ORLANDO, Florida—America’s Service Line, the transportation carrier for American Foods Group, was named the 2024 FleetOwner Private Fleet of the Year during a luncheon at the National Private Truck Council’s annual conference.
“I’m very excited to be up here today to accept this award on behalf of our team members who could be here today and those who we’ll be communicating this to when we get back home,” Scott Willert, ASL’s president, said from the stage at the Hyatt Regency Orlando on Tuesday afternoon.
Willert was joined on stage by four members of his fleet team: Ellen Ingram, senior director of HR and safety; Xochil Rodarte, director of sales; Nicole Schubring, controller; and Steve Carriveau, financial analyst.
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Willert noted that the FleetOwner Private Fleet of the Year program, which dates back two decades, is a “great program and a great opportunity for all of us as fleets to let people know who we are, what we’re about, and to be recognized because we all do some great work.”
Willert’s team has created a productive work environment for their drivers and support staff, leading to a low driver turnover rate and a hiring program that has resulted in half of new drivers coming through staff referrals.
He told FleetOwner that his 200 company drivers regularly get 8 mpg and have cut their idle times below 4%. The fleet has 75 owner-operators hauling goods for American Foods Group, the fifth-largest beef processor in the U.S.
With plants across the Midwest, ASL serves 45% of AFG’s shipments and manages the rest through a group of longtime carrier partners.
Willert also thanked his fleet’s sister company, American Foods Group, and its parent company, Rosen’s Diversified Inc. “It’s an outstanding company to work for. I greatly appreciate the authority and autonomy that they give to me to build such an outstanding team and do great things for our people. It’s a lot of fun.”
The fleet executive also praised NPTC and its educational and leadership opportunities, including the Certified Transportation Professional program, which was achieved by each team member who attended the ceremony.
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“I invite you to collaborate with us,” Willert said to the crowd of fellow fleet leaders and suppliers. We’d love to chat more with you and share best practice ideas so we can learn more from each other about any topic. That’s the value of this organization to me.
“I’ll close with this: We’re a great company, we’re a great team, we’re a great private fleet. And we’ll only continue to get better in the future.”
About the FleetOwner 500 and awards
FleetOwner has compiled and published the most comprehensive listings of the top private fleets in the U.S. for more than 20 years. The FleetOwner 500: Private list, compiled with data analysis firm ProsperFleet, ranks corporations by commercial power units.
The 2024 list appeared in the April print edition of the magazine. The FleetOwner 500: Top For-Hire list of the largest truckload and LTL for-hire carriers in the U.S. was published earlier this year.
The FleetOwner 500 Private Fleet of the Year awards are given annually to fleets that have demonstrated excellence in various areas, including accomplishments, safety records, technology adoption, and community outreach. Fleets on the FleetOwner 500: Top Private Fleets list and NPTC members are eligible for the annual award.
The June edition of FleetOwner magazine will feature more details about America’s Service Line, Willert, and his team. Fleet executives and employees are eligible for free FleetOwner newsletters and more subscriptions.
