For those who are unaware of this unfortunate event, Corey Hart passed away early morning Wednesday March 12, 2014 after being involved in a tragic accident while on duty as a local intermodal driver in Atlanta.  The investigation is still underway, but the preliminary report indicates another tractor trailer lost control and jackknifed while merging onto I85 north off of I285 West (spaghetti junction).  Corey was traveling northbound on I85 and stuck the other vehicle’s trailer as it jackknifed (perpendicular) across I85.   Corey had little time to react as the jackknife happened directly in front of him. 

Corey was a valued member of our team that everyone in Atlanta called a true friend.  Our hearts hurt for Corey’s young son, Corey Jr., who frequented the office many times throughout the past two years alongside his father.   Corey’s upbeat manner and his commitment to being a loving family man rubbed off on those who were around him.  Corey will truly be missed here in Atlanta and in New Jersey where he previously worked as a local intermodal driver for J.B. Hunt. 

Please keep Corey and his family in your thoughts and prayers through this tough time.

Haslet Texas - time for some fun and relaxation

 

After a long stressful move into a our new facility and an even longer winter it was time to take some time off and have some fun as a group.  What better atmosphere the minor league Hockey?   Saturday night was family appreciation night at the Lone Star Brahmas and considering we are a family here in Texas we thought this was a great time for some fellowship and relaxation.  Some of our team members have never been to a hockey game in the past but they still had fun, even though some did not know it was going to be 'cold' inside the hockey rink.  It is 'ice hockey' and not 'field hockey" after all.  Never the less we all had a great time and getting together to celebrate our new building and recent safety results was good for everyone with friends and family.

 

 

Not all of our team was able to attend but from right to left bottom :  Deb Baker, Kelli and Ronnie Vandargift, Jon and Linda Mowery.  top row from right to left:  Darrell and Michelle Wilbanks, Marco Galaviz, Ivan Khoe, Chris Stewart, Rich Doarn.  Not pictured are Thomas Pendleton and special guest Paula Elam and Rich's wife, Jana and son Davis -- great times had by all.

 

 







Greetings from Atlanta GA!

We'd like to announce a new addition to our J.B. Hunt Intermodal team. After a long awaited pregnancy, Christina Mize finally gave birth to baby Trapper Jace McCullough on March 4th at 10:47 am. This little guy came weighing in at 7 pounds, 11.7 ounces, and 19 inches long.  Both baby and Christina are doing outstanding!

Congratulations Christina! We're looking forward to your return, but enjoy the time off with Trapper!

 

 

 

Haslet, TX  Phase Two Begins

 

 

Finally starting the second phase of the operation here in Haslet.  This phase will be the 4-5 acres of parking in the front of the building were drivers, managers, maintenance, and visitors will be able to park.  Addtionally, we will install a securtiy gate similar to the one in Harrisburg, PA.  The greatest thing about starting Phase Two is that the shop is now on site.  Previously our drivers had to take trucks and containers some 6 miles to Justin, TX to have them worked on.  Now, we have 6 truck bays and 6 container bays.  We are all excited about the progress we have made to date.

 

Looking forward to more concrete being poured and developing the great team we have here in Texas.



Took a while but we are finally out of our Triple Wide office trailer and into our new facility.   Phase 2 is now under way which will include the entrance and additional parking.  Hard to believe that we spent almost 8 years in a set of office trailers and now----WOW what  most of the team here says.  From 14 work stations where we had to hot rack most of them to 22 work stations with room to grow.  From a small meeting area where 14 were too many to a meeting room to now where 48 seems just right.  From about 5 acres to almost 28.   From about 150 total drivers to almost 400 drivers.  Looking forward to even more growth in manager and driver numbers.

Shop on site and not 8 miles down the road.  Stacking close 1250 containers a few months ago -- now, due to weather haver about 150 left.

We are all so very glad to be in the new digs.

President to direct next round of emissions, fuel efficiency standards for trucks

Here's a recent article from the Commercial Carrier Journal concerning new emission and fuel efficiency standards for trucks.

President Barack Obama is set to announce Feb. 18 new greenhouse gas and fuel efficiency standards for post-2018 year model trucks, per a White House announcement, in a speech today in Maryland.

Obama will order the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation to produce a rule by March 2015 to once again tighten fuel efficiency standards and greenhouse gas emissions standards, nailing down specifics for the president’s Climate Action Plan unveiled in June 2013, where Obama announced his intention to direct such initiatives.
The rule would go into effect March 2016, per the White House announcement, and will build upon the first-ever fuel efficiency standards for heavy-duty trucks implemented for 2014-2018 model trucks.
The first round, the White House says, is expected to save the trucking industry $50 billion and save 530 million barrels of oil.
The next round will save the average truck owner $73,000 in the typical lifetime of a truck, the White House says.
The announcement says that in 2010, trucks made up four percent of the vehicles registered in the U.S. but accounted for a quarter of the nation’s fuel use and emissions.
As the means to achieve greater fuel efficiency, the White House hopes the plan will “spur manufacturing innovation and lead to the adoption of new fuel-efficient technologies on trucks and semi-trailers,” and the EPA and DOT will hope to push improvements in engine and powertrain efficiency, aerodynamics, weight reduction, tire rolling resistance, hybridization, automatic engine shutdown and other parts, according to the announcement.
 The EPA and the DOT will be directed to work with industry stakeholders — like manufacturers and trucking fleets — to determine opportunities for fuel savings and emissions gains.
The President also plans to try to form public-private partnerships to help increase adoption of natural gas and other alt fuel vehicles.
The White House says it also plans to continue its work with manufactures in building concept trucks, like the SuperTrucks developed so far working with Cummins, Volvo, Navistar and Daimler, in an attempt to push the average fuel economy of a Class 8 truck and trailer to 9.75 mpg.
The President in his speech today also is going to prod Congress to end subsidies for oil and gas companies and to create a research fund for research into “advanced vehicle technologies.”

Charlotte Intermodal

Nicknamed the Queen City or Home of Nascar, Charlotte's central location between the population centers of the northeast and the southeast has made it a transportation focal point and primary distribution center. It's  also home to The J.B. Hunt Charlotte Intermodal Fleet which consist of 63 trucks and 80 drivers broken into two categories:

Local - services all customers within a 150 mile radius (55 drivers and 39 trucks)

Regional - services all customers over a 150 mile radius (25 drivers and 25 trucks)

 The Charlotte service area covers the states of North Carolina, South Carolina and parts of Virginia. The  management team consist of four managers that are pictured below.

Pictured left to right:

Franklin Barnes - Fleet Manager
Kimberly Cooper - Logistics Coordinator
Hiram Rodriguez - Fleet Manager
Derek McCall - Ramp Manager