B A U M A S H O W S T H E I M P O R TA N C E O F
CONSTRUCTION
TRAILER BUILDERS AND EQUIPMENT SPECIALISTS FROM ALL ACROSS EUROPE GATHERED AT THIS YEAR’S BAUMA TRADE SHOW TO DEMONSTRATE INNOVATIONS THAT SUPPORT THE CONSTRUCTION, MINING AND AGRICULTURE INDUSTRIES. [ Story by Tim de Jong. ]
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ost of the European trailer builders represented at the gigantic Bauma show in Munich, which was held in April. Schmitz Cargobull was the only one with a stand in one of the many halls, while the others were grouped at the Freigelände Nord part of the open exhibition area. In Germany, tippers are often used to complement road work activities. This is a big market when you consider that the government invests billions in improving its road freight arterial networks. Following this infrastructure spend, it makes sense that countless trucks and trailers are requisitioned to complete necessary road works. This market trend has influenced Germany’s trailer builders, where just about every local OEM has their own tipper design spec’d for bulk haulage freight tasks. This year, the Germans expect a record of 538 roadworks sites all at the same time on their motorway network alone. So, when Boris Billich, Sales Director of Schmitz Cargobull, told Global Trailer that Bauma is one of the most important venues for the brand to meet with customers, we think that we understand his point. “Construction is one of the four pillars for Schmitz Cargobull,” Billich says. “The other three are reefers, curtainsiders and box trailers as well as box-bodies for rigids.” He estimates the production of tipper trailers at 20 per cent of the total of Schmitz Cargobull. The tippers on display in Munich are all built at a specialised site in Gotha, in the east of Germany.
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“In the past three years, this market grew by 10-to-15 per cent a year,” Billich says. “It’s very dynamic. With an estimated market share of 20 per cent, we are clearly number one. We are growing in a growing market.” He concedes that this success has a downside with regards to delivery timeframes. “We are executing changes and we are investing further in our plant in Gotha to reduce delivery times. Also, we look to optimise deliveries of parts in order to smooth production and to speed it up while we are maintaining the same, proven quality standards.” Schmitz Cargobull’s goals are obvious for 2019: Increase sales and decrease delivery timeframes. Schmitz Cargobull has developed an inner protection layer when light aluminium box bodies are being used. According to the OEM: “Corroded and worn body finishes make unloading more time-consuming, complex and, last but not least, more
