1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190 
Change of tune
Page 24
Page 25
Page 26
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
Dawsonrentals is one of the high flyers of the truck and trailer rental and contract hire business.
Andy Salter caught up with managing director Steve Miller to get the low-down on the latest plans...
When any operator puts pen to paper for an order for 800 trucks,it's bound to create a few column inches.When Dawsonrentals,previously a major exponent of EGR-equipped trucks, buys just over 800 SCRequipped Mercedes tractor units, it creates a great deal more interest.
The latest deal sees Dawsonrentals truck & trailer take on 806 new Mercedes tractor units, a mixture of 300 Actros and 506 Axors. All arc equipped with SCR technology to meet Euro-4 emissions, a departure from the company's previous buying policy where EGR-equipped MANs were the tractor unit of choice.
"The story has moved on from SCR and EGR," says managing director Steve Miller, brushing aside our opening salvo regarding the apparent change of heart on SCR Dawsonrentals ran a fairly strong EGR advertising campaign 12 months ago extolling the virtues of the technology. We feel it necessary to dig a little deeper, but Miller is up to the challenge. "This time last year customers were resistant to SCR technology we need to be alert, and react to what the customer requires," he explains. -As a result we purchased an EGR product. The market requirements have now shifted and we're now offering both FOR and SCR trucks."
Apparently that's the end of the story and. no,it didn't get them for nothing. "We certainly weren't the cheapest deal on the table,says Mercedes truck sales and marketing director John Baker when pressed on the issue following the interview with Miller.
"In ray 21 years with the company I can't remember a time when we haven't run a Mercedes product," says Miller. -They are reliable and always easy to sell for a good price at the end of the life cycle. When Mercedes dropped the 1633 we went off them a hit as they never had a fleet truck. Now the Axor clearly addresses that need. I call it a 'buy and forget' truck it's so reliable.
"Initially, the spec of the Axor was very basic, but customers are now demanding more so the latest versions are equipped with the new automated gearbox and better trim levels. Mercedes has worked hard at adapting the specification of the truck to meet the needs of the customer."
The purchase of the Axors is understandable, but what of the MegaspaceActros?"We needed a big truck for the flee t,"says Miller."In the past these have been either Daf XF95s or Volvo FHs. The price of the new XF105 put us off and both Volvo and Dal are hit by long lead times at present.
Mercedes has also put a lot of effort into the aftersal es support it offers Dawsonrentals."We have an agreed service charter with Mercedes which includes a number of key performance indicators." adds Miller. -and the dealers are performing well against the KM. That's not something we could have said about them in the past. A lot of people rave about Daf's aftersales back-up. While that is undoubtedly strong, a lot of the others are now catching up."
Tough attitude Clearly any truck manufacturer supplying 800plus trucks to any one customer won't be commanding a premium price, and supplying trucks to the rental sector has been a notorious graveyard for many a truck salesman. "Hard, but fair" is how most people we've spoken to describe dealings with Dawsonrentals. In the cut and thrust of the rental and contract-hire business, it may be the best attitude to adopt.
This straightforward. unambiguous attitude to business is something that seems to run through the veins of the Dawsonrentals organisation. In our experience, the premises are always immaculate, the people neat and tidy and according to the operators we've spoken to Dawsonrentals is a good company to do business with no doubt readers will be quick to point out if that's not universally true.
Miller looks after the truck and trailer division of the group, which contributed £63m to company turnover last year and is by far the biggest division in terms of percentage revenue. According to those same accounts the company invested more than £30m in the truck fleet last year, a figure that's likely to be increased this year in the light of the Mercedes deal and an order for 1.(X)0 new trailers from Montracon.
According to the 2(X)6 accounts trucks arc depreciated over live years and trailers over 121/2 years, although we get the impression the company is constantly reviewing its practices to ensure it is maximising revenue and profit potential at all times — selling vehicles early if market conditions are favourable. "We've recognised that the fleet size would drop in 2006/07 based on the market demand for used Euro-3 vehicles," says Miller. "With such a strong market for these trucks we can sell them. which we are doing, but if we don't reinvest then that will leave us short of equipment to rent.As a rental company it would he a hit foolhardy, "We try to run our own ship, rather than worrying too much what everyone else is doing. We have a fleet size, which we have to keep as new as possible. This makes it easier for us to hire, manage and sell. We're constantly analysing the fleet to ensure we have the right mix of products."
Rental demand up With extended lead times now reported by most truck manufacturers in Europe, getting hold of a new truck is something of a challenge for operators. "People who had been used to buying and getting quick delivery of vehicles now can't get hold of them. Those customers are now coming to us. some of them looking at rental for the first time.
Normally this would signal a bonanza for suppliers. However, jacking up the prices is a policy Miller believes should be resisted. "It would be easy in the current market conditions to be greedy and push our prices up to take advantage of the huge demand for product," he says,"but the customer you are talking to today will not forget further down the line if you exploit the situation. We prefer to deal with profitable companies."
Like any successful operation these days, customer focus is key to the Dawsonrentals operation and the company clearly spends a lot of time workingwith,and listening to,customers. We might be wrong, but we don't get the impression Dawsonrentals spends too much time bogged down in customer research, preferring to rely on the people at the depots delivering the service to drive the business forward, rather than on consultants. "We have 30 branches nationwide covering all the major regions," says Miller. "These are manned by local people, with local knowledge, offering a local service. Our branch staff offer an outstanding service to our customers."
By his own admission Dawsonrentals is a tough company and it's clear it has a hardworking ethos. "We deliver on what we say we're going to do," says Miller. "We have a discipline about our business that doesn't suit everyone who joins us, but we find that those people who stay with us tend to stay for a long time. We have a lot of long-serving members of staff, which gives us continuity and experience. Both of which are extremely important for a company that is firmly committed to serving this industry." •