Less-Than-Truckload

Shippers are about to experience a change in how carriers calculate domestic less-than-truckload (LTL) freight bills. Starting with a few carriers in the spot market in January, contract shippers will increasingly be approached by more carriers to start disclosing freight dimensions and weight with LTL freight tenders.

As long as LTL carriers remain disciplined on capacity additions, and the U.S. industrial economy remains strong, the LTL sector is well positioned to continue expanding margins due to operating benefits from increased density and higher freight rates. Analysts agree: It’s time for shippers to pump up the freight budget.

Three years ago, Candace Holowicki, the company’s director of global transportation and logistics, joined its Global Services Organization and helped to level functional silos and bring together procurement, logistics, operations, and continuous improvement areas—a move that now saves millions annually.

Company officials said this service will be provided without any type of additional cost for customer shipments traveling from Ohio, Michigan, and Indiana, with expedited services available to customers outside of this area.

As we wrap up the first half of 2014, the longer-haul less-than-truckload (LTL) sector is seeing a lot working in its favor, including better-than-expected volume levels. The sector is also enjoying a financial renaissance, one that Contributing Editor John Schulz says has the leading LTL carrier executives “breathing a collective sigh of relief.”

The challenges faced by its longer-haul less-than-truckload (LTL) brethren are only magnified for carriers in the Regional LTL sector.

Carriers are enjoying a solid 2014, but warn of a pending capacity crunch as driver availability worsens amid tighter federal regulations. Bottom line: Shippers who choose not to collaborate with their carriers and streamline operations will most certainly be hit with higher rates.

Even though not all publicly-traded less-than-truckload carriers (LTL) have posted second quarter earnings yet, the early consensus for those that have issued results is looking very good.

The $35 billion less-than-truckload (LTL) market, benefitting from a rebound in the U.S. industrial sector, is enjoying a renaissance after five lean years. And leading LTL executives say it’s about time.

Common denominators of our 2014 Top 50 include strong leadership, a growing list of diversified service offerings, and the desire to partner with their shipper customers—all essential characteristics for continued success in the new era of tightened capacity.

ODFL increased its first quarter growth expectations to between 11.0 percent-to-11.5 percent compared to previous estimates of 10.0 percent-to-11.0 percent, when compared to the first quarter of 2013.

New systems and management techniques are providing the infrastructure needed to revolutionize the LTL market. Now, shippers and carriers need to sit down and re-engineer their relationships from scratch to improve margins for both. Here’s how it’s done.

We’ve certainly been reading and hearing more about the benefits of improved communication and collaboration in logistics management—be it with our carriers, third party-logistics (3PL) providers, suppliers, and even competitors.

By now you’ve surely heard a U.S. Postal Service spokesperson talk about a parcel deal that they call “If it fits, it ships” with a simple form of capacity pricing.

LTL executives are looking to drive relentless cost increases out of their operations—and they’re telling shippers to prepare for rate increases in the 3 percent to 5 percent range. Here’s why rates are rising and what shippers should expect in 2014.