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Month: November 2021

Bridgestone signs agreement with Collease

Posted on by David Priestman

Bridgestone’s flexibility, attention to detail and long-term approach to fleet management has worked together to secure a huge commercial partnership with Collease. The vehicle rental giant, with around 2,000 vehicles operating from the east of England, has agreed a two-year agreement with Bridgestone, incorporating all types of trailers and motorised equipment.

Bridgestone’s National Fleet Executive Neil Collison (pictured right), who played a key role in communicating the company’s holistic package of support, said: “We’re thrilled to be forging a partnership with Collease, which is a company very close to our hearts having worked with them in recent years. We have worked hard across the business to provide a bespoke package of solutions to meet their needs.

“From a product perspective, we have identified our R179+ as an ideal solution for the nature of the Collease operation. It offers a mix of longevity and reliability more suited for this rental fleet contract and made sense to opt for this premium product.

“In addition, our most advanced fleet management system (FLEETBRIDGE) automates the tailor made workflows between Collease, our Bridgestone Partner network and our fleet administration team.

“We were able to demonstrate savings in both cost and time, and to see the Bridgestone logo on the tyres that are turning for Collease will be a sight to make us extremely proud. It’s a partnership we value hugely.”

Bridgestone’s Total Tyre Care offering means the company will regularly audit all five sites in Norwich, Felixstowe, London, Southampton and Manchester in an attempt to get maximum life out of each tyre.

Collease Director Martin Drewery (pictured left) said: “Bridgestone come with a great reputation and we were already aware of a number of their solutions. But we could see that they have evolved as a business, underpinned by a diligent, hard-working team. They grasped what we wanted and displayed a level of flexibility to meet our needs, which was great to see.

“Neil’s knowledge and attention to detail was another impressive factor. It is nice to work with a business which speaks the same language as us and understands our needs.”

Bridgestone signs agreement with Collease

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Bridgestone’s flexibility, attention to detail and long-term approach to fleet management has worked together to secure a huge commercial partnership with Collease. The vehicle rental giant, with around 2,000 vehicles operating from the east of England, has agreed a two-year agreement with Bridgestone, incorporating all types of trailers and motorised equipment.

Bridgestone’s National Fleet Executive Neil Collison (pictured right), who played a key role in communicating the company’s holistic package of support, said: “We’re thrilled to be forging a partnership with Collease, which is a company very close to our hearts having worked with them in recent years. We have worked hard across the business to provide a bespoke package of solutions to meet their needs.

“From a product perspective, we have identified our R179+ as an ideal solution for the nature of the Collease operation. It offers a mix of longevity and reliability more suited for this rental fleet contract and made sense to opt for this premium product.

“In addition, our most advanced fleet management system (FLEETBRIDGE) automates the tailor made workflows between Collease, our Bridgestone Partner network and our fleet administration team.

“We were able to demonstrate savings in both cost and time, and to see the Bridgestone logo on the tyres that are turning for Collease will be a sight to make us extremely proud. It’s a partnership we value hugely.”

Bridgestone’s Total Tyre Care offering means the company will regularly audit all five sites in Norwich, Felixstowe, London, Southampton and Manchester in an attempt to get maximum life out of each tyre.

Collease Director Martin Drewery (pictured left) said: “Bridgestone come with a great reputation and we were already aware of a number of their solutions. But we could see that they have evolved as a business, underpinned by a diligent, hard-working team. They grasped what we wanted and displayed a level of flexibility to meet our needs, which was great to see.

“Neil’s knowledge and attention to detail was another impressive factor. It is nice to work with a business which speaks the same language as us and understands our needs.”

UniCarriers completes MX series with compact trucks

Posted on by David Priestman

With the MXS3 and MXS4, UniCarriers is expanding its successful MX series of electric counterbalanced trucks with new models that it says set benchmarks in agility, performance and intelligence.

All the new models are characterised by their compact and robust design, excellent manoeuvrability and intelligent control systems. This makes them ideal for dynamic handling tasks in demanding, confined environments.

The MXS3 line is made up of 3-wheel forklifts with capacities from 1.4 to 2 tonnes, while the 4-wheel forklifts from the MXS4 line have capacities of 1.6 to 2 tonnes. With this expansion, the MX series now covers all categories of logistical tasks, from the MXS all the way to the heavy-duty MXL range. It means that warehouse operators can find a one-stop solution for every application, from a single supplier.

The MXS3 and MSX4 combine the heritage of their award-winning predecessors, the TX3 and TX4, with the advanced technology of the MX series. All systems and components are specified for robustness, ease of maintenance and high operating efficiency, as well as excellent ergonomics.

With their compact design, amazing manoeuvrability and intelligent control systems, UniCarriers says the MXS3 and MXS4 are ideal for handling tasks in cramped, fast-paced environments. The latest steering technology maximises agility and productivity in tight spaces.

Four-wheel steering with +100° rear turning axle provides the MXS4 with smooth and agile manoeuvring, including instant side turns with no pushback. The MXS3 features 360° steering that allows the truck to turn 180° without stopping. The unique UniCarriers S3 – Stability Support System – adapts rapidly to pedal operation, and ensures all movements are smooth. Advanced curve control enables the fastest safe cornering speed in every situation. To ensure safe operation whatever the lift height or load, advanced hydraulics keep load handling steady and precisely controlled.

The system performance of a truck is defined by the interaction between vehicle and operator, and the MSX3 and MSX4 are both optimally tuned to their driver. Among their most outstanding features is a set of intelligent assistive technologies that ensure maximum driver comfort and safety.

Advanced safety features, ergonomic controls and comfortable working conditions enhance driver confidence, performance and satisfaction. The ProVision design with its unique transparent front panel gives the driver excellent vision in all directions, ensuring safe handling. An advanced full-colour display visualises data to ensure that the driver always has the most important information available at a glance. Spacious operator compartments offer comfort and easy access features for drivers of all sizes, in any of the perfect-fit cabin solutions – including optional cold store modification.

Built to cope with the harshest conditions, this truck range is suitable for deployment in food and beverage manufacturing and wholesale, fishing and fish processing, chemicals, textiles or general and refrigerated warehousing and storage, just to name a few examples – or wherever a powerful, intelligent and agile handling solution is required.

The MXS3 and MXS4 are available now from the manufacturer and all UniCarriers dealers.

UniCarriers completes MX series with compact trucks

Posted on by David Priestman

With the MXS3 and MXS4, UniCarriers is expanding its successful MX series of electric counterbalanced trucks with new models that it says set benchmarks in agility, performance and intelligence.

All the new models are characterised by their compact and robust design, excellent manoeuvrability and intelligent control systems. This makes them ideal for dynamic handling tasks in demanding, confined environments.

The MXS3 line is made up of 3-wheel forklifts with capacities from 1.4 to 2 tonnes, while the 4-wheel forklifts from the MXS4 line have capacities of 1.6 to 2 tonnes. With this expansion, the MX series now covers all categories of logistical tasks, from the MXS all the way to the heavy-duty MXL range. It means that warehouse operators can find a one-stop solution for every application, from a single supplier.

The MXS3 and MSX4 combine the heritage of their award-winning predecessors, the TX3 and TX4, with the advanced technology of the MX series. All systems and components are specified for robustness, ease of maintenance and high operating efficiency, as well as excellent ergonomics.

With their compact design, amazing manoeuvrability and intelligent control systems, UniCarriers says the MXS3 and MXS4 are ideal for handling tasks in cramped, fast-paced environments. The latest steering technology maximises agility and productivity in tight spaces.

Four-wheel steering with +100° rear turning axle provides the MXS4 with smooth and agile manoeuvring, including instant side turns with no pushback. The MXS3 features 360° steering that allows the truck to turn 180° without stopping. The unique UniCarriers S3 – Stability Support System – adapts rapidly to pedal operation, and ensures all movements are smooth. Advanced curve control enables the fastest safe cornering speed in every situation. To ensure safe operation whatever the lift height or load, advanced hydraulics keep load handling steady and precisely controlled.

The system performance of a truck is defined by the interaction between vehicle and operator, and the MSX3 and MSX4 are both optimally tuned to their driver. Among their most outstanding features is a set of intelligent assistive technologies that ensure maximum driver comfort and safety.

Advanced safety features, ergonomic controls and comfortable working conditions enhance driver confidence, performance and satisfaction. The ProVision design with its unique transparent front panel gives the driver excellent vision in all directions, ensuring safe handling. An advanced full-colour display visualises data to ensure that the driver always has the most important information available at a glance. Spacious operator compartments offer comfort and easy access features for drivers of all sizes, in any of the perfect-fit cabin solutions – including optional cold store modification.

Built to cope with the harshest conditions, this truck range is suitable for deployment in food and beverage manufacturing and wholesale, fishing and fish processing, chemicals, textiles or general and refrigerated warehousing and storage, just to name a few examples – or wherever a powerful, intelligent and agile handling solution is required.

The MXS3 and MXS4 are available now from the manufacturer and all UniCarriers dealers.

Majority striving for Event-Driven Architecture

Posted on by David Priestman

Solace, a leader in powering real-time event-driven enterprises, has announced the results of an industry-first survey on event-driven architecture (EDA), shedding light on how organisations are striving to incorporate real-time data and event-driven architecture into their IT landscape.

Led by independent research firm Coleman Parkes, the global survey of 840 respondents, in roles ranging from C-Suite to IT architecture, discovered:

  • The majority of organisations, 85%, recognise the critical business value in adopting EDA
  • Adoption is still ‘early days’, as only 13% claim to have achieved full EDA maturity
  • The IT department is bought in, but more work needs to be done with business leadership

Gartner asserts “as the mastery of EDA is essential to digital business, and achieving this mastery is a multistep process, application leaders — still lacking a plan of action for strategic use of EDA — must begin now.” *

The findings show the majority of organisations surveyed clearly recognise the value of EDA and know what they want to achieve with it. The top priorities for EDA implementation were as follows:

  • Improving application responsiveness (46%)
  • Improving customer experiences (44%)
  • Responding to events and changes in real-time (43%)

Overall, 71% of businesses see the benefits of EDA outweighing the costs, or at least equalling them. This is partly driven by what businesses stand to lose by failure to invest in real-time data capabilities. With a lack of EDA, businesses are most concerned at the following outcomes:

  • Decision-making based on inconsistent & out of data information (46%)
  • Prevention of rapid response to threats and opportunities (45%)
  • Hindered ability to innovate (44%)

“The appetite for real-time data sharing as a means of coping with constantly changing landscapes is increasing. Businesses are under unprecedented pressure, with shifting customer demands pushing them into adapting and innovating,” said Mychelle Mollot, chief marketing officer, Solace. “For many, a business model underpinned by event-driven architecture has already proven its value, the benefits by far outweigh the costs, and they are on the way to implementing EDA across a variety of use cases.”

EDA maturity: early days to adoption

Despite high levels of enthusiasm for EDA, just 13% of global businesses surveyed claim to have made it to the ‘promised land’ of full EDA maturity. For those still on the journey, a number of obstacles lie in their way:

  • 75% of organisations cite lack of adequate technology as a key roadblock to EDA
  • 59% say they haven’t yet identified the right tools and vendors to meet their needs
  • A lack of education on the benefits (38%) or talent to execute implementation (37%) were also notable obstacles

Furthermore, for EDA to succeed, the survey found organisations need greater buy-in at the business leadership level. On the IT side, 61% already appreciate the value of real-time event-driven data distribution, pointing at an appetite for EDA. This number, however, drops off to just 35% when looking at business roles, where decision makers might have a harder time reconciling how the bottom line can benefit from EDA.

“Whatever their level of maturity, organisations know they must face some common challenges, which centre around education, skills, and efficiency,” added Mollot. “Crucially, IT already knows the possibilities of EDA: now is the time to prove the value to the bottom line and bring business leadership onboard.”

CLICK HERE to read Solace’s The Great EDA Migration report.

* Source: Gartner “Maturity Model for Event-Driven Architecture”, Yefim Natis, Massimo Pezzini, Keith Guttridge, Roy Schulte, 30th November 2020.

Majority striving for Event-Driven Architecture

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Solace, a leader in powering real-time event-driven enterprises, has announced the results of an industry-first survey on event-driven architecture (EDA), shedding light on how organisations are striving to incorporate real-time data and event-driven architecture into their IT landscape.

Led by independent research firm Coleman Parkes, the global survey of 840 respondents, in roles ranging from C-Suite to IT architecture, discovered:

  • The majority of organisations, 85%, recognise the critical business value in adopting EDA
  • Adoption is still ‘early days’, as only 13% claim to have achieved full EDA maturity
  • The IT department is bought in, but more work needs to be done with business leadership

Gartner asserts “as the mastery of EDA is essential to digital business, and achieving this mastery is a multistep process, application leaders — still lacking a plan of action for strategic use of EDA — must begin now.” *

The findings show the majority of organisations surveyed clearly recognise the value of EDA and know what they want to achieve with it. The top priorities for EDA implementation were as follows:

  • Improving application responsiveness (46%)
  • Improving customer experiences (44%)
  • Responding to events and changes in real-time (43%)

Overall, 71% of businesses see the benefits of EDA outweighing the costs, or at least equalling them. This is partly driven by what businesses stand to lose by failure to invest in real-time data capabilities. With a lack of EDA, businesses are most concerned at the following outcomes:

  • Decision-making based on inconsistent & out of data information (46%)
  • Prevention of rapid response to threats and opportunities (45%)
  • Hindered ability to innovate (44%)

“The appetite for real-time data sharing as a means of coping with constantly changing landscapes is increasing. Businesses are under unprecedented pressure, with shifting customer demands pushing them into adapting and innovating,” said Mychelle Mollot, chief marketing officer, Solace. “For many, a business model underpinned by event-driven architecture has already proven its value, the benefits by far outweigh the costs, and they are on the way to implementing EDA across a variety of use cases.”

EDA maturity: early days to adoption

Despite high levels of enthusiasm for EDA, just 13% of global businesses surveyed claim to have made it to the ‘promised land’ of full EDA maturity. For those still on the journey, a number of obstacles lie in their way:

  • 75% of organisations cite lack of adequate technology as a key roadblock to EDA
  • 59% say they haven’t yet identified the right tools and vendors to meet their needs
  • A lack of education on the benefits (38%) or talent to execute implementation (37%) were also notable obstacles

Furthermore, for EDA to succeed, the survey found organisations need greater buy-in at the business leadership level. On the IT side, 61% already appreciate the value of real-time event-driven data distribution, pointing at an appetite for EDA. This number, however, drops off to just 35% when looking at business roles, where decision makers might have a harder time reconciling how the bottom line can benefit from EDA.

“Whatever their level of maturity, organisations know they must face some common challenges, which centre around education, skills, and efficiency,” added Mollot. “Crucially, IT already knows the possibilities of EDA: now is the time to prove the value to the bottom line and bring business leadership onboard.”

CLICK HERE to read Solace’s The Great EDA Migration report.

* Source: Gartner “Maturity Model for Event-Driven Architecture”, Yefim Natis, Massimo Pezzini, Keith Guttridge, Roy Schulte, 30th November 2020.

PSI Logistics receives “Top Employer” accolade

Posted on by David Priestman

The “Top Employer Medium-Sized Businesses 2022” study – published on 27th November 2021 by the business magazine Focus-Business – ranks PSI Logistics GmbH among the 4,000 best employers in Germany in the current industry ranking.

The top list was compiled by the research partner FactField GmbH on behalf of FOCUS. Using a high-quality methodology, the research institute determined top employers of medium-sized companies 2022 for around 40 industries. The survey was based on responses to a Germany-wide online survey as well as existing online reviews of employers with an average rating of at least 3.5 stars.

The range of questions reflects, among other things, the attractiveness of the employer and working environment, working conditions and career prospects. The final ranking of the companies is based on a score calculated from the two factors rating average and number of ratings (from both data sources).

Around 950,000 companies and 4,000,000 employee evaluations were analysed. The top list is broken down by industry and contains a total of around 4,000 excellent medium-sized companies. With a good overall rating, PSI Logistics was awarded the title “Top Medium-Sized Employer 2022”. For the fourth time in a row, this ranks the Berlin software company among the best employers in Germany in the evaluation of employees, applicants and the analysts of the research institute.

PSI Logistics receives “Top Employer” accolade

Posted on by David Priestman

The “Top Employer Medium-Sized Businesses 2022” study – published on 27th November 2021 by the business magazine Focus-Business – ranks PSI Logistics GmbH among the 4,000 best employers in Germany in the current industry ranking.

The top list was compiled by the research partner FactField GmbH on behalf of FOCUS. Using a high-quality methodology, the research institute determined top employers of medium-sized companies 2022 for around 40 industries. The survey was based on responses to a Germany-wide online survey as well as existing online reviews of employers with an average rating of at least 3.5 stars.

The range of questions reflects, among other things, the attractiveness of the employer and working environment, working conditions and career prospects. The final ranking of the companies is based on a score calculated from the two factors rating average and number of ratings (from both data sources).

Around 950,000 companies and 4,000,000 employee evaluations were analysed. The top list is broken down by industry and contains a total of around 4,000 excellent medium-sized companies. With a good overall rating, PSI Logistics was awarded the title “Top Medium-Sized Employer 2022”. For the fourth time in a row, this ranks the Berlin software company among the best employers in Germany in the evaluation of employees, applicants and the analysts of the research institute.

Successful project moves silos from Tunisia to UK

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Specialist Logistics Services (SLS), a specialist in the movement of out-of-gauge and abnormal project cargo, recently successfully executed one of its largest projects – the movement of seven silos and associated equipment from Sfax in Tunisia to the Wheelabrator Kemsley waste-to-energy plant in Kent, UK.

Moving project cargo requires coordination of stakeholders in multiple locations to ensure smooth and timely delivery of vital equipment. It is a complex business, involving much more than simply moving an item from A to B – though that, in itself, is a challenging task when it comes to heavy or outsize shipments.

It took two years to plan the move down to the smallest detail. In cooperation with the client and manufacturer, SLS also worked with landowners, government authorities, other transport companies and crane hire providers to ensure the delivery took place on time and on budget.

The support of Ridham Dock at Sittingbourne in the UK was also crucial. The key to the project’s success was finding a small port that was willing to make many infrastructure changes (for example  levelling yards, allowing SLS to make a new exit gate) to accommodate the sheer size of the silos. Consideration also then had to be taken of the overhead power lines and a transformer located near the exit point. The trucks carrying the huge silos had to comply with safety clearances specified by the National Grid.

SLS ensured that all cargo arrived in the UK on a weekend to avoid any disruption to local businesses and the surrounding area. SLS worked closely with local contractors to organise the removal of street furniture such as bollards and signage in order to pass unhindered and replaced it by the following morning along the private road between Ridham Docks and the job site at Kemsley, whilst ensuring minimal disruption to local businesses and residents.

SLS engaged many expert parties, including marine surveyors and customs clearance agents, to deliver this project safely and economically. On top of that, it is perhaps fitting that environmental considerations were of great importance in the logistics supporting this renewable energy project.

It was imperative that the largest silos, at 7.2m in diameter and 16m long, could be shipped to the job site in one piece without using public roads in order to minimise the amount of truck movements that would have been required if the cargo had been delivered as smaller units. SLS obtained special permission to use a privately-owned road for the final leg of the silos’ journey.

Detailed planning even helped to minimise the carbon footprint of the journey, making it as efficient and direct as possible.

Successful project moves silos from Tunisia to UK

Posted on by David Priestman

Specialist Logistics Services (SLS), a specialist in the movement of out-of-gauge and abnormal project cargo, recently successfully executed one of its largest projects – the movement of seven silos and associated equipment from Sfax in Tunisia to the Wheelabrator Kemsley waste-to-energy plant in Kent, UK.

Moving project cargo requires coordination of stakeholders in multiple locations to ensure smooth and timely delivery of vital equipment. It is a complex business, involving much more than simply moving an item from A to B – though that, in itself, is a challenging task when it comes to heavy or outsize shipments.

It took two years to plan the move down to the smallest detail. In cooperation with the client and manufacturer, SLS also worked with landowners, government authorities, other transport companies and crane hire providers to ensure the delivery took place on time and on budget.

The support of Ridham Dock at Sittingbourne in the UK was also crucial. The key to the project’s success was finding a small port that was willing to make many infrastructure changes (for example  levelling yards, allowing SLS to make a new exit gate) to accommodate the sheer size of the silos. Consideration also then had to be taken of the overhead power lines and a transformer located near the exit point. The trucks carrying the huge silos had to comply with safety clearances specified by the National Grid.

SLS ensured that all cargo arrived in the UK on a weekend to avoid any disruption to local businesses and the surrounding area. SLS worked closely with local contractors to organise the removal of street furniture such as bollards and signage in order to pass unhindered and replaced it by the following morning along the private road between Ridham Docks and the job site at Kemsley, whilst ensuring minimal disruption to local businesses and residents.

SLS engaged many expert parties, including marine surveyors and customs clearance agents, to deliver this project safely and economically. On top of that, it is perhaps fitting that environmental considerations were of great importance in the logistics supporting this renewable energy project.

It was imperative that the largest silos, at 7.2m in diameter and 16m long, could be shipped to the job site in one piece without using public roads in order to minimise the amount of truck movements that would have been required if the cargo had been delivered as smaller units. SLS obtained special permission to use a privately-owned road for the final leg of the silos’ journey.

Detailed planning even helped to minimise the carbon footprint of the journey, making it as efficient and direct as possible.

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