Cardiff Transport

Cardiff General Transport roots for new generation Volvo trucks

Cardiff General Transport has taken delivery of eight units of Volvo’s FM420 4x2 Tractor trucks from AlFuttaim Auto & Machinery Company (FAMCO). Cardiff General Transport has grown to be one of the largest and most successful transportation companies in UAE with its unique corporate culture. The company prides in its excellent services and high professional standards, affirmed atop company official.

“Our organizational culture is based in principles, ethics and values. Our commitment is to work together towards a common goal and to exemplify the highest standards of personal and professional ethics in all aspects of our business. We are backed by a dedicated team of customer oriented Office staff, trained and experienced drivers and various fleets of vehicles,” asserted Basheer Mohammed, Business Development Manager, Cardiff General Transport, in an exclusive interview with Global Supply Chain. With several years of expertise to its credit, Basheer affirmed that the company strives to provide excellence in service to all its loyal clients through its professional team work. “Cardiff Transport is well-known for its timely fleet supply and its prompt service,” he stressed.

Cardiff Transport has established a wide range of operations in oil-field industry, attracting one of the sector biggest players ADNOC. Providing 24/7 on-shore and offshore transportation, project management, vehicle lease and vehicle rental, custom clearing and forwarding services to their major client demands they follow some of the highest safety and quality standards in the region. The Cardiff Transport philosophy revolves around the uncompromising standards of safety and the high quality of customer service provided. The following is the transcript of the interview: Global Supply Chain: (GSC): What are the challenges and priorities you face as an operation? Basheer Mohammed (BM): The current market situation is indeed challenging and customers are becoming more and more empowered and demand more and better services and accountability. The continued hike in the fuel price is having a serious impact on the expense side of the business and it is really tough to maintain the customers who insist on more discounted prices rather than increasing the price.

Consequently, we are not able to maintain the same cost for the trips in the present context. Controlling the fuel cost and maintenance cost is second important task in the transportation industry where you need to be pro-active and bring more strategic tools to control these costs. Cardiff Transport has a separate department for fuel controlling and The Musaffah, Abu Dhabi based company decided on Volvo Trucks after intense vetting and examination. With this procurement, Volvo Trucks has made further inroads into Abu Dhabi.

The Cardiff Transport team receiving the symbolic Volvo Trucks key from Vladimir Knezevic (front row, fourth left).

monitoring and appropriate control over its use, price and impact on the business. GSC: How has your fleet operation changed over the last decade? BM: The backbone of our service is extensive support from customer-oriented operations team and well-trained drivers and operators who are specialised in the oil & gas industry. We utilise the capabilities of our full services according to customer requirements. We treat every working project as our own and complete the task as a partner.

Safety is the important part of the oil & gas industry and it is crucial that transporters are able to match the safety and environmental requirements of a sector that becoming cleaner and greener. The company has established its own dedicated HSE (Health–Safety-Environment) department as part of an effort to protect lives and the environment from any unsafe operations. In the oil & gas industry, everything is reported and safety comes first, there is no compromise on safety rules and regulations. One of the major factors that we care about is safe transportation. Cardiff Transport’s HSE department monitors and trains employees to work according to oilfield site rules and regulations.

Whoever violates safety rules, they will have to face actions according to the violation matrix and given safety orientation in order to improve the quality and standard of work. Basically that is the requirement of

Cardiff Transport offers 24/7 on-shore and offshore transportation, project management, vehicle lease, custom clearing and forwarding services

customer itself, the operations to be done as per the ADNOC rules and regulations and we are taking the necessary measures to follow it accordingly. GSC: Specifically how do you maximize uptime in your fleet? BM: The critical role of our maintenance department to maximize the uptime for our fleets. All of our trucks have extensive service contracts with the Dealers and they are support by extended warranty and genuine parts that come with additional warranty period, which helps us to improve on the quality as well as for saving also for a long term relationship.

We follow proven education programmes that increase fuel economy by 10%. We enjoy good partnership with FAMCO and are committed to a long-term business relationship. GSC: Looking ahead, what changes in the market will affect your operation and how do you plan to remain one of the sector’s leading operator? BM: The market is very sensitive, but as long ADNOC is innovating and brining more technologies and increasing the oil and gas production, we are expecting more projects in that sector.

Providing customer-centric solutions in different segments and being flexible to customer requirements enables us to keep costs manageable and build business relationships for the long haul. GSC: What features of the new truck do you feel benefit your operation? BM: The Advance Brake System has a good control over the engine. However, a proper training session is required from the manufacturer.

In case of vehicle break-down, there is extra 3-Gear manual transmission which can be used in an emergency situation. Also, the fuel monitor system installed in the trucks is good feature. GSC: Why, in your opinion, is FAMCO is a good partner for your operation? BM: FAMCO brings the latest techniques and modern machines that comprehensively comply with all requirements of international standards. That is the start to a good business relationship with the company. Volvo trucks are productive and reliable, constitute a good and cost-efficient buy and we are very comfortable working with FAMCO on this count. n