New DC

[MikeJ]

Today we got out a little later, new DC started up today, but they doubled up and actually that's a nice thing about GFS they don't screw around when trucks start getting out like really late they call in the Calvary and start doubling up and everyone starts helping.

 

[johndeere4020]

So we got our first loads today out of the new DC in Pittsburgh. Well it didn't exactly go off without a hitch. However while a lot of loads came in late, they doubled up and they sent a boss with me from another yard and we got done pretty good. I was also helping a little bit this morning another driver as well. It'll probably be a little rickety for the next month. This week I think all the other yards are on high alert so when we get late trailers again they send up the bosses and skip day drivers who are done.

We're the trailers loaded better?

 

[MikeJ]

We're the trailers loaded better?

Well not today they weren't however it wasn't really the loaders fault. You know how these factories are,anything with automation takes time to work it's self out. Really our loads from the old DC weren't as good as Springfield, but they were not that awful they were doable and 90% of the time they were okay. Today though I guess wrong stuff came off the line in the wrong order infact it was so bad they had to hand unload the freezer section on some trailers and manually reload them at the warehouse.

I know there working on resolving these issues, because it's not what they wanted, new technology, new people, new processes and so on and so fourth. I was helping a guy this morning huh his freezer was way loaded out of wack and sequence.

Really once the new DC gets going and the kinks are worked out the quality of loads should be a lot better. You never really know how it goes until it's time for the first show.

 

[Guardrail]

Which DC did you switch to?

 

[MikeJ]

Which DC did you switch to?

Pittsburgh (Imperial, PA) we were at Brighton,MI for a while and I guess Brighton is way over the limit and Springfield, OH I guess is as well and so we were switched to Brighton because Springfield could not handle us and Brighton is old and isn't exactly a flagship DC by any means so to take pressure off of Brighton and Springfield and also growing market they built the brand new DC in Pittsburgh I guess eventually we are switching divisions and everything. Our bosses are going to have new bosses and all that kind of thing. Were the only loads coming out of Pittsburgh right now. They are opening up the new DC in phases obviously were phase 1, then later on they will bring more and more on as the place starts to streamline it's self.

Today the trailers came on time, I mean my trailer was at work pre 4:30am which is really good for an express route.
The load quality though was pretty shoddy mine wasn't as bad as others though my dry and cooler were packed, but then again my first stop of the day was 350 cases, however my freezer was really not all that full. The past two days we've had a lot of 23 and 24 codes. Not so much me although I did have a couple 23 codes yesterday and one today, but like today I get back to the yard and a guy had his ramp out wheeling about 30 cases all 24 codes into the return trailer. His trailer was loaded way way way out of sequence. I guess it was really bad Monday so bad that the warehouse was hand unloading and then manually hand reloading. The load quality has not been good, and it's because the automation isn't shooting the product off the belt correctly. I had probably 2-dozen cases today that all had permanent marker with the words THIS CAME LATE written on the box. Meaning the box shot down the line way out of sequence and way late and then they were forced to just throw it where ever it would fit in the trailer. Or though the side door of the freezer. Now and I do believe them as time goes on the kinks will get worked out and the load quality should improve over from where we were significantly.