TRANSFORCE has entered into a deal to acquire an equity interest in EnQuest Energy Services of Calgary, Alta., including the oilfield transportation assets such as Speedy Heavy Hauling. EnQuest provides energy services, primarily in the US, including the transportation of rigs, cranes, other oilfield equipment and oversize loads. The assets acquired by TransForce generate annual revenues of about US$50 million, the company reports. TransForce’s US subsidiary Hemphill Trucking will be integrated with the new companies, operating as Hemphill-Speedy, headquartered in Grand Junction, Colo. The deal is worth about US$32 million. TransForce has also secured $650 million in financing which it said it will use “for corporate purposes consistent with its established strategy.” Canada’s largest trucking company secured the financing from 15 lenders, led by National Bank of Canada and Royal Bank of Canada. It includes a $200 million five-year term loan and a $450 million revolving line of credit, the company announced.

TST OVERLAND EXPRESS has acquired a new 52-door cross-dock terminal in Calgary that will more than triple its capacity there, according to parent company TRANSFORCE. TST recently added direct line hauls from Dallas, Texas to Calgary, which it says reduces freight handling and transit times. That lane, and the anticipated increase in volumes, will be handled by the new Calgary terminal, the company says. In other news, TST Overland Express has also slashed delivery times from California and the southcentral US to two days to Vancouver and three days to Calgary. The company says the reduced delivery times are possible thanks to a direct line haul and proprietary technology. The direct line haul lanes run from Texas and Los Angeles to Calgary and Vancouver, reducing freight handling and transit times, the company claims. Its proprietary technology, meanwhile, has been designed specifically for expedited, efficient management of route and cross-border activity. Based on input from customers, brokers and Customs agencies, the systems ensure the required documentation is ready to go when required, reducing border delays, TST says.

TRANSX CROUP OF COMPANIES has appointed Ron Joseph as president of its US division, TRANSX USA. Company officials say Joseph is responsible for the expansion of the US truckload brokerage business and his appointment coincides with the launch of a new Web site, www.transxusa.com. Joseph, who reports to Louie Tolaini, president of TransX Group of Companies, has more than 30 years of transportation experience most recently at FedEx Ground as senior vice-president of linehaul, safety and maintenance. Prior to FedEx, Joseph was first director then vice-president of Roadway Package System, being part of the team responsible for the company’s creation. Joseph’s accomplishments include numerous FedEx and ATA Awards.

HGH has unveiled its new 45,000-plus sq.-ft. headquarters, warehouse and shop. Perched on six acres of land at 34 Perdue Ct. in Caledon, just north of the fleet’s former head office in Brampton, the new facility boasts reflective blue-tinted glass, modern offices, a tractor-trailer wash bay, a 12,000 sq.-ft. shop and 15,000 sq.-ft. of warehouse space. Officials say the new terminal was built with drivers and owner/operators in mind. Drivers will soon be able to drop their truck at the terminal after a trip, enjoy their 36-hour reset period and then get back on the road without having to travel off-site to fuel up, weigh their load, wash their equipment or seek repairs. (The wash bay and shop are already up and running with the fuel island and in-ground scale yet to be installed). Company president Jas Shoker says he plans to grow the 100-truck fleet by 25% within a year, and is launching an LTL division as well as a new direct service to Mexico.

US-based ESTES has launched a new three-day service to Calgary and Edmonton from six terminals in Texas and Oklahoma. The company says it’s able to offer the new service thanks to improvements in freight processing, reduced freight handling and the use of direct lanes into Alberta, reducing service to Edmonton and Calgary from five days to three. The company will provide three-day service to Calgary and Edmonton from its terminals in Houston, Temple, San Antonio, Dallas, Fort Worth and Oklahoma City. Estes says it has consolidated freight at inland regional gateways to achieve higher efficiency, avoiding congested border terminals and improving its document processing capabilities in advance of arrival at the Canadian border.

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