PrivateFleets.com

According to the recently released 2008 Benchmarking Survey from the National Private Truck Council, 37 percent of private fleets are incorporating dedicated contract carriage and other third-party alternatives into their corporate transportation plan.

Of the private fleets that use dedicated carriers, 34 percent of their companies’ inbound freight and 19 percent of outbound freight is transported by third party dedicated carriage.

The survey also found that most private fleets say they have first choice of company freight. This would seem to give the private fleet an inherent advantage over third parties in maximizing fleet utilization and revenue.

If your fleet is among the ones that gets the first choice in freight, why would you even consider outside carriers to be your competitors? Wouldn’t they be more like dogs sitting around the table waiting to see what scraps you decide to throw their way?

I don’t get the impression from the NPTC survey that private fleets are really worried that their cost and service is threatened by third party solutions from dedicated and for-hire carriers. That’s probably just because the survey was designed to take a snapshot of the current status. My impression from people I’ve spoken with, however, is that the competitive position of the private fleet is an ongoing concern to fleet managers.

Most of the fleets I speak with say they are always worried that someone else can come in and do the same job for less. Come on, it has to get under your skin when a third party meets with you or your board of directors and proposes replacing some, even all, of your private fleet with a dedicated solution.

In many cases, the NPTC says, private fleet managers have become responsible for implementing “blended” fleet solutions, which means using the resources of the private fleet along with dedicated and for-hire common carriers.

Comparing this year’s survey to last year, the private fleet seems to be in about the same position in terms of cost and service against these third parties. The survey said that private fleets haul 61 percent of their companies’ outbound freight and 39 percent of total inbound freight.

So basically you’re looking at a 60/40 rule (60 percent outbound and 40 percent inbound) for the private fleet, year after year. Perhaps this is the unwritten ratio for what a blended transportation solution should look like. You should outsource 40 percent of your outbound freight and 60 percent of your inbound. Perhaps this is what the market has determined it takes to balance the competitive forces of private fleet, dedicated and for-hire transportation.

On this point, I’d like to get some feedback. Between dedicated and for-hire carriers, which do you see as more of a competitor to your private fleet? Along the same lines, which is the greater threat to your “private fleet pride”? And lastly, which one are you focused more on beating back and eventually replacing with your own private fleet solution?