David Freymiller, president and CEO of Freymiller Inc., heads up a trucking family success story in Oklahoma City, OK. Like other great stories, this one has its share of dramatic ups and downs on the road to present-day accomplishment and stability, and they highlight the intelligence and passion of people deeply committed to the business of trucking.
When Freymiller Inc. made the decision to invest in technology from TMW Systems to help manage fuel expenses better, the fleet knew it was already doing a very good job of negotiating price discounts with its fuel vendors and controlling wasted miles. Like many smaller trucking firms, it had always figured that fuel purchase optimization was expensive technology for the “big guys,” motor carriers with thousands of trucks and sophisticated IT departments.
What Freymiller did not expect was the affordability of IDSC ExpertFuel for its approximately 300-truck operation and the very substantial savings that it has been able to see on a regular basis from the use of the product.
“You can never be satisfied that you are doing enough in this business, there is always room for improvement,” said David Freymiller. “We thought we did a pretty good job managing fuel costs…but you don’t know until you see the difference this product can make.”
Freymiller compared strategic technology investments for a trucking firm to common investments in physical assets, such as trucks themselves, fuel-saving tires and automatic transmissions. “We do it because we think there is payback,” he said. And unlike tires, engines and transmissions, he noted, “IDSC ExpertFuel software doesn’t wear out,” it continues to generate ongoing cost savings every day.
Freymiller Inc. is an efficient trucking business that works hard to control costs with lean management and a focus on efficiency, while also differentiating itself in the marketplace with superior customer service. Adding new technologies to its operations, like trailer tracking for full reefer system monitoring, in-cab mobile communications, new fleet maintenance software and, of course, IDSC ExpertFuel, along with NetGraf, IDSC TripAlert and IDSC Netwise (all from TMW Systems) makes sense because the fleet treats each investment as an actively managed asset in order to realize its full benefits. Whether those benefits are to improve conditions for drivers, add visibility and expanded service options for customers or to reduce fuel expense and OOR miles that impact operating ratios directly, Freymiller’s careful product evaluation process, sensible buying decisions and active management of new technology ensure that the fleet gets the biggest bang for its buck.
