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Gregory Distribution
Family-owned firm trims costs and sees profits leap by a third to £11m
Gregory Distribution rides pandemic wave
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Despite being “significantly impacted” by the Covid-19 pandemic, Gregory Distribution Holdings has rallied with profit up by a third, according to its latest annual results.
Reporting its figures for the year ending 3 October 2020, the Exeterbased haulier revealed that pre-tax profit had jumped to £11m (2019: £8m) while turnover had dipped slightly to £238.3m (2019: £238.9m).
As a result of the pandemic, the company was forced to make a number of redundancies, cut directors’ pay, review wages and delay capital investment.
However, the firm added that the diversity of its customer base, its service range and the strength of its balance sheet had helped it through what it described as a “turbulent” time to deliver increased profit.
It said that by taking swift action it had “recovered more quickly than anticipated, enabling us to exceed expectations for the year, albeit with a different mix of work and phasing as a result”.
The family-owned firm operates a fleet of over 1,000 vehicles and around 1,900 trailers, and employs over 2,700 staff across 35 locations including depots in Exeter, Plymouth, Shepton Mallet, Cullompton, Bristol, Birmingham, Aberdeen, Stockton-on-Tees, Great Yarmouth and Cumbernauld.
The company is part of a group that includes Hayton Coulthard Transport and ARR Craib Transport, and is a member of both Palletline and Palletways. It specialises in ambient and temperature-controlled palletised services, as well as ambient and chilled warehousing.
The Algorithm People, developer of pay-as-you-go route optimisation platform My Transport Planner, has secured $2.2m (£1.6m) of funding from a consortium of tech investors led by former Sage chief executive Stephen Kelly.
It said the cash will allow it to accelerate plans for UK and international growth and focus on the opportunity created by the world’s race to Net Zero. The Algorithm People specialises in fleet management solutions and helps operators transition to electric and other low emission vehicles.
The software uses algorithms to calculate the most efficient routes and schedules for vehicles engaged in deliveries, collections and site visits.
The platform is proven to reduce total fleet mileage and costs by up to 30%.
Zemo Partnership ready to take on net zero challenge
The 2021 Zemo Partnership Annual Conference – its first since the transition from LowCVP – will be held online on Tuesday 20 July.
The event is held in association with Net Zero Week, taking place between 17 and 23 July.
Following the government's petrol/diesel phase-out announcement and the strengthening of 2035 greenhouse gas emissionsreduction targets, the conference will examine whether the UK government can deliver on its promise and what the transition will mean for road users and other stakeholders. n Zemo Partnership and the DfT
have also relaunched an updated Freight Portal, which aims to provide better support to operators
looking to decarbonise their fleets.
Industry beats Kent clamp laws
Ministers have bowed to pressure and removed controversial powers from Kent County Council (KCC) to clamp HGVs parked in lay-bys.
The widely criticised initiative enables the council to ban trucks over 5 tonnes from stopping in the county and has been in place since January. Logistics UK wrote to transport minister Rachel Maclean in May objecting to KCC’s attempts to make the temporary measure permanent, pointing out that there was already an existing shortage of parking places in the county.
The RHA called the plans “an abuse of process” and said the strategy was “an attack on the dignity of drivers”.
Heidi Skinner, Logistics UK policy manager, said: “While the announcement is welcome, it is now vitally important that the DfT works closely with KCC to create sufficient safe parking spaces.”
KCC said it was “short-sighted” not to continue to allow it to clamp lorries, but that it would continue to protect communities from illegal HGV parking.
In-demand Kettering site up for grabs
A “fantastic commercial opportunity” near Kettering comprising 6,685 sq ft of buildings and a four-acre surfaced storage yard for HGV parking has gone on the market.
The Staveley Yard site in Cranford, close to junction 11 of the A14, can be rented as a whole or in lots, according to land agent King West.
It said access is via secure electric gates and it also has CCTV, secure perimeter fencing and lighting. Up to 55 HGVs can be parked on site. There is also a WC and bathroom facilities, which are due to be upgraded by the landlord.
Ben Ainscough, King West director, said: “There is currently a significant gap between the supply and demand for warehouse space and HGV storage in the Midlands. Staveley Yard, near Kettering, is a fantastic prospect for the logistics sector and we expect to receive considerable interest in the site.”
