Heavy Duty Fleet Truck Expert Witness

• Fleet Consultant & Expert Witness
• Author of Fleet & Truck Operation, Maintenance & Safety Articles
• Former Director & Manager Fleet Operations
• Maintenance
• Asset Management
• B2B
• Cost Control
• Safety
• P. & L.
• Bid Pricing
• Negotiations
• Logistics
• Multi-Site Operations
• HAZMAT
• Equipment Redesign and Modification
• Risk Management

Key Accomplishments:

Managed all activities of contract maintenance companies. Consolidated 12 maintenance providers to one. Negotiated two exclusive three year term maintenance contracts first with Penske – $13+ million annually, then Ryder – $14.5+ million annually.

Designed and implemented the use of a breakdown / uptime report while at SWS. Made contract maintenance providers report weekly using this format. Chaired weekly telephone conference calls using this format to increase enterprise fleet uptime to 92% to 95% on a weekly basis. Uptime had previously been in the 70 – 74 percentile range. Key individual in the development of this becoming all electronic system when the switch from Penske to Ryder was made.

Established Maintenance Standards on an Enterprise wide basis. Created and established the maintenance standards and schedules for Heritage Propane / Heritage Operating (both MLP’s). Did the same for Southern Wine & Spirits. Had key account maintenance expert from both Penske & Ryder assigned to me. This resulted in dramatically increased OTR safety and uptime!

Initiated System of and Chaired annual fleet review meetings at each distribution center (35+ states). Reviewed costs and operational safety and efficiency with senior state or district management at each DC in conjunction with national and local representatives of contract maintainer as meeting participants. Chaired driver education and training meetings at each of these locations at the same time.

Managed the integration to the existing fleet of 256 acquisitions that more than doubled fleet size during my time with Heritage.

Initiated bulk tank remanufacturing to increase Heritage fleet capacity by 16.6% and cut costs. Bulk tanks deemed too small were scrapped after a 10-12-year cycle. Investigated reuse of high-quality tanks and introduced larger capacity upgrades. Negotiated with OEM tank builders and developed process to recycle and reuse tanks. Developed cost effective chassis to carry larger tanks. Fielded remanufactured tanks at half the cost of a new tank. A $1.6 million savings in 18 months. This was a significant factor in reducing on highway risk – the delivery fleet stayed the same size over a 6-year period while gallons delivered doubled.

Removed chassis deadweight to triple Heritage fleet fuel mileage. Trucks were built with steel components adding excess weight. Wrote specifications to include aluminum for fuel tanks, deck, and fenders. Redesigned deck and fenders to reduce weight and improve vehicle tire air circulation extending tire life and increased safety. Lowered bulk delivery truck weight by 3.5% to 4%. Eliminated bi-fuel engines and purchased higher torque diesel engines. Fleet MPG increased over time from 2 mpg to 6+ mpg per truck. Risk was reduced because new trucks increased drops per day from 20 to 30-32 due to new power train combinations. This was another key factor in keeping the delivery fleet the same size as gallons delivered continued to increase through organic and acquisition driven growth. This produced a safer fleet.

Designed Heritage truck specifications that doubled gallons of product delivered at no additional cost. Trucks were under performing in all terrain conditions, especially in hilly and mountainous areas. Wrote new truck performance specifications that greatly increased not only performance but safety as well. Had shift points analyzed by computer and fixed variants with the optimum of fuel economy and route efficiency. Developed truck specifications to maximize fuel mileage in flat, hilly and mountainous terrain. Truck changes increased load capacities 20% or more and performance by 33% to 100%. Safety was enhanced by increasing the gallons delivered without increasing the number of trucks operating on a daily basis.

Negotiated to eliminate unexpected new truck delivery costs, saving Heritage over $750K. Order for over 120 vehicles had over 100 to be built. The units awaiting manufacture were impacted by large increase in engine cost due to new emission mandate. Increase was effective immediately with no notice to dealers or end users. Negotiated with engine manufacturer for immediate availability of 110 engines. Secured storage on site at the truck manufacturer and build schedule to meet original delivery dates.

Negotiated numerous chassis and equipment contracts (annual basis) at 30% to 35% less than retail while establishing enhanced performance, efficiency, and safety standards enterprise wide.

Negotiated numerous extended chassis & equipment warranties. 5 to 8 years in length, and mileage to 300,000 miles. 2-3 times the normal warranty for medium duty trucks. This resulted in the fleet being maintained in OEM shops, not 3rd party. The repairs were then made with original OEM parts not aftermarket. Quality of repairs, Reliability, Maintainability, Availability, and Safety all increased as a result. Downtime decreased dramatically.

Cut Fleet Cap Ex by 1/3 in the first 18 months at Heritage. Responsible for spending from 15% to over 22% of total capital expenditures annually – $12,000,000 to over $25,000,000 annually.

Introduced Telematics to both Heritage/Energy Transfer and Southern Wine and Spirits. This resulted in increased efficiency and route optimization which increased profits, safety and reduced overall risk management.

PROFESSIONAL HISTORY

PUBLISHED AUTHOR
2017- Present
Authored numerous articles that have been published primarily in Business Fleet, Work Truck, and Heavy-Duty Trucking print & online magazines.
Considered to be a subject matter expert on truck industry in general and fleet operations and maintenance in particular.

EXPERT OWN COMPANY
2017 – Present
Work as a contract fleet consultant/SME, expert witness & entrepreneur to assist senior management, ownership, and private equity to assist with legal cases. Project phases for fleet consultation as shown below:

Project Phases
Analysis / Due Diligence Phase
Analyze, existing small and medium fleet operations (up to 6,000 vehicles).
Do due diligence on operations, safety, compliance, specifications, procurement, training, maintenance, & risk management.
Reporting Phase

Having done the due diligence, report recommended improvements in:

• Operations.
• Maintenance.
• Safety & Compliance.
• Procurement & Vehicle/Variant Specifications.
• Fleet Plan.
• Driver & operations personnel training.
• Risk Management.
• Advise on Fleet Department Startup & Ongoing Improvements.

Execution Phase
Implement agreed upon project action segments and coach your team to administer the programs that result from the project.

SOUTHERN WINE & SPIRITS, Miramar FL.
2008 – 2015
Fleet Operations Manager

• Established a fleet department system, operations support and program management startup.
• Wrote Truck & Equipment Specs, Initiated RFP process, negotiated results and selected key vendors.
• Saved $7,800 per truck chassis through bid process and negotiations for 2009 procurement.
• Renegotiated OEM concessions on an annual basis using an RFP process when necessary.
• Negotiated new deals each year with chassis vendors.
• Established captive dealers.
• Negotiated new maintenance contract through RFP process -Savings in excess of $1.3 million per year.
• Modernizing delivery fleet – right sizing fleet.
• Disposed of older vehicles through bidding of newly established bid group and through auctions.
• Worked through fielding of 2010 EPA emissions compliant trucks and tractors.
• Developed and implementing driver training nationwide.
• Competed bodies through RFP process. Saved $750 to $1,500 per unit depending upon specification.
• Fielded new fleets in 90-day time frame for two new state operations.
• Negotiated new reefer deal with alternate manufacturer.
• Transferred all my contact network to my current employer.

HERITAGE PROPANE, Tulsa, OK & Florence, KY
Fleet Manager / Director of Fleet Management
2001-2008

• Managed all fleet activities for the 21st-24th largest private vocational fleet in the U.S.A.
• Approximately 2,500 vehicles initially growing to over 5,500 vehicles (5,175 trucks).
• Procurement/Fielding on a timely basis
• Operational efficiency – specification development/evolution
• Worked through fielding during 2 new EPA mandates & introduced other regulatory compliance initiatives.
• Imted maintenance schedules and improvements as a positive change agent
• Disposed of hundreds of units per year at a profit. Implemented internet sales.
• Modernized delivery fleet resulting in zero truck growth while gallons delivered increased from 175 million gal. to 420 million gal. prior to Titan acquisition.
• Titan acquisition immediately increased gallons delivered to over 625 million.
• Modernized crane truck fleet. Bought directly from the OEM’s eliminating the dealer markups of up to 35%.
• Established terrain and job/district specific specifications. This resulted in zero growth in bobtail fleet over five years while the company more than doubled in size.
• Introduced automatic transmissions & many additional innovations to the industry. These innovations more than doubled MPG.
• Introduced GPS and Histogram usage for route and driver management & improved risk management.
• Created & Introduced standardized maintenance procedures.

AUTO CRANE COMPANY, Tulsa, OK
1998 – 2001
National Accounts Manager

• Increased sales in FY 1999 and 2000 by over 20% each year.
• 10% under budget in FY 1999, and 18% under budget in FY 2000.
• Developed new accounts, revived old accounts, established new OEM accounts.

LABRIE, QUEBEC CITY, QUE. CANADA
1997 – 1998
Southeast Region Manager

• Recruited by Labrie’s president to establish distributors in new territory and assist in the establishment of new U.S. facility.
• Responsible for sales, parts and warranty throughout the region. Established region as top performer in the company.
• Formulated and executed a plan for the recovery of a sizeable debt from a non-performing distributor and turned them into the company’s top distributor.

AMERICAN HOOK LIFT, INC., New Albany, MS
1992 – 1996
President/Founder

• Founded partnership through innovative investor recruitment after receiving bank commitment for SBA loan. Took company from start up to $3,000,000 in annual sales in four years.
• Rented and tooled plant. Hired personnel and had first completed unit out in 6 weeks from start up.
• Developed and trained domestic distributor network (to 50+ in four years).
• Established export sales to Mexico, South America, and Pacific Rim.

VULCAN EQUIPMENT COMPANY
1986 – 1992
Division Manager, Olive Branch, MS
Sales Manager, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

• Team leader contributed to achieving over 40% annual growth for five straight years.
• Mentored subordinates in two divisions to take over division management. (Export & Vulcap)
• Direct OEM sales to rubber companies as Vulcap division manager.
• Founded Military Division.
• Developed prototypes for Canadian Army/NATO wrecker, won and negotiated $ 15 million contract with prime contractor (OEM’s – U.T.D.C. & Steyer). Negotiated engineering add on for an additional $3.9 million.
• Created Export Division – Increased sales by a 12 multiple in one year. Handled all sales payments through letter of credit.
• Directed loading and Intermodal shipment of all export sales to overseas destinations from four plants (in Cda. and U.S.) – plants were not equipped with rail sidings. Movements were a combination of truck, rail and marine utilizing containers. Negotiated special tariffs for both rail and marine.
• Created MLS Division and established distributor network. Engineered product line completely in house with existing resources.

ATLAS 2000 INC., Montreal, Quebec, Canada
1978 – 1986
General Sales and Marketing Manager

• Directed sales and marketing world-wide. Company liaison with Caterpillar, Inc.
• Successfully supported activities of over 100 Caterpillar dealers for off highway products sold through them.
• Developed and controlled activities of on-highway equipment distributors. (Separate product line).
• Hired and trained sales force.

Traffic Supervisor – Traffic Manager 1970 – 1976

• Directed all Intermodal bulk shipments from 2 industrial plants – one in Montreal, one in Cornwall, Ontario worldwide. Both plants equipped with rail sidings. Shipments were made via truck, rail, and marine (including barge).
• Directed specialized loading and blocking of dimensional rail shipments, and controlled car movements all across North America – to ports and mining/construction sites.
• Grew to become the largest dimensional load rail shipper in Eastern Canada. Negotiated special rail and marine tariffs.
• Directed the activities of in-house private truck fleet of three tractor trailers & two tandem axle straight trucks. Hired and trained drivers.

SPECIAL ACTIVITIES

• Member – National Association of Fleet Administrators
• Member – National Truck Equipment Association
• Member – Association of the U.S. Army
• Valid Class B Commercial Driver’s License
• Former Member – Amerigas Specification Committee
• Former holder of “Secret” Security Clearance, Canada/NATO
• Former Member – ANSI (American National Safety Institute)/Wastec Member of the Ford Motor Company – Super Duty Advisory Group – 2005 to 2008

EDUCATION

• BS, 3 yrs of study completed. Concordia University, Montreal Quebec