Injury Prevention--Speed Kills by Lee Sarratt

When you hear the expression "Speed Kills", What first comes to your mind? If you are like most people who work in our industry, you will more than likely think of vehicular accidents, running a red light, etc. I encourage you to keep that mentality at all times while driving a CMV or your personal vehicle. I would also like you to think of that expression when you are making a delivery, handling product on a dolly, going up and down stairs, etc.

Our most important asset (our drivers/installers) are being injured far too frequently. In many, if not most cases, we find it could have been prevented if the work being done was simply done so at a slower pace. When you find yourself handling product in the truck or on the lift gate, take a deep breath, analysis your surroundings first, then begin moving the product in the proper manner. I challenge each and every employee to do this for 21 continuos days and at every delivery. Behavior science shows us that it takes 21 repetitive days to create a "HABIT". If the greatest opportunity for injury is when handling product, What greater way to reduce, if not eliminate that risk than developing the habit of performing that activity slowly and safely? You will be asked to participate in training regarding this issue in the near future. Your opinions, concern and input will be greatly appreciated. We feel we have the strongest and most hard working employees in the network. Please help us and making you the safest as well.

 

Lee Sarratt

Director of Safety

Final Mile Services Region Driver of the Month - June 2014--Christian Mena

After reviewing several outstanding nominations, I am pleased to announce that Christian Mena has earned the honor of our Final Mile Services Region Driver of the Month for June. Christian has consistently delivered exceptional customer service, safety and productivity results.  Please join me in congratulating Christian on this well earned accomplishment! 

Region Driver of the Month - $500 cash
Christian Mena
Final Mile Services Edison, NJ

 

Christian is a newer driver to our region, but has immediately stepped up to become one of the best drivers in the fleet.  He receives 2-3 positive surveys a week and is frequently requested by customers for repeat deliveries.  His productivity numbers are consistently strong and he puts in long hours to ensure every customer receives their product with excellent service. 

Christian recently ran our “swash” route, going to six very big and important bloggers for new Whirlpool product.  He did everything without a hitch, receiving no complaints or poor feedback.  To the contrary, we received positive feedback from the Bloomingdale's stores and the “Swash” representatives who were on the route with him.  This is an important product rollout for Whirlpool and Chris was an integral part of making it successful.   

Great customer service, attitude and utilization are just a few of the reasons why Christian was nominated by the Edison LDC this month.

 

Other Outstanding Nominees: $200 cash

Mark Wilson @ Final Mile Chicago, IL (FMS C)

Everardo Cervantes @ Final Mile Santa Fe Springs, CA (FMS W)

Arnold Whipple @ Final Mile Garden City, GA  (FMS S)

Appliance Connection--"Save the Sale"

The list of Final Mile personnel that have received (or soon will be receiving) a $10 gift card for being involved with a successful “Save the Sale” for Appliances Connection is near 400 and grows daily!  It's encouraging to have such success with a program like this because “Save the Sale” truly benefits everyone involved!  It may not always seem so when a flawed product is first revealed but the end result can be a fantastic win for all – for the customer, for JB Hunt, and for Appliances Connection.

Some, but not all, of the positive benefits for the customer may include 1) an immediate markdown on a product that can be a significant savings for their purchase, 2) free replacement parts and free repair service for affected areas of the item in question, and 3) extended warranties on the product so that if there are additional issues or issues that cannot be resolved later, the item can be replaced free to the customer.

For JB Hunt, some of the positive benefits of “Save the Sale” include 1) being able to recognize and reward personnel for their involvement and additional effort to save sales on behalf of the customer and our client, 2) not having to handle, move, grade, repackage, prep, and administratively manage return product and reverse logistics and 3) not exposing the LDC to costly damage product claims or loss of revenue due to not attempting to save the sale.

And finally, for our client, Appliances Connection, some of their positive benefits include 1) avoiding the large expense of returning flawed product to their warehouse (and avoiding the additional damage that can occur in that return process), 2) not having to try grade, warehouse, and eventually try to sell flawed product to a second channel sales agent, and 3) not having to create and manage damage claims sent to JB Hunt.

In short, this truly is a very positive program for everyone involved!  Including (and especially) the customer and us!  Once again, thank you to the hundreds who have been involved with a successful “Save the Sale” in the past and thank you to those who work hard to save future sales.  It’s a pleasure to be able to thank and recognize so many people with gift cards on a program that’s a win for everyone involved!   

 

May Final Mile Region Driver of the Month

After reviewing several outstanding nominations this month, I am pleased to announce that Ramon Rivera has earned the honor of our Final Mile Services Region Driver of the Month for May. Ramon has demonstrated outstanding results in customer service, safety, productivity and also takes great pride in the training and development of his peers.   Please join me in congratulating Ramon on this well earned achievement!

Region Driver of the Month - $500 cash
Ramon Rivera
Final Mile Services Houston, TX

Juan “Ramon” Rivera is the Driver of the Month for Final Mile Houston for the month of May. Ramon is one of the driver trainers on the account and the majority of new drivers always request to be placed with him for his attention to detail and time spent developing our new hires. Ramon is also a mentor to all employees and drivers look to Ramon for help with any questions they may have and he is always being willing to help when necessary. He has a perfect safety record which speaks volumes considering his status of Driver Trainer. Ramon is also one of those drivers who can “Do It All” and anyone who works in Final Mile knows the importance of having these types of drivers on an account. He comes to work each and every day with a great attitude. For all these reasons and many more, Ramon is the Final Mile Houston Driver of the month for the month of May.

Other Outstanding Nominees:
Justin Pittman @ Final Mile Pensacola, FL (FMS S)
Marvin Valle @ Final Mile Boston, MA (FMS N)
Misraim Sagastume @ Final Mile Perris, CA  (FMS W)

Arkansas Truck Driving Championship

 

This past weekend team members from our Truck, DCS, Intermodal and Final Mile groups competed in the Arkansas Truck Driving Championship.  Our team was represented by Mark Overholt(3rd from the left), DIS from our Solon LDC.  This was Mark's second straight appearance in the competition and he put on a very good show.  Mark placed 2nd in the straight truck division and 7th place overall, which was tops among all J.B. Hunt competitors.  The competition consists of a pre-trip, written test and a driving skills test.

 

 

Injury free Milestone for Final Mile Louisville

Our team in Louisville reached one year injury free on 7/8/2014. This operation consists of 6 drivers and 2 managers along with 2-3 outsourced helpers depending on volumes.  The team has exhibited a tremendous commitment to safety as they also are over 1 year collision free.  Contgratulations and thank you to the entire group.

The DIS's are Frank May, Derick Black, Adger Matthews, Brian Shadders, Randall Sweat and Michael Carroll and the group is lead by Damon Howard(AM) and Parker Hobson(OS). 

Have a Happy and Safe 4th of July.

Enjoy the time with your family while you celebrate the anniversary of America's independence.  We appreciate everyone's hard work and hope you enjoy the well deserved time off.

1000 days collison free in Perris

From the day we started up the Final Mile Perris account back in June of 2009, a strong safety culture has always been present.  While many accounts succeed and thrive in matters of safety when they have the same leadership year after year, Perris has continued to perform in spite of the continual changes in account leadership.  Since the account’s inception, there have been 6 different account managers leading the team, each with their own unique approaches and personalities.  Beginning in 2009, Kevin Roth opened the Perris facility and instilled a strong safety culture from day one.  About a year after start-up, Jason Willis stepped up and led the Perris team for a year and a half before going to lead the Santa Fe Springs, CA location.  Next up was Adam Zepeda, who managed at the account for just under a year before taking a TGM position.  Adrian Navarro took over in the beginning of 2013 and led the Perris facility for 7 months before moving to the Santa Fe Springs LDC.  Omar Ayon began his short tenure at Perris in late 2013 and was quickly moved up to the Hayward LDC in Northern California. Currently, Orlando Galindo manages the team and is proud to be the leader of a great group of drivers who have just put together a 1,000 day accident-free streak!  This is truly a great accomplishment for any LDC to achieve and thanks go out to the operations staff, past and present, who are responsible for this amazing streak. Danny Bennett, Jessica Holguin, Vincent Rubio, Robert Samsing, and Ryan Shaw have all put in a great deal of time and dedication to make this one of the safest LDCs in the country.  Special thanks go out to the drivers and installers for taking their safety very seriously and ensuring that every decision they make is a well thought out choice. It takes a special group of people to achieve such a milestone and serves as a reminder to everyone that with teamwork anything is attainable. The team celebrated with a BBQ on Friday, June 20^th, and they are all looking forward to another 1000 days accident-free!

 

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