Southerland Expands, Enhances Trucking Fleet

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Southerland Transport is a wholly owned company of mattress maker Southerland.

Nashville, Tennessee-based Southerland Transport, a wholly owned company of independent mattress manufacturer Southerland, has expanded the number of trucks in its fleet and updated the technology in those vehicles.

During the past few months, 14 new trucks have been added to the fleet, bringing its total to 51.

“Providing strong customer service is one of our core values,” said Jeff Wisocki, vice president of transportation for Southerland. “These investments in our fleet continue to improve and deliver great value to our customers by reining in costs and improving customer service. It also differentiates us from other manufacturers who contract deliveries to common carriers where they do not have the same level of control over the fleet.”

Southerland has added a GPS system to the vehicles that automatically updates the Southerland Transport team on the exact location of the trailers and provides detailed insight into the shipment arrivals so dealers can better plan for deliveries. The new trucks are equipped with cruise control with space distancing, lane departure warnings in case a truck drifts outside of its lane, and blind-spot monitoring which sounds an alarm when it detects activity in a truck’s typical blind spots. 

Southerland Transport’s long-standing policy of having the same driver deliver to the same route has successfully established an added layer of rapport and customer service, the company said in a news release. “We get letters from customers saying what a great driver they have, which is very gratifying and has shown us how that relationship is another key factor in customer service overlooked by many in our industry,” Wisocki said.