Local Trucking Company says Safety is Top Priority
By: Mycah Glover
Updated: April 5, 2012
MIDLAND -- As the oil boom continues, we keep hearing negative reports on the trucking industry. People have been complaining about traffic, speeding, and trash. But one local company is taking measures to make sure safety is top priority.
Permian Transport and Trading has been operating in the Basin for over five years. Since the oilfield started booming, they've experienced a lot of growth. Because of that, they're taking extra measures to make sure their drivers and everyone around them stays safe.
Armando Marquez says driving for Permian Transport and Trading has changed his life. "Staying busy. Supporting my family. Doing things I wasn't able to do before with my family. Get to take vacations. I don't have to live check to check no more," says Marquez.
Drivers for Permian Transport and Trading have one main goal. "Basically, we're the guys that go out and gather the oil from the field, bring it back to the end markets, and deliver it to places like here in Midland at the tank farm," says Alex Hale, vice president of Permian Transport and Trading.
Their top priority is safety. Hale stresses, "Our guys are trained both from the beginning before they ever get in a truck and also on the job with a driver trainer weeks at a time before we ever turn them loose. There's a series of steps we go through to check them out and make sure they know how to handle the equipment."
Taking it a step further, they have incentives to ensure safety and cleanliness in the oilfield and on the road. "We actually have a safety performance quarterly bonus plan that we implemented," adds Hale.
Marquez says he enjoys the benefits of staying safe, "The money is good. I can't complain about it." But he says he has an even bigger incentive to keep himself and everyone around him out of harms way. "My number one is I got to get home to my family at the end of the day."
