idrive:
Something very dodgy about kinaxia and their “directors” suddenly appearing with tens of millions in funding. Looks like most of their acquisitions are palletforce members so guess they aim to take over that network ultimately.
As for mark Thompson, 99% of their work is traction for Hermes, arrow etc.
They have units based in our yard and I have given up trying to talk to the drivers, you are lucky to get a grunt in response. If you speak Romanian you will be fine. Multumesc!!
Had an interesting chat with the engineer installing cameras in their cabs the other day though.
idrive:
Something very dodgy about kinaxia and their “directors” suddenly appearing with tens of millions in funding. Looks like most of their acquisitions are palletforce members so guess they aim to take over that network ultimately.
As for mark Thompson, 99% of their work is traction for Hermes, arrow etc.
They have units based in our yard and I have given up trying to talk to the drivers, you are lucky to get a grunt in response. If you speak Romanian you will be fine. Multumesc!!
Had an interesting chat with the engineer installing cameras in their cabs the other day though.
What Palletforce members have they bought?
You can start with Bay Freight, Stalybridge.
Also connected with Kinaxia are William Kirk, Adlington although these are with pallet line. I’ve worked for - and like - both. I hope that the do not disappear into some soulless entity.
Also Kinaxia are AK Worthington, Foulger, Lambert Brothers and others.
Kynszon:
I just want a Trunking job on nights employed for £30k a year and thats it
Employers wont pay top money for the easiest jobs and night trunking has to be one of the easiest. Didn’t Eagerbeaver work for Mark Thompson briefly?
I used to do steel and such to building sites with 3am starts sometimes and much more physical - was offered a fulltime job with a reputable company but would be pushing that even on tramping.
Round here 26K basic seems to be about the norm although if you find a trunking job paying more (PAYE) grab it and don’t tell anyone (obviously except us fellow trunkers who need a pay rise).
I have heard Howdens aren’t bad but it depends how far you want to drive. Also Sports Direct is very good money, but mostly double manning and long days - you need to be able to sleep sitting up.
I’m sure Robroy and Juddian wouldn’t get out of bed for what we make, but they’ve gotten many many years experience so can reap the rewards of driving ERFs and Bedfords.
idrive:
Something very dodgy about kinaxia and their “directors” suddenly appearing with tens of millions in funding. Looks like most of their acquisitions are palletforce members so guess they aim to take over that network ultimately.
As for mark Thompson, 99% of their work is traction for Hermes, arrow etc.
They have units based in our yard and I have given up trying to talk to the drivers, you are lucky to get a grunt in response. If you speak Romanian you will be fine. Multumesc!!
Had an interesting chat with the engineer installing cameras in their cabs the other day though.
What Palletforce members have they bought?
I believe that Bay freight, BC, AKW, Hathaway, Maidens and Cammack are all palletforce and all Kinaxia.
They also have a couple of palletline and palletways in the stable aswell though
Edit: AKW are palletline. I could well be wrong about the rest tbh
Kynszon:
I just want a Trunking job on nights employed for £30k a year and thats it
I’m sure Robroy and Juddian wouldn’t get out of bed for what we make, but they’ve gotten many many years experience so can reap the rewards of driving ERFs and Bedfords.
Woah, i was stuck on general for years too, swapped jobs trying to better myself and worked all hours God sent, but remember those were the days when they didn’t have a ready pool of foreigners prepared to work for peanuts so long as they had a sleeper cab to doss in, so jobs were much easier to come by, at least between the various mini recessions were found ourselves in.
I just happened to grab a lucky break in the 80’s, offered a van driving job on nights which led me onto better things in short order…right place right time and all that.
You need a hell of a lot of luck in this game to get the better jobs, up to a point you can help make your own luck but you still need the odd break or two.
There’s been hiccups along the way, on my first job on car transporters the pay was abysmal, i never was a pet pupil so invariably would get stitched up nearly every Friday afternoon when i’d get a load of renters from somewhere just outside of London into Kings Cross or summat, a job that would add something like 4 hours to my day and if the load was 7 cars, usually the case i’d earn exactly £3.50 for those 4 hours.
What i have learned over those years though, and what has really held me in good stead, is that there are just a few really good jobs out there, and if you find one you do your bloody best to look after it and make it last, and no one knows better than me that it could all still go ■■■■ up tomorrow and i, like any bugger here, could easily be back in a general lorry in a week’s time looking for another break.
The other thing i learned is that as a general driver, they can replace you at a moments notice, so my tip is to specialise as much as you can, in more specialist sectors they can’t replace you at the drop of a hat, and earning yourself a good reputation and reliable trustworthy and discreet makes the world of difference to how desirable you are as driver too, because this industry in any given locality is smaller than you think.
Kynszon:
I just want a Trunking job on nights employed for £30k a year and thats it
Employers wont pay top money for the easiest jobs and night trunking has to be one of the easiest. Didn’t Eagerbeaver work for Mark Thompson briefly?
I used to do steel and such to building sites with 3am starts sometimes and much more physical - was offered a fulltime job with a reputable company but would be pushing that even on tramping.
Round here 26K basic seems to be about the norm although if you find a trunking job paying more (PAYE) grab it and don’t tell anyone (obviously except us fellow trunkers who need a pay rise).
I have heard Howdens aren’t bad but it depends how far you want to drive. Also Sports Direct is very good money, but mostly double manning and long days - you need to be able to sleep sitting up.
I’m sure Robroy and Juddian wouldn’t get out of bed for what we make, but they’ve gotten many many years experience so can reap the rewards of driving ERFs and Bedfords.
You are correct Trev my good man.
Here’s one for you folks… What’s the difference between a dishcloth and a Mark Thompson driver?
Not much really, both a bit yellowy and get rinsed on a regular basis.
trevHCS:
I’m sure Robroy and Juddian wouldn’t get out of bed for what we make,.
Errrr… I can’t speak for Juddian, but don’t run away with the idea I’m on megabucks by any means…cos I aint.
Ok I was when I worked outbased for an Essex co, and later on for the foreign outfits, but then after redundancy I started for a local branch of a firm, in a locality not famous for brilliant wages, so I’m just on the same, or at least similar, ■■■■ poor rate as everyone else mate.
I don’t work for a good firm (in terms of them paying you well and looking after their drivers) but I work for the best of a mediocre bunch in my area, although I have managed by my own doing to get a good little number there that suits me.
Would I go back doing Europe if it was good money?..Nah, all my kids are grown up now, just me and the Mrs, my priority now is quality of (a quiet) working life, and a bloody good social life.
As for Mark Thompsons, …From what I’ve heard , it’s ok.
But only if you’ve a desire to run around like your arse is on fire to make somebody else a lot of money.
No! Don’t listen to all the doom and gloom you always get on here. If your in the market for a new job and you want to give them a try then just go for it and see for yourself. Worst that can happen is it’s not for you then you can leave and move on elsewhere. Look at all the Stobart stories. Some people actually will enjoy working there and find it to be a good job that works well for them (no I don’t work for Stobart and never have).
If you’ve got as far as being offered an interview/assessment you clearly were interested enough to take it that far so just give a shot would be my advice.
Quite.
You set your own stall out when you start a new job, if others fly around like their arse is on fire it doesn’t mean you have to.
Is it just a coincidence that everyone of them flies around then? They burn through drivers at a frightening rate.Id stay at Stobarts meself on hourly pay, until I found a decent job.
Yeah I am going to have to but this is the issue finding a Trunking job on nights…employed
Ive got a trunking job, employed, on nights for a company that’s part of the Kinaxia group…
It can be done [emoji6]
nomiS36:
Never heard of kinaxia! Is that going to be the next XPO that appeared from nowhere and quickly took over everything?
In the olden days it took years for companies such as stobbarts to grow large enough to dominate. These days it seems to happen overnight.
How so?
By uniting several well known and respected family hauliers into a large group, they already own the infrastructure, the vehicles and 3 or 4 hundred years of industry experience. XPO didn’t pop out of nowhere, it was an amalgamation of lots of family owned businesses who joined forces to beat the like of BRS. EXEL. DHL.
Stobart didn’t start like that, he stamped on peoples fingers!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
XPO are massive in America, its not a amalgamation of firms rather one large mega corp that is buying up firms to gain a foothold in the market. Nobert made a fortune selling to them.
XPO Logistics was founded in May 1989 as Express-1 Expedited Solutions by Michael Welch and Keith Avery.[9] In September 2011, it was purchased by American businessman Bradley Jacobs,[10] who became its chairman and CEO. The company changed its name to XPO – a reference to Express-1’s AMEX ticker symbol “XPO”, which had been in use since 2006 – and began acquiring other companies in the transportation and logistics sector.[11][12] In March 2012, XPO Logistics opened a national operations center in Charlotte, N.C. and listed its shares on the New York Stock Exchange in June of the same year.[13] In June 2016, XPO Logistics was included in the Fortune 500 list of the largest U.S. corporations based on revenue and was identified by Fortune as the list’s fastest-growing company the following month.[14][15] It was ranked 180th on the Fortune 500 list in May 2019.[16] Acquisitions XPO Logistics acquired 17 companies between March 2012 and October 2015, with the goal of providing a comprehensive range of transportation and logistics services to customers in a variety of industries, including retail/e-commerce, technology, and aerospace.[17] Five of the acquired companies were recognized as market leaders, with primary operating areas in either North America or Western Europe: 3PD, Inc., last mile logistics for heavy goods (August 2013, North America); Pacer International, Inc., intermodal transportation (March 2014, North America); New Breed Logistics, contract logistics (September 2014, North America); Norbert Dentressangle, contract logistics and truck transportation (June 2015, Europe); and Con-way Inc., less-than-truckload transportation (October 2015, North America).
Kynszon:
I just want a Trunking job on nights employed for £30k a year and thats it!
Our lots got 2 going apparently, they pay just shy of £30k for nights. Not all trunking every night but vast majority is. Easy work to be honest just nights aren’t for me I’ll take the £1k less and plenty of easy overtime on days.
I make around £34k inc overtime( which I do when I want, always been asked beforehand if I want to do any), not overly pushed and for round here I think it’s ok. Suits my needs
Depends where your based as we are easily commutable from Donny
nomiS36:
Never heard of kinaxia! Is that going to be the next XPO that appeared from nowhere and quickly took over everything?
In the olden days it took years for companies such as stobbarts to grow large enough to dominate. These days it seems to happen overnight.
How so?
By uniting several well known and respected family hauliers into a large group, they already own the infrastructure, the vehicles and 3 or 4 hundred years of industry experience. XPO didn’t pop out of nowhere, it was an amalgamation of lots of family owned businesses who joined forces to beat the like of BRS. EXEL. DHL.
Stobart didn’t start like that, he stamped on peoples fingers!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
XPO are massive in America, its not a amalgamation of firms rather one large mega corp that is buying up firms to gain a foothold in the market. Nobert made a fortune selling to them.
XPO Logistics was founded in May 1989 as Express-1 Expedited Solutions by Michael Welch and Keith Avery.[9] In September 2011, it was purchased by American businessman Bradley Jacobs,[10] who became its chairman and CEO. The company changed its name to XPO – a reference to Express-1’s AMEX ticker symbol “XPO”, which had been in use since 2006 – and began acquiring other companies in the transportation and logistics sector.[11][12] In March 2012, XPO Logistics opened a national operations center in Charlotte, N.C. and listed its shares on the New York Stock Exchange in June of the same year.[13] In June 2016, XPO Logistics was included in the Fortune 500 list of the largest U.S. corporations based on revenue and was identified by Fortune as the list’s fastest-growing company the following month.[14][15] It was ranked 180th on the Fortune 500 list in May 2019.[16] Acquisitions XPO Logistics acquired 17 companies between March 2012 and October 2015, with the goal of providing a comprehensive range of transportation and logistics services to customers in a variety of industries, including retail/e-commerce, technology, and aerospace.[17] Five of the acquired companies were recognized as market leaders, with primary operating areas in either North America or Western Europe: 3PD, Inc., last mile logistics for heavy goods (August 2013, North America); Pacer International, Inc., intermodal transportation (March 2014, North America); New Breed Logistics, contract logistics (September 2014, North America); Norbert Dentressangle, contract logistics and truck transportation (June 2015, Europe); and Con-way Inc., less-than-truckload transportation (October 2015, North America).
Kynszon:
I just want a Trunking job on nights employed for £30k a year and thats it!
Our lots got 2 going apparently, they pay just shy of £30k for nights. Not all trunking every night but vast majority is. Easy work to be honest just nights aren’t for me I’ll take the £1k less and plenty of easy overtime on days.
I make around £34k inc overtime( which I do when I want, always been asked beforehand if I want to do any), not overly pushed and for round here I think it’s ok. Suits my needs
Depends where your based as we are easily commutable from Donny
Wheel Nut I think your referring to the company Norbetts bought TDG.
The old TDG was an amalgamation of a lot of smaller companies, especially in Scotland, eg Sutherlands, Inter City, Charles Alexander etc, they all used to run in their own colours until they went corporate colour with different names on the door, then disappearing into TDG, then Norbets and now XPO.
Kynszon:
I just want a Trunking job on nights employed for £30k a year and thats it!
Our lots got 2 going apparently, they pay just shy of £30k for nights. Not all trunking every night but vast majority is. Easy work to be honest just nights aren’t for me I’ll take the £1k less and plenty of easy overtime on days.
I make around £34k inc overtime( which I do when I want, always been asked beforehand if I want to do any), not overly pushed and for round here I think it’s ok. Suits my needs
Depends where your based as we are easily commutable from Donny
Kynszon:
I just want a Trunking job on nights employed for £30k a year and thats it!
Our lots got 2 going apparently, they pay just shy of £30k for nights. Not all trunking every night but vast majority is. Easy work to be honest just nights aren’t for me I’ll take the £1k less and plenty of easy overtime on days.
I make around £34k inc overtime( which I do when I want, always been asked beforehand if I want to do any), not overly pushed and for round here I think it’s ok. Suits my needs
Depends where your based as we are easily commutable from Donny
There are jobs about if you look around [emoji6]
Its too far I live in Bolsover near Chesterfield but thanks
Sixties boy:
Wheel Nut I think your referring to the company Norbetts bought TDG.
The old TDG was an amalgamation of a lot of smaller companies, especially in Scotland, eg Sutherlands, Inter City, Charles Alexander etc, they all used to run in their own colours until they went corporate colour with different names on the door, then disappearing into TDG, then Norbets and now XPO.
The boy Norbert worked for his father in France, he began by buying up 26 local French Hauliers, he was buying bits of TDG in France. Darfuoille (sic) Savam BET United, local wine hauliers, chemical hauliers, he had a major fight with Transports Giraud who ended up with Samat and Charles Andre in their camp to stop him. ACH and Sheddicks came next, then TDG UK. It was actually Norbert Dentressangle who made the first inroads into the US of A when he bought Jacobsen from Des Moines Iowa. That spurred XPO into action to take him over before they were eaten.
Errrr… I can’t speak for Juddian, but don’t run away with the idea I’m on megabucks by any means…cos I aint.
