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24 • February 15-28, 2018 Business b TSI from page 21 b The TSI increase took place against a background of strong results for other indicators. The Federal Reserve Board industrial production index rose by 0.2 percent in November, with increases in manufacturing and mining. Employment rose, personal income grew and housing starts increased. The Institute for Supply Management Manufacturing index declined to 58.2, indicating positive but decelerating growth. As for trends, the Freight TSI’s November index was 4.7 percent above the level of July 2016 of 124.9, which was the highest level prior to 2017. S T A B ILITY November was the second all-time high in a row, and the sixth in 2017. The seven months from May to November 2017 were the seven highest levels the Freight TSI has ever attained. The Freight TSI was at or above 124.0 in every month of 2017, a level it reached in only two months prior to 2017. The November index was 38.1 percent above the April 2009 low during the most recent recession. For additional historical data, go to TSI data. For-hire freight shipments are up 16.6 percent in the five years from November 2012 and are up 18.3 percent in the 10 years from November 2007. BTS research has shown a clear relationship between economic cycles and the freight and passenger transportation services indexes, the BTS said. 8 S U CCESS We Are Mercer Transportation. THE Owner Operator Company Rock Solid - Owner Operator Driven - For Over 40 Years L O N GEVITY 1-888-374-8445 www.mercertown.com b Tonnage from page 21 b gain from the previously reported 2.3 percent increase. The not seasonally adjusted index, which represents the change in tonnage actually hauled by fleets before any seasonal adjustment, equaled 141.9 in December, which was 3.4 percent below the previous month’s 146.9. “Despite the decline in December, last year was a solid year for truck tonnage, especially during the second half of 2017,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello. “I remain optimistic for 2018 for a host of reasons, including a pick-up in factory activity, better housing E XPERIENCE thetrucker.com construction, solid retail sales, and an expected shot in the arm from the new tax law.” In other economic news impacting trucking: • U.S. employers added a robust 200,000 jobs in January, and wages rose at the fastest pace in more than eight years, evidence of a consistently healthy job market. The unemployment rate remained 4.1 percent, the lowest level since 2000, the Labor Department said in its monthly jobs report February 2. For-hire trucking added 2,200 jobs, according to the Labor Department. • Privately owned housing starts in December were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,192,000. This is 8.2 percent below the revised November estimate of 1,299,000 and is 6.0 percent below the December 2016 rate of 1,268,000. Single-family housing starts in December were at a rate of 836,000; this is 11.8 percent below the revised November figure of 948,000. The December rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 352,000. An estimated 1,202,100 housing units were started in 2017. This is 2.4 percent above the 2016 figure of 1,173,800. • President Donald Trump campaigned on a promise to overturn U.S. trade policy and bring down the country’s trade deficits. After a year in the White House, he still has a lot of work to do. The Commerce Department reported that the U.S. trade deficit in goods and services rose 12 percent to $566 billion last year, the biggest since 2008. A record $2.9 trillion in imports swamped $2.3 trillion in exports last year. The deficit in the goods trade with China hit a record $375.2 billion in 2017. The goods gap with Mexico climbed to $71.1 billion. 8 b Daseke from page 21 b director at a CFO consulting firm for highgrowth companies. Wheeler sits on the advisory board of the College of Business-Texas A&M University-Commerce, where he earned his undergraduate degree and now serves as an adjunct professor of finance. In 2014, the Commerce, Finance and Economics Department at Texas A&M College of Business bestowed upon him the Alumni Ambassador Award, the highest honor granted to an alumnus. Wheeler received his M.B.A. from Southern Methodist University in 1985. “I knew Don was a leader from the first time I met him, and I feel fortunate to have worked alongside him for the last six years,” Wheeler said. “When Don first approached me about joining his new company as CFO, I found his philosophy of finding well-managed companies and offering them the opportunity and resources to grow their business to a whole new level to be so compelling. I look forward to taking on the operational leadership role that Don has so expertly established at Daseke, as he and I continue to serve as mentors to the leaders of Daseke’s growing number of operating companies.” Daseke companies operate 5,200 tractors, more than 11,000 flatbed and specialized trailers, and a million-plus square feet of industrial warehousing space. Daseke is the largest company, yet has only 1 percent market share, of the highly fragmented $133 billion flatbed and specialized transportation market. 8
thetrucker.com b Focus from page 23 b each day’s record can be emailed to the officer’s computer or a website, and login credentials can be provided to the inspector, who can access the records directly. Portable or smartphone units must be directly accessible by the inspector. If, for example, the ELD is a device that plugs into the OBD port and connects with the driver’s smartphone via Bluetooth, the device must be made discoverable to the safety official performing the inspection. Drivers who use Bluetooth headsets are already familiar with this process. The official will provide a code that the driver enters, and will then have access to the information stored in the ELD. It’s important to note that this access is to the unit connected to the OBD port, not the driver’s smartphone. The duty status record is stored in that device, and must be accessible without the driver’s phone. The other method of direct data transfer is by wire, such as a USB2.0 port that the safety official plugs directly into. During a roadside inspection, if the electronic transfer of data is not available or if the connection fails, the driver can still be compliant by showing the actual ELD display of their record of duty status or a printout of it. An important item that many ELD users may not have considered necessary is the instructions for transferring data to inspectors and for handling malfunctions. These can be printed or electronic, and should be a part of the vendor’s user manual for the product. Failure to have the instructions could result in a citation for records not available, even if there are no violations in the record itself. The safest route is to make sure the ELD is on the FMCSA list and is compliant with the requirements. 8 Business February 15-28, 2018 • 25 Preliminary December U.S. net trailer orders hit all-time high of 47K units, FTR says THE TRUCKER STAFF BLOOMINGTON. Ind. — FTR has reported preliminary December U.S. net trailer orders at an all-time high of 47,000 units, 10 percent above November and plus 38 percent year-over-year. December orders, when finalized, are expected to exceed the previous high of 45,800 reached in October 2014. Total trailer orders for 2017 were 308,000 units. Fleets are ordering thousands of dry vans to deal with exceptionally tight trucking capacity pushed to the edge by the ELD mandate, FTR said. “Freight continues to grow without enough equipment to haul it,” said Don Ake, FTR vice president of commercial vehicles. “Carriers are resorting to much more dropand-hook to compensate for the lack of drivers, and they need significantly more trailers to manage the demand.” Across-the-board economic growth is also keeping trailer demand strong in the other segments. Refrigerated freight remains robust and the flatbed market continues to surge with construction and manufacturing growth boosting demand, FTR said, adding that higher crude prices are reviving tank trailer sales. “December was just an awesome month for trailer orders,” Ake said. “We have seen pressure build on equipment markets for several months, and this shows quarter one is going to be hectic as fleets scramble to keep up with freight demand.” 8 ROTELLA ROUNDUP The 411on10W-30 By Dan Arcy, Shell Lubricants Many fleets are switching to 10W-30 engine oils from traditional 15W-40 oils. The reason is fuel economy. Thinner viscosities mean the engine doesn’t have to work as hard and uses less fuel. Think of it like swimming through honey vs. water. Honey is thicker than water, so more energy is used to move through it. The same goes for an engine’s moving parts. A 15W-40 oil requires more energy to move through it whereas 10W-30 oil produces less drag on your engine. But can a 10W-30 protect as well as a 15W- 40? You bet. It comes down to quality additives and composition of base oil. In fact, Shell ROTELLA ® T5 10W-30 can protect as well or better than industry-standard 15W-40 oils. Give it a shot in your fleet. To learn more go to ROTELLA.com/products find us on Facebook search: The Trucker Comments, questions or ideas? Email us at RotellaRoundup@JWT.com NOW LEASING OWNER OPERATORS! Become a part of the McCollister’s Team AGENCY: CLIENT: SPECS: AD CODE: CAPTION: OPPORTUNITIES - in all 48 states. OTR and Regional. Class A & B Regional: Boston • Chicago • Dallas • Northern and Southern California • New Jersey • Virginia SPECIAL COMMODITIES/TRUCKLOAD - Air-ride vans ensure safe and dependable delivery at all times for telecommunications equipment, store displays, hospital equipment and more. LTL ELECTRONICS - everything from delicate electronic equipment to antiques and collectables. CLIMATE - high end electronics, artwork, and museum logistics. AEROSPACE/OvERSIzE - handle one-of-a-kind items, from antennas to satellite systems to rocket engines hOUSEhOLD gOODS - the natural choice for family relocation, whether it’s a local or cross country move. ENCLOSED AUTO TRANSPORT - handling classic, antique, exotic, muscle cars and more. 1151572_A127_Nov_2017_TheTRUCKER_5.125x7.5.indd 1 JWT/Atlanta SHELL Rotella 1/3 Page VERT 1151572_A127 “ROTELLA ROUNDUP” BLEED: N/A TRIM: 5.125” x 7.5” LIVE: -.25” PUB: THE TRUCKER Dates: November 1, 2017 November 15, 2017 ThE McCOLLISTER’S DIFFERENCE: 100% of Fuel Surcharge • Percentage Pay Weekly Settlements • Direct Deposit Real Start Up Bonus Designed by Drivers For more information, call driver support: 800-257-9595 In the East call Joe at ext. 9490. In the West call Paul at ext. 1041 Learn more about McCollister’s Transportation Group, Inc. at www.mccollisters.com 10/20/17 1:47 PM
Page 1 and 2: Vol. 31, No. 4 www.thetrucker.com F
Page 3 and 4: THETRUCKER.COM Nation February 15-2
Page 5 and 6: Thetrucker.com Nation February 15-2
Page 15 and 16: thetrucker.com b Letters from page
Page 17 and 18: “Time is Money” - we hear this
Page 19 and 20: thetrucker.com Perspective February
Page 21 and 22: Business February 15-28, 2018 • 2
Page 23: thetrucker.com Cliff Abbott cliffa@
Page 27 and 28: RecRuiting at a glance Company Driv
Page 29 and 30: Technology February 15-28, 2018 •
Page 31 and 32: Equipment February 15-28, 2018 •
Page 33 and 34: Features February 15-28, 2018 • 3
Page 35 and 36: thetrucker.com Features February 15
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Page 39 and 40: thetrucker.com Features February 15

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