The Trucker Newspaper - December 15-31, 2015

thetrucker.com
ABF Logistics buys Bear; Transport
Corp. gets majority stake of Optimal
THE TRUCKER NEWS SERVICES
Two trucking acquisitions were announced
December 2.
ABF Logistics of Fort Smith, Arkansas,
an ArcBest company, said it had acquired
Bear Transportation Services, a private, nonasset
truckload brokerage firm headquartered
in Plano, Texas, for cash of $26.0 million,
subject to normal post-closing adjustments.
Transport Corporation of America of Eagan,
Minnesota, a subsidiary of TransForce
Inc. said it had acquired a majority stake in
Optimal Freight LLC., a privately held nonasset
based truckload freight brokerage company.
ABF Logistics said Bear Transportation
Services has more than 140 employees located
in Plano and Fayetteville, Arkansas. The
company, founded in 1982, has approximately
$120 million in annual revenue, serving a
variety of industry segments.
“This company is an excellent fit for ABF
Logistics, as we believe the purchase will
drive growth and profitability by combining
our vision, brand and customer relationships
with Bear’s deep pool of experienced sales
and operations team members,” said ABF
Logistics President Jim Ingram. “We have
admired the Bear organization for years and
have been impressed with the skill sets and
innovative IT concepts we have seen in action.”
Ingram said ABF Logistics had experienced
rapid growth since it was formed in
2013, adding that it was the second acquisition
of the year for the company after its purchase
of Oklahoma City-based Smart Lines
Transportation Group in January 2015.
“We are pleased to find a strategic buyer
with a strong culture and a clear growth
plan,” said Mike Loehr, a principal owner
of Bear Transportation. “Our employees and
our customers will benefit from the resources
and solutions ABF Logistics and the broader
ArcBest organization will provide.”
Transport America said its acquisition
greatly expanded its capabilities to create solutions
for its customer base.
Founded in 2011 and headquartered in
Chicago, Optimal Freight provides brokerage
services throughout the United States,
Canada and Mexico. By means of data and
technology, Optimal Freight manages the requirements,
capabilities and freight patterns
of shippers and carriers, successfully creating
solutions that maximize productivity and
cost efficiency, according to Keith Klein,
president of Transport America.
“This is an exciting opportunity for Transport
America’s customers and employees,
allowing us to significantly expand our capabilities
to provide solutions for customers
outside of our current asset footprint,” Klein
said. “We look forward to working together
with Noam Frankel, president of Optimal
Freight, and his team to build on the success
of both organizations.”
“We are excited to be a part of a company
which maintains the same core values our
organization was founded on,” Frankel said.
“Optimal Freight has strengths in van, flatbed,
refrigerated services, and over-dimensional
operations, and we look forward to
utilizing Transport America’s extensive full
truckload and intermodal operations. With
Transport America’s support, we are eager to
offer customers a more robust range of services
in more locations.” 8
Business December 15-31, 2015 • 37
Courtesy: ABF LOGISTICS
ABF Logistics has experienced rapid growth since it was formed in 2013. This is the
second acquisition of the year for the company after its purchase of Oklahoma City-based
Smart Lines Transportation Group in January 2015.
What types of additives are in diesel engine oil
and how do they work?
By Mark Reed
Shell Lubricants
Additives represent 15 to 20 percent of a gallon of oil with the balance
being high-quality base oil. Additive packages help keep an engine clean
and protected from varnish and sludge, as well as provide protection
against wear, heat and acids. Key additives perform vital functions:
Antioxidants - Engine oils react with oxygen in the air forming organic
acids. Oxidation causes an increase in oil viscosity, sludge and varnish
formation, corrosion of metallic parts and foaming. Antioxidants inhibit
the oxidation process.
Anti-wear additives - Anti-wear additives prevent direct metal-to-metal
contact between the engine parts by adding a protective, sacrifical film.
Using anti-wear additives promotes long engine life by reducing wear and scoring of the engine.
Friction modifiers - Friction modifiers reduce engine friction, resulting in less fuel
consumption.
Dispersants - Dispersants keep foreign particles suspended from oil so they don’t form
deposit build-up on engine parts.
Detergents - Detergents neutralize strong acids present in oil and remove them from metal
surfaces. Detergents also form a film on the metal surfaces preventing sludge and varnish from
forming in high temperature parts of the engine.
Pour point depressants - Pour point is the lowest temperature at which oil may flow. Pour
point depressants prevent wax particles from forming in mineral oils at low temperatures. This
allows more oil fluidity at low temperatures on engine startup.
Viscosity index improvers - Engine oil viscosity sharply decreases at high temperatures
which causes a decrease in the ability of the oil to lubricate properly. Viscosity index improvers
keep the viscosity at acceptable levels, which provide a stable oil film even at increased
temperatures.
Anti-foaming agents - Foaming enhances oil oxidation and decreases its lubrication
effect, which can cause oil starvation. Anti-foam agents prevent agitation and aeration of
engine oil that may result in air bubbles or foaming in the oil.
Properly functioning diesel engine oils help enhance fuel economy, prevent deposits and
maintain proper flow and viscosity under all temperatures. On-road testing is important to
understand how well diesel engine oil will hold up under extreme road conditions. Shell
Rotella ® T Triple Protection ® engine oil has been proven in more than 50 million miles of
durability testing.
This monthly column is brought to you by Shell Lubricants. Got a question?
Visit ROTELLA.com, call 1-800-231-6950 or write to The Answer Column,
1001 Fannin, Ste. 500, Houston, TX 77002.
The term "Shell Lubricants" collectively refers to the companies of the Shell Group
engaged in the lubricants business.