Auto Truck Transport.....

Here is there company website.

Click Here

[Lonny]

what's it like working for them?

It is the best job I have ever had. I mean it is not like a regular trucking company, where you have to go down some dark alley and try to find a parking place to sleep.
I know when I hauled freight or the tanker I dreaded sometimes about getting some loads.
Here you basicly pick your own load, so if you end up with a sucky load it is your own fault.

The trick to making money at my company and my job is reading and studying your contract. Your contract can make you a ton of money if you read up on thing's and then use them.
I had a load one time was only about 350 miles......that bites because it was only a 2 way (less money) but after looking at the bills I found that it was a 2 stopper. I left NC on a Wed. and delivered in Chattanooga,TN on thursday morning.
My last stop was in Birmingham AL for Friday before 10 AM well there was no way to make it by that time. So I called ahead and the reason it had to be there was the person who checks them in had to leave early.

I arrived about noon on Friday so I went to the motel and recieved my hourly pay for the remainder of my driving time for Friday, 8 hours for Saturday, and 8 hours for Sunday then delivered first thing Monday morning.
I got my milage pay about 225.00 plus unloading pay which was about 55.00 plus 114.06 for friday, then 155.00 per day for Saturday and Sunday. So a 350 mile or so trip turned into around 700.00 for hardly no work at all.

Now don't get me wrong there is alot of work involved in undecking a set of trucks, especially if you have to use a manual hoist. This is not bad though with just a 2 way boom load takes about 35 to 40 minutes and that is not rushing it.
A 4-way can take up to 5 hours to undeck and check them in.

The process goes something like this. First you check in then you move your load to the undecking area usually in the back out of the way of normal traffic.
You ask if they have a hoist to undeck with. If so you drive under it, as so to position your last truck under it first.
If they do not have a hoist ask them if they use a wrecker service. If they do ask them who pays for it them or you.
Some places use manual hoist these suck and others have very fancy electric 6 way hoist.
Other's use a local wrecker service to use the boom to undeck with. Sometimes you will get to a place and they say that you must get your own wrecker service to undeck so you call central support and get it.

You position the truck to where there are a few inches from the chain hoist to the front end of the truck, directly in the center of the truck.
Next you start by unhooking the light bar, air lines running from the lead truck to your tow vehicles. Most of the time the lead truck (the one you drive) will have air brakes, so all the tow vehicles will have brakes.
Once you have the air lines and electrical disconnected then you either put in your drive shaft's or axels whichever has been removed.
Once this is done you hook up your lifting straps to the front end of the truck in the air. Start lifting until there is a small gap between the saddle's pivot point. Then you loosen the J-bolts that are attached to the front axel of the truck in the air. Once both of them are loose raise the truck make sure it will clear the rear tires from the truck in front. Pull the other trucks up and set the truck on the ground.
Remove the straps, move the chain hoist out of the way and then if a stack is needed to be put on put it on now. Other wise start the truck and if it is air brakes you will need to build the air all the way and then uncage the brakes.
Once this is done you drive the truck to the inspection area and take the paperwork inside and find whomever checks trucks in and give it to them.

If in a hurry to get out of someone else's way then set all the trucks down and then drive them to the inspection area and give the paperwork to whomever checks them in.
Once all of them are checked in and YOUR paper work is signed call in and clear your load. Once it is cleared then central will move you to travel (on the telephone) and they will set up your flight times and you will either fly that day or the next. Once this is done call your taxi or one of our many privately owned transportation people to come and get you to take you to the airport or a hotel depending on when your flight is.

This was a basic and very quick run through of the process. Once you start it will probably be shown to you differently as everybody does it differently.
This process was on a three or fourway which use saddles to connect the truck together.
We also haul boom loads (these are the easiest) same as above when you arrive.
Head to undecking area and pull under the hoist to were the lead trucks fifth wheel is under the hoist or just past it.
One truck faces foward (lead truck or drive truck) the other is pulled from behind.
Unhook your electrical and light bar, hook chain to the boom of the drive truck. Raise the hoist up until you can pull the fifth wheel to unlock it. then drive out and set the boom on the ground.
Ask if they have a fork lift to remove the boom from the other truck. If not call central to get a wrecker to come to remove it. Put the stack on and do the same as above about paperwork and inspection's.

The saddles I talked about above weigh about 100 to 150 pounds each the boom weigh's about 1500 lbs.

Oh yea we also have to carry our own tools in a bag that cannot weigh more than 50 pounds mine weigh's about 41 pounds. I have aproximently 400.00 dollars in tools I carry. The company will supply you with a knock off wrench and 2 straps.

The benefits for working here are great! I DO NOT pay for my health insurance or life insurance or a 401K. The company pays for this and I have a pension the company pays $1.50 per hour for 40 hours per week into. This will be raised next January to $3.00 per hour and will never go under this amount.
I get paid by the mile, plus an hourly wage for undecking, breakdowns, and layovers.
My start off per mile pay is .41 cpm now it is up to .47 with a 4 way paying .50 cpm. My hourly is $18.90 and will raise again in Novemeber to $19.25.
We are paid 10 holiday's and 1 personal day. So all in all it is a pretty good place to work.

The only gripe I have with this company is waiting on the phone. Sometimes it takes them along time to answer the phone's. We have several hundred driver's, and we sometimes deliver up to 100 loads per day, so it takes a little while to get thru to clear your load out, and get hooked up with travel to get to your next pick-up point, or go home.

Another eason I like this company is their is no reason with this company to be driving at all hours of the night. With my company you should be able to be in the hotel before 10:00 PM every night.
Now with that said sometimes you have to get up pretty early, to beat the crowd into some location's as usually they have but only one chain hoist to undeck by.

This is the first job I ever had that it didn't really bother me to stay gone for so long. I guess it is where we are in the Hotel every night, and not having to sleep in the truck's. I'll post more from time to time so have a good night all and a good day tommorrow.

[retirednavysnipe]

Okay, I had to sign up to ask you a few questions. I have talked to a recruiter from ATT and am sending my application for employment.

1. If I go this route I will be in Portland. If I fly back to Portland after a short load and do not have hours available to drive do they put me up in a hotel there in Portland.

2. I drive legal at all times (well an hour here or there doesn't kill anyone). Does ATT enforce driving legal or is it renagade trucking?

I am sure I will have more questions but this is enough for now.
Looking forward to any replies.

John

[tjmuddslinger]

Originally Posted by retirednavysnipe

Okay, I had to sign up to ask you a few questions. I have talked to a recruiter from ATT and am sending my application for employment.

1. If I go this route I will be in Portland. If I fly back to Portland after a short load and do not have hours available to drive do they put me up in a hotel there in Portland.

2. I drive legal at all times (well an hour here or there doesn't kill anyone). Does ATT enforce driving legal or is it renagade trucking?

I am sure I will have more questions but this is enough for now.
Looking forward to any replies.

John

Hi John,

First and For most, Welcome to the forum.

I currently am off work on a work related injury but I am still employed from Auto Truck Transport.
I do not know much about the terminal in Portland, but that it is a small terminal, per parking lot I have been told from a few driver's, and that the terminal manager is a NO BS woman.

ATT does not run you if you are out of hours. How close to the terminal in Portland do you live?

My terminal has a policy if you live over 100 miles from the terminal they are required to get you a motel. I am not sure if this relates to all terminal's or not.
Going back to the log book and hours, you just don't run hard enough here to run out of hours, or at least I never did.

I have heard rumors out of Portland you will go quite a bit into Canada. We are dispatched according to your hire in date, or seniority. But you will have a load page to pick a load from.

As far as driving legal or not, ATT is really the last people you need to worry about because we do get checked at the scales often, or at least my terminal does. But again as I have mentioned we do not work hard enough to worry about running out of hours.

If hired you will more than likely be flown to Springfield,OH for your oreintation, it will last at least 4 day's maybe 5 some classes get to spend 1 day out in the shop learning the decking process.
During orientation you will do a physical, drug test, agility test, DOT paper work, and alot of video's, and meet with my union steward also a road test.

You get paid for your orientation but you will need to bring some money for your supper meal.
The hotel has breakfast, and ATT get's your lunch. After oreintation you will be flown back to Portland for the weekend, and report to the terminal in Portland on the following Monday.

Any other question's just address them here and I will try to answer them for you.
Good Luck!

[retirednavysnipe]

Thanks for the quick response. i live in Seattle which is about 160 miles north of there.

[tjmuddslinger]

Originally Posted by retirednavysnipe

Thanks for the quick response. i live in Seattle which is about 160 miles north of there.

Ok, then if there policy is the same (I am sure it is) you will be eligible to get a hotel instead of going home for the night.

[retirednavysnipe]

What kind of length of haul does ATT have? I was told about 1000 miles. But in reality i would like to know when you get to the terminal what kind of mileage loads are normally available and how many are there? Do the senior drivers have priority over all loads? And finally how often are you routed to other terminals vice your own?

Thanks in advance
John