14 Jan A Day in the Life of a Blue Eagle Logistics Driver

Blue Eagle Logistics moves the freight important to people’s lives. If the events of the pandemic
and the past 10 months have taught us anything, it’s that truck drivers are at the top of the
essential workers list. Without these committed men and women, our economy would grind to a
halt–and it wouldn’t take very long.

Driving for Blue Eagle Logistics isn’t your average driving job. We like to call it a thinking
person’s driving job that requires attention to customer service, patience, and the agility to
remain calm in a fast-paced environment. In addition, our drivers must have the advanced people
skills to work with a variety of customers, as well as, the ability to pay attention to even the
smallest details. These skills are imperative to driving success with Blue Eagle Logistics.

So, what does an average day look like for drivers at Blue Eagle Logistics?

• Our drivers begin their day checking in for their planned routing for the day ahead.
  Because safety is high priority, drivers’ pre-trip their vehicles to ensure they are safe for
  operation–this includes an inspection of lights, fluids, tires, and equipment.

• Blue Eagle drivers place a premium on efficiency, so every customer is treated with
  respect and courtesy. To that end, they spend time reviewing the manifest to plan the
  most efficient routes while taking into account appointments, special service
  requirements, equipment needs, and instructions.

• After the preliminaries, our drivers locate freight on the floor if it has not been staged for
  loading. They then confirm the manifest integrity–that the freight on the floor matches
  the freight on the manifest. A driver’s manifest must match what is on board–a customer
  expects complete shipments to be delivered. No driver wants to show up one piece short,
  so this step is extremely important. The freight listed must be completely on board.

• All freight must be loaded on board safely and secured with straps or load bars to prevent
  damage in transit.

• Now it’s time to hit the road. Drivers leave the facility and begin completing deliveries.
  So, what does a delivery look like? Drivers must unload freight at the customer. Small
  quantities of 1-2 skids are taken care of with a pallet jack while larger quantities are often
  assisted by the consignee’s dock staff with a lift truck.

• Once the freight is delivered, the driver confirms and records the delivery in their
  handheld device for a complete POD (proof of delivery), and begins planning for the next
  delivery with any call ahead notifications necessary.

• Throughout the day, the driver communicates with the dispatch and customer service
  team. This allows the driver to work with them to resolve any issues that come up during
  a normal day–unforeseen delays, safety concerns, or location problems.

• But while delivering is a huge part of the driver’s day, Blue Eagle drivers must also
  prepare to adjust routing to deal with freight pickup requests as they arrive, allowing for
  the most efficient routing, meeting close times, and minimizing double handling of
  freight on board. 

• Freight from pickup requests is recovered on route, and drivers must review and verify
  that complete paperwork has been provided so the freight can fly–this includes BOL,
  service requirements, commercial invoice, as well as any terms indicating hazmat
  documents.

• Drivers must also prepare labels–making sure that freight is labeled correctly and that
  labels match the destination and service requested.

• At the day’s end, drivers return to the Blue Eagle Logistics dock, so recovered freight can
  make the outbound linehaul, and to post-trip their vehicles so any maintenance concerns
  can be addressed before the next day. Finally, drivers are expected to support PM
  linehaul operations (as needed) to load outbound freight and/or drop freight for outbound
  service.

Here at Blue Eagle Logistics, drivers are at the heart of what we do. They are route delivery experts with customer service expertise. The responsibility is tremendous because at Blue Eagle, customers come first.