MILESTONE

The ongoing search to find the most loyal customers and drivers of Volvo Trucks over the past decades continues, as Fleet Transport marks 50 years since the renowned Swedish brand entered the Irish market.

Volvo Trucks’ origins in Ireland began with the Dennison Brothers, who, having established a dealership in Northern Ireland, formed Irish Commercials in Naas in 1971, securing the franchise for the Republic. They soon teamed up with the McCarthy Brothers from Watergrasshill, Cork to form McCarthy Commercials, which covered the Munster region. In subsequent years, both Irish Commercials and McCarthys expanded their businesses to set up dealerships in Dublin, Kilkenny and Limerick. Volvo Trucks also appointed McDonnell Commercials in Monaghan and a sub-dealer in Mayo before appointing Des Murphy Commercials as a dealer in Galway. Combined, the country’s Volvo Truck customers are well catered for through this dealership network. Irish

Commercials operate out of a new headquarters in Naas and has an outlet in Santry, Dublin.

In the ongoing ‘True Blue’ campaign to find the most loyal Volvo Truck customer and driver, submissions are flowing in. One perfect example came in from Kate and Mike Monaghan from Cork. Mike outlined his family’s history with Volvo and the long business association with McCarthy Commercials. “In 1932, my father got a haulage license plate and tipped away at road transport in the region. In 1967, I joined the business, worked with him and in 1974, we decided to buy our first ‘artic’. My father was very friendly with Donal and Henry McCarthy, (McCarthy Commercials) who had set up their own Volvo Truck sales and service in Watergrasshill some years earlier, and that is where we bought our first Volvo F88.

My brother Andy joined the business at that time but unfortunately my father got ill and passed away shortly after that. Another new F88 soon followed and in 1978, we purchased a brand new F12. Jimmy, a third brother joined the business in 1978 after a stint at McCarthys as an apprentice mechanic. This set in motion a continuous relationship with Volvo Trucks for the family business which exists to this day, buying new from McCarthys right up until the late 1990s and having up to ten Volvos at one stage. Over the years, I was fortunate to be part of a number of trips with Volvo Trucks to the UK, Sweden and the Amsterdam.

ALL bUSINESS RELATED, OF COURSE!

As we were operated in mostly regional low mileage haulage, a deliberate policy change was that we decided to buy second-hand trucks, usually three to four years old, almost all from England but of course, all Volvos. This policy has served us well, especially after the economic crash in 2008, where work almost ceased. However, with the help of two older brothers, who, as my mother used to always say “did well for themselves”, they helped with a ‘dig out’, to use a famous term from a leading politician!

Today, we employ six full time staff, with another three working part time and business is good, keeping us busy. We run a fleet of ten Volvos at the moment and one of our major assets is we have the best mechanic in Ireland, who is with us 32 years.

As a business that has served us well, we have huge pride in our fleet of Volvo Trucks. While we never made a fortune from it, again as my mother used to say, “ye were short of nothing”.

Jimmy and I drive continue to drive full time, Andrew runs the office with a little help from two of our sisters, Eileen and Martina, who look after the books. Regarding technology, when I first started driving in 1967, double clutching and no power steering was part of the game. I remember asking my father if it

could ever happen that there would be automatic gearboxes in trucks as I was finding it difficult to changing gears. An emphatic “No” he said. To me, having the Volvo I-Shift automated transmission on the trucks has been the major change and huge improvement.”

A fascinating story, and one of just many from the multiple Volvo Trucks loyal owners out there. Please continue to send in your stories and pictures to enquiries@fleet.ie. The Volvo Trucks ‘True Blue’ campaign will honour both customer and driver with separate prizes from each participating dealer.

For the Owner/Operator: Do you see the truck as a vital asset for the company or just a means to an end for the business? Do you take pride in your company’s livery featured on your Volvo truck? Is there any pleasant memory associated with any of the Volvos operated over the years that can be told?

For the Volvo Driver: What attracted you to be a truck driver? What’s best about a Volvo truck? Have you a funny incident associated from your time out on the road with your Volvo? What has been the most significant development in truck technology over the years?

Campaign to find ‘True Blue’ Volvo Owners and Customers continues

ExpErT TruCk DiSmanTlErS & SalES nEW TruCk anD TrailEr parTS

Playing its ‘Part’ at Home & Abroad

Expert Truck Dismantlers & Sales, based at Williamstown, County Galway, continues to go from strength to strength.

Expert Truck Dismantlers supplies used truck parts and new and used trailer parts to a broad customer base, all over Ireland. The past two years have seen the company expand with a dedicated new Truck and Trailer Parts Sales Department at its store. This addition has seen a dramatic increase in sales, with new customers added to the company’s portfolio.

Top trade brands’ products such as WABCO, Winnard, Hella, TRW, Mann-Filter, Meritor, Textar are always in stock, as are leading names in the truck industry like Volvo, Scania, Renault, DAF, Hino, MAN, Mercedes-Benz and Iveco. With a large trailer parts selection also available such as ROR, SAF, BPW and Mercedes. In fact, thousands of product lines are available off the shelf to ensure a speedy dispatch. Expert Truck Dismantlers & Sales have just launched a new online store www.experttruckdismantlers.com - with the large selection of new truck and trailer parts and used parts selling fast and being added to on a daily basis. All of these new and used parts feature the OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) number to make searching for the right part even easier for the customer. The time and effort spent developing the online store has paid off, along with its eBay Store is also keeping sales flowing and attracting customers from all over the world.

Right from the start, business owner Padraig Smyth has concentrated on offering superior customer service. As a result, a quick and efficient service is provided to all customer enquiries, sourcing parts and offering next day delivery nationwide. Expert have two delivery vans on the road full time, backed up by courier services to ensure all deliveries are carried out on time, be it pallet, box or parcel.

Concurrently, Expert Truck Dismantlers & Sales have taken its business worldwide, exporting complete trucks and used truck parts to places as far away as Asia, Africa, Australia, South America and the Middle East. All makes and models are dismantled and prepared for export, with great care applied to packaging and loading for the long journeys ahead, an approach which has assured repeat orders. Whatever the export method required: CKD, RoRo, Open Top or Closed Containers, the overseas order is carefully dispatched. Again, the superior customer service applied has played a major role in the successful business relationship with its overseas customers, leading to repeat orders.

Speaking about the ongoing progress of his business, Padraig said: “I am very grateful to all our customers for the success of our business to date. Our aim is to continue in what we are doing and grow the business even further. Thanks to our excellent team here, Expert Truck Dismantlers is becoming a force to be reckoned with.”

For further details contact Padraig and his team at Expert Truck Dismantlers & Sales through the hotline number +353 94 9643482 087-6556448 Email: parts@experttd.com www.experttruckdismantlers.com

A lifetime in the transport sector as a former mechanic, bus operator, trade association employee, publisher and events organiser is the background which drove CEO of Binswood Media, Mark Griffin to get his boots back on and launch a brand new event taking place this Summer at Farnborough International Exhibition Centre.

Running from 30th June to 1st July, Innovation, Technology & Transport – ITT Hub brings together fresh thinking and a new event concept for the commercial and road passenger transport sector.

The format of conference, trade exhibition and vehicle Ride & Drive coming together at a brand new £30m venue was an opportunity which Mark created as part of a year long business planning and research process.

“Following the sale of my former business which included Route One magazine and Euro Bus Expo, I did some consultancy work supporting the venue team to promote the new facility to event organisers. During the construction phase, we hosted a number of site visits at Farnborough. Despite planting the seed with a few organisers to take the plunge and launch an event in the

A lifetime in transport culminates at ITT Hub 2021 Innovation, Technology & Transport –

Farnborough International Exhibition Centre - 30th June to 1st July

sector, none of them felt brave enough to launch something new. They were content to continue rolling out the same old format year after year,” he explained.

“Back then in 2018, I knew that the road transport market was changing rapidly, with more and more common technology across van, truck, bus and coach, along with alternative fuels, infrastructure and new technology. I sat down with some of the key bellwethers in the industry, who confirmed that there would be strong enthusiasm for an event if we could get backing. With four Commercial Partnerships with Lloyds Bank, National Grid , Centrica and Lex Autolease, a brilliant venue and a hugely supportive Chairman in Leon Daniels, we had the support we needed to launch. We did that in October 2018,” he continued.

“The pace of change since we launched three years ago has been pretty rapid, right across the market. We were in a fantastic place to open our doors last May but the arrival of COVID-19 meant that we took the tough decision at an early stage to postpone the show for twelve months.”

“We now fast forward to a month before the show. We are in a fantastic place, with 23 leading vehicle manufacturers participating as part of our 150 exhibitor line up. In fact, we now are proudly claiming to be the largest show of its kind for 40 years, with bus, coach, van and truck technology coming together. We’d set that target for year four, so to be at that stage in year one is evidence that the market wants something fresh, new and interactive.

As we emerge from lockdown the appetite for getting involved has been incredibly exciting. With 50 different vehicles to drive on two road test routes, 35 conference speakers led by British astronaut Major Tim Peake, our Electric Mobility Theatre supported by Webfleet Solutions and Bridgestone plus a cracking array of the very latest technology we have all the ingredients to give the visitor an experience to enjoy and be inspired by.”

Mark described the journey so far as “a pretty bumpy ride with a few blind bends to navigate. I’m a pint pot half full person. Self-belief, optimism,

encouragement, determination, hard work are all key factors in getting to where we are. Above all though, being honest with folks and delivering on our commitments has been at the heart of our vision. Hopefully COVID-19 will eventually disappear but the road to Net Zero certainly won’t. We cannot afford to push the reduction of carbon targets under the carpet and we will all be failing future generations if we delay taking action now. It requires collaboration across many levels and that’s where ITT Hub can play its part.”

Fleet operators are faced with huge decisions adapting their businesses and bringing innovation. Many have been forced to do that in dealing with the pandemic. When they come to ITT Hub 2021, they will be able to see:

British start-up Arrival displaying its new all electric bus and van solutions at the first public showing at a trade event

Volta Trucks showcasing its all new electric Volta Zero truck for the first time in the UK

Mercedes-Benz unveiling the first right hand drive version of the E-Citaro bus Fiat Professional revealing the first right hand drive version of all new electric Fiat Ducato

EVM will have a new electric E-Cityline low floor midi-bus

Wrightbus will premiere a hydrogen powered double deck bus on their stand for the first time at any UK trade show

DAF Trucks is taking a stand in the heart of the outdoor display with electric CF models

Renault Trucks is planning to show a large range of vehicles from 3.1 to 44 tonnes including electric powered versions.

IVECO will have its Natural Power CNG trucks on display along with Schmitz Cargobull which is providing six of its latest trailer range

TRAILAR will project the latest news on the solar panel technology which can be fitted to all vehicle roofs to improve energy efficiency

The venue, Farnborough International is home of the world-renowned Farnborough Airshow, the largest of its kind. With modern facilities, free car parking, proximity to London airports, it is an accessible venue for visitors.

The free Future Logistics Conference has 10 sessions over two days. The strong programme of relevant sessions, will address the key challenges shaping our industry today and in the future, covering Future Vehicles & Future Fuels, data, attracting, developing and retaining talent, public sector support, business models, funding and autonomous vehicles.

Mark was in a very positive mood when interviewed by Fleet Transport: “We are so excited at being able to give the market a new focus. ITT Hub will be an annual event each Spring and we plan to scale it across all parts of the transport market. Our dates for next year are

announced already and if our ambitions come to fruition, then we may even see clients coming in to see us by plane from Ireland, Scotland and elsewhere …. the Farnborough Airport is 500m away from the exhibition hall.”

Any advice for visitors? “Bring a comfortable pair of shoes, be prepared to have to walk around some large stands and displays and plan ahead. We have a COVID-19 secure policy in operation and visitors can be assured that safety is our priority.”

“We know that ITT Hub 2021 is on the map now and can’t wait to give the road transport sector an event to be proud of.”

More details and free registration can be found on ITT Hub website www. itthub.co.uk