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It takes a special breed of haulier to thrive and

7th December 2006
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Page 53, 7th December 2006 — It takes a special breed of haulier to thrive and
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

survive in the world of heavy haulage. The rewards can be high when it all falls into place but the level of investment is not for the faint-hearted.

talks to two veterans of this abnormal world.

AbriormaUheavy haulage is one sector of road transport that can still take your breath away. Moving things that normal mortals simply wouldn't have a clue how to handle is something that specialists in this game take in their stride.

However, you don't need us to tell you that the UK no longer has the heavy engineering base that it was once so proud of. The contraction in this source of Special Types loads is one reason why the big names of old Pickfords,Wynns,Sunters, Econofi-eight et al are long gone.

There is no longer the work in this very small island of ours to justify their presence; as a result the biggest names in specialist moving are now international players. If you have a 2,000-tonne oil rig module to move from Tyneside to Perth in Western Australia, the guys in the know will simply pack their specialist SPTs (selfpropelled trailers) into shipping containers and whisk them around the globe.

The crews involved in this work can spend more time in a Boeing 747 than they do in the cab of a truck, reflecting the transformation of this sector.

Leaner and fitter

Back at home, no one collates figures for the size of the UK heavy haulage industry but the sector is a lot leaner than it used to be, down to maybe 20 names in the Premiership. We reckon it's also a lot fitter and much more versatile.To gauge the stat( of the sector we went to see Lancashirebased JB Rawcliffe & Sons, which has its purpose-built headquarters on a nine-acre site just off the M58 at Skelmersdale, Lanes This was followed by a visit to GCS Johnson, based just off the Al(M) near Scotch Corner, North Yorkshire. We discovered a lot of grey hair-reflecting the firm's experience and the testing challenges of the job but we also found an upbeat feel, with the next generation of both these family-based concerns already closely involved in this demanding work.

Talk to a good accountant for long enough and he'll probably convince you that there's no need to buy anything once you get involved in road haulage. After all, by hiring, renting or leasing everything from a phone to a yard you can keep a tight control on your overheads. You might not own anything, but you'll be first in the queue when it comes to changing to the latest truck, trailer or other piece of new hardware that could enhance your operation.

However, it seems this simply isn't an option in the real world of heavy haulage.

"You've got to get a kennel before you get a dog in this game," says Geoff Johnson of III GCS Johnson. "You need the expertise, but no one will give you any work unless you've bought the tackle that can do it," he warns.

And when you're talking about working above 44 tonnes gross, this means shelling out phenomenal amounts of cash Johnson declines to say how much he has invested in equipment since he set up as an ownerdriver in 1969.

David Rawcliffe of JB Rawcliffe agrees that outright purchase is the name of the game in this sector; he simply says that the firm's investment in hardware runs into millions of pounds. In common with virtually all heavy haulers, where possible cash reserves are used. Occasionally a finance deal may prove attractive, but renting, hiring and leasing are never used.

David and his brother John now own the Rawcliffe family business, a limited company since 1967. Their older brothers, Brian and Stan, have supposedly stood down, although heavy haulage is notoriously addictive and retiring isn't that easy.

This commitment to their trade might explain why the UK's 21st century heavy-haulage sector includes so many family-owned businesses. For the huge conglomerates, a UK operation is unlikely to generate the necessary returns on capital. But to people like the Rawcliffes and the Johnsons, accepting the frightening level of investment is what this business is all about.

How frightening? On our visit to the Rawcliffe depot we were lust in time to see an unladen outfit leave. Hauled up by a Mercedes-Benz Titan eight-wheeler, the Nicolas drawbar trailer runs on 16 axles. Each one of these hydraulically suspended axles will cost you an astronomical £20,000. True, the modular concept of trailer-building means you can take that trailer to pieces and then rebuild it in an entirely different form, but how often can you guarantee that all those axles will be in use?

Similarly, you'd better not ask how many man-hours it takes to rebuild these modular trailers, or how many people are needed in the workshops that support the fleet. Staffing levels at both Johnson and Rawcliffe far exceed the number of trucks they operate driving trucks is just one of the many jobs you might do when you work at these firms.

The job description of anyone involved in heavy haulage tends to be long and varied. While a general haulier knows one driver can move 25-30 tonnes of freight on a six-axle outfit, Geoff Johnson recalls one load where 10 members of staff were involved when it was being moved on the road never mind all those involved in the planning.

The only rule about what you do in heavy haulage is that there are no rules.

Top quality is the name of the game when it comes to investing in heavy haulage hardware."J think we bought our first fouraxle steering Nooteboorn in 1978 when we paid £35,000 for it," says David Rawcliffe of .113 Rawcliffe."We still use that trailer today, and while an identical replacement we've just bought cost us £80,000, we haven't decided whether to keep the older trailer as it's still fine for work. Properly looked after,your hardware can last as long as you want in this business."

Geoff ,Johnson of GCS Johnson tells a similar story. He has a 40-year-old Nooteboom trailer that is still earning its keep, and he agrees that buying the best is essential in this business. Neither operator buys British trailers; Continental manufacturers such as Nooteboom, Goldhoffer, Nicolas and Scheuerle are highly regarded for being able to give operators exactly what they want.

If you want a trailer to extend, their only question is how far. "We have triple extenders that will go out to 44 metres if need be," says Rawcliffe.

Heavy haulage operators generally agree that there's a wide enough range of trailers on the market to keep them happy.

However.when it comes to providing traction, they aren't quite as content. Since the Scarnmell factory at Watford closed in 1988, the UK-based manufacturers have not really been interested in building specialist trucks for what is after all a very niche market. Johnson and Rawcliffe have come to rely on Scania,Daf,Volvo and Mercedes in their quest for the ultimate 150-250-tonne GVW heavy hauler, but that doesn't mean they can pick up off-the-peg models.

In-house conversions

Some heavy haulage operators have resorted to a spot of DIY, converting vehicles into their heaviest-rated,flagship eightwheelers.-None of the truck manufacturers will give us a strong enough rating for the second steer axle," says Rawcliffe. "Working under Category 3 of the Special Types General Order we can run up to 16.5 tonnes per axle but MAN, for instance, will only give us 9-10 tonnes for that axle.

"It may be OK if we're working in ballasted tractor form, but we 0 need more peace of mind when running the eight-wheeler as an artic Rawcliffe's latest MAN 250-tonne GCW eight-wheel heavy hauler is hidden away in the company workshops. Although it represents an investment of up to £160,000. there seems no rush to get it onto the road.

The observation that it can spend a month getting`sorted' would be enough to give the accountant an apoplectic fit, but Rawcliffe isn't fazed:"We like to get the vehicle just how we want it," he says, adding that they've even changed the MAN's cab steps: "The originals were too low and we felt they weren't really strong enough so we've changed them."

The price of power

If your accountant would be shocked by the depreciation figures of this brand new vehicle, you'd better get him to sit down before telling him about heavy haulage fuel bills. With some jobs returning fuel consumption measured in gallons per mile, you can understand why Geoff Johnson is a keen follower of crude oil prices.

In their favour, these. heavyweights will probably cover only half the mileage of comparable general-haulage units so Rawcliffe looks for a 10-year cycle before replacing its biggest tractor units.

Mind you, that mileage has been increased following the decision to allow the sector to provide its own escorts, rather than relying on the police.

This decision — taken almost overnight about two and half years ago — has transformed the industry's operational efficiency."It has allowed us to cut days off the length of time we can spend on jobs." says Rawcliffe. Johnson adds:"The biggest boon is being able to plan vehicle utilisation with a far greater degree of certainty." Time was when heavy haulage specialists tended to provide a service for customers in their own locality, but not any more. "Our customer base is spread all over the UK,' says David Rawcliffe. "And we know that because of the ease of movement around the motorway network, it's very easy for any of our competitors to come into Lancashire and do jobs on our doorstep."

Rawcliffe has three members of staff who actively seek work, as well as doing all sorts of other jobs, although Geoff Johnson says: "Everybody, including our drivers and mates, are salespeople in this company." Johnson now has offices in Lichfield, Staffs and Breda in the Netherlands. "About 20% of our work is now onto the Continent," he says. "We started going abroad because of customer requests. I knew if we said we couldn't do it, our customer would find someone who could. And once you let some of your work shp away, there's no guarantee that all of it would not go to the haulier that gives an entire service."

As with every other sector of road transport, heavy haulage is intensely competitive — but ft's also a close-knit community "Some of my best friends are my biggest competitors," says Johnson. "We can compete for the same work yet I know I can always turn round and both work and socialise with those same good people."

Heavy haulage is not for the faint-hearted the investment in time, money. staff and all the rest can make you shudder. But after 36 years in the game Geoff Johnson still has a gleam in his eye when it comes to his favourite topic of conversation: "I enjoy doing what I do because it's a challenge every day. I could never get excited in moving a load of cornflakes, but in heavy haulage you hardly ever do two jobs that are the same.

"Being able to provide transport solutions for moving the almost impossible is very rewarding."

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