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Issue 1 2015 - Freight Business Journal


///PALLET NETWORKS Palletways sees the future – and it’s electronic


Palletways says it plans to steal a march, not just on the other pallet networks, but the whole freight industry when its Vision 20:20 quality improvement programme is completed next year. New IT systems and soſtware aim to not only improve the experience for customers, but to make planning and operation easier for its haulier members. Vision 20:20 would also be


rolled out across members and network in Europe, said Palletways (UK) managing director, Luis Zubialde. He described it as “the most


significant investment and game- changing development in the Group’s history and within the pallet network sector as a whole. We are taking Big Data into the sector.” At the heart of the Vision


20:20 blueprint is a new digital information hub which will bring extensive real-time information to customers and operators. It is


centred on a customer and depot ‘dashboard’ which will provide full visibility of consignments across the network, as soon as they enter the system; instant data on proof of delivery: analytics showing where deliveries are being made: live vehicle status screens to show the location of all consignments and allowing shipments ‘at risk’ of not being delivered on time or with other issues to be proactively dealt with; and full details of consignments arriving at hubs on trunk vehicles as an aid to management. The Digital Information Hub is


currently being rolled out across the Palletways network following training of its 100-plus members and this will be replicated across the European networks “in the near future” says Palletways. Palletways has also launched a


new mobile app for its members, allowing access to data when on the move and for proofs


and delivery areas to improve profitability and efficiency. Central IT systems have been


of delivery to be generated electronically, regardless of whether mobile phone coverage is available. All this technology is aimed


at reducing downtime and the myriad phone calls, faxes and emails that currently take up customers’ and operators’ time. It will also improve customer service by speeding up resolution of any delivery issues. Other components of Vision 20:20 are an online trading operation, allowing customers to book express palletised freight direct online for the first time.


Port power for Palletforce


Being a member of a pallet network and close to a major port can be a very powerful combination, says Mike Farrall, MD of north-west-based Farrall’s Transport. Farrall’s, with bases near Chester and on Deeside in north-east Wales, covers the CH and part of the LL postcodes for Palletforce. And while it does not cover the Liverpool postcode for the network, it is close to the port and takes in imported goods at its warehouse, which it can then feed out to the Parcelforce network, of which it is a founder member. “We can deliver next day, in some cases,” Mike Farrall explains. “And in fact, business is so good that I can see us adding an extra shiſt at a warehouse.” The company has also opened


a new site at Deeside into which it will move its Palletforce work, among others. Farrall’s Transport has


invested £3.5 million expanding its warehousing capacity with a further 81,000 sq ſt food grade facility at Deeside Industrial Estate, Deeside. The new warehouse, which will be ready for business in early January 2015, complements the company’s existing 80,000 sq ſt distribution centre on the same industrial park. Located on one of


Testing is due to start soon with a planned launch in early 2015. There is also a web-based


customer satisfaction research tool. Vision 20:20 is part of


Palletways’ strategy to recover from the Great Recession in which, in common with most of the industry,


it lost haulier


members. Now, it aims to grow its business from around 3 million pallets a year to over 4 million. It has started a new member recruitment drive and another important component of Vision 20:20 is to redraw its collection


beefed up to cope with the new data demands, but members themselves will not need to invest heavily in new technology, as data can be input with devices such as mobile phones. Group member development director Craig Hibbert said that the new systems would be rolled out in stages to the membership, “rather than being given it in all one heap”. It is important that members buy in to Vision 20:20 – they played an important part in the design process – and actually make use of the new technology as it became available, he said. Palletways IT specialist


Richard Miller added that the new portal would have a completely new look and had been designed to be easy to understand, without users having to search endlessly for information. In contrast to the rather stark appearance of the


old portal, there would be easy- to-understand graphics such as bar charts to show the progress of


consignments through the


system. Vision 20:20 will first be rolled


out across the UK, the original and biggest Palletways network, but networks in continental countries and cross-border traffic would not be far behind. Luis Zubialde said that the


networks in Iberia and Italy would probably be the first, followed by those in the rest of Europe. The soſtware had been designed from the outset to be multilingual. As far as the IT system


was concerned, cross-border shipments would be treated in exactly the same way as domestic. However,


a


piece of soſtware has been written to allow for the vagaries of cross- border delivery such as ferry delays or customs intervention, Richard Miller added.


Pleasing prospects for northern member


North Wales’ largest commercial sites it is only half an hour from Liverpool Docks, allowing Farrall’s Transport to tap into the port-centric logistics market. “The new Deeside warehouse is a major investment for Farrall’s Transport. It shows our commitment to the local area and the many expanding local businesses that are in need of first- class warehousing and reliable distribution services,” says Mike Farrall. “Port Centric Logistics has started to gather pace as a supply chain strategy and a growing number of retailers and manufacturers are now looking to store goods and undertake logistics activities close to the port of entry. Being within half an hour’s run of Liverpool’s new SuperPort places Farrall’s in a strong position to tap into this developing market when the port


opens in 2015.” Farrall’s Transport, a founding


member and shareholder of PalletForce, will also relocate its PalletForce depot from Ashton, near Chester, to the new Deeside warehouse. The move will save two hours a day for each of the vehicles dedicated to PalletForce operations and allows for significant expansion of the company’s pallet network business by offering over 10,000 sq ſt of covered space and 20,000 sq ſt of yard space. “Moving our PalletForce depot


from Ashton to Deeside places us much closer to our customer base, which allows us to offer a greatly enhanced service, with later cut-off times for collection and earlier delivery times. In addition, the new facility, with its integrated PalletForce facilities, enables us to handle a far greater


Northern-based Palletways mem- ber Walkers Transport, whose depots at Leeds and Manchester put around 1,000-1,200 pallets a night into the network, is enthusiastic about the prospects for Vision 20:20. Managing director Graham Short, says: ”It will give us a lot of control over our pallets and it will let our customers see as much as possible. In a way, it forces us to be as good as be possibly can, because of the pallets aren’t where they’re supposed to be, our customers will know.” Giving customers precise expected times of arrival will be


volume of network business,” says Mike Farrall. The service and the IT


support from the Palletforce is excellent, Mike Farrall continues. When he joined the then new network in 2001, he confesses to have rather given up on pallet networks because of the poor performance. “But Palletforce are very focussed on service levels” -something that Farrall’s likes to think it reciprocates, having won depot of the year awards on numerous occasions. Another interesting aspect


a boon, because it will reduce the number of phone calls from people trying to find out exactly when between 9am and 5pm their goods will actually arrive. Short adds: “Vision 20:20 gives


us a really good visual platform, visibility of track and trace information and a lot of analytics. It’s streets ahead of anything I have seen.” It


will help customers and


operators in many ways. For example, if a recipient has a reasonably precise idea when the delivery truck will arrive, they can get staff ready to help unload –


of Palletforce is its Allnet cooperation with three other European networks, which allows express deliveries into the main west European markets for local exporters, all with track and trace soſtware and full IT systems. Back in the UK, the pallet


networks have been getting ever- busier, Mike Farrall continues. Partly this is due to the pressures on road haulage including the shortages of drivers and vehicles. “There has been an upsurge in bigger volumes through the


which saves the driver time as well. This in turn might just help relieve the pressure on hard-pressed multi-drop drivers, and who knows, perhaps persuade some of the ones who were thinking of quitting or retiring to stay on. Walkers Transport is putting


more traffic onto the Palletways network, mainly because its own customers have increased that


type of business. Walkers


Transport is also making increased use of the Palletways international network, for which the Vision 20:20 enhancements could be an even bigger boost.


networks – say, 8-12 pallets.”


These might have been handled by hauliers directly in the past, but they are putting them through the networks now rather than invest in the capacity to handle it themselves. The driver shortage on


Farrall’s patch is getting tighter, as it is everywhere else. Mike Farrall says that while the Driver CPC has been blamed, it is only the tip of the iceberg – the problem of disaffected drivers has been brewing in the industry for a very long time.


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