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17th January 2008
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Page 44, 17th January 2008 — MAKE MINE A DOUBLE!
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If you want to boost your operating efficiency, multi-floor specialist Trailer Resources may be able to help you. Bryan Jarvis has been speaking to the man at the helm.

s trailer suppliers go, leasing and rental companyTrailer Resources is a relative newcomer—but that hasn't stopped it ruin expanding within the highly specialised ,ouble-deck transport sector.

Proprietor Des O'Connor certainly knows thing or two about business development, _aving spent 12 years helping Montracon xpand across the UK and a further three ears doing much the same for SDC.

But in 1996 he decided the time was ripe 3 put his hard-earned expertise to better se by working for himselfTeaming up /kb his son Bany and original partner Eric :dwards, O'Connor set upTrailer Resources t Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire. in itially ist buying and selling trailers. Hefty sales tax rompted the three to extend their business ortfolio to include curtainsider rentals, and is proved lobe a turning point.

he right spec

here were already plenty of rental companies ffering standard trailers on cheap deals ut O'Connor wanted to make full use of is and Barry's combined 65 years of trailer xperience to give customers the optimum 2hic1e for each job, and to recommend the ght load restraint too.

Their detailed specifications extended to iinutiae such as tyre valve extensions on yin-wheeled inners, to make checking tyre ressures easier."If it's difficult to do. then you in bet that most drivers won't bother to do says O'Connor senior, "so we try to make it Isier for them." They also knew the value of using the right type of extra decking to suit a particular operation, where best to position roof posts, and which load securing system to include.

"We've really become unpaid consultants," he says. "But resolving a client's problems is just another way of adding value,and is likely to secure orders."

Initially, business was no more than steady, but a query for a single refrigerated trailer led to orders for a further 30 and lifted the company's client list to around 20 in the Home Counties. A decade on, Des O'Connor is the sole owner with Barry as operations director managing the day-to-day running of the business. Their customer base has grown to around 200 UK operators, serviced with a fleet of more than 2,000 curtainsiders — 80% of which are on contract hire with the rest rented out.

In the past financial year,Trailer Resources turned over £6m, which is in line with the yearly business plan. O'Connor also has a three-year overview to make sure it remains profitable and heading in the right direction. While the fleet is relatively young, over the past four years he has spent £2m a year on new trailers for new contracts. Barry has recently taken the company into double-deckers but they have also bought boxvans and, more recently, skeletal& One major client needed sliding-bogie skeletals to haul an increasing number of 45ft containers, hut it was anxious to avoid the damage being sustained when the coupling tray was pulled forward from the 40ft position.The customer also wanted to remove the need for drivers to lean under the front of the 45k boxes when coupling up the tractor unit.

Following lengthy consultations with the chosen manufacturer, Mon tracon, the problem has been resolved by fitting the couplings onto a new extended neck section, This accepts the longer box without affecting the 2.04m swing clearance.

The 14-lock prototype has proven itself and is currently working in the fleet; another 26 are in the pipeline.

Trailer Resources had worked with the same customer back in the late 1990s when it wanted new curtainsiders to move parts consignments in pallets and stillages between the UK and the Continent.

Keen to develop this brief, the O'Conn ors checked out the customer's entire transport req uirement; they even visited TtiV HQ in Hanover for clarification on load security before deciding on the final specification.

At that time the load retention capability of curtains and strapping bad come under close scrutiny in parts of Europe, especially Germany and Sweden. leading to the Safety of Loads on Vehicles recommendations.

Trailer Resources and the client agreed a fully compliant specification including the necessary TEN Nord certificate which enabled it to pass any border control scrutiny.

An initial order for 100 was placed with Fruehauf and a further batch of 366 were ordered from Lawrence David.

As a strong supporter of the German VDI 2700 standards, O'Connor senior believes they should become the UK norm. He also thinks insurance companies should take a closer interest in load restraint.

Barry O'Connor had long realised the potential of double-deckers; four years ago he began adding them to the fleet,Today the firm fields more than 200 double-deckers with lots more on order.

Fuel savings There is growing interest in double-deckers with sloping fronts — various manufacturers quote fuel savings of up to 15% in exchange for a .€1,000 premium.That might add £4 a week on a five-year contract but O'Connor senior feels that accurate fuel figures are necessary if he is to convince his customers of the benefits.

For this reason, the company has teamed up with Commercial Motor to run a controlled operational trial in an attempt to quantify any fuel savings. A standard-spec doubledeck curtainsider with a flat roof will be run alongside one of the new models with its sloping, aerodynamic front.

The idea is to ensure there is no extra resistance when pulling the curtains along thal first curved section — look out for the results in next week's issue. •


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