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Freight Brokers Lifestyle

Freight Broker Revenue Grows 17.1%

A freight broker is an individual or company that serves as a liaison between another individual or company that needs shipping services and an authorized motor carrier. Though a freight broker plays an important role in the movement of cargo, the broker doesn’t function as a shipper or a carrier. Instead, a freight broker works to determine the needs of a shipper and connects that shipper with a carrier willing to transport the items at an acceptable price.

Freight brokers increased their revenue 17.1 percent in the first quarter from the same period a year ago as the third-party logistics companies expanded fastest in business beyond their core truckload sales, according to an industry report.

The Transportation Intermediaries Association said the shipment count in its quarterly survey of 3PLs increased 7.4 percent in the first three months of the year but that the overall profit margin for the brokers slipped back to 14.9 percent from 15.3 percent a year ago.

But revenue per shipment grew at a sharp rate, including 10.3 percent growth in truckload business, a sign of tight capacity in a growing market at the start of 2011.

The strongest shipment growth came in less-than-truckload arena, which soared 24.5 percent over last year, and brokered intermodal shipments jumped 11.7 percent in the first quarter. Truckload shipments, which bring 3PLs some 98 percent of their operating revenue, grew 5.3 percent.

“The report indicates that 3PLs expanded their services into intermodal and LTL to meet customer needs,” said TIA President and CEO Robert Voltmann.

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Business Lifestyle

ATA offers driver pay study

The American Trucking Associations released the ATA Driver Compensation Study with the first look at the state of the trucking labor market since the end of the recession with data from 2010 and 2011, the new driver compensation study updates the previous report from 2007 and 2008.

It is the trucking lobby’s first report on driver compensation in six years, gleaned from data from publicly held and privately owned nationwide less-than-truckload (LTL), regional LTL, nationwide truckload (TL), regional TL, dedicated carriers, logistic providers, and other companies.

“The trucking industry faces many challenges in 2009,” said ATA president & CEO Gov. Bill Graves. “Appropriately compensating and retaining top-notch drivers is a necessity for companies trying to weather the current economic storm. This study provides very important national and regional data the industry desperately needs today and during the subsequent economic recovery.”

The 96-page report synthesizes information from 155 motor carriers of all types and sizes and includes a variety of data, including:

• Employee driver salaries on national and regional levels;
• Employee driver salaries by carrier type (flatbed, refrigerated, tank truck and more);
• Employee driver benefits, including bonuses, insurance, retirement and vacation;
• Employee driver recruitment, training and retention practices;
• Owner-operator employment and compensation structure; and
• Technician employment, salaries and benefits.

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Business Lifestyle Trucker News

Trucking adds 4,400 jobs

A lot of people in this country have been laid off because of job cuts and the lagging economy. A lot of the people who were affected have found it very hard to find work. Many have ended up in the unemployment lines, but a few have decided to be proactive and are considering a career change. Some of the proactive people are getting training from a truck driving school. Our focus here is to help those that attended a truck driving school find a great trucking job.

The surge in trucking employment didn’t just resume in June; apparently it never stopped. While last month’s job report from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated for-hire trucking companies had added only 100 jobs in May, the latest BLS report released July 8 revised those numbers to a 3,000-job increase in May and pegged the growth in June over May at 4,400.

Since the end of December, payroll employment in trucking is up nearly 27,000, according to the preliminary BLS figures. Since trucking employment bottomed out in March 2010, the industry has added 55,500 jobs.

Job growth in the rest of the economy isn’t so healthy. Nonfarm payroll employment edged up by just 18,000 jobs in June, and the unemployment rate actually ticked higher by one-tenth of a percentage point to 9.2 percent, according to initial BLS estimates. Modest gains in private employment were offset by 39,000 jobs lost in federal and state governments.

Compared to June 2010, payroll employment in trucking is up 3.9 percent. Total employment in trucking in June was nearly 1.283 million – down 170,500, or 11.7 percent, from peak trucking employment in January 2007.

The BLS numbers reflect all payroll employment in for-hire trucking, but they don’t include trucking-related jobs in other industries, such as a truck driver for a private fleet. Nor do the numbers reflect the total amount of hiring since they only include new jobs, not replacements for existing positions.

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Business Trucker News

Tips for Truckers Buying Truck Insurance

Being a truck driver presents many opportunities to see places that most people never get to see, but it also comes with great responsibilities, like having the best insurance for the truck. Many truck drivers struggle with finding the right insurance that will allow them to work, make a profit, and be covered in case of an accident. Because the trucking industry is so vast, here are some tips for getting the best commercial truck insurance.

First

The driver should know and understand all the terms of the coverage they are getting. This type of insurance is not like the typical car insurance because it usually has clauses within it that concerns the “cargo” within the truck as well as other aspects of driving that only relate to trucking. The coverage that is chosen should protect the driver, the vehicle, whatever is being carried, and the other car. This may be under the term of “uninsured” or “underinsured” driver. Ideally, the other driver should have their own insurance, but many drivers do not have insurance, so being prepared for that problem is advisable.

Second

The deductibles on the insurance policy will make a big difference if the driver ever needs to use the policy. As with most insurance policies, the deductable determines how much the driver will pay monthly. If the driver decides to have a small deductible of $500, their monthly payments will be significantly higher than the driver who has a deductable of $10,000. On the other hand, if both drivers are in an accident, the driver with the higher monthly payments will only have to pay the $500 deductable, and then the policy will pay for everything else. The driver with the lower monthly payment will have to pay the $10,000 before the policy pays for any other needed repairs. While the lower monthly payment can look tempting when choosing a policy, the driver needs to pick a payment and deductible that they can afford. If they do not have a huge amount of money in their savings account, they may want to consider the higher monthly payments as opposed to a large lump sum bill when an accident occurs.

Third

Just like everything else, drivers want to save money on insurance. Having a safe driving record that is perfect or nearly perfect is a great way to get a lower rate. If a driver has traffic tickets or an accident on their record, they will want to do what they can to take those off their record. Making certain that they follow all the rules of the road and drive safely is also an excellent way to keep their record clear of problems. Insurance companies like to insure drivers with clear records because they are normally less risky with their vehicles. Keeping the truck updated and cleaned will also allow the insurance company to see that the driver cares about the performance of the truck and how well it runs. This will show the company that the driver is careful when driving.

Fourth

Any driver who is looking for insurance knows that they need to get quotes from many different companies. There are companies that will give different discounts for various policies, like life, home, and a second car. Insurance companies are always competing with each other for more business, so taking advantage of that is smart as well. Share one of the lowest quotes with them and see if they can beat it. If they cannot, keep looking. Trying this method with a few companies could lead to an unbeatable rate and deductable that cannot be beat.

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Carriers Lifestyle

Kansas speed limit rises to 75

Road speed limits are used in most countries to regulate the speed of road vehicles. Speed limits may define maximum (which may be variable), minimum or no speed limit and are normally indicated using a traffic sign. Speed limits are commonly set by the legislative bodies of nations or provincial governments and enforced by national or regional police and / or judicial bodies.

Beginning July 1, speed limits on divided four-lane highways in Kansas will increase to 75 mph from 70.The more than 800 miles covered under the new law include most of the Kansas Turnpike from the Kansas-Oklahoma border to Kansas City, Kan., and rural sections of interstates 70 and 35. Lawmakers wanted to increase the speed limit to make the state more competitive and in line with other Western states that have high limits. Neighboring states Colorado, Nebraska and Oklahoma are among states that have 75 mph speed limits on rural sections of Interstates. The Kansas Motor Carriers Association remained neutral toward the faster speed, as long as the limit applied to all vehicles. The KMCA said it doubted many carriers would increase the governed speed on trucks to accommodate the higher limit.

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Carriers Lifestyle

Used truck sales, trailer orders drop

Used truck sales in all sales channels dropped about 15 percent in May from April, due to a lack of available inventory, according to ACT Research Co.

ACT also reported U.S. trailer net orders fell 9 percent in May from April, the second consecutive monthly decline for the industry. Despite that decline, commercial trailer backlogs grew 1 percent from April to 102,500 units.

New truck sales should help ease used truck supplies and pricing, said Steve Tam, ACT vice president-commercial vehicle. “Due to new truck buyers holding on to their equipment longer, used truck mileage continues to trend upward. Vehicle age and mileage are expected to increase throughout 2011,” Tam said.

ACT noted trailer build was up 87 percent from May 2010, while industry backlog was 122 percent higher for the same time period.

“The decline in net orders was actually in line with what would be expected from normal industry patterns,” said Frank Maly, director of CV Transportation Analysis and Research. “The order board continues to appear solid, as supported by extremely low order cancellations.”

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Business Lifestyle

Groups push for safer trucks

The American Trucking Associations and the Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association on June 8 called on the federal government to begin researching how standards for crashworthiness for heavy trucks could benefit truck drivers.

“NHTSA has continuously developed crashworthiness standards for automobiles and light trucks, but to date has generally not applied crashworthiness standards to commercial trucks,” the two groups wrote in a June 6 letter to David Strickland, head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. “We believe there may be opportunities to enhance the survivability of professional truck drivers if appropriate, research-based uniform standards are developed.”

Specifically, ATA and OOIDA highlighted the need for improving cab structure and occupant restraints such as safety belts and airbags, strengthening windshields and doors to prevent occupant ejections, and installing more forgiving interior surfaces. “Our organizations believe that improvements in truck occupant safety can be achieved,” the letter concluded.

“Making our highways safer, especially for our drivers, is one of ATA’s highest priorities,” said Bill Graves, ATA president and chief executive officer.

Todd Spencer, OOIDA executive vice president, said his group is “more than glad to join ATA in making this request to hold the safety of professional truck drivers to as high a standard as all other motor vehicle users.”

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Business Lifestyle

Trucking jobs added

The surge in trucking employment came to an abrupt end in May as the industry added a mere 100 jobs on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the preliminary estimates released June 3, by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Through April, payroll employment in trucking for the year had risen by 18,000. BLS did revise its initial April estimate upward by 1,100, however. Compared to May 2010, payroll employment in trucking is up 3.2 percent.

The overall economy put the brakes on hiring as well. While the nation added 232,000 nonfarm jobs in April, it mustered only 54,000 net new jobs in May. The unemployment rate ticked up a tenth to 9.1.

Total employment in trucking in April was just over 1.274 million – down 179,100, or 12.3 percent, from peak trucking employment in January 2007. The BLS numbers reflect all payroll employment in for-hire trucking, but they don’t include trucking-related jobs in other industries, such as a truck driver for a private fleet. Nor do the numbers reflect the total amount of hiring since they only include new jobs, not replacements for existing positions.

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Freight Factors

Spot market freight falls in April

TransCore’s North American Freight Index measuring spot market truckload freight volume declined 14 percent in April from March, but was 12 percent higher than in April 2010.

Freight volumes in the South and Midwest were hampered by extreme weather conditions during April.

TransCore said the month-to-month decline from March to April was the time in 15 years when spot market freight volume dropped during that period. From March to April, dry van capacity increased 6.7 percent and freight availability declined 9.5 percent. Refrigerated capacity increased 3.4 percent, while freight availability slipped 5.1 percent. Flatbed capacity and freight volumes dipped, 2.6 percent, and 9.7 percent, respectively.

Freight

TransCore’s monthly North American Freight Index measures trucking freight movements on the spot market, reflecting freight availability on TransCore’s network of load boards in the United States and Canada.

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Business Lifestyle

Follow our Success

As anyone who’s ever suffered through an overcooked steak dinner at a business meeting knows, networking is part of marketing and promotions and a necessity for business and professional growth. Social networking is no different except that it happens online where the world is open to anyone with a computer. Here are the list of successful sites that can help you promote your business.

ONLINE LOAD BOARD
http://www.findfreightloads.com/-Provide 24/7 dispatching service for drivers to find loads all over the us.Most importantly our online load matching system is extremely easy to use. Our website is designed for owner operators to find work fast and get on the road.
Follow us on twitter @ http://twitter.com/#!/findloads

HOW TO TOP YOUR COMPANY
IBringTraffic.com-is the ONLY business promoting websites with Facebook & Twitter, where likes of users pages can be increased. You promote their sites! and we give you points that can be used as credits to redeem prizes. Add your site and the more points you have the higher your page ranking is displayed on the site.
Follow us on twitter @ : http://twitter.com/#!/bringtraffic

AMAZING T-SHIRT DESIGNS
TshirtsBlvd.com-We can create your own clothing label with custom labeling. We ship products to your customers. YOU get paid weekly for your online sales, minus a small commission fee. Special discounted prices for wholesale orders.
Follow us on twitter @ http://twitter.com/#!/tshirtsblvd

ONLINE FREIGHT BROKER COURSE
http://freightbrokerscourse.com/-Our freight broker license course is unmatched in the online training industry, because we give our students many tools that other online broker courses do not offer, like load board access, transportation database, license filing service and we sell our broker courses for half of the price. With over 5 years in the transportation industry we have developed not just an easy to understand self study freight broker course but a transportation network for you to jump start your freight brokerage career.
Follow us on twitter @ :http://twitter.com/#!/brokerfreight

WEB DESIGN
Once your website is built you need to promote it! You can gain traffic either by SEO or online marketing. My online marketing and promotion services takes care of everything for you from ongoing search submissions to management of multiple online listings.
Visit us @ http://darynduff.com/

Visit and follow us!!! And in the long run, it will leads to more profitable, long lasting, and better business contacts.