What's New at New Penn

Keeping our borders secure

On Sept. 11, we paused to remember the events and the victims of 9/11/2001. Ten years later, the actions of that day continue to affect our lives.

For those of us handling transportation activities, one notable change is the significant security enhancements at border crossings. To meet new security- and risk-reporting requirements, shippers were required to account for activities throughout the supply chain. This led to technology improvements which have delivered important gains in efficiency and productivity.

Our company worked with federal agencies, helping develop transportation requirements designed to maintain secure borders. We remain compliant and certified in programs such as C-TPAT, FAST, CSA and PIP, which enables us to keep supply chains between Canada and the United States moving smoothly.

We also invested the time and resources to ensure drivers with transportation worker identification credentials (TWIC) cards are strategically located throughout our system. This permits unescorted access to secure areas, such as federally regulated ports, buildings and warehouse complexes.

Our participation in these shipment security programs means faster border clearances for your shipments, a secure supply chain, dedicated lanes and a strong Customs partnership.

For more information on border security, call us at 1-800-285-5000 or go online.

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Industry News

Decrease in trade deficit

Exports increased and imports decreased in July, causing the U.S. trade deficit in goods and services to decrease to $44.8 billion from $51.6 billion in June.

The increase in exports is primarily attributed to increases in industrial supplies and materials, capital goods, and vehicles, automotive parts and engines.

New-home starts down in August

U.S. home building starts for August were down 5 percent from July, hitting a three-month low, according to the Commerce Department.

Single-family homes were down 1.4 percent, while apartment building starts were down 12.4 percent for the month. A sign of future construction, building permits were up 3.2 percent.

Prediction of moderate holiday retail sales increases

ShopperTrak is predicting U.S. retail sales will increase 3.0 percent during November and December 2011 compared to the same period last year.

This is less than the 4.1 percent sales increase in the 2010 holiday season comparison to 2009. The company also expects retail foot traffic will continue to decrease through the end of 2011.

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News/Other Services

Inbound transportation for better inventory management

Taking control of your inbound transportation is an effective way to reduce inventory-carrying costs while maintaining healthy customer service levels. New Penn can help!

When your purchase orders stipulate your transportation provider, you gain more than volume transportation rates based on inbound and outbound usage. You also get better visibility into when orders ship, when they will arrive, and the precise quantity of goods included in the shipment.

This information is key to inventory management. It allows you to diminish order lead times, potentially reduce safety-stock levels, and react more quickly to changes in customer demand.

Of course, this works best when your transportation provider delivers with the reliability and flexibility of New Penn! In addition to more next-day morning deliveries, New Penn is the leader in on-time, damage-free service. And with visibility into your inbound shipments, you can schedule your operations and dock staff with confidence.

Should there be a hiccup in the supply chain, New Penn can help you make up for any lost time with our Quest for Quality award-winning guaranteed services. Supply chains move smoothly upstream and downstream.

To bring this level of service to your business, call 1-800-285-5000 or go online to newpenn.com.

'Tis the season to protect from freezin'

Temperatures are starting to dip across New England and Canada. Make sure your cold-sensitive cargo reaches its destination in good condition with our 99.9992 percent claim-free Freeze Protection service.

Our Freeze Protection service features well-defined procedures and equipment to protect your shipments while in our care.

• Immediate planning and constant monitoring from the time you call for a Freeze Protection service pickup.
• Weather updates sent to terminals with instructions for the care of your shipment.
• Heated, insulated trailers keeps hot air contained and circulating in the cargo area.
• CargoQuilt® covers provide an additional blanket of protection.
• Warming rooms at each terminal safeguard shipments not in transit.

Let us know about your freezable shipments and their destinations when you call for a pickup. Then, simply mark your bills of lading with "protect from freezing" to receive this specialized service.

To learn how Freeze Protection Service can help your business, call us at 1-800-285-5000 or complete a customer interest form.

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Points on Performance

Go online when you’re ready to ship 

In the September New Penn Pulse, we showed how accessing newpenn.com before you ship can give you the information you need to make smart transportation decisions.

You can find even more helpful tools on newpenn.com when you’re ready to ship!

For example, as a registered user of our secure website, you can:

• Complete bills of lading online to save time and minimize key stroke errors. The system will:
  • Pre-populate fields by integrating with your prior shipment data.
  • Assign pickup label numbers, which display on your BOL.
  • Transmit the BOL electronically into the New Penn billing system, reducing the risk of data-entry errors.
  • Schedule a pickup at the same time you create your online BOL.
• Use the pickup entry or create BOL tool (with optional pickup entry) to provide the advance information that ensures the correct equipment and capacity arrives at your dock, including:
  • Time of day when shipment will be available for pickup.
  • Time of day when you close or stop shipping.
  • Exact piece count for skids, cartons, drums, totes, etc.
  • Weight and destination ZIP code for each shipment.
  • Whether cargo includes foods or poisons.
• Print shipping labels, including the ship to/from fields, pickup label number and shipment reference number (e.g., purchase order numbers).
• Track shipments by PRO, BOL or PO number or by the New Penn partner’s PRO.
• Request automatic email shipment delivery updates.

Visit  newpenn.com today to get more information on the tools that will help you when you’re ready to ship.

Next month in New Penn Pulse, learn about the advantages of accessing newpenn.com after you ship.

Delivering an exceptional customer experience

The dispatcher’s job sounds pretty straightforward: Arrive at the terminal each morning and review the pickup and delivery runs from the night before; manifest the loads, give the drivers their hand-held computers and help get them on the street; then monitor their deliveries, assign pickups and get the drivers and their freight back to the terminal at night.

Straightforward? Hardly! New Penn dispatchers also handle 100 or so calls each day from customers, drivers and other New Penn personnel, and each one can quickly alter the best of plans!

Tom Lilley, Camp Hill, Pa., dispatcher compares it to playing chess, "All day, we're constantly moving things around. The situation is always changing. It's very challenging, and it makes you think."

Gus Vourvoulas, Baltimore dispatcher, attributes problem solving on the fly to being the best carrier. "We're very customer oriented, very service oriented. We need to be efficient, but we'll juggle things around to satisfy the customer."

Gus gives the example of a customer who wanted to surprise her son with an air hockey table for Christmas. "The kid was coming back from school at the time we were ready to deliver it at the residence, so she asked that we keep it on the truck. We ended up delivering it about two hours later while her son was at soccer practice."

This level of customer service is not always easy. "The first year I was with New Penn, I had thoughts of quitting," admits Reading, Pa., dispatcher Tom Batz. "New Penn was more demanding than anyone I'd worked for before. But once I got used to it, it's the best company to work for. I'm 61 and have no plans to retire!"

Tom Lilley speaks of having New Penn in your blood. "When I was first hired, we had a meeting with company vice presidents in Lebanon, and I remember one saying, 'Each day, I get up and think, what can I do differently to make New Penn better?' That always stuck with me."

It's this attitude that keeps New Penn so popular with customers. "We had a customer who was moving to Canada, and he wanted us to move his household furnishings," recalls Tom Batz. "It took about eight hours, and it's not the type of work we look to do, but the customer insisted that we handle it!"

Tom Batz, Tom Lilley and Gus Vourvoulas have almost 75 combined years of service as dispatchers with New Penn, watching the company grow larger while they raised families and welcomed grandchildren. "From day one, this felt like home. It's an outstanding experience," says Tom Lilley.

Experience New Penn service for yourself. Schedule your next shipment at newpenn.com or by calling 1-800-285-5000.

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