ABF announced that it is expanding its RPM service to the western one-third of the United States, providing increased shipment velocity to 95 percent of the lanes between major markets in the West. “ABF’s latest service improvements are monumental because they give coast-to-coast reach of ABF’s Dual-System Network, which provides regional service in tandem with our best-in-class long-haul service,” said Wes Kemp, president and chief executive officer of the Fort Smith, Ark.-based company. “It’s a proven model that ABF has grown entirely organically over the last several years.”
Called the Regional Performance Model, or RPM, parallel regional and national service initially was offered by ABF in 2006 along the eastern seaboard. The carrier expanded coverage to the eastern two-thirds of the nation in 2007. The latest expansion gives the network coast-to-coast coverage. “Customers benefit from rapid, dependable regional service in addition to the flexibility, supply chain visibility, careful cargo handling and attentive customer service they’ve come to expect from ABF,” says Roy Slagle, ABF senior vice president.
ABF says sophisticated operational procedures enable it to deliver national long-haul and regional short-haul services simultaneously. “ABF customers benefit from common pickup, delivery, sales and customer service capabilities, along with the convenience of one carrier seamlessly providing regional and long-haul logistics solutions,” Kemp says. “And customers do not have to make any special notations on bills of lading to select which network they wish to use.”
Slagle says the enhancements blend seamlessly with ABF’s expanding portfolio of strategic logistics solutions. “As ABF has invested in both global and domestic supply chain services, business volumes flowing through consolidation warehouses serving ports have increased substantially,” he says. “This growing stream of business now benefits from ABF’s enhanced network and the flexibility it provides.”
