Weber boosts reefer trailer fleet to meet LTL demand

Weber boosts reefer trailer fleet to meet LTL demand Los Angeles-based Weber Distribution said today it has acquired 150 refrigerated trailers to cope with its expanding West Coast temperature-controlled less-than-truckload needs.
   Weber’s latest additions to its fleet comprises a combination of 53-foot Great Dane trailers and 48-foot roll door Utility trailers featuring Thermo King SB210 Whisper reefer units that meet California and EPA emission standards.
   The trailers are equipped with Maxxon 5500 pound Tuck-a-Way lift-gates, along with an electrical plug-in option, which allows the units to use electricity during loading and at terminals, designed to reduce fuel consumption, diesel emissions, maintenance and noise.
   The new trailer fleet is also equipped with GPS tracking technology provided by Star-Trak, which allows the temperature set-point to be changed directly from the dispatcher's computer.
   The company said its volumes with leading food-confectionary and beverage customers have increased significantly since acquiring West Coast food-confectionary distributor TaB Warehouse & Transportation Co. in the summer of 2006. The takeover roughly doubled Weber’s size in terms of employees and revenue as well as adding some 700,000 square feet of warehousing space to its West Coast distribution network.
   Subsequently, Weber has started working with Wal-Mart to support its expanding grocery distribution network across California.
   'We are very excited about enhancing our temperature-controlled network in the western United States with our new fleet, featuring the latest in refrigeration and tracking technology,” said John Nutt, Weber's chief operating officer. “Weber operates a true, asset-based LTL reefer distribution network and unlike many providers in our market, we have the tonnage and scale to handle loads on a time-defined basis, consistently meeting our customers' required delivery dates.'
   Weber is also using its new fleet to service its temperature-controlled truck terminals and cross-docking operations located throughout the West Coast including: Phoenix; Fontana and Stockton, Calif.; Portland, Ore.; and Seattle, Wash.