Anyone Driving For Werner Help Please . . .
Topic 16939 | Page 2
I don't mind answering the questions.
The Perdue accounts are reefer accounts which have their pros and cons. My first trainer was on a reefer account, they tend to be more live loads instead of drop and hook and you tend to have more wait times. On the plus side, freight tends to be more consistent with then.
Dollar General stores can be backing nightmares, especially for new drivers. They can be a quick way to end your career if you're new.
As a company driver at Werner, the only inverters you are allowed to have are the ones that plug into the 12v outlet. The only company trucks that have apus are million miler trucks.
Reefer:
A refrigerated trailer.
Drop And Hook:
Drop and hook means the driver will drop one trailer and hook to another one.
In order to speed up the pickup and delivery process a driver may be instructed to drop their empty trailer and hook to one that is already loaded, or drop their loaded trailer and hook to one that is already empty. That way the driver will not have to wait for a trailer to be loaded or unloaded.
APU:
Auxiliary Power Unit
On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.
Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.
APUs:
Auxiliary Power Unit
On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.
Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.
Good morning & thanks for all the answers you've given me. Concerning dispatch or FMs, are they all stationed in Omaha or out of the other terminals & would we have a chance to meet them before we are assigned to them ?
Do they have a good sized division in reefers that you may know of ? I have been thinking hard on running reefers but Im having a time on finding info on it ? I know you have to keep a close eye on the unit & make sure its at the temp it needs to be & fuel levels, but what about cleaning it out, defrosting if necessary, etc ?
Thank you so very much for the time you take to answer my questions & the work you do out on the road
Terminal:
A facility where trucking companies operate out of, or their "home base" if you will. A lot of major companies have multiple terminals around the country which usually consist of the main office building, a drop lot for trailers, and sometimes a repair shop and wash facilities.
Fm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.Reefer:
A refrigerated trailer.
I can tell you the West Rock account will be hauling scrap paper. I do a lot of scrap paper runs. A lot of the recycling centers are very tight areas. They tend to either be not setup well or are in a awkward location. Also some may have giant scrap paper piles to navigate around.
Scrap paper bale loads tend to be a little heavy. The lightest one I have had yet was 40k lbs. most tend to be between 43k and 45k lbs. You are not pushing max gross or anything, but are a little on the heavy side.
Most of the dispatchers are based out of Omaha. There are a few elsewhere, mostly for dedicated runs. You generally don't get to meet them before being assigned to them. I have give through several of them in my time here and they were all pretty good with the exception of one and my time with him was extremely limited so it could have just been an off day or two for him.
I'm not too familiar with their reefer fleets. My first trainer was on a regional account that ran reefer but I was only with him for 2 weeks before I ended up in the hospital.
Dedicated Run:
A driver or carrier who transports cargo between regular, prescribed routes. Normally it means a driver will be dedicated to working for one particular customer like Walmart or Home Depot and they will only haul freight for that customer. You'll often hear drivers say something like, "I'm on the Walmart dedicated account."
Regional:
Regional Route
Usually refers to a driver hauling freight within one particular region of the country. You might be in the "Southeast Regional Division" or "Midwest Regional". Regional route drivers often get home on the weekends which is one of the main appeals for this type of route.
Dispatcher:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.Reefer:
A refrigerated trailer.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
Hey Patrick thanks for the details for the west rock acct. I imagine they wouldn't put me on that 1 coming in as a rookie, but who knows . . .
Magick I'm going thru the logbook section of the training here & its telling me you have to use the time zone for the terminal you're stationed at. Do you run your time zone out of Omaha (Central) or maybe another terminal closer to either where you live or a "home" terminal ?
Logbook:
A written or electronic record of a driver's duty status which must be maintained at all times. The driver records the amount of time spent driving, on-duty not driving, in the sleeper berth, or off duty. The enforcement of the Hours Of Service Rules (HOS) are based upon the entries put in a driver's logbook.
Terminal:
A facility where trucking companies operate out of, or their "home base" if you will. A lot of major companies have multiple terminals around the country which usually consist of the main office building, a drop lot for trailers, and sometimes a repair shop and wash facilities.
I am a rookie. I go to scrap paper places several times a week. I run a load from Cherokee, AL (SCA) to a food service customer. After that I go to a scrap paper place and take it back to Cherokee, AL. This is the beginning of my 4th week solo. Been doing scrap paper places since being with my trainer. The hardest part is figuring out how to navigate individual places. Once you know how to navigate a place it becomes easier. Some of the backing situations are messed up, but you learn quickly to get creative.
A good example of a place I picked up scrap paper at. This location I dropped of large rolls of paper than picked up scrap. The paper rolls were unloaded at 1 dock (easy to get in to) then had to go to a different dock to load scrap. The scrap dock was backing around a curve then putting my back tandems on 2 ramps. Each ramp was wide enough for a set of dual tires to sit on. So only the tires of my rear axle were on the ramps. The tires of the front axle were off the ground. My internet is too slow to upload my pictures to Photobucket. I would add them later for you to see.
Tandems:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Tandem:
Tandem Axles
A set of axles spaced close together, legally defined as more than 40 and less than 96 inches apart by the USDOT. Drivers tend to refer to the tandem axles on their trailer as just "tandems". You might hear a driver say, "I'm 400 pounds overweight on my tandems", referring to his trailer tandems, not his tractor tandems. Tractor tandems are generally just referred to as "drives" which is short for "drive axles".
Patrick can I ask are you driving dry van or flat bed with those rolls ? & whats your home time like ?
The backing where you were getting loaded HAD ta be a nightmare. Sounds like your backing skills havta be on point quick, fast & in a hurry . . lol. I look forward to seeing the pics when you get em up 
I wouldn't mind a route like that but only time will tell. Thanks for your responses
Dry Van:
A trailer or truck that that requires no special attention, such as refrigeration, that hauls regular palletted, boxed, or floor-loaded freight. The most common type of trailer in trucking.HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
Hey Patrick thanks for the details for the west rock acct. I imagine they wouldn't put me on that 1 coming in as a rookie, but who knows . . .
Magick I'm going thru the logbook section of the training here & its telling me you have to use the time zone for the terminal you're stationed at. Do you run your time zone out of Omaha (Central) or maybe another terminal closer to either where you live or a "home" terminal ?
Your logs are all electronic, but yes since the main terminal is in Omaha, they run on central time. Your pickup and delivery times are given in the timezones those picking up or delivering in.
Logbook:
A written or electronic record of a driver's duty status which must be maintained at all times. The driver records the amount of time spent driving, on-duty not driving, in the sleeper berth, or off duty. The enforcement of the Hours Of Service Rules (HOS) are based upon the entries put in a driver's logbook.
Terminal:
A facility where trucking companies operate out of, or their "home base" if you will. A lot of major companies have multiple terminals around the country which usually consist of the main office building, a drop lot for trailers, and sometimes a repair shop and wash facilities.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.New Reply:
New! Check out our help videos for a better understanding of our forum features
Preview:
This topic has the following tags:
Werner Enterprises Choosing A Trucking Company Electronic Logbooks Truck Driver Salary WIOA
Why Join Trucking Truth?
- The High Road Training Program
- The High Road Article Series
- The Friendliest Trucker's Forum Ever!
- Email Updates When New Articles Are Posted
Apply For Paid CDL Training Through TruckingTruth
Did you know you can fill out one quick form here on TruckingTruth and apply to several companies at once for paid CDL training? Seriously! The application only takes one minute. You will speak with recruiters today. There is no obligation whatsoever. Learn more and apply here:
TT On Facebook
Thank you so very much for the info. The driver that comes to the Dollar General that's close to me I feel for. I've seen him twice & each time he looks soooo run down & in need of a good home cooked meal. I went up to him 1 day, offered my hand & told him thank you for bringing our stuff to the store. He just smiled. Perdue & Dollar General I've heard aren't for newbies.
As a company driver if you purchase & have it installed by their mechanic, could you put an inverter on the truck. I know you can as an owner op ? Or do they have APUs ? If I'm bombarding you with questions, just tell me ta hush . . .
TWIC:
Transportation Worker Identification Credential
Truck drivers who regularly pick up from or deliver to the shipping ports will often be required to carry a TWIC card.
Your TWIC is a tamper-resistant biometric card which acts as both your identification in secure areas, as well as an indicator of you having passed the necessary security clearance. TWIC cards are valid for five years. The issuance of TWIC cards is overseen by the Transportation Security Administration and the Department of Homeland Security.
APU:
Auxiliary Power Unit
On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.
Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.
APUs:
Auxiliary Power Unit
On tractor trailers, and APU is a small diesel engine that powers a heat and air conditioning unit while charging the truck's main batteries at the same time. This allows the driver to remain comfortable in the cab and have access to electric power without running the main truck engine.
Having an APU helps save money in fuel costs and saves wear and tear on the main engine, though they tend to be expensive to install and maintain. Therefore only a very small percentage of the trucks on the road today come equipped with an APU.