TransportFool

Work SMART-er not harder!

Maybe instead of finding cars that pay better, you can make more money by finding cars that fit easier!

Used VIN scanners for $200 each

One of our customers let me know that a company in Texas is selling some used Vin scanners for $200 each. He has a limited quantity so send an email to me at dave@ezdispatch.com if you want one. This will be first come first served. They do NOT have any chargers but you can buy an after-market charger at Radio Shack. They do have the protective rubber boot which I recommend for the truck environment.

1000 PTS carhaulers to be auctioned by Ritchie Bros

According to Carhauler News 1000 auto transporters will be sold by Ritchie Bros. It looks like at this point the trustee has them dumping all 1000 transporters on 1 day. That ought to create some bargain basement prices! They may be worth picking up for parts trucks.

Teamsters leadership feeling backlash after NO vote

It has to be a bit embarrassing to have a contract recommended unanimously and then be soundly defeated. TDU has a petition on their site asking for a new negotiating committee. Of course there are two sides to every story and truth be told it has been a long time since times have been this tough for the big three that are the carhaul teamsters main customers. This means the customers are holding the rate down and in turn the union carriers are finding it hard to turn a profit. Allied ,PTS, Active, and Unimark are examples that come to mind. The union carriers have in the past set the standard, but as I travel around it has become apparent that the scales are tipping. I see more good jobs with decent benefits in non-union trucks than ever before. I see more cutting-edge technology like vin scanners and GPS navigation in the non-union trucks! As a matter of fact some of the union drivers have been asked to use some pretty sorry equipment!

Car carrier fire consumes five cars in Delaware

I was a bit slow in picking up the news of this fire. Delawareonline has a video of the fire dept fighting the blaze and this report:

The News Journal • August 13, 2008

Middletown and Odessa firefighters work to extinguish flames from a burning car hauler Tuesday on Boyds Corner Road near the intersection with Summit Bridge Road north of Middletown. Five cars and the hauler were severely damaged in the fire that started shortly before 6:30 p.m. The flames were visible from at least 15 miles away.

ABC sells two large auctions to ADESA

ADESA aggressively advances it’s position as a major player in the auto auction industry with it’s announcement yesterday of the addition of two of ABC’s auctions. Here is the announcement from the ADESA site:

Carmel, IN-ADESA announced today that it has acquired ABC Minneapolis in Dayton, Minnesota, and ABC Nashville in Old Hickory, Tennessee.

Manheim Auctions in Dallas and Orlando get AuctionTrac Car-Locater

I first reported on this technology in Feb and now that AuctionTrac has expanded into other Manheim auctions we are looking at the different possibilities to have an interface with EZDispatch so that finding lost cars can be as simple as the touch of a button. We are excited about the time savings that this technology will give to transporters and hope that drivers and dispatchers will make sure that the dealers realize that prompt deliveries of their vehicles will be more consistent at the auctions that use car-locater systems. If auctions see the added customer satisfaction benefit of these systems we will see more systems put in place. As we are currently assessing our alternatives we are encouraging input from all auto transporters. We would like to invite you to do some test searches from both auctions and email your opinions and ideas to dave@EZDispatch.com . To search at Dallas Auto Auction Click here and to search at Florida Auto Auction Orlando click here.

There is a link to an instructional video if you need help using the search functions.

Would you guys like to see the locations flagged for all of the cars on your load or would a button to just find the problem cars be more useful?

FBI investigating threats against Manheim PA auto auction

Lancasteronline is reporting that Manheim has recieved a threat:

By CINDY STAUFFER, Staff

“The FBI and local police are investigating a threatening letter sent to the Manheim Auto Auction.

Bomb-sniffing dogs and additional security will be on hand Friday at the auction’s weekly sale, to ensure the safety of the almost 3,000 employees, a worker said.

Penn Township Police Chief Larry Snavely said the letter contained an “open statement” about threats and mentioned a specific date.”

UPDATE: Ok so the Manheim PA auction goes off without a hitch after a lot of time effort and money is spent on extra security. Now the question is can they catch this terrorist?

KAR Holdings, Inc. Reports Second Quarter 2008 Results

This just off of marketwatch.com:

Last update: 4:27 p.m. EDT Aug. 12, 2008

The vote is in……Teamsters Union contract defeated!

Teamsters for a Democratic Union is reporting that the contract and all of its supplements were rejected! some of the margins are close but I’m surprised there was a clean sweep. Here is a quote from their site:

“The national contract was rejected by 2,939 to 2,076, and all three supplements were rejected as well. The Central-Southern supplement was rejected 2,555 to 1,500, the East by 316 to 304, and the West by 184 to 171.”

From the official union site the reaction is less than enthusiastic. Fred Zuckerman is quoted as saying:

“We hope to resolve this contract without going on strike.”

here is the vote count

Here is a post From teamsteronline that I think accurately expresses the feelings of a majority of the drivers: