Moving Between Divisions (flt Bd, Reefer, Van, Tank) Within A Company?

Ultimately this question (***) centers around the fact that our ultimate goal for a driving career is to become a team. “Our” is referring to myself and my fiancé.

I would be the first to jump in and get my feet wet before she comes along for the ride. As well, I’m planning to capture any/every endorsement to allow for running virtually anything. Once she’s had a taste of OTR life and I’ve clocked a decent amount of miles, I plan to put her through school.

In my mind the best possible way to evolve this plan initially would be to go flatbed, since I have more experience (albeit indirectly) with flatbed loading, securement and tarping from my previous career (oilfield). Then, once I’m covered for riders and/or she is approved to ride, we hit the road together. If during this time I have an opportunity to also run reefer or dry van , that would definitely be an added advantage to making a decision in the future. I also realize the majority of tanker runs would prohibit a rider, so that option would have to wait pending her licensing, endorsements and time.

My thinking on this is basically to gain multi-level experience within one company to not only expose us to the more options for our goal of team driving, but to limit any exposure to economic downturns within the industry. This method of thinking served me very well within the oilfield industry but unfortunately did not run parallel with recent pitfalls of basic supply/demand economics.

***So if I run with a company that has multiple divisions and I have the proper endorsements and desired time on the road, what kind of issues or difficulty can I (we) expect to encounter moving between divisions??***

Thanks for any advice!

If it's within the same company I don't think you will have much difficulty at all assuming there are openings in that division.

Sushi Boy although you can definitely move within divisions of the larger companies, it's not like a day here or even a week and then onto a different division.

Many times the tractors assigned for flatbed, tanker, and dry/reefer van service are different, highly specialized, and will require a "moving day" each time you make a change. Also many times the different divisions may have different and specific terminals that could be miles apart. At some point your future employer will likely ask you to put a stake in the ground and commit to a division for a set period of time. This will vary from company to company.

I suggest being aware of this, take into consideration as you plan your career.

Good luck.

Sushi Boy, you will rarely have any problems switching between divisions within a company once you've proven yourself to be a hard working, safe, and reliable driver. Some divisions they may let you in right away, others will require maybe a year or more experience with the company before they'll let you change over.

With your plan, the first problem you're going to run into is that there are not a lot of flatbed team operations. There are some, but very few. There are a lot more dry van and refrigerated team operations and I would recommend a refrigerated carrier if you're going to run team. Refrigerated freight has the longest average miles per load because there is such a huge amount of produce going from the West Coast to the East Coast, and then of course those trucks need to get back to the West Coast for another run. So there's a lot of coast to coast freight for refrigerated companies.

Dry van companies also have rather extensive team operations but you're going to find more variance in the length of haul and a lot more ups and downs in freight around the holidays.

As a trucker you will not have to worry about economic downturns. There is always plenty of work and plenty of jobs. I know people that got started in trucking in January '09, right at the depth of the "Great Recession" immediately after Christmas. They had no problems finding work and had solid freight to haul. Companies will cut back on the size of their fleets in extremely tough times but the turnover is so high in trucking that they can use turnover to reduce fleet size. You won't see layoffs or anything of the sort.

I'd say your plan is pretty solid but I would recommend a refrigerated carrier for running team with your wife. If you want to get out there first, learn the ropes, and then bring her along after you've been out there for a bit then you can do that. It's a perfectly fine plan.

The 800 pound gorilla in the room when it comes to companies that have a lot of refrigerated freight but also other divisions would be Prime. Roehl I believe also fits the bill and there are others also. That would give you the refrigerated freight for running team but other options down the line if you so choose.

Sushi Boy, you will rarely have any problems switching between divisions within a company once you've proven yourself to be a hard working, safe, and reliable driver. Some divisions they may let you in right away, others will require maybe a year or more experience with the company before they'll let you change over.

With your plan, the first problem you're going to run into is that there are not a lot of flatbed team operations. There are some, but very few. There are a lot more dry van and refrigerated team operations and I would recommend a refrigerated carrier if you're going to run team. Refrigerated freight has the longest average miles per load because there is such a huge amount of produce going from the West Coast to the East Coast, and then of course those trucks need to get back to the West Coast for another run. So there's a lot of coast to coast freight for refrigerated companies.

Dry van companies also have rather extensive team operations but you're going to find more variance in the length of haul and a lot more ups and downs in freight around the holidays.

As a trucker you will not have to worry about economic downturns. There is always plenty of work and plenty of jobs. I know people that got started in trucking in January '09, right at the depth of the "Great Recession" immediately after Christmas. They had no problems finding work and had solid freight to haul. Companies will cut back on the size of their fleets in extremely tough times but the turnover is so high in trucking that they can use turnover to reduce fleet size. You won't see layoffs or anything of the sort.

I'd say your plan is pretty solid but I would recommend a refrigerated carrier for running team with your wife. If you want to get out there first, learn the ropes, and then bring her along after you've been out there for a bit then you can do that. It's a perfectly fine plan.

The 800 pound gorilla in the room when it comes to companies that have a lot of refrigerated freight but also other divisions would be Prime. Roehl I believe also fits the bill and there are others also. That would give you the refrigerated freight for running team but other options down the line if you so choose.

Roger that. I'm really thinking reefer is probably going to be our best bet as well. I actually dig driving at night and I've grown accustomed to vac trucks, roughnecks and false alarms jacking with my sleep, so I might be OK.

And it's quite possible she's not going to be down with crawling out of a cab in the rain and snow to throw a tarp, but who knows.

But for sure I'm going to have to stick it out for the first year just to give a company the quality assurance needed to evolve us as a team.

I've received some seriously awesome insight into the industry here. It's been invaluable to understand the industry first hand from yourself and all the guys/gals who have taken the time to contribute.

Thanks again to everyone!!