History

My first job was as a box boy for Hughes Markets. For those of you that remember Hughes Markets, they were very big on customer service, produce, free knife sharpening and the proper way to bag groceries. For example, most of us know that eggs, bread and tomatoes should not be on the bottom of the bag.  To bag groceries, we survey the groceries, cans and boxed items are used as the base to provide support for lighter items.  As you work from bottom to top, distribute the weight and maximize the space. Bagging groceries for Hughes Markets was such a big deal that we actually had annual top box boy contests in which store’s employees would compete against each other for the coveted title. The criteria was based on time, style, structure and look. Ultimately, the contest was designed for box boys to take pride in their work as this is usually the last chance for the company to make a good impression to the consumer.

Control – Is harder to manage but will typically produce better results. If the bags are properly filled you’ll carry less of them into your house, the grocery store uses less bags and it is easier on the environment.

How does this pertain to my fleet. . . less options provide for tighter control. For example, tell a driver to use 3 locations that are near your home base. This forces your driver plan his/her route effectively because they cannot get fuel outside the parameters that you set. Secondly, your drivers are happy because that is one less thing they have to think about. In addition, mileage, fuel consumption and shrink/slippage are reduced because your drivers are not flipping through a 500 page site locator or getting turned around.

Convenience – Notice the plastic bag above. Way easy for the box person to throw your items in it, you end up with a ton of bags, with 1 or 2 items in each, not to mention that the company needs to carry twice the inventory and it’s harder on the environment. While it seems great you pay for it. Think about it, do you have an iphone — It sure is convenient to get on the internet anytime you need it. But at $99+ /month your paying for that convenience. Same goes for managing your fleet. If you really don’t need 270,000 locations across the United States then you shouldn’t be paying for a fleet card that allows for that. Secondly, most of the drivers that I’ve talked with have told me that they plan their routes according to where they get fuel, so it would seem that all this convenience is unnecessary.

So Why Control and Convenience is like Paper vs. Plastic?

Reasoning
Simple, it’s easier. 9 out 10 times the box person won’t offer paper. It is easy for them to throw your groceries in a plastic bag versus asking what you would like. Same goes for fleet management, it’s easy to say I want 270,000 locations because I don’t know where my drivers are going to be vs. saying, “we travel here, here and here and you are going to fuel at these authorized locations”.

So the next time you go to the grocery store, get paper. And the next time your thinking about how to manage your fleet, start with control and open up convenience based on your fleets’ needs.

Good luck and in case you haven’t guessed I’m a fan of paper bags.

Z

Bobby Fleet Manager Wall

Thank you to all who provided feedback on the DEF Seminar.    John Neal is the winner of the Keurig coffee maker.  Based on the feedback that we received we will be planning future events. Thanks, Bobby Z

Feedback gives back!

Bobby Fleet Manager Wall

The DEF (Diesel Exhaust Fluid) seminar was a great success! An astounding 158 attendees from 100 different companies came to learn about Air1® over lunch. This brief 2 hour event covered important issues such as emission technology, EPA regulations, grant money available for new SCR trucks in California and the role of DEF. DeWitt also arranged for a guest speaker from Western Star, a heavy-duty truck manufacturer, to present. Topics included the benefits of SCR and a brief video of the technology.

Just wanted to say very informative. The pace of the presentation was very good and quick. More of these presentations should be addressed not only in fuel needs but also in Safety seminars and truck maintenance, vehicle equipment inspections..for some individuals or small companies not many can afford to be a member of Caltrux and then they lose out on important issues that affect our trucking industry. Anyway, great job and looking forward to future events that DeWitt may/will put on, says Dale Reinhart, C V R, a DeWitt Petroleum event attendee.

Please visit dewittpetroleum.com/DEF for more details..

admin Fleet Manager Wall

DeWitt Petroleum has partnered up with Yara North America and the DeliveryOne Network to provide a free Diesel Exhaust Fluid Seminar. The Seminar will cover topics ranging from SCR trucks and how DEF works to packaging and distribution of Diesel Exhaust Fluid.

Anyone that is interested in attending needs to RSVP at DeWittPetroleum.com as space is limited.

The event will include lunch, door prizes and (2) flip video raffle prizes.

When: March 24, 2011 from 11a-1p

Quiet Cannon – Event Center

901 Via San Clemente
Montebello, CA 90640

Bobby Fleet Manager Wall

Since the election, I have not known what to say. I mean really, has everyone lost their mind?  Lets face it, we have to cut expenses and we will likely have to pay taxes in order to pay down debt.  That, or we stick our head in the sand and let our children and theirs figure this mess out.  California is going deeper into debt every day and eventually, even the federal government will stop loaning us money. Here is an excerpt from an article posted today on WSJ online, by Allysia Finley.  I included the link below so you could read the entire article. Browse the comments too, there are like minded people out there. I wonder if they voted?

My Best, Mary

CALIFORNIA: THE LINDSAY LOHAN OF STATES

Sacramento is headed for trouble again, and it shouldn’t expect a bailout.

Allysia Finley Op-Ed – Wall Street Journal – November 8, 2010

Listen up, California. The other 48 states—your cousin New York excluded—are sick of your bratty arrogance. You’re the Lindsay Lohan of states: a prima donna who once showed some talent but is now too wasted to do anything with it.

After enjoying ephemeral highs and spending binges, you suffer crashes that culminate in brief, unsuccessful stints in rehab. This cycle repeats itself every five to 10 years, as the rest of the country looks on with a mixture of horror and amusement. We’d feel sorry for you if you didn’t constantly flip us the bird.

Instead, we’re making bets on how long it will be before your next meltdown. Oh, wait—you’re already melting down.

You’ve racked up nearly $70 billion in general obligation debt, and that doesn’t include your $500 billion unfunded pension liability. Your own analysts predict you’ll face a hole of at least $80 billion over the next four years.

Your government’s run by a brothel of environmentalists, lawyers, public-sector unions and legislative bums. When they’re not taxing or spending, they’re creating regulations and commissions like the Board of Barbering and Cosmetology and the California Blueberry Commission. Many businesses would leave if it weren’t for your sunny climate.

Which may explain why you’re so obsessed with climate change. If your climate changes, no one, including your Hollywood friends, would tolerate you anymore. So you’ve created a law to tax carbon emissions—no matter that it will kill jobs.

You appropriately give your government low marks—28% approval for outgoing Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, 16% for the legislature—yet you continue to re-elect the politicians who got you into this mess. Not a single incumbent state legislator lost re-election this year, including one Democrat who died a month ago (no joke). What’s scarier is that you’ve just given almost all of the keys to statewide offices to Democrats.

Jerry Brown will be your new (old) governor. This is the man who acted as a gateway drug to your spending addiction three decades ago when he gave public-sector employees collective bargaining rights. Helping enforce your wacky laws will be Lt. Gov-elect Gavin Newsom, the San Francisco mayor who flouted state law by allowing same-sex marriage. On the plus side, he has nice hair and loves you just the way you are.

You’ve also just re-elected Barbara Boxer (that’s Senator Barbara Boxer) to a fourth term. She boasted on election night that it’s her “eleventh straight election victory, and what a sweet one it is . . . [since] everything was thrown at us, including the kitchen sink, and the stove and the oven and everything, millions of dollars of negative ads from known and unknown opponents, millions and millions of dollars.”

We’ve tried to help you, California. Some spent millions on campaigns to entice you to change your reckless behavior. And you told them to kick rocks. So here’s our final warning: When you inevitably crash and burn, don’t count on us to bail you out.

Entire Article

Mary Fleet Manager Wall Allysia Finley, budget, California, DeWitt Petroleum, Federal Government, WSJ