In business, success is often measured by metrics such as on-time delivery percentages, load counts, and capacity margins.
We move freight from point A to point B, managing the daily complexities of the supply chain. But every so often, an event occurs that strips away the transactional nature of business, revealing the true core of what we do.
For Alex Buening, a Senior National Account Director at Spot, and his team, that moment arrived when Hurricane Helene tore through Asheville, North Carolina.
When the Lines Go Dark
When a natural disaster strikes, a logistics professional’s natural instinct is often to check the status of freight and facilities. But when Buening reached out to a long-time customer contact in Asheville on the morning of the storm, the priority quickly shifted from tracking shipments to ensuring human safety.
The initial phone calls lasted only two or three minutes before cell towers failed, dropping the connection entirely. By that afternoon, the lines went completely dark.
“Helplessness would be a word that comes to mind,” Buening recalls, reflecting on the time spent waiting for updates, unsure of the safety of people his team had worked alongside for years.
More Than Just a Customer
When contact was finally re-established, the news was bittersweet. While the facility’s team members were safe, the devastation on the ground was severe. Some had lost their homes and vehicles; others had lost loved ones. Basic necessities like clean water and food were scarce, and the local infrastructure was in chaos.
In times of crisis, it becomes clear which business partnerships are purely transactional and which are built on something deeper.
“This team in particular to me and to our team, they’re more than just a customer to us,” Buening stated. “We’ve forged some pretty strong personal relationships with these folks.”
Faced with a partner in crisis, the question wasn’t, “When will the plant reopen?” It was “How can we help?”
Logistics in Action: Driving the Extra Mile
True logistics expertise isn’t just about managing routine routes; it’s about solving critical problems on the fly under intense pressure.
Buening immediately connected with team members in the nearby Spot Charlotte office. The response was instantaneous. The Charlotte team leaped into action, bypassing red tape to coordinate an immediate relief effort:
- They rented a cargo van that the team could drive to deliver the much-needed aid.
- The team went to a local big-box wholesale store, packing the vehicle to the ceiling with water, food, and emergency supplies.
- With major highways blocked and infrastructure compromised, the team manually navigated closed roads, snaking their way through the wreckage to reach the Asheville plant.
The Most Rewarding Delivery
The supply chain is the backbone of the economy, but at its best, it is a lifeline. Shortly after the delivery, Buening received an email from the customer—a message he considers the most rewarding of his professional career.
In logistics, thousands of loads are dispatched and delivered every single day. Most are forgotten as soon as the invoice is cleared. But when a team uses its logistics expertise, agility, and resources to support the people behind the business, it leaves a lasting impact.
We deliver a lot of freight. But it’s the deliveries driven by genuine partnership and empathy that remind us why we do this work.