Meat + Poultry - October 2004 - 38

777°1°
"

Distribution

chassis and the refrigerated box."
Hennon summarizes the advantages of leasing, saying there
is less manpower needed; no inventory of truck parts needed;
no need for maintenance people at odd hours; no need to keep
records of truck maintenance; and no worries about issues with
the highway patrol.
Hennon is also concerned about customer service. "We
need to avoid breakdowns on the road because tight delivery
windows require our trucks to be at customers at certain times,"
he says. "Before, when there was a breakdown, we had to take
labor from our plant to change the load over to another truck,
which was a hassle. Now, if there is a breakdown the leasing
company either must fix the vehicle or tow it to the remaining
deliveries. Usually it takes just about one hour to get the truck
back on the road."

IS
The new Ti 3000
ava i ab now

.5
Mmd th e deta l

We need to be concerned
about our product, not about
maintaining a truck fleet.

5CXG[QWTUGNHVKOGCPFYGKIJVYJGPUOQMKPI
CPFEQQMKPIYKVJVJGPGYGUV(GUUOCPP
VGEJPQNQI[/CKPVCKPnPGUVSWCNKV[CPFKPETGCUG
QWVRWVD[OQTGVJCPKPEQORCTKUQPYKVJ
QVJGTUOQMGJQWUGU
(QTOQTGKPHQTOCVKQPQP(GUUOCPPU[UVGOUHQT
DWVEJGTCPFKPFWUVT[RNGCUGXKUKVQWTYGDUKVG
YYYHGUUOCPPFG

(GUUOCPPKV UYQTVJKV

FESSMANN

(GUUOCPP.2
21$QZ-CPUCU%KV[/1
2JQPG(CZ
KPHQ"HGUUOCPPDK\/CKP%QPVCEV4QNH*COOCPP

Rogers chose its leasing companies due to their number
and location of service centers. "An advantage is our suppliers
control their own service centers," says Hennon. "Some leasing
companies hire out their service providers, but ours are concerned about their own trucks. Another advantage is they will
replace parts before they break. We avoid many breakdowns
due to preventative maintenance. When it goes through the fuel
island, trucks may receive monthly maintenance. If a fan belt
needs to be changed, they may fix it right there or they may give
us a substitute truck. We also get somewhat of a break on diesel
fuel there compared to gas stations."
Another reason leasing works well for Rogers Poultry is it
has control over its equipment design. Rogers uses special
boxes and refrigeration units that are made to the company's
specifications. "Only a couple of companies are allowed to
make our equipment according to the lease agreement," says
Hennon. "Some of our products include ice-packed poultry,
which drips and makes a mess of the truck. However, all of
our trucks are sealed and have a self-contained wastewater
system. Even when delivering to five-star restaurants, there
are no smell complaints."
Rogers' refrigerated boxes are separate units that are bolted
to the chassis. Hennon says the boxes are so sturdy that they
have gone through two chassis, but retained the same box. The
box specifications include a floor pattern that facilitates drainage and cleaning. "Every day the box is pressure washed," he
says. "We could spend 30 minutes to 40 minutes longer with the
wrong floor."
When one of Rogers' truck leases ends in mid-2005, Hennon says they plan to meet with the leasing company's head
of maintenance as well as the heads of the box company

For more information, see ad index on Page 63

MEAT&POULTRY

www.MEATPOULTRY.com

OCTOBER 2004

http://www.MEATPOULTRY.com

Meat + Poultry - October 2004

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Meat + Poultry - October 2004