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MOERDIJK – A quintet of FLOOR stepdeck trailers, delivered by Pacton Trailers in Ommen, has recently been put into service to optimize the logistics of the tyre giant Inter-Sprint, situated in Moerdijk. The brand new semi-trailers are used for the distribution of tyres for the largest European supplier thereof. “As the supplier, we have the largest own stock, three million units, in Europe. Logistics plays an important role in what we do. Furthermore, excellent material is one of the required basic conditions,” says marketing manager Ton Ketelaar of Inter-Sprint.
The FLOOR brand was taken over by Pacton Trailers in 2010. Pacton produces special heavy duty semi-trailers and trailers under this brand name, targeting the niche markets within certain sectors. The FLOOR range includes trailers, semi-trailers, semi-trailers specially for distribution transport, (extendable) heavy duty stepdeck trailers and flatbed trailers and crane-trailers.
A key aspect of the service offered by Pacton Trailers from their own factory is customization. Inter-Sprint had an array of client specific requirements. “Our logistical organisation has been working with FLOOR semi-trailers for many years now and we use them to transport a maximum of 100 cubic metres of tyres or rims,” says Ketelaar.
The stepdeck trailers for Inter-Sprint are of the type SBD.232.G, they have two axles, of which one is steered and they are supplied with Snap-lock bodies. The length of chassis for this type is 13.470mm with an axle load of 20.000kg and total permissible weight of 32.000kg. The rear axle is executed as a fusee axle, whilst the front axle can be lifted. The stepdeck trailers are equipped with a Wabco EBS system, an ABS 2S/2M, an anti-tilt system (Wabco RSS), two ISO-fittings and a parking brake in the form of spring brakes.
The bodywork is made of double-walled, aluminium snaplock profiles that have been coated before assembly. This results in an extremely strong body with a smooth inside wall. The roof is made of aluminium roof edges with aluminium arches. One translucent plate has been incorporated in the roof over the width of the body, glued and mechanically fixated. The trailers are supplied with hardwood floors all over with a thickness of 28mm. The whole chassis were blasted with corundum twice, then sprayed with a 2K-primer and finished off with two-component bodywork paint.
Supply requires logistics
The five FLOOR semi-trailers serve partly as replacement and partly as expansion. Inter-Sprint’s fleet consist of 50 trucks and 200 semi-trailers, needless to say that their own tyres under the brand name Dubbel Coin have been used. This brand tyre has also been placed on the new FLOOR stepdeck trailers. Ketelaar says that Inter-Sprint offers 15.000 unique products and has a stock of 3 million units. Having a large stock is only an asset if one has the means to transport the product as well. Delivery reliability is a certainty that customers can trust in. Ketelaar explains that Inter-Sprint takes care of an important part of the distribution, but they have agreements with a variety of European transporters as well. According to Ketelaar they have a warehouse in Moerdijk of more than 200.000m2 where the tyres are stacked in three layers. He says that they take care of deliveries in the Netherlands within 24 and within 48 to 72 hours in all of Europe. A lot of the logistical effort is put in overnight and processes such as order picking and the loading of the semi-trailers has been computerized mostly. It is possible to take up-to-date information into account regarding traffic congestion and delivery locations for each individual semi-trailer, by means of a computerized route planning system.
Efficient customization
Inter-Sprint provides all A-brand tyres as well as a variety of their own brand tyres, such as the Double Coin brand, as alternative to the A-brand tyres. Both car – and truck tyres are available for all seasons, climatic conditions and undergrounds. According to Ketelaar, Inter-Sprint’s strength lies in their one-stop-shop formula. They simply have everything available and can deliver in the blink of an eye. Subsequently the customer doesn’t have to keep their own stock, due to the fact that Inter-Sprint functions as warehouse for all their customers.
Inter-Sprint has been active for 50 years by now and counts 300 employees in Moerdijk. Here they have access to their own container transhipment to benefit the supply routes by sea, from countries such as China. Inter-Sprint delivers entire assembled sets of rims and tyres to car importers. In addition to car importers, their clientele also consists of wholesalers, dealers, garage owners and transport companies.
Ketelaar expects to do business with Pacton again in the future. He reasons that they deliver good and efficient custom made products which are put into excellent use by Inter-Sprint. Considering the growing amount of stock, due to the continuous changes in fleets and the increasing variety of tyres, Ketelaar concludes that their own fleet has to be kept up-to-date.