MEMPHIS, Tenn.- When customers visit Royal Furniture showrooms in the Memphis area to buy furniture for their homes, they're looking for the royal treatment, but they don't want to pay a king's ransom.
"We've always had a reputation for providing customers quality furniture with an upscale look at affordable prices," said Michael Faber, vice president of Royal Furniture.
Maintaining that reputation is part of the reason why Royal Furniture runs a delivery fleet of 13 Kenworth T270s, Faber added. "Running these Kenworths in our delivery fleet reinforces the corporate image that we try so hard to maintain."
The Kenworth T270s have also contributed to a substantial reduction in fuel costs for the company's delivery fleet, said Faber, who noted that the use of automatic transmissions, a move to 2-minute engine idling reduction shutoff, and the T270's aerodynamic hood and bumper also were significant contributors. "When we first considered getting new trucks back in early 2008, our raw fuel costs were really high," he said. "So, anything we could do to get those costs in line was very important."
Before the company started running the Kenworth T270s, each driver averaged between 6 and 6.5 mpg, Faber said. Now, the average is 8.5 to 9 mpg, or up about 40 percent, depending on the driver and driving conditions. Faber estimates that the Kenworth T270s save the company about $75,000 annually based on a current price of diesel fuel at $2.55 per gallon.
"Those fuel savings from the Kenworth trucks, combined with the price of fuel going down since 2008, has helped us save hundreds of thousands of dollars and has kept our company profitable during what has been a very challenging year," Faber said. "When the price of fuel goes back up, we will be about 40 percent more efficient and that's a huge deal."
Royal Furniture's Kenworth T270s are equipped with 200-hp PACCAR PX-6 engines rated at 520 lb-ft of torque and 5-speed Allison automatic transmissions. The trucks are also equipped with air ride suspensions to protect the thousands of dollars worth of furniture the company's drivers are delivering, Faber said. Royal Furniture operates the Kenworth trucks through a full-service lease with MHC Truck Leasing, the local PacLease franchise in Memphis. "Full-service leasing allows us to concentrate on the business of furniture sales and deliveries, and outsource all of that maintenance work and parts inventory tracking to somebody else," he added.
Every day, Royal Furniture delivery trucks fan out from the company's distribution center in Memphis to make about 100 deliveries to eight locations in Tennessee and one in Mississippi. Ten of the company's 13 Kenworths deliver furniture from the company's store locations to customers on various assigned routes. The other three trucks move furniture from the distribution center to the stores and from store to store.
"The Kenworth T270s look so sharp when they're out in the community delivering furniture," he said. "It's all a part of our corporate image. When customers walk into a Royal Furniture showroom, they expect to see a well-designed, modern, sleek facility. The same is true of the company's delivery trucks."
Faber said the Kenworth T270s also provide company drivers with a comfortable, ergonomically friendly work environment with controls that are easy to see and use. The cab is quiet and the truck's 50-degree wheel cut makes the truck easy for drivers to maneuver, he added.
"Our drivers are usually our last point of contact for customers, so it's important to provide drivers with a comfortable work environment," he said. "The Kenworth T270 certainly does that."
Royal Furniture and its drivers also appreciate the service they get from MHC Kenworth in Memphis, Faber said. MHC Kenworth schedules routine maintenance services on the trucks so that the work is completed in a timely fashion and doesn't interfere with the company's delivery schedules.
"While missed deliveries can and do happen, they're just something we try to avoid," Faber added. "To quantify it, each missed delivery can cost us anywhere from $250 to $500 because of the driver's time and the fuel cost, and the time it will take to reschedule the delivery. That's of course, if the customer will still take delivery of the furniture, because at that point the customer could decide to refuse and then we would miss the sale.
"I'm very proud that we have a tremendous number of repeat customers, and even generational customers. We've had parents and kids and their kids buy furniture from us," said Faber, who himself is a third generation family member of the company's founder, James Bach. "We've been fortunate and blessed to provide quality furniture for many years. It's important to keep our quality reputation among customers. We're able to do just that by operating Kenworth trucks and receiving parts and service support from our local Kenworth dealer."
Kenworth's quality products, combined with excellent dealer support from dealers such as MHC Kenworth - Memphis, contributed to Kenworth receiving the 2009 J.D. Power and Associates award for "Highest in Customer Satisfaction for Heavy Duty Dealer Service."*
Kenworth Truck Company is the manufacturer of The World's Best(R) heavy and medium duty trucks. Kenworth is an industry leader in providing fuel-saving technology solutions that help increase fuel efficiency and reduce emissions. The company's dedication to the green fleet includes aerodynamic trucks, medium duty diesel-electric hybrids, liquefied natural gas trucks, and the Kenworth Clean Power(R) no-idle system. This year, Kenworth became the first truck manufacturer to receive the Environmental Protection Agency's Clean Air Excellence award in recognition of its environmentally friendly products. In addition, Kenworth is the recipient of the 2009 J.D. Power and Associates awards for Highest in Customer Satisfaction for both Over the Road Segment and Pickup and Delivery Segment Class 8 Trucks. Kenworth's Internet home page is at www.kenworth.com. Kenworth. A PACCAR Company.
