Should Where My Truck Get Maintenenced Be A Factor In A Company To Work For?

I was talking with my ex school owner ( i graduated today!!! ) and he was telling me that i should consider a company that has a hub here in reno where i live so i can spend my time at home while my trucks getting serviced , instead of waiting somewhere while its serviced and being stuck there . That it happens frequently every 30,000 miles or so... is what he was saying . so how much importance did this play in anyone decision if at all with you experienced drivers out there ? this is the first ive heard this brought up so im thinking B.S. but kinda makes sense if theres alot of service on the trucks too..i know i could of worded this better my apolagies for that and my spelling..lol

I was talking with my ex school owner ( i graduated today!!! ) and he was telling me that i should consider a company that has a hub here in reno where i live so i can spend my time at home while my trucks getting serviced , instead of waiting somewhere while its serviced and being stuck there . That it happens frequently every 30,000 miles or so... is what he was saying . so how much importance did this play in anyone decision if at all with you experienced drivers out there ? this is the first ive heard this brought up so im thinking B.S. but kinda makes sense if theres alot of service on the trucks too..i know i could of worded this better my apolagies for that and my spelling..lol

if you have any luck like I do you'll need a shop before you get to that terminal... we put our truck in the shop to prolong our hometime... I think you should focus on other aspects like type of freight, cpm , hometime Cuz no one really wants the truck in the shop Cuz you ain't making money...

That terminal may be in Reno but the truck will break down in the middle of Wyoming. Having a terminal close just makes it easier for the dispatcher to route you home for time off.

Yes cpm and type of load are still top of the list . i was talking about regular maintenance on the truck not breakdowns...oil changes and what not. ok thanks for the feed back.

For me, it had some weight when I was deciding which company to hire on with. But in the end, it was not the winning factor.

Today, I just had an injector harness replaced in this Columbia and two new steer tires put on. Took the shop about 5 hours to get it fixed and me back on the road. Some of that time was waiting for them to finish with the truck they were working on when I got there and time to do a regen on my truck after the repairs. This process involved digging into the engine a bit. I'm not a mechanic but it looked like they removed the valve cover and rockers to get to the harness. I know they used a torque wrench to get it back together. Truck runs like new again.

Point is, depending on the shop employees and policies, wait time can be minimal. Still, a shop close to home is a plus that needs to be considered.

Personally I never once worked for an OTR company that had a terminal or drop lot in the state I lived in and I didn't think it made any difference. I would consider it a small perk but not very important in the decision making process. Your truck is going to spend less than 5% of the time in a shop. Worry more about the factors that affect the other 95% of your time like pay, home time, benefits, the type of equipment they have, and the type of freight they haul.

Ya its not a main factor for me but i never considered it till i spoke with the owner that day. kenneth i agree though its a factor for me but will be down there on the list. Brett thanks for the estimate on time spent in the shop because 5% cause thats what made me ask the question . my instructor made it sound like it would be in the shop every few weeks or more ..

Part of the determination on shop time is how the company you work for does their service intervals. With Knight, there are a couple service intervals. One is the full on oil change and a shorter version that's just a quick check and lube. The other is a quick inspection, top off fluids and such along with a quick safety inspection. The service intervals are every 7,500 for most except oil changes and full services. Depending on how hard you're running, that 7500 miles hits about every two and a half weeks. The up side is that we can have them all done at any terminal and there are terminals all over the country which makes it easier.