Crowley Receives Award of Excellence in Customer Service from Toyota Logistics Services
(Jacksonville, Fla.; June 7, 2007) – More than 300 Crowley, Southeast Toyota and Toyota Logistics Services employees joined Jacksonville, Fla., port and community representatives at a luncheon yesterday to celebrate Crowley’s award of excellence in customer service from Toyota. The ceremony was an opportunity for both Toyota and Crowley executives to present the award formally to those front-line employees who work so diligently at Crowley’s port facilities to ensure on-time deliveries of vehicles in showroom condition. This was the fifth year that Toyota has recognized Crowley with this distinguished award.
“Crowley is an integral part of Toyota’s continued success,” said Jim Finkel, corporate manager, vehicle logistics administration and planning. “All of the dedicated Crowley employees played an important role in Toyota’s success last year. With on-time deliveries, and damage rates much lower than the national average, Crowley and its employees are to be commended.”
Beginning with their first shipments of cars from the U.S. to Puerto Rico in 1992, Crowley has been the exclusive carrier of Toyota vehicles to Puerto Rico. The company has nine triple-deck barges, some of which are more than two football fields long, which are towed by large oceangoing tugs between Jacksonville, Fla., and San Juan, Puerto Rico. The vessels and Crowley’s vehicle handling processes continually meet Toyota’s strict standards for quality.
Crowley reinvests profits to maintain and enhance the car decking on its vessels such that all have padding, alignment lines, and fresh paint. The padding on posts, rails and alignment lines were added to minimize the potential for damage to vehicles during the loading and unloading process. The vessels are equipped to accommodate between 200 and 400 vehicles per voyage.
Crowley employs a dedicated team of auto checkers and traffic specialists to handle vehicle shipments. The terminal’s entire traffic department plays a large role in ensuring that load lists are correct and documentation is complete.
“We are extremely proud of our people who have made this relationship with Toyota a continued success,” said Rob Grune, Crowley senior vice president and general manager of Puerto Rico and Caribbean services. “There has never been a doubt in our minds that our people are the best in the industry and it is exciting to have our customers recognize them publicly as such as well.”
About Crowley
Jacksonville-based Crowley Maritime Corporation, founded in 1892 in San Francisco, is primarily a family and employee-owned company that provides diversified transportation and logistics services in domestic and international markets by means of four operating lines of business: Liner Services, Logistics Services, Petroleum Services and Marine Services. Other services provided within these business lines include contract towing and transportation; ship assist and escort; energy support; salvage and emergency response; vessel management, and petroleum and chemical transportation, distribution and sales. Additional information about Crowley its subsidiaries and business units may be found on the Internet at www.crowley.com.
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