Business is booming at Adrian Carriers in Milan.
Adrian Carriers has served as a depot for shipping companies all over the country for over 20 years. Now one of the largest shipping companies in the world, Maersk Line, will use Adrian Carriers as a main hub, increasing the number of trucks coming through our area by several thousand a year and adding dozens of jobs to the company.
"We've been growing steadily, we've grown over four times in the last three years, we're up to over 200 employees here now," Adrian Carriers President & Owner Gary Adrian says.
Right now, up to 300 trucks come through the depot a day, about 100,000 trucks a year, carrying commodities like grain and animal feed for big manufacturers like John Deere.
With today's announcement, they're expecting to increase shipments by several thousand more a year and make new hires to help with the extra business.
"It will add jobs for sure because the containers will be repaired and stored here," Adrian says.
No word on just how many jobs this will add, but company owners say it's been a steady process.
They've been hiring drivers and clerical office employees regularly, adding on about 20 new employees over the last few months.
With thousands more trucks stopping in Milan, owners say we could see a boost at some QCA businesses.
"There already has been a significant impact over the last three years," Adrian says, "The drivers go to the restaurants, and buy fuel here, etc."
The hub in Milan would also cut carbon emissions from fuel by ten million pounds a year and lower shipping costs by making things more efficient.
"Normally a container would be taken back to Chicago empty if it is unloaded in the Quad Cities, or vice versa, you'd have to pick the container up empty in Chicago and come down here," Adrian says, "That all comes down to the empty dead head miles you don't run."
"Instead of running empty half the time, we're running loaded all the time," he says.
Adrian says lower shipping costs could also possibly decrease costs on goods for consumers, an all around win win for the QCA.
"It decreases the cost for the shipper so if they pass that on, yes it would," Adrian says.
