5 minute read
LOGISTICS
Schmitz Cargobull built a reputation as one of Europe’s leading transport solution providers before entering the Australian market. Food & Beverage Industry News reports.
Hawke Logistics (pictured) is a good case study for the benefits of using Schmitz Cargobull’s temperature-controlled trailers to transport food and beverage products.
Trailer and logistics company, Schmitz Cargobull, has been supplying the global food and beverage industry with tailored trailers for more than a century.
Since its inception, the company has produced more than 46,000 trailer units every year with approximately 15,000 of those being transport cooling units that are utilised in the food and beverage industry.
Schmitz Cargobull has built its reputation as a source for companies that need to freight perishable food and drinks from one location to another safely.
The company has a focus on sustainability and many of its products are designed to limit environmental impacts while also helping to increase transport lines.
A series of awards for trailer innovation in 2021 also demonstrates Schmitz Cargobull’s commitment to always trying to improve its offerings to the market.
The company designs semi-trailers especially for beverage transport with suitable load securing equipment, which offers time-related benefits because of their side opening and closing mechanisms.
The height of the semi-trailers means there is plenty of room for products, which leads to economic efficiency.
Schmitz Cargobull CEO, Andrea Schmitz, said the changes the company has been making recently to its offerings were the result of market forces.
“Our industry is currently undergoing some major changes, demanding a great deal of flexibility and innovation from us,” said Schmitz.
“During this transformation, Schmitz Cargobull is strategically expanding its role as a digital leader at all levels of the trailer market. As a reliable and innovative company, we make sure that sustainability is closely tied to our products and processes.
“I am confident that – together with our staff, customers, suppliers, and other stakeholders – we will work hard to actively shape and advance this transformation.”
One example of the company’s
dedication to innovative modular systems came in 2020/21 with its new chassis concept. The rolled and bolted chassis has undergone design enhancements to make it lighter.
Individual components within the chassis are already strip-galvanised when they arrive at Schmitz Cargobull factories, which offers savings in terms of energy use and CO2 output.
The company’s range of trailers come in different weight classes, from 12 to 44 tonnes, which covers up to 80 per cent of all goods moved in a local or long-distance transport chains.
Meanwhile, temperaturecontrolled transport places particular demands on trailers so it is critical that the freshness and quality of the goods is retained. But at the same time, stringent hygiene and environmental requirements represent a logistical challenge.
In response, Schmitz Cargobull created its double-decker design for refrigerated trailers, which enables the cargo area to be optimised and CO2 to be reduced. Those solutions include lighter semi-trailers and telematics equipment, such as tyre pressure monitoring and refilling systems.
An Australian client of Schmitz Cargobull, Hawk Logistics, specialises in temperature-controlled transport. Managing director Wilander Saldanha spoke about the benefits of adding Schmitz Cargobull trailers to its fleet of trucks.
“One of the biggest draw cards for Schmitz trailers was the thermal qualities on the fridge body of the trailers,” said Saldanha.
The relationship first started when Saldanha’s company discovered Schmitz Cargobull through its association with Krueger Transport Equipment when it moved into the Australian market.
“At the time Schmitz was building the bodies and Krueger were building the trailer chassis,” said Saldanha.
“But when Schmitz started to build both the bodies and trailer chassis, we grew a direct relationship with them from there.”
Hawk Logistics transport product and down the Australian eastern seaboard and run many of their Schmitz Cargobull trailers across Victoria where temperatures can reach into the high 40C during summer, so the company needed a product that could withstand such extreme external temperatures.
“The refrigerated trailer must be able to adapt and control temperatures at different levels reliably. Needing that flexibility in the business is critical. We can’t afford to have loads, especially meat, go out of temp so the thermal qualities were some of the key points for us,” said Saldanha.
“Another key benefit we noticed early on was the safety around the ease of use for the double stacking load bar system in Schmitz trailers.
“They are light wight aluminium bars on roof mounted tracks so from a driver point of view they aren’t bulky and can be easily unclipped and moved down so that makes it a safer way to load the vehicle. Drivers aren’t having to cart bulk items in and out of the trailer.”
Schmitz Cargobull was able to provide a trailer that met the requirements of Hawk Logistics and as a result the Hawk’s purchased 20 of the company’s trailers to install in its fleet of more than 100-plus vehicles.
“We are always looking at different providers and testing out their products to find the best ones we can for the jobs we need them for,” said Saldanha.
So far, the trailers from Schmitz Cargobull have met, and even exceeded, the expectations of the logistics company, which is pleased with the outcome so far.
“We have a range of products we transport. Red meat and poultry are our main game, but we also transport dairy products, ready-made-meals, pretty much anything that needs to be refrigerated we can transport,” said Saldanha.
“The refrigerated trailer has to adapt and control temperatures at different levels reliably. Needing that flexibility in the business is critical.”
As industry targets around CO2 use, sustainability and more circular economies around recycling get closer and industry stakeholders take those into consideration when making business decisions, a company such as Schmitz Cargobull, which openly promotes the sustainable benefits to its products, appears to be a great logistical option for Australian food and beverage companies.
The company outlines its production strategy going forward as one that will ensure product quality at all sites to guarantee the lowest cost for customers while simultaneously generating a lower carbon footprint through higher efficiency. F
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