C.H. Robinson’s $900 Million Drop Trailer Business Surpasses Half a Million Loads on Its Way to Another Record Year

The global logistics company is helping thousands of customers expand their drop-trailer options

Global logistics company C.H. Robinson, the fourth-largest drop trailer provider in North America, has already moved half a million drop trailer shipments this year on its way to record-setting volume. In an industry that has historically considered drop trailer the domain of asset carriers, the 3PL is celebrating its 25th year of offering the service.

“We pride ourselves on growing with our customers’ needs, and our growth in drop trailer is an absolute testament to that,” said Michael Castagnetto, President of C.H. Robinson’s North American Surface Transportation division. “Drop trailer has always been in our DNA. As early as 1905, our teams were strategically optimizing the drop-off and pick-up of wooden carts for merchants. Today, as a modern 3PL serving nearly every industry, we continue to be a leader in meeting our customers’ ever-evolving drop trailer needs.”

C.H. Robinson Drop Trailer Plus™ is a $900 million service line for the company, representing over 10% of its truckload volume. The service includes dry van, temp control and flatbed modes. Customers get access to C.H. Robinson’s trailer pool and the trailers of the largest network of carriers in North America.

“The reason we’re the No. 1 drop trailer provider for some of our largest shippers is that our breadth of carriers allows us to customize and flex a drop trailer program,” said Adam McDonough, C.H. Robinson’s VP for drop trailer. “We can offer more options for more drop trailer in more places because we’re not constrained by a narrow network. That flexibility allows us to scale a drop trailer program without the shipper having to pay a premium or sacrifice quality of service. So if you’re only considering the same traditional carriers for your drop trailer RFPs, you’re leaving capacity on the table.”

These are some of the ways C.H. Robinson is enabling over 2,800 shippers to do more drop trailer, while optimizing both cost and service.

• Existing supplier relationships: When C.H. Robinson already has a relationship with a supplier such as a tiremaker, the national retail chains, regional distributors and local stores receiving inbound shipments from the tiremaker can all benefit from the economy of scale provided by a drop pool. C.H. Robinson’s deep understanding of the tiremaker’s people, processes, and facilities also enhances efficiency.
• Nearby drops: Locations where C.H. Robinson already has a carrier dropping nearby can get excellent on-time performance when dropping for another C.H. Robinson shipper in the area.
• Closing loops: A C.H. Robinson carrier with regular runs from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia and Philadelphia to Baltimore could offer a shipper great drop trailer service at a competitive rate from Baltimore to Pittsburgh.
• Increasing utilization: A C.H. Robinson carrier with strength in a corridor but only 80% utilization on the backhaul could offer a shipper an attractive drop trailer rate to potentially lift that to 95%.

The scale of C.H. Robinson’s carrier network also provides stability for shippers who can’t risk tender rejections from providers without enough tractors, trailers or drivers in any given lane at a given time. C.H. Robinson offers dependable, consistent drop trailer service with advanced real-time visibility and 98.2% accuracy in predictive ETAs. For more information, go to chrobinson.com/droptrailer.

About C.H. Robinson

C.H. Robinson delivers logistics like no one else™. Companies around the world look to us to reimagine supply chains, advance freight technology and solve logistics challenges—from the simple to the most complex. Over 90,000 customers and 450,000 contract carriers in our network trust us to manage $22 billion in freight annually. Through our unmatched expertise, unrivaled scale and tailored solutions, we ensure the seamless delivery of goods across industries and continents via truckload, less-than-truckload, ocean, air and beyond. As a responsible global citizen, we make supply chains more sustainable and proudly contribute millions to the causes that matter most to our employees. For more information, go to www.chrobinson.com. (Nasdaq: CHRW)

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Maria Lettman [e-mail]