Delivering with Precision, Flexibility, and Confidence

Bruce Albright, Senior Distribution Center Manager at Falken Tire and Dunlop Tire, oversees day-to-day operations at the company's Joliet, Illinois distribution center. With more than 30 years of warehousing and logistics experience and seven and a half years with the company, Bruce is responsible for a large and complex operation.

The Joliet DC is a 385,000-square-foot facility running one shift, five days a week, with occasional Saturday operations when volume demands it. The site employs 35 team members dedicated to keeping the operation running smoothly.

From a logistics standpoint, the mission is clear: pickups must happen on time, deliveries must happen on time, and service disruptions must be minimized.

In the tire business, timing matters even more than in many traditional shipping environments.

Unlike palletized freight that can often be unloaded quickly by forklift, tire deliveries are far more labor-intensive. Tires are often unloaded one by one, which means unloading can take up to two hours, not 35 to 40 minutes. That makes the delivery appointment window far more critical.

When a truck arrives late, the downstream effects are immediate. Customers schedule labor around expected delivery times. If a truck is delayed, their team may be left waiting with paid labor sitting idle. In many cases, a late arrival can also force a rescheduled delivery, which means the customer may not get the tires they needed on the day they needed them.

For Dunlop + Falken, that makes carrier performance a direct part of customer service.

The relationship between GP Transco and Dunlop + Falken began around mid-2020, when Dunlop + Falken was looking to add capacity to its carrier network.

Initially, the companies started doing business through GP Transco's brokerage side. But the turning point came after GP Transco leadership visited Bruce and his team in person to present the company's capabilities.

During that conversation, one detail stood out immediately: GP Transco's delivery territory closely mirrored Dunlop + Falken's customer footprint.

That alignment opened the door to a bigger partnership. Bruce shared customer delivery locations, GP Transco evaluated pricing and capacity, and from there the relationship began to scale. As Bruce described it, "it just flourished from there."

From Bruce's perspective, great carrier service comes down to two essentials: on-time pickup and delivery, and consistent, proactive communication.

If a carrier is late picking up at the DC, it impacts warehouse labor, scheduling, and overtime. If a carrier is late delivering to the customer, it impacts the customer's labor plan, unloading window, and ultimately the customer's own business.

In the tire industry, those service failures can create immediate friction. That is why reliability matters so much — and why Dunlop + Falken values a carrier partner that can consistently execute against those standards.

For Dunlop + Falken, transportation performance has direct consequences on labor, customer service, and overall operational efficiency. In an industry where unloading takes longer, appointment windows matter more, and delays can quickly impact the end customer, the right carrier relationship makes a measurable difference.

Since 2020, GP Transco has become that kind of partner.

Through proactive communication, professional service, flexible drop trailer support, dependable capacity, and a relationship-driven approach, GP Transco has helped Dunlop + Falken build a more reliable outbound operation — and a stronger experience for its customers.