News Releases
Dynamex goes the distance to help Canadian Blood Services save a young life
September 21, 2011What began as a call from Canadian Blood Services (CBS), a long-time client of transportation logistics company Dynamex, ended in a two-week long fight to save the life of one very unique three-year-old boy.
The young patient, hospitalized in Winnipeg, required a rare blood product only available from Héma-Québec in Montreal. The problem was, the product only had a lifespan of 24 hours before it expired, and the patient needed it every day before his bone marrow transplant, including the very day that CBS called Dynamex for help.
"The timeline was one of the tightest we had ever worked with," says Maynard Skarka, President of Dynamex, "but we knew we had the resources to make it work."
With a life on the line and little room for error, Dynamex set into motion a strategy for taking the short-lived blood product halfway across the country. This involved moving the shipment from Héma-Québec as soon as it was ready at 5:30 pm to the Montreal airport in time to catch the last Air Canada flight to Winnipeg. There, the cargo services department had to work beyond regular business hours in order to receive the blood product and send it out to CBS for processing.
"We knew the product would be useless if it didn’t make it to CBS on time," says Skarka. "But with the help of Air Canada and their willingness to collaborate with us, we delivered the shipment within the 24-hour window every single day."
Dynamex’s close partnership with Air Canada made it possible to overcome the inevitable obstacles of flight delays and mechanical breakdowns. In the end, it was the teamwork of every person involved that saved the patient’s life. After two weeks, the three-year-old was healthy enough to brave the bone marrow transplant and start the road to recovery.
Dynamex is a wholly-owned subsidiary of TransForce Inc. (TSX: TFI)
Profile
TransForce Inc. is a North American leader in the transportation and logistics industry. Operating across Canada and the United States, TransForce creates value for shareholders by identifying strategic acquisitions and managing a growing network of wholly-owned, operating subsidiaries. Under the TransForce umbrella, companies benefit from corporate financial and operational resources to build their businesses and increase their efficiency. TransForce companies service four well-defined reportable segments:
- Package and Courier;
- Less-Than-Truckload;
- Truckload, which includes specialized truckload and dedicated services;
- Specialized Services, which includes waste management, energy sector services, logistics and ancillary transportation services.
TransForce Inc. (TFI) is publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX). For more information, visit http://www.transforcecompany.com .
Dynames Joins U.S. EPA Smartway Transport® Partnership
September 14, 2009
Dynamex Operations West joined the SmartWay(TM) Transport Partnership, an innovative collaboration between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the freight industry designed to increase energy efficiency while significantly reducing greenhouse gases and air pollution.
Dynamex is contributing to the Partnership's goal to reduce 33 to 66 million metric tons of carbon dioxide and up to 200,000 tons of nitrogen oxide per year by 2012 by improving the environmental performance of our freight operations. Carbon dioxide is the most common greenhouse gas, and nitrogen oxide is an air pollutant that contributes to smog. By joining SmartWay Transport Partnership, Dynamex demonstrates its strong environmental leadership and corporate responsibility.
"The trucking industry contributes to about 75% of the emissions today and a significant amount of fuel consumed nationally. By Dynamex joining in this initiative we are helping to improve the efficiency of the fleet our Transportation Service Partners operate and reduce these numbers and make a better environment for everyone" said Randy Tuggle, Dynamex Director of North American Compliance.
Launched in February 2004, the SmartWay Transport Partnership aims to achieve fuel savings of up to 150 million barrels of fuel per year. The Partnership brings together major freight shippers, trucking companies, railroads, logistics companies and trade/professional associations to pursue mutually beneficial efficiencies that result in emissions reductions and other environmental improvements, as well as cost savings to the companies. The Partnership currently has over 1800 Partners.
