GROWING BODY OF EXPERTISE
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Silver Arrow was founded 20 years ago as a distribution business. Its management hasn't changed, but its structure and aims have: the plan is to offer a comprehensive one-stop service, including truck rental.
• Things are happening fast at West Country bodybuilder and truck distributor Silver Arrow Services — so fast, in fact, that a deal struck last year to assemble (and ultimately build) a Continental range of temperature-controlled bodywork is already on the point of being superseded.
Nothing daunted, Silver Arrow is already laying plans for a different approach to the production of temperature-controlled bodywork. This is likely to involve sourcing individual components from a variety of suppliers (either British or Continental), and putting the end product together through its own resources.
INSULATED TRAILERS
This could eventually lead to insulated trailers carrying Silver Arrow as the builder's name. National sales manager Stephen Pinchin says: "If that's how things develop, then all well and good. On the other hand, if we find that we're buying in a substantial part of the body from a single supplier, we'll be quite happy to put that name on the end product. What matters is that were giving the right service to our customers."
Silver Arrow Services has been around in one form or another for 20 years. It started in Swindon as a distribution business headed by Alan Olding, and he is still in charge, but for a long time now it has been specialising in body repairs and refurbishment, and in building complete bodies.
In its early days, the company's growth was steady rather than spectacular, but lately the pace has quickened significantly. Last year the group took over an ailing ERF distributorship, AN Nicholson of Avonmouth: since the takeover sales have more than trebled to well over 100 units a year to make the business the fastestgrowing sales outlet in the ERF empire.
Meanwhile, body repairs and refurbishing have blossomed with the development of resources at Avonmouth. "This is a massive catchment area for trailer repairs," says service manager John Read. "TIP has about 800 trailers based at Avonmouth, and there are Central Rentco and Trallerent branches here too."
While activities were being extended in these other spheres, the company also decided to expand into refrigerated trailer sales. Its own body shop was practised at building general-purpose vehicles, but the company decided to take on an agency for a proven make of trailer. This led to a relationship with Norfrig, the Danish temperature-controlled body specialist, which two years ago was looking for ways of breaking into the British market. A deal was set up under which, initially, Silver Arrow would mount prefabricated Norfrig bodies on rigid or trailer chassis for UK customers. Later, according to the plan, the company would assemble them in Britain, and it might even have produced the panels for the bodies.
This arrangement swung into action last year, and Silver Arrow invested heavily in promoting its new product range. To spearhead the sales drive, Stephen Pinchin was recruited from Lawrence David, with whom he had become well-known in the area as regional sales manager. "We were pleased with the results," says Pinchin. "We sold over 50 insulated bodies last year, which was well above expectations." But the economic boom has made bodybuilding a fast-moving business, and by the turn of this year Norfrig had decided to recast its UK sales plans. New agents were appointed, contracts were reappraised, and it became clear that Silver Arrow no longer occupied a central role in the scheme of things. "We're still fulfilling orders for the time being," Pinchin says, "but in the long-term we'll be going our separate ways."
NEW-FOUND MARKET
That does not mean that Silver Arrow has any intention of dropping its new-found market in insulated bodies. On the contrary; it is gearing up for a new initiative. "We don't really want any break in continuity," says Pinchin. "We're aiming to have a new product to sell as soon as current arrangements lapse in the spring."
The approach will change subtly. "When you look at insulated body specialists, a lot of them are doing what amounts to an assembly operation," he says. "They might buy side panels from one supplier, floors from another, bulkheads from another and so on. Their skill is using their own expertise to make the best use of established products and know-how; and that's something we're well equipped to do ourselves.
"When you talk to Continental bodybuilders, you find they are much more open than we are about the way they work," Pinchin says. "If a bodybuilder finds a supplier that produces particularly good bulkheads, he doesn't mind telling his customers so. He reasons that they'll be pleased rather than concerned to know they're getting a good bought-in product. So why shouldn't we do the same thing?"
External finish has become vital to the success of an insulated body, in Pinchin's view: "Without wanting to ignore the really discriminating engineers, I'd have to say that a lot of operators buy fridge vans primarily on the basis of what they look like." He smiles at this indicating that perhaps he is generalising rather broadly. "Yes, there are other factors too. For instance, nowadays the operator wants air suspension and a good interior height. My point is that equipment like axles, air suspension, tyres and so on is becoming increasingly universal. The operator assumes he'll get good quality in these things, and looks to the external finish as the prime criterion instead."
For this reason Pinchin favours precoated aluminium for the outer skin of a fridge van. "It allows denser foaming than plastics without bulging or deforming, and it gives you a good gloss finish." For the interior, plain aluminium or reinforced
plastics are preferred. He also favours body-on-chassis rather than chassisless construction: "Then you can let the body do what it's there for, without worrying about hefty framework and reinforcement to make it self-supporting." He sees no reason to sacrifice weight or height, if you recess the chassis members into the floor: "It's a matter of responding to what the operator wants. The Continental builders can still teach us a lot about fridge bodies. Look at their rear frames. Stainless steel is the norm over there, whereas here it is frequently shown as an extra — with additional cost to the buyer." Asked if this would push up the cost Pinchin says: "I could offer a premium-build trailer tomorrow for less than a typical UK product."
A NEW BASE
Silver Arrow is now developing a new base on a 4ha site at Chelworth, near Cricklade, Wilts. The body shop is being transferred here from older premises in Swindon, and production will be extended to include a new range of trailer and vehicle bodies. The company already turns its hand to most conventional truck bodies, including box vans and curtainsiders, although it has always tended to place more emphasis on the repair and refurbishment side. "There are plenty of companies that will build you a standard body if you want one, but there aren't so many that can mend one when it's damaged. It's a job that demands special skills, but if you can do it properly it's a good business to be in." To support this established side of the business Silver Arrow has resources including shot-blasting and the biggest Spraybake hot and cold paint booth in the region. Some of the repair work will be transferred to Chelworth, where there will be more space and better facilities, although a body-shop will also be maintained at Avonmouth to service work such as an ail-in trailer maintenance contract for Tempco Union.
The Swindow site will also provide a base for an ERF service centre to supplement the main dealership at Avonmouth. Two other services from Avonmouth will gain a new outlet here, too — agencies for Ratcliff tail-lifts and Econocruise topspeed limiters. The latest agency taken on by the group is one for Apex cargocontrol equipment. "Our ambition is to create a true one-stop shop," says Read. "We can offer new chassis and bodies, ancillaries, servicing and body repairs."
He could have added truck rental, now also being added to the company's portfolio. The initial fleet ranges from 17tonne rigids to 38-tonne tractive units and includes Iveco Fords as well as ERFs. It is perhaps as near as Silver Arrow has come to its roots as an operator — although in its dynamic new form, little else is recognisable from those early days. 0 by Peter Rowlands