More often than not over the last few weeks, I’ve been getting sent to every corner of the country and coming back completely empty or with just 2-4 pallets!
I’m pretty new to this driving malarkey, and was wondering if anyone else’s firms are the same.
It wouldn’t bother me but It means I get back to the yard for 2 or 3 and I’m going off again with a full load just to return empty plus It means I’m pretty much not coming home when I get back that early.
Par for the course buddy. The larger the company the larger the waste. I’m forever following one of ours to three or four deliveries when it would have all fitted on one truck. I also regularly pass vehicles from the same Co going the opposite direction to me and they’re empty going to load as I am too!
In my experience the bigger the co, the more incompetent the planning.
Especially those that put out propoganda to the contrary .
These type of up their own arse firms could be more efficient and cost effective, save (and make) a fortune if they streamlined, got rid of a lot of non job deadwood, and ceased the More chiefs than Indians scenario.
Before christmas I did work for a company a few times down to a distribution hub near leeds. There were two trunks that went, both with double decker trailers. Both ran down empty and the first one brought back up 12 pallets, the second brought back 10. Net time, the first brought up 10, the second 8. you get the picture. Why they couldnt just put all pallets on the one trailer is a mystery to me. I mentioned to the shunter and he said its always been that way. I filled up with about £240 of deisel each night so that was about £700 worth of deisel alone that could be saved if they sent one lorry instead of two, not ot mention how much they paid the agency for 13 hours. Total waste of money
Amen to the above, you sometimes wonder if fuel is free.
The worse offenders in my experience are large logistics operators managing contracts for third party companies who no longer operate their own vehicles.
If these companies, customers, are daft enough to let them ■■■■ their money up the wall like this then more fool them, it’ll all change i reckon when interest rates finally go up as they must do if we are ever to stop the national debt climbing to the stratosphere.
We never load back even from the south of Italy. Two man crews and specialised vehicles, it makes more sense to run back for a load that pays well than pick up a load from an exchange and more or less lose money.
On the foreign runs especially, I’m competing with East EU and I can’t run for their rates.
Is guilty of this. I reckon I did as much as 50-60% empty for him over the years.
Wincanton on the Britvic contract, from Leeds to Magna Park empty and yes, you’ve guessed it back to Leeds empty. That’s planning in a whole world of it’s own.
Gibraltar to Holland empty when the fruit wasn’t in season. It didn’t happen a great deal but sometimes three or four lorries and teams would do it.
The best one, take an empty from the yard to Lichfield to get reloaded with groupage. Sat on the bay for 2-3 hours for 3 pallets. Yes, an entire 45ft trailer for just 3 pallets. They could of given me one the rigids that was sitting empty but nope, hell it wasn’t even staying on said trailer!
We aren’t terrible for it but 2-3 hours empty is expected.
Talking of trunks, a place I used to work at would often send an artic for a change over, down with an empty, back up with another empty. It was usually once a week it would go down and come back with the same trailer as the fact the trunk coming up was cancelled hadn’t been passed down to the driver
2 things .
1.A lot of company’s charge for the trip regardless of quantity
2. A lot of company’s that do storage along with transport make ALL their money on the handling of the goods, ie unload 26 pall £x, move 26 pal into store £x, store 26 pal £x, then reload 26 pal £x. The cost of delivery and road movement is in most cases negligible as the customer pays to have what ever, where ever , whenever .
I hear a Crisp manufacturer in Leicester has Jonny Fournier backload to Kent to deliver rather than use its own transport.
Radar19:
The best one, take an empty from the yard to Lichfield to get reloaded with groupage. Sat on the bay for 2-3 hours for 3 pallets. Yes, an entire 45ft trailer for just 3 pallets. They could of given me one the rigids that was sitting empty but nope, hell it wasn’t even staying on said trailer!
commonrail:
We don’t do much back loading.
Better off getting back to the yard,and getting one of our customers loads on the back.
Same here, our regular customers keep us more than busy enough and they pay enough for us to make a decent profit without running around for backloads which could potentially cause us to let those customers down.
i run my trucks back from reading empty to mansfield if theres no return, its not about wasting deisel its about how much money is on the job, and i need the truck back t ogo again the next day
This is normal running around Europe .
Used to tip Gibraltar to run empty to Alicante or Valencia and Barcelona.
A whole days driving .
Not much export back to the UK in the Malaga area.
Same for Lisbon, export was Porto ,nothing from Lisbon.
Some UK firms would run empty from UK to southern Spain to bring back citrus fruit for Christmas rush for supermarkets.
Got a good of about £3000.
robroy:
In my experience the bigger the co, the more incompetent the planning.
Especially those that put out propoganda to the contrary .
These type of up their own arse firms could be more efficient and cost effective, save (and make) a fortune if they streamlined, got rid of a lot of non job deadwood, and ceased the More chiefs than Indians scenario.
commonrail:
We don’t do much back loading.
Better off getting back to the yard,and getting one of our customers loads on the back.
Same here, our regular customers keep us more than busy enough and they pay enough for us to make a decent profit without running around for backloads which could potentially cause us to let those customers down.
Ditto - and this is the way things are trending, insofar as medium sized independent companies seem to put quality of service or penny pinching. Hence they stick with chosen operators.
Whereas the big hauliers might get your pallet to scotland for beans; but it’s doubtful they really give a toss about meeting any ‘service expectations’…
nick2008:
2 things .
1.A lot of company’s charge for the trip regardless of quantity
2. A lot of company’s that do storage along with transport make ALL their money on the handling of the goods, ie unload 26 pall £x, move 26 pal into store £x, store 26 pal £x, then reload 26 pal £x. The cost of delivery and road movement is in most cases negligible as the customer pays to have what ever, where ever , whenever .
I hear a Crisp manufacturer in Leicester has Jonny Fournier backload to Kent to deliver rather than use its own transport.
We load out of Linekers Crisps in Leicester, cant say Ive ever seen Jonny in there ?
