Regional logistics provider Ascend has been recognized as the 2021 Truckload Carrier of the Year (small fleet category) by The Home Depot. Ascend earned the award for providing dry-van, full truckload services to the home improvement giant, carrying hardware, supplies, and building materials for just-in-time shipments to their fulfillment centers, stores, and distribution centers.  

The honor is given annually to the organization that best helps the home improvement leader “build the fastest, most efficient, and reliable supply chain in home improvement,” according to award criteria. 

“We’ve sustained double digit growth in freight volume since the start of the pandemic. The service excellence we’ve enjoyed from Ascend has been important to our continued success managing this growth," Steve Alonso, senior dDirector, Transportation, said. 

“At Ascend, we are relentless about satisfying shippers. This award underscores our employees’ commitment to providing safe, reliable, on-time services,” Ascend CEO Michael McLary said. “We are honored to be a trusted partner for The Home Depot at a time when their pipeline for essential goods and services is so critical.”  

Ascend was formed in 2021 by the merger and integration of J&B Services, based in Pontotoc, Mississippi, and Milan Supply Chain Solutions, based in Jackson, Tennessee, which had The Home Depot contract. Ascend also announced the acquisition of Dedicated Transport Solutions, of Greenville, South Carolina, this past January. 

Ascend’s asset base currently consists of more than 1,000 tractors and 3,000 trailers and its brokerage service can provide specialized flatbed and temperature-controlled capacity.