P & B Transportation, Inc. based in Bismarck, ND has been a top performing carrier for ALC for 22 years. Paul Mueller, the owner of P & B Transportation has been in business for 26 years. He has seen the ebb and flow of the transportation industry for a long time now. Throughout all the ups and downs Paul has seen it all.
P & B is currently running 85 trucks and 163 refrigerated trailers. Even with the uncertainty in the current market conditions, with costs rising and some rates dropping with increased capacity, Paul is planning on doubling down and adding 15 more trucks within the next 6-12 months. He does plan to hold his fleet around that size because as he says, “I don’t want my drivers to be just a number” and wants to have that personal relationship with each driver, as that is important to him. Paul states that his driver salaries are up 12% this year, but plans on hiring more drivers to fill those 15 new trucks he is adding. Paul also mentioned that reefer units have come down some in price since November 2021, but they’re still selling for about $20,000 over where they should be.
Paul has several long-standing customers and brokers like ALC, who he has built lasting relationships with. Relationships are more important in this current market than ever before to keep business going strong. He mentioned that most of his customers are cost plus fuel surcharge, so that helps with big increases in diesel costs, even though the prices have started to decline some over the last several weeks. Paul said that all of his customers have stayed loyal during this ever-changing market. Over the next six months P & B is planning on growing like they have over the last 26 years.
P & B has not only done an excellent job moving loads for ALC, but has been a great source of knowledge for the ALC Chicago office. Carriers like P & B help ALC continue to keep products moving along the supply chain, and it’s important to work closely with them during these times as well as into the future.
