Con-way Freight set to expand in Central Texas

Con-way Freight, the LTL subsidiary of transportation and logistics services provider Con-way Inc., recently announced it will be making a major expansion into central Texas, saying it will build a $3.7 million 48-door, 18,870 square-foot service center in Robinson, Texas.

Company officials said that this facility will serve as the local hub where Con-way Freight will provide daily freight pickup and delivery services that will connect central Texas and the Greater Waco area with one-, two- and three-day service points in the company’s national network along with Mexico and Canada.

Con-way Freight Director of Operations Steve Micketti told LM that the current facility the company has in Waco, Texas, notably the office, driver room, dock and yard combined is not
adequate to accommodate its current day-to-day business functions for of its employees to provide the necessary and expected service for the customer base in central Texas. The initial New Build Concept started in the fourth quarter of 2010, he said, adding that Con-way Freight’s business levels increase are up 8.2 percent annually and since the concept form was initiated, business is up 12 percent.

The new central Texas facility is expected to open in April 2014. The current facility in Waco has 22 doors and 52 employees and Con-way Freight has been there for more than 20 years. Con-way said it plans to hire 15 more staffers when the new facility is completed for various areas, including driver sales representatives, operations support, sales, customer service, and administration and

When asked what the main benefits of this new service center will be for shippers, Micketti pointed to:
-increased cycle time to deliver shipments earlier and in a more consistent manner;
-reduced handling on outgoing shipments by building directly to points that will bypass first assigned handling locations (first handling points are an internal company freight flow network system);
-having the ability to meet customer demands when they have unforeseen tonnage/shipment order increases for their customers;
-having the ability to handle central Texas economic growth; and
-having enough room to expand for future central Texas economic growth.
On top of these benefits, Micketti noted that Con-way Freight will be able to provide an in-house driver training school that will allow it to meet hire needs to address the business growth and be ready for growth with a well-trained and ready workforce.

“We’ll be able to attract and hire better candidates with the incentive of a ‘free’ driving school and allow them to earn monies as a dock worker during the non-school hours,” he said.