Alice Adams
| Special to Transport TopicsGot a Problem? No Problem. Just Tell Jeff.
Dispatcher Jeff Raymond has the raw nerves of a high-wire artist with every movement focused on maintaining a balance of schedules, equipment and personnel in dealing with truckers and responding to the needs of customers.
Raymond enjoys the work and the team of fellow employees who help him pull off this balancing act. Though the pace is frantic and the hours are long, he loves the challenges of dealing with 21 truckers, 100 customers and numerous line-haul drivers on an average day.
“The more demanding, the better. The trick is to keep the ball rolling, remembering that no one part of the picture is more important than the next,” the 37-year-old dispatcher says. He has allowed Transport Topics to spend a June day with him in the dispatching room at CF MotorFreight in Austin, Texas, a world under a constant blitz by telephone, radio and computer messages.
As others before him, Raymond brings into the dispatch office a wealth of road experience that dates back to when he started as a commercial driver at age 18 in Texas. His career at CF MotorFreight began with him working on the loading docks before he became a company driver in 1994.
Michael James - Transport Topics | |
Jeff Raymond enjoys helping drivers solve problems, drawing on his experience behind the wheel. He works with dispatchers in three other cities to move shipments for CF MotorFreight. |
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For the full story, see the July 3 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.