Home > Forum > There'S A Fly In My Soup

There's a Fly in My Soup

Dec 11, 2024 at 11:06 AM CST
+ 9

I would just like to bring to the Forefront about Issues that the Trucking industry is getting complacent with.

Example of this would be as we go to our favorite resturant that has been there for years,  The main cook that was great at making sure his food was prepared right as you would expect your meal to be Hot and Tasty, so you would tell all your friends this is the best place to eat. Well thet cook left and the new guy does not pay attention to details as the previous one did and you find a fly in your soup or a hair in your hamburger ( How Gross) we may think well it only happend once, but what if it also happend to all those people you shared with about what a great place to eat. How long before they quit going there to eat.

Well is it the Owner (dispatcher)of the Resturant at fault?  Partially for not keeping this matter as a current issue . He hired the new cook and gave him Guidelines and since the Owner has many responsabilites to take care of running a buisness, He can not watch every plate that is served so if  your meal is not appealing eventually people would stop referring that place Of buisness and also may stop going to eat there.  So now because of one Person that does not pay attention to detail the impact of the servers, dishwashers, Food Venders etc. are now faceing a resturant closing because people just arent coming in to eat.

 

Well the same goes for trucking which is my main meaning, Trucking is tight margins and with economy what it is you have to do what you can to survive. The issue is similar to the Cook that cares very little applies to the Drivers, if you dont care enough to make sure your trailers and equipment are clean to avoid cross contamination and tarps dont leak, our Customers will also stop using us so the  cause and effect rule applies way down the line , just understand what your decsion can do to  the other drivers hauling to same place as you, although they did nothing wrong but its a blanket issue you are also a driver be it from same trucking company or not is irrelevant & it impacts us all; then the Customer is now applying more restrictions to everybody.

Also with the many ways of Communication  I am shocked how a driver can pickup an order and Not relay back that he is broke down or delayed for some issue or another and then to find out a two day trip load has not been delivered and we are not notified until an upset Customer calls on 3rd day asking where is my load. I realize things happen I have been on that side of the wheel so I understand.  All I can say is Complainsency can drive us out of Buisness; I know many great people for the past 25 years and just want to say Thank you all for the years of working together.

In Respect of the isssues I am diligent in conveying to any carrier or Dispatcher to please make sure top sides of trailers are clean and not have stuck

 product in nooks and crannies are clean from previous load, Farmers dont want Corn in thier Fertilizer anymore than I want hair in My Breakfast, and I have heard it many times it was only a few kernals but if the Customer wants it a certian way then we should be complying not complaicent.

Clean out should be done over a pit where you are unloading the product you hauled in. Not on the side of the road, carry a bag or bucket to clean out if need be , air hoses and Brooms are a common place but laziness and carelessness has been replacing those items and eventually we all can be replaced. A good washout regularly goes a long way  compaired to a $700 per ton claim on fertilizer and added Insurance Cost after that.

All in all I wish to Thank the many carriers That haul for me and express great gratitude for the work you do, I pray for your safety Out in Your Travels

and for Our Farmers that are also dealing with changing economy. Lets get back to Courtesy and Protecting our Livelihood!

Be safe out there especially through Winter.

God Bless You All

Merry Christmas

Jesse @ Jesse's Transportation

 

Replied on Thu, Dec 12, 2024 at 10:53 AM CST
+ 2
The problem we have today is the customer(s) in general want first class service, but only wants to hire the cheapest truck. It's like going to a diner and telling the waitress you want the $5 bowl of soup, but you are unwilling to pay anymore than $2.50 and don't have the money for a tip. Your negotiation skills might get you that bowl of soup for your desired price, but you in particular got a fly in your soup because the dishes never got washed....
Replied on Fri, Dec 13, 2024 at 11:38 AM CST

I agree. Cross contaminiation is unacceptable! If there is a large amount, there is zero tollerence! If it is a kernal or two, I have to admit that they can be missed. I had 11 years of pulling hopper before I stepped in the office to dispatch. I can honestly say that I had some instances where I cleaned the trailer to what I though was spotless only to have a kernal of grain show up in the load. Never a large amount but never the less in the load. There are so many places for these things to hide on a hopper! We are human and make mistakes so I feel that if there is a kernal or two now and then I would be able to get past that. For large amounts where it is clear that the trailer was not cleaned, no tolerence is given!

Replied on Sat, Dec 14, 2024 at 12:22 PM CST
Here lies the problem.....most places you unload at refuse to allow you to climb on the trailer or go under. But yet don't provide anywhere on their property to clean out. Let alone over the pit. Then if a wash out is waived and clean sweep out is all that is required, the facility in which your next load is, guess what, they won't let you climb on the trailer on property and don't provide an area to do so. So you are forced to get a wash out. In which you rely on someone else to provide a service you pay for, and hope he or she does a good job. But you just drove 80 miles out of the way to do it. Because the EPA closed the one that was 10 miles from you. So you all can keep living in this fantasy world in which everyday, and everything, everytime just falls into place. But that is not reality. Some of you guys don't realize there's alot of hoppers running that do more than grain and fertilizer. And seem to think your statement is a one size fits all. But I tend to believe the washout deal has become a real problem. And I understand why. I washout to protect myself from any cross contamination issues even when a clean sweep is fine. It's my business that's on the line. And the shippers are protecting themselves in the same way. At the same time, it's frustrating to haul a load of corn to a feed lot, then a certified washout is required to haul milo to a petfood plant before the next load. Then you see random kernels of corn in the milo when you watch them test it. So what gives ?