By Reagan Payne

Dedicated shipping is a growing favorite in the trucking industry. From the shipper to the customer, and even the drivers themselves, dedicated trucking operations offers unique solutions that best serve everyone involved.

Transport America recognizes this and has for 35 years. “There will always be a market for irregular route truckload service,” said Eric Anson, president of Transport America. “However, we’ve seen accelerated interest among current and prospective customers who want dedicated solutions that secure reliable capacity and consistent service. That’s something we’ve spent 35 years successfully building and delivering to the market.”

This company’s presence in the dedicated space is only growing stronger as they shift strategies to further prioritize it. Nearly 90 percent of Transport America’s dedicated business comes from customer relationships spanning 10 or more years. In an industry known for higher rates of driver turnover, Transport America’s professional drivers enjoy longer tenures, with more than 60 percent of the driver workforce having a year or more with the company.

The strategic shift recognizes growing customer desire for purpose-designed solutions that support supply chain efficiency with experienced drivers and high-quality consistent service. Transport America offers dedicated solutions to manufacturing, metals, food and beverage, as well as chemicals. Using technology and a fleet of experienced drivers, the company promises to improve overall compliance and safety scores and deliver peak service performance. Many carriers offer these dedicated services to its customers in order to provide the best service possible.

Dedicated Delivers Innovation

Also in the dedicated transportation space, Target utilizes Schneider's ability to adapt, innovate, and deliver. Schneider's Dedicated service has been awarded the 2020 Target Middle Mile Award for Best Transportation Innovator.

“We’re proud to be recognized by Target for our work in optimizing their transportation operations,” said John Bozec, senior vice president and general manager of Van Truckload and Dedicated at Schneider. “This award is further proof of Schneider’s commitment to going the extra mile for our customers by creating custom solutions that work for their unique needs.”

Schneider led two major initiatives that helped improve Target’s transportation experience in 2020. The company established centralized overnight support as well as an auto arrival technology that provides Target with near-real-time alerts when a truck leaves a distribution center or arrives at a store for delivery.

Driver Impact

For drivers, this should be a no-brainer. Dedicated drivers operate in a specific area, delivering freight to the same customers each time. This means more home time: drivers can be home multiple times a week if not home daily. Having repeat customers allows drivers to build relationships with clients; it adds a bit of routine to a usually sporadic career. Finally, driving on familiar terrain allows drivers to learn the best ways to navigate and know when traffic jams will arise.

Transport America is excited about this shift and drivers should be, too. “Particularly in these challenging times, when available capacity and rapid, on-time delivery for many goods is more important than ever, dedicated operations have the unique ability to be consistent, cost-effective and service-sensitive in a way that ad-hoc services cannot,” Anson said. “Transport America is changing dedicated with our service, instead of a one-size-fits-all approach, we are right-sized for customized dedicated solutions.”

Reagan Payne is a staff writer for Wright Media. She can be reached at rpayne@wrightmediacorp.com