Omaha, NE

Practice Area:
Information Technology - Systems Implementation Company Profile:
Jim Bender, Inc. is a small refrigerated carrier, headquarterd in Omaha, Nebraska. The company owns 17 trucks, all late-model Kenworths and primarily hauls specialty meats from Denver to the east coast and computer parts and construction materials on the back haul.

Situation:
The company was having big troubles with managing scheduling and dispatching. Jim Bender knew it was bad business to ever let expensive equipment sit idle yet this was the situation. Even with two dispatchers there were problems all along the way. To add to his problems, the software the company was using was not Y2K compatible. He called the Nebraska Manufacturing Extension Partnership(NMEP) for help.

Solution:
First step was to make a complete analysis of needs requirements for every phase of the business. Various software packages were reviewed and demonstrated on-site. After careful evaluation and recommendation Jim Bender, Inc. selected a software package that would cover accounting, payroll, Department of Transportation reporting requirements for trucks, drivers, load, mileage and driver logs reducing paper redundancy and the chance of costly errors in time and money. Jim Bender, Inc. is a unique trucking company because of the way it views and treats its drivers. From Jim's background as an over-the-road trucker himself, he has applied the principle of shift work to his business, which means that his drivers, all of whom live in Omaha, work regular shifts allowing them to be at home for at least 2 1/2 days a week. When a driver comes in from the Colorado area, another driver takes that truck to the east coast drop-off points, picks up loads and returns to Omaha. His drivers make $1000 a week and he has very little turnover, but keeping in touch through the dispatcher is crucial. Thanks to the new computer technology, each driver receives a package of directions and a map of where the delivery is to be made. This cuts out wasted time trying to find the drop-off site. He does not allow computers in his trucks because he wants his drivers to be in touch with the dispatcher who is on duty 24 hours a day seven days a week. His distinctive brown and orange cabs and gleaming white trailers with the Jim Bender, Inc. logo are as spotless as regular and special care can make them. Every cab is fully-equipped like a small bedroom, clean and comfortable for the driver when he or she needs to sleep a few hours on the road. Jim Bender, Inc. got the help needed from NMEP and are now positioned to service their clients even better through e-commerce. Formerly he needed to add more people when he added trucks, but computerizing the operation has eliminated most of the situations standing in the way of growth. With those problems solved, Jim Bender, Inc. looks to growing his business slowly, but steadily into the new century.

Results:
50% increase in productivity
- A computer-literate staff in all departments eliminating overtime
- Savings in lost time and fuel
- Growth of fleet
- Better service to manufacturing customers

Testimonial:
We had goals for the months and years ahead and could see that our current systems were limiting to our growth. We needed someone from the outside to come in and analyze our current systems, chart our workflow, and find an efficient way to handle our current and additional business. The NEMP gave us the help we needed through workflow analysis, software screening and selection, guidance toward competent vendors, and support for a training grant for our people. Our new system is an NT server, running interbase and Microsoft Back Office. Our increased productivity and potential comes 50% from the Microsoft Office products (and the laser printers and fast workststions) and 50% from the windows based Trucking Software by Maddocks Systems Inc. of Vancouver, BC. The software that the NEMP helped us select easily handles our unique way of doing business, increases our dispatch speed, reduces dispatcher stress, and increases communication both internally, and to the drivers. The investment in equipment, software, and training was significant for our small company, and the NEMP support and encouragement helped us see that it was the right thing to do. By the way, this letter would have been on a yellow pad and a fax machine six months ago.