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trailerforumT R A I L E R s, T R E N D s & I N F O R M A T I O N F R O M K R O N E 2 0 1 3

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22 swAp BODIEs IN ThE LOgIsTIcs FuTuRE Focus Topic: swap Bodies16 KRONE DOgus JOINT VENTuRE

planT in Turkey opens 32 KRONE IN pOLAND Flagship oF The economy

04 – 07 June 2013munich exhibition centreVisit us in Hall a6, BootH 305/406

12 range oF services To ensure moBiliTy on The road

Focus on cusTomers

welcome to trailerforum!

inhalT

04 – 07 June 2013

munich exhibition centre

hall a6, Booth 305/406

Ralf Faust, Managing Director of Fahrzeugwerk Bernard KRONE GmbH

edi To rial

A s a transport company or fleet operator, you usually do not go out and “just” spontaneously buy a new trailer. Rather, you let yourself be guided by the equipment and features,

the component quality, or your loyalty to manufacturer and suppli-er brands. But you know that your satisfaction with a trailer is not at its peak when the trailer is standing idle in the yard, but rather when it proves itself on the road, day in and day out during nation-al or international transport.

At KRONE, we are always focused on our customers. After all, you are not just purchasing a trailer from us, but a durable transport solu-tion with a long service life and a mobility guarantee. When you ar-rive at the factory gates, you receive an innovative and high-quality product. At the same time, however, it is also the start of a partner-ship that will last during the entire lifetime of your trailer. Take the KRONE Spare Parts Service for example: A strong team ensures that the required spare part is delivered to you on site, anywhere in Europe, usually within one day but no later than 72 hours after you place the order, so that your trailer is mobile again within a very short time.

Even if you want to modernise your fleet, our partnership does not end there, but rather starts over again, so to speak: With our “trade in old for new” offer, we accept your used vehicles as a trade-in payment and you receive the trailer you want on top of it.

Yours sincerely, Ralf Faust

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swap-Bodies

Swap-bodies are flexible

all-rounders: A portrait of

the technology, users and

engineers.

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dpa)

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inhalT

FiTnessNear the KRONE headquarters in Emsland (Lower Sax-ony) representatives from the transport and logistics industry ran for a bet.

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39 imprinT

TransporT logisTicThe Transport Logistic trade show and exhibition in Munich is an industry must. As a mobility service provider, KRONE will be presenting new solutions and products at the fair.

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innovaTion With a new Low Liner chassis, KRONE has developed a product which is tailored precisely for integrated logistics solutions.

Turkey The new trailer plant of KRONE and Doğuş in Tire, Turkey, celebrates its opening.

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cooperaTionEfficiency on two levels. The KRONE Mega Liner Variofloor was developed jointly with the cooperative association E.L.V.I.S.

neTherlandsIn an interview, André Menzing, Managing Director of Trailer BV, KRONE's Netherlands-based subsidiary, talks about his goals.

TradeNew for old: With Secondo and ScanBalt, two KRONE subsidiaries handle the sale of used trailers.

researchThe IT Association BITKOM recommends centrally controlled, intelligent solutions, which in future should render the construction of new roads unnecessary.

06poland

Goods transport by road is extremely important in Poland. No wonder that the KRONE business partner POZKRONE is doing great business.

12Focus on cusTomers

KRONE's extremely quick and reliable Spare Parts Service is backed by a strong team.

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Forum

k Axle manufacturer GIGANT Trenkamp & Gehle will continue its future business operations as a company of the KRONE Group. The GIGANT Trenkamp & Gehle GmbH company and the KRONE Group have decided to deepen their long-standing, excellent cooperation and leverage Gigant Trenkamp & Geh-le GmbH’s proven expertise in axle manufacturing. Gigant will devel-op innovative chassis concepts for KRONE's agricultural machinery and utility vehicles. In addition, both companies intend to create and uti-lise synergies in the areas of procure-ment, manufacturing and service.

LONgsTANDINg pARTNERshIp Tren-kamp & Gehle is a medium-sized, fam-

ily-run company with more than

60 successful years in the utility vehicle

market. The compa-ny develops, manufac-

tures and sells axles for trailers and semi-trail-

ers, and over 100 employees work at the headquarters in Dinklage. GIGANT Trenkamp & Gehle prod-ucts are sold to well-known custom-ers in the construction, agricultural machinery and commercial vehicle sectors. For more than 40 years, the company has been supplying KRONE with axle assemblies for the utility vehicle sector. The company’s prod-uct range spans from lightweight 5.5-7.0 tonne axles with axle loads from 5.5 to 7.0 tonnes up to heavy-duty and flatbed axles. Due to their robust design and construction, these axles are also ideally suited for use in the ag-ricultural industry as well.

LOw-MAINTENANcE AxLEs For standard semi trailers in the utility

vehicle sector, Trenkamp & Gehle also offers the ultra-lightweight and low-maintenance EURO axle, which features disc and drum brakes as well as compact bearings. The alliance be-tween the two family-owned compa-nies KRONE and GIGANT Trenkamp & Gehle, both based in the German state of Lower Saxony – KRONE in

the Emsland district and GIGANT in the Vechta district – will be a signifi-cant boost for the northwest Lower Saxony economic area, and represents a clear commitment to the region.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, VIsIT:www.gIgANT-gROup.cOM

giganT Joins krone group

Bernard Krone and Markus Gehle, Managing Director of GIGANT Trenkamp & Gehle GmbH, are looking forward to an excellent partnership between the companies.

krone receives prominenT image awardk KRONE makes a big impression once again: At the VerkehrsRund-schau Image Awards 2013, the vehicle manufacturer was awarded first place in the category “trailers/bodies from 11 vehicles” and ranked very highly in the telematics category as well. The image of KRONE telematics was evaluated for the first time within the scope of this study. The winners of the Image Awards are chosen by the customers: About 400 fleet managers and 200 purchasing managers from German transport and freight forwarding companies as well as own-account transport operators were surveyed about their preferred brands. The award is given in several categories: heavy goods vehicles, transport-ers/vans, trailers/superstructures, tyres, commercial vehicle rental, fuel cards, telematics, forklift trucks / warehouse handling equip-

ment and truck-mounted forklifts. “There is no better jury than the customers them-selves,” says Dr. Frank Albers (National Sales Manager at KRONE). “In this respect, we are very grateful for the result, At the same time it also spurs us on to continue to offer customer-focused practical transport solutions and services in the future.”

Dr. Frank Albers (right) and Ingo Geerdes accept the award from Birgit Bauer, Editor-in-Chief of VerkehrsRundschau.

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Forum

30 years oF wesTFalia inTralog

k “A trailer that stands out like a work of art" – It’s not often that such an unusual vehicle is handed over at the KRONE plant in Werlte, Germany. Christian Huke, Managing Director of Sommer GmbH and proud owner of the impressively designed KRONE Profi Liner, was absolutely delighted. The eyecatching artwork was painted on the curtain to mark the 90-year anniversary of the Spedition Sommer freight forwarding company. The idea for the design came from Martina Huke and another employee. In just a short time, motor-ART artist Nina Katharina Matthies transformed the KRONE trailer into a very special work of art – one that will now be attracting a lot of attention and admira-tion in Germany and abroad. The Profi Liner is also equipped with the KRONE Ice-Protect System, which prevents snow and ice from forming and accumulating on the roof of the trailer.

impressive work oF (moTor) arT

emissions they are responsible for and believe that quiet and efficient zero-emission trucks will be the future of the industry. *Roland Berger strategy Consultants: „truck transportation 2030“

90 % transport and logistics companies* want to actively reduce the

k WESTFALIA intralog, one of the leading provid-ers of swap-body logistics, cele-brates its 30th an-niversary in 2013. KRONE is now once again con-

tributing to the continual expansion of the swap-body fleet of WESTFALIA intralog, which already numbers over 1,000 vehicles. In May 2013, 40 new type C782 Jumbo flatbed bodies were delivered. Norbert Seeger, founder and Managing Director of WEST-FALIA intralog: "The major part of our fleet has been supplied by KRONE. We value the product quality, particularly

with regard to the durability, as well as the bal-anced price-performance ratio. We have always known KRONE as a very flexible supplier and have together successfully put various special-produc-tion models onto the road. We have always been highly impressed with the willingness to meet in-dividual customer requirements and the innova-tion level of the products."WESTFALIA intralog, a company of the Herford SULO Group, and since 2007 also part of the stock-market listed French group Plastic Omni-um, offers its customers integrated logistics solu-tions in addition to classical transport logistics. At its main location in Herford and three other loca-tions in Germany, WESTFALIA intralog runs the fin-ished goods warehouses of customers and also takes care of the complete stock management.

NEw hEAD OF MARKETINgTobias Eichberg (44) has been appointed Head of the Marketing Department at Fahrzeugwerk Bernard KRONE GmbH, effective 1st April 2013. Eichberg, who holds a degree in agricul-tural engineering, has many years of extensive ex-perience in marketing "and as a highly experienced specialist with in-depth knowledge about trade fair matters, is an ideal enhancement to the KRONE Team," emphasised Gero Schulze Isfort, Managing Director for Sales and Marketing at KRONE. Eichberg suc-ceeds Dr. Frank Albers, who now fully concentrates on his function as National Sales Manager of Krone vehicles. Eichberg, an avid road cyclist born in Baden-Württem-berg, is married and has three children.

KRONE AccOLADE As KNIghT OF hONOuR"Knight of Honour 2013”: This title was bestowed upon Fahrzeugwerk KRONE for its outstanding commitment to improv-ing traffic accident prevention and road safety for children. Since mid-2012, 100 KRONE trailers have been on the road adorned with the logo and advertisement for the “Roter Ritter” (“Red Knight”) campaign, sponsored by Kinder-Unfallhilfe,

a non-profit association which promotes traffic safety and supports children who have been injured in traffic accidents. . With the special trailers, the compa-ny aims to make the public aware of this campaign, and exactly where it is most important: right on the road. The special title of “Knight of Hon-our” is conferred once a year along with the “Roter Ritter” prevention and awareness award.

IN BRIEF

Norbert Seeger (centre) of Westfalia greatly appreciated the gift on the occasion of the anniversary

6 trailerforum

TransporT logisTic

currenT and FuTure Trends

service and new vehicle concepts: in early June, Fahrzeugwerk Bernard KRone will once again present current innovations and offer its visitors an exciting look into the future of modern trailers at the transport logistic trade show in Munich.

A t this year’s Transport Logistic trade show, Fahrzeugwerk KRONE will once again be presenting innovative vehicle concepts and services from its show stand in Hall A6

(number 305/406). The KRONE team will be glad to answer any questions concerning the product range and associated servic-es. Visitors can also check out the “intelligent trailer”, which offers a fascinating look into the future of the transport sector.

The transparent-sided trailer, which is open to all visi-tors, showcases intelligent solutions for making transport more efficient in the long term. With its spectacular de-sign and look, the trailer displays a wealth of potential to enhance efficiency – ranging from the company’s own pro-prietary features up to solutions developed by KRONE’s nu-merous supplier partners.

At the Transport Logistic exhibition, KRONE will also show what is already possible today, by presenting innovative trailer concepts and load securing solutions. This includes the Profi Liner: a proven all-rounder in the KRONE product range, avail-able with different premium components and extensive extra

features such as KRONE Telematics or the theft protection sys-tem WABCO immobilizer. The Profi Liner will be on exhibit at the trade fair, along with a variety of load securing equipment.

wIDE VARIETy. A swap body trailer with the KRONE Show Box demonstrates the wide variety of KRONE options for the swap body sector, including a version with keyhole strips and folding shelf for parcel transportation. The Show Box also fea-tures the award-winning Multi Switch System designed for use in box bodies.

EVERyThINg FROM A sINgLE sOuRcE. Service is one of KRONE’s focal points of the trade show: The subject includes FairCare – the comprehensive full service package – as well as KRONE Mobility – the 24-hour roadside assistance service in cooperation with the German ADAC auto-mobile club. Moreover, the company maintains a Europe-wide service network that includes an emergency hotline and offers the online KRONE spare parts service. Ph

oto:

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NE

trailerforum 7

KRONE MOBILITyKRONE offers customised service: Here, trade fair visitors can learn about KRONE Telematics or the company’s spare parts service. KRONE Fair Care will also be presented: Depending on the contract duration, this comprehensive full service package for the new Profi Liner, Mega Liner, Cool Liner and Box Liner includes service and maintenance, technical inspections and 24-hour Europe-wide roadside assistance.

INTELLIgENT TRAILERA look into the future: The intelligent trailer showcases the technologies that will provide greater efficiency and sustainability and save both time and expense. Highlights include consistent use of state-of-the-art telematic systems, 2-way communication, modern air suspension, an innovative rear space monitoring system and effective anti-theft protection. Come discover today what will be moving the industry tomorrow. 04– 07 June 2013

munich exhibition centrehall a6, stand 305/406

KRONE shOw BOxA “sample case” that offers almost all of the options in the swap body sector: The Show Box features keyhole strips, lashing straps, wooden and felt wall cladding, and even the folding shelf option developed especially for parcel transportation, along with the award-winning Multi Switch System designed for use in box bodies.

KRONE pROFI LINERWith its versatile equipment, the KRONE Profi Liner is a genuine all-rounder: It will be on display at the exhibition with Gigant axles, the KRONE Telematics Dry, the WABCO Immobilizer anti-theft protection system and various load safety equipment.

TransporT logisTic

8 trailerforum

The logistics sector comes together at “transport logistic” in order to discover innovations, establish and maintain contacts and for further training. This year, the organisers once again expect a

significant increase in the number of visitors.

FairCare is the umbrella term for the complete service packages from KRONE, which are available in three dif-ferent variants. Customers are provided with everything they need from a single source: Depending on the duration of the contract, the service range includes ve-hicle maintenance, including free deliv-ery of parts, all legally required techni-cal inspections and 24-hour Europe-wide roadside assistance.

INDEpENDENT wEB pORTAL. With KRONE Telematics, users have conven-ient online access to the location, status, condition or temperature data of their transport load at any time and can also directly manage running processes. The associated, manufacturer-independent

Telematics web portal records, moni-tors and evaluates even the most diverse transport units in one system. In addi-tion, the data can also be forwarded to third-party systems.

REDucED IDLE TIME. The new KRONE Telematics Cool TR temperature re-corder – a certified sensor in the vehicle interior – eliminates the need for conven-tional temperature recorders at the front of the refrigerated box body. Integra-tion with the KRONE Telematics portal makes it possible to send all temperature records as PDF files directly by e-mail or fax – even before the cargo arrives at the customer’s premises. Idle and wait times at the target destination are thus signifi-cantly reduced.

cOMpREhENsIVE MONITORINg. All of the vehicles in the fleet can be equipped with the KRONE Telematics system, from curtain- sided trailers and refrigerated box bodies to swap trailers. The system is avail-able in COOL and DRY versions – thus enabling comprehensive monitoring of all vehicles. Among other things, the technology offers the option to monitor loading and unloading times, travel times and routes, doors and tanks as well as EBS data. Trailers can be allocated to a respective tractor and driver at any time. The temperature in the refrigerated box is continuously recorded, and in case of irregularities, fluctuations or unexpected events, an immediate alert is sent directly to the user’s PC via SMS, e-mail, or a pop-up window.

TransporT logisTic

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TransporT logisTic

Visitors who enter KRONE’s “intelligent trailer” at the trade fair will get a first-hand impression of the future. With its spectacular design and look, the vehicle displays a wealth of potential to enhance

efficiency – ranging from the company’s own proprietary features, to solutions developed by KRONE’s numerous supplier partners. Among other things, the KRONE Telematics Cool TR temperature recorder

will be on show in the trailer.

TRANspORT LOgIsTIc: FAcTs AND FIguREs

Every two years, the Messe München trade fair venue becomes the meeting point for the logistics world: The Transport Logistic trade show and exhibition opens its doors from the 4th to the 7th of June. The organisers expect this "International Exhibition for Logistics, Mobility, IT and Supply Chain Management" to grow significantly once again – including a larger exhibition space due to the addition of a complete exhibition hall.

Over 1,950 companies from more than 60 countries have registered as exhibitors – a marked increase compared to the 2011 Transport Logistic fair. Numerous international market leaders will be on-site to present their new products and services. An expected audience of more than 50,000 visitors can thus look forward to a comprehensive view of current logistics trends.

Knowledge in a nutshell: Lectures, presentations, events and specialised panel discussions complete the trade fair visit. The wide array of subjects ranges from safety and security to Europe-wide telematics solutions and the focal topic:

“Intelligent urbanisation” – logistics for the city of tomorrow. The country specials of the trade fair, which this year are dedicated to markets in Russia, China, the Baltic states and Spain, are another popular opportunity for establishing business contacts.

Personnel recruitment and ‘young professionals’ take centre stage on the “Future Friday” on 7 June. Students from the Fresenius University of Applied Science have an ambitious goal: At their matchmaking event, they aim to connect human resources managers with participating students and graduates. Moreover, there will be lectures, presentations and discussions on job opportunities in the logistics sector. Another new addition is the career market, which will provide extensive information on starting or changing a career, education and professional training, and study courses.

For more information, visit: www.transportlogistic.de

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I ntegrated solutions that incorporate various modes of transport along with contract logistics have long been commonplace in the automotive industry. From road to

rail, then back on the road, and then add sea freight, destined for the overseas export markets: Effective interface is essential to ensure efficiency along different transport routes.

One example is DB Schenker. With its worldwide network, the company is specialised in integrated logistics solutions for the automotive industry. According to the company’s own in-

formation, DB Schenker achieves sales of 1.7 billion euros an-nually – exclusively serving automanufacturers and their sup-pliers – making it one of the largest providers in this sector. .

Continuous optimisation is key to realising efficient, global supply chain solutions. This approach provided the impetus to embark on a remarkable project that brought an array of part-ners together – a logistics service provider, a trailer manufac-turer, a commercial vehicle producer and a pilot customer from the automotive industry. The task: to develop a chassis which

eFFiciency in every modeefficient production processes with just-in-time delivery, regular transport between suppliers, factories and locations throughout europe and the world: the automotive industry puts high demands on integrated logistics solutions. a newlowliner chassis from KRone, first presented at the transport logistic trade fair and exhibition in Munich, Germany, was precisely tailored to meet these requirements.

innovaTion

4m

3m

2m

1m

Total height: 4,000 mm

Interior height:2,980 mm

Coupling height: 830 mm

Volume: 100 m³

trailerforum 11

can be used on the road in compliance with legal regulations without needing a special permit, and its swap body is also suit-able for rail transport

skeleton containers at the starting point

The basis for all applications and designs was the skeleton containers that are common to the automotive industry and which differ from otherwise conventional dimensions. Due to the 2.98metre box height, the trailer had to comply with certain specifications regarding its body height.

Back in 2011, DB Schenker and KRONE were already in-volved in discussions that led to the development of the ini-tial prototype. Another participant in the project was Brüggen Oberflächen- und Systemlieferant GmbH, a KRONE compe-tence partner who manufactures the entire range of swap bodies for KRONE at its plant in Herzlake, located in the Emsland district in Lower Saxony, Germany.

In close cooperation, the swap body and trailer were developed to work together. The result is a swap body that is suitable for all standard railway cars as well as for special intermodal flatbed cars, and at the same time can also be used on the road in adherence with the German Road Traffic Licensing Regulations without any additional bureaucratic red tape and expense.

The Low Liner chassis features an extremely low undercarriage and is used with tractors with a 830 mm coupling height. The ve-hicle is therefore designed to transport tall swap bodies. With a total height of 3.2 metres of the swap body, the trailer provides the required interior height of 2.98 meters.

To meet these special requirements, the developers optimised the chassis in every technical detail. For example, the decision was made to use 215/75 R175 tyres and in consultation with MAN, the selection of the tractor was also tailored to the total package. A three-axle Low-Deck tractor was used in the pilot project.

The “integrated development” for integrated traffic has paid off: The experience and empirical data that were gathered from the first test vehicles put on the road during the pilot phase have al-ready convinced an international automobile manufacturer of the advantages of the new development. This smart solution is sure to attract great interest throughout the entire industry.

eFFiciency in every mode pREcIsION DOwN TO ThE LAsT DETAILEfficiency at the interface between rail and road: The new Low Liner chassis for the automobile logistics sector fits seamlessly into DB Schenker’s overall concept of an integrated automotive logistics system. The development project, which took several months, entailed precision work in the truest sense of the word, to enable quick interface between transport modes and thus offer automotive industry customers the exact flexibility they expect. Here are the key features and figures at a glance:

Complies with the German Road Traffic Licensing Regulations (StVZO), a special permit is not required.

Designed for use with tractors with a 830 mm coupling height

100 m3 loading volume with a 2.98-meter effective loading height

Swap body designed for standard railway cars and special intermodal flatbedcars in combined traffic

Maximum payload: 24.5 tonnes

DB Schenker is one of KRONE's development partners and is driving the new Low Liner

chassis in the pilot project.

The new Low Liner chassis has an extremely low undercarriage and can be used with tractors with a 830 mm

coupling height. It was specifically designed for the automotive industry, where integrated logistics solutions are in

great demand. The chassis was officially introduced at the Transport Logistic trade fair and exhibition.

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Focus on cusTomersservice representatives with enthusiasm and expertise, quick delivery of spare parts throughout europe, and roadside assistance around the clock: Fahrzeugwerk KRone is ongoing in developing full-service solutions to improve the mobility and efficiency of our customers.

T ransport companies have to meet an array of challenges and therefore have very high standards with regard to the quality, re-liability and customer care provided by a vehicle manufacturer

and its products and services. One of Fahrzeugwerk KRONE’s most im-portant corporate goals is to consistently and thoroughly focus on this customer sector and its requirements.

At KRONE, service is not just a buzzword or something routine that a company has to offer, instead, we view service with responsibility and

commitment. That is why all of our employees put customers and their needs to the forefront, with the aim of finding the very best solutions. And each and every day, they live up to their promise to offer excellent all-inclusive service. Making our customers the main focus of attention is a matter of course at KRONE and at the same time, we are continuously tracking changing requirements, so that we are able to respond to current developments and offer our customers what they really need.

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Focus on cusTomers

You can’t have first class service with-out a first class team: Our KRONE col-leagues, pictured here, ensure that our customers keep on the move. Particu-larly, the spare parts service team is strongly committed to making sure that KRONE can always keep its guarantee: When a customer orders a spare part, he will receive it within one to three days maximum – no matter where in Europe he and his trailer are located at the time.

sMOOTh AND EFFIcIENT hANDLINg. When it comes to matters directly related to the order, our colleagues are your great-est allies: This team smoothly and efficiently handles orders for KRONE spare parts. Each member is a specialist in this area and knows every detail of the product range. They are people who are passionate about their work and do all they can to guarantee our custom-ers’ ongoing mobility.

JusT IN TIME. Our parts depot staff are also experts at their job: When an order comes in, they make certain that each

spare part is properly selected, packed and shipped, so that the products reach the customer on schedule, safely, and “just in time”. Each and every day, our employees rise to the challenge of mak-ing optimal service a reality.

In addition, your contacts in KRONE’s service department are personally avail-able at any time to assist you with any matter concerning spare parts – a strong team that is totally dedicated to the suc-cess of its customers.

1. strong Teams to ensure your mobility

Together, we are strong: These individuals are responsible for making sure that our customers receive their ordered

parts as quickly and reliably as possible. Together, it an established, experienced team that is there for each other.

Spare parts and emergency

roadside assistance are urgent

matters: KRONE ensures the

mobility of its customers by

providing an extremely quick

and dependable service. And

all of the company's emplo-

yees are committed to this

guarantee.

Focus on cusTomers

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Ensuring uninterrupted, ongoing mo-bility is one of the greatest challenges in the logistics industry. Markus Jaspers, Manager of Spare Parts Service at KRO-NE in Werlte, Germany, explains:

“Our service does not end at the facto-ry gates.” Within Germany, most custom-ers receive their spare parts the next day after they place their order, and through-out the rest of Europe, the delivery takes three days at most – that is KRONE’s guarantee to its customers. “Our cus-tomers’ mobility is one of our absolute strengths,” Ralf Faust says with convic-tion. “They profit from the strength and

excellence of one of the leading manufac-turers in Europe.”

ExTENsIVE RANgE OF pRODucTs AND sERVIcEs. KRONE offers an extensive range of products and customised compo-nents. Moreover, the quickest possible, re-liable delivery of parts is guaranteed. The spare parts service staff can be reached any time via a 24-hour hotline: +49 (0)5951 209-302. The required parts can be ordered directly from the spare parts service team.

QuIcK, ONLINE ORDERINg. Our custom-ers can also order quickly and easily online:

After registering at www.KRONE-trailer.com, the customer is assigned a custom-er code number and personal password and can then select from the full range of KRONE spare parts. Component draw-ings carry the item number of each spare part, which is directly linked to the spare parts in the parts list. This ensures that the correct part is ordered. Just a click on the shopping cart opens the order win-dow, where the customer enters the chassis number and orders the spare part – which then leaves the warehouse in Werlte shortly thereafter and is on its way to the customer.

3. assistance during emergencies – direct, Quick and around the clock

Delivery within one to three

days max: KRONE guarantees

its customers fast delivery of

spare parts.

24-hOuR sERVIcE. If there is an unexpected problem with the trailer while on the road, the vehicle breaks down or a component stops working properly, the transport compa-ny needs quick help from reliable experts – direct, straight-forward and around the clock, no matter when or where. KRONE offers exactly this service, supporting its customers in several ways: KRONEMobility provides emergency assis-tance throughout Europe and with specialised partner re-pair shops, has established an extensive network of KRO-

NE service points in every European country to guarantee Europe-wide accessibility and availability. The commitment of KRONE service points make 24-hour service possible. During a breakdown or in an emergency situation, the transport company can call the central ser-vice number at any time to receive the necessary assistance. From here, the transporter is referred to the closest partner repair shop, who provides fast, direct help and quickly gets the trailer back on the road.

AboutMarkus Jaspers, Manager

of Spare Parts Service at

KRONE, has been with the

company in Werlte since

1998. Jaspers, a father of

two sons, is always on the

lookout for the right part in

his private life as well: In his

leisure time, he is restoring

an old 1963 Deutz tractor.

2. Quick spare parts delivery: guaranteed

MOBILITY24h

Focus on cusTomers

Load securing certification in compliance with DIN EN 12642: The certificate is mandatory for vehicles with reinforced bodies with a permissible maximum weight of 3,500 kilograms or more. The certificate must be renewed every year – a requirement that necessitates diligence and patience on the part of transport companies, because until now, they had to make an extra trip to an inspection location to have the certificate approved and renewed. It would have been much easier if the inspection could have been done at the workshop during a scheduled

repair or maintenance appointment. Now KRONE offers exactly such a service:

In partnership with the TÜV Nord technical in-spection group, KRONE has developed an online certification programme for repair shops. Repair shops can become certified by successfully par-ticipating in a training and qualification course and can then perform annual inspections of KRONE bodies on trailers with a load securing certificate. This allows customers to renew their load securing certificate at the same time main-tenance or repairs are being carried out - an approach that saves time and planning expens-es, since the trailer is not standing idle. As a result, safety is continuously guaranteed and the vehicle owner saves money.

TÜV Nord and KRONE have had a trusting and cooperative partnership for many years. The

online certification shows the technical inspection group and KRONE whether a repair shop can competently per-form the inspection.

“We therefore offer both our service partners and our customers a unique service,” emphasises Ralf Faust, Man-aging Director of Commercial & Technical Services at KRO-NE. The service also includes other elements: Additional-ly,KRONE advises shipping and transport companies on the topic of load securing, thereby working together to develop customised solutions which are precisely tailored to the customer.

Repair shops which are interested in obtaining the online certification can register for the programme on the KRONE website. After filling in a checklist, they are checked for suitability based on a clearly defined list of performance and service criteria. Finally, the certification consists of a written test comprising 25 to 30 multiple choice questions.

4. NO MORE ExTRA TRIps FOR INspEcTION

trailerforum 15

FAsT AND EAsy TO FIND. Through-out Europe, KRONE and its renowned partners are there for you: Service Locator gives you 24-hour direct In-ternet access to KRONE service points. Searching for excellent service is easy: Wherever your trailer may be, the online search function quickly finds expert assis-tance in the vicinity. Proven original spare parts are used at the service points. Service Locator can be found on the KRONE website at www.KRONE-trailer.com, under the “Service” menu item. In addition, it is also available as a free iPhone and iPad app (www.KRONE-trailer.com/apps). In user-friendly search form, you simply enter your city, country and if known, the postal code and name of the street where you are located. Then click on “Search” and a list of all service repair shops in the immediate vicinity pops up in a matter of seconds, including the distance, country and satellite maps, along with detailed information about each repair shop.

ON-sITE ROADsIDE AssIsTANcE. If your vehicle breaks down and you need roadside

assistance on site, a “Yellow Angel” mobile mechanic will come right to your trailer to help. Together with our premi-um partner ADAC (the German Automobile Club), KRONE offers 24-hour emergency roadside assistance. Just call the toll-free hotline number at 00800 - 225 55 76 63 and talk to the representative, who will dispatch help immediately. From here, easy access with direct and fast assistance is guaranteed anywhere in Europe. The ADAC Trailer Service emergency hotline will take your details and send the repair truck right to you. Moreover, there will be no additional charge for towing service or repairs performed on site.

hotline & InfoKRONE Euro Help 24 and

ADAC TruckService can be

reached 24 hours a day at

00800 - 225 55 76 63. Please

be ready to provide the ser-

vice representative who takes

your call with the following

information: license plate

number, registered trailer

owner, location of the trailer

and a description of any

problems or damage.

Repair shops that are eligible for the certification can take

the test online.

The certificate verifies that the participat-

ing repair shop is competent to perform

the inspection.

Grap

hic:

Sw

antj

e Ho

ffm

ann,

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16 trailerforum

new planT aT The BosporusFahrzeugwerk Krone celebrates the opening of its new state-of-the-art plant in tire, turkey, where 2,000 Mega liners and Profi liners are destined at the beginning to roll off the production line each year.

A true milestone for Fahrzeug-werk Bernard KRONE: On 20 March, representatives from

KRONE and Doğuş Otmotiv, the company’s Turkish partner, cut the blue ribbon to cel-ebrate the opening of the new trailer plant in the Turkish city of Tire, located around 90 miles southeast of the port of Izmir.

With the “Krone Doğuş Treyler” joint venture, the family-owned business from Werlte has now established its own pro-duction facility in the booming country of the Bosporus. Spanning about 187,000 square metres, the facility houses a trail-er plant with an electrophoretic, KTL coat-ing line. The annual production capac-ity for KRONE Group's most advanced plant, a 35 million euro investment, is initially set at 2,000 Mega Liners and

Profi Liners. They are primarily intended for the Turkish market, with the aim of achieving a solid 20 percent share. In the future, the plan is also to produce trail-ers for supplying the neighbouring coun-tries in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Turkic states and North Africa.

Turkey is not a member of the European Union, but has become an increasingly at-tractive business partner to Central Europe.

“The country has now evolved into one of the most important markets on the European continent”, says Ber-nard Krone, Managing Director of Krone Holding. The Turkish economy is booming, with an 8.2 percent increase

in the third quarter of 2012 and goods exports amounting to 134.6 billion US dollars in 2011, marking an 18.2 per cent growth over the previous year.

Eyüp Soner, Chief Operations Of-ficer of Turkish logistics company Ekol, estimates a current market volume of approximately 45 billion US dollars for the logistics sector. Forecasts for 2023 – ten years from now – predict an in-crease of up to 150 billion US dollars. In Soner’s opinion, Turkey is “on the way to becoming the global procurement and logistics centre” over the next ten years. But he also sees challenges in the future: Customs procedures and lead times need to improve, as does the infrastructure. To avoid bureaucratic hurdles, a new logistics law is already currently in the works.

FactsAt the site in Tire, Turkey,

trailers are completely

manufactured by Krone

Doğuş, except for add-on

parts. With the vehicle type

“Plateau”, the plant also pro-

duces an open flatbed trailer

with side panels, no curtains

or roof, which is primarily

used for transporting con-

struction materials. Krone

holds a 51 per cent share in

the joint venture with Doğuş

otomotiv. The Turkey-based

automotive dealer has around

18,000 employees.

ideal partners

Turkey

trailerforum 17

O n the occasion of the official opening of the new plant in Tire, the first customer picks up his new Mega Liner Piggyback from the plant: In front of the guests attending the ceremony, Turkey-based logistics service pro-

vider Ekol accepted 30 trailers as part of a large order comprising 70 vehicles. Each trailer is equipped with the KRONE Telematics Dry system. During the opening ceremony, Bernard Krone, Riza Akgün, Dan Schnick and Gero Schulze Isfort thanked Ekol for their excellent cooperation.

TRANspORT By RAIL AND sEA. “This year alone, we have accepted around 500 trailers from Krone. To us, the Krone brand stands for reliability and high quality we can rely on at any time,” explains Tayfun Öktem, CEO of Ekol Logis-tics. “Since we mainly operate in intermodal traffic, we decided to purchase 70 additional Mega Liner Piggyback trailers from KRONE. These vehicles are optimally tailored for efficient transport by rail and sea.” For example, since October 2012, Ekol has been working together with the Cargoline gener-

al cargo cooperative for transport to Turkey. Starting out from the German city of Worms, the goods are transported by rail to Trieste in Italy and then shipped by ferry to Turkey. Another advantage of the new KRONE plant loca-tion near Izmir: The port is suited for roll-on/roll-off transport and handling.

INTEgRATED sERVIcEs. Ekol Logistics is one of the pioneering providers of integrated logistics services in both Turkey and Europe. In addition to trans-port, the company also handles foreign trade activities as well as inventory and supply chain management tasks for its customers.

IDEAL FOR INTERMODAL TRAFFIc

On the occasion of the opening ceremony, Tayfun Öktem (CEO of Ekol) and Eyüp Soner (Chief Operations

Officer of Ekol) (3rd and 4th from the right) are presented with a key as a token of their first 30 Mega

Liner Piggyback trailers.

Turkey

ekol and KRone seal their successful cooperation.

The new plant in Tire was planned five years ago, but the start-up was post-poned due to the global economic cri-sis. September 2012 saw the production of the first trailer and now, production has officially been launched. 10,000 units can be manufactured in a two-shift oper-ation, although the location also offers enough space for a second production line which would double production ca-pacity. Since February 2013, the plant has also been certified under the ISO 9001 quality management standard.

No trailers from Turkey will be export-ed to Germany. Even considering the lower labour costs of the Bosporus region, the approximate 3,000-kilometre distance to Germany is much too far and transportation would thus be too expen-sive. In contrast, taking the trailers to North Africa will be considerably cheaper in the future. Previously, trailers produced in Germany had to be exported to those countries, and that process will now be much simpler from the Tire site.

From left to right: Acan Aclar (Chairman of the Executive Board of Doğuş Otomotiv), Bernard Krone (CEO Fahrzeugwerk Bernard KrOnE), Hüseyin Ergi (District Administrator of the Tire region), Hans Dan Schnick (Managing Director of KrOnE sales company KTI) and riza Akgün (Managing Director of Krone Doğuş Treyler A.Ş.) at the opening ceremony.

Phot

os:

KRON

E, A

rjan

Velth

oven

/ T

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18 trailerforum

A n outstanding winner, numerous personal bests, genuine young talent, informative discussions

and a successful runners’ party – the great industry run organised in April by “Fahrzeugwerk KRONE” in its home town together with the logistics peri-odical “trans aktuell” was a resounding success. Anyone who had anything to do

professionally with transport, logistics, commercial vehicles or associated ser-vices was allowed to take part in the run, where they were able to show that they could also be quick on their feet.

Around 150 participants started the run. Three different routes were availa-ble: In addition to the main run over the distance of 10 km there was also a 5-kilo-

meter, while the logistics specialists of tomorrow were able to demonstrate their paces on the shorter children’s run: The families of the participants were also welcome at the event.

The charming nature of the Emsland captivated all the guests: Before the princely backdrop of the Baroque Clem-enswerth Castle with its splendid gar-

Representatives from transport and logistics ran over five or ten kilometres through the beautiful countryside of the emsland. spedition ansorge provided the best team of runners.

The best runners receive a cup

to take home with them. All the

other participants however had

great fun on the run.

a Quick Jog againsT a princely Backdrop

Phot

os:

Thom

as K

üppe

rs,

ETM

trailerforum 19

FiTness

dens, the “official” route lead over for-est and meadow paths. Dr. Frank Albers, National Sales Manager, had selected the route personally and measured it profes-sionally in advance by mountain bike and on foot. For the sporting visitors from all over Germany he chose a route that was impressive both for its landscape and its ar-chitecture: the runners enjoyed views of av-enues, streams and the expansive Castle complex. The sport-ing effort and the perspiration were worth it for this ex-perience alone.

But of course it was also about the hard facts revealed by the stopwatches: Klaus Hanekamp from Werlte came first in the category “Men’s 10 km (under 45 years old)” with an out-standing time of 38.51 minutes, arriving at the finishing line with an impressive lead of nearly four minutes over Thomas Rolfes (Brüggen) in 2nd place. 3rd place went to To-bias Hindelang (Spedition Ansorge). In the age class over 45 years old, Christian Win-kler (Spedition Ansorge) won over Jörg Eck-ardt and Werner Behnen (both Krone). In the 5-km run, Bruno Kemptner (Transco Süd GmbH) finished in 1st place in front of Heinrich Freese and Berthold Menke (both KRONE). All the athletes were enthusiasti-

cally welcomed at the finishing line by the spectators.

Two places amongst the Top 3 also secured the Ansorge Sports Team overall victory in the team score with the runners Tobias Hindelang, Christian Winkler and Musa Ates. 2nd team place went to PEMA , the runners being Paul-Jürgen Müller, Dirk Zabel and Torsten Henning.

The Brüggen team of Thomas Rolfes, Stefan Eve-slage and Sascha Kwiecinski took 3rd place.

After the sport-ing section and

presentation to the winners, the partici-pants continued the eventful day, that evening in the KRONE TrailerForum. When so many industry representatives meet in one place the subject of business is bound to come up: KRONE hosted a top-level panel discussion which went into the subjects of sustainabili-ty, efficiency, the lack of qualified per-sonnel and vehicle concepts. Accompa-nied by music and good food, the colleagues talked shop and chatted well into the evening in a relaxed atmos-phere. Sport, nature, knowledge and re-laxation, all were pleased to enjoy such a successful day.

trailerforum 19

The youngest participants start off the "Bambinilauf" kids race.Winner of the team event – the Ansorge Sports Team.

The team from Transco Süd provided the winner of the 5 km run in the person of Bruno

Kemptner (extreme left).

Axel Heik, Managing Director of the Hamburg-

based Heik transport company, and Norbert Brink,

Regional Sales Manager at KRONE, run side by side.

Eventemployees of companies

can appear jointly at the

running event “trans aktuell

läuft”, which is organised

regularly by the specialist

periodical. Individual runners

can also take part. The fourth

holding of the event with

Krone as the host was again a

great success.

sport during the day, discussions in the evening

»i really like ThaT dynamic«

Holland is an important export market for KRone. therefore, KRone trailer BV commenced operations as an independent subsidiary on 1st october 2012. the aim of this move was to expand KRone's market position in the netherlands, where the transport sector is still continuing to grow.

A ndré Menzing (48), Managing Director of holland-based KRONE Trailer BV, talks about his am-

bitious sales targets, lean company structures and what he especially likes about his employer.

trailerforum: What are KRONE’s goals in the Netherlands?

André Menzing: We are very ambitious and want to sell about 2,000 units in the Netherlands in 2013 – which corre-sponds to a growth of 25% as compared to the previous year.

How do you plan to make that happen?

One of the main pillars of this sales strat-egy is KRONE Trailer BV, our subsidiary that was established on 01 October 2012 in the town of Bunnik, near Utrecht. By opening this independent company in a cen-tral location, we are now much closer to the Dutch market than we were before.

What is different than before?

KRONE has already been active in the Netherlands for many years, of course. Pre-viously, our sales consultants had a con-tract with the headquarters in Germany. Now we have our own structure, and one that is very effective and strong – we make many of the decisions locally, which means we are even faster and much more flexible. Our customers appreciate that.

But a structure like that also has to be managed…

The head office in Werlte, Germany, is in charge of the entire administration. In the Netherlands, our four employees can thus fully concentrate on our customers

and on sales. As I see it, those are the op-timum prerequisites for success – in ad-dition to the excellent products we offer.

You joined KRONE in June, 2012. Were you new to the trailer business?

I have been involved in the trailer in-dustry for 25 years. During that time, I held various positions at GE TIP rental and leasing. I started there as a techni-cian in 1986 – a new graduate fresh out of technical college. Back then, I got my first experience in the office and the re-pair shop. By 1990, I was already head of the Amsterdam branch. After a few more steps up the career ladder, I became the Managing Director for the Benelux re-gion in 2003.

What aspects of working with KRONE particularly appeal to you?

At KRONE, I feel a strong sense of inter-nal family cohesion. An extremely posi-tive work morale thrives here in this envi-ronment. Everyone at KRONE is highly motivated and gives their all. I really like that dynamic.

20 trailerforum

ExpORT DEsTINATION: NEThERLANDs

Germany has long been the Netherland’s largest trading partner by far. At more than 150 billion euros, the trading volume is one of the biggest international trade relationships in the world. In contrast to other sectors, the transport industry in Holland is still on a continued upswing.

For example, revenues in the Dutch traffic and transport sector grew over three percent in the third quarter of 2012 as compared to the previous year, and this positive trend has been ongoing in the Netherlands for about the last three years.

neTherlands

Phot

o: K

RONE

OptiFlowTM SideWings are part of the Intelligent Trailer Program and represent a unique aerodynamic solution that reduces fuel consumption by up to 1.5l / 100km for long-haul operations.

SideWings are available as Fuel-Saver Kit on Krone trailers. Please contact your Krone sales representative for further information or visit:

www.intelligenttrailer.com

INTELLIGENT TRAILER PROGRAMIt’s what’s inside that counts

Discover how the Intelligent Trailer Program can help you to decrease the operational cost of your Krone trailers, while increasing effi ciency and safety.

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F rancisco Rodriguez Ruiz had never seen anything like it before: Rec-tangular boxes, about seven metres

long on four hinged landing legs – the seasoned trucker from Spain had not en-countered a swap body up to now. That’s no surprise, since these systems are vir-tually unknown in his home country in Southern Europe. Smooth and precise manoeuvring and pick up of the boxes was thus the most important goal of the training he took part in this past year

which was intended to prepare him for the German job market.

From Bavaria to the North Sea, every trucker should be able to handle swap systems, as they have long been a familiar sight at platforms and ramps throughout Germany. Developed in 1971 with the major involvement of German logistics provider DACHSER, the solution proves its advantages, particularly in the area of general cargo handling. The boxes ena-ble fast goods handling without the need

for additional technical aids or tools – a truck with a suitable platform or trailer is all it takes.

a european inventionAnother benefit of swap systems:

Their dimensions are designed to match those of euro pallets (see info box). That’s because in contrast to ISO containers, swap bodies are a European invention.

swap Bodies For The logisTics FuTure

swap-Trailers

swap bodies offer significant advantages, and not only when it comes to general cargo handling. in line with this issue’s focus topic, trailerforum explains the technical background, introduces selected users, and interviews one of the prominent engineers and producers about further development potentials.

22 trailerforum

swap body dimensions were not standardised until two decades after they had been invented. in accordance with the regulations on the external dimensions of vehicles in road transport, the european Committee for standardisation (Cen) agreed on the following dimensions in 1992: the outside width is 2.55 metres, the inside width 2.48 metres, which makes the system especially suitable for transporting euro pallets. Very commonly used swap bodies are 7.15, 7.45 or 7.82 metres long and carry 17, 18 or 19 pallets.

there are two types of swap body : curtain boxes and steel boxes. the latter are more robust and can be stacked up to three units high, which is particularly advantageous for transportation

on inland waterway vessels. in contrast, the non-stackable curtain boxes are primarily suited for intermodal transport by rail and road.

since swap bodies, in contrast to iso containers, are a european development, their dimensions are aligned to those of euro pallets. nevertheless, swap bodies are mainly used in Germany, with 15,000 to 20,000 units sold annually in that country. Closed boxes account for 85 percent, with swap flatbeds making up the remaining 15 percent. in general, every newly sold swap body has a service life of up to ten years – or a few years more, depending on service, maintenance, utilisation and handling.

swAp BODIEs: MARKET AND TEchNOLOgy

All-rounder on four legs:

swap bodies are standardised for the

transport of euro-pallets.

swap-Trailers

However, the concept has not yet caught on in all European countries and there are still “gaps” such as Spain.

Jens Ficker, Managing Director of BRÜGGEN Oberflächen- und Systemliefe-rant GmbH based in Herzlake, Germany, offers an explanation for this phenomenon.

“In Germany, logistics solutions have been aligned to this system. All loading facilities, such as ramps and platforms, have been converted and designed to suit the respective dimensions and heights,” Ficker explains. In addition, intermodal traffic has long played an important role in Germany. “Here, the entire infrastruc-ture is tailored to the requirements of in-termodal traffic,” adds the expert.

Reason enough for BRÜGGEN to con-tinuously advance the swap systems. But how can the four-legged boxes even be improved, anyway? According to BRÜG-GEN, the potential for development

mainly lies in the areas of aerodynamics, handling and weight. Another im-portant factor is load securing: “In a sur-vey, our customers identified these as the key aspects,” affirms Bernd Brüggen, CEO of the company.

ready for the FutureToday, BRÜGGEN is already mee-

ting the demand for many variants in a wide range of applications . Develop-ment activities focus on user friend-liness. “When designing the units, we strive to make them easy and conveni-ent to use in day to day business,” says Brüggen. For example, drivers can now lock and retract the landing legs in just a few minutes. In Brüggen’s opinion, in-vestments in further development will

pay off. After all, the market has adap-ted to the system and logistics centres depend on fast loading and unloading operations. Internet business and the as-sociated growing demand for parcel ser-vices provide additional impetus to de-velop and use swap body systems. “The future of logistics lies in the quick and cost-efficient distribution of products, and swap body systems play a key role in this respect,” Brüggen emphasises.

By now, Spanish professional tru-cker Francisco Rodriguez Ruiz is also well equipped to meet these future challenges. Today, he’s driving for a Swabia-based shipping company. And so there is a chance that swap bodies will one day become a familiar sight in Sou-thern European countries as well.

trailerforum 23

Phot

os:

KRON

E

wuerFel relies on JumBo swap Bodies

J umbo swap bodies and the Wuerfel logistics company: an inseparable pair. Since the 1970s, the logistics

provider, based in Bremerhaven, Ger-many, has been pioneering and driv-ing forward development in this sec-tor. Right from the start, Wuerfel was convinced of the advantages of the sys-tem and has been using it for many of its customers in the chemical, automo-

tive, construction material and packag-ing industries.

The focus had always been on box bodies with an inside height of three metres and the respective chassis. Now, Wuerfel has impressively underscored its commitment to swap bodies by purchas-ing 200 new jumbo box bodies. In 2012, KRONE delivered around a quarter of the order. The remaining 150 units are geared

for production and handover during the course of the year.

At Wuerfel, the new purchases are part of an ambitious and extensive fleet modernisation which, in addition to the superstructures, also entails replace-ment of the majority of the truck units. Wuerfel Holding operates around 400 trucks, most of which are owned by the company itself.

ADDITIONAL wAREhOusINg spAcE. With approximately 1,000 units, swap bodies account for a significantly larg-er share of Wuerfel’s vehicle fleet than trucks. No surprise, since customers like to use the flexible containers as addition-al warehousing space.

“Customers from all of our sectors re-quest swap bodies, and demand is still growing in some areas,” explains Karim Gebara, Managing Director of Wuerfel Holding GmbH. For example, one ma-jor customer from the chemical industry alone continuously uses 100 swap bodies. “That is equivalent to the cargo space ca-pacity of around 50 to 60 trailers, and you need to consider that one trailer is more expensive than two swap bodies,” Gebara emphasises.

hIgh QuALITy, FAIR pRIcE. Choosing KRONE as the supplier of the new swap bodies was a very easy decision for Gebara. “KRONE provides us with mega swap bod-ies precisely tailored to our requirements,” he continues. “Moreover, the superior pro-duction, product and service quality as well as competitive pricing were also decisive

swap-Trailers

in 2012, German logistics provider Wuerfel, a specialist in jumbo swap body transport, received 50 new swap bodies from KRone as part of a larger order.

24 trailerforum

factors.” As an example, he mentions the combined electrophoretic (KTL) and pow-der coating process that is standard proce-dure at KRONE.According to Gebara, “Swap bodies have to be substantially more durable than trucks and thus need to be well protect-ed against corrosion and mechanical wear and tear.” The striking logo of the family-owned business can be seen on all swap bodies, making them one of the most important “business cards” of the logistics provider. “In the future as well, swap bodies will continue to be one of Wuerfel’s trademarks. All the more im-portant to us is the long service life and robustness that KRONE delivers.”With respect to the shortage of profes-sional drivers , there is another benefit in

using swap bodies from KRONE. This lies in the numerous equipment solutions of the Werlte product and make it one of the most user-friendly box bodies in the sector. Take the hydraulic elevating roof, for example, which can be easily raised for convenient loading, or the versatile options for quickly and effi-ciently securing the cargo. Gebara sums it up succinctly: “All in all, KRONE offers us a thoroughly well-designed and cus-tomised package.”

Large order for 350 jumbo swap bodies:

Logistics provider Wuerfel expanded its fleet with

an impressive number of units.

wuERFEL hOLDINg

Wuerfel Holding is a full service provider with a history dating back to 1946. The medium-sized company specialises in jumbo swap body and refrigerated transport, among other services. In addition, Wuerfel offers customised logistics systems ranging from basic dispatch and shipment handling up to complex auto-mated logistics solutions. With its Wuerfel Air & Sea GmbH company, Wuerfel has also been active in the air and sea freight sector since 2010.

Based in Bremerhaven, Germany, Wuerfel has over 1,000 employees, operates more than 13 branches throughout Germany and manages and sched-ules about 400 vehicles daily. In addition, the company has more than 1,000 swap bodies and offers state-of-the-art warehousing facilities span-ning a total space of approximately 150,000 square metres. For more information, visit www.wuerfel.com.

trailerforum 25

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os:

Wue

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26 trailerforum

dachser & kolB: swap Bodies For TransporT, relocaTion and removalsRelocation, removal and furniture logistics specialist Dachser & Kolb is gradually switching its conventional rigids and trailers to swap box bodies from KRone.

swap-Trailers

I f it’s standard solutions you want, you’ll be looking in vain here: Dachser & Kolb, a transport company special-

ising in relocation, removal and furniture logistics, uses special KRONE swap box bodies that are designed for transporting sensitive goods and can also be used in in-termodal traffic. The number of swap sys-tems grows every year at Dachser & Kolb. In 2009, the company, a subsidiary of the DACHSER Group, decided to switch its own fleet exclusively to flexible swap box bodies supplied by KRONE.

Cost-savIng. After all, the distinctive advantages of swap bodies not only make an impressive mark in the general cargo sector, but also in the relocation, remov-al and furniture logistics sector as well: better utilisation of on-duty driver’s peri-ods and idle times, tailored and cost-ef-ficient cargo holds, and minimised truck idling times. As compared to a trailer or semi-trailer, it is considerably less expen-sive to use a swap body. And that is all the more true if it takes several days to load or unload the cargo bay – not an uncom-mon event, particularly when it comes

to relocation and removal jobs. Reason enough to actively drive forward the con-version of the company’s fleet.

In 2012, Dachser & Kolb accepted the first new swap bodies at KRONE’s pro-duction site in Werlte, in the Emsland district of Germany. The swap bodies were optimised for furniture transport by the addition of integrated load restraint bars in the side walls.

“Quality and professionalism are core components of our corporate philos-ophy. Our transport solutions have to meet high standards. That is why we have been relying on KRONE swap box bod-ies in the furniture logistics sector since 2009,” says Johannes Neumann, Manag-ing Director of Dachser & Kolb.

FlexIble and versatIle. If needed, the swap box bodies can also be utilised for other purposes of the DACHSER Group: “In keeping with DACHSER philosophy, the swap box bodies can be used flexibly, both in the furniture logistics sector and in the standardised Dachser transport system,” explains Cornelia Blenk, staff member in the Technology / Technical

Procurement department at DACHSER. Elmar Fünfer, Specialist Manager Tech-nology / Technical Procurement at Dachser, goes on to explain: “This high degree of flexibility together with the high quality of KRONE swap box bodies is extremely important to us. Moreover, we also use codified swap box bodies from KRONE for railway transportation in intermodal applications, thereby real-ising further advantages in terms of cost-efficiency.” The steel box bodies are certified in accordance with EN 283/284, and in addition, all steel parts are finished with KTL plus powder – an electropho-retic coating for long term protection. “Furniture is sensitive cargo and requires careful handling. That applies to private, domestic relocations as well as to trans-porting new furniture from the manufac-turer to the dealer,” says Ingo Geerdes, KRONE Sales Manager in Key Account Management. The customer must be as-sured that the furniture is in the best hands during transport. “We are therefore very pleased that such a renowned company like Dachser & Kolb uses KRONE solu-tions,” Geerdes adds.

daChser & Kolb

"A good choice": Dachser & Kolb has been a reliable partner for furniture, relocation and removal logistics for more than 50 years. The DACHSER Group subsidiary, headquartered in Kempten, in the Allgäu region in Germany, has another seven German branches, and more locations are programmed to open in 2013.

Dachser & Kolb offers a smooth and efficient service within Germany as well as beyond international and intercontinental borders. The foundation of Dachser & Kolb’s business is built on cus-tomised services for any living, relocation or removal situation. The company even provides a virtually stress-free relocation and moving process: Simply give them the key and move into your completely fur-nished new residence. And the company takes over the rest, including assembling the furniture, fitting and filling the counters and shelves, and even assembling and installing the kitchen fixtures.

Dachser & Kolb also offers relocation services for corporate cus-tomers as well, whether for staff relocation, office moves within the company premises, or relocation of entire production and ad

ministrative facilities to another location or to a different country.

Services also include special transport, for example of complete IT systems, safes and vaults. Furthermore, Dachser & Kolb provides sufficient space for storing office furniture or files.

Dachser & Kolb is just the right partner when it comes to the transport and temporary storage of furniture as well. That goes for the transport of new furniture to furniture stores, including returns management, as well as the delivery and assembly of fur-niture at the customer’s premises. Every delivery is handled by a two-man team on each truck, in order to safely and securely meet all of the customer’s requirements.

Dachser & Kolb is a subsidiary of DACHSER GmbH & Co. KG (www.dachser.com). In 2011, the international logistics service provider achieved a total turnover of 4.3 billion euros. 21,000 employees moved 49.3 million shipments at 315 locations throughout the world, with a total weight of 37.1 million tonnes.

Swap-trailerS

Celebrating the official handover to Dachser

& Kolb: The transport company uses swap box

bodies for transporting furniture and for reloca-

tion and removals.

trailerforum 27

Phot

os:

Dach

ser

& K

olb

Trade

h as the trailer served out its use-ful life, and is the fleet now to be updated with the latest KRO-

NE technology? Through KRONE secon-do and KRONE scanBalt, buyers can now trade in their old trailers in part-ex-change for a new one. This has many ad-vantages: you have a reliable and trusted partner who pays fair prices even in eco-nomically difficult times. KRONE secon-do Managing Director Bernd schröer and Ole Randum Nielsen, Managing Director

at KRONE scanBalt, explain how trad-ing in used vehicles works.

trailerforum: Mr. Schröer, what hap-pens if I want to trade in my old trailers in part-exchange?

Bernd Schröer: For small numbers, the procedure is quite simple: you fill out a val-uation form with all the relevant data, and send it to us with a few photos. We com-plete the form with a fair and competitive

market price, and our Sales Department is then ready to supply the new order. For larger numbers we look at the condition of the trailers themselves. We are also happy to carry out the formalities such as de-reg-istration at the customer’s request. The of-ficial and professional receipt check is then carried out by an external workshop. If necessary, the vehicles are washed and mi-nor damage repaired. The vehicles are then advertised in the popular periodicals and on our own website.

28 trailerforum

change your Trailer now

trailerforum 29

And if I want to buy a used trailer?

Schröer: Our complete range can be viewed on our website www.secondo.org, where a potential customer can make their preliminary choice. As a rule, the customer then usually comes to Wer-lte in order to inspect the vehicle him-self and discuss the details with us here on the spot. If a customer asks about the warranty, I always say that it is guaran-teed by the good name of KRONE. As a manufacturer we do not try to avoid re-sponsibility.

Why should someone buy a used vehicle from you?

Schröer: We are a fair, reliable and pro-fessional partner, who will still be here in the market in the future. We always have a wide range of different trailers in stock. And for German customers in par-ticular we can offer favourable financing through KRONE Finance.

Where are the sales markets?

Schröer: Our main market with at least 50% is Germany, although some of these are dealerships. A further very large sales territory is Eastern and South-eastern Europe in general, although primarily Russia. With KRONE ScanBalt in Den-mark, we have for two years had a sister company which also deals in used trail-ers. Since KRONE ScanBalt has a wider base, for example with its own depots in Russia, this naturally offers us new structures and sales opportunities. We cooperate closely with each other and exchange not only experiences, but also trailers.

Mr. Nielsen, what is the situation in Den-mark, where do the trailers accepted by KRONE ScanBalt go?

Ole Randum Nielsen: Our sales go mainly eastwards: Around 80% of the trailers we buy go to Russia. In Russia it is cheaper to import a used trailer from the tax point of view. And the repair costs are significantly lower than in western Europe, so it makes the best deal for Eastern Europeans to buy a used trailer.

How is the testing and inspection of the trailers handled??

Nielsen: They are either assessed by the customer on site, or in the case of larger fleets valued directly without inspection, provided that one knows the trailers . Buy-back guarantees are also used, which gen-erally extend for three to five years.

And what can you say about the prices?

Nielsen: The best prices are achieved if the trailer comes from a large, well-known manufacturer such as KRONE. Quality also pays for itself when the time comes to resell the trailer. Vehicles from less well-known manufacturers bring a significantly lower price. In addition to the make, it is of course also the condition of the trailer which counts: It is helpful if the trailer is as well-maintained and well-equipped as possible, for example with ax-les from well-known manufacturers.

Mr. Schröer, do you take any type of vehi-cle in part-payment?

About Bernd schröer (61) has worked for KRONE for

almost 45 years. After training

as an industrial buyer with the

company, he was initially in

“green” sales, before switching

to commercial vehicles in

1974. He was then responsible

in internal sales for articulated

trailers and swap-bodies. In

the year, he was appointed as

the Managing Director of the

KRONE sister-company Sec-

ondo, which was established

in 2000.

Ole Randum Nielsen (45) has been in the industry

since 1988, and joined KRONE

ScanBalt 12 years ago. Prior to

that, he worked for many years

for Danway: The company

sells used trailers and trucks

worldwide. A Danish citizen,

his favourite hobby is bicycle

racing.

»we are a fair, reliable and profes-sional partner, who will still be here in

the market in the future.«

Bernd schröer

TradeGr

afic

: KR

ONE,

Pho

tos:

KRO

NE

30 trailerforum

»The best prices are achieved if the trail-

er comes from a large, well-known manufactur-

er such as krone. Quality also pays for it-

self when the time comes to resell the trailer.«

ole Randum nielsen

Schröer: Subject to certain restrictions yes, at least vehicle types which are also in the KRONE range. We have nothing against other makes, because every one helps to put a new KRONE trailer on the road. It is of course easiest to resell our own trailer.

But always one for one: New for old?

Schröer: As a rule yes. We see ourselves as sales supporters and aim to create

sales opportunities through trade-ins for new trailers. If it makes sense economi-cally, we also buy in trailers.

What advantages do you offer the seller? Schröer: For the seller, we are a relia-ble partner who is always on the move. He doesn’t have to bother about the mar-keting himself, and even in economically difficult times, we take his used trailer in part-exchange on fair, appropriate terms. Nor does he have to wait for his money, since the value of the old trailer can, if re-quired, be immediately offset against the cost of the new one.

How old in general are the trailers that are traded in with KRONE Secondo?

Schröer: The fleet trailers of rental com-panies are usually four to six years old. Our range also includes one- to two-year old trailers, primarily for German end-customers, and also 10- to 12-year old

trailers for the Near East market. For the Russian market and for some CIS coun-tries, there is a maximum age restriction of seven years, because older vehicles are subject to very high charges.

You said that you prepare the trailers for resale. Do I as the buyer get completely refurbished vehicles?

Schröer: Of course, it that’s what the customer wants and pays for. For re-placement or add-on parts such as tyres, brake linings or curtains, we can take ad-vantage of the purchasing power of KRONE. A new major inspection accept-ance is usual for German customers. Otherwise initially, we only carry out the essential work as standard, so that we can later comply with the individual wishes of the potential customer. Many customers, especially from abroad, want to buy the vehicles in the most basic con-dition possible – here it is only the price which decides.

Order Hotline: +49 5951-209 302


OR IG INAL

SP A R E PARTS

Equipment securelystowed with KRONE

©w

ww

.foto

lia.d

e

OrderNOW!

PALLET BOX PK 3000

for 24 Euro palletsDimensions: 2640 x 450 x 2455 mmArt.-No. 515046639


997,00 €

960,00 €

PALLET BOX PK 3000



1377,00 €

1129,00 €

LOADING BOX CASE FOR PK 3000

Construction height 350 mmArt.-No. 550016957


335,00 €

335,00 €

LOADING BOX EK 1000

Dimensions: 1080 x 450 x 965 mmArt.-No. 515049938

500,00 €

Everything securely stowed using cases and boxes from KRONE.

All prices are exclusive of VAT. Standard colour of all lacquered cases: RAL 9016 pure white. Prices + shipping and packaging costs according to size, and handling. Accepted terms of payment: payment in advance, direct debit minus 3% discount or payment terms previously agreed.

Krone_England_Trailerforum_240x270_2_05-13_SpareParts.indd 1 16.05.2013 08:58:05

The KRONE sister company

ScanBalt supports in addition

to its headquarters in

Danish Padborg agencies

in the Baltic States and

Kaliningrad.

Trade

Phot

os:

KRON

E Sc

anBa

lt

Order Hotline: +49 5951-209 302


OR IG INAL

SP A R E PARTS

Equipment securelystowed with KRONE

©w

ww

.foto

lia.d

e

OrderNOW!

PALLET BOX PK 3000



997,00 €

960,00 €

PALLET BOX PK 3000



1377,00 €

1129,00 €

LOADING BOX CASE FOR PK 3000



335,00 €

335,00 €

LOADING BOX EK 1000

Dimensions: 1080 x 450 x 965 mmArt.-No. 515049938

500,00 €

Everything securely stowed using cases and boxes from KRONE.

All prices are exclusive of VAT. Standard colour of all lacquered cases: RAL 9016 pure white. Prices + shipping and packaging costs according to size, and handling. Accepted terms of payment: payment in advance, direct debit minus 3% discount or payment terms previously agreed.

Krone_England_Trailerforum_240x270_2_05-13_SpareParts.indd 1 16.05.2013 08:58:05

T he Polish transport industry plays a key role in this east-ern mid-European EU country - as in every other coun-try. And within this economically important sector, the

transport companies have a dominant position: the total cargo that is transported by road, rail and air generates about 10% of the annual gross domestic product (GDP). The sector employs more than 100,000 people, making it the fourth-largest employer in Poland after the retail trade and the banking and insurance sec-tors. And that in a country whose market of nearly 38 million con-sumers is amongst the largest in the EU. In addition, Poland was the only country within the community which has weathered the global financial crisis without going into recession.

Within this key industry, commercial transport plays the main role. Road transport companies carry more than 80% of the annual amount of goods transported, leaving only around 10% for the railways. Other means of transport have little im-portance so far. The numerous regional airports handle small amounts of cargo, and the Polish Baltic seaports are not nearly as modernized so that they can compete with the internation-al cargo ports in Western Europe. In addition, the rivers are in general not straightened out, so that inland waterway trans-port is hardly relevant - except for a few stretches on the Oder along the German border.

One small exception is combined transport, which is devel-oping more and more, even though its share of the total mar-

ket is still low. As the official railway authority UTK reports, its volume increased in 2012 as compared to the previous year by 36.4%t to 8.1 million tonnes. It has in the past enjoyed two-fig-ure growth, although without threatening the dominance of conventional road transport. Because customers can assign loads more flexibly and rely on a variety of other facilities, the large number of players in the market leads to strong compe-tition, which works to the customers’ benefit. Ultimately, the providers must comply exactly with customer needs, otherwise they will disappear from the market.

The private road transport companies do not need to both-er about these problems and can therefore manage their busi-nesses more successfully.

“We are a flagship of the whole economy”, emphasises Jan Buczek, Chairman of the Board of the ZMPD (Zrzeszenie Międzynarodowych Przewoęników Drogowych, the “Associ-ation of International Road Transporters”). With nearly 5,000 members, the ZMPD is the largest association for commercial road transport in Poland.

However strong the road transport sector might be, it has still failed so far to consolidate itself: The ZMPD estimates that there are currently between 130,000 and 150,000 transport op-erators offering their services to the market.. In comparison, Germany has around 130,000. The number is so high in Poland because it also includes many one-man businesses, which have

32 trailerforum

Polish truckers play first fiddle within the transport industry - a key industry. the eastern trade, which is always important, is promoting their business further. even long waiting times at the eastern borders cannot stop the Polish transport operators.

The Flagship oF The economy

poland

europa

a single vehicle or small fleet. No opera-tor holds a significant market share, so the sector is still characterized by strong fragmentation. In Poland however, it is not necessarily the size of a company which matters, but rather the skill of the drivers. The greatest challenge still remains to be the incomplete motorway and road net-work, which is still barely comparable to the Western road infrastructure.

Western companies therefore often hire Polish drivers, because they can cope better with the uneven and difficult roads of the country. Since joining the EU nine years ago, Poland has however sig-nificantly extended its road network, and now has over 1,500 km of motorways. In the year 2005, the figure was only 570 km. But this is still simply too little for a coun-try which occupies nearly 90% of the area of its western neighbour Germany, which has almost 13,000 km of motorways.

Not even Poland’s most important arterial routes – the North-South axis (A1) and the East-West line (A2) – are consistently drivable. Drivers are also confused by the different toll billing

systems that are managed by private and public operators.

This makes one major challenge ap-parent: due to the absence of main routes, Poland makes insufficient use of its prime location. Logistically, this lo-cation is one of the gems of Europe. The country lies in the centre of the conti-nent, from where companies can easily reach almost all markets in Europe and even the Far East. In addition, Poland borders the Baltic Sea, and has many ports which tranship and handle goods.

Many international groups therefore moved here as early as the 1990’s. They have their products manufactured rela-tively inexpensively in the industrial cen-tres of Silesia and Lower Silesia, or use the country as a lucrative sales market via sales representatives. For years, inter-national investors have been pouring be-tween € 5 and €15 billion into the country every year, emphasising the great attrac-tion of this eastern EU country.

And in such an attractive location, the transport companies occupy an impor-tant position. Trade with the lucrative

markets of Eastern Europe and the Far East is particularly important to them. The eastern trade can even be said to be one of the pillars of the Polish economy: the country generates more than 40% of its gross domestic product (GDP) from foreign trade, which is therefore equally important as it is for the erstwhile “ex-port world champion” of Germany. Rus-sia also plays an important role as the fifth-largest foreign trade partner.

“Sales increased by a huge 28.5% in the year 2012 in comparison to the pre-vious year”, explains the Deputy Director of the Main CIS Statistical Department in Warsaw, Halina Dmochowska. “Poland is becoming an increasingly attractive sup-plier to the Russians.”

A major problem however is the ex-cessively long waiting times at the east-ern borders of Poland with Belarus and the Ukraine. Here, carriers must wait often for days on end before being al-lowed to enter the country. Because Po-land simply finds it impossible to employ more customs officers and open up more lanes at the border crossings.

trailerforum 33

existing

under construction

planned

ferry connections

Airport

Port

Traffic in polandThere are about 382,000 km of

roads in Poland, of which

1,060 km are motorways and

750 km are highways. Over recent

years, around € 5.5 billion has

been spent annually on the exten-

sion and modernisation of the

road network.

fertiggestellt

im Bau

In Planung

.

RZESZÓW

Krosno

Tarnów

Rabka

KRAKÓWKATOWICE

Bielsko-Biała

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PiotrkówTrybunalski

ŁÓDŹ

WROCŁAWJędrzychowice

Legnica

Leszno

POZNAŃ

Konin

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Olszyna

Świecko

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GORZÓW WLKP.

Piła

SZCZECIN

Czech Republic

Germany

Baltic Sea

Belarus

Lithuania

Ukraine

Slovakia

Austria Hungary

BYDGOSZCZ

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Suwałki

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WARSZAWA Siedlce

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“It is actually the responsibility of lo-cal governments (Wojewodschaften) of the border regions”, explains Anna Wro-na, spokesperson of the ZMPD. “But they do very little”, she continues. She indi-cates by this that there is an obvious lack of coordination and agreement on this question between the central govern-ment in Warsaw and the regions, even though the matter has for years been at the top of the agenda of transport com-panies, and the problem is becoming worse year by year. “We are reliant on the same political support at home that our international competition enjoys”, as also emphasised by ZMPD Chair-man Buczek, who never tires of bring-ing this problem to the attention of the

government. One bottleneck where par-ticularly long waiting times occur is the Polish-Belarussian checkpoint at Kukur-yki/Kozlowiczy. “Our people have to wait here for up to 24 hours – a whole day”, complains Buczek.

This crossing point in particular is very important for eastern trade, be-cause many Polish carriers have to cross the border here if they want to transport their goods via Belarus on the direct route to Moscow. Nevertheless, the busi-ness of transport companies must not be allowed to suffer too much damage from this state of affairs - the sector is simply too large and important to allow this to happen. Despite the passive attitude of the politicians in Warsaw.

Drivers must expect very long waiting times at the Polish border crossings: they suffer from the wrangling between the central government in Warsaw and the regions.

34 trailerforum

thanks also to the bold entrepreneur Roman Roszkiewicz, KRone has established itself firmly on the Polish market: 19 years ago in Poznan, he founded a strong trading partnership with KRone.

The righT Track For success

K RONE, a German brand, certain-ly has a future in Poland with its sound quality and innovative

programme: the Polish businessman Ro-man Roszkiewicz was already convinced of this fact 19 years ago. An experienced commercial vehicle salesman, he there-fore founded a trading company, together with his wife, in Tarnowo Podgórne, near Poznań in western Poland, with the main purpose of distributing KRONE trailers. Because of the name, his first customers thought that KRONE was a Scandinavian brand: the trailer manufacturer from the neighbouring country of Germany was at that time almost unknown in Poland.

Roman Roszkiewicz drove to Werlte in order to talk to the then Export Man-ager. The two quickly came to an agree-

ment and the first trailer set off on its way to Poland in 1994.

Even the name of the company re-flects the confidence that Roszkiew-icz had in his project: POZKRONE. In Poznań, company names are often made up of the abbreviation of the home town of the company and the main brand sold by the company.

Almost two decades later, it is safe to say that everything went extremely well: POZKRONE has not only remained a loy-al partner of KRONE to the present day, successfully selling the complete range from semi-trailers to trailers, swap-body systems and refrigerated trailers, it has also made KRONE Number One on the Polish market for curtainsider trailer registrations.

The involvement of his company has made no small contribution to this de-velopment. “Close contact with our cus-tomers is very important to us. We aim to offer advice and support at all times”, explains Maciej Michalski, a director of POZKRONE, together with Sales Manag-er Tomasz Kujawa.

Roman Roszkiewicz is today a major shareholder and Chairman of the Super-visory Board of POZKRONE, although he has largely withdrawn from the operation-al side of the business. The 15 external sales staff and their 11 colleagues at the Tar-nowo Podgórne location do an amazing job: They maintain regular contact with their customers and among other things, offer help when old trailers need to be sold during fleet replacement programmes.

poland

trailerforum 35

polen

trailerforum 35

The used trailer tradeThe trade in used trailers is anoth-

er arm of business which the compa-ny still operates today. This also pro-vides another brand benefit , which is particularly important to Polish buy-ers: the excellent quality ensures a high resale value of used KRONE trailers. POZKRONE sells them on eastwards, mainly to Russia, the Ukraine and Belarus.

In the area of service, POZKRONE can rely on a tried and tested network: Original KRONE consumable parts are readily and quickly available through-out the country. In order to ensure very short-term deliveries, a shuttle with spare parts has been commuting be-tween Werlte and Tarnowo Podgórne for about a year. The trailer sets off on its journey to Germany every Wednes-day and returns loaded on Friday.

“This works smoothly and has been very well accepted”, says Maciej Michal-ski. A proven external network of service partners is also available for repairs.

Partners such as POZKRONE owe the fact that KRONE is also so success-ful today in the Polish market, to the in-creasing demand for high quality trail-ers. Maciej Michalski: “Polish buyers look at the price, obviously. But for the very same reason, they also demand quality. KRONE stands for German workmanship, and this is a very impor-tant sales argument. Customers can see in the course of daily business the durability offered by the trailers. .” The multi-functionality is also convinc-ing: “Above all, we need reliable vehicle fleets, which at the same time have to

be flexible. Although Polish buyers find the extensive KRONE offer very attrac-tive, they generally decide in favour of universal products from the range.”

Polish carriers invest more cau-tiously, because they have to contend with more uncertainties than compa-nies in other countries of the European Union. And Polish roads demand more rugged vehicles.

“In addition, a good German trailer has a high resale value”, explains POZ-KRONE Sales Manager Tomasz Kujawa.

The company has made two excur-sions into other lines of business: at the end of the 1990s it went into the rental business together with a Danish logistics company. Within barely seven years, a large fleet of trailers had been rented out to customers. Up to 2005, POZKRONE also sold horse-boxes. Then came the decision to return to be-ing a pure trading company and to con-centrate on the sale of KRONE trailers.

excursion into the rental business

The company achieved its greatest success in 2007, when nearly 3,500 ve-hicles were sold - the best sales result of all so far. In 1997, POZKRONE sold its 200th KRONE trailer, in 2000 the 1,000th and in 2007 the 10,000th. In 2013, according to plan, the 20,000th will be sold. “We have also weathered the difficult time when the boom end-ed in early 2008 in the wake of the world economic crisis. We were able to do

this thanks to the confidence placed in us by our German partner, the Fahrzeu-gwerk Bernard KRONE GmbH”, con-firms Tomasz Kujawa.

POZKRONE intends to further opti-mise its service network in the future. Another task consists of convincing customers that the word “crisis” has now been greatly over-used. Maciej Michalski: “Polish carriers are not re-ducing the size of their fleets, yet the parking lots of companies are empty: it is obvious that the trucks still have plenty of work.” Tomas Kujawa adds: “One of our customers put it this way: he survived the crisis only because he bought our trailers. He wasted no mon-ey on service and was not worried that he would suffer any loss in the event of longer use of three to four years.”

Maciej Michalski also points out however, that new regulations such as Euro 6 nevertheless pose real challeng-es for his customers: “Of course they want to buy the new standard, but they would have to pass on these costs to their customers - while the customers themselves are instead expecting price reductions.” He knows of some carri-ers “who have to continue to operate just to cover their costs, or take on jobs which do not even cover their costs.”

Overall it has become more difficult for logistics companies to make a prof-it. But: “When I talk with colleagues in other countries, I hear again and again that Poland has a good reputation as a transport market. We are well-estab-lished, and have made good use of the opportunities presented by joining the EU in the year 2004.”

»poland has a good reputation as a transport market. we are well- established, and have made good use of the opportunities presented by joining the eu in the year 2004.«Maciej Michalski, Managing Director of PoZKRone

The people

Maciej Michalski (41) has

been with Pozkrone since

2005. He studied in Gdansk

and Berlin before starting his

career in the filed of consum-

er electronics sales. A family

man, he loves sport and plays

the piano.

Tomasz Kujawa (42) has

been with Pozkrone from the

very beginning. He studied at

the University of Agriculture

in Posen. He is married with

a daughter, and spends his

leisure time on cars and

motorsport.

polandPh

otos

: Da

rek

Delm

anow

icz

/ dp

a, P

OZKR

ONE

36 trailerforum

eFFiciency on Two levelsthe KRone Mega liner Variofloor offers flexible cargo space usage for general cargo transport.

cooperaTion

T he new KRONE Mega Liner Var-iofloor is a two-storey trailer with flexible cargo space usage,

making it the ideal vehicle for part-load transport: it is loaded and un-loaded from the side, the intermediate floors can be adjusted in height and on two variable levels offers space for up to 66 pallets. The initiative for this semi-trailer came from the E.L.V.I.s. transport network and chairman Jochen Eschborn explains in an interview with trailerforum how the development of this innovative vehicle came about.

trailerforum: Mr. Eschborn, your E.L.V.I.S. network has been working with a hub since 2011. What happens there?

Jochen Eschborn: “We have developed a new procedure for the handling of part-loads. In Knüllwald near Kassel in Hessen we now have the first central shipment point in Germany which was designed specially for the handling of part-loads. This hub is used daily by 65 German

and 15 foreign partners with part-loads. For the carriers, it is essential that their trucks are loaded as fully as possible on their way to the hub and back to the dis-patch depot in order to achieve the high-est level of efficiency”.

And the previous vehicle fleet was unable to do this?

”No, unfortunately not. We work with the classic part-load transport, the goods usually arrive on standard pallets. These are mostly Euro-pallets or other stand-ardised load-carriers, which are fre-quently only 1.20 m to 1.30 m high. The floor area is therefore usually fully occu-pied after loading, while there is still free space above it. Our idea was to fit an ad-justable intermediate floor”.

And you took this idea to KRONE?

“We talked to all the manufacturers but the others simply thought we were cra-zy, only KRONE recognised the potential

and was prepared to develop such a ve-hicle. Such ideas have been around for a long time, but until now nobody believed that they could be put into practice”.

Did you continue to cooperate on the de-velopment?

”We know relatively little about vehicle construction and the technical details but we formulated our requirements very clearly and in the practical test we were always able to provide the neces-sary feedback. This relatively difficult subject was approached jointly and I be-lieve that this was very helpful for the de-signers at KRONE”.

What was the greatest challenge?

”As a trailer manufacturer dedicated to ef-ficiency, KRONE always aims to keep the weight of the trailer itself as low as possible but with the greatest possible load. The first design was therefore rather flimsy and in the test we determined that such vehicles Ph

otos

: KR

ONE,

E.L

.V.I

.S.

AG

trailerforum 37

cooperaTion

cusTOMER-ORIENTATED sOLuTIONs

The “Europäische Ladungs-Verbund Internationaler Spedi-teure” (“European Load Association of International Carriers”), in short: E.L.V.I.S., is a cooperative association of medium-sized carriers and hauliers. Since its foundation in autumn 2006 it has developed into the largest truck network in Germany. Today it numbers 100 members at 176 locations, who operate over 12,000 vehicles. E.L.V.I.S. offers customer-orientated truck transport solutions in the field of partial and complete loads. The association offers a platform for partnership cooperation for example, for joint acquisition or purchasing, advises its members and devotes itself to the development of system solutions for truck transport.

would need a more robust and stronger construction for the body. The second level, which is up to 2.50 m high, can carry up to 12 tonnes: this produces immense forces. We also wanted the trailers to be able to be opened quickly from the side for loading: this also improves efficiency and avoids damage to the goods. The double floor and the adjustability result in twice the trans-port capacity. This all sounds very simple but it was an immense technical challenge and this new feature is highly innovative. We solved this as a team; from the idea to implementation took about nine months and in the end we had the result: the KRONE Mega Liner Variofloor”.

Is there a market for this in your opinion?

”Certainly: The distances travelled in Europe are becoming longer all the time, so that there is always a demand for a transport technol-ogy which is capable of greater utilisation. We simply have to get more goods onto the truck. It is a good idea to move away from the traditional 33-pallet tarpaulin truck and

to look for new methods. If you can transport double the number of pallets in the same way and on the same route then this re-duces the diesel consumption and the CO2 emissions per pallet by half ”.

Can all goods be transported like this ’on two floors’?

”Yes, this is not a problem at all. We have analysed the goods in our part-load sys-tem over a period of six months and have established that 87% of all goods can be transported in this way. We transport everything from cosmetics to beverages, machines, chemicals, consumer goods right through to capital goods. This in-cludes many products which cannot be stacked due to their packaging – so far there have been few, inflexible solutions in this field until the arrival of the new ’Variofloor’”.

What excites you personally about the Mega Liner Variofloor?“I find that it makes an interesting alterna-

tive to the long truck because we can make more efficient use of the space available in the vehicle by using existing vehicle sizes and dimensions. This ultimately offers ad-vantages not only for the environment but the lower fuel consumption per pallet also improves overall economy and efficiency. Due to its special features, the trailer may possibly not be suitable for every single ap-plication, but for us, driving hundreds of kilometres to the hub every day, it is the perfect solution. It also improves efficiency on the long haul, for example to Eastern or Southern Europe”.

Do you envisage further applications?

”Certainly! We use the Mega Liner Vario-floor for our part-load system because the vehicle is now tailor-made for this purpose. But the trailer is detachable and will be developed further for numerous future applications. I am convinced that other users will also contribute their own innovative approaches, thereby creating new application possibilities”.

AboutThe graduate DAV Transport

Manager Jochim Eschborn

(born 1958) began his career

in 1980 as a dispatcher

with Deugro Carl E. Press

KG in Frankfurt/Main. He

is a founder member of

CargoLine in Dietzenbach and

developed the CEPRA package

tracking system. In 2006

he founded Maintrans Inter-

nationale Spedition GmbH

and initiated the E.L.V.I.S.

association.

A ll human evil comes from a single cause, man’s inability to sit still in a room.” When the French philosopher Blaise Pascal said this in the 17th century, he could not have pre-

dicted the current traffic problems, but the words are perfectly ap-propriate today. People who have to travel a great deal on German roads know this feeling every day. In 2012, German drivers spent an average of 36 hours waiting in traffic jams. The gridlock on the roads is mainly caused by the number of vehicles registered in Ger-many. Too many of the 53.6 million cars, trucks and motorcycles use the roads at the same time, for work and business, on long weekends or at the start of the holidays – causing the system to collapse on a regular basis. Despite all the problems, everyone gets to their destination sooner or later, resulting in an unimaginable distance travelled on the roads of 528 billion kilometres in total. This is equivalent to 3,500 times the average distance between the Earth and the Sun.

Only Optimists believe that we can just sit out the congestion problem. They quote the declining population in Germany, which in the long term will lead to a decrease in the distance travelled on the roads. The population of Germany is actually projected to fall by 3.7% by the year 2035, and by nearly 14% by the year 2060. In 23 years time however, there will still be 79 million people crammed

into the major cities. Private individual traffic will thereby certain-ly decrease. This relief will nevertheless be more than compensat-ed for by the continual increase in the level of goods traffic. By the year 2030, goods transport is projected to increase by a further 50%, and remain at this level up to the year 2050.

NO NEw ROADs. In the light of this situation, something must be done, and everyone knows that an extension of the road net-work cannot be the solution. The transport budget of the Feder-al Government is sufficient only for the maintenance of existing roads and bridges – if that.

The solution can therefore lie only in intelligent traffic man-agement. We must aim to make use of the existing capacity more evenly. This can be achieved by daytime-dependent toll systems and modern traffic telematics. Here, it is the state which must create a central infrastructure. The Government acts as an in-itiator, facilitator, platform operator and concept creator in transport telematics. The individual states, traffic regions, com-munities and industries must also be called on to support the measures of the Government. The National Association of the German IT industry BITKOM already developed concrete action recommendations on this subject in the years 2009 and 2011.

programmed For The open road

Centrally controlled, intelligent solutions help in the fight against increasing problems with the road traffic network. the national association of the German it industry BitKoM has developed concrete proposals aimed at rendering the construction of new roads unnecessary.

38 trailerforum

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The publication, its contributions and illustrations are prop-retary. Any reproduction or distribution must be authorised by the publishing house or the publisher. This also applies to the electronic utilisation, such as the transfer to data bases, online media (internet), intranets or other electronic storage media. Publisher and publishing house exclude the responsibility for photographers, scripts or other data carriers that are sent without request.

The development of an intelligent transport network would aid the German economy and increase the efficiency of the existing transport infrastructure.

ADVIsORy BOARD FOuNDED. The first advances are already apparent. This is shown amongst other things by the fact that the Federal Ministry for Transport, Construction and Urban Development (BMVBS) has set up an advisory board for intelligent transport systems – the IVS Board for short. The objective of the IVS Board is the development of a na-tional framework plan for the introduc-tion of intelligent transport systems. The initial focus will be placed on individual road transport.

The prerequisites for a later imple-mentation are very good, because in con-trast to most other European countries, Germany already has an established auto-motive industry, high-performance infor-mation and communications technology (ICT), a high-tech sector and an excel-lent networked supplier industry. This is backed up by extensive expertise in sys-tem integration and logistics, and out-standing training and research facilities.

AcTIVE TRAFFIc MANAgEMENT. An in-telligent transport network of the future consists of telematic, bidirectional infra-

structures on traffic routes, in the vehicle and with the user, and interlinked cen-tres for the active assistance of road-us-ers. The intelligent transport network enables active, situation-related traffic management. The subordinate develop-ment and operation of supra-regional, multi-modal value-added services is also particularly important.

A further important task is the reali-zation of networked mobility models for intelligent traffic management. For per-sonal transport, the smooth connection of local public transport and car-sharing schemes for the individual are particu-larly important, together with dynamic parking area management (information, reservation). Great improvements can also be achieved with ICT-based telem-atics and navigation in supra-regional goods transport. These are augmented by modern emission-modelling and fleet management systems aimed at preserv-ing the environment.

ExpLOITINg ThE pOTENTIAL. The cre-ation of a national “intelligent” transport network will provide great economic bene-

fits and increase the efficiency of the exist-ing transport infrastructure. The exploita-tion of the potential of telematics created by modern ICT should therefore form a central element of transport planning. Intelligent transport networks can also significantly reduce the consequential costs of environmental damage. They can make a major contribution to reducing CO2 emissions, and also, therefore to the climate and to environmental protection. Summary: Ultimately, we will not be able to solve our traffic problems any longer by building more roads, but only with the aid of modern information technology.

in future construction projects the use of iCt solutions should be an essential part of the construction of highways and motorways.the Federal Government should prescribe the conditions for the anonymized collection of data from vehicles, adopt usage agreements and promote the standardization of interfaces.

the traffic regions should link traffic management centres with emergency and security services, provide them with intermodal, nationwide real-time information, and connect them to a dynamic parking space management system. the Federal Ministry of transport should promote the increased use of assistance and safety systems.

all road-users should be equipped with a communications module connected to added-value services. Vehicle connection to the internet should also be promoted.

Real-time data of local transport/local public transport should be provided for third parties. intermodal combination possibilities should be promoted in conurbation areas with respect to all mobility facilities (incl. car-sharing, rental, scooters …)

Fast and powerful mobile radio and cloud technologies should be promoted to secure services and business models of transport telematics in the long term.

REcOMMENDATIONs OF ThE BITKOM AssOcIATION ON BETTER usE OF ThE ROAD NETwORK

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