Bon Voyage

The DCS Central Region blog has moved.  Please check out the new De Blog at the following site:

http://centralregiondcs.blogspot.com/

PPG 4th Quarter Earnings Released

Coatings giant PPG Industries' ( PPG ) recorded adjusted earnings from continuing operations (excluding acquisition-related expenses of $4 million or 3 cents per share) of $1.81 a share for fourth-quarter 2013, up 45% year over year from $1.25 per share reported in the year-ago quarter. The results exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.73 per share.
The company has delivered 14 straight quarters of record adjusted earnings (including the fourth quarter), fueled by a strong coatings portfolio, broad global footprint, prudent cash deployment and measurable results from the strategic actions.

Profit from continued operation (as reported) was $254 million or $1.78 per share in the fourth quarter, surging roughly 33% from $191 million or $1.23 per share posted in the prior-year quarter. Healthy results in the fourth quarter were also backed by continuing operating and cost discipline coupled with a higher level of organic sales growth.

Central Region December 2013 Driver of the Month

 

Please join us in congratulating Tony Skrip, our Central Region Driver of the Month. Tony deserves to be the driver of the month for our region due to the help he provides his team in Monroe. He keeps the office staff in the loop in regards to maintenance of the yard trucks, supplies needed for the yard, and is our trainer for new switchers.

 

Tony is able to work with new hires on the computer system for the yard trucks and also going over the safety procedures of the account.

 

 

Tony has an excellent relationship with our customer. Tony works daily with Rick Purnell and Troy Williams in regards to where trailers are on the yard and what is actually wrong with them. If Rick has a question regarding anything, he will reach out to Tony for an answer. Tony also knows more about the Yard Management System than some of the employees at Home Depot. He has been working with the customer to help fix minor bugs in the system that hinder productivity.

Tony has over 1 million collision free miles while working for J.B. Hunt. Jeff Holle came to visit in December and told us a remarkable story a driver had told Jeff about Tony Skrip. A support driver had come to Home Depot from C&S and when they arrived they were unsure of where they needed to go. The support driver told Jeff Holle that one of the switchers was very helpful in showing him how to check in at the office and where his trailer would be.

 

It is rare that drivers from other accounts will remark on how helpful a driver was for them.

 

Congratulations Tony......You've earned it!

TIKI Takes the Road Less Traveled

Rich Schwartz did his good deed at Kickoff this week.  He gave TIKI back to me to return to Arkansas.  This item has made its way across our region and touched more states and famous sites than many people you know (NYC, St Louis Arch, Vermont ski resorts, etc). 

Today TIKI took the road less traveled across I-64 West and touched Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri and Arkansas.  I will take TIKI up to Montana in two weeks and see if we can't get a few more states under Tiki's belt.

News from Central Region Kickoff 2014-Destination Louisville

DJ Jerry Hoban built a playlist that we did not get to play this weekend at Kickoff.  We played it on the drive home and thought it was so impressive we had to share.  Enjoy this transportation related list of songs:

1. Running Down the Road......Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
2. Crossroads.............................Cream
3. Truck Driving Man................Lynyrd Skynyrd
4. Easily.....................................Red Hot Chili Peppers
5. Hey Tonight...........................Creedence Clearwater Revival
6. Just What I Needed................The Cars
7. Name......................................Goo Goo Dolls
8. Right As Rain........................Adele
9. Stickshifts and Safetybelts....Cake
10. Soul Kitchen..........................The Doors
11. Saturday Morning..................Eels
12. Shine......................................Collective Soul

These are all great songs to celebrate our accomplishments in our region with our drivers and office employees.  Thanks Jerry!

Weak Sales Impact L Brands

L Brands reported weak December sales figures and cut its prediction for fourth-quarter profits, joining other retailers who had a disappointing holiday season.

Columbus-based L Brands, formerly known as Limited Brands, reported sales for December of $2.1 billion, up from sales of $1.9 billion at the same time the year before.

Comparable-store sales, a key indicator of a retailer’s health, were up 2 percent. Analysts had expected a 3.7 percent rise, according to Retail Metrics.

“Mall traffic was sluggish virtually all season with modest upticks immediately pre- and post-Christmas,” said Ken Perkins, president of Retail Metrics, a research firm.

Overall, heavy discounting cut into profit margins, L Brands officials said.

“The merchandise margin rate was down significantly to last year, and below expectations, driven by incremental promotional activity across all businesses,” said Amie Preston, chief investor relations officer.

As a result of the heavy discounting, L Brands had to lower its fourth quarter earnings estimate to $1.60 per share, down from the retailer’s previous forecast of $1.67 per share and well down from analysts’ expectations of $1.79 per share.

Retailers were faced with a “Faustian choice” this holiday season, Perkins said. “Either jump on the band wagon and discount heavily at the expense of margins,” he said, “or not participate and experience steep revenue and traffic declines.”

L Brands’ chains all posted disappointing comparable-store sales.

Victoria’s Secret saw an increase of 3 percent, driven by good sales in lingerie and the chain’s youth-oriented Pink brand. But analysts had expected a 4.4 percent increase.

Marco's Continues to Grow

Marco's Pizza opened 109 new locations across the country in 2013 and increased system-wide sales by more than 32 percent, resulting from a growth strategy that focused on implementing best practices and efficient systems and building a positive company culture. Overall, the approach contributed to doubling the company's size in five years.

Currently, the company has 437 units open in 33 states and the Bahamas. 2014 will see Puerto Rico open its first store by spring, and by year-end Marco's will have over 600 restaurants open in three countries. With more than 1,500 new franchise deals already signed, Marco's is on track to quadruple its store count in the coming 5 years.

Also in 2013 Marco's Pizza added to its impressive executive talent, including naming Cathy Hull (formerly head of Marketing for Fazoli's and Papa Johns) as Chief Marketing Officer. Hull is among several top-grade industry executives who have migrated to Marco's Pizza from other well-known brands, including COO Bryon Stephens from YUM Brands, Vice President General Counsel/Chief Legal Officer Todd Watson from Metromedia Restaurant Group, among others.
Marco's credits the growth first to the quality of its Authentic Italian pizza (including dough made fresh daily at every restaurant, a proprietary sauce created by its Italian founder, and the company's unique blend of three fresh cheeses) as well as attracting top talent among its Franchisees and corporate staff.

Other 2013 highlights include considerable recognition in the industry. For example, the prestigious Second 100 rankings, in which Nation's Restaurant News reviews the second-largest 100 restaurant chains, saw Marco's rise to the No. 2 spot this year on its list of Top 10 Newcomers. On the overall list of restaurant chains ranked from 101-200, Marco's came in at No. 166 this year, up 23 from No. 189 in 2012. In addition, Pizza Today also named Marco's # 1 on their 2013 Up and Comers list, which recognizes the country's fastest-growing pizza franchises.

Averaging over two restaurant openings per week, the franchise is offering exciting opportunities to be a part of the company's nationwide growth.

Wow's All the Way Around! CiCi's Raves about Richmond, IN

 This note was just received from our CiCi's partner Dudley Harris:

As everyone knows the Midwest was hit with a massive storm last week.  According to all reports the coldest it has been in Indiana in 40 years.  From the beginning everyone here knew they had a rough week ahead and I have several WOWS’  for everyone.

1^st - The warehouse performed smoothly, without complaint and never missed a lick during this whole trying ordeal.  Thanks go out to Margarito Aguirre, Juan Aguirre, Raul Roubles, Marion Harris & Jeff Cook. 

2^nd - The drivers on our Sunday routes came in early and beat the severe part of this storm.  All stores were delivered on time.  Thanks go out to Charley Hill, Tim Plavsic & Andy Flowers.  A job well done.

3^rd - The one route heading into the storm we held back 18 hours to let the storm pass before he came in on Monday.  The temperature was -10 on Monday with wind chills of -21.  All the tractors were struggling to stay running because the fuel was freezing in the fuel tanks.  Many of the roads were closed on his route.  Cars and trucks were stranded or abandoned in the middle of the highway for most of this trek across Indiana.  CiCi’s restaurants were either closed or not doing any business if they were open.  Thanks to Mark Harmeyer our stores in Indiana and Illinois got there product only 24 hours late.  The roads were very tricky and Mark had to use all his exprience and driving expertise to navigate the hazards the last few days.

4^th – Our route heading to Missouri, Iowa & Minnesota left 8 hours late but due to the great driving skills of Keith Green his stores are being delivered as rapidly has he can legally and safely make his way across the Midwest.  The temperature where he is delivering is subzero with wind chills of -30 degrees.  In Minnesota it is -50 wind chill.

5^th – A big thanks go out to Tony Flowers who had the unenviable task of delivering upstate New York.  He was able to deliver Erie, Pennsylvania before all roads going into New York were shut down due to lake affect snow (12 to 15 inches).  Tony took his federally mandated 10 hours off and the roads were still closed.  Instead of sitting all day Tony with the help of Dallas Mudd, J B Hunt manager in Richmond, came up with an alternative plan to service our restaurants.  To prevent all the stores on the route from getting their product late.  On the fly they reversed the route.  Tony was able to bypass Rochester and Watertown and delivered all the other stores on his route on time or early before he went back to Watertown.  To give you a feel for what he is dealing with Rochester and Watertown got approximately 24 inches of snow in a 48 hour period.   The roads are still closed going into Rochester so Tony is waiting until they open to deliver this store.  A BIG WOW and thanks to Tony for all his hard work.

6^th – A BIG WOW goes out to Dallas Mudd, Richmond’s own manager, who throughout this ordeal has stayed on top of every aspect of the operation.  He has gotten the tractors running when they were frozen up.  He has gotten our trailers working when they were just plain obstinate.  He kept the drivers informed of road conditions when necessary.  He kept me informed of events has they happened.   He put in countless hours at work and home keeping up with everyone and working diligently with the drivers to see that the stores were going to be taken care of in a timely fashion.  Dallas and Marion were constantly on the phone letting franchisees and managers know where their driver was and when he would be at their store.  I have to take my hat off to the CiCi’s community up here they were very understanding and cooperative during this whole ordeal.  I have not heard of one cross word being said or anyone getting upset and angry.

Stamper=Superman

Tony Romano (MPD General Manager) approached Adam Stampfer on 1/8 at the MPD-Marco's Pizza office. Tony let Adam know 5 stores in Cleveland, OH were almost completely out of pepperoni. They didn't have enough to make it thru the night. Since no drivers in the area had enough hours to run the pepperoni to the stores, Adam jumped in his personal vehicle and drove the 100+ miles to Cleveland. Clevelanders will eat well tonight and it's all thanks to Adam & his drive to do whatever it takes for our customers!

Breaker Breaker

The first arrivals in Louisville are here!  Steve Rogers, Ken Resta, Drew Schimelpfenig, and Monica Cato drove from Northwest Arkansas straight thru to downtown Louisville.  During the drive we utilized a Peoplenet Blue2 unit equipped with e-driver logs, drivewyze, and navigo.

We utilized these tools to try to create a scenario like our drivers see in the cab every day.  We verified opportunities with this technology that we will talk about during our presentation on Saturday.  Monica confirmed our drivers perception of the bright screen and its irritation factor.

We look forward to your arrival in Louisville.  We are working to deliver the best Kickoff ever!

Shout Out to Brian from Home Depot!

 

This is how partners communicate between Home Depot and J.B. Hunt:

Thank you for taking the time to discuss the yard issues with us tonight. It is much appreciated. Hopefully I have captured all of those that were on the call. I wanted to take a second to make a positive call out as I know sometimes its easy to focus on the negative and forget to appreciate the good that we sometimes take for granted.

The past two days have been brutal with the elements outside as we are all aware. Your Van Buren team has a yard driver that in my opinion deserves to be recognized for his loyal service. Despite the road conditions and terribly dangerous temperatures, Brian Zehender has been to work and been a great asset to us. Monday he was instrumental in taking the lead coordinating with the plow company to get the dock doors cleaned out and I believe he was there for roughly 10 hours. This was 10 hours on site helping with the building non operational. Today, he was the only day shifter able to make it in for the yard. He worked almost 12 hours and kept day shift afloat with trailers single handedly. We want you to know that his efforts and dedication did not go unnoticed.

What a great note from Casey, our key contact in Van Buren, OH! Looks like Brian has just become a candidate for Driver of the Month this January! 

A Driver's View on Peoplenet----Keep Me Out of the Glare

We should really start forcing ourselves to get in the space that our technology lives in and fully understand the positives and negatives as we roll out new technology.  Riding in our trucks should be second nature for everyone that makes decisions that directly impacts our drivers.
RTLA's used to be a huge part of our culture.  For those that are unfamiliar, RTLA stands for Ride Talk Listen Act.  This was a program that was shaped around getting to know our drivers in their office.

The below is  one of our drivers who uses a Peoplenet OBC for his in-cab electronic logging and communication:


I have a People Net OBC in my truck that I have tried to explain to individuals that it is way too bright.   I can not see out or see the right mirror & out the window.  Management says they are working on it but what I have been told is its been that way from the beginning.  We have to put rags over it so we can see out safely.....This is not safe or practical.

Central Region Promotion Announcement

Please join us in congratulating Andrew Deblock (pictured on the left) in his new role as the Vice President of Operations for the Central Region.

Andrew has held various operational roles during his tenure with J.B. Hunt, most recently holding the Director of Business Operations position for the Central Region. He is a graduate of Michigan State University with a degree in Supply Chain Management from the Eli Broad College of Business. Andrew and his wife Elizabeth have four children- William, Christopher, Madison and Nathan and currently resides in Columbus, Ohio.

 

Andrew has been an invaluable friend and co-worker and I could not be more excited about his new role. Its hard to top a Big 10 Championship and a Rose Bowl victory, but I think everyone agrees that this is a topper!

 

 

Customer Value Delivery

This hit my inbox today.  What a great note from our client.  It is a great example of pulling together and creating a great plan.  MPD is more familiar to most of you as Marco's Pizza.

 
MPD has been monitoring the weather for the last three days. In preparing for the storm, here is what MPD and JB Hunt has done to get ahead of the storm:

1. Contacted markets to determine if and where safety stock should be sent.

2. Sent a trailer load of product to three different stores in Cleveland (thanks Pete D)

3. Sent a van load of product to two stores in Cincinnati (thanks Carolyn)

4. Brought in the MPD team at 5am to load all trailers for early dispatch (thanks MPD team)

5. JB Hunt managers contacted stores to inform each store what MPD was doing to get ahead of the storm. Informed the store of their revised delivery time.

6. JB Hunt drivers came in 6 hours early to get in front of snow.

7. As of 3:00 all drivers were on the road (seven routes) heading to destination or making deliveries.
Many thanks go out to the following people:

* Jason Braden for coming in on Saturday and prepping the warehouse including unloading flour, sauce and numerous backhaul loads.

* Bill Meier for coming in on Saturday and loading product and then delivering to the Cleveland stores

* Pete DiFilippo for providing three stores to place safety stock

* Carolyn Bombard for providing her two stores to place safety stock

* Lisa Wasiloff and Brian Tabor from JB Hunt for communicating with stores
* The entire MPD warehouse team for coming in at 430am to load trailers to ensure drivers would dispatch before bad weather

* All JB Hunt drivers for coming in 6 hours early to start their routes
* All Marco's stores for cooperating with today's modified routes

* As of 4:30pm heavy snow is dropping from the sky

* Toledo has posted a level three warning meaning no vehicles on the road.

* Since trucks left earlier we will be ahead of these challenges.



I think today represented the core belief of MPD...One Family One Focus...to ensure no break in supply.



I believe it also reflects the following Marco's Cultural Beliefs:

o We Believe

o Execute Excellence

o Drive Results

o Embody Trust

o Be Accountable

o Unity Wins

Thanks and Be Careful,
Tony Romano

How would you like to get this in your inbox?

I have taken out the account and any identifiers from this message, but one of our Account Managers received this on New Years Day:

All is well with my family. I can't say enough how much of a pleasure it was working with you. I miss those days dearly. You made working around and thru the holidays feel like I was with family even when I wasn't home. You even took the time to make the unofficial holidays like the Super Bowl special. Not to mention driver appreciation week.

I will NEVER have a manager as good as you are but I have to learn to accept one that's half as good. It's tuff.

How would you feel if this was your employee and you received this e-mail?  It would reinforce all the work and passion you put into your job/career.  The skills you are learning every day in people management will serve you well for the rest of your life.  This note I shared with you is the truest example of a "raving fan."  

Does Recognition Matter?

You decide:

 

From our Facebook Page:

Filomena Kizer

I just watched the dvd of the Million Mile celebration held last October in Lowell. Such a wonderful, emotional event! Still brought tears to my eyes as it did that day. I'm proud of my husband "Ice Man"!! Thank you for recognizing these hard working drivers and families!

Central Region Promotion Announcement

Please join us in congratulating Curt Conlon on his promotion to Regional Operations Manager for the Central Region.

Curt began his career with J.B. Hunt in April 2007 at the Certain Teed account in Jackson, MI.  He supervised a team of 22 drivers at the vinyl siding factory.  When J.B. Hunt partnered with Whirlpool in 2009, Curt joined the Final Mile team to assist in operating the LDCN in Detroit, MI.  Curt was promoted to Account Manager for the Detroit site in 2010.  Under Curt's leadership the LDCN in Detroit has grown into one of the largest FMS sites in the North Central FMS Region.

Prior to joining J.B. Hunt, Curt was the President and Owner of Shamrock Auto Transport, Inc.  in New Boston, MI.  Curt owned and operated a fleet of trucks and drivers delivering dealer vehicles to and from closed auctions and rail yards.  Curt also managed the sales and growth strategy for the business.  He also obtained his CDL and was a full-time driver when needed.

Curt is a graduate of Eastern Michigan University, where he earned his Bachelor's Degree in Business Management.  Curt will be relocating from Saline, MI to Northwest Ohio.  He has been instructed to fuel his car before he gets to the Ohio state border.          

Our Reputation

We are going to talk about this in Louisville at Kickoff 2014. The question about tenure was posed on the J.B. Hunt Professional Drivers Facebook page (you should friend this page--its worthwhile)  .  These were two comments I picked that illustrate ideals we should not encourage .   We don't need a reputation like what you see below:

Driver #1--- 15 yr and this place getting more anti driver by the month

 

Driver #2--- Yes, I've noticed the same thing... But their stock value has tripled since Mr. Hunt passed away. But at the drivers expense of longer wait times on the phone when calling into Corp for dispatch, freight handling, road service, cargo claims...
 

We have honed a reputation in our DCS divison of being Driver Dedicated.  Here is what our former Central Region Driver of the Year had to say:

Robert Starkey 14 years. A wonderful 14

 

 

 

That is the culture we strive to create at the front-line level.  I am proud of our Driver Dedicated spirit in the Central Region.  Friday night will be committed to recognizing our drivers face-to-face.  We will have 35+ Million Milers and Drivers of the Month in attendance in Louisville.  The evening will build to a walk of fame moment created by these  professional drivers for our Driver of the Year.  This year every member of our team voted for one of the 10 candidates.  We had 100% participation.  I am excited.  I hope you are too!         

Hercules Coming Our Way

 

Winter Storm Hercules will produce a long swath of snow from the Central Plains through the Northeast Wednesday through Friday morning. Strong winds Thursday night along coastal New England will produce blizzard conditions, at times. The next winter storm could spread a wide swath of snow across the Ohio Valley through the Great Lakes and Northeast during the latter part of the weekend.

2013 Good Year For Trucking Stocks

Investors in three of the state’s four trucking firms more than doubled their investments for the year.
USA Truck, which fought off a takeover bid, was the best performing Arkansas stock, with its value more than tripling last year. Arkansas Best’s stock rose more than 250 percent, and P.A.M. Transportation Services doubled.

Even J.B. Hunt Transport Services, the fourth trucking firm among Arkansas public companies, rose almost 30 percent for the year.

“Generally, the trucking industry is a very stable long term investment,” said Lane Kidd, president of the Arkansas Trucking Association.

Two of the Arkansas trucking firms - USA Truck and P.A.M. - have been in turnaround periods the past couple of years, Kidd said.

“P.A.M. is doing well with Dan Cushman as president, implementing new programs that are working,” Kidd said. “And USA Truck hired John Simone, who has great experience doing the same thing.”

USA Truck also has benefited after spurning a hostile takeover attempt by Knight Transportation, said Bob Williams, senior vice president and managing director of Delta Trust Investments Inc. in Little Rock.

On Sept. 26, Knight offered to buy USA Truck for$9 a share, about 40 percent more than the price it closed at the previous day. That began a steady increase in the stock price, peaking at $16.07 on Nov. 18.

Despite the takeover attempt, USA Truck’s efforts to enhance shareholder value have been effective, Williams said.

“At least one entity, Baker Street Capital, believes the stock is undervalued and has accumulated significant positions [in USA Truck],” Williams said.

Baker Street said in October and November filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it now owns 1.4 million shares of USA Truck, about 13.3 percent of the Van Buren-based firm, Williams said.

Arkansas Best benefited in 2013 from expected reductions in wage and employment benefit expenses after a five-year labor agreement was signed, Williams said.

In all, the stocks of five Arkansas companies more than doubled in 2013 - USA Truck, Arkansas Best, Home Banc-Shares, Acxiom and P.A.M.

Home BancShares - which owns Centennial Bank offices in Arkansas, Florida and Alabama - closed on the largest acquisition of an Arkansas bank by an in-state institution last year with its purchase of Liberty Bancshares of Jonesboro. The purchase doubled the Centennial Bank offices in the state and made Centennial the second-largest bank in the state.

“[Home BancShares’] method of assimilating strong community bank franchises to fuel growth continues to be well received by [Wall Street],” Williams said.

The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, was up 35 percent for the year.

All but three of the major Arkansas public companies posted gains in 2013.

The losers were First Federal Bancshares, down 11 percent, Deltic Timber, down almost 4 percent, and Windstream, down 3.6 percent.

First Federal’s stock price has been affected by concerns about competition and market share for the Harrison-based bank, Williams said.

Windstream’s executives “continue to express confidence that the company will generate stable free cash flows and maintain its dividend payout ratio,” Williams said. Windstream pays an annual dividend of $1 per share, one of the highest in the industry.