Motor Transport 13 December 2021

Sharp ■ Informed ■ Challenging

‘Safe pair of hands’ now third boss in six months to leave pallet network

HOT TOPIC SECTOR INSIGHT

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Palletforce CEO departs after major restructure

By Carol Millett

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Free inside NEWS INSIDE Stobart named

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Clipper buys Dutch rival

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Drivers’ hours enforcement p6

OPERATORS INSIDE Clipper Logistics............................................ p4 DPD .............................................................p48 DX Group ....................................................... p3 Eddie Stobart ................................................ p3 Fagan & Whalley ........................................... p4 J&J Ashcroft ................................................. p4 MacRitchie Highland Distribution ................... p3 Stagefreight .................................................p50 TST Group ..................................................... p4 Warley Carriers............................................. p4 Wren Kitchens .............................................p46

Adam Leonard (pictured) has left Palletforce, just four months after taking over the role of chief executive from Michael Conroy.

Leonard’s departure closely follows that of Conroy, who made a “personal decision” to leave parent company EV Cargo in September, less than two months after being appointed its UK boss.

Leonard was seen as a safe pair of hands to replace Conroy at the time of his appointment in August, bringing years of experience in the sector to the role.

His previous posts include chief executive of The Pallet Network, which he joined in 2000 as general manager, leading a management buyout in 2007. In January 2020 Leonard joined Palletforce as its member relations director.

Asked why Leonard had left Palletforce after such a short tenure, an EV Cargo spokesman said the network had undergone a major restructuring of its senior management team “to strengthen its position for the future”.

The restructuring sees the role of Palletforce chief executive disappear, with operations director Mark Tapper promoted to the newly created post of chief operating officer – a role the

spokesman said came with “expanded responsibility and authority to deliver operational excellence”.

Tapper will report to EV Cargo chief operating officer Paul Coutts.

In addition, general manager Jo Duncan has been promoted to the new role of hub operations director, while Simon Gibbard, general manager of network operations, takes on the position of network operations director.

David Breeze, regional director for Europe, becomes network development director, while group commercial controller Deb Wallbanks has been promoted to the post of commercial director.

Simon Bradbury, UK head of sales and strategic accounts, steps up to the newly created role of sales director.

Commenting on the restructuring Tapper, said: “The challenges of 2021 have meant that Palletforce

has become more intensely focused on and committed to being the leading network in the sector.

“To support this and further drive operational excellence, there have been a number of people and organisational developments across our senior management team as we continue to invest in people to ensure the highest levels of service to our member businesses.

“Overall, these changes strengthen Palletforce’s operational capability and enable us to increase our focus on member recruitment to strengthen delivery capability and ensure that we continue to deliver the highest levels of quality service to Palletforce members and their customers.”

One pallet network chief executive said: “Pallet networks are hands-on entrepreneurial SMEs and that style of hands-on management does not always sit well with venture capitalists.”

Other industry veterans said the departure of both Leonard and Conroy was indicative of a wider restructuring of the pallet network sector, which has also seen Mark Duggan leave his role as MD of The Pallet Network last July and Nigel Parkes step down as MD of Pallet-Track in April.

RECORD ORDER: Logistics giant DB Schenker has made Europe’s largest pre-order for electric trucks so far after signing a deal with Volta Trucks for 1,470 Volta Zero vehicles. The pre-order is part of wider plans to speed up DB Schenker’s transition to an all-electric fleet. The partnership will see it begin trialling the first prototype in real distribution conditions in the spring and summer of 2022. The findings from these tests will be incorporated into the serial production of the vehicles, built at Volta Trucks’ new contract manufacturing facility in Steyr, Austria. The full-electric 16-tonne Volta Zero will be used in DB Schenker’s European terminals to transport goods from distribution hubs to city centres and urban areas. The two companies will work together to explore the best uses of the technology to potentially expand the offering. The rollout will begin at 10 locations in five countries. The partnership will also jointly develop specifications for the previously announced 12-tonne Volta Zero variant and will conduct site testing to accelerate deployment.

Business barometer p8 Viewpoint: haulage rates p10 Tyres p12 COP26 p18 Marketplace p26 Cost tables p38 MT Awards winners p44-51

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SHARE DEAL: DX Group said chairman Ronald Series had purchased 88,500 ordinary shares after the company said it was not in a position to publish its audited accounts due to an internal investigation. The group is set to have its shares suspended in the New Year following the delay to the release of its results. The parcel freight, courier and logistics service said Series had bought the shares of 1p each at an average price of 21.96 pence per ordinary share. Following the transaction, the chairman now has a total beneficial holding of 2,434,294 ordinary shares, representing 0.42% of the share capital. The company’s audit and risk committee recently raised a corporate governance inquiry relating to an internal investigation. Chief executive Lloyd Dunn and DX Freight MD Paul Ibbetson recently purchased shares worth a combined total of over £115,000.

Stobart drivers were stopped twice at the roadside for breaches last year

Eddie Stobart on list of drivers’ hours offenders

By Chris Tindell

Eddie Stobart is included in a list of operators the DVSA found was committing drivers’ hours offences during roadside inspections of its vehicles in 2020.

The news comes a week after the DVSA was forced to defend its figures after a UK-based firm named on the list insisted it had not attracted any fines for d r i v e r s’ h o u r s breaches.

According to the DVSA, Stobart drivers were stopped twice at the roadside last year in two different traffic areas and found to have been breaching

the rules. One was in the North West traffic area and the other was in the Eastern region. No information is available about the size of fine levied on the drivers for the offences.

T he list also includes Loughborough-based construction haulier Saint-Gobain Building

Distribution, which had 10 drivers’ hours offences marked against it last year. Richard Halderthay, a director at the firm, which holds restricted licences in all traffic areas and runs dozens of operating centres, said: “Where this happens, we support the individual with a tailored one-to-one refresher programme, ensuring we quickly close any knowledge gaps.”

Other companies on the list include BM Logistics and Lovatt Transport, which both had 10 offences against them. For more on this story see our Vox Pop on page 6.

HGV-loving Dylan lands driving job... aged just nine A Scottish transport firm has offered a driving job to a primary school pupil after he sent them his CV and said he would keep his truck clean if they took him on.

HGV-mad nine-year-old Dylan Macleod, who attends Stornoway primary school, wrote to MacRitchie Highland Distribution telling them he already had industry experience.

“I have worked with my Shen [grandfather] at MacRitchie Highland Stornoway yard and deliver around the island doing picky backs and I help put the silver curtain on the ferry,” he explained.

“I cannot wait to drive your lorries and I will keep it clean.”

The firm’s transport manager Catriona MacRitchie wrote back to Dylan thanking him for his application and telling him his resourcefulness, determination and ability were an inspiration.

“If you continue to gain experience over the coming years and if you are still keen to become a lorry driver when you leave school, we would like to offer you a position within our company,” she said.

The DVLA is launching a campaign to warn operators, employers and driver agencies that it is a criminal offence to gain unauthorised access to driver data via the View Driving Licence (VDL) service.

The campaign follows concerns raised by an HGV driver that a driver agency had used his National Insurance number to access confidential details about his driving history.

The search had revealed that he had a drink-driving offence, committed over five years previously, which resulted in the agency refusing to take him on.

However, had the agency accessed the driver’s licence history via the legal route, it would 13.12.21

have only been given information for up to five years, in line with rehabilitation legislation requirements.

The driver, who wishes to remain anonymous, wrote to the DVLA complaints team. In the email, which he shared with MT, he stated: “It appears that the DVLA is inadvertently aiding and abetting the ability for others to delve into peoples’ driver licenses, deeper than the five years that should only be divulged and an area that is only for the use of the DVLA and law enforcement departments. This is discriminating thousands of drivers from applying for HGV/PSV driving jobs.

“This is going to upset a lot of

the ‘blue chip’ companies. The big boys can no longer demand a clean licence for 11 years since this information should and must not be made available publicly.”

Responding, Kayleigh Roberts, DVLA complaints team manager, wrote: “The VDL service was designed to provide drivers with access to check their own driver record.

Individuals are entitled to access all personal data held about them, which helps explain why all the penalties and disqualifications on record are disclosed via this service.”

Photo: Shutterstock

DVLA issues warning over illegal access to driver data

She added: “Upon accessing the VDL service, it is made very clear to users that they need to use a different service if they want to check someone else’s driving licence information and that it is a criminal offence to obtain someone else’s personal data without their permission.”

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Fagan & Whalley profits soar despite market challenges Lancashire-based logistics firm Fagan & Whalley has shrugged off the impact of Brexit, Covid-19 and rising fuel costs to report a surge in pre-tax profit.

Reporting annual results to 30 April 2021, it said that although turnover grew by just 2.5% in comparison with the previous year, pre-tax profit was £1,47m (2020: £484,862) – an increase of 202.2%. The gross profit margin increased by 4.6% to 24.1%, while retained reserves

increased by £867,277 following a dividend of £328,284 to the parent company.

In a review of the transport, distribution and warehousing business, the directors said the principal current uncertainty relates to the price of fuel. However, the company uses variable fuel surcharges to mitigate this risk.

There is also on-going uncertainty relating to the longer-term impact of Brexit on its European distribution network and the effect

of Covid-19, which it said had “severely impacted the local economies”.

“Expansion of our operations with the opening of a depot at the Burnley Bridge Business Park ensures jobs are created not only for the local area, but also with promotion opportunities internally for employees,” the review added.

The firm said it had future-proofed operations with IT investment to link depots across Lancashire and the Midlands.

£14.8m deal gives logistics giant major presence across Europe

Triple whammy of woe kills off J&J Ashcroft

Clipper snaps up Dutch repair rival Clipper Logistics has forged a £14.8m deal to acquire a Dutch consumer electronic repairs specialist, strengthening the group’s existing repair offering in the UK and mainland Europe.

The company has announced it has agreed to acquire CE Repair Services Group, which provides electronic equipment repairs for global blue-chip companies.

Clipper said the Dordrechtbased company has built a marketleading position across the Benelux region, and generated

TST Group in for Warley Carriers TST Group has purchased West Bromwich automotive parts distributor Warley Carriers. The family-owned operator specialises in transporting automotive and retail goods between the UK and Ireland and is a member of Pallet Track.

County Antrim-based TST Group said the purchase will allow it to strengthen its position in the market for express, full load transportation between mainland UK and Ireland and allow it to add express overnight groupage shipments to its offering.

The company added that the group’s location and the proximity of Warley Carriers to both the M5 and M6 motorways gives it two 4 MotorTransport

underlying earnings (EBIT) of £1.61m on revenue of £19.4m last year.

Clipper’s Servicecare and strong, central locations on both sides of the Irish Sea. TST Group, which is also a family-owned firm, provides endto-end supply chain management, including haulage, logistics and warehousing, catering for the food, FMCG and beverage sectors.

RepairTech businesses repaired more than a million electrical products in the past financial year.

The group said, once completed, the acquisition will extend its geographical footprint in mainland Europe and in particular its presence in the circular economy with a full end-to-end suite of services for online and omnichannel retailers.

Clipper added it has already identified opportunities for cross-selling between CE Repair and Clipper’s existing customer base.

Optimism as driver shortage eases Logistics employers are starting to see the green shoots of recovery, according to a new report from Logistics UK. Its ‘Skills Report 2021’ reveals that “significant steps” have been taken to help address the recruitment crisis, with government and industry working together to increase capacity to test new drivers, provide new training schemes and commit to improving HGV driver facilities on the road network.

The report also noted a “significant” rise in HGV driver pay rates.

It states: “Various sources suggest driver pay increases ranged from 7.8% in Q2 2021 compared with Q2 2019 to 18.3% in the nine months to Q3 2021, with some classes of HGV drivers averaging

28.8% increases in advertised salaries.

“However, to sustain salary increases of this level, more value needs to be placed in the service that logistics provides to the economy, and logistics must be paid for the work that it does. As costs to the sector rise, the pressure on margins will increase.”

Photo: Shutterstock

By Carol Millett

Lancashire haulier and stone merchant J&J Ashcroft has gone into administration after battling with ill health, the impact of the Covid pandemic and the driver shortage.

David Acland and Lila Thomas of FRP Advisory have been appointed as joint administrators to the family firm, which was founded in 1935.

Jim Ashcroft, MD of J&J Ashcroft, whose grandfather founded the company, said: “We are, as you can imagine, incredibly upset that we have had to take this decision after such a long trading history.”

The administrators confirmed that all staff have been made redundant and they will be supported with claims to the Redundancy Payments Service.

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VOX POP How fairly are drivers’ hours rules being policed?

There are obviously people out there who break the rules, but really what’s the point in naming and shaming? Surely the DVSA should just get on and manage those hauliers? Are people prepared to break the law with such regularity really going to be worried about being on a document naming offenders?

What is being talked about a lot in this region is hauliers who are found guilty in public inquiries and then are allowed to continue to trade, for a period of time, due to size. Whereas smaller operators are told they have to close with immediate effect.

It’s the inconsistency of the ‘policing’ of all this stuff that annoys people.

Charlie Shiels, CEO, ArrowXL Systemic and sustained non-compliance and/or incompetence/ignorance must be frowned upon. At the heart of industry legislation is safety. But it just gets more complex every year. You’ve got drivers’ hours, then you have the European Working Time Directive layered on top. You don’t just have to look at drivers on a daily, weekly and fortnightly basis – now it’s a 13-week

reference period. Then a driver does something wrong and gets a personal fine of £1,000 for not inserting a tacho card.

Hopefully with Brexit, there will be less European legislation. We don’t want an illegal industry, but the bureaucracy level is beyond ridiculous.

There are people out there who are looking to break the law and if it’s nine hours a day they’re looking to do 10, that’s wrong. If a driver doesn’t do what he’s meant to, we have to discipline him. Because if the DVSA comes in and finds an offence, we can then tell them we’ve dealt with it and here are our notes.

John Fletcher, MD, Dawsongroup The enforcement statistics are meaningless without understanding the severity of the offence. How many of the infringements on the offender list were minor, such as drivers running over time by minutes in a struggle to find safe overnight parking?

Big company transgressions make great headlines. However, the 10 biggest operators named on the offenders list, with collectively well in excess of 5,000 vehicles, attracted 12 offences between them; yet 187 other companies listed had more than 12 each.

New border checks will cause chaos, MPs warn

Photo: Shutterstock

New border checks due to launch next year could cause major “permanent” tailbacks on both sides of the Channel, the House of Lords Justice and Home Affairs Committee has warned in a letter to Home Secretary Priti Patel.

It sets out a stark warning that the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) and the Entry/Exit System (EES)

6 MotorTransport

will create traffic chaos at ports on both sides of the Channel and into Kent, unless the government works with the EU to simplify the process.

The letter raises concerns that the EES checks, which are expected to be launched by the second half of 2022, will “permanently” slow the flow of UK vehicles and passengers to and from the EU, as passengers must step out of their cars to undergo facial recognition and fingerprint tests as part of new Brexit border checks.

ETIAS, which will launch six months after the EES, will require most travellers to apply online for a travel authorisation before entering the EU, involving checks against EU and Interpol security databases and algorithmic profiling.

The committee is concerned the profiling algorithm could result in discrimination on the basis for instance of ethnicity.

LETTERS

The DVSA needs to distinguish between minor infringements and those that blatantly flout the law. How can an operator rack up hundreds of offences and still have unfettered access to our road network?

Enforcement should be about removing the rogue operators, not producing huge volumes of data which in effect hides them.

Bob Terris, chairman, Meachers We probably have a situation where operators who were previously operating beyond the permitted hours are currently operating legally due to the relaxed rules.

Unfortunately, we all know that there are a large number of operators who flout the regulations and the genuine operators would welcome stronger enforcement.

With regard to the list of offenders, I do not think the DVSA is very good with many things and this is probably one that could be added to the list.

We decided not to take advantage of the relaxed drivers’ hours as we feel the existing rules are there for safety reasons and we would not risk the safety of our employees.

I was at a Transport Association meeting recently and a large majority of the 63 companies represented had not extended the working hours of their drivers.

Send letters to the editor at steve.hobson@roadtransport .com

There’s no sense in making returning drivers sit CPC Having retired several years ago, I received a letter in September from the DfT inviting me back to HGV driving. I concluded I would be happy to return for, say, a couple of days a week as a self-employed driver to keep me out of trouble and out of my wife’s hair.

Then came the stumbling block – having made enquires, I was advised, 'yes we would love to employ you on a selfemployed basis, just go and sit in a classroom for a week and do your 35 hours of CPC...'

I don’t think so.

I wrote to Grant Shapps, to my MP and to the BBC, but to no avail. Some three months later I am still at home in my wife’s hair whilst Shapps carries out a review of CPC. So come another three months, by which time the Christmas rush and new year sales will be over, he may have concluded his review and probably done nothing. And I’ll still be at home thinking I could have done my CPC by now... I still don’t think so.

Tony Russell

Photo: Shutterstock

Moreton Cullimore, MD, Cullimore Group

13.12.21

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Business barometer

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Industry profitability remains under pressure as haulage rate increases fall short of rising prices

Rates still trailing costs

Inflation

The annual rate of consumer price index (CPI) inflation in October jumped to 4.2%, the highest monthly figure for 10 years. The price of services rose by an average of 3.2%; and the price of goods jumped by 4.9%.

Energy is a major factor in both cases. Higher price caps for gas and electricity took effect on 1 October, so both recorded massive inflation: gas was 28.1% up on a year ago, electricity was up 18.8%.

Diesel and petrol prices were equally volatile, with the ONS citing a 21.5% annual increase for transport fuels and lubricants. In much the same way as energy costs contribute across the piece, so do labour costs.

An early estimate from the ONS shows median monthly pay in October to be 4.9% higher than a 8 MotorTransport

Sterling exchange rate

There are mixed messages about the relative strength of sterling against other key currencies. The pound’s value against the euro has been creeping up: its monthly average of €1.179 in both October and November is 5.2% above its January average of €1.121 and the highest for 20 months.

Much of the recent appreciation is connected with the sharp rise in UK inflation, raising the prospect of an imminent rise in the base rate. Higher interest rates for sterling investors attract currency traders to buy the pound, so its value rises. The increasing likelihood of a return to Covid lockdowns in continental Europe is also undermining confidence in the euro.

Conversely, the pound has lost value against the dollar over the last six months, with its November figure of US$1.345 the lowest monthly average this year. But this is more a reflection of the dollar’s rising strength, as it has appreciated against most other currencies.

The US economy is recovering quickly and the dollar currently is widely regarded in financial markets as a safe haven. And unlike the pound, the dollar is free of the uncertainty of Brexit’s longterm effects.

HAULAGE RATES 1.4%

% c h a n g e o n p r e v i o us q ua r t e r

year ago. Additionally, sharply rebounding demand for many products has made some materials and components scarce, so their prices have hardened too.

The Bank of England initially believed this hike in inflation would be a brief consequence of the global demand spike triggered by easing of Covid restrictions, so resisted hiking the bank base rate to rein-in inflation. But in November’s Monetary Policy Report, the Bank accepted that inflation would go higher and last longer.

It now forecasts inflation will rise to around 5% in spring, before falling to the 2% target two years from now. We should know more this week: November’s inflation figure is published on Wednesday (15 December) and on the following day the Bank announces its base rate decision. Some economists expect a rise from the current 0.1% to 0.25%.

1.2% 1.0% 0.8 % 0.6 % 0.4% 0.2% 0.0% Q 1´ 20

Q 2´ 20

Q 3´ 20

Q 4´ 20

Q 1´ 21

Q 2´ 21

Q 3´ 21

CONSUMER PRICE INDEX 5.0 % 4.0 %

A n n ua l r a t e ( % )

Haulage rates in the third quarter (Q3) of the year averaged 1.3% more than in the previous quarter.

This is the largest quarterly rate hike in the last three years, as recorded by the Services Producer Price Indices published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

However, the provisional data also showed that Q3 rates were just 2.3% higher than a year ago, and thus lag behind cost rises in the industry.

MT’s own sources suggest that typical average bulk diesel prices during Q3 this year were 17% higher than in Q3 2020.

An RHA member survey published in July found over 60% of respondents had approached customers for additional rate increases to offset higher driver costs, outside any annual rate reviews.

In addition to these steep increases in the two largest cost elements, even the level of general price inflation is running above the haulage rate increases cited by the ONS. This gap between movements in costs and rates suggests falling profitability. It may be partially explained by a time lag in the data, in which case Q4 data, scheduled for release next month, will need to show some significant rate hikes.

3.0 % 2.0 % 1.0 % 0.0 %

Ja n

F eb

M a r

Apr

M a y

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

€

$

STERLING EXCHANGE RATE 1.50 1.45 1.40

£1 buys....

Haulage rates

1.35 1.30 1.25 1.20 1.15 1.10 1.05 1.00

Jun

Jul

Gross domestic product

Aug

The first ONS estimate indicates UK gross domestic product (GDP) in Q3 was 1.3% up on Q2. This means quarterly GDP is now running just 2.1% below the prepandemic level seen in Q4 2019.

But according to comparable Q3 GDP data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and

Sep

Oct

Nov

Development (OECD), that recovery rate puts the UK towards the back of the field.

Spain is further behind (6.6% below Q4 2019), as is Japan (down 2.2%), but the EU as a whole is only 0.2% down. The stand-out country is the US, where GDP in Q3 was already 1.4% up on Q4 2019. ■ 13.12.21

CELEBRATING OUR 50TH CHRISTMAS With a huge thank you to all of our customers past and present for being part of our journey Bandvulc. A Brand of Continental

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MORE THAN A TYRE

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Here’s hoping for a better 2022 T he year just ending must have been one of the toughest in a decade for many operators. While the pandemic loosened its grip on the economy, the shortages of drivers, vehicles and fuel, Covid and Brexit have caused costs Steve Hobson to rise way faster than rates.

Editor Our annual operating cost tables show Motor that running an artic cost 14% more in 2021 Transport than in 2020, with drivers wages up £5,000 per year and tractor prices £14,000 higher.

Our ‘Business Barometer’ on page 8 reveals that diesel prices are also up 17% year on year.

But haulage rates are only 2.3% higher than in 2020, meaning that already tight margins have been squeezed even harder this year. One 3PL told MT this year that if you had the vehicles and drivers, you could just about name your price for any work on offer – but for many that is still

the exception rather than the rule.

It is true that HGV drivers are seriously under-valued for the work they do, but wages have been driven down because the work the whole logistics industry does for its customers and wider society is equally under-valued.

The worry is that any increase in rates in the Christmas peak as customers struggle to find transport capacity will just be a temporary blip and competition will again drive a race to the bottom next year.

It would be nice to think that the pandemic has prompted a re-evaluation of just how critical an industry logistics is – but don’t hold your breath.

This is our last issue of 2021 so from everyone at MT we wish you a happy and successful Christmas and a prosperous 2022.

See you again on 17 January.

Treat HGV drivers with respect D Mike Parr Director, Perishable Movements

espite the assurances of our government, the reality is that those involved in the supply chain for essential food and drink are facing dire operational challenges, and looking at the current situation, these are only likely to worsen as we edge towards Christmas and the New Year.

Try buying a new lorry to add to your fleet of vehicles in an effort to improve efficiency. It is nigh on impossible. And the shortage of HGV drivers who are so instrumental to ensuring the onward smooth transfer from air or ship remains a critical issue, despite the various initiatives that have been put in place.

For those drivers already in the system, morale is low, and many are choosing to seek alternative, less stressful employment.

HGV drivers have traditionally been treated badly in this country. While I have every sympathy and utter admiration for the challenges faced by NHS staff who have led the UK’s response to Covid-19, it’s a shame that the same level of respect is not directed at the drivers who have continued to work tirelessly to ensure the nation has access to essential food supplies.

Suicide rates amongst HGV drivers are 20% higher than the national average.

Spending endless hours alone in the cab, on the road, alone with their own thoughts, these drivers are high risk. Add to that the heightened sense of urgency to

10 MotorTransport

get consignments from A to B to make up for so many other delays and it’s not difficult to see that this is a stressful occupation.

And yet what are the thanks that these invaluable workers receive for their efforts?

Being stranded for hours without food and water because of port delays. Struggling to find somewhere to get a good night’s sleep because of the limited parking facilities that welcome HGV drivers.

With the increasing pressures that are being placed on the HGV driver community as a result of the serious delays at sea and airports, isn’t it time the UK woke up to the fact that our drivers literally hold the key to putting food on the table this Christmas?

This country is in for a very bumpy ride in the foreseeable future. Don’t believe the politicians who refer to a 24-point plan or strategise that research is underway to address the problems. The supply chain industry needs properly planned solutions, not knee-jerk reactions to every crisis.

And part of this must be an improved appreciation for the outstanding efforts of our HGV drivers.

Action not words is what counts.

The newspaper for transport operators

To contact us: Tel: 020 8912 +4 digits or email: name.surname@roadtransport.com Editor Steve Hobson 2161 Head of content Tim Wallace2158 Events and projects editor Hayley Pink 2165 Group production manager Isabel Burton Layout & copy editor Nick Shepherd Senior display sales executive Barnaby Goodman-Smith 2128 Event sales Tim George 0755 7677758 Classified and recruitment advertising rtmclassified@roadtransport.com Sales director Emma Rowland 07900 691137 Divisional director Vic Bunby 2121 MT Awards Katy Matthews 2152 Managing director Andy Salter 2171 Editorial office Road Transport Media, First Floor, Chancery House, St Nicholas Way, Sutton, Surrey SM1 1JB 020 8912 2170 Free copies MT is available free to specified licensed operators under the publisher’s terms of control. For details, email mtsccqueries@roadtransport.com, or call 01772 426705 Subscriptions Email:customercare@dvvsubs.com Quadrant Subscription Services, Rockwood House, Perrymount Road, Haywards Heath, West Sussex RH16 3DH Rates UK £146/year. Europe£176/year.

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If you would like to contribute to MT’s Viewpoint, email steve.hobson@roadtransport.com 13.12.21

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In the groove?

Have the EU’s tyre labelling requirements failed in not taking tyre wear into account properly? John Kendall finds out by assessing the effects of wear on wet grip

I

t’s now nine years since the EU introduced mandatory tyre labelling to provide information on fuel efficiency, wet grip and external rolling noise.

Where fuel efficiency and wet grip are concerned, the tyre labelling regulation ranks tyres from A to G, where A is the best and G the worst. External noise is shown as a measured value and a three-step scale.

To quote the Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA): “The objective of this regulation is to increase the safety and the environmental and economic efficiency of road transport by promoting fuel-efficient and safe tyres with low noise levels.”

Critics have pointed out that while it is very useful to have this information to inform buyers, it would also be

12 MotorTransport

useful to know how these factors change as the tyre wears. So focusing on wet grip performance, we asked a range of tyre manufacturers how wet grip performance changes as the tyre wears.

The first thing to note is that tyre designers are dealing with competing requirements. For instance, if they design a tyre for low rolling resistance that will benefit fuel consumption, it’s not likely to benefit wet grip because the features that make a tyre noisy are likely to be those that help to provide good grip.

Hankook’s recently-launched 51 series of regional truck tyres improve wet grip throughout the tyre’s life through the use of innovative “self-regenerating” honeycomb tread designs that regroove themselves as the tyre wears.

Guy Heywood, director of marketing and sales Europe at Hankook Tire & Technologies, says that by employing 3D printing to make tyre moulds and using new materials the inevitable compromises between wet grip, mileage and rolling resistance have been significantly reduced, putting Hankook ahead of the other premium tyre manufacturers.

“Tyre manufacturing technology and materials science are moving fast,” says Heywood. “With 3D-printed moulds we can make more intricate tread patterns that regroove themselves as they wear.”

Influencing grip

Goodyear sales general manager, commercial for UK and Ireland Kate Norton explains the factors that influence grip levels. “Firstly, the type of tread compound: the more silica, the higher grip,” she says. “Then, the design: more sipes [thin, blade-like grooves] and deeper grooves will increase the level of grip. Then lastly, void rotation: the bigger the empty space/void in the tyre tread, the more water can be evacuated, lowering the aquaplaning risk.” ➜ 14 13.12.21

Tyres Aquaplaning is a particularly dangerous phenomenon caused when the road surface is very wet and the tyre cannot shed water fast enough. This can result in the wet surface behaving like ice, where the tyre is not in contact with the surface directly because of the quantity of water on both the surface and the tyre, causing the tyre to plane across surface water and leading to a loss of steering control and traction.

Norton points out that heavy commercial vehicle tyres (C3) and light commercial vehicle tyres (C2) have lower aquaplaning risks in comparison to passenger car tyres (C1). Focusing on C3 tyres, this is because they have a greater depth of tread, meaning they can evacuate more water more easily.

Truck tyres are generally also bigger than those used on cars and vans, which means the part of the tyre in contact with the ground, the contact patch, is also bigger, meaning more grip. Trucks are heavier and operate at lower average speeds, which improves grip and also reduces the chances of aquaplaning.

Tread reduction

The deep tread on a new truck tyre helps to ensure that aquaplaning can be avoided, but inevitably that tread depth is reduced as the tyre wears. Smart design and manufacturing techniques can help ensure that wet grip performance is maintained.

Where Goodyear drive axle tyres are concerned, Norton says: “We work with dual tread compound for optimised mileage performance with no compromise on traction throughout the tyre life. For instance, even at 75% worn, our KMAX D Gen 2 and FUELMAX Endurance drive tyres still offer significant traction potential and showcase a high siping density.”

Steve Howat, general manager – technical services at Continental Tyres, agrees that generally, the wet grip of drive axle tyres is less affected. “Drive axle tyres usually experience less of a drop in wet grip performance than

14 MotorTransport

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SEEKING MORE SUSTAINABLE TYRE PRODUCTION There is a danger that the whole debate about vehicles and environmental sustainability will simply get lost in the scramble to produce electrically-powered vehicles, while sidelining the many other aspects of sustainable production and use. Tyres have a big role to play in the environmental performance of vehicles, best demonstrated by the development of low rolling resistance tyres over the past 30 years or so.

Carbon black is used in the manufacture of tyres – a by-product of the oil industry, used as a reinforcing filler and also to help conduct heat away from the tread and belt to extend tyre life. Around one billion tyres reach the end of their useful service life each year, yet less than 1% of all carbon black used around the world in the manufacture of new tyres is recycled.

Bridgestone and Michelin are working together to provide a shared perspective on the recycling of carbon black and increasing the use of recovered carbon black in new tyres. The two companies have identified a weak supply pipeline for the recovery and re-use of carbon black.

Using recovered carbon black would reduce the tyre industry’s reliance on petrochemicals by replacing a proportion of carbon black with a sustainable alternative while maintaining tyre performance. The use of recovered carbon black in new tyre manufacturing could reduce CO2 emissions by up to 85% compared with using new carbon black, according to the two companies.

their steer or trailer tyre counterparts, owing to the lateral pattern void found on drive axle tyres,” he states.

He reckons that complex tread patterns designed for particular applications, such as construction tyres, could also experience a greater reduction in performance than those with less complex patterns. He also points ➜ 16

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regrooving creates a deeper tyre tread pattern depth, which improves road grip and safety. Internal Michelin tests demonstrate that on wet roads, regrooved tyres offer improved transversal grip and approximately 10% higher traction than similarly worn tyres that have not been regrooved. At the same time regrooving can increase the mileage potential of the tyre by up to 25% in addition to improving its grip potential.”

Labelling for wear

to a combination of factors regarding worn tyres that could have a negative impact on performance. “For example, a decrease in pattern depth on a more worn tyre, combined with a reduction in the tyre’s design elements such as tread sipes, or a reduction in the void space [the gaps between the tread] and a decrease in pattern depth from wear.”

Hidden grooves

Michelin customer engineering support manager Rob Blurton explains that the wet grip performance will deteriorate as the new tyre’s sharp edges become more rounded. “To counter this, many Michelin truck tyres are designed with full-depth sipes that perform throughout the first life of the tyre, while many are also designed with hidden grooves that gradually open up during service until fully formed at two-thirds worn,” he says. “These hidden grooves are part of the Regenion tread technology, which helps to bring the grip performance of the tyre when two-thirds worn back to a similar level to when the tyre was new.”

Bridgestone’s north region technical manager Gary Powell raises the importance of maintaining good inflation pressures, meanwhile. “Assuming the tyre has maintained good inflation pressure throughout its life, we can assume that the footprint shape has therefore been maintained at an optimal level without incurring irregular wear,” he says.

Bridgestone employs similar design features to its competitors, such as ‘key hole’ groove shapes to maintain groove volumes for longer. “However, there is a point where wet grip begins to decline, especially within deep water conditions,” says Powell. “This is where regrooving is beneficial, as it recovers the groove volume, so benefiting wet grip performance. This benefit would be seen on all axle positions, but especially the drive axle.”

Michelin’s Blurton adds: “Where recommended, 16 MotorTransport

RESTORING GRIP: Michelin Regenion tread technology is claimed to bring grip back to near-new performance levels when the tyre is two-thirds worn

When it comes to a change to tyre labelling regulations to include part worn tyres, opinions differ.

“The tyre industry supports the introduction of worn wet grip performance testing for passenger car (C1) tyres within the UN R117 type approval framework,” says Norton at Goodyear. “In regard to light truck (C2) and truck (C3) tyres, industry experience has shown that there is no significant difference in wet grip braking performance ranking between new and worn state.

“The tyre industry is therefore of the opinion that testing of new truck tyres is sufficient to ensure the wet grip performance in worn state and that no additional testing in worn state is required for the tyre classes mentioned above.

“Due to the higher ground pressure and lower speed in field conditions the mechanism is different for C1, than C2 and C3 tyres. The wet grip performance drop for C2 and C3 is significantly lower than for C1, with no significant difference in wet grip performance ranking between new and worn tyres for C2 and C3 tyres (as found for C1 tyres).”

Michelin’s position is different. “Michelin is fully supportive of such a move because we engineer all our tyres to perform from the first to the last mile,” says Blurton. “Today tyre labelling only refers to a tyre’s performance when new. It does not give any indication as to how the tyre performs in service as it wears. Creating a part-worn grip rating would help the consumer to make a more informed choice.”

Hankook’s Heywood would also like to see the EU tyre labelling scheme revised to give wet grip ratings when the tyre is both new and part-worn as many rival products’ wet grip declines rapidly as the tyre wears.

“We want the same performance from the first mile to the last,” he says. “The 51 series gives much better wet grip when it is part worn. It is B rated when new and will remain B rated at 5mm tread depth while some other tyres will drop to a D or even E rating with just 2mm wear.”

Neither Continental nor Bridgestone would comment on this particular question. ■

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Time to come clean The COP26 Glasgow climate conference focused minds on decarbonisation. So, will the move to new drivelines be disruptive? Only if we do it wrong, says Louise Cole

D PUBLIC PROTEST: COP26 demonstrated the worldwide support for a zero-carbon future

18 MotorTransport

ecarbonisation of the logistics sector is urgent. Sales of new internal combustion engine (ICE) trucks up to 26 tonnes will end in 2035, and of heavier trucks in 2040.

Although there are significant questions outstanding about how this is to be achieved, decarbonisation isn’t simply a problem – it is also a huge opportunity for changing a manufacturing landscape that is wasteful by design, and to rethink how logistics deploys vehicles.

So far, there are two branches of commercial offering available as battery electric trucks. There are those from the traditional OEMs, which are broadly designed along the same principles as their predecessors, with high cabs and front-mounted engines. Then there are the new manufacturers who are usually limited in production capability, weight ranges and body types, but who have taken advantage of the ability to start with a clean sheet of paper.

An example is the Volta Zero, which has a low-profile cab, 220-degree vision, and a central seating position for the driver, who can always step out on to pavement from sliding doors.

Bruno Mameli/Shutterstock

Decarbonisation

Tevva Electric Trucks has developed a 7.5-tonne battery electric vehicle (BEV) and is working on fuel cell range extenders for trucks up to 19 tonnes.

David Thackray, marketing director at Tevva, says that new manufacturers are more motivated towards keener pricing than the traditional truck makers. Tevva’s 7.5-tonne EV costs £139,000, three times the cost of an ICE equivalent.

James Bligh, national sales manager at Hitachi Capital Vehicle Solutions, suggests a traditional ICE 18-tonner would cost £70,000, but its EV equivalent is currently £330,000, close to five times the cost.

“There’s no way we can build a truck for £100,000 less than a traditional truck manufacturer,” says Thackray.

He argues that traditional manufacturers still need to amortise their R&D spend on generations of emissions control and so have an incentive not to convert the market too quickly.

Charging double?

The big manufacturers are coy about costs, only talking in terms of total cost of ownership. Operators would be wise to use their own TOC values, however, as most include £5,000 a year for congestion charges, which isn’t applicable for many vehicles, and fuel duty will shift progressively, with current incentives phased out as the market reaches critical mass.

BVRLA chief executive Gerry Keaney says: “At present a leasing company will need to charge its customer more than double the monthly rental for a zero-emissions ➜ 20 13.12.21

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Decarbonisation

LOOKING GOOD: The Volta Zero offers 220-degree vision and a central seating position for the driver

18-tonne HGV than an ICE equivalent, even with plug-in grant support. Additionally, the range of the zero-emissions vehicle (ZEV) is less than a quarter of the ICE option. This issue becomes even worse as weights and use-case complexity increase. BVRLA members estimate that in many applications it will be at least five times more expensive for a company to run a ZEV.”

Guarantees

POWERING UP: Batteries are guaranteed for up to 10 years, or a number of charge/depletion cycles

Given that few operators want to take the risk on residual values, leases are likely to be the predominant acquisition method, even for the small outfit and owner-driver segment, which traditionally chose outright purchase.

Most batteries are guaranteed for between eight and 10 years, or a corresponding number of charge/depletion cycles. Renault Trucks head of electric mobility Andrew Scott says lease lengths are likely to be predicated on energy usage, which will be application dependent, and

motortransport.co.uk

expects residual value to be commensurate with the value of the battery as energy storage.

However, the evidence to date suggests that most batteries will have a substantial lifespan beyond this, as individual cells can be replaced. First-generation trucks which are now at the end of five- or seven-year leases show relatively small levels of energy degradation.

Increasingly, vehicle providers and asset houses are offering consultancy and charging partners as a standard part of their sales offering. Hitachi Capital is offering fleet analysis, charging infrastructure support and finance – including for gas trucks – and ‘fit for purpose’ alternative-powered vehicles on leases which aim to give the same total cost of ownership per month as an ICE. Volta Trucks is developing a ‘truck as service’ model, which will spread the €235,000 cost over a lease term including the asset, insurance, training and telematics, with charging consultancy and infrastructure provided as a separate capital cost.

One thing is clear – there will no longer be a compelling reason for the traditional three- to five-year replacement cycles that drove the ICE market. Not only was this predicated on constantly changing construction and use regulations and emissions control (which will no longer be relevant) but the economics of EVs demand longer first lives – and probably longer second lives. Indeed the used market may be the only initial option for many small operators or one-man bands.

Long life

Thackray says there are already precedents for this, given that trucks in North America are habitually run for 20 years or more. UK retailers such as John Lewis Partnership and Asda already run their biomethane trucks substantially longer than their diesel equivalents.

He says that asset finance therefore needs a root-andbranch overhaul, not least because batteries and bodies have distinct residual values and should not be written down as a single unit.

“We should be looking at an emissions revolution and a longevity revolution. Incidental items like ➜ 22 20 MotorTransport

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Decarbonisation

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process – a new electric refuse truck costs 98% more carbon than a remanufactured model.

A circular economy would also require the re-use of viable OEM parts – something the endless cycle of ‘new’ ranges with their different interiors, mirrors, grilles and stylings has inhibited.

Immediate solutions

COST CONSCIOUS: Tevva’s 7.5-tonne BEV costs £139,000, about three times the cost of a conventional vehicle

interiors, hinges and door handles should be better engineered, and the production model geared towards greater repairability,” he argues.

EVs should offer better longevity, given that they have 90% fewer moving parts and low vibration levels.

Hitachi is currently working on a life of seven years, while at a recent Renault roadshow 10 years was suggested.

The truck market would also benefit from creating a more circular economy, a point forcibly made by James Warren, group commercial director at Lunaz. The company is retrofitting ICE refuse trucks with electric motors for roughly the same price as a new ICE – about £300,000. This is a good option, given the relatively low mileage but huge body cost of refuse trucks, and it gives public authorities a fast way to decarbonise their fleets.

Lunaz is currently re-engineering one vehicle every 10 days, and projects that it will do 5,000 a year globally by 2026. Warren emphasises that the trucks are “as new” when complete.

Re-engineering benefits

Retrofitting HGVs over 26 tonnes may be a reasonable option for legacy ICE vehicles as deadlines loom, depending upon the price of battery technology.

The carbon benefits of re-engineering are huge. Making trucks from new is a very carbon-intensive and expensive

TIME TO THINK DIFFERENTLY The real challenge of decarbonisation is not swapping ICE vehicles for alternative powertrains, or putting in charger arrays. It is about taking the opportunity to reimagine logistics. Rather than being stalled by pre-existing problems, what would deliveries and trunking look like if we could start again?

“At the moment, 99.5% of the focus is on ‘how do I replace this vehicle with something which looks and functions exactly like it’,” says Robinson at Zemo.

“Instead we should be considering how the new capabilities of EVs could enable re-engineering of the job.”

Potentially, EVs could have better, driver-centric and much safer designs.

Minimal vibration and noise make them less tiring to drive, yet charging encourages more regular breaks for drivers, which would help recruitment.

Their lack of noise and pollution opens the opportunity of night and weekend deliveries, which could enable faster ROI and less-congested routes.

The public and freight customers are both ethically aligned with saving the planet – which means this is the perfect time for logistics collectively to reposition road transport as a quality and environmentally friendly service, with rates to match. Electric trucks are a brand enhancement for freight customers and their work should be priced accordingly.

COP26 felt like the last chance saloon, but the journey to decarbonised logistics could be one of modernisation and renewal.

22 MotorTransport

Although new OEM low-carbon drivelines such as natural gas will not be available after 2040, biogas and sustainably sourced biodiesel will have a large role to play in minimising the carbon output of legacy ICE vehicles. It is likely that the duty on diesel will climb to offset the reduced demand, which will make alternative fuels more attractive – and that journey can start now.

Operators can also look at fuel conditioners such as SulNOx, which costs £57 per litre but is added at one part per thousand. It was recently used by concrete firm Besblock, which achieved an 8% fuel saving plus a further 2% efficiency gain from better engine health.

Colin Ferguson, CEO of The Algorithm People, which specialises in fleet optimisation for ICE, mixed and EV fleets, says every decarbonisation journey should begin with the optimisation of assets and minimised mileage. Technology solutions for dynamic fleet optimisation will become even more essential as charging sites and timings become a crucial factor within vehicle utilisation.

In many cases, depot upgrades for extra power capacity will not appear on operators’ balance sheets despite being at their expense. Brian Robinson, commercial vehicle and sustainability consultant at zero-emissions transport proponents Zemo Partnership, says operators should calculate the gap between supply and potential demand and then mitigate this with non-grid measures, such as using battery-array storage solutions, smart charging and microgeneration. “The key is to minimise your need to upgrade capacity,” he says.

Sharing infrastructure

This will also allow operators to stagger their EV replacements over the next decade, avoiding the inevitable lead time delays which will coincide with the deadlines.

He also encourages operators to think about infrastructure sharing with customers, or contra deals where visiting trucks can charge up at nearby sites.

Good battery management means keeping the truck charged between 20% and 90%. Top-up charging throughout the day will improve performance and range, with slow charging drawn at low-demand periods.

The technology for heavy trucks is still less defined and far more limited than could be hoped – and Robinson believes that hydrogen may ultimately play a relatively small role in logistics.

“There is a role for hydrogen in transport, just not road transport,” he says. “The refuelling infrastructure and creation of renewable hydrogen are both expensive and limited and there are many other demands on it, not least replacing the grey hydrogen we currently use in industrial processes.”

Zemo’s October 2021 report ‘Hydrogen vehicle wellto-wheel GHG and energy study’ warns that hydrogen trucks are four to six times less energy-efficient than ICE vehicles, and so the electricity source of hydrogen generation is vital in terms of genuinely lowering carbon output.

Robinson believes that all trucks should essentially be plug-in rechargeable with “hydrogen as an option of last resort”.

“Even the most fragile and early battery technologies are proving to have considerable longevity and there will be many options for charging a truck,” he says.

There is also a possibility of e-smart highways with pantograph charging, although these are a “Marmite option”, he adds. ■ 13.12.21

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Marketplace news Second-worst quarterly figures in two years leave market at barely over half the level of late 2019

UK registrations still low The UK’s registration figures for HGVs above 6 tonnes GVW for the third quarter of 2021 have just been released by the SMMT – and they don’t make for good reading.

Compared with the same period in 2020 when figures were still volatile due to the Covid-19 lockdown, registrations were down 8.4%; and they were down 9.8% on the already weak figures for Q3 2019, which were caused by the pull forward to beat the new tachograph rules at the time.

Apart from the disastrous figures in Q2 2021, they are the worst quarterly figures in two years, and barely more than half the level seen in Q4 2019.

The year-to-date figures are up 25.3% compared with the stalled market in 2020, and look encouraging until you compare them with the more meaningful figures for 2019, when they are down 24.3%.

Looking at weights, the smallest decline during Q3 – 2.2% – was in rigids over 16 tonnes, while 3-axle tractors were down 15.1% and 2-axle tractors were

down by just a single vehicle.

Looking at regional variations in the quarter, the only home nation to buck the trend was Wales, with registrations up 15.9%.

England was just about on trend, down 8.1%, while Scotland was

down 13.8% and Northern Ireland saw a massive fall of 26.5%.

Market leader DAF is currently projecting a year-end total market size of 37,500 new vehicles, up on the Covid-hit figure of 32,918 in 2020, but still well down on

2019’s 48,535 registrations.

Summing up the state of the market, the SMMT’s chief executive Mike Hawes (pictured) said: “With operators still struggling with acute driver shortages, and global shortages of semiconductors restricting production, it is disappointing yet unsurprising to see the number of registrations fall in the third quarter.

“The sector is also facing significant long-term challenges, with government confirming its ambition to end the sale of all non-zero emission HGVs by 2040,” he added.

“Manufacturers are investing billions into the latest, green technologies, but there is no single technological solution that can meet every HGV use case. Indeed, there may be some specific and limited instances in which electrified technologies are not yet feasible, so flexibility for the future is important.

“Above all else, however, the industry needs dedicated HGV infrastructure, a plan for which we still await.”

Ford Trucks continues European expansion with French JV Ford Trucks is continuing its aggressive expansion across western Europe, having announced a move into France.

The Turkish truck maker has formed F-Trucks France, a joint venture with established dealers Groupe Maurin, Groupe DMD and Groupe Amplitude. It will have 25 dealer points open by the start of 2022, with a further five added by 2023.

The company already had a presence in Spain, Italy, Portugal, Germany, Luxembourg and Belgium, and next year will enter the Netherlands, Switzerland and Austria.

“We are quite aggressive in our expansion plans,” said Muskara Caner Sinanoglu, MD France Ford Trucks, who confirmed that the UK also formed part of its future plans. “We are working on a righthand-drive, and are in talks with people.”

Ford’s F-MAX scooped the International Truck of the Year award in 2019.

26 MotorTransport

13.12.21

motortransport.co.uk

Andy Lee Transport takes delivery of UK’s first Racing Special Used Truck Gloucestershire-based Andy Lee Transport has taken delivery of the UK’s first Renault Trucks T01 Racing Special Used Truck Edition.

Based on a Renault T480 6x2, it has been redesigned by the team at Renault Trucks’ Halle du Design, and reconditioned in full in the UK by Used Truck by Renault Trucks.

The sporty-looking special edition is inspired by the world of racing cars and joins 12 other used Renault Trucks in Andy Lee Transport’s 28-strong fleet.

MD Andy Lee said: “As a family of motor racing enthusiasts, we have a long-standing affinity with motorsport. My son, Antony Lee, races F1 Stock Cars and I’ve been involved in motorsport myself since I was 16 years old. So, with our passion in mind, the Renault

Trucks T01 Racing Special with its sporty looks appealed to us from the word go.

“We always like to stand out from the crowd with our trucks and we wanted something a bit different again this time; the T01 Racing Special with its good looks was the perfect new addition to our fleet.”

Three paint jobs have been applied to the white truck with shimmering black, flaming red and tangy yellow details joining reflective stickers that give a nod to the world of racing.

The T01 Racing Special joins the likes of the Quartz, Satin and Lightening Editions exclusively offered by Used Trucks by Renault Trucks.

“As well as being a greatlooking truck, it’s essential that it’s up to the job too. Renault

Trucks’ inspection review, as well as the refurbishment with genuine parts, ensures reliability and minimal downtime and, together with the one-year manufacturer’s warranty, we had overall peace of mind,” Lee explained.

“We wanted a truck that would turn heads wherever it goes.

People always stop and comment; it’s a great ambassador for the brand and a talking point about the company and the work we do. We are absolutely delighted.”

Midlands Truck & Van to begin maintenance of ADR and PetReg trucks at Smethwick next year

New hazgoods vehicle service in West Midlands West Midlands Mercedes-Benz dealer Midlands Truck & Van will be offering a new dedicated hazardous goods vehicle repair and maintenance facility at its Smethwick branch in the New Year.

A team of four technicians have been trained in maintaining ADR and PetReg vehicles, as well as gaining certification to drive them.

The service will be available to operators of all makes of vehicle and trailers. It will operate out of a newly equipped dedicated bay in the dealership’s £7m Cornwall Road site, which was opened at the end of 2020.

The walled-off bay at the end of the building is designed to comply with the HSE’s Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations, and will include a 15m inspection pit and working at height facilities.

Among the services will be the issuing of Safe Loading Passes, allowing vehicles access to petroleum terminals. When open, it will operate round the clock from 6am on Monday 13.12.21

through to Saturday lunchtime.

The ADR/PetReg bay was designed into the building from the start. Midlands Truck & Van MD Steve Hunt said: “We’d

planned from the outset to establish a PetReg operation at Smethwick, and the bay was incorporated within the original design of the building. It was

‘mothballed’ initially, though, as our first priority was to focus on delivering the mainstream repair and maintenance support that our customers rely upon.”

MotorTransport 27

Marketplace

Green and lean Scania’s new £10m flagship dealership and Scottish HQ at Eurocentral to the east of Glasgow is setting new standards in terms of sustainability, from an air source heat pump to the recycling of wash bay water, writes Will Shiers CLEANER VANS Eurocentral plans to run a fleet of green service vans.

“Now that we’re open, we will be moving to electric and hybrid vans as fast as we can,” states Colbourne. “The reason I’m saying ‘as fast as we can’ is obviously because our colleagues at Volkswagen have got the same problems that we’ve all got with a shortage of semiconductors. But as soon as we can, we will be running them.”

He explains that while parts delivery vans will be zero tailpipe emissions, for now the breakdown assistance vans will be hybrids. He says they sometimes need to cover long distances between successive jobs, and they don’t want to run the risk of not being able to get to a stranded customer quickly. But Colbourne has no doubt that as the technology moves on, these too will be fully electric.

28 MotorTransport

I

n addition to launching a range of zero tailpipe emission and lower emission trucks, Scania is on the cusp of improving the green credentials of its 650-strong wholly-owned worldwide dealer sites too. First to get the full sustainability treatment is its brand new £10m flagship dealership and Scottish HQ at Eurocentral, Glasgow, which is now being hailed as a shining example for others to follow.

“We decided some years ago that we should look differently upon sustainability, and treat it as part of an investment, rather than just look for payback,” explains Christian Levin, CEO and president of Scania and Traton, at the building’s official opening. “This is one of the first investments that was approved according to that way of thinking, and I’m super-happy and excited about it. I think it’s going to be super-good for our customers, and for our employees.”

The 7.8-acre site, which is entirely new and has taken just less than a year to build, replaces the former Scottish HQ at Bellshill.

Dealer director James Colbourne explains that the truck maker initially toyed with the idea of simply upgrading the existing site. “We knew we needed to prepare it for gas and electrification, and decided it would 13.12.21

motortransport.co.uk

be more effective to build an entirely new site. It has been completely purpose-built for today and tomorrow,” he says.

Located at the Eurocentral industrial estate, just east of Glasgow, it’s within close proximity of the M8, M80 and M74. “And we also have a lot of customers based in this area,” confirms Colbourne.

In addition to burning no fossil fuels, the 100% electric site strives to use only renewable electricity. Colbourne says this is relatively easy in Scotland, given the country’s heavy investment in on- and off-shore wind farms.

Hot air

It utilises an air source heat pump, which feeds the underfloor heating system. This was chosen over conventional roof-mounted heaters for several reasons.

In addition to being more effective, Colbourne explains that it’s also more comfortable for technicians working underneath vehicles. “It also means that any vehicle that comes in wet quickly dries off,” he adds.

On the roof are voltaic industrial-grade solar panels, which help to power the building. And during quiet times, like Sunday afternoons, the electricity they produce goes straight back into the grid.

The site’s green credentials shine through in the truckwash bay too, which is located internally. “This is not something we do a huge amount of in the UK, but it’s actually something that’s done on the continent,” explains Colbourne, who says it has two clear benefits.

“It means that we’re capturing everything that’s coming off a vehicle, so it doesn’t disperse itself into the environment. And, we can recycle 90% of all the water used in that process.”

There’s an environmental station too, where batteries, oils and lubricants are stored. It’s actually a small standalone building, designed to contain any leakages or spills.

It has attenuation ditches all around it, protecting it from those once-in-a-100-year floods that happen with increasing frequency, and stopping any contamination of the waterways.

The majority of Scania’s sites are fully prepared for working on gas trucks, but Eurocentral takes it to the next level. In addition to being three storeys high, which would help any escaped gas to disperse, there are full automated gas detectors in the roof which open if needed.

Although few of Scania’s Scottish customers are in a rush to invest in electric trucks ahead of legislative requirements, Eurocentral is future-proofed, and batterypowered trucks can be worked on in any of the 21 work

13.12.21

TECHNICALLY, A POPULAR MOVE Eurocentral has proved extremely popular with the 33 technicians who have transferred from Bellshill.

According to Colbourne, they are particularly impressed with the underfloor heating and the lighting.

“There’s 1,000 lumens of light, which means even at night it’s lighter than it would be on the sunniest of days,” says Colbourne, adding that this often does away with the need for wearing head torches.

“It’s always warm too, just so long as we remember to close the doors!”

He is confident that the site’s excellent facilities will help to recruit and retain technicians, saying: “From our point of view, there is no better way to attract technicians than to give them the best environment that they can have to work in – and then reward them properly for working in that way.”

The technicians’ pay structure is actually linked to their technical ability as well, which is a new concept introduced this year. “How much technicians want to get paid is now in their own hands,” says Colbourne. “They know exactly what they need to do to, and our job is to support them on that journey.” There is a six-bay training room on site.

Eurocentral can accommodate up to 64 technicians if needed.

STARTING FROM SCRATCH: Dealer director James Colbourne says Scania initially considered just upgrading the Bellshill site, but decided on a completely new facility instead

spaces spread across two workshops. All 33 technicians are trained to Level 1 standard, but by the end of quarter one next year there will be Level 2 and 3 technicians on site, which means zero tailpipe emissions trucks can be worked on.

MT joined several high-profile Scottish hauliers at the site’s official opening last month, which saw Levin and UK MD James Armstrong cutting the ceremonial ribbon.

Feedback was extremely positive from everyone we spoke to, who welcomed the location, facilities and sheer scale of the site. It has also been well received by the technicians, who have transferred from Bellshill (see box above).

Together with property developer West Ranga, Scania GB now plans to implement Eurocentral’s green credentials at other Scottish sites. “We will open Grangemouth next year, and Glasgow shortly afterwards,” explains Colbourne. “They’ll be exactly like Eurocentral, but on a smaller scale.” ■

MotorTransport 29

Cost tables

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f last year’s MT cost tables reflected a year of stagnation, mainly due to much of the country being at a Covid-19 derived standstill, this year makes up for it – and not in a good way. If ever a year deserved the ‘perfect storm’ cliché, it’s this one.

Underlying everything is inflation, which has gone from almost nothing to 4.5%, if you use the rate excluding housing.

The first of the two big increases, though, has been in vehicle acquisition costs, with operators reporting that vehicles that have cleared the global micro-processor shortage and been delivered are now costing 15% more than a year ago. Rising raw material costs and development costs of new technology play their part, as no doubt, does Brexit. Demand outstrips supply to the extent that some vehicle and trailer manufacturers are quoting delivery times well into 2023.

The other factor is the continuing driver shortage. Growing disillusionment with the poor working conditions and lack of respect is probably a bigger factor than pay, but many operators have reported having to implement two pay rises totalling some 15%, this year to attract and retain drivers. Apart from the diminishing desirability of the job keeping existing licence-holders in easier positions, aggressive competition from some large logistics providers and the post-Brexit return of many EU drivers have also contributed.

The biggest positive is that more hauliers have built effective protection against rising costs into their contracts – good news for the sector, but less so for the consumer who is having to pay the true cost.

Last year’s quoted cost of fuel was artificially low due to the collapse in demand during lockdown, but it has now strengthened to record highs, with forecourt prices routinely above £1.50 per litre, whereas 18 months ago they were dipping below £1. The HGV road levy suspension has been extended for another year until 31 July 2022.

One factor we’ve decided to update is the typical rate of AdBlue consumption, rising from 4% to 6% as being more realistic on engines meeting the latest emissions standards. This, together with a hopefully temporary rise in the price due to the soaring energy costs involved in its production, has made it a more significant expense.

Our crystal ball doesn’t take much rubbing to predict that the next year will see the growth in the home delivery and construction sectors continuing, assuming operators can obtain the necessary trucks and drivers. ■

38 MotorTransport Motor Transport – 101 x 280mm.indd 1

Operating costs have risen substantially in the last 12 months, writes Colin Barnett

13.12.21 24/09/2021 14:43

Photo: Shutterstock

Perfect storm

motortransport.co.uk

ARTICS

32-tonne 4x2 unit, taxed for tandem-axle trailer

38-tonne 4x2 unit, taxed for triaxle trailer

44-tonne, 6x2 unit, taxed for triaxle trailer

Tandem-axle trailer (curtainsided)

Triaxle trailer (curtainsided)

81,845 125 10.4 40.0 7 11,942

84,507 125 9.2 40.0 7 12,331

97,322 125 8.5 40.0 7 14,201

25,222

23,742

12 2,161

12 2,310

44,761 3,225 23,550 1,136 9,986 3,503 86,161 4,308 90,469

44,761 3,769 23,871 1,136 10,311 3,616 87,464 4,373 91,837

44,761 4,170 25,976 1,136 11,874 4,165 92,082 4,604 96,687

1,922 1,661 3,583 179 3,762

1,786 1,829 3,615 181 3,796

1,967 393 35.76

1,996 399 36.30

2,102 420 38.22

82 16 1.49

83 17 1.50

55 1.05 2.12 8.50 66.31 3.3 69.62

62 1.19 2.42 8.60 73.97 3.7 77.67

67 1.28 2.95 9.04 80.13 4.0 84.13

1.81 2.96 4.77 0.2 5.01

2.80 3.30 6.10 0.3 6.41

220 183 160

231 192 170

245 205 181

11 10 9

13 11 10

7.5-tonne GVW (curtainsided)

13-tonne GVW (curtainsided)

18-tonne GVW (curtainsided)

26-tonne GVW 6x2 (curtainsided)

32-tonne GVW 8x4 (tipper)

52,004 125 17 40.0 5 7,850

60,331 125 15 40.0 5 9,107

78,062 125 13 40.0 5 11,729

85,897 125 10.5 40.0 5 15,260

132,174 125 7.5 40.0 7 24,625

35,917 1,907 7,628 165 8,831 1,190 55,638 2,782 58,420

39,174 2,180 11,181 189.5 10,245 1,380 64,349 3,217 67,567

40,574 2,420 14,869 615 13,267 1,778 73,523 3,676 77,199

42,073 2,959 15,617 615 14,127 2,313 77,704 3,885 81,590

42,073 2,959 20,147 1,136 15,364 2,985 84,664 4,233 88,897

1,270 254 23.09

1469 294 26.71

1678 336 30.51

1774 355 32.25

1933 387 35.14

33 0.43 2.42 7.72 43.99 2.20 46.2

38 0.48 2.75 8.70 49.82 2.49 52.3

44 0.56 2.87 8.28 55.42 2.77 58.2

54 0.69 3.83 9.04 67.68 3.38 71.1

76 0.97 8.39 15.33 100.46 5.02 105.5

192 144 119

221 165 137

251 187 155

275 207 173

328 254 217

Vehicle Cost (£) Fuel cost: (p/litre) Ex VAT Average montly MPG AdBlue cost: (p/litre) Depreciation period: (years) Residual value: (£)

ANNUAL STANDING COSTS (£)

Driver wages and NI Vehicle insurance Establishment/overheads Vehicle tax (VED) based on no RPC but with Levy Depreciation Finance cost Subtotal Profit allowance (5%) Total annual standing costs (£)

STANDING COSTS ALLOCATION

Per week (£) based on 46 weeks Per day (£) based on a 5-day week Per hour (£) based on an 11-hour day

RUNNING COSTS (P/MILE, 80,000 M/YR)

Fuel AdBlue (at 6% of fuel consumption) Tyres Maintenance & repairs Subtotal Profit allowance (5%) Total (p/mile)

CHARGE PER MILE (P)

60,000 miles/yr 80,000 miles/yr 100,000 miles/yr

RIGIDS Vehicle cost (£) Fuel cost: (p/litre) Ex VAT MPG AdBlue cost: (p/litre) Depreciation period: (years) Residual value: (£)

ANNUAL STANDING COSTS (£)

Driver wages and NI Vehicle insurance Establishment /overheads Vehicle tax (VED) based on E6 & Levy without RPC Depreciation Finance cost Subtotal Profit allowance (5%) Total annual standing costs (£)

STANDING COSTS ALLOCATION

Per week (£) based on 46 weeks Per day (£) based on a 5-day week Per hour (£) based on an 11-hour day

RUNNING COSTS (P/MILE, 60,000 M/YR)

Fuel AdBlue (at 6% of fuel consumption) Tyres Maintenance & repairs Subtotal Profit allowance (5%) Total (p/mile)

CHARGE PER MILE (P)

40,000 miles/yr 60,000 miles/yr 80,000 miles/yr 13.12.21

➜ 40

MotorTransport 39

Cost tables

VANS Vehicle cost (£) Fuel cost: (p/litre) Ex VAT MPG Depreciation period: (years) Residual value: (£)

ANNUAL STANDING COSTS (£)

Driver wages and NI Vehicle insurance Establishment /overheads Vehicle tax, based on E5 Depreciation Finance cost (5-yr term) Subtotal Profit allowance (5%) Total annual standing costs (£)

STANDING COSTS ALLOCATION

Per week (£) based on 46 weeks Per day (£) based on a 5-day week Per hour (£) based on an 11-hour day

RUNNING COSTS (P/MILE, 30,000 M/YR)

Fuel Tyres Maintenance & repairs Subtotal Profit allowance (5%) Total (p/mile)

CHARGE PER MILE (P)

20,000 miles/yr 30,000 miles/yr 40,000 miles/yr

motortransport.co.uk

1.6-tonnes GVW (550kg payload)

2.1-tonnes GVW (750kg payload)

2.8-tonnes GVW (1-tonne payload)

3.5-tonnes GVW (1.4-tonne payload)

18,101 125 43 5 1,936

18,362 125 40 5 2,292

25,524 125 33 5 2,704

26,782 125 28 5 4,447

28,513 1,196 5,619 140 3,233 360 39,061 1,953 41,014

28,513 1,274 5,619 140 3,214 424 39,184 1,959 41,143

28,513 1,512 5,619 140 4,564 526 40,874 2,044 42,918

28,513 1,680 5,619 140 4,467 653 41,072 2,054 43,126

892 178 16.21

894 179 16.26

933 187 16.96

938 188 17.05

13.2 0.64 3.64 17.50 0.9 18.4

14.2 0.74 4.30 19.25 1.0 20.2

17.2 1.13 4.73 23.08 1.2 24.2

20.3 1.49 5.18 26.96 1.3 28.3

223 155 121

226 157 123

239 167 132

244 172 136

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MT Awards 2021 winner profile Technical Excellence Award

Electrifying the market

The industry has reached a tipping point, with alternatively-fuelled vehicles ready to transform freight transport forever. MT Technical Excellence Award winner Renault Trucks sits at the forefront of electric vehicle developments

W

ith the following statement, Carlos Rodrigues, Renault Trucks’ MD for UK and Ireland, demonstrated how the manufacturer has grasped the nettle and set about providing operators with a broad selection of new-generation electric vehicles (EVs): “The grand shift to electromobility has begun.”

Renault Trucks’ ZE range was enough to wow the judges and led to an MT Award for technical excellence as it continues to forge ahead and help companies transition to a cleaner, more sustainable future. The jury considered that it represented the future of transport and offered a reliable and sustainable alternative to hauliers looking for a proven solution to meet the zero-emission challenge.

The jury’s choice was also motivated by the fact that, for Renault Trucks, electric mobility is already a reality in the UK, with several vehicles in service.

“A comprehensive range of electric trucks with a real vision of how alternative non-fossil-based fuels will change transport operations,” says one judge.

Another points out that offering vehicles from 3.1 tonnes upwards covers a multitude of vehicle sectors and allows an operator to source a single badge to meet varying needs: “A very valuable and credible solution and highly thought out,” the judge says.

A third comments: “Renault has put itself into a position with this range to offer its customers a serious choice of new-generation electric vehicles to make a big difference to transport operations, carrying goods at greater ranges than before on a single charge. A huge step forward in sustainable transport and zero-carbon emissions.”

The availability of the full ZE range perhaps could not have come at a better moment. “I feel we are reaching a

point, with COP26 and recent government plans, where we will see the acceleration of orders,” agrees Rodrigues.

Customers are almost spoilt for choice. The range starts with the Master ZE, with 3.1-tonne and 3.5-tonne GVW, available in van, platform cab and chassis cab.

There are six versions, three lengths, two heights, all relying on a 33kWh lithium-ion battery, offering up to 120km real-world operating range and they can be fully charged in six hours. The 16-tonne GVW D ZE model is designed for urban logistics and comes in 4,400mm and 5,300mm wheelbases, with 200-400kWh batteries and a range of up to 400km.

New additions

The company recently added to this range with a 19-tonne variant, which helps offset the weight of the batteries. Its D ZE onboard charger enables AC charging at up to 22kWh and is compatible with DC charging at 150kWh. It allows the truck to be charged from a typical industrial three-phase socket, rather than requiring a dedicated charger.

Finishing off the range is a 26-tonne D wide ZE lowentry cab with a 200kWh battery and designed for urban waste collection. The D ZE models also use regenerative braking, utilising the motor to convert energy during deceleration into electrical energy; conserving energy and extending driving range. As a result, Renault Trucks has nailed its colours to the electric mast and its confidence in EVs as a realistic solution for a diesel-guzzling industry is proving infectious.

Rodrigues says: “The level of interest from customers over the last 18 months is growing. I am very positive about next year; there will be some acceleration in terms of orders of EVs.”

THE COVID EFFECT The EV truck sector was less affected by the Covid-19 pandemic than the overall automobile market, when sales of vehicles fell significantly due to lockdowns.

By contrast, EV sales actually increased in 2020 and in 2021 due to the global rise in vehicle electrification.

Sector analysts MarketsandMarkets said demand fell early in the pandemic, but it increased thereafter and top OEMs saw steady growth in their EV truck divisions compared with the overall market.

Carlos Rodrigues says one major impact of Covid on Renault Trucks’ customers could be seen as a benefit: it gave them breathing space and time to think. “Every one of us was stuck at home,” he says. “The pandemic accelerated conversation with the right people and a large number of customers.

“What it did was show people it is good to live in a world with fewer emissions.”

44 MotorTransport

13.12.21

Sponsored by

But the manufacturer isn’t prepared to sit back and wait for the orders to come piling in. In November, Renault Trucks took to the road covering over 1,100 miles as its EVs called in at nine dealerships between Enfield and Glasgow and gave customers across the country an opportunity to test drive its range and learn more about the benefits of switching to electric.

Timed to coincide with COP26 and demonstrating that zero tailpipe emission electric trucks and vans are here and available now, Renault’s fleet of EVs relied solely on charging at each of the dealer sites.

Tackling range anxiety

If you want to quell range anxiety, getting out in an EV and proving what it’s capable of is a powerful response.

“It was a bold move,” says the MD. “It included hundreds of miles of motorways. But it proves to the customer with those vehicles that range anxiety is behind us. The trucks can do the job! We are not doing PowerPoints; we have the trucks out there running.”

To be fair, Rodrigues says that range anxiety is not the chief worry among those wanting to make the switch – “curious” is his word for how customers approach that issue. Of far greater concern is the availability of charging equipment.

“Infrastructure is definitely the top one,” he says. “The real challenge for customers is understanding that if they have a fleet of 20 or 30 vehicles, will they be able to plug them all in and charge them all at the same time?

If the answer is ‘yes’, then there is no problem.”

If the answer is ‘no’, then an operator still has choices and much of Renault’s conversation right now is helping its customers find solutions. With help from Renault’s partners, a company can improve its electricity supply and provide the capability to charge its fleet, or if they rent their premises, then another option might be to move somewhere where the capacity is better.

“The truck is the easy bit,” says Rodrigues. “The charging is where we are providing support to our customers.

We are trying to decarbonise transport; the customer just needs reassurance about what power they have available.”

Renault has spent time training its sales teams in EVs because the whole approach to selling the vehicles has been turned on its head. Rodrigues says buy-in for the transition must be sought from the CEO or chairman of a business first. For the moment at least, the days when a haulier’s fleet director took a decision on what assets to purchase are numbered.

“It’s a different approach,” says Rodrigues. “Before, there were no concerns about range and charging. But 13.12.21

there are a whole new set of questions now and decisions that a fleet director cannot make on their own. If EVs are part of the strategic agenda of the company, then it will help. It needs company transformation; it’s not a one-man show. And that’s why we take a partnership approach with customers.”

This decade will see huge changes in the way we live and drive and Renault fully intends to be at the forefront of developments. Rodrigues says that between now and 2025 it aims to decarbonise the majority of the country in last-mile and urban deliveries, before the second half of the 2020s sees the advent of fuel cell vehicles powered by green hydrogen to aid long-haul distribution.

“We can expect that battery technology will improve; the EV fleet in 2027 will probably not be the same as today,” he says. “Having said that, the battery we are selling is second to none. With the vehicles on the road today, an operator of 16- to 18-tonne trucks doesn’t have to wait for next-generation technology to start – it can use what we have today. We know what we are doing – we are ready.”

Last year, Renault Trucks predicted EVs would represent 10% of its sales volumes by 2025, but given COP26 and the renewed drive towards a cleaner world, does it think it could surpass that target now? “My guess is, in the UK and Ireland, where the environment is very supportive of it and with environmental pressures and the government’s plans for public transport and so on, they all create an environment to accelerate it,” he says.

I hope it will be greater than 10%.”

Rodrigues points to the refuse collection vehicle market and offers an intriguing glimpse into the next three years: “In the UK, I am sure that by 2025, 100% can be electric; even before that date. As a market, it can be fully decarbonised. If you’re considering running diesel bin lorries into cities next year, you should really think twice before doing that. Hundreds of tonnes of carbon could be saved from each of those cities and I would encourage them to talk to us.” 

RENAULT’S BATTERY PROMISE Renault Trucks guarantees the power available to operate electric vehicles for up to 10 years, or a quantity of total delivered energy. For a truck with a 265kW battery installation, Renault Trucks says this is 300MW. A distribution vehicle driving 30,000km per year would typically use around 1kWh per kilometre, so would consume its promised 300MW of energy in 10 years. The manufacturer says operators’ own data is modelled in its battery simulator to provide them with confidence in the capability of the vehicle and underpin its battery promise.

MotorTransport 45

MT Awards 2021 winner profile Business Excellence Award

‘Well deserved and well received…’

Our coveted Business Excellence Award was one of five trophies that Wren Kitchens picked up at this year’s event. National fleet manager Lee Thompson-Halls reflects on a “surreal and monumental” achievement

L

ee Thompson-Halls is the first to admit that when a beaming Carol Vorderman asked him for his backstage reaction to winning five MT awards in one night he was lost for words.

But away from the media spotlight on that unforgettable evening at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel back in September, Wren’s fleet manager tells a tale that nicely sums up what it all meant.

“The walk back to our hotel across Oxford Street was very surreal,” he says. “Wearing dickie bows, holding five trophies, at 2am, we got to our hotel, put the awards down and stepped back... It was like ‘What the hell’s just happened?’

“We knew then that in terms of transport we’d all been involved in something quite monumental and it was a very strange experience. We just didn’t get as drunk as we were planning to because we didn’t have time!”

The MT Business Excellence Award turned out to be the last trophy Wren received on the night. But with other people on their table already tied up with interviews as the event unfolded, they were worried that nobody would be on hand to collect it.

“To get stressed at an awards ceremony because you can’t keep up with the announcer is a very unusual situation,” Thompson-Halls smiles. “Two of us were in a room being interviewed by Carol, the other two were outside waiting to be interviewed, and the next award was being announced. We were thinking, who’s going to get it then?

“But it didn’t spoil it. What was lovely was the greeting that we got, especially when they announced the fifth award. We were the last on the shortlist to be read out and you could almost sense the whole audience were waiting for our name. When they announced we were the winner, the whole place lit up.

“I thought, you know what? Good on them. On reflection it was very well deserved and very well received.

How we were received by the rest of the people in that room meant as much to me as winning the awards.”

Thompson-Halls joined Wren as a van driver in 2015 after quitting teaching and is a great case study in nurturing homegrown talent. In fact, over 80% of Wren Logistics’ management team have been promoted from within.

He received full training before he went out on the road and quickly developed an interest in home deliv-

46 MotorTransport

ery and working directly with customers. He then moved into compliance and training, helped evolve the Barton depot, and completed practical LGV courses for Class 1 and Class 2 together with a ‘Train the Trainer’ course.

From here he became the lead driver assessor supervisor, before being promoted to transport manager.

“Wren recognised I had something and invested in me,” he says. “My name is known by probably everybody in the company. Getting up in the morning is like going to a second home. That’s what gets me out of bed. I love my job and the people I work with. It’s a challenge, but a rewarding challenge.”

Covid-safe

Self-funded and privately owned, Wren manufactures all its own kitchens in its own UK factories and delivers them in its own trucks.

To say 2020 was a challenging year is something of an understatement, but the company’s autonomous, in-house approach enabled it to safely deliver 96,296 kitchens, while training 123 new delivery drivers.

And while non-food retail sales fell 5%, Wren’s yearly turnover increased by 18% to £703m.

Our judges all agreed that Wren had produced an outstanding entry: “They fell on their feet with the pandemic and reacted very fast,” one said, while another described the firm’s financial performance as “amazing”.

Business highlights during 2020 are almost too numerous to mention. Suffice to say, all delivery is kept in-house and great customer service from highly motivated staff has been key to its success.

Wren’s transport and logistics personnel are offered wide-ranging induction and development programmes to further their careers. The company also has a Driver Apprenticeship Programme, giving youngsters training and career opportunities and the chance to earn while they learn.

Last year saw the opening of a £3m IT Centre with nine dedicated meeting and conference facilities – plus the Sir Christopher Wren Theatre, which can seat more than 50 delegates.

Another standout success for Wren has been its welldocumented triple-trunking delivery strategy. Launched in 2018, this has delivered efficiency savings of £2.8m 13.12.21

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ALL SMILES: Wren’s Lee Thompson-Halls with co-host Carol Vorderman

over a 30-month period and has reduced road miles and overall carbon footprint by around 33%. However, the company is taking a wait-and-see approach to decarbonising its HGV fleet and discussions with many of the major truck manufacturers are ongoing.

Heading into the new year, business is again looking strong, with double-digit growth forecast for 2021/2022.

In fact, as MT went to press Wren had just surpassed the billion pound turnover mark, a new milestone with six weeks of the year still left to run.

“This is an amazing achievement for us, but we still believe there is scope for a lot more,” director Lee Holmes told us. “The housing market is at unprecedented levels.

With house sales come renovations and big ticket purchases and the ‘experts’ claim Wren is somewhere between 12% and 14% of the total market share. So if we were to even grow by a couple of percent – and we’ll grow a lot more – then in a market worth between £4bn and £5bn, it will make a massive difference.

“All of this means more opportunities for all, more investment in careers for the future and a lot more training to the highest standards in the industry.”

Family values

With Wren’s 2020 awards entries now a fading memory, Holmes is also happy to provide a fresh update on the transport and logistics side of the operation.

“The reason it’s working so well is due to the commitment and dedication of our colleagues,” he says. “I would love to say it’s more complicated than that, but it’s not.

We try and give our staff the freedom and responsibility to do a good job by giving them the best tools in the market today and the majority embrace the culture and love it.”

The company received the DVSA’s Earned Recognition accreditation in July and is continuing a recruitment drive that should see it have close to 100 new drivers trained and upskilled by the end of the year.

“These guys are all new to the industry and Wren is investing in them to provide better opportunities and hopefully bring a more professional driver to the industry,” Holmes explains. “We currently have over 800 staff in our logistics function.”

Other highlights from 2021 include Wren’s Driver of the Year competition, which came to a close on 10 13.12.21

December. The winner will receive £2,000 in cash, a 55in smart TV and a smart watch. All the finalists receive prizes for taking part.

Wren’s new depot in Rochester should be complete in January and the company is also close to signing off the legal paperwork on a site in Colnbrook near Heathrow.

It hopes to move in by next spring.

And although Wren rewards good driving with Greggs vouchers for coffee and bacon rolls, it now also provides free healthy packed lunches to its night trunkers to reduce their risk of heart disease and diabetes.

“In conjunction with this, we’re continuing our work on mental health and will shortly be launching an awareness month with a celebrity or two and encouraging the guys to talk,” Holmes says. ■

BUSINESS HIGHLIGHTS ■ Covid-safe processes and working spaces introduced immediately ■ Covid community support: 4k scrub sets, face masks/visors, meals, PPE ■ Dynamic planning and order pinning introduced with efficiency savings of around £980,000

■ Launch of UK’s largest IT centre ■ Sir Christopher Wren Theatre opened with facilities for 50+ delegates ■ IT graduate team awarded ‘Project of the Year 2020’ for dual-screen, 3D planning

■ First showroom launched in USA ■ £2.8m efficiency savings, 33% reduction in road miles delivered through innovative triple-trunking

■ Additional 15% MPG (saving £190k), 15% less CO2 emissions, accident

frequency down 50% to 11.11% (new, more efficient trucks with improved safety features) ■ Three new Quartz facilities, five new out-bases and 13 new double-deck trunking units, reducing delivery times by up to six weeks, halving road miles/environmental impact and recycling water and waste products ■ New £4m Avonmouth Depot: 60% additional capacity, improved access to SW (20% reduction in lead times, road miles and CO2), 80 new jobs, CV electric-charge cabling to future-proof facilities ■ Best ever CSI scores: 93% 8-10/10 and top TrustPilot score (4.5/5) ■ 58% drop in RIDDORS, personal accidents down 92% ■ Damaged goods less than 1% for third consecutive year ■ 13 environmental initiatives helping protect our planet ■ Training and personal development and apprenticeship opportunities ■ Support for local communities MotorTransport 47

MT Awards 2021 winner profile Apprenticeship of the Year Award

The total package Apprenticeships are an integral part of the DPD recruitment effort. Its proactive and inclusive scheme is a model for businesses large and small

D

PD is the UK’s dominant domestic parcels carrier, more than doubling turnover since 2015 by establishing itself as the go-to choice for retailers that value a personalised home delivery experience. Its 22,000-strong UK team delivers over 350 million parcels each year for 7,500 customers, including leading brands such as ASOS, DixonsCarphone, Selfridges, Fortnum & Mason, EE, Gousto and Next.

DPD has an established ‘1,2,3,4 strategy’: A commitment to deliver the best service money can buy, using the best technology available, and to recruit, retain and

48 MotorTransport

develop the most customer-centric people in the industry, as well as being a leader in sustainable delivery.

The huge spike in volumes caused by the Covid-19 pandemic meant DPD had to recruit an extra 7,500 staff in 2020, an influx that could have jeopardised its customer service ethos if not handled correctly.

Director of people and talent Sharon Hughes admits it is a challenge but one her team has risen to over the years of DPD’s expansion. “We manage to get there each year,” she says. “Sometimes we look at the forecast growth numbers for peak each year and think ‘How are we going to do it?’ – but we always do.”

As of September 2021, DPD employs a total of 106 apprentices plus another 80 engineering apprentices.

“We are working closely with the Institute of Couriers on the brand new express parcel hub sortation standard and have just recruited 20 LGV driving apprentices,” Hughes says. “Every business is having to address the driver shortage and this is one of our avenues.”

Making it pay

As a large employer, DPD pays a significant Apprenticeship Levy, and while it doesn’t recover all of it, the company does make use of this fund to cover some of its training costs.

“We use it for new apprentices and existing employees who want to take extra qualifications,” Hughes says.

“There is now the facility to share 25% of the fund that we don’t spend with other businesses and we are looking at that this month.

“It doesn’t drive the strategy, but it’s there to help us.

A lot of the Levy money goes on upskilling our existing workforce as well as recruiting new apprentices so sometimes the term ‘Apprenticeship Levy’ is a bit misleading.”

Ensuring that DPD brings people with the right ‘DNA’ into the organisation provides a firm base for the other aspects of its strategy, and a great deal of importance is placed on the recruitment of apprentices by the senior

13.12.21

management team. A member of this team always undertakes the final interview with potential apprentices and advises on which department they feel would provide the best route for a successful career, with all areas of the business offering vacancies.

This process of carefully selecting apprentices for a department regularly pays dividends, with former apprentice telesales executive Brett Watson – now an area sales executive – bringing in over £1.2m of new business during 2020.

DPD chief operating officer Justin Pegg also hosts a three-month review for each apprentice to track their progress and to ensure they are happy in their designated area; for the few that are not, DPD will relocate them to a department where they are more likely to flourish.

A DPD apprenticeship is structured so that there is a constant support network around its ‘Jedis’, as they are affectionately known. An apprentice has access to their line manager, head of department, mentor, tutor and apprenticeship team, all of whom are on hand to provide advice whenever required. Mentors are often former apprentices themselves and can provide invaluable advice and insight into life at DPD. Offering five separate types of apprenticeship allows DPD to recruit apprentices of all ages, ensuring a consistent stream of innovative minds and fresh perspectives into the company, with over 400 apprenticeship qualifications currently being completed within the business.

DPD offers:  Intermediate – widely considered to be the same level as five GCSE passes;  Advanced – recognised as equal to two A Levels;  Higher – provides an opportunity to gain Level 4 qualifications or above, with most apprentices an NVQ Level 4, HND or foundation degree;  Degree – students can achieve a full bachelor’s or master’s degree (or equivalent);  Inclusive (Inspire) – for individuals who have recognised learning difficult and/or disability.

An excellent example of the diverse range of apprenticeships on offer is Joseph Forbes. Having joined DPD in 2014, Joseph turned down sponsored offers from Yale and Harvard Universities to become a fully sponsored legal apprentice, with DPD one of the first companies in the country to offer this kind of qualification. Alongside three others, Joseph is now seven years into an eight-year journey that will see him become a certified solicitor after completing his solicitors qualifying exams (SQE).

Another example is James Porch, winner of the Intec Rising Star Award 2021, given nationally to a young apprentice who has shown exceptional growth or development within their role and is one to watch for the future. Joining DPD in January 2020 straight from school, James went in to the finance department as a credit management apprentice and has grown to become a valued member of the team.

Making a difference

As a Valuable 500 company (companies and leaders who have committed to putting disability inclusion on their business leadership agenda), being able to run a inclusive and supported apprenticeship programme is vital to the company’s vision to remain an industry leader.

Since 2018 DPD has invested £250,000 in its Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND) programme. For this support to be effective it needs to continue beyond the recruitment phase, which is why DPD has established a dedicated supported employment team to ensure every employee or apprentice has the help they require. While based at DPD’s Oldbury HQ, the team works across the network and includes apprentice manager Paul McDonald and supported employment coordinator Sophie Robins. This team has recently taken on its own apprentice and Hughes 13.12.21

Sponsored by

DPD director of people and talent Sharon Hughes

is in the process of recruiting a fourth full-time member.

In 2020 the supported employment team helped eight young people to embrace life post-25 years old (when government support and funding cease) and supported them in achieving paid work, some via inclusive apprenticeships, and to gain independence as young adults.

Robins has become the first employee of a major UK company to enrol on to the supported employment certificate course from the British Association of Supported Employment, whose CEO Huw Davies says: “It’s hugely encouraging that we now have our first booking on the supported employment certificate from a major employer. Over 500 job coaches have now enrolled on the course, but Sophie is the first to take part from an employer. We hope that other companies will recognise the value of workforce diversity and follow DPD’s lead.”

Although Hughes was not able to attend the awards in September – and marketing director Tim Jones grabbed the trophy for his office – she says it was a great achievement to win.

“We were absolutely delighted as we had entered the Apprenticeship category for a number of years,” Hughes says. “The whole team was over the moon.” 

INSPIRED APPROACH DID IT FOR MT AWARDS JUDGES The Apprenticeship category of the 2021 MT Awards was closely fought, but DPD’s Inspire programme nosed it ahead of the other entries. “DPD edged it with the Inspire programme,” said one of our judges.

Inspire is DPD’s inclusivity programme for people with learning difficulties and disabilities. Individuals who join DPD through Inspire have the opportunity to follow a clear progression path: work experience, supported internships and inclusive apprenticeships before achieving a substantive post. The apprenticeship process remains the same but with reasonable adjustments made to suit an individual’s needs and abilities.

From the start of their journey, DPD works with individuals to understand their aspirations and personalities to determine where they will work best, before carving a role that considers their support needs.

In 2020 eight Inspire ‘graduates’ transitioned into paid employment. Examples include international operations administration apprentice Ellie Morris and IT specialist apprentice Callam Bassett, who successfully completed their inclusive apprenticeships.

During Callam’s final educational health care plan review, his parents expressed how the opportunity of an apprenticeship at DPD had “changed Callam’s life” and had far exceeded the expectations they had for him. For all of his life, healthcare professionals and teaching staff had placed limitations on Callam and listed things that he would “never be able to do’’.

It was through his apprenticeship at DPD that Callam has been able to prove these people wrong. Not only did Callam complete his final exam for his apprenticeship, but he did so with flying colours, achieving a 92% pass rate.

DPD also recently employed Mitchi Bell and Luke Sefton who were “overjoyed” to be offered positions as the company’s first inclusive digital marketer apprentices. While Luke was initially apprehensive about completing an apprenticeship, he believes the support he has received so far has been “perfect and exactly what I need”.

Mitchi is another good example of DPD’s commitment to adapt to meet the needs of each apprentice. Due to Asperger’s, Mitchi can struggle to request help verbally so the company worked with Mitchi to develop a traffic light system so that Mitchi can communicate using LED lights on her desk (green = no support, amber = support needed, red = experiencing anxiety). This has enabled Mitchi to build confidence with their colleagues and now “looks forward to meetings” and has a great relationship with the team.

Beyond promoting inclusion within DPD, its director of IT and Inspire ambassador Steve Mills regularly speaks at supported employment forums to encourage other employers to make inclusion a priority.

With personal experience of young people with learning disabilities, Mills has been a key driver behind Inspire. “He is a man on a mission and made people on the board more aware of the difficulties faced when they get to the age of 25,” says Hughes. “That’s how we really got it into it in 2018.”

MotorTransport 49

MT Awards 2021 winner profile Team of the Year

Team effort With the events industry put on hold by the pandemic, Leeds-based Stagefreight relied on its staff to branch out into general haulage to enable the company to ride the storm

B

ased on the Leeds site of Opera North, Stagefreight has for more than 30 years transported equipment for all manner of stagebased shows, with a strong foothold in the arts, delivering everything from lighting rigs to clothing props for theatre, ballet and opera events.

And 2020 started out as Stagefreight’s best year to date.

Its reputation within the theatre and entertainment industry was at an all-time high. New jobs from clients like Sky, Opera North, New Adventures and Northern Ballet were flooding in.

The company recorded a 22% year-on-year financial increase, and it was on track to achieve a 36% increase within Q1. It had even opened a new depot in Exeter, Stagefreight South, which was the first time the company had ever expanded like this. Additionally, it had entered a network partnership with the firms House of Tours and EFM Global to offer complete event production services to existing and new customers.

Then Covid-19 hit the entire entertainment industry.

Tours, events and shows got cancelled until the company’s work fell to 0% almost overnight. But at Stagefreight, all team members are encouraged to have a can-do attitude and to face the unexpected with a solution-focused mindset. So, it got to work...

Starting afresh

“We were on course to have a record year,” explains Chris Adgie, director at Stagefreight. “Then Covid killed it off.”

The March 2020 lockdown hit the company hard, but whether it knew it or not, Stagefreight was already on its own path to beating the virus.

“General haulage and events don’t mix. The old boss tried it many years ago, and it didn’t work,” continues Adgie, who along with fellow director Ian Uttley conducted a management buyout in 2015. “We actually started looking at doing general haulage in February [2020], but the thing is we’d never done it, so it was like starting all over again, but right down in the pecking order.”

Because of the often specialist nature of the trailers that events companies pull, many choose to have tractor units with low deck heights, effectively ruling them out of pulling a standard trailer. Stagefreight, however, already had a foot in the door of general haulage, despite not doing any work in the field itself. A long-standing arrangement with a 3PL saw 20 of its trucks loaned out to the company in the run-up to Christmas.

50 MotorTransport

Describing it as the “icing on the cake” of its own busy Christmas schedule where many shows, like pantomimes, are set up and don’t require transport for several weeks, Stagefreight was able to rent out the fleet and take a breather. That had meant that many of its fleet of 30 tractor units were dual-height 4x2s, ensuring that they could hook up to a regular supermarket trailer or fridge, as well as events trailers.

Yet, it wasn’t just Christmas rentals that got the company a foot in the door of general haulage. Having done some work for a haulier who then took the work back in-house once its own construction fleet was on furlough, Stagefreight turned to Haulage Exchange for a steady supply of work that kept it going all the way through the lockdown.

Working out of Leeds initially, transport planner Jon Palmer then filled the drivers’ working week with loads between various other destinations.

“To begin with, we only had four on general haulage and most of the drivers were on furlough. Then we were up to eight trucks in April and 16 in May. By the end, everyone was back out. We had a basket with a lot of eggs in, but it showed us that you need two baskets. We’ve learnt that we need two arms to the business so that you can fall back on one when things get difficult,” Adgie explains.

New venture

That new second arm is SFL International, its newly created refrigerated and general haulage business, which, with the events industry now recovering, has meant significant new investment is needed in this new venture.

The business has therefore ordered 20 new MercedesBenz Gigaspace trucks, the first four due to arrive this year, in addition to 40 extra box trailers from SDC and Don-Bur. Stagefreight plans to have as many as 10 vehicles working on general haulage by the end of the year and will manage the work with the weekly demands of its events.

Adgie says: “All of the trucks that were originally on the events will come back on to the events, but we’ve always been short of trucks at the weekend. Because of all the theatre moves, we need extra trucks at the weekend, so we can put them in one [a new general haulage truck] on a weekend.”

Stagefreight was lucky that the specification of its tractor units enabled it to easily switch to moving general haulage trailers. There are several low-height Renaults 13.12.21

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on the fleet, but increasingly Stagefreight has been ordering Mercedes, with the new units joining a range of other Mercedes products already in operation.

Despite losing £4m-worth of jobs as a result of the events industry being shuttered by the pandemic, Stagefreight doesn’t seem put off by the thought of returning to the sector. Its years of experience, particularly in foreign travel, is pushing it towards expanding into rock concerts.

Having previously been a subcontractor on some major European music tours, Adgie knows that it’s hard work with tight deadlines, but points out that conferencing and events are only really short-term work, whereas a rock and roll tour can be nine months of good money.

Inevitably, the biggest potential headache in branching out into touring will be the paperwork. With the goods travelling between the UK and the EU having to be individually itemised for customs, moving a whole stage show with lights, equipment and costumes presents itself with a unique headache of Brexit-related admin.

“It’s not like moving 20 pallets of yoghurt – everything has to be accounted for,” Adgie explains. Then there’s the personnel to think of and their ability to work in Europe for more than 180 days of the year on a tour, and finally the question of cabotage.

Fortunately, Stagefreight is in a stronger position than ever and has weathered what could have been an extremely difficult 18 months to be an events haulier. ■ 13.12.21

“AS A TEAM, IT’S PULLED US CLOSE TOGETHER” Planning for a pandemic was never in anyone’s business plan, and Stagefreight director Ian Uttley says as much, but he’s certainly pleased with the way things have worked out in what he says has been a stressful year.

“I don’t think there are many companies that are coming out of this with growth; we are in quite a good place. As a team, it’s pulled us close together.

“We’ve all worked really hard to get new work. The drivers have brought leads in, we’ve chased work and it’s taken us a while to get the hang of general haulage, but we now have a stronger base if Covid hits again – we’ve got avenues to go to, and we won’t have to stand the trucks down.”

Uttley tells us how an almost full diary was cancelled, leaving the company with zero revenue and just the limited resources in the bank to work with. Having invested heavily every year, ploughing close to £10m into the business since taking over, the funds weren’t going to last long. Business is now looking up and Uttley forecasts the refrigeration work will bring in £2m of turnover and the general haulage work about the same. That alone represents nearly a doubling in turnover from 2019, but a partnership with House of Tours taking the company into more music and festival work will see the events business bring in as much as £8m.

“It’s a big jump in turnover,” Uttley concedes. “To get to that we’ve had to invest heavily – that scares me – but we’ve diversified into areas that make us stronger as a business. The past 18 months have been a learning curve for us all – it’s been tough on the drivers going from events to general haulage. There’s a lot more paperwork. The paperwork we do now is unbelievable, and the rules on going into Europe seem to change every week.

“I can’t thank them enough for what they do for us. They’ve dug deep,” he adds.

MotorTransport 51

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16/11/20 12:26