Pallet network vettini called into question
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by Melanie Hammond Leading palletised freight network Pall-Ex (UK) is attempting to distance itself from one of its former South Wales franchise holders which went bust amid threats of legal action.
SWF Distribution is the third South Wales Pall-Ex franchisee to fail in less than four years.
The franchise itself has changed hands five times in the same period. This raises serious questions about PallEx's vetting procedures.
In response to this Pall-Ex founder and director Hilary Sharpies insists that companies seeking membership of the Pall-Ex network must meet strict criteria. From April to December 2000 the Pall-Ex franchise in South Wales was operated by SWF Distribution. This was part of the SWF group of companies which recently went bust for about 1250.000 after trading for less than 12 months.
The franchise was moved from SWF Distribution to SWF Warehousing, which trades from the same premises as SWF Distribution. SWF Ware housing director Philip Barnett was formerly a director of SWF Distribution.
Pall-Ex has now stripped SWF Warehousing of the franchise, moving it to MidGlamorgan-based TWT.
Commercial Motor has discovered that TWT is employing
a former director of Logicline Forwarding, one of the failed franchise holders, as a manager. Mark Waite has been involved as a senior manager in each of the five franchises—he is now the manager of Pall-Ex traffic operations for Tiff.
Furthermore, CM has found that Pall-Ex allowed its franchise to move to SWF Distribution although one of that company's directors, Anthony Lewis, had been involved in previous failed companies.
A dispute later arose over the transfer of the franchise from previous franchisee PSW Logistics to swr Distribution.
SWF Distribution insists it acquired the franchise by agreement with former PSW director Anthony Kiff. Kiff disputes this. He claims that SWF Distribt took assets from his comp This is vigorously denie Philip Barnett, one of Distribution's former di tors, who claims all belong were returned. but also tion any. d by SWF reeings