JHT Holdings

Source: Supply Chain Digital

Date :3/18/2008 4:48:54 AM

Whatever your need, you can count on JHT Holdings. Exec learns more about this leading hauler and how a management buy-out in 2006 has given it focus

Written by Ian Armitage and Produced by Crias Corrigan

If it rolls, odds are JHT Holdings haul it. In fact, through its subsidiaries, JHT Holdings provides over-the-road transportation of various types of motor vehicles, including commercial trucks and cars. Among its operating units are Active Truck Transport, Automotive Carrier Services, and Unimark. Overall, JHT can call upon a fleet of about 175 tractor-trailer rigs and some 120 trailers.

New York investment firm Stonehouse Capital Partners today owns a controlling stake in the company, which has its roots in Kenosha Auto Transport, a company that was formed in the 1930s to haul vehicles made by International Harvester and Nash Motors.

Stonehouse Capital Partners is a private equity investment firm and has significant experience investing in middle market manufacturing and service businesses, including trucking, transportation and logistics companies. The firm does not operate the business, but rather it supports the strong management team in fulfilling their operating objectives and creating long term value.

A force to reckon with

JHT has a long history, which began in 1933 when Nicholas Demos, a resident of Kenosha, WI, developed a novel idea of transporting finished vehicles from the manufacturer to the dealer in a more efficient manner. This went against the ‘single driveaway’ method that was commonly used at the time, but helped define it as a unique business. Since then it, and all of JHT’s business units, have become the leaders in the delivery of new and used medium and heavy duty trucks throughout North America.

According to its corporate website, JHT’s operating companies transport around “95 percent of the heavy-duty Class 8 trucks and roughly 50 percent of the new medium duty Class 5 thru 7 trucks from the manufacturers’ plant site location to their dealership network.”

A long and illustrious list of customers includes the likes of Ford Motor Company, General Motors Corporation, Mack Trucks Inc., Nissan Diesel America, Inc., Mitsubishi Motors, Volvo Trucks North America, Inc., Subaru and Isuzu Commercial Truck of America, Inc. It’s certainly a distinguished list, so it is easy to see why the company has enjoyed success.

Dedicated to quality

Each of JHT’s business units is dedicated to quality, proven by the fact that each separate business unit has ISO 9001:2000 certifications. But, although each business unit has its own quality policy, JHT Holdings’ approach to quality is somewhat unique.

Firstly, the company has a passion for continuous and innovative improvement in cost and quality.

This is done in a bid, says the company, “to exceed customer, employee, and shareholder expectations and be the supplier, employer and investment of choice.”

Secondly, the company, says the corporate website, “aims to employ diversified, continuously educated, teamwork focused individuals, who by achieving internal satisfaction will perform to the best of their abilities and therefore assure a high quality performance empowered workplace.”

Finally, it attempts to form strategic partnerships, creating a “high growth oriented enterprise”, which offers value added business solutions as a Tier I or Tier II supplier. This says the company “enhances our reputation as a supplier of choice and our value to our shareholders.”

Certification such as ISO 9001:2000 is considered a sound investment by JHT, which spares no expense to achieve the goal of being “the supplier of choice in the marketplace.”

A new era

In July 2006, JHT was subject to a management buyout, financed by New York investment firm Stonehouse Capital Partners. The leader in the delivery of medium and heavy-duty trucks throughout North America has since been led by a new management team.

This marked the beginning of an exciting new chapter in JHT’s history. It has been able to tap into the entrepreneurial spirit of its people, delivering high-impact results. Customers have benefited most as JHT now has more focus, with employee-owners whose interests are tied to the success of customers.

Unique business management

JHT gives each business unit complete “empowerment”, allowing them to handle day-to-day operations, marketing, strategic direction and labor relations. It also offers financial incentives for management of each company based on what it calls “independent business unit performance” of the “independent” operations.

There are five separate business units that fall under the JHT umbrella, including Active Truck Transport, ATC Leasing, Automotive Carrier Services Co LLC, Johnson-Houston Travel LLC and Unimark:

Active Truck Transport

A predominant supplier of truck transport services for the North American truck manufacturers, including the likes Freightliner, the Active Truck Transport Division delivers Class 5-8 trucks and bus chassis from manufacturing sites to dealerships and customers throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

ATC

ATC provides contract management and administrative services as well as equipment and real estate leasing programs to affiliated companies.

Automotive Carrier Services

Automotive Carrier Services, Co. LLC is headquartered in Joplin, MO. and is the pre-eminent carrier in the industry. Through Auto Truck Transport Corp., it offers a wide variety of transportation services and is engaged in the business of transporting trucks and truck chassis from and to assembly plants, ports, railway distribution points, auctions, dealerships, and other locations.

Johnson-Houston Travel

Johnson-Houston Travel provides contract travel reservation services for affiliated companies’ needs and is capable of expanding into nonaffiliated corporate dedicated travel services, schedules the return trips of driveaway drivers and coordinates administrative staff travel.

Unimark

Unimark, the final member, is a full service drive-away and carhaul company serving all of North America. The company operates terminals throughout the US and Canada. Unimark is known as a leader in the industry and offers world-class service to valued customers.

In total, across each unit, JHT’s staff of 2,000 professionally trained and safety conscious drivers will this year travel in excess of 125 million miles, delivering approximately 400,000 new and used trucks.