What Happens to an LTL Network When a Snowstorm Hits?
With the recent blizzards pounding the mid-Atlantic part of the country, I started to think about how our LTL network adapts during weather emergencies to make sure our customers still receive their freight shipments in as timely a manner as possible.
Service center manager Jeff Raske of Fargo, N.D., and freight operations manager Damian Boyd of Romulus, Mich., have to deal with weather conditions like this frequently due to their locations in the Snow Belt. Jeff has lived in North Dakota most of his life and has many years of experience dealing with brutal winters. Damian, however, is spending his first winter in a northern climate after spending most of his Con-way Freight career in southern states.
Even though Jeff and Damian have different levels of winter experience, both said they adapt to severe weather by keeping safety number one and using three other key strategies — preparation, communication and teamwork.
Preparation begins as early as November through driver education. Tailgate meetings take place at both service centers where managers review the precautions each driver should take. Jeff and Damian run down a checklist that includes dressing appropriately for conditions, packing an emergency bag and instructing drivers on how to use block heaters so tractors will start up in the cold weather. Con-way Freight drivers also use fuel additives to keep diesel from gelling up in extreme cold.
When a storm is on the horizon, Jeff and Damian have checklists of their own to run through. They both contact local snow removal companies to make sure they start monitoring the freight yards to keep the lots clear. They also take a look at shipping schedules in advance to anticipate possible problems and try to deliver time-sensitive freight early in lanes potentially affected by the storm.
Communication between drivers, dispatchers and customers is critical during a snowstorm. During a recent storm, Damian’s dispatcher communicated frequently with state police to check on road closures. Having an idea of when roads would reopen let him plan alternate routes and combine shipments to compensate. The dispatchers also keep drivers apprised of weather conditions so they can make good decisions about the next legs of their journeys.
In North Dakota, Highway 29 in and out of Fargo shuts down completely several times a year. Because of situations like that, Jeff maintains close ties with the service center manager in Bismarck. The two service centers often work together to overcome irregularities in the network caused by weather. Last year, when Fargo experienced severe flooding, Jeff stayed in constant contact with both the Bismarck service center and his customers to adjust day by day as the North River rose and receded.
Teamwork by the people in our network keeps it running through the worst weather conditions. In one of the recent storms, Damian faced the biggest snowstorm he has ever had to work through. Blustery conditions in Ohio clogged many shipping lanes and jeopardized Monday delivery. To compensate, the Romulus service center set up weekend operations and many drivers and dockworkers put in overtime to make sure LTL shipments arrived on time. Teamwork between the line haul department, dispatchers and drivers helped move freight around the storm as highways began to open up again.
Con-way Freight’s vast network of service centers, trucks and trailers allows us to adapt whatever conditions winter brings. And with employees like Jeff and Damian to execute critical adjustments within the network, customer freight doesn’t get left out in the cold.
