Capital Equipment News April 2019

TRANSPORT

4PL Fleet is a third-party logistics business operating in the South African cross border bulk transport industry.

Driving progressive supply chain solutions

As 4PL Group continues to grow its multimodal supply chain solutions business across southern Africa, the company has expanded its fleet of Scania truck tractors within 4PL Fleet with the purchase of 15 new units, bringing its total tipper fleet to 75 Scania G460 units, writes Munesu Shoko .

E fficiency and uptime are two significant param- eters in the transport industry, especially in the current cutthroat trading environment synonymous with the Southern African transport industry. With this in mind, 4PL Fleet does not leave anything to chance when it comes to the acquisition of its truck fleet. 4PL Fleet was established in 2010, when 4PL Group, a privately-owned business focused on offering world-class multimodal supply chain solutions within southern Africa, acquired the logistics division of a blue chip South African company. 4PL Fleet is a third-party logistics business operating in the South African cross border bulk transport industry. The business is a bulk commodity carrier that owns and operates a fleet of Scania G460 truck tractors equipped with interlink side tipper trailers. As Louis Adlem, MD of 4PL Fleet, explains, efficiency and uptime are non-negotiables in running a successful transport business and, for this reason, Scania South Africa, a reputable name in the local transport industry, has become 4PL Fleet’s vehicle supplier of choice. The 4PL-Scania relationship started back in November 2011 when the logistics solutions provider purchased its first G460 unit. At the time, it was running a fleet of 20 tipper

trucks (sourced from another manufacturer). From there, it never looked back and standardised its whole fleet with Scania G460’s. As part of a fleet expansion programme, the company took delivery of 15 new G460 units at the start of April. The latest acquisition brings to 75 the total number of G460 truck tractors in the 4PL fleet to date. Why Scania? A combination of factors led to 4PL Fleet’s decision to opt for Scania as its preferred supplier of its vehicles. From the outset, the company was convinced by the Scania G460 truck tractor value offering, especially its reliability – which translates into maximum uptime – and its fuel efficiency, which means operational gains. “The G460 is the right truck for our cross border bulk transport operations. It is the most economical vehicle for our application. Firstly, the reliability of the vehicle gives us maximum uptime, which is a key operational parameter in our business. Secondly, it gives us the best fuel consumption, which is vital given that fuel is a major cost factor in every transport business,” says Adlem. Another key factor in opting for Scania was the OEM’s ability to offer a one-stop shop service, all the way from the

CAPITAL EQUIPMENT NEWS APRIL 2019 16