Profile: Arkansas Best Corporation (ABFS.O)

Arkansas Best Corporation is a holding company. The Company, through its subsidiaries, is engaged in motor carrier transportation operations. The principal subsidiary of the Company is ABF Freight System, Inc. (ABF). ABF offers national, inter-regional and regional transportation of general commodities through standard, expedited and guaranteed less-than-truckload (LTL) services. General commodities include all freight except hazardous waste, dangerous explosives, commodities of exceptionally high value and commodities in bulk. ABF accounted for 96% of the Company’s consolidated revenues for the year ended December 31, 2008. The Company’s LTL motor carrier operations are conducted through ABF, ABF Freight System (B.C.), Ltd., ABF Freight System Canada, Ltd., ABF Cartage, Inc. and Land-Marine Cargo, Inc. (collectively ABF).

LTL carriers service shipping customers by transporting a variety of large and small shipments to geographically dispersed destinations. Typically, shipments are picked up at customers’ places of business and consolidated at a local terminal. Shipments are consolidated by destination for transportation by intercity units to their destination cities or to distribution centers. At distribution centers, shipments from various terminals can be reconsolidated for other distribution centers or local terminals. Once delivered to a local terminal, a shipment is delivered to the customer by local trucks operating from the terminal. In some cases, when one large shipment or a number of different shipments at one origin terminal are going to a common destination, they can be combined to make a full trailer load. A trailer is then dispatched to that destination without rehandling. The Company, in addition to the traditional long-haul model, has implemented a regional network to facilitate its customers’ next-day and second-day delivery needs. Through a multi-phased program, ABF’s regional network covers the eastern two-thirds of the United States.

ABF provides direct service to over 98% of the cities in the United States. It offers interstate and intrastate direct service to more than 41,000 communities through 286 service centers in all 50 states, Canada, Guam, Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands. Through relationships with trucking companies in Mexico, ABF provides motor carrier services to customers in that country as well. ABF’s shipments of general commodities differ from shipments of bulk raw materials, which are commonly transported by railroad, truckload tank car, pipeline and water carrier. General commodities transported by ABF include, among other things, food, textiles, apparel, furniture, appliances, chemicals, nonbulk petroleum products, rubber, plastics, metal and metal products, wood, glass, automotive parts, machinery and miscellaneous manufactured products.

ABF competes with YRC National Transportation and YRC Regional Transportation, (operated by YRC Worldwide, Inc.); FedEx Freight and FedEx National LTL (operated by FedEx Corporation); UPS Freight (operated by UPS, Inc.); Con-way, Inc.; Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc.; Saia, Inc., and Vitran Corporation, Inc.