Dedicated shipping complemented private fleet to boost capacity

Technology and today’s global economy have made it easier than ever for companies to grow rapidly. For those companies with private fleets, this growth means more complexity in the recipe for freight capacity: balancing the manpower and the number of assets with the shipping needs.

These companies inevitably find themselves operating in the trucking business as much as their own industry. To continue on their path to success, shippers must decide whether to split their focus or hone in on their core business by making the transition to a dedicated solution.

This is the situation a Canadian-based cookie bakery recently stomached. It strived to grow its private fleet as the company grew from a family business into a household name. The bakery was shipping weekly deliveries from its Canada production facility to 600 independent distributors throughout North America. It accommodated the increased demand by expanding its private fleet, but not without feeling the strain. It was becoming more difficult to hire enough drivers and obtain enough trucks and trailers to keep up. In addition, missing transparency into freight shipping schedules made on-time delivery an issue.

The bakery recognized the first step was augmenting its private fleet with a shipping provider that could quickly offer capacity. But it wasn’t just looking for the assets to keep the cookies moving. Purchased by a private equity firm in 2016, the company understood that there were too many kitchens and not enough cooks. In order to continue its success in the cookie business, it would need to phase out of the shipping business. This was a leap for the family-owned business that treats employees like kin — transitioning drivers from a company-owned private fleet to a dedicated carrier would be tough. Therefore, it needed a shipping company that earned its trust and displayed potential to transition to its sole dedicated transport carrier.

The bakery searched for answers online, and reached out to learn how Schneider would approach this challenge. Schneider considered the needs carefully to develop customized transportation solutions for the bakery, ultimately implementing a multi-stop dedicated transport solution for an initial test. Specific actions taken as a result of this plan included:

• A dedicated fleet solution that leveraged Schneider’s equipment expertise and network of professional drivers. With a fleet of nearly 15,000 safety-tested professional drivers already in place, a dedicated team of five was deployed to augment the team.
• Supplementing office staff for order entry work and appointment setting for up to 15 stops per load.
• Customizing the trailers to accommodate the bakery’s unique roller system, working with a third- party vendor.
• A commitment to Safety First and Always helped the bakery feel secure that Schneider would represent the brand well.

Careful and detailed implementation meant a successful start from the first load and a nod to a long-term relationship.

• 100 percent on-time delivery of product despite surges: Schneider started by supplementing the customer’s private fleet with a dedicated fleet of five. It surged with demand to seven, then eight drivers rather quickly despite the need for customized rollers to be installed.
• Greater visibility into transportation performance and costs: Improved logistics management means both bakery and distributor are now able to track product shipments in real time as well as see how each load impacts the business’s bottom line.
• Happy customers: Schneider helped leadership see that the key to sweet success was bringing a transportation solutions expert on board. “Schneider is a very professional, values-driven and competent organization with a lot of knowledge on distribution. We look forward to continuing to develop our relationship.
• Successful fleet transition: Implementing a gradual shift from a full private fleet to a dedicated fleet will allow the customer to successfully leave the shipping business behind.

By leveraging Schneider’s portfolio of transportation solutions and network, the bakery can focus on its bread and butter: baking.