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Issue 5 2019 - Freight Business Journal


///WALES


Best in the West


Wales and the West of England have some of the brightest growth stars in the UK freight industry, from forwarders to ferry operators.


western England and Wales, with a total headcount of 169, including the


forwarding and logistics


Devon and Cornwall may seem a rural idyll to most of us but the region generates


a surprising


amount of freight, says Davies Turner head of sales development for the south west, Edward Lucy. A number of fi rms making organic clothing or compostable plastics have set up operations and many of them are doing good export business, as well as bringing in a sizeable amount of imports from Asia. The big cities of the West


Country – Exeter and Plymouth – also have a number of manufacturing companies – and operate daily vehicles in both


directions to and from Davies Turner’s main hub for the region in Bristol. South Wales, meanwhile,


is


booming, Lucy continues – to the extent that its reputation as an area where cheap warehousing was plentifully available is now under threat.


“It used to have


a lot of warehouse space, but the feedback we’re getting from customers is that it is now very hard to fi nd,” he explains. It’s hard though to put a fi nger


on where South Wales’ prosperity springs from. It’s unlikely to be due to a resurgence in traditional heavy industry like steel making


Holyhead


prepares for the E-Flexer era


The North Wales port of Holyhead is preparing for the introduction of the first of Stena Line’s new ‘E-Flexer’ ferries, due to be delivered at the end of 2019. The Stena Astrid is expected to take up service on the Dublin route at the end of 2019 and, at 3,100 lane metres capacity, will mean that two similar-sized vessels will be operating on the route, explains freight commercial manager for Irish Sea South, David Holderness. In terms of infrastructure,


little if any work will be required in Holyhead, he adds. “It’s already very good there with two-tier ramps,” he explains. The terminal area at Salt Island has been reconfigured to reflect the evolution in the market towards more unaccompanied units which require more space and allow the quick turnaround times that are needed on the Irish Sea. Holyhead also has its own


version of Operation Brock for the Dover area, in the event of things getting sticky after Brexit.


while the Ford car plant in Bridgend has been earmarked for closure (the announcement came a day aſt er this interview). Nevertheless,


the recovery in


business has been suffi ciently strong for Davies Turner to have recruited another sales representative to cover solely South Wales. Davies Turner has its own sales


offi ce in Bridgend, which has been an important factor in garnering support from local business; very few freight forwarders have any presence in Wales. Indeed Davies Turner is probably by far the biggest forwarder in the whole of


that


Operators have found transit


times for


unaccompanied are almost as quick as for accompanied and the driver shortage has certainly nudged many in this direction – although some operators, particular of refrigerated units will still insist on having a driver throughout for the greater degree of control and security it gives. The overwhelming majority of Stena’s traffic is still accompanied, although unaccompanied is growing faster. The E-Flexers will help keep


Stena within the new IMO emissions limits -


a similar


vessel is also due to go into service on the Liverpool-Dublin route – although there will be a surcharge to reflect the higher fuel costs that will result. The level of this has not yet been


operations in Bristol, the Bridgend and the three Davies Turner Air Cargo offi ces at Bristol, Bridgend and Plymouth. Lucy says: “At a time when


everyone else seems to be looking to reduce their regional presence, Davies Turner has gone the opposite way. We operate around 30-40 export trailers from Bristol every day and the fact that we can collect, bring it to our depot here and go straight out again is a defi nite plus-point with customers.” Davies Turner is well known


in the region for its road trailer services but lately ocean has been its strongest growing segment – Far East imports and exports and imports from India, while the Middle East and the US are among


decided – it depends on the prevailing level of fuel prices when it is imposed next year – but the market is being made fully aware that


it is coming,


says Holderness. Traffic is meanwhile pretty


buoyant. There was a surge ahead of the original Brexit deadline in March which has now abated but the market is still pretty strong, says Holderness. There will be no immediate


changes to Holyhead/Dublin schedules when the new ships are


introduced, although E-Flexer will it


is possible that they will be tweaked in future. Another


go


into service on the Belfast- Liverpool route and here more reconfiguration of terminals will be required including new double-deck ramps.


the stronger export areas. It’s part of a sales drive by the forwarder, coupled with the fact that it can off er local bonded facilities that allow any customs issues to be resolved quickly and effi ciently without racking up storage charges in distant ports. “We have our own in-house customs team, so we can do everything ourselves. It never ceases to amaze me how many other forwarders – even large ones – outsource this vital part of their business to third parties,” Lucy comments. Davies


Turner has greatly


expanded its operations in Bristol, opening a new multi-user distribution centre at Central Park near the city’s main port in 2017, in addition to its existing freight


forwarding sites. When


a new junction off the M49 link motorway is completed at the end of this year, the site will be literally


Stena’s south Welsh route,


from Fishguard to Rosslare, was subject to major revision about three years ago and the earlier departure time is working very well,


says Holderness. This,


together with a couple of new bypasses in Ireland will make it possible to get traffic into the Cork area much earlier than in the past and opens up a whole new market. It also opens up freight – and passenger – opportunities between south- east Ireland and South Wales, making day return


journeys


possible. The Welsh government’s


decision not to approve the M4 bypass in South Wales is disappointing, although most of Stena’s traffic passes through the area outside the commuter peak so is not too seriously affected by the congestion.


a few minutes from the main trunk motorway network. The new logistics site has


already been full at times, says Lucy, and Davies Turner is actively considering developing some of the spare land that it already owns in Bristol. Demand in the area remains very strong, he points out. “You’d be very hard pushed to fi nd quality multi-user warehousing in this area, so it’s quite a unique off ering, and in a very good location.” Other fi rms have also seen


the attractions of the Bristol area and a number of companies, including homewares retailer The Range have set up national distribution sites there. The latter also imports a substantial portion of its goods though the port of Bristol, something that Lucy would always encourage his own customers to do where possible.


Irish retailing has changed


out of all recognition and Stena’s services reflect that. Whereas in the past shopkeepers tended to hold stocks in Ireland, nowadays many of the supermarkets are owned by UK-based chains and the Irish outlets stock is fed from the same distribution centres as mainland UK. The range of goods available in Ireland has also expanded enormously. Freight commercial manager Anna Breen remembers a time when Irish people would make day trips on the boat to Holyhead, just to visit Woolworths. The vessel on the Fishguard-


Rosslare route, the Stena Europe,


is currently being


refitted in Turkey and will have more high decks space when she returns, allowing more full- height trailers to be carried.


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