We’ve almost reached the end of 2020. 2020 had a lot of challenges but Americans are resilient so most of us have found healthy ways to cope with our new realities. Here’s to hoping 2021 finds you healthy and prosperous.
Speaking of prosperous, if you read Andy’s Manager’s Desk article, most divisions had a solid year in 2020. The energy division also did well again this year, which will allow us to continue to invest in new trucks and other equipment and services in order to increase safety and efficiency.
The easiest way for us to increase our efficiency is through routing our deliveries properly. That is why we ask our will call customers to call in when they are around 30%. It gives us a chance to work the will call orders into our scheduled delivery orders for the greatest efficiency. If you call in to order your propane, please work with us to avoid delays or additional charges. For your safety and ours, please don’t create an emergency so that our employees have to enter your home to start your propane appliance after you’ve let yourself run out of propane.
We have quite a few monitors on our scheduled delivery tanks. They report in on a daily basis to give us real time information on the level of propane in the tank. This is the most accurate method available.
The most common way we know when to fill a tank is based on a degree day program. This system uses daily temperatures and past propane consumption to determine when a tank needs to be filled. It’s pretty accurate as long as your heating habits don’t change.
If your heating habits have changed, i.e. you’re working from home or you have kids at home going to school virtually, you will probably be turning your thermostat up so that you or your family members can be comfortable during the day. A degree day program can not recognize this change in consumption. It may behoove you to check your tank once in a while so that your tank stays within a comfortable level. If you are on scheduled delivery, don’t have a monitor on your tank and you see your tank get below 20%, please give us a call. We’ve probably got you on the schedule but it doesn’t hurt to check.
While we’re all going through our yearly right of passage relearning to drive in the snow, please be safe. If you are having trouble getting into your driveway, our trucks probably won’t be able to make it either. Don’t keep your driveway clear of ice and snow for us. Keep it clear for you and your family in case you require an ambulance or a fire truck. What you can do for our delivery personnel is to maintain a cleared path to the tank so they’re not tripping over stuff under the snow that they can’t see.
I’d like to wrap this up by giving you a sincere thank you for allowing us to serve you another year. You’re not just helping the cooperative. Through the business that you choose to do with Premier Cooperative, you’re helping sustain the lives and futures of our employees and their families. Thank you.
