As published in Toledo Business Journal - February 1, 2021

Financing aids growth of truck driving school

(L to R) Dan Saad, Citizens National Bank and Mike Moscinski, Trainco Truck Driving Schools

(L to R) Dan Saad, Citizens National Bank
and Mike Moscinski, Trainco Truck Driving Schools

Trainco secures nearly $1 million to fund company

A Perrysburg-based company, Trainco Truck Driving Schools, has obtained financing at an important time that will allow it to continue its growth. By structuring a mix of financial products and services, needs of this growing company are being supported in order to position it to serve an expanding client base.

Trainco worked with Dan Saad of The Citizens National Bank of Bluffton. First, mortgage financing was provided in order to refinance the company’s property. Saad was also able to assist the company with securing a Small Business Administration (SBA) Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan along with truck financing. In addition, two important financial support products were set up – cash management and merchant processing services.

According to Saad, the total for all of the financing was $951,795.

“The financing helped the company by being able to provide all of their financial needs at one financial institution – whether it was a building, equipment, account, or even merchant processing. In a great rate environment, we were able to consolidate their loans and payments and increase their monthly cash flow, which is especially important for businesses this last year,” explained Saad. “We were also able to help them take advantage of the SBA PPP program, which alone resulted in almost $200,000 of forgivable funds.”

“We have worked with Mr. Saad for years, and he understands what small business is up against,” said Ken Howell, president of Trainco, Inc.

It is especially important that the company be positioned to support current growth opportunities, according to Perrysburg-based Trainco. As the population and economy grow, the demand for goods increases as well as the need for truck drivers. With this rising demand for shipping, the need for additional truck drivers is at an all-time high.

The American Trucking Associations (ATA), in a post by Matthew Sham on August 22, 2020, stated the trucking industry added 100,000 jobs in 2019 and currently employs about 7.8 million people, including 3.5 million drivers.

Trainco's Perrysburg facility

Elena Mazareanu, research expert covering the transportation logistics industry, mentioned in her Transportation and Logistics Statista articles published on August 3 and September 11, 2020, that the freight volume in 2019 carried by the trucking industry has increased to 11.84 billion tons, with this same volume having a market value worth $791.7 billion.

Trainco Truck Driving Schools, with over 10,000 graduates and a 90% placement rate, works to provide qualified drivers for the trucking industry. The school, located on a 16-acre training facility, complete with a CDL testing site that is open six days a week, was founded in 1996 by Howell, a former truck driver who now provides CDL training for new drivers.

Trainco offers two types of full CDL Class A programs. One is a 12-day automatic driver education program, which costs $3,499, and a 15-day manual driver education program, which costs $4,000. The best feature for both programs, according to Trainco, is the affordable tuition.

These complete tractor-trailer driver education programs help prepare individuals for their CDL driving exams and provide an entry to the trucking industry, noted Trainco. The school educates students with full-size, Class A tractor-trailer combinations. The Trainco fleet of 17 tractors are used to train students pulling 48 and 53-foot vans.

Trainco also offers an accelerated program. This 40-hour refresher course is designed to polish the skills of a driver with previous experience, or hone the abilities of a student preparing to enhance their skills. Entrants review progressive shifting, coupling and uncoupling, the five “seeing” habits, a variety of backing maneuvers, and more.

“During the past 15 years, the trucking industry has struggled with a shortage of truck drivers. There are many reasons, but one of the largest is the relatively high average age of the existing workforce,” said Howell. “This driver shortage is really a problem for the entire supply chain as 71.4% of all freight tonnage is moved on the nation’s highways. Trainco Truck Driving Schools are doing our part to help offset today’s driver shortage.”