NationaLease announced Thursday, May 31, that it has been awarded a $12 million contract to provide integrated transportation logistics services to PIC USA of Hendersonville, Tenn., the leading supplier of pork breeding stock in the United States.
Under the terms of the three-year contract, NationaLease — in conjunction with member West Brother’s Transportation Services of Raleigh-Durham, N.C. — will provide TQA certified drivers, full-service leasing, customized maintenance, finance leasing, asset services, distribution routing and analysis technology, business management, and fuel and fleet support.
In addition, a proprietary automated biosecurity system from Corcentric is being customized to meet PIC’s unique requirements, ensuring that the health and welfare of the animals is not compromised from source farm to customer farm. West Brother’s will transport nearly 170,000 live animals annually, utilizing a dedicated fleet of 14 power units and 22 specialized trailers.
“The top priority of this partnership with NationaLease is to improve efficiencies while maintaining the exceptional biosecurity and reliability our customers have come to expect,” says Mark Engle, DVM MS, director of health assurance and transportation for PIC USA North America. “Transportation is an expensive and critical component of our business. We are moving breeding stock that are high-value live animals, making biosecurity during transport extremely important for the protection of our customers on the other end.”
The well-being and quality of the animal upon arrival is paramount, Engle says. “NationaLease is working side-by-side with us to help us eliminate empty miles, improve our routing efficiencies, and develop customized state-of-the-art reporting systems that will assist our drivers with stringent delivery protocols, and educate our customers about delivery schedules that will optimize their service and rates,” he says.
Experience with transporting live animals, combined with the expertise of NationaLease’s Dave Beaudry, director of logistics engineering and consulting, were important considerations in the awarding of the PIC USA contract, according to Michael J. Oetjen, vice president of integrated logistics for Cherry Hill, N.J.-based NationaLease.
“We know the challenges associated with this industry and are proactively designing multifaceted solutions to meet PIC USA’s efficiency requirements,” Oetjen says. “These solutions rely on the most specialized drivers, equipment and technology to ensure that the animals are humanely treated in an environment that is constantly monitored to keep them safe and secure from origin to destination.”
