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Con-way headquarters building in Ann Arbor Charter Township, Michigan | |
Type | Subsidiary |
---|---|
Industry | Transportation |
Founded | 1983 |
Defunct | 2015 |
Headquarters | Ann Arbor Charter Township, Michigan |
Revenue | ![]() |
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Parent | Con-way, Inc. |
Website | http://www.con-way.com/en/freight |
Con-way Freight was a less-than-truckload (LTL) motor carrier headquartered in Ann Arbor utilizing a network of freight service centers to provide regional, inter-regional and transcontinental less-than-truckload freight services throughout North America. The business unit provided day-definite delivery service to manufacturing, industrial and retail customers. [2] [3] Con-way Freight was the largest division of Con-way, Inc. with 16,600 employees, more than 365 operating locations, 16,000 dock doors and 32,750 tractors and trailers. The company was founded by Consolidated Freightways (CF) of Portland, Oregon as a non union spinoff, for less than truckload hauling. In 2009 Con-way Freight reported revenues of over $2.6 billion. [4] Con-way Inc., including Con-way Freight and sibling company Con-way Truckload, was acquired by XPO Logistics, a primarily non-asset logistics company from Greenwich, Connecticut, in a deal worth $3.5 billion. [5]
Con-way Freight originated in May 1983 with the launch of Con-way Western Express, with 11 service centers in three western states, followed one month later by the start of Con-way Central Express, with 11 locations in seven Midwest states. [6]
Con-way was created to provide nonunion, regional short-haul service in markets where CF wasn’t actively selling its services. The regional companies Con-way Southern Express (CSE), Con-way Central Express (CCX), Con-way Western Express (CWX) and Con-way Eastern Express (CEX) were established as part of this strategy. [7] On their first day of business the two carriers — which collectively began with 230 employees and 334 trucks, tractors and trailers handled 113 shipments. [6]
On October 31, 2015, XPO Logistics, Headquartered in Greenwich, CT acquired Con-way Freight. [8]
On September 9, 2015 Con-way Inc. was acquired by CEO Bradley Jacobs of XPO Logistics, Inc. [8] Roughly a year later, on October 27, 2016, XPO completed the sale of Con-way Truckload, its recently acquired full-truckload division (3,000 tractors, 7,500 trailers, and 29 locations) from Con-way Freight to the Canadian based TFI International for $558 million in cash. [9] By May 2017, XPO reported that it had completed rebranding of Con-way to XPO Logistics effectively marking the retirement of the brand. [10]
LTL carriers transport freight from multiple shippers utilizing a network of freight service centers, [11] combined with a fleet of linehaul and pickup-and-delivery tractors and trailers. Freight is picked up from customers and consolidated for shipment at the originating service center. The freight is then loaded into trailers and transferred to the destination service center providing service to the delivery area. From the destination service center, the freight is delivered to the customer. Typically, LTL shipments weigh between 150 and 25,000 pounds. In 2008, Con-way Freight’s average weight per shipment was 1,190 pounds.
Following the integration of the four regional component companies of Con-way Freight into a consolidated single network in 2007, the firm completed a major network re-engineering to improve service, without changing Con-way Freight’s service coverage. [12]
Con-way Freight has always had a strong presence at the National Truck Driving Championships. In 2010 the company sent a record 92 drivers to the competition and for the past two years Con-way Freight took home the title of Grand Champion. In 2009 Dale Duncan was named Grand Champion while in 2010 Carl Krites took home the title. Chris Poynor also won the National championships competing in the Twins Division in 2016 and in 2017.
To qualify for U.S. state and national competitions, drivers must have maintained an accident-free driving record for the previous year. At the national competition, drivers face testing in three areas: a timed written exam, a pre-trip inspection test and a driving skills test. Each driver competes in one of nine equipment classes: 3-Axle, 4-Axle, 5-Axle, 5-Axle Flatbed, 5-Axle Sleeper, Step Van, Straight Truck, Tankers and Twins.
In transportation, freight refers to goods conveyed by land, water or air, while cargo refers specifically to freight when conveyed via water or air. In economics, freight refers to goods transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. The term cargo is also used in case of goods in the cold-chain, because the perishable inventory is always in transit towards a final end-use, even when it is held in cold storage or other similar climate-controlled facilities, including warehouses.
Con-way, Inc. was an American multinational freight transportation and logistics company headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. With annual revenues of $5.5 billion, Con-way was the second largest less-than-truckload transport provider in North America, with additional operations for global contract logistics, managed transportation, truckload and freight brokerage. The company's services were sold through its primary operating companies of Con-way Freight, Con-way Truckload and Menlo Worldwide. These operating units provided less-than-truckload (LTL), full truckload and multimodal freight transportation, as well as logistics, warehousing and supply chain management services. Con-way, Inc. and its subsidiaries operated from more than 500 locations across North America and in 20 countries.
Truckload shipping is the movement of large amounts of homogeneous cargo, generally the amount necessary to fill an entire semi-trailer or intermodal container. A truckload carrier is a trucking company that generally contracts an entire trailer-load to a single customer. This is as opposed to a less-than truckload (LTL) company that generally mixes freight from several customers in each trailer. One advantage Full Truckload (FTL) carriers have over Less than Truckload carriers is that the freight is never handled en route, whereas an LTL shipment will typically be transported on several different trailers. Truckload shipments are typically run on 48' or 53'dry van trailers which will hold 24 or 26 pallets respectively.
Less-than-truckload shipping or less than load (LTL) is the transportation of an amount of freight sized between individual parcels and full truckloads. Parcel carriers handle small packages and freight that can be broken down into units less than approximately 150 pounds (68 kg). Full truckload carriers move entire semi-trailers. Semi-trailers are typically between 26 and 53 feet and require a substantial amount of freight to make such transportation economical. The term LTL can refer to the freight itself, or to the carrier that transports the such freight.
Consolidated Freightways (CF) was an American multinational less-than-truckload (LTL) freight service and logistics company founded on April 1, 1929, in Portland, Oregon, and later relocated to Vancouver, Washington. Affectionately known as "CornFlakes", Consolidated Freightways was also the founder of the Freightliner line of heavy trucks, now owned by Daimler Trucks. At its height, the company possessed over 350 terminals, employing more than 15,000 truck drivers, dock workers, dispatchers and management. Consolidated Freightways was once the nation's number one long-haul trucking company and the 3rd largest-ever US bankruptcy filing, ceasing business in 2002.
Estes Express Lines is a privately owned American freight transportation provider based in Richmond, Virginia. Founded in 1931 by W. W. Estes, the company is still owned and operated by the Estes family. Robey W. Estes, Jr., became the company’s president in 1990, then chairman and CEO in 2001. He was succeeded by his son Webb Estes as COO and President in 2023.
Yellow Corporation was an American transportation holding company headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. Its subsidiaries included national less than truckload (LTL) carrier YRC Freight; regional LTL carriers New Penn, Holland, and Reddaway; and freight brokerage HNRY Logistics. From 2006 to February 2021, Yellow was known as YRC Worldwide.
Roadway Express, Inc. was an American trucking less than truckload (LTL) trucking company. Roadway Express and its holding company, Roadway Corporation, were acquired by logistics holding company Yellow Corporation in 2003, and the parent companies were merged to form Yellow Roadway Corporation, later renamed YRC Worldwide. In 2009, Roadway Express was merged with YRC's other national LTL carrier, Yellow Freight, to form YRC, Inc.
Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. is a publicly traded, American motor carrier holding company based in Phoenix, Arizona. It is the fifth largest trucking company in the United States. The company's primary subsidiaries are truckload carriers Knight Transportation, Swift Transportation, Midnite Express and, since July 2021, less than truckload (LTL) carrier AAA Cooper. In January 2022, the company expanded its LTL footprint with the acquisition of Midwest Motor Express. In July, 2023 Knight-Swift acquired truckload carrier US Xpress.
National Retail Systems, Inc. (NRS) includes Keystone Freight Corp. & National Retail Transportation, Inc. (NRT). NRS is an asset based 3PL founded in 1952. It is headquartered in North Bergen, New Jersey, United States.
TForce Freight, a subsidiary of TFI International, is an American less than truckload (LTL) freight carrier based in Richmond, Virginia. The company was founded in 1935 as Overnite Transportation, the name it used until 2006 when it was rebranded UPS Freight by new owner UPS. Its name changed to TForce Freight in 2021 when UPS sold the company to TFI.
New England Motor Freight, Inc. (NEMF) was a unionized less-than-truckload (LTL) and truckload freight carrier, based in Elizabeth, New Jersey. It was one of the largest LTL carriers in the US Northeast when it entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2019 and subsequently shut down all operations in 2020.
A specialized set of jargon describe the tools, equipment, and employment sectors used in the trucking industry in the United States. Some terms may be used within other English-speaking countries, or within the freight industry in general. For example, shore power is a term borrowed from shipping terminology, in which electrical power is transferred from shore to ship, instead of the ship relying upon idling its engines. Drawing power from land lines is more efficient than engine idling and eliminates localized air pollution. Another borrowed term is "landing gear", which refers to the legs which support the front end of a semi-trailer when it is not connected to a semi-truck. Some nicknames are obvious wordplay, such as "portable parking lot", in reference to a truck that carries automobiles.
Pitt Ohio Express, LLC, stylized PITT OHIO, is a privately owned transportation and supply chain management company based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that serves the Mid-Atlantic and Midwestern US. Pitt Ohio ranked 48th on Transport Topics Top 100 For-Hire list and 14th on its Top Less-Than-Truckload (LTL) Carriers list of US and Canadian freight carriers by revenue for 2021.
Contract Freighters, Inc. (CFI), a subsidiary of Heartland Express, is an American truckload freight carrier headquartered in Joplin, Missouri with operations in the continental US, Canada, and Mexico. Easily recognizable on the highway by their iconic bright red Kenworth trucks. CFI provides point-to-point, full truckload, dry van service, as well as refrigerated transport, and utilizes single drivers as well as two-person driver teams over long-haul routes—most commonly with each trailer containing only one customer's goods.
Braun's Express, Inc. is a privately owned and operated American freight company serving the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, and Midwest United States. Braun's operates eight terminals and specializes in supply-chain management for carpeting and flooring products, but also offers general less than truckload (LTL) shipping.
TFI International Inc. is a Canadian transport and logistics company based in Saint-Laurent, Quebec, a borough of Montreal. It operates primarily in Canada, the United States, and Mexico through 4 business segments: less than truckload (LTL), package and courier, logistics, and truckload. It has Canada's largest LTL business, largest trucking fleet, and in 2021 was ranked 6th in terms of revenue among both LTL and truckload North American carriers. Its trucking fleet consists of over 14,000 company-owned power units, nearly 10,000 owner-operator tractors, nearly 50,000 trailers and over 200 straight trucks.
XPO, Inc. is an American transportation company that conducts less-than-truckload shipping in North America. The company has headquarters in Greenwich, Connecticut, U.S., and 564 locations globally.
Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (ODFL) is an American regional, inter-regional and national less than truckload shipping (LTL) company. In addition to its core LTL services, the company offers expedited, logistics and household moving services.
Central Freight Lines Inc. (CFL) was an American regional less-than-truckload (LTL) company headquartered in Waco, Texas and serving the Southeastern and Southwestern United States. For much of its history it was the largest and longest tenured freight carrier in Texas and in 2021 ranked 21st on Transport Topics top LTL carriers in the US as of 2021 with estimated revenues of US$256 million.