For The Ltl Guys. Thoughts On T-Force?

Kicking the can again as far as getting into linehaul. T-force has a spot less than twenty minutes from my house. With the time slot I’m pretty much looking for. 12 am to 9. Thought it was weird though that they have a specific spot since it’s usually whatever is needed on the load board I thought. I hear good and bad on them. Probably more bad than good. And I’m not sure if it’s a great time to get into freight hauling judging by how the economy is going. Anyways any input appreciated.

I saw one of their drivers on the Mass Pike about three feet off the back bumper of a car. He was trying to help her along by blowing his air horn.

That’s about all I can say about them. I’d hate to judge a company by one driver being an idiot.

Hopefully others chime in with more than what I offered.

Good luck

I don't know much about their freight levels, but they're going through growing pains.

They're still sort of UPS Freight. They're using UPS technology, on a UPS contract, with the same leadership that was in place when UPS ownedb it. They have another year or two before they gave to relinquish the technology and they're currently going through contract negotiations for 2023.

As of today, health insurance is 30/month (not sure about who it covers) and from what I hear it's a great plan. They offer a pension that pays out 110/month per year of service and a 401k ( I don't know if there's a match) . I think the magic number for the pension pay out is 80 (age+years of service=80).

Their equipment is still pretty old, but I don't see them on the side of the road as much as I used to.

If it's an end of the line center, it's possible that all of their runs go out at that time. It can also mean that you report at 12 and work the dock.. if they have a run, you go out. If not, you stay on the dock. The needs of buildings vary and these things are at their discretion. You'd have to reach out to them directly to see what it means.

Personally, I'd avoid TForce right now. I don't know what the separation from UPS is going to look like and the contract negotiations are quiet. There's also no history (in this country) between TFI and the teamsters, so there's no way of knowing how it's going to play out.

Dammit banks you’re right. I always forget about possible dock work. I want as alittle of that as possible. I also forgot about the current contract situation and tfi vs the teamsters. Great points man thanks.

I haven't seen any updates. They are going to slowly be rebaged to CFI. They have new KWs slowly coming in as well.

Freight will keep flowing.

I'm not so sure now is a good time to get into linehaul , my meet has been canceled twice this week because the other terminal which is one of the largest doesn't have freight to move through the Chicago area.

Obviously every terminal and company is different but when a terminal that has 600 linehaul drivers doesn't have anything to come through Chicago so close to the end of the month that is concerning to me. A lot of our terminals are asking drivers to take days off. I've heard similar rumblings from other companies.

Banks summed up T Force pretty nicely, they seem to have some better equipment but from what I see most still looks rough. I'd put them above Central ( which isn't a high bar) and about even with XPO. At least T Force seems like they are willing to buy new equipment, while XPO is still content running Sterlings.

Sorry wish I a better outlook for you.

They are going to slowly be rebaged to CFI

That is the first I have heard of that. They just spent all that time and money on T Force only to rebrand it to CFI already?? Seems stupid to me.

I'm not so sure now is a good time to get into linehaul , my meet has been canceled twice this week because the other terminal which is one of the largest doesn't have freight to move through the Chicago area.

Obviously every terminal and company is different but when a terminal that has 600 linehaul drivers doesn't have anything to come through Chicago so close to the end of the month that is concerning to me. A lot of our terminals are asking drivers to take days off. I've heard similar rumblings from other companies.

Banks summed up T Force pretty nicely, they seem to have some better equipment but from what I see most still looks rough. I'd put them above Central ( which isn't a high bar) and about even with XPO. At least T Force seems like they are willing to buy new equipment, while XPO is still content running Sterlings.

Sorry wish I a better outlook for you.

They are going to slowly be rebaged to CFI

That is the first I have heard of that. They just spent all that time and money on T Force only to rebrand it to CFI already?? Seems stupid to me.

It has been in the plan since the beginning. The size and scope of the deal makes it take more time. We are slowly starting to share all the terminals.

Dammit banks you’re right. I always forget about possible dock work. I want as alittle of that as possible. I also forgot about the current contract situation and tfi vs the teamsters. Great points man thanks.

A lot of people frown on dockwork, but it's not that bad (at least in my experience with FedEx). My run is 102 miles each way and I work the dock 3-4 hours. I work 45 hours a week and make 1,700-1,800 a week.

my meet has been canceled twice this week because the other terminal which is one of the largest doesn't have freight to move through the Chicago area.

That's why I'm keep bidding where I am now. I never get cancelled and I have a lot more free time. Our meets are also getting cancelled or we're sending empty trailers to bring back loaded ones. It's a little different, though because we're in Pennsylvania and not in the middle of the country.

That is the first I have heard of that. They just spent all that time and money on T Force only to rebrand it to CFI already?? Seems stupid to me.

First I've heard of it too and I stay on top of all of the LTL stuff.

It has been in the plan since the beginning. The size and scope of the deal makes it take more time. 

How does that work with the union and why are they spending money on creating a brand just to abandon it?

A lot of people frown on dockwork, but it's not that bad (at least in my experience with FedEx). My run is 102 miles each way and I work the dock 3-4 hours. I work 45 hours a week and make 1,700-1,800 a week.

I’m with ABF in a similar gig and pay scale as Banks. I do yard moves and work the dock 4-5 hrs then run to the main terminal in Carlisle PA, 230 miles round trip. We have been absolutely slammed since I started in April, no slow down at all.

As far as dock work goes, its 99.9% forklift, very little man handling of freight. Having the dock work is a blessing in disguise, if your short on HOS hrs at the end of the week you just stay put and work the dock.

I’m currently learning to load my trailer and had longer days early this week, its more difficult then you would think. Takes a while to learn what can be stacked on and what has to be tracked, what has to stay on floor, weight distribution, etc… I had just enough hrs to make my run last night pending I completed loading by 9:30pm. I did complete in time but my manager opted to keep me on dock rather then risk an HOS violation if I ran into any problems on the road or at main terminal. Without the dock option, I may have lost a days pay at another company

The good:

TransForce has deep pockets and a lot of experience turning around troubled companies.

The bad:

UPS bought Overnite and planned to charge customers a premium for the UPS name. Freight is a commodity - no one pays extra for anything. Once UPS figured that out they sort of lost interest in their LTL arm. Investment in trucks, tech or anything else dried up while they tried to stop their losses and sell off UPS Freight. About the same time, Amazon bought most of their freight business in-house - crimping the cash flows of many potential buyers and dragging out the process.

Most of their equipment is worn out! Trucks with 2 million+ miles can be found at any of their terminals. In a perfect world, TransForce would be able to use their purchasing power to replace all of the worn out trucks they bought. Unfortunately, we live in a time of supply chain issues and waiting lists for new equipment. It may take them YEARS to get a modern fleet with better fuel economy and fewer breakdowns than what they have now.

Having a checked out owner led to more serious problems though. It didn't matter how profitable the company was because everyone was comfortable with UPS covering the losses and not asking too much of them for YEARS. The corporate culture separated individual effort from corporate results. It will be an uphill climb for any owner to instill a more robust work ethic into a staff that's lived without adult supervision for so long.

The other problem is the customer base. Towards the end, UPS was bundling freight with non-freight services to drive sales. Save 20% on web hosting when you spend $10K or more on freight this quarter! The customer base will have to adjust to just paying for freight without either the prestige of the UPS brand name or the free fax toner deals they were getting from the last owners. The only obvious base of potential customers are cross-border shippers.

Verdict:

Not the best, not the worst. There will be A LOT of uncertainty around union relations, changes to the workplace to improve profitability, where all the new customers are supposed to come from, a looming recession and how long it will take TransForce to replace their fleet. I would be hard pressed to name a better owner to meet these challenges than TransForce, but it won't be easy.