Trucking news and briefs for Friday, March 22, 2024:
Last year was a record-setting one for Averitt, as it set a new standard for best damage-free performance in company history in 2023.
According to Averitt Vice President of Operations Larry Mason, the company’s dock associates played a key role in that success.
“To use a sports analogy, our freight handlers are the offensive line of our team,” Mason said. “They protect us from all things negative and put us in a position to be successful. If you think about it, they set up everything we do and play a huge part in our ability to be damage-free, efficient in our pickup and delivery operations and also manage our linehaul costs.”
Mason said Averitt’s experience – including an impressive number of associates with 20-plus years of service – makes the dock operations a well-oiled machine.
“The ability to load freight on a linehaul trailer in a manner that is safe – but also full – is a talent and skill that does not come easy,” Mason said. “It takes time to learn those skills, and I think that's the key to our success. We have more than 300 freight handlers on our Over 20 Team, and that experience is vital, not only in the skills they possess, but also in their ability to coach and train our new associates. The same applies to freight handlers who are loading pickup and delivery routes every day. The way they load the freight has a huge impact on our drivers’ ability to be efficient and to avoid any potential freight damages.”
Averitt also implemented a dock mentor program in 2023 that has yielded positive results. The program currently has about 30 mentors across 12 facilities who boast 400 years of combined experience.
