Not wishing to over-complicate the situation, nor to exceed your interest in the vagaries of haulage, but with regards to the “loads” issue, you seem to have understood the issue with fuel tankers (which even when “empty” are not actually “empty” in terms of being able to be re-utilised immediately), but there are additional compatibility complications when dealing with other dangerous goods (DGs)
For example some DGs need to be refrigerated, but you would be prevented from adding these chilled DG items to a refrigerated foods vehicle which had lots of spare capacity.
Some DGs have compatibility/segregation issues, so you may choose to run two half-full vehicles containing subtances which would be inherently dangerous if transported packed in close proximity (eg a half-load of flammable materials with a half-load of oxidizing substances).
If you want an example of a “Holy Grail” of vehicle/load optimisation, few other parts of haulage can match “chipliner” work. In brief, a vehicle that looks superficially like a regular curtainsider, but is in fact more of a flexible bulk container, is top loaded with sawdust, wood pellets, small chunks of wood etc, which it delivers to a firm making chipboard. Said firm then unload the wood materials and re-load the trailer with a full-load of manufactured chipboard. Thus, the operator has a guaranteed “backload” for every delivery.
So tell us exactly how many distance full load jobs have you turned down in favour of Groupage.
Bearing in mind that I’d gone past the point of sorting out work as a new start owner driver before falling at the O licencing financial standing hurdle.All of it distance UK and International full load work no Groupage.
The truth s full load distance work paid/pays a lower rate because even at the lower rate it was/is more …profitable for the operator and such loads were/are more in demand by operators and a selling point for customers and forwarders on that basis.
Tonne/miles is the only measure of productivity in transport.Groupage by definition means carrying a diminishing load further.Otherwise known commonly among owner drivers as utter ■■■■■ to be avoided.
No answer to the question ?.You’ve turned down distance full load work for what is effectively a trunk run with local multi collections/drops at each end of it ?.
To be fair, they are very robust fantasies, which continually repel all evidential assaults from The Real World. I particularly enjoyed the one about Financial Standing and how that was a bar to being an Owner Driver.
Sorry Carryfast, I’m not feeding trolls today, but I’ll leave you with this little nugget to build a delusional chimera around. Why would I take two or three partially loaded trailers, 2,200 km to return 2,200 km empty, week in and week out?
Exactly, and so is a lot of general haulage work. Also extremely significant is that a diminishing load simply takes longer to get rid of, enabling the traffic office more time to arrange a back load which only came on the scene during the extra time of the outward journey. “Ring when empty” is a long standing driver instruction.
In all the 50 years i have operated commercial vehicles , i have only ever backloaded for the outward customer, never used a backload site made a few enquiries in the past? but when told it will pay for your diesel home lol they have all been told where to stick their backload because the Rate and the Work is Crap much like there payment terms 60 / 90 days. My payment terms has always been 30 days eom, when i have subbed work it was paid the day after the job
was done, send an invoice when you get a minute.
Thats how the late Bill Daniel worked, do any remember him ? the Welsh Man from the Midlands, told Scania what they could stick there trucks lol , then bought a fleet of ERFs , and he would Never load any Jocks back ? Think he had the same feeling about Jocks as he did about Scanias lol.