In the summer of 2010 Günther Maters started Koeltrans Angeren, active in the transport of vegetables, fruit, flowers and plants to and from Germany. Seven years later the fleet consists of 61 trucks. "Around 60% of our transport is fruit and vegetables, the rest is flowers and plants," says the director. He expects a 'hot' 2018 for fresh transport.
Some luck
When asked how he was able to grow so quickly, Günther answers: "When we started seven years ago, we were in the middle of the crisis. A lot of transporters were internally directed due to the financial problems. We had just started and came forward with a positive story to our customers. This was appreciated and so was our approach of 'deal=deal'. But of course you have to get lucky sometimes and working together also plays a large role. Everything stands or falls with the right people. Our growth is also divided among a lot of customers. I don't want to become too dependent on a certain customer."
Exciting
Now the crisis has made way for a revival. "Five years ago we were still occasionally seen as 'if not you, someone else'. This is now over. I'm convinced that 2018 will be a very exciting year due to the combination of a shortage of capacity and drivers and the economic growth. Exporters see this too, they know what is going on in the market and realise that if their trade doesn't move they'll have a problem," says Günther.
LZV
Playing into new developments is the nature of the beast at Koeltrans Angeren. The first of the company's Langere en Zwaardere Vrachtautocombinatie (LZV) (Longer and Heavier Lorry Combination) passed the German border this week as one of the first transporters. "I'm proud that we can now also supply our German customers with the LZV. The permitted total weight of 40 tonnes means that unfortunately this transport can only be used for lighter loads, which makes it more attractive for flower transport than group transport of fruit and vegetables. It has 20 tonnes of weight when it is empty. There is also an ongoing heavy lobby in Germany from the rail, which means I don't think there will be any meddling with the weight."
"Yet I'm still enthusiastic about the LZVs. This is why we quickly stepped into this development. Until recently LZV transport was only permitted in the Netherlands and Scandinavia, but I expect Belgium to be added to this list next. We have to deal with a serious driver shortage in our sector. Instead of three normal trucks, we can use two LZVs. This is also a good development from an environmental viewpoint, and it reduces traffic. Count your advantages," concludes the transporter.
For more information:
Gunther Maters
Koeltrans Angeren
T +31 26 3252407
gunther@koeltrans.nl
www.koeltrans.nl