Specialist
Executive at Riteload LLC
Agenda
- Capacity constraints in the North America trucking industry, highlighting West Coast and impact of Biden administration regulation
- Port logistics, bottlenecks and overflow into class 1 rail market
- Equipment and driver shortage dynamics and truckload and less-than-truckload pricing outlook
- 2022 demand and capacity expectations as well as importance of digital freight matching and third-party driver recruitment software
Questions
1.
Could you outline the trucking environment in North America, highlighting your take on the challenges and opportunities in the industry?
2.
The West Coast seems to be becoming more of a focal point for the industry. What have you noticed there around port congestion, chassis shortages and a lack of available drivers to move freight to and from port locations? Could you outline the regulation in California and its impacts?
3.
Do you think there could be additional pressure to change and allow more trucks onto the ports to get freight moving, especially with the Biden administration focusing on the congestion around West Coast ports, recently opening them up for 24/7 operation?
4.
Is it fair to say that the ELD [electronic logging device] mandate was a detriment to smaller, independent companies or owner-operators, often to the extent that they were unable to sustain their businesses? Has the industry lost capacity in the owner-operator segment and could that be a contributing factor to the capacity constraints today?
5.
How fluid do you think the owner-operator or independent contractor driver segment is when prices spike like this? Have independent contractors flooded to this market in the past because of the pricing and wage spikes?
6.
Are you bullish on the industry adding to the number of drivers in North America to higher than pre-coronavirus levels?
7.
Overflowing volume that would typically be carried via truck is now flowing into the class 1 rail market and that has been a point of growth for a while now. The rail industry is talking about the organic growth opportunity in intermodal, despite the fact that rail capacity seems to be close to being full. Do you think there’s even more runway for intermodal capacity to flow towards the railroads?
8.
How might capacity return to the market? We’ve discussed measures such as de-regulation. Could this new normal capacity and pricing environment be sustained throughout 2022?
9.
What trends have you noticed around the utilisation of contracts vs the spot market? You mentioned the profitability of these companies and in their earnings calls they’re always talking about finding the best, highest quality revenue. They seem to be in control of discussions due to the current position of leverage. How does a company find that quality revenue and how are they balancing the clear opportunities in the spot market but also locking in rates?
10.
How would you rate equipment availability for tractors, containers and chassis? I’m hearing mixed reports. Are there any issues? Are automotive supply chain disruptions impacting equipment availability in class 8 trucking?
11.
I understand that wanting to be on new and reliable equipment is typically one of the key considerations for drivers. Could issues with equipment availability impact trucking companies’ ability to attract drivers?
12.
It seems LTL [less-than-truckload] demand has exploded, largely driven by e-commerce. It seems a really attractive segment but it can be tougher to be profitable and remain profitable. Where do you think the LTL segment is headed?
13.
Saia is considered a smaller Old Dominion but has potential. What are your thoughts on how it has built up its capital- and infrastructure-intensive business model?
14.
Around three years ago we were hearing a lot about digital freight matching. What positioning has digital freight matching taken in the trucking environment? It seems some bigger names have been around for a couple of years now and settled. Are they having an impact?
15.
Digital freight seems to be an overall positive trend for the industry. It seems traditional brokers who are not adopting some form of this model will likely be obsolete very quickly. Do you think companies such as Uber Freight, Transfix and Convoy have a significant advantage vs bigger slow-moving brokerages?
16.
Is there anything else you would like to discuss?
17.
You mentioned the importance of driver recruiting tools, or a driver-facing technology platform. How does that impact the broader industry?
18.
We discussed capacity constraints such as the ELT mandate and requirement for drivers to be over 21. Would those fall under the DoT [Department of Transport] and they would essentially have to change these regulations to draw some more capacity into this market?
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