With veterans entering trucking, supply-chain issues may soon be a thing of the past

2022-09-28 Veterans

The half a million, or thereabouts, veterans entering civilian life in early 2022, upon completion of their duties in the armed services, understandably, are a varied lot. Some are interested in a job while some others would like to become business owners.

One of the industries that holds special significance for them, and where they can count on the support of the federal government in the transition, is trucking where veterans are getting jobs as well as opportunities to launch their own carrier business.

Supply Chain disruption

The supply chain industry is a critical cog in the wheel of the economy, though one that we may not always see. We see electronics and sporting goods and perishable food items on store shelves but the sequence of events that enables them to be there is the assurance that supply chain provides to us in our daily lives, including delivery of orders placed online.

Supply chain disruptions are causing ripples in the economy, the most visible impact being the shortage of certain goods in some locations as well as rising prices because of demand outstripping supply.

From the industry perspective, the entry of this group of veterans into the workforce, perhaps, could not have been better timed. They are a potent force to help the industry overcome the obstacles creating these disruptions in an otherwise well-oiled machine.

Veterans as drivers

Veterans joining the civilian workforce can act as drivers of the economy in more ways than one.

The shortage of truck drivers started to be felt around 2017. Ever since, efforts have been made to ease the process for veterans to get the Class-8 training required for driving heavy vehicles. The logic was straightforward; if they were already trained during their time in the services to load and drive heavy vehicles, the transition to doing similar work on the civilian side, the trucking industry to be specific, should be easy. A grant program as well as the FMCSA’s military skills test waiver program were introduced with the objective of encouraging people from the services, as well as their spouses, to choose trucking as a career.

Last mile connectivity

The contribution of veterans does not end with either driving or as operator-owners. Many have skills that go beyond and can make a contribution to running the day-to-day-to-day operations of the business.

While activities of large carriers, such as hauling shipments across the continent on arterial routes, are well known, less well known are their limitations.

They cannot, for example, navigate the narrower streets. Their ability to reach the smaller towns on the map may be limited. This is where a smaller operator with a fleet that can navigate the narrower streets and smaller locations with greater ease, comes into the picture.

Veterans are slipping into these opportunities with comfort and solving the problems in a logical and effective manner by launching their own trucking companies.

Launching a trucking company

With the plethora of forms, permits, insurance and other requirements, launching a trucking company can be a daunting prospect. Even after the applications have been approved, equipment and facilities that will enable the company to haul its first shipment, will need to be acquired.

However, veterans are getting in there and adding their might to the industry. With veteran-owned trucking companies in the picture, solving the challenges that had beset the supply chain industry is looking like a brighter prospect, putting the economy back on the road.

Many of the veterans entering the industry have been able to do it with the help of RevoTech.

RevoTech – supporting veterans enter trucking

RevoTech makes it easy for aspiring veterans to start a trucking business. It is a one-stop shop which will hold their hand all the way, not only to the point of setting it up, but even managing the back-office part of it once the business is up and running. The suite of services that they can expect from RevoTech is: