'NOTHING SHORT OF AMAZING’
Atlanta West Associate Takes Advantage Of Dock-To-Driver Training Program For quite some time, WILL BALLARD wanted to earn his CDL and get into the driver’s seat of his career. Our Dock-To-Driver Training Program and Driver Development Center training helped him make those dreams a reality. Will came to Averitt a little more than a year ago with our Atlanta Distribution & Fulfillment team. After transferring to Atlanta West and learning the ropes on the dock, he took advantage of our Dock-To-Driver Training Program there. And Will was impressed with what he saw. “It was nothing short of amazing,” says Will. “Everyone in the program gave me the confidence that I could do it. Leadership and the trainers made sure all the tools that I needed to do the program were available to me. It was just on me to get it done. Everyone in the program gave me extra confidence, telling me, ‘You’re going to do a good job with the program.’” According to Jason Bolton of our safety leadership, the Dock-To-Driver Program provides a minimum of 20 days of instruction with a local driver- trainer. From there, one of our safety coordinators meets with associates to sharpen their knowledge, and they must pass a safety test. 'THE POWER OF ONE' ON FULL DISPLAY New Style Of Blended Service A ‘Tremendous Success’
Atlanta West associate WILL BALLARD earned his CDL through our Dock-To-Driver Training Program and our Driver Development Center training.
After that, associates then go to one of our Driver Development Centers – we currently have two facilities, at Cookeville and Lexington KY – where they polish their backing and turning skills with the help of our instructors. When associates have honed their skills there, they can get their CDL and move to an available driving role. “We know our training is the best,” says Jason, who himself took advantage of our dock-to-driver program in 1990 and is a former driving associate. “When we have people in our culture, we are able to show them how to do things the right way. They get to take their time with it, and they’re not in a rush.” Will is thankful for the career opportunities he’s already seen at Averitt. “Whatever your ultimate career goal is and wherever it is you want to go, Averitt can provide it for you,” he says. “It’s just up to you to put the work in. Those possibilities are definitely right in front of you and accessible – you just have to grab it.” Are you interested in our Dock-To-Driver Training Program? Visit InsideAveritt.com/DockToDriver to see video testimonials, and talk to your leadership to learn more about the program. T m
Ascend Performance Materials, a company Rodney was familiar with thanks to his time as our Charleston service center director, wanted to increase its export volume to the Port of Charleston from its location in Greenwood, SC. Rodney’s solution was to combine both dray and truckload into one pull. “We have been handling exports for Ascend for a while now, and we would pull about two or three containers to the port each day,” explains Rodney. “Last year, they wanted to increase their pickup volume. That’s when we had the idea to marry our Truckload service with our port operation. We created this blended Last year, Director of Truckload Sales RODNEY BROCKWELL began exploring a new way to meet a customer’s every need by formulating an all-in-one operation.
to dray and deliver their containers, and Truckload drivers are happy to run the one-day routes, giving them regular home time. “These two accounts have been tremendous successes and it has been great for our Truckload drivers,” Rodney says. “These drivers are able to work Monday through Friday, get their miles and return home each night. Our goal is to create as many of these closed-loop routes for as many drivers as possible. Our drivers are happy to be able to come home at the end of each day, and I believe these types of hauls will be great for recruitment.” Both operations are terrific examples of the Power of One and display our team’s ability to be forward-thinking, innovative and creative. Solutions like this are why we’ve been a transportation leader for more than 50 years! T m
service, presented it to Ascend for one price and they were happy to sign on. Now, we have Truckload drivers picking up empty containers from the port, dropping them in Greenwood and picking up full containers from Ascend to be taken to the port. We have two Truckload drivers making this trip each day and it has worked out very well.” Once the operation was rolling, Rodney began looking for other clients to offer this service. That’s when Harbor Freight Tools presented Averitt with the opportunity to help simplify the retailer’s import operation. “Harbor Freight has a warehouse in
Dillon, SC, and they were looking for a better way to bring shipments from the port to their location. We saw this as an excellent opportunity to flip the script used for the Ascend account. Now we have two Truckload drivers from our service center in Darlington picking up full containers at the port, driving them to Harbor Freight’s warehouse in Dillon and picking up empty containers to return to the port. We’re now moving four containers per day with this model.” The pair of unique services has been an overwhelming success for all parties involved. Ascend and Harbor Freight no long have to worry about who is going
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