Scottish mate for Lynx
Page 12
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• Scottish Parcel Services will merge with the recentlylaunched Lynx Express Delivery Network in early October, in a further rationalisation of the National Freight Consortium's parcels business.
SPS has been working alongside Lynx since 24 June when Lynx was formed from the merger of National Carriers and Roadline (CM 2-8 July). Now it will be managed by Lynx managing director Graham Roberts.
SPS's Edinburgh depot will become the 17th main depot in the Lynx network and will be fed by smaller depots at Dundee, Aberdeen, and Inverness.
"This will give us the best parcels coverage in Scotland," says Roberts," and it should improve our links between England and Scotland." The move will also increase Lynx's turnover by around 10% (26 million): last year SPS had a turnover of around 29 million with National Carriers Roadline as one of its biggest customers.
Lynx will be introducing a series of drawbar units in Scotland during the next 12 months. These vehicles will form the second phase of an investment in drawbar equipment which could eventually reach 23 million.
This month Lynx plans the first phase introduction in England of 21.6 million worth of drawbar equipment, including 19 Volvo FL7 tractive units, for work at the company's West Country and Welsh depots. Lynx has estimated that certain routes from these depots do not warrant 12-metre semi-trailers for trunking work; instead the company will use drawbar equipment, with 6-metre bodies on the rigid chassis and 8.5m trailers.
The bodies used on the rigids are fitted with demountable equipment from Abel to allow their use for collections and delivery work. The demountable couplings on the rigid chassis can take Freightliner containers as well as Lynx bodies.
Operations director Cyril Oliver says the 19 new Volvos will work alongside 12 Leyland Cruisers, already owned by Lynx, which have been specially extended to take demountable bodies by Blackburn-based Wheelbase Engineering. Wheelbase has also worked with Lynx on converting 38 trailers to 8.5m to work as drawbar trailers, and developed 19 dollies from old Rubery Owen trailer axles.
Oliver estimates that the vehicle alteration programme has saved the company around 2500,000 and has resulted in a fleet which is ideally suited to the company's needs.
Graham Roberts says this latest investment in vehicles gives Lynx one of the youngest vehicle fleet profiles in the parcels business. He is pleased with the progress of the company since its relaunch and says new business since 24 June "can be measured in millions".
0 The merger of SPS with Lynx is expected to be the first part of a radical rethink of NFC's Regional Group business.