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Anthony Shutes
• It is said of red-headed people that they are better tempered day-to-day than their fellows. If the dictionary definition of temper, "to bring to the desired consistency, texture, degree of toughness and etc" is accepted, the claim certainly applies to Anthony Shutes. And in his case the definition should include a tempered understanding and appreciation of the transport world and the people who work in it.
Anthony joined his father's business, Hales Clinkers Ltd, in 1955, after a time in the workshops of the Arlington Motor•Co. In the early days he worked in every department, drove every type of vehicle (including mobile shovels and bulldozers) and handled every type of equipment.
In two take-overs. Anthony graduated to a directorship of St. Albans Sand and Gravel Co and to his present job as director and general manager of Hales Containers Ltd, a member company of the Ready Mixed Concrete group since early last year. And he has this to say about working for a big group: "Retaining a sense of identity is essential, and this applies to directors, managers, drivers and mechanics. No one wants to feel that everyone is in one big pot. It is all-important that directors be given the authority to make quick decisions. And they should act as a buffer between the staff and the men at the top. I have the authority and I make quick decisions."
One Hales driver has been working for Hales for 45 years and some have been continuously employed by the company for 20 to 25 years. "You must know your drivers and their problems," says Anthony. "You must tznow everyone and understand them as well as their machines. But everyone in the transport world must have transport in their blood. And forget about the clock."
Anthony's recreation, in a very literal sense, is his family. He says that as a married man, with a young family of three — the eldest is a daughter of 11 and there's a son in the middle — his weekends are theirs. He hopes his son will go into transport and if he does it will be the hard, vital way. Judging by the current availability of top-line youngsters with transport in their blood, he would have to compete, Anthony forecasts, with contemporaries who know what they are doing and mean to do it well.
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