Quest for Quality - TRUCKLOAD: Influential long-haulers

-- Logistics Management, 8/1/2008

Thanks to our Sponsors CRST International

2008 Quest for Quality Awards: 25th Annual Quest for Quality Awards: Delivering on the promise THIRD-PARTY LOGISTICS: Shifting in the polls FREIGHT FORWARDERS: Foreign policy titans AIR CARRIERS: Delivering under pressure OCEAN CARRIERS: Steadfast incumbents RAIL/INTERMODAL: Popularity rising in the polls TRUCKLOAD: Influential long-haulers REGIONAL LTL: Perennial local front runners NATIONAL LTL: Canvassing the nation Order Online

Over the past few years it’s been difficult to find a sector of the logistics and transportation industry that’s been beaten up more by the pundits than truckload—and then along came sharply rising oil and fuel costs. As we reported last month in our 2008 Annual Report, fuel costs in some cases have exceeded labor as the highest expense for some big TL carriers. However, fuel surcharges have helped blunt the record rise in diesel costs.

And while shippers are currently pushing back on fuel surcharges we’re happy to report that the readers of Logistics Management have given the top performers in this segment higher overall marks than last year despite the gut wrenching surcharges. In 2008 we found that overall weighted averages have ticked up across all five service categories we measure—two by two points.

Industrial & Heavy Haul is one of the categories that saw its overall weighted average tick up two points this year, a very good indication that these carriers are going above and beyond in their service commitments. Mullen Trucking leads the way in this category with an extremely impressive 42.42 weighted average—which just so happens to be the single highest score across all the transportation segment categories in the 2008 survey.

Shippers putting Dry Freight Carriers to work told us that the overall service levels delivered by this category also improved by over a point. This year, seven Dry Freight haulers toped the 33.47 overall weighted average, led by Crete Carrier Corp with a 36.57 weighed average—a 2.73 point improvement from its 2007 winning score. Crete, which also racked up winning scores in both Value (9.39) and Customer Service (6.42), is joined this year by a list of perennial service leaders, including CFI (35.61), Heartland Express (35.15), Con-way Truckload (34.97), and Landstar Carrier Group (34.65).

This year, shippers voted in nine winners in the Expedited Motor Carrier category, that’s three more than 2007. And judging just how close the weighted average scores are this year, it’s easy to deduce that U.S. shippers are quite pleased with the overall service they’re receiving in this category. FedEx Custom Critical led the way for the second year in a row, posting a 37.70 weighted average and leading the pack in On-Time Performance (12.66), Information Technology (4.00), Customer Service (6.76), and Operations & Equipment (6.13). However, the next seven winners only fell short of FedEx by mere tenths of a point.

In the Bulk Motor Carrier category, shippers welcome Superior Carriers (35.62) and Prime Inc. (33.54) back for an acceptance speech for the second year in a row. Superior put up the best weighted score this year, followed by Ace Transportation (34.53) and Bulkmatic Transport (34.45). Schneider National (33.41) was voted in this year after missing the cut last year.