Promoting the ulldog breed
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Escalating service charges in the franchised networks have stimulated entrepreneurs to set up new repair businesses. Alan Bunting reports from the 'open territory' of Hampshire
• Franchised truck dealers have, over the past seven or eight years, depended on service and parts turnover for their survival. Margins on new vehicle sales have been cut to ribbons, to the extent that chassis can even be sold at a loss, in a bid to secure ongoing business for the dealership's parts department and, more particularly, its workshop.
In consequence, rates for vehicle servicing and repair have risen steeply, to cover much wider overheads, including sales department salaries, for instance.
Higher servicing charges levied by necessarily high-profile dealers, in expensive premises often located on prime sites, have prompted some operators to start doing their own routine work.
Other users, particularly owner-drivers and those running just a handful of vehicles, typically with no undercover depot space, have sought alternative specialists — the sort of concerns often snidely referred to as "back street outfits" by manufacturers and dealers.
Escalating service charges
Escalating service charges in the franchised networks have brought new work to the independent workshops. They have stimulated entrepeneurs to set up new service and repair businesses.
One such is Bulldog Vehicle and Repair Ltd, which began trading in November, as a subsidiary of Hampshire-based TIR haulier Bulldog International Transport Ltd — a company running nine 38-tonne artics (seven Mercedes and two Scanias).
Managing director John Ward concedes that the new enterprise in Andover was prompted in part by the need to service Bulldog's own fleet, and so become less dependent on the local Mercedes and Scania dealer. In the latter case, following the closure of Unit Commercials in Salisbury, service and parts support is now over 80km away at Scantruck-Heathrow.
Ward and direcior Mick Barnecut, who was recruited to run Bulldog Vehicle and Repair, are quick to emphasise, however, that the in-house haulage fleet will be handled as "just another" customer.
"By forming a separate company and taking on five fitters we are making a commitment to running the workshop as a fully commercial operation, says Barnecut. "If we showed favouritism to the Bulldog haulage fleet when workshop capacity was under pressure, we would immediately lose customer credibility," he says.
Much of BVR's work is coming in as the result of personal recommendation, though Mick Barnecut is spending several hours each week out on the road, actively selling the new service. Flexibility is being stressed as part of the marketing pitch. in terms of service work category and timing. All routine service work will be tackled, as well as most repairs other than those needing specialised "marque dedicated" equipment.
Paint-spraying is already being done on a small scale, through BVR plans to put in a top-hung removable partition, which will screen of one of the four existing workshop bays for use as a spray booth.
One of the company's fitters, George Whatley, has spent several years with a bodybuilder and, as such, is qualified to carry out most straightforward body repairs.
Like Mick Barnecut himself, fitter Trevor Greaves joined Bulldog from the nearby Andover depot of Spartruks Ltd, the Hampshire-area Mercedes truck dealer, which supplies the company's TER haulage fleet tractors.
In order to keep the BVR facilities fed with a steady flow of work, the company is seeking to build up scheduled servicing commitments for regular truck-user cus tomers, though not necessarily, as Barnecut explains, on a rigid contract basis.
"Many smaller concerns, like the High Street tradesman running two or three vans, are understandably deterred by the idea of a written contract," he says. They are, however, attracted by the prospect of having their maintenance planned, at a known cost, up to 12 months ahead.
As for those maintenance contracts which include an "insurance" element, covering the cost of unforeseen repairs, BVR is willing to negotiate such arrangements while admitting that for a mediumsized to large fleet, some finance company backing would be implied.
When the Bulldog haulage operation was based in Southampton its depot was desperately cramped, explains John Ward. The search for a more spacious site led the company to Andover where, on the town's Walworth Industrial Estate an ideal location was found, in the shape of an abandoned and derelict transport depot formerly occupied by Laingfreight.
Separate factory and office buildings were available, both needing a lot of re furbishment. Bulldog is sharing an office block with Andover Trailers, the manufacturing enterprise launched by Leonard Fuller when his previous company Craven-Tasker closed its Andover factory.
New galvanised "concertina" doors have been fitted, giving 4.6m of headroom, so that the tallest semitrailers can be backed inside.
Laingfreight's old Powermatic oil-fired hot-air cabinet-type heater was overhauled and is now working as well as ever. A new Ingersoll-Rand EN5-E40 compressor was acquired a) to serve a range of air-tools and b) for tyre inflation.
Genuine service parts
Genuine service parts are used wherever possible, rather than cheaper "spurious" equivalents. Barnecut says none of the local franchised dealers has jibbed at supplying BVR, despite the latter's position as a potential competitor for service business.
Looking further ahead, a full truck franchise might eventually be sought. Hampshire is currently "open territory" for a number of makes including Scania.