Ryder System heralds new drop-and-hook trailer service

Miami-based freight transportation and logistics services provider Ryder System said this week it has rolled out a new offering geared towards bolstering its freight brokerage business, though the introduction of a new drop-and-hook trailer service.

Company officials said that by leveraging capacity through Ryder’s peer-to-peer truck- and trailer-sharing platform, COOP by Ryder, its customers gain access to a fleet comprised of dry and refrigerated trailers, adding that COOP has more than 6,000 trailers listed throughout the country, with its inventory continuing to increase.

And Ryder added that its drop-and-hook trailer service enables customers to rent one or more trailers to preload on their own schedules and also schedule for carrier pickup as needed. It added that customers can keep the trailers onsite for additional storage when warehouse capacity is tight. What’s more, it said that the majority of the 48- and 53-foot dry and refrigerated trailers have digital tracking available, allowing shippers to keep track of their loads.  

Dave Belter, VP and GM of transportation management for Ryder, told LM that there were various drivers for this new service offering.

“In the dry-van freight market, many customers require drop trailers,” he said. “With COOP, we realized we had access to a dynamic trailer inventory, currently numbering 6,000 throughout the U.S. By capitalizing on these synergies, we create a new solution to solve a customer need.

Customers are asking for seasonal or special-project trucking support that requires drop trailers. By leveraging COOP inventory, we can quickly stand up a drop-and-hook trailer solution supported by our dedicated fleet or our freight brokerage network of 45,000 qualified carriers to move the trailers. And, in turn, vehicle owners on COOP increase their rental days and revenue. It’s a win-win.”

As for the main benefits of this service for Ryder's shipper customers, Belter observed that Ryder is seeing increased demand for drop trailers as customers strive to level load demand and warehouse resources.

“We can quickly stand up a solution and provide excellent customer service at the same time. We think it’s a game changer for our customers,” he said. “We can customize a drop-and-hook trucking solution for customers to support a seasonal surge, special project, or as a regular component of a transport network. Our solutions are agile and flexible. We can support a short-term project or a long-term contract. We can add or remove trailers from the program as needed.”     

When asked what this service offers that was needed or missing from Ryder's service offerings, Belter pointed to how COOP provides customers access to trailer assets. 

“Ryder freight brokerage provides customers access to carrier capacity with what was limited drop-trailer capacity,” he explained. “By leveraging idle assets on COOP and Ryder freight brokerage or even our dedicated fleet, we now have the flexibility and agility to customize a drop-and-hook trucking program for a customer.” 

Looking at the competitive advantages of the service, from a Ryder perspective, Belter cited three key ones, in speed, agility, and flexibility, through the speed with which it can put a drop trailer program in place and the agility and flexibility of its solution.

“We can support a short-term project or a long-term contract,” he said. “We can add or remove trailers to/from the program as needed. We can customize pricing to meet the needs of the customer.”