The History of Berner Trucking, Inc.
Starting in 1946, John Berner, who had returned from World War
II, decided to use his skills as a diesel mechanic he picked up while
serving in the Navy. He returned to the Ohio valley and, since
transportation of coal was a booming industry at the time, bought his
own truck and trailer and contact local haulers to get business.
The business took off with Mr. Berner's knowledge, hard work and ability to competitively price his services. His business grew until he was able to purchase other trucks in the 1950s and hire his first drivers. The business continued to grow until the recession had taken hold of the industry in the 1970s. In 1979, when the business had about 10 trucks, Jim Knisely joined the company which became incorporated as well. Having the same attitude as John, Jim worked alongside John night and day to make sure the company survived. In 1982, when it seemed very bleak for all trucking companies, Jim decided to go into sales. He took a leap and went into the hazardous waste industry and anchored a strong foothold there.
In 1987, as Mr. Berner was getting older and wanting to slow down, he stepped down and Jim Knisely then became president of Berner Trucking, Inc. Two years later, when the company had begun to grow, a sister brokerage company was developed; Knisely, Inc. At that time, they had outgrown their small office and garage behind Mr. Berner's house and moved into a more appropriate office/garage complex capable of handling the demand of a growing business.
The company grew by gaining more customers and had also developed a close
relationship with the owners/operators that had helped grow the company. In
2000, when scrap in Detroit was reaching record number, Berner Trucking started
a branch of rolloff operators in Detroit. They started off with seven trucks
and trailers servicing accounts in the Detroit metro area. Berner Trucking had
become so busy in the Toledo/Detroit area that it was no longer feasible to
manage these drivers from Dover and so, in 2003, started a terminal in Toledo,
OH. With success in this area, Berner Trucking purchased a facility near downtown
Toledo in 2007.
Today Berner Trucking is in Dover and the Toledo/Detroit area and has trucks stationed 45 miles from Charlotte, NC servicing accounts for customers in that area as well. There are around 110 active power units that Berner/Knisely corporation owns as well as around 50 owner/operators receiving brokered loads. Berner Trucking hopes to continue growing these numbers while striving to achieve even higher standards of hauling freight for their customers.