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WORKSHOP When you have a haulage firm based in a

21st September 2006
Page 54
Page 54, 21st September 2006 — WORKSHOP When you have a haulage firm based in a
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

quiet part of Middleton, Derbyshire, and the nearest dealer is 18 miles away, it makes sense to start up your own workshop. And once you've done that, why not run it as a profitable business? That is exactly what managing directorJohn Fairey has done with his firm Via Gellia Transport.

Starting out as a bulk tipper haulage firm in the 1980s,Via Gellia soon opened an arm for truck repairs; now, while looking after its own 34-strong fleet, it also repairs up to 30 trucks belonging to other firms on a weekly basis.

"We have to have a workshop for our own vehicles, so we might as well utilise it and go for external repairs as well," says Fairey. "They [the mechanics] are flexible:they can do anything and everything.The future of haulage isn't too bright and we're looking at it solely from that point of view."

Although making such a move enables the firm to reap the benefits of a skilled workshop workforce,a great deal of investment is needed in terms of training and equipment. "The trucks are becoming more and more sophisticated-and the customer demands are becoming more sophisticated as well,says Fairey.

Via Gellia also runs an in-house driving school to cut costs through fuel efficiency, and carries out some external training in the hope that it will be able to grow this side of the business.

Another recently launched project has seen Via Gcllia Transport sell trailers for a firm in a commission-style arrangement.

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