If you are looking for a cost-effective and straightforward method to pull your loaded trailers, then power only trucking might work for you. No matter what brings you here, it is first of great importance to know what is power only trucking and how it is performed. With HMD trucking, we aim to provide practical and uncomplicated transportation solutions; this includes things like power only. So we need to look more into how this kind of trucking can help you.
Contents:
- What Is Power Only Trucking?
- What Does “Power Only” Mean in Trucking?
- Power Only Freight: When is it the Right Choice?
- How Does Power Only Trucking Work?
- Why Power Only Trucking Is Becoming New Industry Norm?
- Conclusion
What Is Power Only Trucking?
Power only trucking is a shipping solution in which a trucking company, such as HMD Trucking, offers a professional driver and a truck but does not supply the trailer. Instead, your business or your logistics company, like a broker, will supply the trailer.
Let's suppose that your business has a fully loaded trailer that needs to be moved. What is lacking is a truck and a driver. With power only trucking, these requirements are easily fulfilled. In this case, we will provide a truck and a driver who knows their job. We will then hook the trailer onto the truck and carry out the transport from one point to another. This differs from the normal trucking service, where the carrier comes with a truck, trailer, and a driver. In our case, we utilize power only trucking, where we just provide the power unit – that is, the truck – and a qualified operator, the driver.
Understanding the power only loads meaning is straightforward: these types of loads are ideal when your company already has trailers that are loaded and ready for transport. We arrive, hook up, and move the trailer to its destination. Once delivered, we simply detach the trailer, and we are ready to pick up our next load. The key to power only trucking is its speed and efficiency, which helps streamline your supply chain.
What Does “Power Only” Mean in Trucking?
When a trucking company refers to "power only," they are referring to a service that provides just the truck and driver. This service differs from regular truckload shipping because with regular truckload, the carrier provides both the trailer and truck. Here’s a more detailed explanation:
- Regular Trucking (Truckload): One of the means of picking up and delivering the freight is by means of a truck, trailer, and a driver combined into one package provided by the carrier. It is quite a simple solution and is often used in transporting goods from one place to another.
- Power Only Trucking: A driver has been booked or hired, but the trailer has not been provided or fixed with the truck. In brief, the driver and the truck are the provided units by the carrier. In this context, the trailer may be hired by the shipper or broker or a leasing firm. This gives you an outstanding economy as far as dealing with your shipping requirement is concerned.
In this context, you are the one who owns, leases, or has the trailer readily available, and we are the ones that move them for you. Because of the simplicity of only providing transport, this can be a more cost-effective and efficient way to meet your shipping requirements without getting bogged down.
Power only trucking offers a straightforward approach, which involves dropping off and picking up trailers at the same location. This is why it's often called “dropping and hooking up," helping the driver avoid delays. The main focus of our company is to help make things faster, and that’s what we strive for while streamlining downtime.
“Power Only Trucking” Glossary
Here are a few common terms that you may come across in the world of power only trucking, explained from your perspective as the shipper:
- Drop Trailers: Trailers left at a shipping location or a customer site for loading or unloading as you need them.
- Trailer Pools: A group of trailers all dropped off at one place, creating a flexible on-demand resource.
- Drop-and-Hook: A process where a driver leaves one trailer and quickly hooks up to another; this will help get your goods moving quickly.
- Trailer Leasing: The option to lease trailers if you are looking to rent trailers rather than make large purchases of your own.
Power Only Freight: When is it the Right Choice?
You might be wondering, when exactly does power only freight make sense for you and your business? Well, there are some situations where it truly shines, making life a whole lot easier. It can be the best option in the following cases, for example:
- If you've invested in a fleet of trailers: If your company already owns or leases its own trailers, using power units trucking to transport them is a very logical choice. You don’t have to worry about anything but us coming over and hauling them to your desired destination. We ensure that your trailers are readily available and where you need them. Simply put, this is a highly effective solution when dealing with pre-existing trailers.
- During the Peak Period: During your company’s busy times of the year, using pre-loaded trailers ready to go is a massive time saver. When it’s peak season, you’ll notice how much time you can save, allowing you to dispatch your freight with the least possible wait time, so you don't waste any extra time on the clock.
- Just-in-Time Shipping: If your company works with tight deadlines and relies on punctual freight delivery, power only offers the kind of flexibility needed. Our trucks can swiftly transport your trailers after they are loaded, which results in a highly efficient method for your operations.
- Warehouse Relocation: If your company needs to relocate facilities, using power only will make your transition more seamless and fast. We can efficiently move your trailers from your current location to your new location without hassle, meaning less time spent during your move.
- Special Shipping Projects: Sometimes you need to have something done over a shorter period or just need something specific to go smoothly. Power only trucking is a highly versatile way to deal with this and allow you to have the best option for your transportation needs.
How Does Power Only Trucking Work?
There is nothing difficult about this; the entire structure is straightforward.
- You have the trailer: It could be you or a 3PL who owns or hires a trailer that they wish to use and it is either empty or filled with items.
- We provide the power: An experienced driver with the needed skills is dispatched along with a reliable truck to ensure the job could get done with efficiency.
- Hook and go: Our experienced driver hooks up your trailer, secures the load with the utmost care, and then hits the road.
- On-Time Delivery: We ensure that the trailers will be delivered as fast as possible, directly to the required destination on time.
- Unhook and Ready: Our driver drops off the trailer and prepares the truck so it can head off to a new destination.
Benefits of Power Only Trucking to the Shippers
Here's what you, the shipper, will gain from choosing power only trucking:
- Efficiency: Eliminate the need to constantly wait for trailers to be loaded, wasting time and resources.
- Flexibility: Adapt your transportation operations as needed during seasonal periods or for your business growth; the power only system can fit all your needs.
- Cost Savings: Often, power only is more economical since you are responsible for trailers that are already available for your business.
- Reduced Dwell Times: Minimize the delays at loading docks by simply detaching the trailers when delivered, allowing operations to keep on moving.
- Scalability: Effortlessly adapt to changing demands or expand your business without worrying about your transportation capabilities; we got you covered.
Disadvantages of Power Only Trucking (for Shippers)
It’s important to acknowledge some factors before implementing this type of shipping strategy:
- Trailer Maintenance: If you choose to purchase or lease trailers, be aware of the responsibilities to ensure that you maintain them so that they remain fully functional. Be prepared for upkeep costs and regular maintenance.
- Initial Investment: Purchasing your own trailers can have a hefty initial cost, which needs to be a part of your business budget.
- Logistics: Empty miles can be an unavoidable part of the job and may come with cost. You'll need to manage your trailer's efficient movement to avoid downtime.
Kinds of Trailers Employed in Power Only
Power only trucking offers a service that is extremely flexible, being capable of working with many different kinds of trailers. It is highly versatile, adapting to a wide range of needs such as:
- Dry Van Trailers: Ideal for protecting general cargo, packaged items, and boxes. Making sure your cargo reaches its destination safe from elements.
- Flatbeds: The perfect choice to haul items that can be unusually sized or awkward to handle, including steel, lumber, heavy machinery, and other building materials.
- Refrigerated Trailers: Designed to transport any item needing a cool temperature during transport – from fruits to meats to medicines – and ensure that your product arrives in the same condition it left.
- Shipping Containers: These are for items that need to be transported in many different types of ways, including trains, boats, or even other trucks, giving your cargo a variety of ways to be delivered.
| Type of Trailer | Common Use | Ideal for Power Only? |
| Dry Van | General goods, packaged freight | Yes |
| Flatbed | Lumber, steel, oversized items | Yes |
| Refrigerated (Reefer) | Temperature-sensitive goods (food, pharmaceuticals) | Yes |
| Shipping Container | Intermodal transport (ships, trains) | Yes |
Why Power Only Trucking Is Becoming New Industry Norm?
Power only freight trucking is now becoming more popular among shippers like you, and there are a number of reasons for its increasing adoption:
- Adapting Quickly to Changing Supply Chain Needs: Power only helps in changing the logistics for when a plan shifts, instead of having to rework an entire method of transportation. Helping businesses to change carriers at will.
- Avoiding Equipment Shortages and Long Lead Times: With delays often happening on backlogged supply chains, using power only can be a logical method, which takes a bit of the edge off of supply difficulties.
- Faster Dock Turnaround Times: Power only is a more direct method because less time is spent waiting for freight to load and unload.
- Parking and Accessibility: While sometimes difficult to find spots to keep your trailers in, finding places to keep a plain truck is easy by comparison, making this a very easy way to solve a parking problem for the truck.
- Cost Savings: Power only is a great way for a business to meet market demands without overspending on its transport. Allowing you to invest in other parts of your business.
Beyond Power Only: HMD Trucking's Full Range of Services
While power only offers immense advantages, HMD Trucking provides you with reliable and trusted freight solutions, and we work with clients to meet all your needs. Our core promise is the commitment to take care of our customers, thus developing a long-term relationship with our clients.
- Long-Distance Shipping Options: We can provide consistent freight solutions, working together with our clients to make sure our company always performs at the highest level, being dependable in times of need.
- Brokerage Solutions: Our brokerage service is ready for more customized solutions; our team will help find the right customer base for the freight you need to be transported. Whether it's small shipments or large ones, anything needed will be taken care of with ease.
Conclusion
Power only trucking is an effective option that can help your business move its cargo more economically and effectively. It's valuable to learn about how it operates to make appropriate business decisions. If you’re looking for an effective and reliable transport service for your power only freight, HMD Trucking is ready to help, whatever your shipping needs.
Do you want to take that next step? If so, we encourage you to check out our “Transportation Services” section that contains information regarding full-load contract shipments. On the other hand, if you have more projects that require versatile shipments, check out our “Brokerage Services” section to see how our team can assist you. We are ready to assist you with the optimal solution for your company, from power only to full load, LTL or otherwise. Here at HMD Trucking, we take care of every aspect of truck shipping, regardless of the complexity or volume.
