CR England: Driving with efficiency

Source: Supply Chain Digital

Date :10/7/2008 6:02:50 AM

With more than 80 years of on-the-road experience, this refrigerated truckload provider continues to improve quality and safety

Written by Sarah Wolfe and Produced by Rob Benson

Since Chester Rodney England bought his first Model T truck in 1920 for farm-to-market service in Utah, CR England has become a nationwide leader in refrigerated truckload service - guided by four generations of the England family.

Chairman Dan England is third generation with his three younger brothers Dean, CEO, Todd and Corey, both Executive Vice Presidents. Their father Gene represents the second generation, remaining active in the business.

“My dad continues to drive at 88 years old,” says Dan England. “We have him tested every six months and he’s shown no deterioration. He’s still the company President.”

In addition to trucking, the Salt Lake City company is a thriving, global 3PL provider through subsidiary England Logistics. Founded in 1994, it handles full truckload brokerage, intermodal transportation services, inland container transit, LTL refrigerated and dry, traffic management and international freight forwarding. CRE acquired a Los Angeles outfit to move goods between the US and China, and the company also does business with the Asian Rim and Mexico. Among its clients are Wal-Mart, DHL, Hershey, Chiquita, Coca Cola and Kodak.

CRE’s fleet includes 3,700 trucks, primarily Freightliner and International tractors and Utility and Wabash trailers. Refrigeration technology is the latest in high tech from Thermo King and Carrier; the company has purchased technology that allows monitoring of reefer temperatures from the office. Intermodal trailer temperatures can even be remotely adjusted.

Overall, the company has 2,200 independent contractors 2,300 company drivers, and 1,000 in-house staff. Aside from its headquarters, it totals 24 locations with state-of-the-art executive and dispatch offices, training terminals, brokerage and dedicated offices, and equipment maintenance shops. Training schools are located in Utah, California, Texas and Indiana.

SAFETY MEASURES

CRE is moving away from hiring recent graduates from other schools as drivers, says England. “The quality of training is better at our schools, based on research we’ve done on driver safety following graduation. We’re exclusively hiring from our schools or else experienced drivers.”

New hires will find safety is critical for the company, especially as highways become more congested with rising populations and transportation. CRE is investing in technologies to further increase safety. For example, a roll-stability system uses sensors to detect when a truck is going to jackknife or roll and automatically applies the brakes to the tractor or trailer. That innovation has cut rollovers in half.

CRE has also contracted with an Israeli company for safe driving technology. Sensing marked lines, a buzzer goes off in the cab if the driver wanders across lanes without signaling. The technology also detects whether the driver is approaching slowing or stopped traffic too quickly and signals the driver. “These are the kind of technologies that help us continue to operate even more safely,” says England.

The company also uses a new software system to compute a driver’s fatigue level. It determines how long a driver has been on the road and notifies safety and dispatch to determine if there is risk. Each driver is actually given a ‘Fatigue Management Score’. England says most carriers aren’t using the system yet, but the company has found it very helpful in keeping track of a high volume of drivers. “We’re also installing recorders – or black boxes – that will ensure greater D.O.T. Hours of Service compliance from drivers and help us operate even more safely.”

MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

England uses a monthly and quarterly ‘accountability’ system to manage its people. Each quarter areas of measurement are established (they change very infrequently), and goals and a grading scale are set for each area. At the end of each month scores are issued based on performance (A+ through F) and bonuses are paid accordingly. This system has worked well in managing and motivating England’s people.

CRE’s effort to reduce its fuel consumption has also lessened its carbon footprint.

“Our trucks are designed for fuel efficiency, but we have reduced their top speed from 65 to 62 mph. They have to use better time management and fewer stops since trips take slightly longer to complete. We track out-of-route driving to see where they’re going, too,” he explains. “We also have a fuel optimization system that tells us where to buy lower-cost fuel; each truck has a basic satellite unit to communicate this information.”

The company will soon upgrade to a user-friendly navigation system so drivers won’t get lost as frequently and can find alternate routes during traffic jams, thus lowering fuel costs.

In-cab heaters continue to run when drivers turn trucks off to sleep. All trucks are equipped with an auto shut-off that prevents idling for more than five minutes. England says the company is looking at auxiliary power units that would allow both heating and cooling with the engine off.

DRIVE LIFE

Two years ago CRE launched its Drive Life initiative – which advocates that employees take control of both their personal and work lives. Drive Life encourages people to reach goals, create opportunities, and to always do the right thing.

“Our Drive Life initiate serves to help increase the quality of work life for drivers,” says England. He explains that over-the-road drivers experience a lot of frustrations – including driving in construction zones, vacation drivers and being away from home weeks at a time – that make trucking a difficult job. The company is identifying ways to make things easier – like the best way to access a payroll clerk – and encouraging goal-setting and the creation of opportunities for drivers and their families. Quarterly driver surveys have shown an improvement in drivers’ outlook. For the future, CRE will continue the driver feedback program.

In today’s difficult business environment C.R. England is continuing to focus on the fundamentals that have contributed to their success over more than eight decades in the transportation industry: Exemplary service, safe driving, and aggressive attention to the details of outstanding performance.