William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor | Jul 05, 2012 10:52AM EDT
Trucking giant Old Dominion Freight Line is expanding its less-than-truckload network, opening new terminals in Southern California and Florida. ODFL plans to spend as much as $120 million to expand its terminal network this year.
The $1.9 billion multiregional LTL carrier increased trucking revenue 25.7 percent in 2011, according to SJ Consulting Group data, making it the fastest growing LTL carrier. The Thomasville, N.C., company now has 219 terminals nationwide.
In addition to the Orange, Calif., and Pensacola, Fla., service centers opened this week, ODFL has opened terminals in Duluth and Benson, Minn., and expanded terminals and services in Corpus Christi, Texas and Erie, Pa., in 2012.
ODFL is one of several large LTL carriers expanding or redesigning its terminal network to speed freight as inventories and supply chains get leaner. FedEx Freight, YRC Freight and UPS Freight are among the carriers that have reconfigured networks.
At ODFL, profit fuels the expansion. The carrier increased its net profit 84.4 percent in 2011 to $139.5 million, while revenue rose 27.1 percent to $1.88 billion for the full year. In the first quarter, net profit rose 44.1 percent to $31.1 million.
The company is also ramping up its drayage network, opening dray facilities at LTL terminals in Oakland, Calif., and Seattle. In February, ODFL added 10 Asian ports to Pacific Promise, a less-than-containerload service launched in 2009.
The 64-door Orange terminal is located close to railheads, ports and highways. The terminal “was designed to bring us closer to our customers and provide faster response times for their shipping needs,” Bob Foote, vice president for the western region, said in a statement.
“The new facility will also alleviate congestion at our locations in Los Angeles and Long Beach,” Foote said, serving Fullerton, Irvine, Laguna Beach and San Clemente.
The 24-door terminal in Pensacola will help ODFL fill a gap in its Gulf Coast region, said Jason Glass, the terminal’s manager. “We can now offer earlier deliveries and better respond to our customers” in Alabama and Florida, Glass said in a statement.
Contact William B. Cassidy at wcassidy@joc.com. Follow him on Twitter at @wbcassidy_joc
