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PETROLEUM DIRECTORY: In it for the long haul Weaver Brothers’ versatile trucking business has prospered through many decades Alan Bailey Petroleum Directory Contributing Writer
There are no magic tricks to making your business prosper through the ups, downs and dramatic changes of the Alaska economy. Versatility and innovation provide the keys to success, according to Jimmy Doyle, vice president of Weaver Brothers Inc., one of Alaska’s largest trucking companies.
“I think that those companies that are the most flexible will be able to withstand the downside and be ready for the upside (of the economy),” Doyle told Petroleum News recently.
And Weaver Brothers’ long history in Alaska attests to this view.
“The original Weaver brothers came from Portland Oregon in 1947,” Doyle said. “They would spend summers up here hauling asphalt and then they would go back to Oregon in the wintertime.”
Eventually the brothers settled in Alaska to form the Weaver Brothers company. Jimmy Doyle’s father Jim Doyle, now company president, bought Weaver Brothers in 1978. Doyle senior had started his own trucking company back in 1962, selling home heating fuel.
The company now operates out of terminals in Anchorage, Kenai and Fairbanks, with approximately 115 employees and a fleet of about 100 trucks and 300 trailers. Hauling equipment Over the years Weaver Brothers’ trucks, hauling a wide variety of heavy equipment to construction sites, have become a familiar sight in Alaska. In fact the company will handle just about anything from piping to lumber and bridge girders.
“We are a common carrier — that means that if you call us on a general basis we will haul whatever you’ve got for us,” Jimmy Doyle said.
Some loads require specialized equipment. For example, the company operates cement bulkers for moving cement from the Port of Anchorage to construction sites.
Weaver Brothers also operates winch trucks, mainly in support of the oil industry on the Kenai Peninsula. With winches to pull loads on and off, the trucks can carry more than 100,000 pounds and have proved particularly effective for transporting drilling rigs.
“You’re supporting drilling and exploration operations on land,” Doyle said, “— moving a drill rig when they’re done drilling (at one location).” Agent for shipping companies Weaver Bothers delivers trailers in Alaska for the two main shipping companies that ply the route between the Lower 48 and the Port of Anchorage.
“When a ship arrives in port we’ll deliver those trailers from the port to the customers around town and we’ll also deliver trailers in Fairbanks and Kenai,” Doyle said. “When they get to Fairbanks and Kenai we will deliver them to the customers.”
In Anchorage a team of about 30 Weaver Brothers drivers works all week, every week, moving the freight to the customers — businesses ranging from grocery stores to construction companies all depend on a steady and continuous flow of sea freight.
As well as hauling shipping company trailers, Weaver Bothers carries perishable food between distribution centers and grocery stores around the state, using the company’s fleet of refrigerated trucks.
Weaver Brothers also operates a fleet of tankers for delivering petroleum products such as fuel oil, gasoline and diesel. In fact, the company delivers gasoline to many of the gas stations in the Anchorage, Kenai and Soldotna areas.
“If (a gas station) doesn’t get a delivery of fuel every day it’s probably going to run out — that’s how fast people in town go through gasoline,” Doyle said. Asphalt delivery Weaver Brothers has continued the company’s original business of hauling liquid asphalt for road maintenance and construction. Doyle stated that most of the asphalt in Alaska comes from the Tesoro refinery at Nikiski and the Williams refinery at North Pole.
Timing is critical.
“They have to pave when it’s not raining, so they’ll call us to pick up loads at specific times to be delivered 100, 200, 300 miles at a specific time to an asphalt plant where they can produce the (asphalt) mix to make the highway,” Doyle said.
It’s particularly important to keep the asphalt hot so that it will flow easily — insulation in the trailers keeps the material at a temperature of about 350 degrees.
Weaver Brothers also moves a variety of chemicals to industrial sites throughout the state. For example, the company delivers acids and other chemicals for mining operations. Safety and experience Hazardous materials such as gasoline, asphalt and chemicals require special handling by trained staff. In addition to specialized training all Weaver Brothers’ drivers need hazardous materials endorsements on their commercial driver’s licenses, Doyle said.
The drivers also need to be able to handle very large trucks safely.
“A lot of out trailers are doubles — two trailers hooked together. So, going down the highway you’re about 120 feet long,” Doyle said. “So you have to have drivers who are trained in hauling hazardous materials and also trained in hauling double trailers.”
And Weaver Brothers drivers know exactly how to position heavy loads on their vehicles.
“You have to have experienced people ... who know what they’re doing,” Doyle said. “You can tear up the truck and the trailers pretty easily if you don’t have experienced hands.”
Many of these people have worked for the company for more than 10 years.
“We’ve got people who are loyal and who have been here a long time and know what they’re doing — that allows you to be very professional,” Doyle said. Equipment maintenance and upgrades In addition to safety, Weaver Brothers sees reliable and efficient services as crucially important. The company keeps its fleet of vehicles in top-notch condition using its own maintenance shops. Minimizing the cost per mile depends on good preventive maintenance, Doyle said.
“All three of our terminals (in Anchorage, Fairbanks and Kenai) have their own maintenance facilities and employees to take care of our trucks and trailers,” Doyle said. “We can repair our own tankers — you have to have a special certification in order to do that.”
The company also endeavors to keep up with the latest technology for improving the vehicle performance and for enabling communications with the drivers on the road.
“Technology helps us to run the trucks better and get better fuel mileage ... then you can save money on fuel costs,” Doyle said. Escalating costs And the high cost of fuel has become a major factor for trucking companies nowadays.
“Fuel costs are going up faster than we can keep up with,” Doyle said.
Hikes of 60 to 100 percent in insurance rates since the 9-11 tragedy have also eroded the company’s bottom line.
“Right now insurance costs are dramatic — a big piece of our revenue goes towards insurance costs,” Doyle said.
However, Doyle feels optimistic about his company’s future. Weaver Brothers’ wide range of services and the company’s willingness to adapt to changing conditions continue to help the company thrive.
“You can’t get caught in the same mold and think that you only do one thing,” Doyle said. “There are a lot of trucking companies that are gone today because they weren’t flexible enough ... you’ve got to have people who are capable of doing a lot of different things and that’s one of our strengths.”
After all, both Weaver Brothers and the company that Jim Doyle founded have survived many decades on the roller coaster of the Alaska economy.
“We’re a family owned business. We’ve been here since the early ‘60s and Alaska’s our home,” Doyle said.
Editor’s note: Alan Bailey owns Badger Productions in Anchorage, Alaska
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