NJBIZ Honors Local Resident Craig McGraw as One of Its Top Business Professionals
For his achievements, his commitment to business growth and development, and his professional excellence in a New Jersey business, NJBIZ has named young professional Craig McGraw, Marlboro, the vice president of sales and marketing for Trans American Trucking & Warehouse, South Plainfield, N.J., a recipient of its 2020 NJBIZ Forty Under 40 Award. McGraw will receive his award at a virtual ceremony on Wednesday, October 28.
Established in 1976, Trans American Trucking & Warehouse provides customers with trucking, warehousing, export packing, and logistic services throughout the United States and Canada. The company specializes in over-the-road transportation of heavy and specialized freight, such as transformers for power distribution substations, turbine runners for hydroelectric dams, and massive pieces of custom-built industrial machinery.
Our fleet is made of up approximately 200 trailers and 50 power units,” said McGraw. “Our largest trailers are multi-axle, up to 22 when using a pusher truck that can accommodate 300,000 pounds over the road.”
As a youngster, McGraw rode with Trans American truck drivers. Later he worked in the warehouse and did a variety of other jobs in the company. Although he graduated from Seton Hall University in 2005 with a B.A. in criminal justice planning to become a police officer, after the 9-11 terrorist attacks, the job market was flooded with people seeking law enforcement careers.
After accepting a sales position in the family business, McGraw said, “I sat in the office for a year to relearn everything from dispatch to rates and warehousing operations.” His passion, however, was “getting out on the road to do sales.”
In 2018, he became Trans American’s vice president of sales and marketing responsible for meeting with customers and potential customers in the lower 48 states and Canada; supervising the sales team; attending international conventions; and keeping the website, social media, and marketing materials current. Now COVID-19 restrictions have him working more from home, doing business by email and phone calls.
McGraw serves on the Board of Directors of the Railway Industrial Clearance Association and is a member of Forbes Business Development Council. Besides business, McGraw is devoted to community and charitable programs. He is a member of NPDF (National Police Defense Foundation), which runs the Operation Kids charitable program that helps fund surgery for underprivileged children. McGraw also serves on the board of Team Walker, a nonprofit in Jersey City that provides inner city children with a safe and secure environment to study and participate in athletics, surrounded by positive role models.
He serves on the board of the YMCA of Greater Monmouth County where he organizes the annual “Occupy the Block” party for Freehold Borough, which encourages positive interaction between community children and the police.
McGraw’s other honors include being named one of the 2015 “Forty Under 40” award winners by NJBIZ, a New Jersey business news publication. He also received the School of Arts & Science Good and Faithful Servant Award from Seton Hall University in 2018; and the Distinguished Member Award from the NPDF in 2019 for his work in organizing the Occupy the Block party.
For more information, contact McGraw at cmcgraw@transamer.com.
About Trans American Trucking & Warehouse: Trans American, 115 St. Nicholas Avenue, South Plainfield, N.J., ships within the contiguous United States and Canada. The company was one of the first Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) and Free and Secure Trade (FAST) certified carriers. Trans American workers hold the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC). The company is a member in good standing of the Railway Industrial Clearance Association (RICA), the Specialized Carriers & Rigging Association (SC&RA) and the NY/NJ Foreign Freight Forwarders and Brokers Association. Visit www.transamer.com for more information.