Lifetime cost means everything

Paul Smart Transport is operating at the ­forefront of the fast-changing construction industry. That’s why the UK haulage contractor has been testing Scania’s new construction vehicles for more than a year.

Over the years Paul Smart has seen many changes in the construction transport business – and he has constantly adapted his company’s strategies and vehicle fleet in response.

“The most important changes have been the much longer distances and heavier loads in our business,” Smart explains. “Like most contractors, we used to work locally. Now we often deliver heavy loads of gravel or asphalt for road construction work that is more than 100 kilometres from Bristol. And that of course puts new demands on the vehicles we need. They must be robust and fit enough for tough operations in gravel pits and on dirt roads. At the same time they need to be fast and adaptable to the traffic on our highways.”

When asked to participate in Scania’s field tests of the new construction vehicles, Paul Smart immediately came up with some ideas to reduce the weight of the vehicles, to allow for a higher payload.

“Weight is crucial for us, especially in these longer transport missions,” says Smart. “If we are to earn some money in this business we need to load as much as possible as efficiently as possible, under the existing legislation.”

Smart adds that reliability of the vehicles is also of the utmost importance. “We are delivering products to customers working with highway maintenance. That means there are people there who are waiting for us and who are completely dependent on our deliveries.”

If the vehicle doesn’t get there in time, there will be penalties and charges. “But never for us,” says Smart, proudly. “The uptime we find with this new Scania is absolutely brilliant. Downtime doesn’t exist. The support we get from the local dealerships to keep us moving is outstanding.”

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