C&H celebrates golden anniversary with a silver star

‘Forest products’ specialist C&H (Hauliers) is proud of its 50-year heritage – which explains why it decided to mark its Golden Jubilee by commissioning a striking commemorative livery for one of its new Mercedes-Benz tractor units.

Part of the Charles Gee Group of global logistics companies, C&H has ordered 34 new generation Actros 2544s from dealer Sparshatts of Kent. All are Long Distance sleepers with the sole exception of the anniversary model, which sports a range-topping, flat-floored MegaSpace cab.

This ‘one-off’ unit was the first to enter service, the eye-catching livery having been applied to both the truck and its curtainsided trailer in Sparshatts’ own Sittingbourne paintshop. The truck’s debut run took it to Liverpool, where it played a starring role at the 2009 Paper & Pulp Industry Transport Symposium, a biennial conference and exhibition for the international forest products logistics industry.

“It looks fantastic and proved a real talking point, serving as a great advertisement for our business,” recalls Director Steve Mercer. “As for its driver Danny Glavin, every time he sees me he shakes my hand, he’s that happy with his new truck.”

C&H (Hauliers) bought its first seven Mercedes in 2002; today, its 100-strong fleet of tractor units is dominated by vehicles bearing the three-pointed star.

Although the firm undertakes some container work, the backbone of its business is forest products distribution. C&H handles everything from reeled newsprint and palletised book paper, the majority of which is imported, to packs of timber and tissues. It has also enjoyed significant expansion over recent years in the transportation of waste paper for recycling, a task it undertakes using walking floor trailers.

C&H (Hauliers) has headquarters on the north bank of the Thames estuary in Tilbury, Essex, and other depots in the ports of Chatham, Felixstowe, Hull, Kings Lynn and Liverpool.

“Mercedes trucks are competitively priced, reliable, fuel-efficient and popular with our drivers,” confirms Mr Mercer. “But of no less importance to me is the service I get from David Jones (CEO) and his team at Sparshatts.

“I couldn’t possibly manage relationships with all of the different dealers whose areas of responsibility coincide with our own depot locations, so everything is looked after on my behalf by Sparshatts.

“We have thrown them some challenges over the last year or so and, to be honest, they have been very responsive. For example, to help keep our fuel costs down the dealer recently introduced a dedicated mobile service van – its technicians now come to our Thamesport and Suffolk depots to maintain our trucks and prepare them for MoT tests.

“The relationship works both from a pricing point of view and in terms of servicing continuity, while also relieving me of a great deal of time and hassle.”