Dan Einwechter
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Introduction
Daniel (Dan) Einwechter(1955 - ) is the founder and CEO of Challenger Motor Freight, the largest privately owned trucking firm in Canada. Today, Challenger is a $200-million-a-year-plus operation and has more than 1,700 employees with 4,300 trucks and trailers operating across Canada, the United States and Mexico. He graduated with a honours business administration degree from Wilfrid Laurier University.
History
Dan started Challenger in 1975 at the age of 20, while he was a second year business student at Wilfrid Laurier University. Renting trucks as needed, he began by finding and keeping four key clients—Phillips-Lau, Uniroyal, Magna and Electrohome—that allowed him to start buying trucks and his business grew quickly. By 1985, Dan had established an office in Cambridge and the company had grown to a fleet of 100 trucks.
Dan continued to make constant improvements to his fleet. In 1989, Challenger became the first Canadian trucking company to introduce two-way satellite tracking, allowing dispatchers to determine where each truck and its cargo is on an hourly basis. In 1994, Challenger became the first carrier under the new NAFTA agreement to receive authority for Mexico, and provide transportation services across the entire continent.
In 2003, Challenger worked to reduce harmful gas emissions by participating in Canada's Clean Air Corridor project, making it one of the first companies to deploy heavy duty engines operating on liquid natural gas. In 2007, Challenger became a SmartWay partner, dedicated to reducing emissions and increasing fuel economy. In 2005, Challenger moved into new headquarters in Cambridge that covers 53 acres, with buildings totalling 126,000 square feet. In addition to this facility, Challenger uses 650,000 square feet of warehousing in Kitchener-Waterloo.
Dan has worked continuously as an advocate for the trucking industry, serving as past chairman of both the Ontario Trucking Association and the Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA). He has worked to help raise the profile of these associations and the trucking industry across the continent.
Among Canadian trucking companies, Challenger has the highest percentage of its fleet approved for the FAST (free and secured transportation) program that allows its drivers to cross the Canada-U.S. border with minimal delay.
Over the years, Challenger has been recognized with numerous awards. In December 2003, Challenger was listed as one Canada’s 50 Best Managed Companies for the third year in a row. The company also received the Shippers Choice Award in 2002, 2003 and 2004, the CITA Carrier of the Year 2002, and the Purolator "Carrier of the Year" Award two years in a row.
Awards and accolades
- 2003 Trailmobile Service to Industry Award (the highest honour bestowed upon an executive in the Ontario trucking industry)
- 2002 Al Palladini Transportation Person of the Year
- 2002 Ontario Entrepreneur of the Year Award in the “Business-to-Business, Products & Services” category
- 1998 Elected Chairman of both the Canadian Trucking Alliance and the Ontario Trucking Association.
External links
Challenger website - http://www.challenger.com
