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IT PAYS TO SPECIALISE

18th March 2004, Page 94
18th March 2004
Page 94
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Page 94, 18th March 2004 — IT PAYS TO SPECIALISE
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RD Anderson Haulage fields a conventional fleet of truck-mounted cranes. But as Tim Maughan learned, it distinguisnes itself from the crowd with Brimec loaders, gritters, and even an access platform vehicle.

We last visited Edinburgh-based RD Anderson Haulage exactly five years ago.At that time the firm ran 48 trucks, and it still does.-Everyone of them is a rigid," reports transport manager Bob Geddes. "They consist of flats. tippers. and Brimec loaders."

The company runs wagons from Daf. ERE Mercedes-Benz and Ivecot 23 of them are equipped with cranes.There are two grabs, which are fitted to a pair of lveco 18-tonne tippers: both are hired out to the local authority for re-instatement work such as paving and lifting spoil. We admire the line-up of gritters in the Anderson sheds."These are contracted to Edinburgh City Council," says Geddes. "There's a Mercedes, a Daf.and two Ivecos.All are 18-tonners.They're a back-up to the council's fleet and are only used in really had weather. One winter they were only used four times... we're not getting the winters that we used to.

The Otters distinguish RH Anderson Haulage from your typical transport operation, but it's the cranes that earn the steady money. "To be honest. I would like to think that we are the leaders in truck-mounted cranes in the Scottish central belt," says Geddes."Health and Safety regulations mean that men can no longer lift loads themselves, so there is a bigger requiremen for cranes."

He adds that customers are generally looking for heavier truck-mounted cranes nowadays. Portable work units are commo loads: "The construction industry is our ma workload. In this day and age the work cab arc made to anti-vandal specifications.The metal, and weigh six tonnes."

Conventional wooden cabins are also carried, weighing in at a comparatively sylr like three tonnes. Sticking with specialist equipment we move onto the subject of aa vehicles."We have an access platform vehil which has a 24m reach," Geddes reports. "There's a lot of stone work going on in Ed burgh, and a lot of roof and guttering repai and of course window cleaning.., the platfo is out most of the time."

It commands higher rates than a conven. tional HGV.

Mass of regulations

The platform and truck-mounted cranes combine the disciplines of transport and lifting, and this duality makes for a large amount of paperwork. "The slings, cranes a the lifting gear are inspected twice a year b, the insurers," says Geddes.To emphasise ti mass of regulations that govern such mach ery he delves into a cupboard and produces an armful of files. Within them are reams of paper with details of policies, checks passed. and so on."No short cuts can be taken," he warns.

Reputable operators bemoan the fact that cowboys can flourish, and at the same time overlook whole swathes of legal documentation. But they can't always pull the wool over customers' eyes.Take BP. RD Anderson trucks frequently drop mobile work units at the oil giant's Grangemouth site.The team there expects tip-top HGVs and cranes—and they demand the appropriate paperwork. Without it Geddes' men would not be allowed to enter the plant.

A decade of Brimecs... The company operates five Brimec loaders, which are most commonly used for transporting road surfacing equipment."We've owned Brimecs for over 10 years." says Geddes. "They can be used as normal flats or as plant moving vehicles.They tend to be used early in the morning to deliver equipment to site."

Edinburgh enjoyed something of a construction boom after the opening of the Scottish Parliament in 1999. RD Anderson did handle some deliveries of building materi aIs to the Holyrood site, but Geddes says the firm did not substantially benefit from the city's construction activity.

The Scottish Parliament building is still not complete:with costs spiralling to £401m it's 10 times over budget. But Geddes reckons that Scotland's operators have seen very little of that cash.

RD Anderson's depot, which is overshadowed by the high walls and razor wire of Edinburgh Prison, employs three full-time fitters."Daf services the trucks for the first three years and provide all the lubricants," says Geddes."Let's be honest, you'll not get many problems with them."

With this in mind checking the fleet is more a question of adhering to stringent rules and regulations rather than keeping on top of potential mechanical defects.

...and determination

But all that extra equipment demands a lot of training: "It has always cost money to train drivers on the truck-mounted cranes,but new, tighter legislation means that we need to spend more time and money than we used to." Geddes doesn't begrudge the money spent on training, however:"We don't want to lose customers and so we provide a good service with experienced drivers."

That said,factors outside the company's control can conspire against it.Among its other business, RD Anderson Haulage has carried a substantial amount of loads for three civil engineering firms this year. All three have gone into liquidation or receivership leaving Andersons with a pile of unpaid bills. Geddes is philosophical:"You've just got to keep on going.".


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