Dear Valued JA Frate Customer,

As I write this, three things are going through my mind. The current price of oil, the end of summer and our anniversary. In our June newsletter, a barrel of oil was $137.00 per barrel. Now, a barrel of oil is about $100.00. The question I ask myself is what do we do to get those prices down? The answer I come up with is…nothing. The clamor for drilling has caused speculation to lower, thus lowering the price. However, unless we go out and really do some drilling, there is nothing to keep those prices form going up again, and the prices will go up. Therefore, I would like to ask you for help in reducing the expense of fuel. If you can, please give us a call as soon as you know when your freight will be ready. That will get us in there quicker and avoid any back-tracking for pick ups called in late in the day. We will pick it up either way, but we will be able to get it in a much more efficient manner for you and your customers. It will also help save fuel in the process, which will enable us to continue to keep our fuel surcharge down and keep our pricing competitive.

Where did the summer go? It seems like we were just getting used to walking outside without freezing, and now we are starting to feel that familiar chill in the air. I hope you all had some time to spend with your families this summer. The kids grow up so fast. My two boys are twenty-three and twenty-five and have been out of the house for a number of years. Joseph, who was in the Army for five years, is now a senior at SIU. Nicholas is my snowboarding student. It really hit me how fast they grow up when a number of buddies and I recently were thundering through the Bad Lands of South Dakota on our motorcycles. We rode next to a campground where my wife, the boys and I camped twelve years ago. I remember sitting in that tent with my family and listening to the distant rumble or Harleys and thinking I would give anything to be out there with those guys roaring through the hills and free. As I passed by that campground all these years later, roaring and free myself, I was thinking I would give anything to be sitting in that tent again with my family.

JA Frate hit a milestone this month – 37 years in business. In those thirty-seven years, it has truly been our people and our customers who have made, and will continue to make, the difference. We will continue to move forward; providing you and your customers with the best service possible. We are incredibly honored to be a part of your business. My best to you and your family.

Sincerely,

Joseph M. Alger
President

Introducing JA Nationwide!

An Article by Mark Peterson, Director of JA Nationwide

As of July 1, 2008 JA Transportation Services, Inc. (JATS) reached our two year anniversary. What started with a simple desire to provide expanded transportation services to our local customers, has developed into a complete North American transportation service offering TL, LTL, Flatbed, Intermodal and Expedited Services.

As Director of JATS, I am well aware of the fact that a number of people and companies have contributed to our successful journey. Most importantly, I want to thank you, our customers, for taking a chance on a new service offering from a trusted partner. Our goal in developing JATS was to offer complete nationwide transportation solutions to our customer, and that continues to be our mission.

In keeping with this mission, we have decided to change our name from JA Transportation Services, Inc. to JA Nationwide, Inc. We believe this change will better reflect our service offering and professional abilities to our customers. We look forward to working with our customer partners, carrier vendors and JA Frate brethren in continuing to grow JA Nationwide, Inc.

Thank you again for supporting JA Nationwide, Inc.

2008 Driver Appreciation Week

August 24th to August 30th was national Driver Appreciation Week. Professional, safe drivers are critical to our nation’s supply chain. Because of drivers, we are able to get the clothes we wear, the food we eat, the medicine we take and much, much more. From traveling on local streets and highways to traveling across frozen tundras, trucking keeps our way of life intact throughout our nation.

JA is very thankful and proud of our driver team. Our drivers are safe, courteous and experienced. Each one is a valuable part of JA Frate. The drivers were treated to breakfast and lunch periodically throughout the week. The drivers got a chance to show off their skill at playing bean bag toss and their luck with instant winner lotto tickets. In addition we held a daily raffle with various monetary payouts. One lucky driver won the grand prize, an extra vacation day!

Our drivers are the reason JA has the ability to promise your freight will be delivered on time. They are aware of the fact that our customers are our livelihood. When a shipment is delivered late or damaged, that costs both JA Frate and more importantly, our customer’s money and reputation. That is why we at JA pride ourselves on our drivers and their performance.

Ways to Save on Transportation Costs

Due to the rising cost of fuel, tires, insurance, license plates and several other facets that are required to ship freight, transportation costs have been on the rise. There are a few things that can be done to help save on shipping costs. The list below is comprised not only from our experience and knowledge at JA, but also from various means of research. Saving on shipping rates begins in the warehouse.

The most common suggestion is to organize a “shipping routine”, mapping out each step you take to ship product to your customers. Every step should be looked at from initially ordering shipping supplies, to which ones are used, to when the freight is called in, picked up and delivered. From there, you can audit the steps taken and eliminate un needed work. This also helps you understand the “true costs” of shipping.

Another tip is to keep track of your product inventory and packaging. Proper inventory is imperative to stabilizing shipping costs because if you need to ship something as two orders instead of one, that results in a higher cost. When shipments can be consolidated, you save money; less packing supplies, less time and less cost to the trucking company because of a trip saved.

Various other tips found were to avoid shipping overnight or express as much as possible. It is also beneficial to form a relationship with a transportation company. Through long-term relationships, a volume commitment can be reached, resulting in discount rates.

Lastly, be sure your shipment is packaged properly. Not only do you want to utilize every shipment to its fullest volume potential, but protective wrapping is crucial. When things are properly wrapped, there is less chance for damage which results in high costs.

Save in Your Personal Pocketbook with These Tips…

- Think aerodynamically
- Plan your route
- Drive the speed limit
- Use Cruise control
- Watch how you stop and go
- Maintain your tires
- Keep a driving record
- Watch idle time
- Shop around for gas: GasBuddy.com
- Use a gas rebate credit card
- Car pool
- Use public transportation

Wall Street Journal & Winning Workplaces Top Small Workplaces Update

The entire JA team is anxiously waiting for October 13th! The Wall Street Journal & Winning Workplaces will announce the fifteen winners of their 2008 Top Small Workplaces award. The 2 day conference entitled “Building Enduring Small Business” will highlight best practices by all finalists. In addition, previous winning small business leaders will share insights and ideas. Our management team will be attending the two day event. JA Frate was selected as one of the top 35 finalists out of 406 companies that participated. The 15 winners will be announced on October 13th in the Wall Street Journal “Report on Small Businesses”.