Floor Covering Distributor Saves Over $140,000 with TruckStops®

Arlington, VA - April 15, 1999 — The Atlanta distribution center for the William M. Bird Company saves over $140,000 annually by using TruckStops for Windows Routing and Scheduling system, according to recent reports from MicroAnalytics, Inc.

William M. Bird Co. is a wholesale floor covering company, headquartered in Charleston, SC, with a warehouse in Atlanta, and other centers in Greenville, Raleigh, Nashville, Birmingham, Jackson and Mobile. They deliver hardwood, tile and vinyl flooring and carpeting throughout the Southeast.

The Atlanta warehouse routes for about 20-25 trucks daily, with an average of 16 stops per truck. Before the company implemented TruckStops in January 1998, they were using one more truck and only averaging 12-13 stops per route.

"We eliminated one truck immediately after I got back from a TruckStops Training Course in January 1998. Since then, we haven't had to add any trucks, even though our customer base is growing," said Jody Powell, Fleet Analyst with William M. Bird.

Powell's responsibilities include analyzing the routes and ensuring they are being run in the most efficient and cost effective manner.

"That's where TruckStops comes in," Powell added. "I can show a driver a report with the TruckStops route order, and he'll say he goes in a different order. I can take his information, plug it into a TruckStops solution, and show him how the TruckStops route is more efficient," he said.

Most of the routes from the Atlanta warehouse are static. Powell does not make any significant changes to the routes until they add new customers. Before implementing TruckStops, the company manually generated the routes from that warehouse. Powell says it used to take him half a day to create reasonable routes. Routing now takes him 45 minutes.

"What really amazes me is not so much the savings that a company like William M. Bird is realizing," said J. Michael Hooban, president of MicroAnalytics, "But the number of companies that haven't yet chosen to avail themselves of this technology. In Bird's case, for example, they are more than recovering the cost of their TruckStops system every month."

Available for Windows® 95/98/NT, TruckStops can be used either dynamically, for scheduling vehicles on routes that change daily, or strategically, for planning and updating fixed delivery routes.

MicroAnalytics has produced high-quality, affordable logistics software for over 15 years. The company helped pioneer the development of PC-based routing systems and is recognized as the leading software provider with over 1,700 customer sites worldwide. In addition to the TruckStops system, MicroAnalytics publishes and markets the OptiSite® Distribution Planning Model, GeoNet™ Location Databases and the BUSTOPS® Student Transportation Management System. The company operates offices in Arlington, Virginia; Toronto, Ontario; and London, England. Agents in Europe, South America and Africa also represent MicroAnalytics. You can reach the Arlington, Virginia office at (US) 703-841-0414.