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March 22, 2000 11:00 AM, EST

In a move heralded by industry analysts as a possible turning point for the beleaguered truckload segment, six of the nation’s largest truckload carriers last week agreed to combine their logistics operations into a new Internet-based transportation logistics company called Transplace.com.

The online venture is aimed at creating a one-stop “supermarket for transportation solutions” by merging the non-asset-based logistics services of J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Werner Enterprises, Swift Transportation, M.S. Carriers, U.S. Xpress Enterprises and Covenant Transport. Total logistics revenue for these carriers in 1999 was $650 million.

Each company will contribute $5 million to the start-up and will share in ownership of the enterprise, which will be headed by Jun-Sheng Li, president of J.B. Hunt Logistics. Li said Transplace.com, to be based in Dallas, will go public within a year.

In addition to providing logistics services, Transplace.com will negotiate discounts on the purchase of fuel, equipment, maintenance and repair parts, insurance, credit and other services for its equity partners and other carriers that chose to join the purchasing cooperative.

For the full story, see the Mar. 20 print edition of Transport Topics. .