Q: What new technology do you anticipate being particularly beneficial to the business? Everyone is talking about AI, and where our customers will benefit most from of AI will be more accurate streamlining of orders and delivery data through AI driven processes. With more than 700 different transport partners over Europe it would be great to have a model like Amazon delivery at home to give to customers. The Solstor service is complex with seasonality of flows, multi temperature requirements and coverage across Europe, but this does not stop us working towards giving our customers the ultimate service offering. Advancements in the truck manufacturing sector are also continuing to develop and we have taken delivery of new trucks with new technology that creates a nicer environment for our drivers. And the trucks themselves have become more and more fuel efficient which supports our continuous improvement for people, the environment and cost. Q: How easily have you been able to adapt to rising environmental regulation in recent years? As a business we are keen to keep an eye on the environmental impact we are having on the world. We have trialled electric and alternative fuel trucks in our network, but this did not prove to be suitable due to the lack of infrastructure for trucks at the moment. To minimise our carbon footprint, we spend time to plan the most efficient journeys so that we drive less miles, we do this by working with our customers and placing more products on a single truck. We will then link our trucks movements together by focusing on the empty distance between one point to another and our team work hard on reducing the empty occasions. We are a business which is predominantly road freight, but we also look at rail or sea freight if it can fit our customer requirements taking into account the length and cost of journey.
Q: Can you tell us about Solstor’s network and partnerships? Partnerships are so important to the business, whether it is a transport company adding to our geographical coverage in Europe, a warehouse increasing the consolidation of load opportunities or a truck partner that provides new, more efficient, trucks. Our service offering to our customers draws from the extensive network of own and partner resources and pulls the right combination every time to provide our customer partners the right quality service at the right price. It is the discussions we have every day with all our partners that help us to continually improve our network and service offering. Our customers are encouraged to share their challenges and together we enhance and optimise the transport flows for our customers. Q: You recently expanded your operations into East Anglia, and we were delighted to play a part in that process. How has that gone for you so far and how do you see Solstor further expanding its presence and reach in the region, but also more widely? The expansion into East Anglia has gone very well. As we grow we want to broaden our operations, grow the trade lanes covered and, as a result of our latest acquisition of McNamara Freight, we are now transporting new products, extended our reach of partners and broadened our customer base resulting in more great people joining our business. It has ticked all the boxes and expanded the range of services we can offer. We have centralised some of the back office functions such as finance and HR, our sales team have the new range of services to promote and we have welcomed the operations team into the Solstor Group. I am personally very excited about being in East Anglia as it brings me back to my roots. I grew up in Lowestoft and my first job was in Suffolk so it’s really exciting to be looking to expand in this area.
This acquisition is a superb stepping stone as we are aware of other great businesses in the area that we would love to work alongside. We are looking to make further acquisitions to help grow our presence and service offering in the area as well. Further afield from East Anglia, we are looking to widen our expansion into the UK manufacturing hotspots and have a presence in those areas. On an international level, we have offices in five countries and looking for that to become seven or eight in the next few years. It really is an exciting time to be part of Solstar! Q: Do you have any words of wisdom for people considering a career in the Transport and Logistics industry? It is a sector which offers great people skills, so if you like working with people it is the sector for you. During lockdown we were classed as key workers providing an essential service which gave a real sense of achievement to our people. I would say there really is something for everyone within the sector due to the breadth of what it offers, from drivers, operations planning, to sales, IT, HR, marketing, data analytic and finance. So if you are thinking about joining a business in the Transport and Logistics sector – I’d definitely recommend it! Q: Finally, how can potential clients get in touch with Solstar? As a business, we want to make it as easy as possible for people to contact us. So we have made it possible via our website www.solstar.com, by emailing: sales@solstar.com, calling our team on 01322 923923 or sending us a message directly on Linkedin. Our team would be happy to hear from you and to discuss how we can help support you.
12 | SCRUTTON BLAND | TRANSPORT AND LOGISTICS
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