TP Trucking Gears Up for Expansion

The future of TP Trucking is described best in two words: exponential growth.

The transportation division of Timber Products plans to expand fleet size, personnel, and breadth of services over the next few years.

“It’s an exciting time,” said Tom Gennarelli, our VP of Trucking and Transportation. “There are older carrier companies that are exiting the market and new ones that are just beginning to get their bearings. These changes open up opportunity for us to grow our businesses.”

One of TP Trucking’s growth strategies has come to fruition with the creation of a logistics branch. Known as TP Logistics, this sister branch ties into trucking’s brokerage capabilities and allows them to offer 3PL services to all of their customers.

TP Logistics covers truck, rail, and marine movement of products. It will also offer warehousing locations in the future. The creation of TP Logistics enables TP Trucking to become a one-stop shop for all their customer’s needs.

To date, TP Trucking has a fleet of 150 trucks comprised of 100 company owned and 50 owner-operated. The goal is to expand the fleet over the course of 10 years.

Gennarelli explained, “Ideally, we would like to have 300 trucks in five years and 500 trucks by the 10-year mark. It’s an ambitious goal, but I firmly believe we will make it happen.”

The increase in fleet size corresponds with a diversification of truck style. TP Trucking plans to add day cabs, dry vans, and residual trailers to the fleet. They will also acquire maxi trailers to help their current customers.

“The diversification of products we can haul will be a major step in growing and acquiring new business as we move forward,” said Craig Turner, our General Manager for TP Trucking.

To accomplish their goals, TP Trucking has brought on new team members who can facilitate change.

Late last year, Joe Anderson was hired as a new HR/Recruiter to enhance driver recruitment efforts and in March 2020, Alicia Powell was hired as a National Sales Manager to create new business leads and accounts across the U.S.

“Joe is doing a great job in putting our name out into the market for drivers to be aware that we are hiring,” said Turner.

Anderson’s recruitment efforts are aided by TP Trucking’s strong reputation for treating its drivers with respect. Their current turnover rate is low at 20%, whereas the national turnover rate for trucking jobs is around 90%.

“We have operated safely for over 330 days and our turnover rate is 20%! Both are incredible metrics that many trucking companies struggle to achieve,” said Gennarelli.

With Powell’s addition, there will be an increased focus on organically growing TP Trucking’s current customer base. Combining Powell’s prior sales experience with the use of Salesforce software to automate our processes will lead to increased productivity levels across the board.

Besides maintaining their presence on the West coast, there is opportunity for trucking to expand East. The plan is to locate strategic areas throughout the country, specifically in the Southeast and Midwest, to acquire new operations and partner with reload stations or warehouses locations.

“Right now, the largest growth market in the US is the Southeast,” explained Gennarelli. “With our operational facility in Cornith, MS, we want to take advantage of our position in that area.”

At the end of the day, TP Trucking’s growth is still about and for our people.

“The key to growth is our people and our culture,” said Gennarelli. “It is imperative to keep our culture constant while we expand into new horizons.”