ISLAND RACE
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Bernard Clarke-Lens is only weeks into his new job as boss of the Isle of Wight's 76-year-old haulage firm, Vectis, and he has no time for an island mentality: "You can't wait for customers to come to you."
It's a sign of the times that the Isle of Wight's veteran haulage firm, Vectis Transport, is considering relinquishing its quayside site in Newport—the days when goods-laden barges sailed up from East Cowes are long gone.
Nowadays only the occasional hazardous load travels up the inland waterway; loads which are unsuitable for the RO-R0 ferry service from Southampton. Instead Vectis vehicles bring in goods to East Cowes on Red Funnel, the ferry company which has owned the 76-year-old operation for the past 25 years.
Despite the relationship with Red Funnel no favouritism is shown. Trucks pay the going rate for the Solent crossing, says Vectis general manager Bernard Clarke-Lens, who took over the helm in January with a brief from the parent company to modernise the business. This year Red Funnel is increasing its freight capacity to the island with two large new freight/passenger ferries replacing two of the smaller vessels. The first of the new ships, Red Falcon—built on the Clyde—will be in service in time for Easter.
Like any island company Vectis depends on shipping-; in fact it began life as the Vectis
Shipping Company a month after the end of World War 1, operating motor barges between Southampton and Portsmouth to the Isle of Wight. It was set up by businessman Leigh Thomas whose son Vivian Leigh Thomas, now in his eighties, remains on the board. Trucks were not introduced until 1947 when Vectis Roadways was established as the delivery arm of Vectis Shipping. The shipping side of the business closed in 1981 after RO-RO ferries had established a faster option than barges.
Clarke-Lens has his eye on a new site, probably close to the present one but with modern warehousing in a single unit instead of the current rambling collection of buildings straggling along Newport quayside.
Shipping
Although only 38, Clarke-Lens has more than 20 years experience in shipping and freight forwarding, having gone into the business straight from school. He came to Vectis from Hapag-Lloyd and before that was with L,ep International.
Vectis runs a general haulage and groupage service with a warehouse in Southampton for breaking up or consolidating loads. Many other operators find it convenient to deliver to the Southampton depot and let the island haulier get on with the business of delivering their goods to the customer; its drivers have the advantage of knowing the island's most obscure addresses."It frees their delivery vehicles to get going and earn some money," says Clarke-Lens.
Vectis operates two shunting vehicles: one on the island and one on the mainland for hauling trailers on and off the ferries. A fleet of thirteen 38-tonners operate mainland services while a 38-tormer and five Leyland Roadrunner boxvans take care of island collections and deliveries. The Roadrunners are particularly useful for delivering to addresses on the island's narrower roads.
Vectis adds grain bulkers to its fleet to meet the seasonal demand from the island's large agricultural sector—the fleet has to be versatile. Deliveries include everything to meet the needs of more than 126,000 people living in an area measuring 26 miles by 15 miles.
A groupage load arriving on the day CM visited ranged from wine and vinyl dog toys to insulation material and timber. Vectis brings bottled gas into Newport and acts as
the BOC agent; the more gas it sells, the more it transports.
Clarke-Lens has plans to modernise the fleet. Most of the tractors are Volvos but the most recent vehicle, a 1992 Iveco Ford EuroTech, was bought heavily discounted during a dealer promotion. Its driver, Vectis veteran Roy Carter, takes sawn timber produced on the island to various mainland destinations including two companies in Wales which produce chipboard and paper. There is little industry on the island, apart from helicopter parts produced by Westland. Carter delivers loads of these to IIeathrow Airport for export. Backloads include food, beer, soft drinks, building materials and fertiliser. Abnormal loads are a regular part of the job: seven portable buildings used in the construction of a new island branch of Marks & Spencer are due to return to a London depot.
Caulkhead
Carter describes himself as an original "caulkhead"—island slang for a native. All the drivers can make the same claim. Carter is four years away from retirement and joined Vectis when it took over his former employer, Mike Death Haulage, in 1986. During the war his father drove for BRS and Carter recalls helping him load agricultural produce grown on the island on to mainlandbound ships at the Vectis quay, Carter left in 1951 and returned in 1965: "You have to leave the island to come back to appreciate it," he says. Clarke-Lens was brought up in Devon and lives in Fareham. Does he find any difficulty fitting into the culture of a company where so many of its employees come from the same locality and have lived there all their lives? "There's no problem," he says. "The drivers and staff are very keen about pulling together and making the business a success."
Better communication with mainland customers is of paramount importance; Vectis plans to develop its express service from Southampton. "We cannot wait for customers to come to us," says Clarke-Lens, "We have to sell the service—we may open a London depot, if necessary." Just because you live on an island doesn't mean you have to act like you do.
7 by Patric Cunnane