Refrigerated Trucking

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Tips & Advice to help you make your decision on Refrigerated Trucking

There are plenty of companies that rely on the transportation industry to pick up, deliver, and take care of their supplies and products each day. It is not uncommon to use a variety of vehicles to move goods and materials quickly and efficiently over sometimes thousands of miles. Planes, trains, and trucks are often used for various legs of the journey for all kinds of freight. There is no denying that some products have different needs than others and require the use of refrigerated trucking vessels. There are all kinds of materials that must be kept cool on their way to manufacturers or to store shelves.

You will find several types of refrigerated trucking options to choose from to move your products to the consumer or to have your raw materials delivered to your facility. The most common type of refrigerated truck unit is a refrigerated truck trailer, though there are also refrigerated box trucks that can be used as well, especially for local deliveries. These truck units are ideal for long distance trips and the refrigerated units can be set at different temperatures for each delivery. Items such as dairy products, meats, produce, fresh flowers, and a host of other products make their way across the country every day in these special units.

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Using Refrigerated Trucking

Shipping perishable items can be a logistical nightmare if you don't have the proper equipment at your disposal. Likewise, relying on a third party to get your valuable items to a second location in a timely fashion can be even scarier. If you do your research and find refrigerated carriers with good references and even better records of accomplishment, you can save your company time and money.

For the best refrigerated transport experience, you should first ask the company how old their trucks are, what types of training their drivers have and how often they schedule their equipment for maintenance. All of these items are good facets of the type of service you can expect. Using refrigerated trucking doesn't have to be a challenge. Follow these steps to ensure a smooth delivery:

1. Hire a full-time refrigerated trucking company to move your perishable items.

2. Find reefer trucks for single haul occasions.

3. Work with a refrigerated hauling company as part of an entire cold food distribution center.

Set up permanent refrigerated transportation

You don't have to be a national food chain to expect good service from a refrigeration trucking company. Small businesses can find a transportation company with dependable service by checking references and getting a list of current customers. Ask for reliability records like on-time delivery percentages and claim ratios or spoilage amounts.
Try: Kelle Transport offers dependable, on time delivery of perishable items in their state-of-the-art refrigerated trucks. They were named one of Fortune 500's top 100 start-up companies and boast 99 percent on-time deliveries. Great Western Transportation offers maximum capacity refrigerated shipping containers with air-cushion suspension to keep your product safe.

Look for one-time refrigerated transport options

If you only need refrigerated hauling occasionally or on a temporary basis, find a company that specializes in fast, on-call deliveries. Hire a company you research by getting references, and ask for delivery and claim records.
Try: Dynamic Transportation can handle all the logistics of your refrigerated freight needs from personalized customer service to on-time pick up and delivery. Refrigerated Food Express offers nationwide refrigerated reefer trucks for rent and shipping services from van loads to full semi truck loads.

Combine your refrigerated trucking with cold storage services

Combining your cold storage and distribution can save your company time and money. If you currently pay for cold food storage and transportation, consider consolidating the services with one cold food logistics service provider. Find a company with warehousing options that mesh with your needs. Look for those that offer several storage locations across the country if you need storage in several areas, of find a warehouse and distribution company in your area if your needs are more local.
Try: There are several reputable nationwide distribution companies that offer cold storage as well. Consider working with Ameri Cold, Kool Pak or Northland Cold Storage. Each offers a full line of cold storage and distribution services from which to choose.

Look for refrigerated truck haulers that offer incentives to new customers. Some offer discounts on first-time loads, monthly or even yearly basis.