New Appointment to Engineering Team

Commercial vehicle contract hire and fleet management specialist, Prohire Plc, has announced the appointment of Duncan Turk as the company’s new National Fleet Engineer.

Duncan has spent over two decades within the commercial vehicle sector during which time he has held senior positions with TNT Logistics, Hitachi Capital and Amey – the highway infrastructure specialists – among others. Immediately prior to joining Prohire he had been based in Kenya overseeing G4S Security Services 750 strong vehicle fleet in the region.

While he will be located at Prohire’s Staffordshire headquarters, most of Duncan’s time will be spent on the road – meeting with Prohire’s suppliers and clients.

The position of National Fleet Engineer is a new role within Prohire and has been created to enable the company to improve still further the quality of service that it offers to its rapidly expanding customer base.

“I am very much looking forward to getting to know Prohire’s service and vehicle maintenance partners and clients around the country and discussing the ways we can work together to ensure that Prohire continues to offer market-leading levels of value and after-sales support,” Duncan Turk said.

In his leisure time, Duncan enjoys motorcycling – particularly off-road – with his 17-year old son.

Prohire is one of the UK’s fastest growing commercial vehicle hire specialists. In the last four years the company’s fleet of trucks and vans has more than doubled in size and now stands at over 3,000 vehicles.

The introduction of the Euro 6 engine emissions standards will have a significant impact on the way commercial vehicles are acquired in the coming years. That is the view of Andrew Morley, Sales Director of Prohire Plc, one of the UK’s fastest growing commercial vehicle hire and fleet management specialists.

Euro 6 became mandatory for all new truck registrations from 31st December 2013. The standard is the latest stage in the legislative drive to reduce harmful vehicle emissions that started in 1993 with the introduction of Euro 1 and since that time emissions have been reduced by up to 97%.

Of course, in developing products that meet the emissions standards demanded by Euro 6, engine manufacturers have incurred hefty R&D costs.

As is the way of the world, the vehicle manufacturers have had little option but to review their own pricing structures to recoup their investment costs.

As a result, commercial vehicle prices – from the lower end of commercial vehicles to top-end tractor units - have increased by up to 16 per cent since the turn of the year.

To beat the increases, many fleet operators were tempted to bring forward new vehicle orders prior to the end of 2013. Others, meanwhile, have delayed fleet replacements altogether.”

Critics of Euro 6 contend that the benefits to the environment that it will bring are minimal while the increase in vehicle costs that are the result of its introduction will be damaging to the stability of the road transport sector at a time when the economic recovery is showing signs of gathering pace.

There is also a belief that, thanks to Euro 6, vehicle payloads will be compromised and additional fuel costs incurred.

At Prohire it is our view that lower gross vehicle weight vehicles that operate in urban areas will gain little from the introduction of Euro 6: their operating costs will increase and any environmental benefits will be negligible.  Meanwhile, for some tractor units, there is an argument that suggests that the increase in up-front capital costs can be off-set by fuel savings over time.

What is undeniable however is that across the board, fleet operators can minimize their exposure to the upsurge in commercial vehicle capital costs that Euro 6 has precipitated by moving away from purchasing vehicles outright and embracing some form of long term hire agreement when the time comes to add new vehicles to their fleets.

There are several reasons why, with the advent of Euro 6, long term hire makes sound commercial sense that; these being that the increased capital cost isn’t born by the operator in one hit and as the funding is ‘off balance sheet’ then this frees the operator up to use their working capital in other areas of the business.

Whatever the benefits, or lack of benefits, Euro 6 is now a reality.

Contract Hire and Fleet Management companies such as Prohire, will be able to guide you through the acquisition methods open to you to ensure that you make the right choice for your business.

New Appointment to Customer Relations Team

PRESS RELEASE
November 2013

Commercial vehicle contract hire and fleet management specialist, Prohire Plc, has appointed Sarah Degg to its customer relationship management team.

Sarah will work out of Prohire’s Staffordshire headquarters and her role involves a broad range of business to business tasks.

Michelle Miles-Brown, Prohire’s customer relations manager, comments: “Good customer service is the bedrock on which Prohire’s business is built and Sarah’s appointment has allowed us to free up other members of our customer relations team and this, in turn, will ensure that we continue to deliver the highest levels of customer satisfaction.”

As part of its ongoing commitment to customer relations, Prohire undertakes telephone questionnaires with customers every time they take delivery of a new vehicle to ensure that every vehicle enters service right first time.

“We believe that monitoring customer feedback to our range of commercial vehicle hire and maintenance services helps us to sustain the industry-leading performance standards that we strive for throughout our business,” says Michelle Miles-Brown.

Prohire is one of the UK’s fastest growing commercial vehicle hire specialists. In the last four years the company’s fleet of trucks and vans has more than doubled in size and now stands at over 3,000 vehicles.

www.prohire.plc.uk

ABOUT Prohire Plc:

 

Established in 1997, Prohire provides specialist contract hire, accident management and fleet management solutions to commercial vehicle operators throughout the UK and Ireland. The company has expanded through a combination of acquisitions and organic growth.

Media Contacts:                                                     Company Contact:

Lloyd Arkill                                                              Andrew Morley

Arkill Matthews Allen Ltd                                       Prohire Plc

Tel: +44 (0)1923 777897                                        Tel: +44 (0) 8432 909 089

Mobile:  +44 (0) 7903 809127                                Mobile: + 44 (0) 7850 493646

Email: info@am–pr.net                                          Email: andrewmorley@prohire.plc.uk

End of Traditional Dray?

The haulage companies that deliver drinks to customers are not the only area of the transport industry experiencing changes. Vehicle Contract Hire and Fleet Management firm Prohire has noted a shift in the type of vehicles operators are choosing as the rise in off-trade volumes continues.

 

“We have seen a move away from the type of traditional heavy dray transport that was predominately used to handle kegs towards vehicles with a reduced GVW and a more compact body, while tail-lifts are increasingly seen as a better option than vehicles with a low chassis height,” says Sales and Marketing Director Andrew Morley.

 

He adds that the emergence of more convenience stores in recent years has also affected the industry and led to the demand for more frequent deliveries of smaller loads.

 

Manchester-based Prohire client, LWC Drinks Wholesale Service, which makes same-day deliveries to around 6,000 customers nationwide, says it has had to change its fleet as drinking habits have evolved.

 

“We have now less need for 26-tonne lorries, so Prohire provides us with more 7.5 to 11-tonne trucks,” says Ebrahim Mukadam. “The latest additions to our fleets were 14-tonne vehicles with tail-lifts to allow easy loading and unloading.”

 

The Hard Truth About Vehicle Testing

Figures recently released by VOSA may show a rise in HGV annual test pass rates, but far too many of the lorries and commercial vans in operation in Britain today are below the general roadworthiness expected by VOSA.

That’s the view of Paul Hassall, operations director of Stoke-on-Trent-based commercial vehicle contract hire and fleet management specialist, Prohire Plc.

Paul Hassall comments: “According to VOSA’s latest figures 77.6 per cent of HGVs pass their annual test. The figure is up on previous years, which is encouraging, but it highlights that a sizable minority of vehicles still fail.

He continues: “The situation with commercial vans is even more alarming. A recent survey by the FTA showed that the first time MOT failure rate for 3.5 tonne vans was nearly 50 per cent.”

Paul Hassall contends that HGV and commercial van operators who fail to maintain their vehicles to the required standards are not only putting their ‘O’ license at risk but are costing their business money.

He says: “Not undertaking regular vehicle maintenance is a false economy. Quite simply, lorries and vans that are not properly looked-after will break down and fail their MOT. And the cost of repairing a fault is invariably more than that of carrying out an ongoing maintenance regime.

“VOSA is also putting more weight behind its ‘O’ license compliance schemes and any vehicle fleet operators whose vehicles routinely fail their MoT are likely to find their business under close scrutiny.”

 Prohire’s fleet of commercial vans, HGVs and trailers has one of the highest annual test pass rates in the industry. In the 12 months to the end of September 2013, 99.7 per cent of the company’s on-hire fleet passed its annual test via its network of National Service Providers

“As part of our service to clients our engineers undertake regular routine maintenance programmes which flag up any issues before they become too serious, as well as periodic safety inspections on vans” says Paul Hassall.

“This gives our clients the peace of mind of knowing that their fleets are roadworthy and will not let them – or their customers – down.”

Prohire Plc announce RH Rentals Acquisition

PRESS RELEASE

October 2013

Independently-owned commercial vehicle contract hire and fleet management specialist, Prohire Plc, has announced the acquisition of the capital assets and business of Nottingham-based RH Rentals for an undisclosed sum.

The RH Rentals operation will be fully integrated within the Prohire business and, to ensure RH’s customers experience a seamless transition, the migration of the company’s existing client contract base will be overseen by the Prohire Senior Management and customer support teams.

David Barlow, chairman and chief executive officer of Prohire Plc, commented: “RH Rentals has a significant rental and contract hire commercial vehicle fleet which is a perfect complement to Prohire’s. The RH fleet includes rigid vehicles, tractor units and vans and these will be added to the range of vehicles available from Prohire to further enhance our offering to the commercial vehicle sector.”

“I would like to thank Paul Jacques, our Group Financial Director, who headed up the acquisition along with the senior management teams of both Prohire and RH Rentals for their professionalism and cooperation throughout the acquisition process.”

Prohire will further increase its fleet size by placing a significant order for new commercial vehicles over the coming weeks.

www.prohire.plc.uk

ENDS

ABOUT Prohire Plc:

Established in 1997, Prohire provides specialist contract hire, accident management and fleet management solutions to commercial vehicle operators throughout the UK and Ireland. The company has expanded through a combination of acquisitions and organic growth.

Media Contacts:                                                 Company Contact:

Lloyd Arkill                                                            Andrew Morley
Arkill Matthews Allen Ltd                                      Prohire Plc
Tel: +44 (0)1923 777897                                     Tel: +44 (0) 8432 909 089
Mobile:  +44 (0) 7903 809127                              Mobile: + 44 (0) 7850 493646
Email: info@am–pr.net                                        Email: andrewmorley@prohire.plc.uk

AVAILABLE NOW!

http://www.prohire.plc.uk/available-now-on-contract-hire/