Testing, testing
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It seems that the small town of Ellistown is big enough to not only hold Pall-Ex but Anderson Commercials as well
Words: Christopher Walton / Images: Graham Richardson When you think of Ellistown, Leicestershire – in transport terms at least – then Hilary Devey’s Pall-Ex springs immediately to mind. But the network (and its ubiquitous owner) isn’t the only big name in town. Nearby Anderson Commercials might not have the multi-media clout of a TV star owner but the CV repair shop, and VOSA designated premises, is a family business with a three-decade strong pedigree.
Its owner is Paul Anderson, who started the business 30 years ago after he left MerTrucks (a Mercedes-Benz agent at the time) to work from a van carrying out freelance vehicle maintenance – picking up contracts along the way. Business started to build when he bought a farm near Ellistown, and began testing and repairing vehicles out of that.
“From that we just continued growing. At the time we were very big in repairs and MoTs, and were sending ive vehicles a day to Leicester test station. It was then that we decided we needed to do something about it. We were wasting time sending vehicles to the station and back.
“So then we decided to look at our own test station and bought a plot of land at the top end of South Leicester industrial estate [a former pallet making yard]. We bashed it about a bit and made it into a designated premises [DP],” he explains.
It is typical of Anderson’s no-nonsense approach that achieving DP status requires nothing simpler than “bashing it about a bit” . Anderson Commercials now operates from three sites on South Leicester Industrial Estate offering not just CV servicing and repairs but vehicle MoT testing, diagnostics and even commercial truck washing (where Pall-Ex are customers). It also has two fully-equipped service lanes for on site servicing and 24-hour breakdown assistance. Its client-base includes the likes of Kuehne+Nagel and GE’s TIP Trailer Services.
A happy balance
In March 2007 it opened as a purpose built VOSAapproved testing service for LGVs and buses and coaches. In addition Paul and his son Jamie are qualiied light vehicle MoT testers for cars and bikes. It’s a move that has proved fortuitous – balance at the business is split equally between cars and heavy vehicles, and truck drivers who are bike enthusiasts bring their bikes into a station they trust.
Hard graft is crucial to the success of the irm, but a little luck has also helped. “It was fortunate that Leicester test station closed for a six-month refurbishment just as we opened. We knew the business was going to be there, but in what volume we did not know. It sent some business our way so we were fortunate.” Success in the vehicle repair end of the market doesn’t come easy: “I am committed to working lots of hours every week and I put whatever I generate back into the business. I don’t lead an exotic lifestyle – I enjoy what I do. We always try to give our best, but we don’t take on more than we can handle in any one day.” Working closely with leet managers is a critical part of planning the workload. Most days the books are full, week on week, with VOSA testers in residence ive days a week.
Vehicle testing has moved on from the old days where there was a lack of transparency in the type and amount of work being done on a vehicle, often leaving customers stung with repair costs they were never entirely expecting.
“I arranged this set-up here so people can have an open view. The dark days should be gone,” says Anderson. “What we have found over the last 18 months, for example, is more and more people coming for a voluntary brake test a few days before their MoT. People are more educated to carry out these essentials, brakes tests and smoke tests. These are items you cannot check without the equipment.” Even that perennial test fail – headlamp alignment – cannot be accurately tested outside the test station environment, because you cannot accurately test the right height of the headlamp without the right equipment. The most common failures coming into Anderson’s yard are headlamp aim and tyres, particularly tyre cuts. “There are not many people coming in with bad tread depths. Particularly on eight-wheeler lorries, anything to do with quarry work, it is simply a cut to the cord.
“It is very dificult. They could check all the tyres in the yard and sod’s law is that coming in [to the test station] they just go over a stone and that’s it for them.”
With roadworthiness at an all-time high (only 25% of trucks failed their annual test at irst attempt in the 12 months to 31 March 2011) what does Anderson see as improving standards in the industry? “A lot of the testers talk to people these days. The dark days should be gone, where you get a failure and no one talks about it. It’s better that people talk with each other and general knowledge gets widespread quicker.” ■
NEW LANES
Anderson Commercials isn’t a business that will rest on its laurels. Despite having seven full-time employees and three vehicle testing repair sites, comprising two test lanes and a three-bay workshop (the third is rented out), another two-bay workshop is currently being constructed (see picture above).
“I am just going to keep my eye on the market to see how it lies,” says Anderson. “There are opportunities out there but there are various people setting up as new ATFs, so the market could be flooded. It could cause people to try and push down the cost of lane fees. The investment of setting these new lanes up will be around the £300,000 mark; you need to market yourself at the right price.
“Providing the price is right, and the service you offer is good, the site and the staff are good, then I see no reason not to want to pay a bit extra,” he insists.
A little bit of business put his way by Ellistown’s more famous haulage resident would not go amiss either, he jokes.