Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
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52 COMMERCIAL CARRIER JOURNAL | NOVEMBER 2016 by purchasing a new o ce facility in October 2013. Orscheln says the facility's design embodies the company's ideals with new investments in technology in- tended to make lives better for drivers and other employees. Driver Tours Drivers at OrTran traditionally had been on the road for three weeks at a time. e company used a shotgun approach to load planning, Gallup says, and its an- nual turnover rate exceeded 100 percent in 2013. Management took a closer look at its freight network to match customer and driver schedules in a way that would en- able drivers to be home every two weeks without a productivity loss. is led to the next breakthrough, where OrTran could guarantee drivers they would be home every weekend and keep their average weekly miles between 2,500 and 2,700. e most recent iteration was creating "Driver Tours." Each day, drivers can return home a er completing a round trip of about 500 miles. A driver takes a load 250 miles out, drops it and hooks up to another loaded trailer at the midpoint or nal destination, and makes a return trip of 250 miles. Kansas City, Mo., is the main pivot point in the Driver Tours network. e rst tour started by setting up a secure drop lot in Muskogee, Okla., halfway between OrTran's customer shipping and receiving facilities in Kansas City and Dallas. is freight lane has a dis- tance of 500 miles, and drivers assigned to this tour are based in Kansas City and Muskogee. e company since has started new Driver Tour lanes from Kansas City to St. Louis; Wichita, Kan.; and Crete, Neb. Another pivot point in the network is St. Louis with a Driver Tour to Indianapolis. It presently is working on a new tour between Indianapolis and Atlanta. OrTran uses slip-seat operations for Driver Tours to maximize asset utiliza- tion. Its trucks average more than 3,400 miles per week between two driver shi s. One group might start a shi at 6 a.m. from Kansas City and another at 6 p.m. In addition to having a new recruiting pitch for drivers, the company is able to use the business model to tell a story to customers. Management sometimes uses the story as a reminder that any delays in loading or unloading could prevent driv- ers from getting home due to hours-of- service restrictions, Orscheln says. "Customers want it to succeed," he says. However, transitioning to the new model has come with some setbacks. Orscheln and Gallup made the changes as the freight market so ened, and about 80 percent of the o ce sta has been either downsized due to eco- nomic reasons or turned over as the eet has become more e cient with technology. Another di culty has been keeping the company's network of Driver Tours balanced. "It is hurting us, and we have to be careful of deadhead," he says. "Some- times we send drivers home empty, but at least we are trying something new." Comparing results OrTran presently runs 60 trucks and 100 drivers, and in terms of power units, the company is half the size it was in 2013. It now is growing with plans to reach 100 trucks and be more e cient than before its strategic reset, Orscheln says. Compared to 2013, the company's overhead is down $250,000 a month, while fuel costs have dropped $31,000 per month. Operating expenses are down and revenues are up over the past three years. Driver recruiting has improved because OrTran now is able to attract a younger and more professional group of drivers, Gallup says. e new business model also has made it possible to be more selective in whom the company retains. "We are at a point now where we are replacing guys that we would tradition- ally keep," he says. "Operationally, things are much better. We are not dealing with chronic issues." In 2013, the company had an inter- nal sta of two recruiters and also used outside recruiters. Today, its recruiting expenses are down by $40,000 a month with only one internal recruiter on sta , Gallup says. OrTran's driver turnover currently is 14 percent a month, but Orscheln ex- pects it will go down as drivers get used to the additional responsibilities that come with the new work schedules that get them home every day. With a so economy in 2016, the com- pany has not seen signi cant nancial returns from the changes it has made to improve employees' lives, but leadership believes it is moving in the right direction. "We can't say we've been successful yet, but we are trying to do something di er- ent," Orscheln says. CC J I N N O VATO R S pro les carriers and eets that have found innovative ways to overcome trucking's challenges. If you know a carrier that has displayed innovation, contact Je Crissey at jcrissey@ccjmagazine.com or 800-633-5953. OrTran revamped its freight network to match customer and driver schedules to enable drivers to be home more often without a productivity loss.