PROFILE

Goggins Transport Limited – It all began on the N17!

Along the famed N17 road from Tuam to Galway city, there is a now dormant dancehall in the townland of Cummer. In its day, Cummer Dancehall was a thriving hotspot for regular weekend dances, attracting huge audiences from far and wide to see and hear top Showbands perform. Venues like these, dotted around the country, many in rural areas, effectively replaced the open air ‘dancing at the crossroads’ custom, that had entertained previous generations.

Growing up nearby was Martin Goggins, who no doubt often treaded the boards at his local dancehall when he wasn’t operating his fledgling road haulage business as an owner driver. Indeed, it’s fair to say that Martin has passed along many such crossroads en route to building up a successful large transport company, one that has many strings to its bow.

Established in 1979, Goggins Transport Limited remains a privately owned, family run road haulage company which has grown to become one of Ireland’s leading logistics companies, with over 90 tractor-units and in excess of 220 trailers. Its motto from the beginning has been that it strives on providing an excellent, reliable and predictable service, which can be tailored to each of its clients’ specific needs.

Goggins’ geographical profile, with five depots across Ireland and the UK, puts the firm in a good position to offer customers full coverage to and from both islands. The company specialises in container deliveries / collection throughout the UK and Ireland (North & South) as well as general haulage and distribution, using its own liveried Skeletal, Tautliner, Coil Carriers and Euroliner semi-trailers.

Over the years, business development centred towards the east coast of Ireland, with the result that two depots were set up in Dublin, one situated at Greenogue Industrial Estate adjacent to the M50 and the other in the heartland of Dublin Port. A western depot remains in Galway and a sales office is maintained in Wexford, near Rosslare Europort, while the UK depot is in Liverpool, not far from the city’s International Port. While the company’s primary work is in operating its truck and trailer fleet right across the UK and Ireland, Goggins’s can also cover mainland Europe upon request. “We provide full GPS monitoring of all of our trucks and pride ourselves on being an efficient, professional and cost effective haulage company.” said Declan Goggins, Managing Director, Goggins Transport.

Declan, explains the ethos within the company: “While we come from a ‘hands-on’ road haulage background, we have a team of experienced staff members very capable to deal with all aspects of the modern day transport and logistics world. We also have the ability to deal with large tenders and procurement processes. We are committed to the long term sustainabil-

ity of this sector and frequently engage with various transport organisations in order to ensure that our finger is fully on the pulse of an ever changing business landscape. To achieve these desired targets, we monitor and control our fuel emissions and we educate and train our drivers in best practices in order.”

Declan outlined the principles and practices that have defined the company over the past four decades:

“Optimisation: We have the tools, knowledge and experience to maximise the efficiency of our fleet, enabling the client to focus on their core business.

Costs: We ensure that transport costs are driven down and controlled through our own salaried, trained and full-time drivers who use a range of on-vehicle telematics to ensure all vehicles are operated safely

and efficiently, measuring a range of driver applications such as fuel efficient driving, harsh braking and unnecessary engine idling. Every vehicle is fitted with multi-angled cameras which assist in keeping insurance costs under control. All trailers are fitted with tracking devices and monitored remotely within the traffic desk.

Safety: Our enviable and pro-active reputation for safety in operation and quality management provides great assurance for our customers and ensures that their products are handled safely and efficiently. We can provide the knowledge, skills, systems and assets to optimise customers’ supply chain needs, whilst understanding the dynamics of the supply chain with fluctuation in demand and seasonal variations.”

Being holders of the respective waste permits in both Ireland and the UK, Goggins’ can also carry waste loads. “With both flatbeds and extendable trailers as part of our arsenal, we pride ourselves on being able to accommodate for all types of out-of-gauge, heavy or abnormal loads. While the safety of the goods is of paramount important while in transit, we also source the relevant permits needed, ensuring all aspects of the goods transportation is adhered to. Our services are also equipped to carry any and all categories of ADR material such as hazardous gases, flammable liquids, self-reactive solids and toxic/corrosive substances. As an extension of this, our staff force are trained in the stringent health and safety aspects of the proper carriage and transportation of all hazardous materials.”

Collaboration with Europe’s second largest pallet pooling provider, LPR, has allowed Goggins to expand even further in recent times. The partnership sees Goggins operating the transport, storage, repair and distribution of LPR pallets at two of its depots in Galway and Dublin. An investment of more than €500,000 across both new sites will allow the movement of one million pallets initially, with additional potential to increase business expected. The depots, which employs up to 20 staff, are equipped with state-of-the-art equipment, including two inspection towers, Vac-uLifts, two repair benches and semi-automated in and out feeds, while the Dublin site features a paint booth.

LPR, La Palette Rouge, a division of the Euro Pool Group, is a pallet-pooling company for manufacturers and distributors in the fast-moving consumer goods sector (FMCG). LPR operates throughout Europe, providing a full pallet service to its customers and their retail partners. LPR pallets comply with hygiene regulations applying in the food sector and are reserved strictly for the FMCG sector, in order to avoid any risk of contamination. LPR covers Western, Southern and Eastern Europe with a network of more than 125 depots that manage pallet delivery, collection, inspection and repair. The business is comprised of eight subsidiaries which manage operations in more than 20 countries, including the Goggins depots in Galway and Dublin.

Commenting on the development, Mark Prendergast, Operations Manager at Goggins, said: “We’ve always enjoyed a good working relationship with LPR and the time was right to extend that partnership with the two new depots. We both have ambitious ideas for growing the sites and ensuring that our customers receive the level of service that they demand.”

Mercedes-Benz Actros is the truck of choice within Goggins Transport, with

a number of additions and renewals to the company’s extensive fleet in recent years. Declan Goggins explained that the Actros delivers proven reliability and excellent fuel savings, year after year.

Since 2015, fourteen new models from the multi-award winning high specification Actros range (from 2545LS & 2548LS) have been purchased, some with StreamSpace cabs and others with BigSpace and GigaSpace versions. In fact, Goggins has been a MercedesBenz customer since the company’s foundation. To mark its 40th anniversary in 2019, a special project restoring one of its earliest trucks, a 1979 Mercedes-Benz 1632 4x2 tractor-unit was undertaken. A symbolic move saw one of the new Mercedes-Benz Actros trucks bearing the registration plate 191-G-1979 with a 40th anniversary motif on the cab, while another noticeable aspect is that the livery changed from orange and white to white and red, which is just as distinctive.

Declan Goggins, Managing Director at Goggins Transport (right), pictured taking delivery of six new Mercedes-Benz Actros trucks. With him is Paul Keegan, Fleet Management Executive at MUTEC, Dublin.