ATA Featured Member: Jonesco Trucking, Inc. Petroleum & Propane Transporter
Mike Nesbitt, President and Owner of Jonesco Trucking, has been a Head Athletic Trainer, an Instructor, an Assistant Professor, an Associate Professor and a Tenured Associate Professor; but trucking has always been his first love.
According to Nesbitt “trucking was my golf game, my recreation, my hobby, my everything!” He would drive fuel trucks for Win Oil on the weekends while he was teaching and coaching and use the drive time to unwind, reflect and plan for his students and players. Eventually his employer helped him to get his own truck and Jonesco Trucking was founded on April 4, 1979.
Nesbitt and his partner Jones combined the spelling of their last names to create the company’s name Jonesco. Nesbitt would go to work at his trucking company from 5 AM to 9 AM, then go to work at the university, then back to the trucking company in the evening. Jones would service the truck and haul the fuel. After about one year Nesbitt bought his partner out and as sole owner Nesbitt has made Jonesco a premier provider of fuel transportation; celebrating thirty-three years in business on April 4, 2012!
Jonesco Trucking its headquarters in Bellemont, Arizona. It maintains Safe Haven parking locations for its drivers in Camp Verde, Farmington, Kingman, Phoenix, Tucson and a location in Gallup New Mexico. The company has come a long way from its days of just one truck and now has seventeen petroleum trucks, four equipped with pumps, and a propane rig. It transports gasoline, diesel and propane for a major oil refinery company and four local distributors; and services convenience stores, marinas and bulk fuel storage facility locations in Arizona, Southern Colorado, Southern Nevada and Western New Mexico.
Jonesco Trucking is dedicated to the safety of the public, its customers, employees and the trucking industry. It takes special care to maintain a top notch safety program. Maintaining strict compliance with all Hazardous Materials Regulations is paramount and additional safety precautions are practiced as well. For instance the company makes an assertive effort to avoid driver fatigue. According to Nesbitt “We operate all day cabs, no sleepers, our drivers are not on the road overnight, they’re home every evening.” In 2007 ATA presented Jonesco with the annual Arizona Fleet Safety Award. The company also received the 2003-2004 Safety Award from the Arizona State Compensation Fund for its outstanding safety record.
The company encourages its drivers to be award winners also, in 2011 Jonesco driver Clint Mattison won the ATA Driver of the Second Quarter Award.
Jonesco Trucking’s vehicle maintenance operation is first-rate. In 2009 Paul Titus, Jonesco’s Master Mechanic, won the ATA Maintenance Technician of the Year Award. Not only does its customers benefit from its exceptionally maintained equipment, the benefits extend into the community. Jonesco allows the Arizona Department of Public Safety to use its equipment for training Fire Fighter personnel in the proper methods of handling incidents involving hazardous materials..
Jonesco has been a faithful member of ATA since July 28, 2004. Nesbitt was first introduced to ATA’s third party vehicle registration services through a recommendation from an employee at another third party operation and joined ATA primarily to stay current with industry issues and standards. From the start he was impressed with the dynamics of ATA President and CEO Karen Rasmussen. “She can come across with the importance of the political arena and what politics means to the industry” says Nesbitt. He continues “She’s a tremendous leader. That’s why the ATA is growing like it is because it has tremendous leadership.”
In addition to the legislative advocacy, some of the other membership benefits Nesbitt appreciates are the registration and licensing services he uses for his fleet and the seminars offered by ATA covering various industry issues.
Nesbitt is proud of his years as an educator and often evaluates his business from an educator’s perspective. He recognizes how the dynamics of the ATA encourages fellowship, relationship, and networking among its members and its’ Board of Directors. He understands the value of the learning and insight that’s gleaned from such interaction. When asked what he values most about his ATA membership his response was from an educator’s perspective:
The Truck Safety Day at the Capitol was a fantastic event. It’s things like that that I value about ATA. We in the industry got to talk in a different setting with our rigs around us; we had the opportunity to talk without the pressure to buy something. I just think that’s great. Sitting and listening to Kevin Knight and others gives you insight. When you listen to the giants of the industry you can learn, relate, or find out where you’re good and where you need to improve. When you critic your business model by what others are doing you can get a lot better, you have to be open minded, willing to learn and don’t be intimidated.
Nesbitt has learned from many good business people that in order to be successful you must have a strict business model and stick with it. Nesbitt’s message to folks on how to be successful in the trucking industry is “[don’t] try to become successful doing something that you don’t know much about.”
Nesbitt applies his own advice and his years of coaching experience to his business model, “Find a niche in the trucking industry and make it your model. Do it well and stay with it. Get your people to buy into it, encourage them to do their best and excel in what they do,” says Nesbitt.
Mike Nesbitt found his niche in fuel hauling, refined his business model and trained and encouraged his employees; this has made Jonesco Trucking a winner!
You can find out more about Jonesco Trucking by calling them at 928.779.7028, visiting their website at jonescotrucking.com or stopping by their Bellemont location at 11766 East West Bellemont Road, Bellemont, AZ 86015.