FBA, or Fulfillment by Amazon) have until June 20 to get their Prime Day goods into Amazon distribution centers. Last week Amazon also announced Buy with Prime, a service where third-party
By Verlen Larsen Whether it’s an unknown football team defeating an established champion or a newcomer athlete knocking an unbeatable opponent off their pedestal, we all love rooting for the plucky underdog with heart. But you’re not an underdog anymore. Now that you’ve grown your fleet to 20-200 vehicles, you’re steadily racing to the front
Pumped up fuel prices The benchmark diesel price that the trucking industry uses to calculate fuel surcharges hit a new record on Monday. The Dept. of Energy/Energy Information Administration weekly retail diesel price jumped 74.5 cents to $4.85 per gallon, 9 cents higher than the previous record on July 14, 2008. Fuel prices are up everywhere but
This week we celebrate Veterans Day and give thanks to the men and women who served honorably in the armed forces of the United States. Of the approximately 9 million veterans employed across the U.S. economy, 10.3% are in commercial transportation. Today more than ever, the industry needs people who know how to solve problems under pressure. Here are some points to consider if you’re
The North American supply chain has an increasing problem with port congestion, leading to fluctuating consumer goods inventories. The more our team examined this issue; it became clear the problems were taking on a snowball effect spreading through the supply chain from the shipper to the consumer, and everyone in between. There are many questions
More than just compliance. Transflo T-series ELDs are built on an open platform that can be custom fit to your fleet. It’s an easy-to-install device that pairs with the Transflo Mobile+ trucking app and provides real-time GPS tracking, vehicle monitoring, and more.
“Do you want to solve the driver shortage?” Asking this question will likely result in a 50/50 split of answers in the trucking industry. It might also ignite a spontaneous debate: Does the industry have a driver shortage problem or a driver retention problem? Both answers are correct. Driver shortages have always been a problem for motor carriers, but the labor supply has only gotten worse during pandemic challenges and setbacks. The number of tractor-trailer drivers on fleet payrolls was 1,797,710 in May 2020, which was 58,420 less than May 2019. As many fleets can attest, some drivers took time off during the
In every T.V. classic, the characters repeat a common refrain after narrowly avoiding disaster: “Phew! That was a close call.” In the trucking business, close calls don’t elicit nearly the same reaction. Close calls are often shrugged off or go unnoticed, leading to bigger trouble down the road. In the previous blog in Transflo’s Fleet Safety series, we discussed how data, like