Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/25194
MEET THE FLEET MAX KVIDERA Cascadias compose almost half of R.E. West’s fleet. Many of the company’s drop-deck van trailers maximize cubic feet. Cost Conscious R.E. West pays close attention to money-saving factors such as oil change intervals, aerodynamics and reduced idling R.E. West began examining how it was doing business and how it could reduce costs. The old ways of doing things didn’t pencil out like before. Averaging 150,000 miles a year per truck, the Nashville, Tenn.-area truckload carrier was on a 4-year trade cycle, says President and CEO Bob West. But he found fewer tak- ers for 600,000-mile used trucks. To get around that, the company pared the trade cycle to 44 months, which led to a more appealing mileage for buyers of about 500,000 miles. I In recent years, though, used truck values have fallen. The worth of a 4-year-old truck had dropped from $42,000 to around $20,000, West says. The solution was to extend the trade cycle for new trucks that had gone up 50 percent in price over five years. “We don’t know” what West’s trade cycle is now, he says. “We’re in a position now where we don’t have to get rid of the truck like before. We’re thinking we’re going to get at least seven years or maybe 84 TRUCKERS NEWS MARCH 2011 n 2005, with truck costs and fuel prices rising, long-haul carrier get out of them in six years.” West says his family-owned busi- ness is able to retain the trucks lon- ger because of a better handle on costs. One example is oil-change intervals. West’s truck maker of choice, Freightliner, recommends 50,000 miles between changes. By consistently doing oil analysis, the company has extended the inter- val to 70,000 miles and may stretch it to 80,000 if the readings stand up. Another way the company saves on engine wear and fuel usage is by running auxil- iary power units in its fleet of 120 tractors. Five years ago when West had its first APU installed, its average idling rate was 46 percent. West thought he could reduce that to 10 percent, and the company did even better — cut- ting the rate to 2.5 percent at its best. Now the rate is 3 percent, and the average APU idles about 1,750 hours annually, saving three-quar- ters of a gallon of fuel per truck every hour, he says. When West began buying Freightliner Cascadias in 2008, his goal was to increase fuel economy to 8 mpg. Over the course of buy- ing 53 of the aerodynamic Casca- dias, West has averaged 7.5 mpg, through modifications such as shortening the wheelbase by about a foot, reducing the gap between the truck and trailer to 41 inches, installing super-single tires and low- ering the truck height to 46 inches at the fifth wheel. An estimated 75 percent of WHEN WEST BEGAN BUYING FREIGHTLINER CASCADIAS IN 2008, HIS GOAL WAS TO INCREASE FUEL ECONOMY TO 8 MPG. THE COMPANY [ALSO] HAS EARNED U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY DESIGNATION AS A SMARTWAY CARRIER. West’s business, running the con- tinental U.S. states and Canada, involves high cubic-foot loads in drop-deck van trailers, such as shoes, water heaters and insula- tion. “Most truckload freight haul- ers want palletized, shrink-wrapped and no-touch freight,” West says. “We look for freight that’s floor- loaded and that you have to touch. We solicit business that needs lots of cubes.” West pays lumpers to han- dle loads, but if they’re not avail- able, a West com- pany driver will earn added pay of about $35 an hour to do it. West driv- ers — the com- pany doesn’t work with owner-oper- ators — earn pay ranging from $36,000 for an average first-year driver to $50,000 for a second-year driver to $80,000 for top pay. “We tell drivers we hire there are three things that are important to us — be on time, get along and be safe,” West says. “Those are impor- tant to us because we are customer- driven. We do what our customers want.” COURTESY R.W. WEST