Prime Sponsored School
Topic 200 | Page 1
Hey, that's awesome!! 
As far as advice, I would get on that High Road Training Program. You've only completed 7% of the program, and haven't touched the logbook or weight & balance sections. Prime has electronic logs. If you want to turn the most miles you have to know those logbook rules inside and out. That way you'll know all of the legal ways to keep rolling when others wind up sitting.
And I would strongly suggest you get all of your endorsements also. I'm sure Prime hauls hazmat from time to time and they also have a fantastic tanker division you might consider at some point. You don't want to miss out on those opportunities.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
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.
Electronic Logs:
Electronic Onboard Recorder
Electronic Logbook
A device which records the amount of time a vehicle has been driven. If the vehicle is not being driven, the operator will manually input whether or not he/she is on duty or not.
HAZMAT:
Hazardous Materials
Explosive, flammable, poisonous or otherwise potentially dangerous cargo. Large amounts of especially hazardous cargo are required to be placarded under HAZMAT regulations
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.
Best of luck to you. I'm planning on attending Prime myself in a few months. I look forward to hearing about your experience.
Brett is correct about Prime hauling HazMat. As a company driver you will be required to get your HazMat endorsment and get your passport (they do go into Canada on occasion).
Tanker is very limited, so do not see much need unless you intend to go into that division of Prime. They only have food grade tankers, so very limited opportunities there.
Anything else I may be able to help with about Prime, let me know. Will do my best to help.
HAZMAT:
Hazardous Materials
Explosive, flammable, poisonous or otherwise potentially dangerous cargo. Large amounts of especially hazardous cargo are required to be placarded under HAZMAT regulations
Hey Ernie, do you currently or recentl have driven for Prime? If so, how is the equipemnt as far as driver comfort? APU's , bunk heaters, idle policy, etc. Any info you can give on that subject is very much appreciated. How is, if you know, for newbies coming from a private school? I will be looking up their CSA scores, safety record, website in a few. Thanks.
G MAN 
CSA:
Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA)
The CSA is a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) initiative to improve large truck and bus safety and ultimately reduce crashes, injuries, and fatalities that are related to commercial motor vehicle
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.
APU's:
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.
Equipment at most 3 years old. New company drivers are being put into the "lightweight" freightliners. Most of the new drivers recently have all been put into new 2013 or 2014 models.
All the Prime trucks have APU's installed, bunk heaters, and when those are not working properly, liberal idle policy.
I still am driving for Prime as a lease driver and trainer.
Anything else, let me know & I will do my best to get answers for you.
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.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.
APU's:
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.
Thanks Ernie. Couple of things.
1. If I have my CDL from a school they accept, am I a C or B seat to start?
2. Is it a good company if I live in Los Angeles? Will I get loads to my home?
3. Is there anything wrong in general with lightweight trucks?
4. Wanna be my trainer? I was an O/O back in the '80s so I would be an excellent student.
Thanks.
G MAN
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
Thanks Ernie. Couple of things. 1. If I have my CDL from a school they accept, am I a C or B seat to start? 2. Is it a good company if I live in Los Angeles? Will I get loads to my home? 3. Is there anything wrong in general with lightweight trucks? 4. It seems Prime is far better than the bottom feeders. Agree or disagree? 5. Wanna be my trainer? I was an O/O back in the '80s so I would be an excellent student. Thanks. G MAN
1. I am thinking you will be a "B" seat. 2. I am very pleased with Prime, I have gotten loads to the LA area several times, so yes getting loads to get you home should not be a problem. 3. No, just very limited space. Prime also has the trucks governed down to 58 MPH. 4. Only problem with doing that is I live on the east coast, so would/could be an issue with home time during training. Other than that, I wouldn't see an issue.
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
Thanks Ernie. Couple of things. 1. If I have my CDL from a school they accept, am I a C or B seat to start? 2. Is it a good company if I live in Los Angeles? Will I get loads to my home? 3. Is there anything wrong in general with lightweight trucks? 4. It seems Prime is far better than the bottom feeders. Agree or disagree? 5. Wanna be my trainer? I was an O/O back in the '80s so I would be an excellent student. Thanks. G MAN
1. I am thinking you will be a "B" seat. 2. I am very pleased with Prime, I have gotten loads to the LA area several times, so yes getting loads to get you home should not be a problem. 3. No, just very limited space. Prime also has the trucks governed down to 58 MPH. 4. Only problem with doing that is I live on the east coast, so would/could be an issue with home time during training. Other than that, I wouldn't see an issue.
Thanks Ernie. We shall see. Prime wants three years of recent work experience. Well I have been retired for the last five years, so NO work experience. The recruiter I talked with on the phone said: No recent work experience, no can do here with Prime." So I am being penalized because I worked hard and retired early? Jesus! Any ideas to get around this, or through this to make Prime my number one choice to get on with after school? Thanks.
G MAN
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
- Any combination of vehicles with a gross combined weight rating (GCWR) of 26,001 or more pounds, providing the gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of the vehicle being towed is in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any single vehicle with a GVWR of 26,001 or more pounds, or any such vehicle towing another not in excess of 10,000 pounds.
- Any vehicle, regardless of size, designed to transport 16 or more persons, including the driver.
- Any vehicle required by federal regulations to be placarded while transporting hazardous materials.
I've been self employed for 17 years and am required to provide an amazing amount of documents to show that. They can't be too careful I suppose.
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Well I've been accepted to Prime and will depart for Springfield, MO on 3/23. I've been doing my studying and will take my CDL permit tests this coming week. I am so excited about starting this new adventure. Any advice, suggestions, or words of wisdom from those that have been there would be greatly appreciated. Drop me a line @ LLucian103@aol.com and thanks for any input you can get me. Drive safe.
Double L
CDL:
Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
A CDL is required to drive any of the following vehicles:
HOS:
Hours Of Service
HOS refers to the logbook hours of service regulations.