Crane Transport Delivers ‘Seriously Happy’ Customers

One Thursday, Crane Transport owner Danny Crane woke up to find this message in his inbox:

Order 1907 was delivered early yesterday morning. My guy came in at 7:30 and said it was already off the truck. Originally I don’t think it was supposed to get there until midday. Crane did good. I had a seriously happy customer after that. Thanks for all the help on this one.

“We weren’t even trying to impress him,” Crane said of the email from a customer that’s turning all its freight-hauling over to his Gainesville, Georgia company. “It’s nothing out of the ordinary. That’s how we operate all the time.”

Performance like that has enabled the full truckload, dedicated contract carrier to book an enviable 99%-plus on-time service record. The company’s fleet of 200 tractors and 500 trailers hauls manufactured goods (windows and doors) and food products (such as cooking oil for French fries) throughout the lower 48 states.

“I live by two philosophies,” Crane said. “First, I’m not going to do business with somebody who doesn’t care if I make a profit. And second, everybody expects a certain level of service for what we charge. I want to exceed that.” 

To do so, Crane Transport hires good drivers, treats them fairly and gives them the best equipment on the market. Until a year ago, Mack was not part of his operation. “I grew up in an area where Macks were either dump trucks or logging trucks,” he said. His fleet was composed of competitors’ models.

That is until last year, when sales rep J.R. Bias and the team at Gainesville Truck Center placed a demonstration MACK® Pinnacle™ tractor with the company and followed up with a five-truck sale.

“I polled my older guys, who have driven every truck known to man. Nine out of 10 said if they had to pick a new truck, they’d pick a Mack. They like the visibility, the quietness, the sheer comfort of the truck. I’ve had issues with all of my new trucks but we have not had an issue with the Mack.”

Crane was so pleased he ordered another 25 Pinnacle models with the Super Econodyne spec. The trucks sport 445 hp MACK MP8 engines and MACK mDRIVE™ automated transmissions, with 70-inch midrise sleepers, full chassis fairings and auxiliary power units. The new units average 7.5 mpg, and Crane estimates mDRIVE is saving $7,000 in fuel costs per year per truck.

He has high praise for the Gainesville Mack dealership, too. “They are accessible. They have a sense of urgency that a lot of dealers don’t have. And their body shop is second to none.” For Crane, that’s the way he treats his customers. “Our motto is, ‘Service is our reputation.’ We get the job done.” A reputation he gladly shares with Gainesville Truck and Mack.