PacLease Helps Petrochemical Hauler Realize Significant Fuel Savings

Tom Hassel Transport Inc. recently leased nine new Peterbilt tractors equipped with PACCAR MX engines. Each time one of these newer trucks goes out on deliveries, they’re making the company more money than the trucks with older generation engines.

How much more? Company president Tom “Tommy” Hassel estimates that during an average 1,000-mile round trip, his new PacLease trucks equipped with 455-hp PACCAR MX engines and 10-speed manual transmissions burn about 18 1/2 fewer gallons of diesel fuel when compared to similarly equipped trucks with 2007-compliant engines and 18-speed manual transmissions. For the Point Pleasant Beach, N.J.-based petroleum and chemical products hauler, fuel savings from the nine new trucks amount to about $69,000 annually, based on the price of fuel at $4.14 per gallon. Over a five-year lease period, that equates to more than $345,000 all dropping to the fleet’s bottom line.

Established in 1935 by Tommy’s grandfather, Tom Hassel Transport Inc. began transporting petroleum products on the cobblestone streets of Newark, N.J., and Brooklyn, N.Y. In 1964, Tommy’s grandfather died and his father, Tom Hassel Sr., took over the company and ran it until he partially retired in 1980 and handed over the company to his son, Tommy. Today, Tom Hassel Transport’s fleet of 50 tractors and 120 trailers hauls petroleum products such as motor oils, oil additives, hydraulic and transmission fluids, and jet fuels throughout the Northeast, across the United States and into Alberta, Canada. The company, which operates leased terminals in Pittsburgh, Pa., and Paulsboro and Perth Amboy, N.J., also hauls food-grade wash fluids, surgical-grade alcohols, bleaches and other chemicals in non-reactive fiberglass tankers.

For as long as Hassel can remember, his family’s transportation company has been all about reliability and quality service. That’s why the company started running Peterbilt trucks in the 1990s, he said. By running conventional Peterbilt models, the company wanted to reinforce that reliability and quality image.

“For years, we’ve been partial to the look of a more conventional model like the Peterbilt 379,” said Hassel. “They look tough and reliable and they were the trucks we liked to drive.” With the advent of two new sets of emission regulations starting in 2007 and the cost of diesel fuel spiking in 2008 hovering around $4 per gallon, Hassel said his company revised its strategy. Conventional styling gave way to the necessity of aerodynamics. The company also changed how it acquires trucks, he added. Instead of buying them, Tom Hassel Transport now leases them from Hunter Peterbilt PacLease, the local PacLease franchise.

For years, the sales and service staff at the local Peterbilt dealership developed strong relationships with his company, Hassel said. Those strong relationships continued after the Hunter family bought the local Peterbilt dealership and kept the sales and service staff in place. Three years ago, when Hunter Peterbilt recommended a full-service lease from PacLease, Hassel said he decided to give it a try because he trusted the sales and service staff and because full-service leasing provided a compelling option.

“When it became clear that we would be working with new technologies to meet new emission regulations, leasing trucks from PacLease made much more sense,” Hassel added. “We don’t have a maintenance facility, nor would we want to have to set one up. It makes good business sense for a company like ours to have PacLease handle the maintenance.”

Because PacLease has a vested interest in keeping Hassle Transport trucks operating and eliminating downtime due to maintenance, Hassel sees the PacLease maintenance team as a natural extension of his own company. Having a fleet that’s reliable is critical for Hassel Transport, particularly since customers require their products to be delivered within narrow delivery windows. Usually deliveries are scheduled from a few days to a week in advance, but on occasion, Hassel said his company receives requests for next-day shipments of chemicals like de-icers from airport authorities.

Hassel said he also appreciates the ability to deal with a local franchise with staff members and managers who understand his company’s needs and can respond to them quickly. PacLease also has a call center with knowledgeable representatives who support the local franchise by providing Hassel Transport drivers roadside assistance 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

“I know that in most cases, I can make a call to the folks at Hunter Peterbilt PacLease if I ever have a problem and they’ll get things resolved,” he said. “For me, the ability of the local franchise to make decisions was a key reason to lease trucks with PacLease. I just don’t think I could get that kind of service or premium quality custom-built Peterbilt trucks with a large national leasing company that offers one-size-fits-all trucks.”

By acquiring trucks under full-service lease contracts, Hassel Transport doesn’t have to commit capital for down payments on its trucks. The company can use its capital for other projects that generate a higher return. Hassel also appreciates that he can work with the local Peterbilt PacLease franchise to build trucks that work well for his operation. Hassel currently leases 20 of his company’s trucks from Hunter Peterbilt PacLease and plans to replace all of the trucks in the fleet eventually with leased units.

With the new Peterbilt 386s, Hassel enjoys a 10 percent improvement in fuel economy, or just over a 1/2 mile per gallon. Since the lighter PACCAR MX engine and the weight-saving changes Hunter Peterbilt PacLease recommended help offset the additional weight of the new emission control systems’ components, Hassel Transport didn’t suffer reduced payload capacity with its new trucks. And by spec’ing comfortable 48-inch and 63-inch sleepers, Hassel provides drivers the environment they need to get sleep during rest periods. That helps Hassel’s drivers meet the new federal hours of service regulations.

“We’re able to get some premium equipment spec’d out how we want,” Hassel said. “These trucks allow our company to reduce our operating costs, improve productivity and provide our drivers with a more comfortable work environment, which is an important consideration for retaining our drivers as new drivers become more difficult to recruit.”