SARENS IS ONE OF THE WORLD’S LARGEST HEAVY LIFT AND TRANSPORT GROUPS WHICH SPAN THE GLOBE. HEAVYTORQUE MEETS UK GENERAL MANAGER ANDREW HUNT, TO FIND OUT HOW THE COMPANY LIVES UP TO ITS MOTTO..
There’s a very select club of heavy lift and transport companies that operate throughout the world and have the equipment, expertise, experience and sheer resources to undertake the largest, most complex and challenging projects possible. This champions league if you like, has just a handful of members. These multi-faceted organisations are involved in most of the really large-scale construction, civil engineering and infrastructure projects on virtually every continent.
All of the companies in this sector are long established and have gradually expanded their operations over time. The vast array of equipment they have is as a result of constant reinvestment and they have invariably worked closely with suppliers in the design and development process, or taken things a stage further and built their own equipment.
MORE WORKSHOPS ARE TURNING TO COLUMN LIFTS AS QUICKER, CHEAPER AND SAFER SOLUTIONS TO MAINTAIN VEHICLES THAN INVEST IN PIT LANES. FOLLOWING ITS MANAGEMENT BUYOUT HEAVYTORQUE TALKS TO TOTALKARE ABOUT THE FUTURE.
Earlier this year a new management team took over TotalKare. Based in Halesowen, West Midlands, it’s renowned for its heavy-duty vehicle lifting solutions to national operators and independent workshops. TotalKare was first established in 1953 as Walter Somers Material Handling and began building vehicle lifting solutions in 1983. After several name-changes it introduced the name TotalKare in 2001 for its aftermarket sector. The company fully rebranded as TotalKare in 2015.
The management buyout (MBO) earlier this year saw David Hall, existing chairman Mike Lord and fellow directors James Radford and Peter Geobey replace former managing director Tim Jackson and technical director Michael Gilliam, who both retired.
Issue Sixteen: with 164 pages of first-class journalism and photography, what more can you wish for? HeavyTorque, Britain’s best loved specialist transport title! Click the appropriate link below to purchase your annual subscription, or individual copy.
CONTINUING OUR SERIES OF CONVERSATIONS WITH CHASSIS MANUFACTURERS, HEAVYTORQUE TALKS TO GEOFF DAVIES, MAN’S HEAVY HAULAGE AND SPECIAL VEHICLE SALES EXPERT TOGETHER WITH HIS PREDECESSOR JOHN DONNELLY AT COLLETT TRANSPORT, ONE OF THE LION BRAND’S LONG-STANDING CUSTOMERS.
What’s the collective noun for a gathering of heavy-haulage specialists? If you can think of one let us know. Heavy Torque has come to Goole, home to Collett Transport’s abnormal loads operation, to talk to Geoff Davies, MAN’s heavy haulage and special vehicle sales expert and his highly-respected, predecessor John Donnelly. Our host is Collett MD David Collett, while for good measure technical director Lincoln Collett is in attendance too. It’s no coincidence Goole is the venue for our conversation. The award-winning Yorkshire heavy-load specialist is a long-standing MAN operator, a fact proven by the number of immaculate 6×4 and 8×4 tractors bearing the iconic Lion badge parked outside.
After 26-years selling MAN trucks in the UK, and especially its heavy-haulage products, earlier this year Donnelly officially retired.
IN A RELATIVELY SHORT PERIOD WH TRANSPORT HAS ESTABLISHED A SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS ARMED WITH THE LATEST EQUIPMENT AND QUALIFICATIONS TO TACKLE THE PRESENT AND FUTURE DEMANDS OF THE SPECIALIST TRANSPORT INDUSTRY. HEAVYTORQUE REPORTS.
Specialist transport comes in many forms, sometimes it’s easy to be awestruck by some of the largest outfits used by operators in this sector. But for many, having the biggest most expensive kit makes little economic sense if there’s limited work for that type of equipment in the area in which the firm is based. For many companies in the early stages of development, being able to handle a wide range of tasks with a relatively modest and adaptable fleet is the key. The best way to achieve this is to take great care when buying and specifying equipment and ensure that staff have a wide range of skills and experience.
This cautious but canny approach, has served young couple Andy Weston and Jenna Evison of WH Transport.
Issue Sixteen: with 164 pages of first-class journalism and photography, what more can you wish for? HeavyTorque, Britain’s best loved specialist transport title! Click the appropriate link below to purchase your annual subscription, or individual copy.
MANCHESTER-BASED TW BOWLER IS A FINE EXAMPLE OF HOW A FAMILY-OWNED TRANSPORT BUSINESS EXPANDS AS EACH NEW GENERATION TAKES THE HELM. HEAVYTORQUE MEETS JOHN BOWLER WHO IS CURRENTLY DRIVING THE OPERATION FORWARD.
Family owned businesses have long been at the very core of the specialist transport industry. Many of the leading companies in both the UK and further afield can trace their roots to fledgling operations started by previous generations. Family members are invariably involved in the present-day business and have taken the operation in new directions and built substantial companies.
Another defining characteristic of many of these companies, is that they very often started out as farmers or in an associated trade involved in agriculture. The move into transport came about as a result of having a truck on the farm and branching out into hire and reward transport was a means for additional family members to earn a living without putting undue strain upon the finances of the farm.
THE NEED TO CONVEY WIND TURBINE BLADES ALONG A CHALLENGING ROUTE REQUIRED IRISH OPERATOR O’NEILLS HEAVY HAULAGE TO IMPORT A UNIQUE SCHEUERLE TRAILER FROM SWITZERLAND FOR THE JOB. HEAVYTORQUE TALKS TO MANAGING DIRECTOR, JIMMY O’NEILL.
All roads leading to the small town of Hospital, County Limerick were festooned with green and white flags celebrating Limerick winning the All-Ireland Hurling Championship for the first time since 1973. This significant event saw the Limerick team emerge victorious in an intense and dramatic final against their neighbours Cork. However, our reason for being in the town was not to join in the festivities, but to call on O’Neills Heavy Haulage.
Since 1947 when O’Neill’s father and mother moved to Hospital the family has been involved in transport in one form or another. His Father’s first venture was transporting sand and gravel locally; this was followed by a move into livestock transport where the fleet quickly expanded to over 10 vehicles.
Issue Sixteen: with 164 pages of first-class journalism and photography, what more can you wish for? HeavyTorque, Britain’s best loved specialist transport title! Click the appropriate link below to purchase your annual subscription, or individual copy.
FOUR GENERATIONS OF LYONS HAVE RUN LINCOLNSHIRE-BASED HAULIER S LYON & SON. IN ITS 100 YEARS OF OPERATION, IT HAS INTERTWINED WITH THE LOCAL INDUSTRIAL AND AGRICULTURAL COMMUNITIES. THE COMPANY HAS ADAPTED OVER THE YEARS TO SERVE A WIDE RANGE OF CLIENTS AND INDUSTRIES THROUGHOUT THE UK, AND ITS VEHICLES CAN NOW BE FOUND DELIVERING EVERYTHING FROM MOTORWAY GANTRIES TO BOILER UNITS. HEAVYTORQUE REPORTS.
The company started out well before the internal combustion engine had started making its mark on the UK’s roads. An early photograph in the S Lyon archives dating from the start of the 20th century shows a horse and cart proudly displaying the name Spencer Lyon Carting – the first record of the firm’s origins. The location of this photo is important in telling the story of S Lyon’s success: it was taken inside the premises of industrial equipment manufacturer Ruston in Beevor Street, Lincoln. The company, which in 1930 joined up with US firm Bucyrus-Erie to form Ruston Bucyrus, was an early manufacturer of locomotives and steam shovels, and went on to make excavators, engines and gas turbines.
Issue Sixteen: with 164 pages of first-class journalism and photography, what more can you wish for? HeavyTorque, Britain’s best loved specialist transport title! Click the appropriate link below to purchase your annual subscription, or individual copy.
