A logistics giant has been brought in to deliver 180,000 Christmas trees up and down the country for a nearby wholesaler.
Pall-Ex – which is based in Ellistown, in north west Leicestershire – is working with Cadeby Tree Trust, which is a few miles away in Hinckley, to ensure the trees are all delivered on time.
And the Pall-Ex model of using a network of hauliers to split distribution around the 海角视频, should help cut the road miles it takes to get from forest to front door.
In addition for a swift delivery window, the Christmas cargo must also be kept cool to maintain freshness and minimise needle loss.
Management at the tree company said using the pallet network offered the flexibility of smaller drops to multiple destinations and ensured vehicles were available to fulfil urgent deliveries.
Cadeby Tree Trust grows Nordmann fir, Norway spruce, Fraser fir and blue spruce on 600 acres of land.
Christian Bonshor, general manager at the trust, said: “We need to ensure our products arrive in the same condition as they leave the farm, so how they are transported is a key part of our success as a business.
“Speed is a major consideration for us; trees must be left to rest for 24 hours after cutting, before they are netted, palletised and loaded, so that leaves us with a four-day window for getting the product to the customer.
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“Pall-Ex enables us to deliver within this tight timeframe, but also to scale up as the season gets underway, it also allows us to make smaller drops to multiple destinations and ensures vehicles are available when we need them.
“Safety is always paramount at Cadeby because of the size and weight of the product. We need to have approved scouts on hand for off-loading with customers and experienced forklift drivers are an absolute must to ensure the pallets are not damaged.
“The larger the trees, the bigger the risk, so Pall-Ex’s on-boarding process has enabled us to work together to perfect the wrapping and load process and given us added confidence that our products will be handled carefully.”
Mark Steel, sales and marketing director at Pall-Ex, said : “As a team, we are delighted to be supporting Cadeby Tree Trust with their delivery requirements.
“The transportation of their products offers unique challenges, but our efforts to establish Pall-Ex as the number one network for quality demonstrates that we have the skills and experience to ensure this festive freight arrives in excellent condition.”
Pall-Ex Group was formed in 1996 by ex-Dragon’s Den star Hilary Devey, who recently sold the business to a partnership of its senior management team and member haulage firms.
It has an £85 million turnover and operates in 26 countries and supports 8,000 jobs.