Fueling Your Memorial Day

The Memorial Day Weekend is upon us once again! Like most out there in the transportation industry, UWC’s office will be open and we will be working through the long weekend. We thought we would share some fun facts and news on the topic of this Memorial Day:

According to AAA, the number of Americans driving during the Memorial Day Holiday weekend will drop this year (for the first time in 3 years) due to fuel prices. However, fuel prices are slightly down and are currently hovering at a national average of just below $4/gallon. More positive news: the national average for on-highway diesel has fallen below $4/gallon for the first time since early April. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) cited the national average at $3.997 per gallon for the week ending Monday, May 23, 2011. Diesel averages fell as much as 8 cents in some regions. Read our post on Tips for Improving your Fuel Efficiency to get the most gallons for your greenbacks!

Even with high fuel prices discouraging some travelers, there will still be an increased presence of motorists on the roads this weekend. The number of car trips are predicted to fall by approximately 100,000 to a approximate 30.9 million, according to AAA. 88% of overall travelers will be driving to their destinations. On the whole, about 34.9 million people will travel 50 miles or more from home during the 3-day long weekend. So remember to stay safe this weekend out there on the roads!!! And, we hope everyone has a great Memorial Day Weekend!

***Alert: CVSA Roadcheck 2011 is coming soon!! This year’s Roadcheck dates are June 7th to 9th, 2011 – check back next week for more details!


References:
http://ttnews.com/articles/basetemplate.aspx?storyid=26795. Accessed May 26th, 2011.

N….T….W…..

Any ideas what that stands for? Well, it’s happening this week! Sunday May 15, 2011 to Saturday, May 21, 2011 is designated as National Transportation Week in the United States! NTW gives an opportunity for all of us in the United States (and why not extend that to Canada and Mexico too!) to take time and join together for greater awareness and appreciation of the transportation industry. It is also designated as a time to celebrate the community of transportation professionals who keep goods on the move throughout North America.

National Transportation Week is capped off with National Defense Transportation Day, occurring on the third Friday of May every year. On May 20th, 2011, various ceremonies will be held to recognize the importance of the country’s transportation system and the maintenance of its facilities to serve the needs of the United States in times of peace and national defense.

We here at UWC wanted to take this opportunity to thank all of our partners who work with us, night and day, to ensure the safe and timely delivery of goods. We truly appreciate the hard work done by each and every one of you that assists us in being a recognized authority in produce transportation!

Do you have any experiences from this week to share? Has anybody participated in educational expos or programs dedicated to NTW??


“I took the road less travelled by, and that has made all the difference.” – Robert Frost

Checking the Temperature….. Getting in touch with UWC

2 of UWC’s 10 Guiding Principles are to be Accessible and Responsive. So… we wanted to check in with our Customer and Carrier Partners to see how we are doing on these two points. First, a brief review:

How to contact us:
- Phone: toll free – we have dedicated toll free sales line: 1.877.273.7470, and a dedicated toll free carrier line: 1.877.273.7400 – both are free from the United States and Canada!

- Nextels: are you in Mexico and need to contact us? We have two Nextel numbers that we can be reached at: 112*19477*2 and 112*19477*3.

- Email: Contact our sales team at sales@unitedworldcargo.com, our CSR team at dispatch@unitedworldcargo.com, and our Carrier Relations team at carriers@unitedworldcargo.com! It is our commitment that someone from Sales and CSR will return your email within 4 hours (except when received between the hours of 12 midnight and 6am).

- Fax: our toll free fax line is 1.866.986.7401, and is also free from the united states or Canada! – or even better, use Transflo, it is 100% FREE for our carrier partners!!!

Availability:
- Sales: Account Managers work Monday to Friday from 7am to 4pm; in addition to this, every weekend one Account Manager will be assigned on-call to assist in any weekend sales requests.

- CSR: Customer Service Reps are available all 7 days, Monday to Friday from 7am – 6pm; and Saturday to Sunday from 8am to 4pm.

- Carrier Relations: The Carrier Relations Department is available from Monday to Friday 8am – 5pm, to assist with inquires such as payments, new carrier set up, and insurance.

- Accounting: the Accounting department in available Monday to Friday from 7am – 5pm.

- After hours: After office hours, all phones are forwarded to the on-call night time dispatcher, who has access to the office server remotely.

We take pride in always being there when you need us, and to be able to provide you with the information you require. So, please leave a comment and let us know how we are doing. Are we easily accessible? Do we respond to your requests in a timely manner, and with the relevant information you require??

**Extravaganza Update!!! As promised last week, an update on our 3rd annual Bowling Extravaganza that took place last Thursday. A great time was had by all, with Mike from Accounting being awarded the coveted Highest Men’s Score, and Sharon from Sales being awarded with the Women’s Highest Score. Both received some snazzy looking trophies!!!

Wired Wheels - Technology and the Trucking Industry

Day after day, technology seems to be becoming more prevalent in both our personal and professional lives. Personally, many people are finding technology is making the world a smaller place, with ample opportunities and channels available to connect and keep in touch with family and friends, no matter how far away they may be. Professionally, technology is hailed as the great efficiency maker. For the trucking industry in particular, technology can help create more efficiency throughout the supply chain, and as such, many companies are investing heavily in new and progressive technologies in order to stay ahead of the pack.

Let’s look at 4 technologies that are of special importance in the trucking industry:

- GPS – GPS is fast becoming a must have tool for the industry. Most GPS software goes beyond basic truck tracking to offer reporting, truck routing, fuel costing, mileage, and loss prevention tools that can offer great cost and planning advantages to a trucking company. Many GPS technology providers also have trailer temperature monitoring software that is a great asset to the carrier. The system will alert you if the trailer temperature goes above or below a certain threshold. Many trucking companies are using GPS in conjunction with verbal daily updates to provide customers with a more comprehensive view of truck and trailer location, product status, and maintenance of transit times.

- EOBRs – this is a hot issue on the table for the trucking industry at the moment. We all know that all truck drivers are required to keep a logbook of their hours of service, to ensure they are in compliance. Many companies have installed Electronic On Board Recorders (EOBRs) that transmit a driver’s activity back to the company’s headquarters to be recorded. There are advocates and opponents for the widespread installation of EOBRs in the industry. Read more on the issue here.

- Mobile Phones – a cell phone is a cell phone is a cell phone, or is it? Mobile phone technology is one of the fastest progressing technologies out there. One of the most important things for a trucking company and driver to keep in mind is that a cell phone with a camera function is an absolute necessity these days. It allows you to secure loads (many companies require daily picture updates on loads in order to monitor the status of a product, like tomatoes for example). Camera phones are also a necessary tool when it comes to documenting issues at pickup or delivery. If you arrive at a shed and the product they are loading on your truck is leaning on the pallets, the best proof to back up your case is to TAKE A PHOTO!!! You can then send this (via text message or email if you have a smart phone) to the interested parties. Smart phones (phones with email capabilities) are also becoming the standard. This not only allows you to stay easily connected to family and friends while on the road, but allows for timely and efficient communication on a professional level. The mobile phone industry is very competitive, and as such, owing a smart phone is now a cost effective way to add much value to your business!

- Document Imaging – being able to quickly send legible paperwork across the chain is extremely important. For the customer, it means they can have legible electronic proof of deliveries in their systems moments after the truck has finished unloading. For the carrier, it means that they can get paid in a timely manner without having to worry if the documents arrived at their destination in their entirety or if they were legible. UWC has partnered with Pegasus Trans Tech’s TRANSFLO Express® system, a document imaging system that is offered at over 800 truck stops throughout the United States and Canada. We offer this service FREE to all Carrier Partners! Discover more here.

We want to know, how do you use technology to help your business? Are you an iPhone, Android, or a Blackberry user???

On another note, UWC’s 3rd annual bowling extravaganza is tonight!! Wish us all luck in the lanes!!