Carrier Profiles

Turri Transportation

By Jeff Jensen, Editor
Posted Dec 18th 2006 6:44AM

"If we get a good owner-operator who going to do what we ask, be on time with the freight and service the customer, we're going to do everything in our power to keep that driver busy and productive on a weekly basis.  Our owner-operators' success is our success."

So says Vince Turri, founder, owner and president of Turri Transportation based in Whitmore Lake, Michigan.  Located just a few miles north of Ann Arbor, this modestly-sized expedited carrier is situated right in the heart of the expedited freight world.

Turri describes his company's operational area, "We cover the Midwest, northeast, southeast and the southwest.  We don't sell our company on coverage area, we sell it on service. We try to keep our trucks in the productive expedite freight lanes, the hot spots."

He explains, "A lot of our competition claim to be a one-stop shop, but we don't want to occupy that niche.  When you advertise a wide coverage area that means you have drivers sitting and waiting for freight.  Our customers know the lanes we run in so we keep our trucks in the productive areas."

"We are primarily an expedited freight carrier, but not just automotive freight.  We have a diverse customer base and that's very important in this economy because we don't have all our eggs in one basket.  We have a lot of different clientele that we work with.  If the industry of a particular customer base is slow, we have other opportunities to keep the revenue levels up."

Turri tells us of his background: 
"I've been in the industry for around 10 years.  I worked with a large carrier with a fleet of 300 expedite vehicles where I worked as a dispatch manager and supervisor.  I've have had some brokering experience, I've worked in recruiting and I've had experience in the areas of sales and management.  I've owned some non-trucking businesses as well."

"Because of this background, when the opportunity presented itself to form my own company, I opened Turri Transportation."

He says that the firm began operations with a tractor-trailer fleet, but as the company continues its growth, other vehicle sizes have been added - primarily straight trucks.

The company maintains a 100% owner-operator fleet, with mostly single-truck operators, but Turri is actively seeking fleet owners and qualified expedite drivers who can be placed with fleet owners.

"We're different in what most expedite carriers offer," says the president.  "We have a wide variety of freight opportunities with some exciting programs available for straight trucks with plenty of freight for that truck size.  In addition, we have both dedicated and expedited freight for tractor-trailers." 

"We try to plan for our trucks to be productive every week.  Because we have a small fleet, we can give individual attention to each owner-operator.  We want all of our trucks to be profitable so each truck is planned individually."

"Instead of a driver sitting and dispatch waiting for the phone to ring, we're looking for freight.  We do things creatively, we put van loads on straight trucks, partial tractor-trailer loads on straight trucks, and we’ll even run some general freight at times, all to keep the wheels turning and the driver productive.  We don't try to talk our drivers into taking a load to an area where we know he could be stuck for a week, waiting for a load."

He adds, "We don't pay on a per mile basis, we pay on a percentage of the run for vans and straight trucks.  For the tractors, we pay percentage and per mile, depending on the length of run.  The reason we do this is because if a driver is paid by the mile, it's not advantageous for the owner-operator to take a short mileage load.  With our percentage program, he can make good money for a short trip that uses a lot less fuel."

The various industries served by Turri Transportation include automotive, general manufacturing, retail and others.

"Around 75% of our freight is expedite in one form or another with maybe 10% dedicated and the remainder is general commodity freight.  The general freight is a tool we use to keep our owner-operators' revenue level up, and we employ it for backhauls or relocation, but it's not our typical freight. We have a variety of freight sources - direct customers, other carriers and brokers, all Internet load boards and 3PL's."

It's due to what Turri terms as his company's mix of "blended freight" that he says is key to keeping his owner-operators' wheel turning:

"For example, the average length of haul for our tractor-trailers is right around the 550 mile mark.  We also have work for Michigan-based straight truck owner-operators who want to concentrate on local work, but we have opportunities for the husband/wife teams in straight trucks as well.  Our teams have done very well."

"We plan our trucks so that we don't saturate any area and have trucks sitting.  Otherwise, it's always first-in, first-out with no favoritism.  It's not really an issue with our company because we are not the type of organization that will end up with 25 cargo vans sitting in Detroit."

An industry overview
"Expedite is a product of the economy," says the founder.  "When the economy is doing well, expedited trucking does fantastically well.  The thing that differentiates the carriers from one another is how they conduct themselves during a soft economy and what they do to promote business."

"During this time, it's important that our company stresses service and we go above and beyond the call of duty.  This separates us from the competition."

He continues, "Another thing that is unique about expedite is that sometimes your competition is also your customer.  It doesn't matter who we haul a load for or what it pays, we treat the customer the same way, with kid gloves.  My company is only as good as our owner-operators so we strive to keep them busy in a tough economy."

"Our successful owner-operators treat each load on an individual basis.  Other keys to success include being on time for pickup and delivery, maintaining communication and following the procedures of dispatch by serving the customer to the best of his ability.  We value the feedback we receive from our owner-operators because they are the company's 'front-line'.  They tell us what's going on in the industry."

Turri says that there is growth potential for the driver who wants to own his own truck:  "I've taken drivers with fleet owners and helped them become successful owner-operators themselves.  A hard-working, serious driver really does have a future with us."

Turri says that his company also has a "driver-friendly" accessorial charge policy: "We are very good about paying for detention time, driver assist (hand-load), excessive multiple stop-offs and so on."

"We offer our owner-operators a tax and accounting service through our company accountant.  This is another feature of our company that helps our owner-operators be successful."

The benefits of signing with Turri Transportation Co. include:

·          100% owner-operator fleet


No up front sign-on costs

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No satellite dispatch or fees

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No Hazmat

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No Canada

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Mileage calculated with PC-Miler

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Weekly settlements

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Paid dead head miles

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Fuel surcharge included in percentage paid to truck

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Accessorial charges paid

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Driver placement for fleet owners

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Passenger and pet policy

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24-Hour emergency roadside assistance

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Accounting and tax planning services available

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Referral and sales bonuses

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IFTA fuel tax programs


Affordable health insurance


Driver requirements

1 year driving experience Clean MVR Criminal record, will consider felonies No DUI's or suspensions


Turri Transportation Co. is looking for tractor-trailer owner operators as well as owner-operators with 22' and up straight trucks, preferably sleeper-equipped.  Recruiting is centered in the Midwest, but  the company will consider owner-operators domiciled in other areas.

Looking ahead
Says Vince Turri, "The future of expedited trucking?  Well, the forecast looks for the economy to be improving slightly and I think it's going to get better. I don't think we'll see the levels we did 5-8 years ago, so it's up to us to find new and better ways to conduct business and help our owner-operators to generate the most revenue possible. But, whether it's a fast economy or slow economy, our philosophy is that our people are still going to make a living with us."


Turri Transportation Online Pre-application