Drive MK

It’s been said many times before, but it bears repeating: Trip planning is an absolutely essential practice to trucking success. Those who do not properly trip plan are not successful in this industry. Please read on to find out why it’s so important to your job and the continued success of the company.

Here’s how:

• Give yourself extra time for delays: traffic, construction, weather, etc.
• Spend at least 20-30 minutes on pre and post-trip inspections
• Plan your trip ahead of time

Here’s why: Direct Costs

Problems related to a failure to trip plan are expensive. It’s easy to gloss over the costs of such delays and issues, but the costs of some of these problems can easily wipe out the entire profit on the load, or more. Here are some examples of just how much preventable issues can cost.

Preventable repairs:

Tires – catching a worn tire in a pre or post-trip inspection and repairing in a shop costs about $400. Getting a service call out to the truck when a tire blows is around $750.

Mud Flaps – these are easy to catch and fix early. In a shop, they’re about $75. On the road, they’re about $200.

Lights – $50 in a shop, $200 on the road

Trailer hole repairs – $100 in the shop, $250 on the road

Missed deliveries or pickups:

• Late fees or overtime pay for crew to stay over to wait, sometimes close to the entire revenue for the load.
• Downtime waiting to deliver or find a new load.
• Missing next load leading to more money loss.

Shifted loads due to not ensuring proper load securement:

• Reworks frequently cost thousands. Having to rework, restack, and shrink wrap a load often means we pay more to do the load than we actually make. If you’re not confident a load is properly secured or a shipper has loaded it in a manner that is likely to cause a load shift, let us know before leaving. We save time and money by not hauling a load that is not properly loaded or can’t be securely strapped.

4 On/4 Off drivers:

More and more drivers are sharing a truck with another. Keep in mind, when you get off schedule due to failure to properly load plan, it affects your partner’s schedule as well.

Additionally, planning your trips ahead of time and scheduling your fueling and breaks around Love’s fuel stops allows MK to take advantage of maximum savings.

Indirect Costs:

• Taking excessive or unplanned breaks cuts into your velocity – how much time is spent on a load from start to finish. Velocity is a good indicator of trucking efficiency and it results in more revenue.
• Truck idle when waiting for work ins if you’re late; burning fuel without making money.
• Damaged customer relationships – customers that can’t rely on carriers to pick and deliver on time soon look for other companies with better service. We have lost customers in the past due to frequent service failures.

In addition to lowering costs, good trip planning can decrease or eliminate the following excuses for being late: “I forgot about the time change”, “I got stuck in traffic”, “The GPS took me the wrong direction..”

Good trip planning doesn’t happen overnight; it takes practice. If you are having trouble planning your trips or need help, reach out to your driver manager. If you have suggestions on how to make your trip planning easier, let us know. We are always here to help you be successful.

Attached you will find a copy of our updated permit book, which includes all of our current permits and insurance information. Make sure you have a hard copy in your truck.

2026 – 2027 Permit Book

As 2025 comes to a close, we reflect on 60 years of Marvin Keller Trucking. Not a lot of trucking companies stay in business this long; it takes a dedicated team unwilling to compromise on the core values of the company and a commitment to always adapting and moving forward.

Marvin Keller Trucking has come a long way since Marvin bought his first truck in 1965 to haul produce. Ten years later, his fleet had grown to five trucks. Twenty-five years of hard work and steady growth led to the second generation of Kellers to take the reins. Under the management of Joe Keller and Rick Ellis, MK exploded to 100+ drivers.

While the Great Recession of 2008 hit MK hard, management made great personal sacrifices to keep the business running and it rebounded and thrived. Since then, MK has grown year after year, implementing driver training and CDL training programs, adding dozens of Owner/Operators to the fleet, and introducing the Lease/Purchase program to help company drivers realize their potential and run their own businesses.

None of these accomplishments would be possible without the many hardworking people at MK who share these values.

• Honesty & Integrity – Being truthful and transparent in word and deed. Having consistency in your actions and always doing the right thing, even when no one is watching.
• Safety – Safety comes first and is absolutely not to be compromised. No load, no deadline, nothing is worth your life or health.
• Teamwork – Understanding that personal goals, team goals, and company goals must align. It involves sometimes sacrificing personal wins for team wins.
• Accountability -Taking responsibility for your actions, successes and failures, and always striving to improve.
• Respect – Always be willing to listen to others’ points of view and appreciate that not everyone will agree. Show respect by listening to others and showing genuine interest in their opinions.
• Positivity – Having a can-do attitude; not giving up after failures and avoiding negative, toxic behaviors that can bring down the whole team.
• Professionalism – Exhibiting hard and soft skills to demonstrate competence, effectiveness, and good character.

The outlook in 2026 is promising. Trucker capacity is slowing, resulting in more freight opportunities and higher rates. We’re already regained lanes from customers that have lapsed in the last couple years and are working on tightening up the network. Things are looking good to get out of the slump from the last administration and we’re looking forward to the future.