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Who's afraid of a little competitionl
Page 18
Page 19
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a by Toby Clark
Michael Convery says: We see ourselves as the biggest and the number one manufacturer in the UK. We want to establish ourselves as that." While Montracon and General Trailers might disagree, there's no arguing with the comMtment that the firm shows.
SDC claims to have an enviable blend of series production and specialist build. As sales & marketing director Steve Lymer puts it: 'We've got a fast-track production system that can do bespoke builds. How we've managed to grow is by making a quality product at a competitive price."
As with many trailer builders, the history of SDC is complex: started in 1978 by Seamus McClory in Ireland, over the years it expanded its plant in Toomebridge, and in 1994 acquired tip
per manufacturer Neville Charrold, complete with NC's Mansfield factory. Now chassis built in Toomebridge are topped out in Mansfield for UK customers, while tippers are built entirely in the UK. SDC still builds a good number of Neville Charrold trailers—about five a week— and a couple of rigid bodies each month.
Reverse take-over
The other great change that has come about is that John Donnelly, owner of County Antrim metal fabrication firm MDF (which supplies SDC with chassis beams) bought SDC in a sort of reverse take-over: "At the end of the day the supplier purchased the customer," says Convery.
Now SDC employs 450 people all told, and while it is strong in Ireland, Lymer still sees its main growth area as the UK, despite its fantastically competitive trailer industry. Lymer admits: "There probably is over-capacity, but we are in a strong position-the investments have already been made in terms of production facilities." An example of this is the paint preparation system SDC uses (see box).
The firm has not neglected its sales and marketing operation-"Over the past three years we have built up our team," says Covey and it now includes a number of staff from other trailer manufacturers. "They hit the ground running," he says. The firm also took on Steve Lymer, an exFraikin executive. This is an increasing trend in trailer manufacturers, who recognise that finance and leasing companies, as well as hire fleets, are an increasingly important part of the customer base.
Convery adds: "The truck business is at least four years in front of the trailer business in terms of financing."
SDC's own financing arrangements are made with Clydesdale, and include lease purchase and operating leases as well as straightforward hire purchase. Convery also makes the point that SDC is classed in "Group A" of CAP's used trailer price guide.
But Lymer concedes that many USE don't want to buy a trailer outright: "A of operators want to know their cm but they want some flexibility—the rm ket is maturing. We have tried very ha to work with the rental companies to g product into them."
Owner-drivers
But Lymer doesn't want anybody to thi that SDC is only there for the Iv fleets. "A lot of owner-drivers are a ve important part of the market," I stresses. This goes particularly for ti tipper sector.
Convery doesn't mystify the proce. of building trailers: "Basically we're ju putting together a big jigsaw." But he iar that "your numbers have to be right start with". Steve Lymer adds: "There's re and more of negotiating with a super to come up with a component that irks well for them and for us. We've ind that getting prices down has built a ser relationship with a supplier."
SDC supplies chassis to a number of ler trailer manufacturers, and the relanship goes airther: "If we don't have e right fit we can talk to one of our part ners to see if they can help," says Lymer. However, he insists that the firm's core business is total trailer manufacture: 'We are eqjoying a lot of repeat business, and we're expanding our customer base."
After-sales service
It's not all about the trailer itself; there's after-sales service too, in terms of breakdown recovery, spares supply and, ultimately, refurbishment. Even with such a competitive market for new trailers, refurbishment is increasingly important—SDC refurbishes about 15 trailers a week, with a full refurbishment taking up to six or seven weeks. Lymer says: "We can offer the whole package. Were expanding our parts and refurbishment business—that's the way you grow your business."
The marketing effort extends to accepting trade-ins and promoting SDC's website (www.sdctrailers.com) as a route for new and used sales. The website is not just for sales: it is also used for recruitment as well as communication with suppliers.
SDC has the approval Of the Investors In People organisation and, according to Convery, it is not just for show: "Sometimes you can forget that your most important thing is the guy actually making the product."