The supply chain disruptions caused by the coronavirus outbreak have only emphasized what most supply chain professionals have long known to be true: having a strong relationship with a highly skilled transportation provider can save a shipper in times of trouble.
Every year CSCMP’s sister organization, NASSTRAC (National Shippers Strategic Transportation Council), recognizes those transportation providers that have excelled at creating such partnerships with its Carrier of the Year awards. The goal of the program is to help shippers identify carriers that are the “best of the best” in terms of performance and value. As such, the program aligns well with the association’s focus on helping its members navigate the current challenges in transportation and create strategic partnerships with providers.
When it was founded in 1952, NASSTRAC was designed as a shippers association for transportation and logistics professionals who manage freight across all modes. The association, however, has two types of members: 1) regular members, which include shippers, receivers, shipper associations, and third-party providers, and 2) associate members, which include suppliers of transportation services, warehousing, or technology services and providers of other logistics-related products and services.
Regular members of NASSTRAC who are qualified buyers of transportation services receive ballots for the Carrier of the Year awards each year and grade candidates on a quantitative scale in five key areas: customer service, operational excellence, pricing, business relationship, and leadership/technology. To win, a carrier must be a member of NASSTRAC and/or CSCMP.
For this reason, Gail Rutkowski, executive director of NASSTRAC, also sees the awards as a way to recognize its carrier members. “Our motor carrier members have been great supporters of NASSTRAC, working with our members to continue to provide good service at fair prices,” she says. “We feel it is important to celebrate those supporters who day-in and day-out work with our members to keep our supply chains moving.”
This year’s winners are:
- National Less-Than-Truckload (LTL) Coverage: YRC Worldwide Inc.
- Multiregional LTL Coverage: Estes Express Lines
- Regional Northeast LTL Coverage: Pitt Ohio Express
- National Truckload: Werner Enterprises
- Specialty LTL: Mexpress Transportation Inc.
“Many of the winners this year are repeat winners,” Rutkowski says. “Year after year, they continue to work with our members and with us on challenges and on providing solutions.”
What makes a winning transportation provider? To answer this question, Supply Chain Quarterly's Managing Editor Diane Rand spoke with: Derek Leathers, president and chief executive officer, at Werner Enterprises; Pat Martin, vice president of corporate sales and strategic planning, at Estes Express Lines; Geoffrey Muessig, executive vice president and chief marketing officer, at Pitt Ohio; and Mike Gamel, chief executive officer, at Mexpress Transportation.
(National LTL Coverage winner YRC Worldwide Inc. was unable to participate by press time.)
National Truckload winner: Werner Enterprises 
Represented by Derek Leathers, President and Chief Executive Officer
What attributes or aspects of your business do you feel led to Werner Enterprises being named Carrier of the Year?
The dedication of our professional drivers and office associates is what sets us apart and makes us an industry leader. I often tell our drivers and associates that average is for other people, and when I look around Werner, average is nowhere to be found. Our innovation in transportation and our ability to provide global transportation solutions definitely gives us an edge.
What does winning this award represent to your company?
Customer service and satisfaction are always at the forefront of our strategic planning. To receive an award that is shipper-selected based on our excellence in performance and results is very impactful. It validates that our innovation in transportation technology and focus on customer service are producing results that are in alignment with customer expectations.
What are some of the challenges that the national truckload sector is facing, and how is your company responding to these challenges?
Of course, the COVID-19 crisis is the main challenge everyone is facing right now. We have been responding to natural disasters as an industry for as long as the industry has been around, but not to this magnitude. Keeping our drivers safe and ensuring they have the necessities they need while out on the road is our top priority. Every decision we make and every action that we implement will be done by being logical, rational, and above all, compassionate.
How do you plan to weather the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic repercussions?
Werner has had a pandemic plan since 2009 when the H1N1 outbreak occurred. We were well-prepared throughout our network. Werner has always been financially stable; we accomplish this by having a diversified portfolio and keeping debt very low. Because of this, we are well-positioned to weather these uncertain times.
What are some of the biggest accomplishments that your company has achieved in the past year?
We were very honored to have been the recipient of 10 customer awards in 2019. In addition to being recognized by our customers, we also received many industry awards including the SmartWay Excellence and High Performer Awards from the Environmental Protection Agency for the third consecutive year. Werner also earned two 2019 Quest for Quality Awards from Logistics Management in the truckload and van line carriers and third-party logistics (3PL) service providers categories. Other significant awards we earned were Top Company for Women by the Women in Trucking Association and several Military Friendly awards from VIQTORY. We were also extraordinarily proud to have been able to assist the State of Nebraska in its efforts to source and deliver critical medical supplies for hospitals and public health agencies across the state in the fight against COVID-19.
Regional Northeast LTL Coverage winner: Pitt Ohio Express 
Represented by Geoffrey Muessig, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer.
What attributes or aspects of your business do you feel led to your being named Carrier of the Year?
Pitt Ohio provides reliable and dependable service within and between the Midwest and the Northeast regional LTL markets.
What does winning this award represent to your company?
We at Pitt Ohio appreciate the fact that the NASSTRAC award is based on widespread support from shippers in many industries.
What are the challenges that the LTL sector is currently facing, and how is your company planning to respond to these challenges?
Rising operating costs in the form of increased labor, benefits, equipment, and tolls are a challenge for all LTL carriers across the nation.
What are your plans for the upcoming year?
Pitt Ohio has enhanced our service offering by providing shippers with next-day service lanes to the Greater Toronto area, western New York, and parts of New England.
What are some of the biggest accomplishments that your company has achieved in the past year?
Pitt Ohio is focused on lowering our costs. To this end, we are digitizing our administrative functions by working with our customers to transition from paper bills of ladings to digital bills of lading.
Multiregional LTL Coverage winner: Estes Express Lines 
Represented by Pat Martin, Vice President of Corporate Sales and Strategic Planning
What attributes or aspects of your business do you feel led to Estes Express Lines being named Carrier of the Year?
As the largest privately held trucking company in America, we have the size, scale, and flexibility that customers are looking for. We are also passionate about our customers, willing to “think outside the box” to get things done, and always try to do the right thing.
What does winning the Carrier of the Year award represent to your company?
Being recognized by NAASTRAC is really an honor. We are humbled to be named Carrier of the Year and will continue to do everything we can to live up to the faith and trust that the shipping community has put in us.
What challenges are LTL companies facing, and how is your company responding to these challenges?
Estes is made up of six regions and has a vast nationwide network. This means our success isn’t just dependent on a single person or team. Every day, we are relying on many different people, across many different locations, to make the right choices. And because of this, our biggest challenge is often fitting the right people to the right positions. This isn’t an easy task with a network as large as ours, but we’re in the people business. For us, that means we are committed to creating an environment where our employees feel valued for their contributions and want to come to work.
How do you plan to weather the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic repercussions?
All businesses are facing a challenge today with COVID-19, but we are very fortunate (and humbled) to have so many loyal customers who continue to put their trust in us during these uncertain times. We are lucky to be privately held and debt-free, so we are in a great position to weather the storm. As the economy begins to open up, we will all have a better understanding of the “new normal.” Then it will be back to the business of rolling up our sleeves and growing our company like we’ve always done.
What are some of the biggest accomplishments that your company has achieved in the past year?
Customers rewarding us with business is always our greatest accomplishment. This only happens when we deliver a quality product to the market. In fact, our commitment to quality is what’s driven us to spend the past year enhancing many of our tools and systems to provide an even more efficient, user-friendly experience for our customers. And it’s always fun to watch the people of Estes step up and grow, too.
Specialty LTL winner: Mexpress Transportation Inc. 
Represented by Mike Gamel, Chief Executive Officer
What attributes or aspects of your business do you feel led to your being named Carrier of the Year?
We feel that Mexpress Transportation has been named Specialized Carrier of the Year for the fourth time because we continue to provide a service to the logistic marketplace that no one else provides. Our service is unique in that we provide a “borderless” LTL and full truckload (FTL) road feeder service to and from Mexico that fills the void between your regular truck service and air freight. Mexpress has been providing a “borderless” road feeder service between the U.S. and Mexico for 22 years, and we are still seen as a new service. We are way ahead of our time!
What does winning the Carrier of the Year award represent to your company?
I have been a member of NASSTRAC since its inception. I attribute most of our success in this industry to what we’ve learned through our association with NASSTRAC as well as the friendship and unwavering support of NASSTRAC members through the good times as well as the bad times.
What challenges is the industry facing today, and how is your company planning to respond to these challenges?
As near shoring becomes more prevalent and with the passage of the new USMCA [United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement], trade with Mexico has increased in both directions. Just in time [deliveries] and keeping down inventory of both raw materials and finished goods has intensified. With our set schedules and committed transit times, clients from around the world have moved air freight into the U.S. and turned the shipments [over] to Mexpress at our various drop stations for immediate departure and overnight or second-morning service to Mexico. We are now seeing a big increase in freight from the U.S. to the manufacturers in Mexico, but the U.S. customer doesn’t understand the logistics between Mexico and the United States. We are here to help them from A to Z.
How do you plan to weather the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic repercussions?
Our focus has been on the health and safety of our team as well as on strengthening our infrastructure. The COVID-19 epidemic put in the forefront how much of the raw material and finished goods that Canada, the U.S., and Mexico depend on come from Asia (in particular China). Companies that were contemplating moving their production back to a USMCA country have sped up the evaluation process—not only in an effort to meet the United States’ new country of origin rules but also because they now realize the importance of manufacturing in the region. The changes in the supply chain taking place is good for Mexpress because we link the United States, Canada, and Mexico with our unique LTL and FTL road feeder service.
What are some of the biggest accomplishments that your company has achieved in the past year?
Besides winning this coveted award from NASSTRAC, we feel our biggest accomplishment is the team of experts that Mexpress has put together within the company to assist companies or clients with any logistics issue to or from Mexico even though it may not be in our service matrix.
