Toledo / Ohio / United States
The history of Berner Trucking Starting in 1946 John Berner, who had returned from World War II, was 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 big industry at the time, he bought his own truck and trailer and contacted local haulers to get business. The business took off with Mr. Berners knowledge, hard work, and ability to be competitive in price. His business grew until he was able to buy other trucks in the 1950s and hire his first drivers. The busines continued to grow until recession had taken its grasp in the 1970s. Jim Knisely joined the company in 1979, when there were around 10 trucks. and, at this time the company became incorporated. Having the same attitude as John, Jim worked alongside John day and night to force the company to survive. In 1982, when it seemed very bleak for all trucking companies, Jim went into sales. He took a leap and went into the hazardous waste industry and anchored a strong foothold. In 1987, as Mr. Berner was getting older and wanting to slow down, he stepped down and Jim Knisely became president of Berner Trucking Inc Two years later, when the company had begun to grow, a sister company for brokerage developed; Knisely Inc. At that time, they had outgrown their small office and garage behind Mr. Berners house and moved into a more appropriate office/garage complex able to handle the demand of a growing business. The company grew gaining more customers and had developed a close relationship with the owner/operators that had helped grow the company. In 2000, when scrap in Detroit was reaching record numbers, 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, OH and 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 in DoverOH, Toledo/Detroit area, and has trucks stationed 45 miles from Charlotte, NC servicing accounts for customers as well. There are around 110 active power units that Berner/Knisely corporation owns as well as around 50 owner/operators get brokered loads. Berner Trucking hopes to help grow these numbers and strive to achieve higher standards hauling freight for their customers.
