All Article articles – Page 536
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Fraikin stands firm in face of failed acquisition bid by Petit Forestier
The head of Fraikin UK has said Petit Forestier’s decision to abandon its plans to buy his leasing firm will not affect the business.Ed Cowell told Motortransport.co.uk that the French-owned company remains “truly confident,” pointing to the firm’s performance in 2016. This saw both Fraikin Group and Fraikin UK grow ...
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Cenex networking evening to discuss Nottingham clean air zone challenges
Cenex is hosting a free-to-attend networking drinks reception to help UK freight and fleet operators prepare for the challenges clean air zones will bring.The event will be held on Tuesday 7 February at Nottingham Contemporary, supported by Nottingham Go Ultra Low.It is open to anyone involved in operating vehicles in ...
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DHL Supply Chain to restructure Acton Gate DC
DHL Supply Chain is to commence a major restructure of its operations at its Acton Gate DC in Stafford, due to falling volumes.DHL launched formal consultations initially with 200 warehouse and logistics staff at the site after proposing to move its Argos operations to its DCs in Marsh Leys in ...
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Longer semi-trailer trial extended by five years and 1,000 trailers
The FTA has welcomed the decision to extend the longer semi-trailer trial in both scope and length.In an update to its dedicated trial webpage, the DfT said an additional 1,000 longer semi-trailers were to be made available and the trial extended by five years.The DfT added that details on how ...
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DPD to expand Precise customer base
DPDGroup is to roll out its Precise service, which allows customers to pick an hour-long delivery slot, to more customers later this year. Launched last year with client Asos, the service is currently only used by seven of the parcel carrier's "major" clients.Speaking at The Delivery Conference in London today ...
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Maritime orders Next Generation Scanias as part of 230 vehicle acquisition
Maritime Transport has ordered more than 200 new vehicles, including Next Generation Scanias, to enter its fleet later this year.The order for 230 trucks includes Volvo, Scania and Mercedes-Benz vehicles, which will be added to the fleet over spring and summer this year, beginning in March.Mark Bloom, regional engineer – ...
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Widdowson Logistics returns to administration
Widdowson Logistics, part of the Davis Haulage Group, has entered administration once again.The move came a month after stablemate Davis Haulage, which was subject to a company voluntary arrangement, also appointed administrators and was subsequently purchased by Buffaload Logistics.Papers filed in the Manchester District Registry state that Widdowson Logistics, which ...
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Petit Forestier pulls out of Fraikin acquisition
Refrigerated vehicle rental firm Petit Forestier has abandoned its bid to buy leasing company Fraikin Group after opposition from the French Competition Authority.The deal between the two French-owned companies, announced in June last year, aimed to create a major European player in the sector with combined sales of £1.09bn.Petit Forestier’s ...
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Electric-powered cycle or foot trailer to be trialled for last-mile deliveries
Trials are to take place of a new electric-powered trailer that will enable cycle or foot couriers to deliver large quantities of parcels in urban areas.Technology being deployed on the trailer is termed ‘net neutral’, so the weight of the trailer is not felt by the handler, allowing for increased ...
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DHL Supply Chain and Unite fuel tanker driver dispute resolved
The dispute between DHL Supply Chain and union Unite, which was set to disrupt fuel deliveries to Morrisons forecourts across London, the South East and East Anglia, has been resolved.Unite said the 19 fuel tanker drivers based at the operator’s West Thurrock site continued to work normally and there was ...
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Tesco and Booker merger targets distribution cost savings
Tesco is to merge with wholesaler Booker in a £3.7bn deal that creates one of the largest own-account operations in the UK, and it is targeting cost savings of approximately £61m in its distribution and fulfillment activities.In a joint statement to investors, both parties said the merger was expected to ...
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News extra: The great insurance premium tax take
As hauliers face yet another rise this summer in insurance premium tax, MT looks at what action industry can take to lessen its impactHauliers have not taken kindly to the government’s decision to once again hike the tax on insurance premiums.The tax rise, announced by Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip ...
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UK exports and international operators face delays post-Brexit
The Home Affairs Select Committee has been told that a significant proportion of UK exports will get delayed if customs clearance is reintroduced as a consequence of Brexit, and the government needs a "big step change" to deliver the promise of "frictionless trade".Yesterday the committee took oral evidence on the ...
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Driver First Assist - saving lives on the roads
Driver First Assist (DFA) was recognised at a parliamentary reception last week (18 January) and has received warm words and £70,000 of funding from the DfT. Motor Transport technical editor Colin Barnett takes a look back at the development of the first aider scheme.I first met David Higginbottom back in ...
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Abbey Logistics to prioritise growth over cost cutting after Armet Logistics acquisition
A focus on growth, rather than reducing cross-company costs, will be Abbey Logistics’ priority after its acquisition of Armet Logistics.Abbey chief executive Steve Granite, who led an MBO of the company last August, told Motortransport.co.uk that both operations are running on a business as usual footing for the time being.However, ...
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Connect Group's parcel freight division leads the way
Connect Group saw its revenue climb 0.2% in the 20 weeks to 21 January 2017 with it parcel freight division leading the way.The operator saw turnover in its parcel freight division – Tuffnells – register like-for-like and total turnover growth of 5.2% respectively.In a trading statement Connect said: “The group ...
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Abbey Logistics buys liquid food operator Armet Logistics
Abbey Logistics has bought the complete share capital of bulk liquid food operator Armet Logistics, creating a business with a combined turnover of £70m. Based two miles from Abbey’s Liverpool HQ, Armet has a fleet of 90 liquid tankers, which will give the combined business a liquid tanker fleet ...
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FTA questions effectiveness of Direct Vision Standard
The FTA has expressed concern over TfL’s Direct Vision Standard, and questioned whether it’s the most effective approach for improving road safety in London. TfL today launched the first consultation for the standard, and suggested non-compliance with it could be met with criminal proceedings.The association’s national and regional policy ...
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M1 to get 60mph speed limit?
Highways England has remained tight lipped amid rumours that it plans to introduce a 60mph speed limit on the M1.It was reported last week that the agency was considering the amended speed limit to improve air quality in the Sheffield area, but Highways England said it couldn’t confirm whether this ...
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'Dangerous lorries' could face criminal fines under London's Direct Vision Standard plan
The mayor of London has revealed the next steps in plans to rid the capital of “dangerous lorries”, which could potentially see breaking the Direct Vision Standard made a criminal offence.Under the mayor’s plans the “most dangerous” HGVs will be banned from London’s streets entirely by January 2020.These HGVs, described ...