TRUSERV SIGNS WITH TRANSPLACE FOR LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT

TRUSERV SIGNS WITH TRANSPLACE FOR LOGISTICS MANAGEMENT    TruServ, a hardware cooperative based in Chicago, has contracted with Transplace, Inc., a provider of intermodal solutions, to manage TruServ’s supply chain operations.
   “Our goal is to use Transplace’s advanced technology to optimize our supply chain,” said Michael Rosen, TruServ’s senior vice president of logistics.
   Dr. Jun-Sheng Li, president and chief executive officer of Transplace, said that TruServ would use Transplace’s Dense Network Efficiency platform. “The total transportation freight volume covered by the multi-year agreement is expected to exceed $80 million annually,” Li explained.
   TruServ provides marketing, procurement and logistics services nationwide to a network of 7,500 independent retail outlets and rental service companies, operating as True Value Hardware, Grand Rental Station, Home & Garden Showplace, Induserve Supply, Party Central and Taylor Rental. TruServ has $4 billion in wholesale sales that support $12 billion in retail sales, according to a company spokesman.
   Transplace, Inc., based in Plano, Texas, was formed in 2000 by merging the logistics units of six truckload carriers: Covenant Transport, Inc.; J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Inc.; Swift Transportation Co., Inc.; U.S. Xpress Enterprises, Inc.; Werner Enterprises, Inc., and M.S. Carriers, Inc., which has since become part of Swift Transportation.