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PAPER CHASE iHiI

As much work goes into delivering the news as into writing it. Tim Maughan goes to meet the paperboys, and speaks to one of the three honoured operators who

handle our very own Commercial Motor.

Daniel Ausling, commercial manager, operations, at Associated London Distribution (ALD),stands at Convoys Wharf, on the Thames.The facility spans out above the river. It is now disused, but this impressive site was once a vital component in the UK's newspaper industry-Paper used to be delivered here for use in Fleet Street newspapers," he explains. "Now, parts of it are used for storage, and the rest is redundant."

Working methods have changed. Years ago, boats sailed up the river and dropped printing paper.These days trucks supply the newspaper and magazine business with its raw materials.

Ausling has worked for ALD since he left school. He gained his Class 1 licence in 2002 and does drive occasionally, but his chief role is to oversee the firm's newspaper drops.The fleet includes a pair of 44-tonners,15 18tonners, and 24 4.6-tonne vans with 10 3.5tonne vans. Aside from a brace of MANs the fleet is dominated by Mercedes-Benz.

ALD is the transport division of Surrey Quays-based Harmsworth Quays Printing, which prints the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday and the Evening Standard. Its fleet drops the publications to eight wholesalers within the M25, as well as an astonishing 400 rail and tube stations across the capital.

The plant also prints supplements for the Evening Standard. which are taken as far afield as Reading and Borehamwood.

Newspapers need to be made available first thing in the morning, so operators that serve this market work in a largely nocturnal industry."1 worked nights for years," Ausling remarks.-Now,1 work in the days. But the drivers start at 10.30 every night; vehicles are pre-loaded during the day.The drivers finish their shifts between 6.30 and 7am.

Loot is dropped throughout the day, but the fleet is relatively quiet in normal working hours There are seasonal peaks and troughs."It is a quiet time from June to August, when newspapers and magazines reduce their circulations.September to November is the busiest time, because newspapers carry a lot of adverts, and increase their circulation."

The term "hack loading" is not in the ALD vocabulary.When drops are made to wholesalers, there is nothing to bring back to base. Newspaper returns are handled by other operators.

Costly operation

All of Ausling's newspaper loads are palletised. "A full load of the Daily Mail is pushing 10 tonnes in one of our 18-tonne vehicles," he remarks.

Operating HGVs within the great metropolis presents its own unique occupational hazards. -We pay over £300 a week in congestion charges," he says, "but! don't think it has reduced the congestion. We must also watch where we go with the 44-tonners because of the London Lorry Ban."

As soon as an ALD truck hits Tower Bridge Road, to the east of the depot,it incurs a £7.50 congestion charge.

Factors down the line can make newspaper drops temperamental. "Presses can go down during the night," he explains. "rl'hey are always repaired, but drops may be late because of this.

-Sometimes a big story breaks, so the front page of the newspaper will actually change — so this means a delay in getting them out.

We wonder about volumes.Ausling puts us in the picture. -In a single night, two million Daily Mails are printed in Surrey Quays.We carry 450,000 of them, and TNT carries the rest."

One million copies of Metro, the free newspaper circulated to commuters, are printed in Kent. ALD handles 500,000 of them each weekday.They are collected in one of the 44-tonners, taken to base, and transferred to the company's vans, which bear the Metro livery. In turn, they are delivered to tube and railway stations. As many as 20,000 copies are dropped at a large station. It is not sufficient to drop them at a station entrance. Each van is double-manned, and these teams take piles of newspapers to collection points, which may be deep underground or in a railway station.

The fast-moving environment makes for an interesting job, he says. But the man in the street does not take account of the massive overnight. operations."No two days are the same, When people eat their breakfast on a morning, with the newspaper, they don't know about the printing process, the wholesalers, and so on."

Ausling is not an avid newspaper reader. When you see thousands upon thousands of them day in, day out, they may well be the last thing you want to look at.

With newspaper numbers constantly fluctuating, communication is critical. "We liaise with the newspaper circulation departments." he says. "In the late afternoon I get the final figu res, so I can work out which trucks to send out."

The Loot copies are picked up from Stratford. East London throughout the day and are transferred to other ALD trucks by 4pm. Drivers appear at 10.30pm, and drop the papers until midnight.

It is a relentless exercise. With Loot unladen, drivers head back to base. From lam, it is time to take on the Daily Mail. By 3.30am, these newspapers are successfully dropped.

With so much going on, A In needs someone on 24-hour call.That man is Ausling. and when his telephone goes in the wee small hours, it is his job to solve the problem. "It could be a broken-down vehicle, or a night manager who is not sure about something. Nine times out of 10,1 can explain things on the phone."

Major news stories can impact on Ausling, even during the weekends.When the Queen Mother died, he received a call on a Saturday afternoon. He had to promptly leave his Essex home, and drive to Surrey Quays. "I had to liaise with the night circulation team, and offer assistance," he remembers.

The press readies itself for big stories, such as a royal death. Millions of Queen Mother commemorative magazines lay stored in a Yorkshire warehouse before her impending death. Firms such as ALD ensured the public received these special editions.

Then there's the pol■,,bagging department, where scores of operatives wrap magazine supplements for the Daily Mail and The Mail on Sunday.These are transported across the UK by another operator —so if you read one of these magazines, they have been packed in Surrey Quays.

Wide range

Magazines are big business in Britain.The range is vast, much wider than the selection available in most other countries.There is a magazine available for just about every interest, from bird keeping to model making, walking to astronomy.

Then, there is the large range of business magazines.These include Commercial Motor, which is owned by Reed Business Information. The firm also publishes other large weekly titles such as New Scientist, Estates Gazette and Flight International.

Leeds-based MacFarlane Transport runs 135 tractive units and 230 curtainsiders."The company was founded in 1979," says Kathryn Rennard, business process manager. "We transport food, electrical goods, lager, and toiletries."

One-fifth of its £20m turnover is generated by magazine distribution, including the carriage of CM, she explains.

Stephen Firth, magazine logistics manager, says:"We do a lot of women's magazines: Woman's Weekly, Woman, and Chat. We also carry Loaded magazine, and OK."

MacFarlane Transport dealt with magazines in the 1990s, but signed its first major magazine contracts in 1998."It's a lot more timesensitive than general haulage. You need to he flexible." Firth adds.

CM is printed in Colchester.The 40,000 weekly copies are handled by MacFarlane, Fastmag, and CM Down ton. Fastmag drops 14,000 of these magazines to the MacFarlane base." Commercial Motor usually arrives between midday and 1pm on a Wednesday," reports Firth,"and they're all palletised."

Each of these three transport firms has its own drop areas. MacFarlaneTransport is responsible for delivering to 35 wholesalers, from Birmingham to Inverness; these include WH Smith and Menzies.

Marketforce, the magazine marketing, distribution, and sales company, is charged with getting CM to its final destination the shop shelf. So it is Marketforee which pays the three transport firms.

Heavy reading

Firth explains that HGVs use the same routes. -We have 15 different runs, from here to York, then to Stockton-on-Tees, for example, or to Edinburgh, Dundee, then onto Aberdeen. Then we back load where we can."

A full trailer load of CMswhich would be about 50,000 copieswould take a 44-tonner near to its maximum GVW. In fact, however, the magazines are shipped out in loads of 1,000. Marie Claire, the women's magazine, is the weightiest publication carried by MacFarlane Transport and Optician, another Reed Business Information title, is the lightest.

The carriage of one magazine brand is straightforward,but Firth has to dispatch a multitude of different publications. "It is not complicated working with one magazine. But when you have 80, it is a different matter, and we have to turn them around in a short space of time."

CM is published on Thursdays. It is hectic work but. unlike other transport sectors, those involved in magazine distribution can prepare for busy periods. Publication dates do not change at the drop of a hat. "Most drops are mid-week, so Fridays are quieter.This means we can prepare for the following week," he continues.

The operation takes on an international dimension.says magazine warehouse manager Dave Shields. 'We send seven or eight trucks a week out to Monehengladbach. just over the Dutch border. to deliver OK magazine," he comments.

MacFarlane Transport will not use subcontractors, he says, because the firm wants to have absolute authority over its operation. You can never achieve this if you use subbies. -We have more control," he asserts.

Many operators have invested in substantial warehousing,and many of them store goods for lengthy periods. MacFarlane Transport has such accommodation but, in this market, consignments don't stand around for long. "Most of the stuff is in here, for the longest period,for four or five days.This is for a monthly title."

There is a total of 25 warehouse stall split between three shifts, Warehouse operations run from Sunday night to Friday evening. Magazine quotas must be strictly met. Rennard explains that the same drivers tend to service the same runs, and are therefore familiar with the roads.At the delivery stage, all consignments are rigorously checked by wholesale personnel.

While the internet has taken away from newspaper and magazine circulations, Firth and Shields believe that people like to physically hold a publication: there is no danger, at least for the foreseeable future, of magazines and newspapers becoming extinct.

"The odd magazine comes and goes," reports Firth,"but generally they stay in circulation."

In the spacious warehouse, we see pallets of CM. It is a Wednesday, the day before publication. Ronnie Wallis, an avid CM reader, is one of the MacFarlane drivers who drops the magazine to wholesalers. -It's a fantastic feeling carrying Commercial Motor," he comments.

MacFarlane Transport is headed up by joint managing directors Andy Forrest and Robert Fox. Forrest says:"It is prestigious to carry Commercial Motor, and magazines in general. They are a hugely important part of our business, and an area which we are good at.

-But there are short lead times, and you have to live by your reputation. It took us a long time to establish ourselves in this marketplace."

MacFarlane Transport closely monitors its performance.

Close relationship

This is a niche market.To enter it, MacFarlane Transport started by handling television listings magazines. Having proven itself here, the firm moved into magazine distribution.

"A close relationship with the client is vitally important. We are exchanging between 200 and 300 e-mails a day,just for the magazine work. It is the most intense, complex part of our business by a long way and it is difficult for others to repeat."

Magazines and newspapers jostle for readers' attention, and if a certain publication is not on the shelf, there is every chance a customer will buy an alternative title.There is no room for error on the part of the operator.

ALD's Ausling sums up. "The newspapers will always get there. You cannot afford to fail, because there will always be another title that gets through." •