Life on the road is tough; long hours on the highway, tight quarters in the cab, no bathroom readily available, and more. These are just a small chunk of things that truck drivers face day in and day out. Many people take for granted the ability to use a clean bathroom, take a hot shower, eat a hot meal, and banter with friends and family.
Around the country, truck stops and travel centers have worked hard to bring the basic necessities to drivers, such as good diesel prices and a spot to park their truck for the night. But others have gone above and beyond to keep them entertained and well fed. So, what are some of the necessities and amenities drivers look for when pulling their rig into their favorite truck stop or trying out a new one? Big focuses tend to be diesel prices, ample parking, security, and cleanliness of amenities.
Fuel up – With diesel prices constantly fluctuating, finding the best price can make a difference, especially to drivers who are owner-operators. However, some carrier companies keep an eye on diesel prices around the areas their drivers are in and recommend fueling up at cheaper locations.
Lots of spots– Parking and size of parking spaces are important when long-haul drivers are stopping to rest. Some phone apps, like myPilot and Trucker Path, will even show the availability of parking spots at a location.
Safety first – Adequate lighting, cameras, and/or security guards all help keep parking lots safer for drivers,especially at locations with a lot of parking.
Clean commode and more – Clean parking lots, bathrooms, showers, etc. Truck stops are a home away from home for drivers so a clean commode, among other things, is of importance.
Here are a few truck stops that have some out-of-this-world amenities for their customers.

Truck Stops with Awesome Amenities

Iowa 80 Truckstop: Walcott, IA

Iowa 80 Truckstop touts over 900 truck parking spots, 24/7 access to food including the family-owned Iowa 80 kitchen with homestyle cooking, 24 private showers, a laundry facility, and a truck wash and service center. But the goods don’t stop there. A barber shop, dog wash, library, movie theater, workout room, dental office, and on-site chiropractor who can also execute DOT physicals, are all features on the property. And we can’t forget about the museum with over 100 antique trucks for drivers to explore during downtime.

Jubitz Travel Center: Portland, OR

Family-owned and operated for over 65 years, Jubitz Travel Center provides a 24/7 full-service restaurant, live entertainment every weekend, 15 acres of fully-lighted, paved, and striped truck parking, 11 private showers and two Jacuzzis, and a driver lounge. Some additional amenities include shoe/boot repair, postal service, a barber shop, an outpatient medical clinic and chiropractor services, and a movie theater.

Creek Travel Plaza: Atmore, AL

Owned by the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, Creek Travel Plaza was ranked the #1 Independent U.S. Truck Stop by Truck Path users. This facility has tons of free truck parking, fantastic customer service, clean and spacious travel bathrooms, laundry facilities with efficient equipment, and a large driver lounge with leather seats and a flat-screen TV. Oh, and let’s not leave out the mouth-watering southern dishes served in the on-site diner. Chicken and waffles, anyone?

Chains and Franchises

Chains and franchise truck stops are usually competitive in fuel prices but likely don’t provide the extra amenities such as access to health care check-ups and barber shops like some of the facilities mentioned above. But it’s still worth calling out some:

• TA Travel Centers of America
• Pilot
• Flying J
• Love’s Truck Stops
• Bosselman Travel Centers

There was over two feet of rain and an estimated $18 billion in damages as Tropical Storm Florence pummeled the Carolinas and other parts of the Atlantic. There were 691,000 customers without power and water had closed parts of Interstate 95. As Florence pushed on in the United States, Typhoon Mangkhut hit the Philippines that Saturday and then China on Sunday, causing an estimated cost impact on Hong Kong’s gross domestic products of $627 million per day. Although devastating, these side-by-side catastrophic events are seemingly becoming a norm.

The last two decades have brought about increasingly destructive natural disasters. From Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy to the eruption of Eyjafjallajokull volcano in Iceland to the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Along with widespread devastation to their physical surroundings, each of these natural disasters has impacted business operations in many cases on a global scale.

Over the years, climate changes are happening at a faster pace than originally anticipated. This has resulted in rising sea levels, which coincides with more severe storms, temperature swings, and volatile precipitation. Because of this, we have seen and will likely continue to see more intense weather that will have greater destructive potential, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

In this blog, we’ll go over the economic and supply chain impacts that result from these events and how you can best prepare your supply chain.

Impacts on the economy and supply chains

Severe weather has exponential impacts on our global economy. According to Aon Benfield’s 2016 Global Climate Catastrophe Report, the world saw $210 billion (USD) in economic losses because of 315 separate natural disasters. That’s 21 percent above the 16-year average of $174 billion (USD).

In 2017, Hurricane Harvey victims saw over 178,000 homes lost, $669 million in damages of public property, around a quarter million vehicle losses, $200 million in Texas crop in livestock losses…and the list goes on.

Additionally, businesses saw significant and expensive losses due to flooding, electrical outage, and employees’ inability to get to work, all causing temporary disruption of the flow of goods and services.

But the impacts of natural disasters reach far beyond the local damages of affected areas. When these natural events happen, numerous businesses find their supply chains shook.

The Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan and the Thailand Floods in 2011 are both examples of natural disasters that had a much wider indirect economic effect. Both disasters caused severe disruption to global technology supply chains.

After the Thai floods, there was a global shortage of computer hard drives that sent consumer prices skyrocketing until factories were able to get back up and running. When the 2011 tsunami struck, several major car manufacturers were forced to shut down production at factories throughout Europe and the U.S. due to a lack of available parts from factories in Japan, setting off a supply chain reaction that impacted multiple suppliers of parts throughout the wider global economy.

Snowstorms are also a culprit of transportation delays and supply chain worries. If weather conditions drop below a certain temperature truck engines will not start, quickly accumulating snow may mean railroads might not be able to clear the tracks fast enough and snow and ice can make it impossible for planes to travel safely. All causing disrupted supply chains across the country.

Preparing your supply chain

With the increase of natural disasters, ensuring that your business is prepared for the potential disruption is very important. Disaster planning needs to consider not just the direct impact to your infrastructure, but how the after-effects of events far away from your base of operations could affect your supply chain and markets.

Create a disaster preparedness plan

Have a plan ready that outlines what to do in case of emergencies and natural disasters. This plan should take into consideration all types of weather and natural disaster your area is most susceptible to, and perhaps some that would particularly be considered unlikely. Snow in Florida? Probably not, but hey, with climate change you never know. Also, be sure to ask companies you partner with for their disaster plans to ensure alignment with risk management.

Monitor for threat

Supply chain risk management works best when companies have the earliest possible notice of potential disruptive impacts. Keeping up with potential weather, running a data analysis, and running simulations across your supply chain to identify pressure points where natural disasters would most likely impact your operations are all ways to keep up with your disaster preparedness plan.

Be transparent and flexible

Many natural disasters may be impossible to predict (earthquakes, wild fires, etc.) so disruption may be inevitable. Be open with members of your team and companies you partner with about how weather or natural disaster may affect capacity and your company’s supply chain. Additionally, think about substitute work spaces and methods of transport for your goods.

It’s never too early to revisit your risk management and disaster preparedness plans. As we all know, disaster can strike at any moment. At Trinity, we work with a network of over 70,000+ carriers and we’re always looking at the state of the industry and communicating with our customers.

Truck drivers keep America moving. Without the men and women in the trucking industry, grocery stores would be empty, gas stations would close, and the everyday items at our disposal would cease to exist at our fingertips.
Here at Trinity Logistics, we want to take time to pay respect to the millions of carriers and truck drivers who log countless hours to deliver freight in a timely and safe manner.
From Sept. 9th through the 15th, time is dedicated to “National Truck Driver Appreciation Week”, when the American Trucking Association and the entire trucking industry say “thank you” to over 3.5 million professional truck drivers.
The millions of professional truck drivers in our country move around 71 percent of the nation’s freight, and log around 450 billion miles every year! Talk about some Road Warriors. Remember to take some time in the coming week to say “thank you” to these hardworking and dedicated individuals who work around the clock to deliver all the goods we need to make our everyday lives function (we’re especially thankful for the coffee that gets delivered).
Be sure to check out our video where we send out some special shout outs and extra praise that truck drivers deserve.

2017 has arrived and that means we are fast approaching the compliance deadlines for several laws, some that have been years in the making and could impact you and your operation. On April 6, 2017, most businesses involved in the transportation of human and animal food will need to be in FSMA compliance with the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, the most sweeping reform of United States food safety laws in 70 years. We’ll go over the basics and go into a little more detail about the FSMA since we last told you about it in June of 2016.

What is the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act?

The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) shifts the focus from responding to food contamination, to preventing foodborne illness altogether. The Act was signed into law by President Barack Obama on January 4, 2011. FSMA consists of seven rules that put measures into place for all people and businesses that handle food in order to ensure that food is produced, handled, transported, and stored properly.

Here are the rules and when they were finalized:

Preventive Controls Rules for Human and Animal Food: Sept. 2015
Produce Safety Rule: Nov. 2015
Foreign Supplier Verification Rule: Nov. 2015
Accredited Third-Party Certification: Nov. 2015
Sanitary Transportation Rule: April 2016
Intentional Adulteration Rule: May 2016

Has anything changed in the FSMA Update?

We last updated you about the latest with the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act’s final rule for the sanitary transportation of human and animal food back in June. We discussed what the final rule is, when you need to begin complying with this rule, and what is expected of shippers, loaders, carriers, and receivers. Since the Sanitary Transportation Rule was finalized in April 2016, the Intentional Adulteration (IA) Rule has also been finalized as part of the FSMA. This rule is aimed at preventing intentional adulteration from acts intended to cause wide-scale harm to public health. The IA Rule was finalized May 27, 2016. The TIA has also revised contracts that cover FMSA rules.

What is the goal of the Final Rule on Sanitary Transportation?

The rule’s goal is to prevent transported food from becoming filthy, putrid, decomposed, or otherwise unfit for food, or being rendered injurious to health from any source during transportation operations. These rules apply to shippers, receivers, loaders, and carriers involved in any transportation operations of food. The addition of loaders to these new rules was a fairly recent revision.

What does the Final Rule on Sanitary Transportation mean for brokers?

Under this rule, freight brokers are covered under the “shipper” category since they arrange for the transportation of food by a carrier or multiple carriers. The reason for this is that the broker can be an extra step in keeping shippers accountable to this rule. Brokers will also provide carriers with information such as the specifications for the transportation equipment to maintain sanitary conditions, developing a written procedure about how they are going to comply with the regulations and verify that vehicles are sanitary, retaining records that the shipper provided the required specifications to carriers, in addition to any written agreements allocating responsibility.

What to Watch?

It will be interesting to watch and see if there will be any changes to the FSMA under the Trump Administration. In September of 2016, Donald Trump’s campaign proposed getting rid of the Food and Drug Administration’s “food police,” and said they “dictate how the federal government expects farmers to produce fruit and vegetables and even dictates the nutritional content of dog food.” According to the NY Times, the list of regulations to be eliminated was short lived and was removed from the campaign’s website shortly after it was initially displayed.

Who is affected?

This rule established requirements for shippers, loaders, carriers by motor vehicle and rail vehicle, and receivers engaged in the transportation of human and animal food. The regulations include practices to make sure that food is properly refrigerated during transport, that vehicles are properly cleaned between loads, and other best practices to make sure that food does not become adulterated. Read the full rule here.

What happens if a truck is found in violation?

The DOT is authorized and trained to conduct transportation safety inspections to identify any food shipments that are in violation of these new regulations. If a truck is found in violation, the FDA can stop the shipment and/or seize the food. Criminal prosecution is also possible as a part of this rule.

FSMA Compliance Dates for the Sanitary Transportation of Human and Animal Food Rule

Most businesses are required to be in compliance with the rule April 6, 2017, one year from the rule’s publication date. According to the FDA, there are some exceptions and delayed FSMA compliance dates, depending on the size of your business.

Delayed Onset:

– Small businesses, employing less than 500 people: April 6, 2018
– Motor carriers, having less than $27.5 million in annual receipts: April 6, 2018

Exemptions:

– Transportation activities on a farm
– Shippers, receivers, or carriers that have less than $500,000 in average annual revenue
– Transportation of food that is completely enclosed by a container except for foods that require temperature control for safety
– Transportation of food that is transshipped through the U.S. to another country (i.e., Mexico to Canada)
– Transportation of compressed food gasses and food contact substances
– Transportation of human food by-products transported for use as animal food without other processing
– Transportation of live food animals, except molluscan shellfish

Will I Receive FSMA Training or Assistance?

Part of the requirements for FSMA is mandated carrier training. All transportation operations personnel will need to know the responsibilities of the carrier, have awareness of potential food safety problems that may happen during food transportation, and basic sanitary transportation practices to address those potential problems. Documentation of this training is required. Read the latest on the FDA’s path to working with the public and private partners to provide FSMA training for those who will be required to follow the new FSMA standards here.

FSMA Final Rule Updates

We are watching FSMA closely and will continue to update the blog during the implementation process. We encourage you to go to the FDA’s website and read through the published ruling if you want more detailed information about how this rule will impact your business.

Your trusted Trinity advisor is also being trained on the rules and regulations so you can manage your shipments to follow the FDA’s new standards.

If you’re interested in working with Trinity for your produce, refrigerated, or packaged food shipments, fill out our form to get a quote now.

Members of the Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA) visited Trinity Logistics’ corporate headquarters in Seaford, Del. as part of a continued benchmarking and information-sharing relationship between the two entities.
Members of the TIA were invited to tour our headquarters and learn about the services offered by a top-twenty third-party logistics company.
“Trinity Logistics has been a partner with the TIA for over 25 years and we applaud the work they do on behalf of the entire transportation industry. We look forward to our continued partnership with the TIA in supporting the extensive work they do,” said Jeff Banning, CEO.
The TIA’s visit was an opportunity for our Executive Leadership Team to get to know some of the newest staff members of the association. A primary topic discussed during the visit was the legislative changes facing the transportation industry today and how 3PLs can provide support through current and future regulatory and economic challenges.
“The one-day visit to Trinity Logistics was not only valuable to the new TIA staff members, but impressive. We were all amazed by the size of Trinity’s operation and the emphasis on employee training, corporate goals and objectives, and their technology. Thank you to Trinity Senior Management for taking time out of their day to show us what a successful 3PL looks like,” said Jeff Mason, TIA Chief of Staff.
Moving forward, we will look to continue to build our relationship, to help build the TIA through marketing and educate its members, as well as to work on issues that impact 3PLs and the Logistics industry in general.
(Photo Caption: From left to right: Doug Potvin, Trinity Logistics Chief Financial Officer; Jeff Mason, TIA Chief of Staff; Leslie Kranz, TIA Director of Marketing/ Communications; Sarah Ruffcorn, Trinity Logistics Senior VP of Strategic Development; Laurie Denham, TIA VP of Education; Chris Burroughs, TIA Senior Director of Government Affairs; Rich Clair, Trinity Logistics Chief Operations Officer)

Do you find yourself with little space for inventory? Is a large chunk of your money tied up in stocking materials that aren’t needed yet? The just in time (JIT) supply chain model might be the best solution for your space and budget.

How does a JIT program work?

JIT is utilized as a means to protect profit and warehouse space in all types of industries, but especially in manufacturing and food production. This strategy can be used for the inbound delivery of raw materials, the outbound shipping of finished products, or both. The ultimate goal is to save money on inventory and storage costs by cutting (or completely eliminating) the amount that’s sitting on shelves or in the warehouse.

This model allows for goods or materials to only be delivered when they’re needed immediately, or “just in time”. While this makes for a constant drop-off and pick-up of products and materials, it lessens the amount of money and space invested in raw materials before they are needed in the manufacturing process, which frees up funds that might be needed elsewhere.

Why would a company choose JIT?

JIT became popular in the 1950’s and 1960’s, most notably in the car manufacturing industry. This allowed for vehicles to be made and put together piece by piece, without taking up huge amounts of space and money on parts that weren’t ready to be installed yet.

Toyota still works primarily off of this business and logistics model, but JIT can work especially well for smaller companies too. Those with limited space and funds between each stage of manufacturing, as well as those with large gaps of time between production and delivery, may want to consider switching to the JIT model.

If your business requires high value products to be stored, like metal, JIT might be a good fit. Since large amounts of inventory aren’t kept on hand, there is less time between manufacturing and shipping for products to be lost, damaged, or stolen.

Businesses with perishable goods should also look into converting to JIT. It’s important to keep expiration dates in mind when ordering products with a shelf life, and having them delivered only when and in the quantity needed, reduces waste and protects your bottom line.

The great thing about JIT is that it can be adjusted for times when business is either booming or slowing. Companies that see slow seasons could especially benefit, as the logistics ”spigot” can be turned down (or off completely) and you won’t be left with a wasted surplus. Essentially, if parts or stock aren’t needed, they don’t have to be ordered or delivered.

How can Trinity help me switch to JIT?

As a full-service 3rd party logistics provider (3PL), Trinity can assist with all stages of the transition into the JIT program. We can arrange the JIT shipments of both inbound materials and outbound product. Our network of over 30,000 certified carriers means that timely pickup and delivery are easy to arrange. If you need to switch to a smaller warehouse space to accommodate your new JIT plan, we also offer warehousing solutions.

Trinity offers extremely flexible and customizable supply chain services, so that if production is slow, we can slow down your shipments going in and out, or if you hit peak sales, we can get carriers moving to match your pace. Rest assured that all of our logistics and warehousing solutions are adjustable and streamlined to allow your time and energy to be most focused on your own business.

To request a consultation or more information about switching to a JIT program, click here!

MARCH 31st, 2014 – Trinity Logistics has been selected by Pompeian, Inc. as the single source logistics provider for their main distribution center in Baltimore, MD.

Pompeian, founded in 1906 and headquartered in Baltimore, is America’s largest national brand of olive oil, best-selling wine vinegars and a variety of cooking wines. Well-known as the industry leader, Pompeian is the first brand to carry the USDA Quality Monitored seal on its extra virgin olive oil.

Trinity Logistics has been serving Pompeian’s truckload transportation needs for fifteen years. As is the case with many manufacturers in the beginning phase of logistics outsourcing, the partnership between Trinity and Pompeian began as a transactional, load-by-load relationship. Over the years, as Trinity arranged thousands of truckload shipments for Pompeian, including just-in-time expedited shipments, a 15-year track record of successful truckload shipping for Pompeian and its customers emerged. This long-standing relationship built on trust and continued success is what ultimately led to Trinity being selected as Pompeian’s single-source logistics provider.

As part of the agreement, Trinity Logistics has placed a member of their Design Solutions team on-site at Pompeian in Baltimore to assist in managing Pompeian’s logistics operations. Pompeian’s order management system has also been integrated seamlessly with Trinity’s transportation management software (TMS), allowing for more effective load planning and complete shipment visibility.

“Over the past five years, transforming into a single-source logistics solutions provider has been a huge focus for Trinity Logistics,” shared Jeff Banning, Trinity’s CEO and President. “We’ve been relentlessly dedicated to expanding our service offerings and truly becoming a one-stop shop for our customers. The opportunity to put these efforts to work on-site at Pompeian is an incredibly exciting opportunity for all involved.”

“Pompeian strives to provide the best service to our customers.  Such service entails timeliness and accuracy in our deliveries,” explained Robin Harricharan, Controller at Pompeian. “Our relationship with Trinity provides us that comfort.  It is that comfort that led us to welcome Trinity to show us their transportation management software, which we now rely on, and it has been a great success.  We greatly look forward to our continued relationship with Trinity as they assist us in navigating best practices and cost effectiveness in our everyday logistics decisions.”

Want to see exactly how Trinity Logistics has been able to help Pompeian? Check out our case study here.