Latest news with #trucking
Forbes
11 hours ago
- Automotive
- Forbes
Steves & Sons Partners With Bot Auto For Driverless Deliveries
Door and millwork manufacturer Steves & Sons, Inc. has entered into a partnership with autonomous ... More trucking tech firm Bot Auto. Door and millwork manufacturer Steves & Sons, Inc. is entering a pilot program with autonomous trucking technology startup Bot Auto, the companies announced Thursday. Managed logistics provider J.B. Hunt Transport Inc., will advise San Antonio, Texas-based Steves & Sons in integrating autonomous trucking into its operation, initially among routes in Texas to and from San Antonio and Dallas and Houston, the company said, in a release. 'We're proud to be working with J.B. Hunt and Bot Auto to drive innovation and stay at the forefront of technology,' said Scott Lovett, chief operating officer at Steves & Sons, in a statement. 'This collaboration is about more than improving logistics—it's about reimagining how our industry operates to meet the evolving needs of our customers and communities.' Operating just four trucks out of its Houston, Texas base, startup Bot Auto is the creation of Xiaodi Hou, the former co-founder of former autonomous trucking company TuSimple, now rebranded as CreateAI, pivoting to AI gaming technology. Dissatisfied with the direction of the company, Hou left in 2022 and created Bot Auto, bringing along several other former TuSimple employees who also felt disenfranchised. Truck on the road in Texas operating using autonomous technology by Bot Auto. Working with several local dealers and outsourcing most of the hardware, Bot then retrofits the trucks with its autonomous technology at its facility, according to Hou. For now, he's keeping the company from growing too quickly. 'We are a very scrappy company now. So one thing that we need to resist doing is to scale up before we're ready,' said Hou, in an interview this past May. 'So now we have a very modest fleet of four trucks. We do not plan to expand our footprint in operation until we're ready, and the meaning for ready is that until we're basically breaking even on a per mile basis.' In March, the company began a minimum four-month pilot program hauling cargo for commercial shippers between Houston and San Antonio with no driver behind the wheel. For Steves & Sons, the pilot program involving Bot Auto and J.B. Hunt represents both a step forward and a bit of an experiment with autonomous trucking. The focus will be on streamlining plant-to-customer transfers and improving logistical planning and execution, according to the company. Indeed, the combination of economics and an ongoing driver shortage has added impetus to the move towards moving goods on autonomous trucks. As of last summer there were more than 78,000 unfilled truck driver positions according to while a report by Ryder System Inc. notes 'industry experts predict that if trends continue, the number of unfilled positions could exceed 170,000 by 2030.' Contributing to the persistent driver shortage are several factors including 'the job's demanding nature, involving long hours on the road and extended periods away from home, deters many potential candidates,' the Ryder System report reveals. 'Although competitive, pay rates often don't fully compensate for the tough working conditions, further discouraging new entrants. These factors combined create a perfect storm, resulting in a growing gap between the demand for truck drivers and the supply available to meet that demand. It's all leading to more companies looking at the feasibility of moving their goods in driverless trucks and new partnerships like this latest one between Steves & Sons and Bot Auto. 'This is not just a technical upgrade—it's a cultural shift,' Lovett declared. 'We're investing in the future of American manufacturing by building smarter, safer, and more adaptive supply chain systems that support our employees, our partners, and the customers we serve.'
Yahoo
a day ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
ATA's push for teen truckers will make capacity glut worse
The trucking industry finds itself mired in one of the most protracted freight recessions on record, a predicament exacerbated by a flood of capacity that has outstripped demand. This surplus stems from an industry with negligible barriers to entry, where supply can readily overshoot, challenging the American Trucking Associations' (ATA) persistent claim of a perpetual driver shortage. That narrative, however, merits scrutiny—not least because it may serve interests beyond those of the industry it purports to represent. The ATA's assertion of a driver shortage sends a misleading signal. It lures vulnerable workers and aspiring entrepreneurs into a market already saturated, with banks naively extending credit on the premise of guaranteed demand and pricing power—hallmarks of a classic shortage that, in trucking, are conspicuously absent. Seasoned operators know this well: neither element holds sway in today's environment. Halting the influx of new drivers, rather than fueling it through congressional programs and CDL mills, could stem the capacity glut. Yet the ATA persists, a stance that appears at odds with its members' welfare. Indeed, the ATA testified before the Senate Commerce Committee this week, urging lawmakers to lower the interstate driving age from 21 to 18. Such a move would further open the taps on new entrants, potentially swelling capacity even as the industry buckles under the weight of excess capacity. Lowering the truck driver age to 18 would risk unleashing a torrent of new participants into an already oversupplied market, exacerbating the glut rather than alleviating it. Safety advocates warn of heightened accident rates among younger drivers, who are statistically more prone to distractions and crashes due to inexperience. Economically, this influx could depress freight rates further, prolonging the recession for carriers already operating on razor-thin margins and making a bad situation worse. Active trucks have surged from 1.5 million in January 2017 to 2.1 million today, a 40% increase, largely driven by a steady stream of new drivers. The ATA may thus reflect organizational incentives rather than its members' needs. A trade association whose dues scale with the size of the market favor unchecked growth over its constituents' profitability. Prioritizing policies that address oversupply, rather than encouraging more capacity through new entrants, could curb the excess and offer a path out of the current crisis. Until then, the ATA's stance risks perpetuating a crisis it claims to address. The post ATA's push for teen truckers will make capacity glut worse appeared first on FreightWaves. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Private equity bids for Forward Air rolling in, report says
Shares of Forward Air were up 10% in late-day trading on Wednesday following a Reuters report that 'a handful of private equity firms' have submitted bids to acquire the trucking and logistics company. Potential buyers were reported to include Clearlake Capital, which holds a 13% stake in the company. Also, buyout firms, including Apollo Global Management (NASDAQ: APO) were reported to have submitted bids. Activist investors have pushed Forward Air (NASDAQ: FWRD) to entertain a sale or other strategic alternatives following its heavily contested merger with Omni Logistics. That deal, which was announced in August 2023, was quickly panned by shareholders as well as some of Forward's legacy customers. Forward's shareholders took issue with the way the transaction was structured as it circumvented their vote. They also had concerns that the deal placed a large debt burden on Forward (a 5.3 times net debt leverage ratio at the end of the 2025 first quarter) and gave Omni's private equity backers voting control. The merger eventually closed in January 2024 after months of litigation, including efforts from Forward to get out of the deal. Forward announced a strategic review earlier this year, but activists said that was too late and claimed the company was 'slow-walking' the process after months of pressure. Activists were successful in forcing three directors – who they blamed for 'massive value destruction' as a result of the ill-conceived merger – to resign from the board last month. The departing board members included Chairman George Mayes, who was voted out by shareholders at the company's annual election. At the same election, shareholders approved the company's reincorporation to Delaware, which may make it easier to sell given the state's favorable corporate governance policies. Forward's stock traded at $110 per share before the deal was announced in 2023. Shares slumped more than 40% in the months following the announcement, later cratering further once the deal closed in early 2024. The stock gapped below $10 shortly after Liberation Day tariffs were announced in April, but has steadily stepped higher in recent weeks as takeout speculation has ramped. Shares stood at $30.60 late in the session on Wednesday. Analysts and investors have told FreightWaves that shares of Forward could be valued at $40, or higher, in a takeout scenario. The back-of-the-envelope math assumes a low-double-digit multiple on the company's roughly $300 million in annual earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. Backing out roughly $1.6 billion of net debt from a more than $3 billion enterprise value leaves equity value somewhere between $1.5 billion and $2 billion. (The company has roughly 42 million shares on a fully diluted basis.) Forward is scheduled to release second-quarter results on Aug. 11. FreightWaves has reached out to Forward Air for comment. More FreightWaves articles by Todd Maiden: FedEx Freight gives shippers 'more time' to adjust to new LTL class rules New LTL freight class rules take effect on Saturday ArcBest CEO Judy McReynolds to retire The post Private equity bids for Forward Air rolling in, report says appeared first on FreightWaves.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Private equity firms including Clearlake have bid for Forward Air, sources say
By Svea Herbst-Bayliss and Abigail Summerville NEW YORK (Reuters) -A handful of private equity firms, including Clearlake Capital, Platinum Equity and EQT, have submitted bids to buy Forward Air, three sources familiar with the matter said, as the process to sell the U.S. trucker picks up speed. Forward Air, which specializes in moving hauls which do not take up a full truckload, signaled to investors it wants the strategic alternatives review it announced in January to be wrapped up in a few weeks, possibly around the time the company is expected to release earnings on August 11. Sources said buyout firms Apollo Global Management and AIP have also made bids to buy Forward Air. It could not be immediately learned what the bidders were offering to pay, the sources said. Representatives for Forward Air and AIP declined to comment. Clearlake, Apollo, Platinum and EQT did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The sources spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the private talks, and cautioned no deal is guaranteed and other bidders could still emerge. In June, Reuters reported that Apollo and Blackstone, as well as Platinum and Clearlake, had expressed interest in bidding for the company, signing confidentiality agreements in order to review documents that would help inform their decisions. Greeneville, Tennessee-based Forward Air's share price has tumbled roughly 75% since the company said two years ago it would acquire Omni Logistics, a deal that closed in early 2024. But it has jumped 27% over the last month, pushed by expectations the company will eventually be sold. It traded at $28.14 on Wednesday. The company is currently valued at $855 million, but on a fully diluted basis, including net debt, analysts said the company's enterprise value is closer to $3 billion. Frustrated by the unpopular acquisition, several investors last year began pushing for a sale of the company, which was officially announced in January. Ancora Holdings, which owns 4% of the company, in May sought to speed up the process by pushing for the removal of three long-serving directors it blamed for signing off on the Omni deal and stalling the sales process. The directors resigned soon after the company's annual meeting. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Reuters
a day ago
- Business
- Reuters
Private equity firms including Clearlake have bid for Forward Air, sources say
NEW YORK, July 23 (Reuters) - A handful of private equity firms, including Clearlake Capital, Platinum Equity and EQT, have submitted bids to buy Forward Air (FWRD.O), opens new tab, three sources familiar with the matter said, as the process to sell the U.S. trucker picks up speed. Forward Air, which specializes in moving hauls which do not take up a full truckload, signaled to investors it wants the strategic alternatives review it announced in January to be wrapped up in a few weeks, possibly around the time the company is expected to release earnings on August 11. Sources said buyout firms Apollo Global Management (APO.N), opens new tab and AIP have also made bids to buy Forward Air. It could not be immediately learned what the bidders were offering to pay, the sources said. Representatives for Forward Air and AIP declined to comment. Clearlake, Apollo, Platinum and EQT did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The sources spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the private talks, and cautioned no deal is guaranteed and other bidders could still emerge. In June, Reuters reported that Apollo and Blackstone (BX.N), opens new tab, as well as Platinum and Clearlake, had expressed interest in bidding for the company, signing confidentiality agreements in order to review documents that would help inform their decisions. Greeneville, Tennessee-based Forward Air's share price has tumbled roughly 75% since the company said two years ago it would acquire Omni Logistics, a deal that closed in early 2024. But it has jumped 27% over the last month, pushed by expectations the company will eventually be sold. It traded at $28.14 on Wednesday. The company is currently valued at $855 million, but on a fully diluted basis, including net debt, analysts said the company's enterprise value is closer to $3 billion. Frustrated by the unpopular acquisition, several investors last year began pushing for a sale of the company, which was officially announced in January. Ancora Holdings, which owns 4% of the company, in May sought to speed up the process by pushing for the removal of three long-serving directors it blamed for signing off on the Omni deal and stalling the sales process. The directors resigned soon after the company's annual meeting.
