Scania has come clean that its trucks are helping the growth of one of regional Victoria’s leading linen and garment cleaners, based in Shepparton
The fleet of ten Scania trucks, some of which are logging 1300 km per day and returning significant fuel efficiency gains along the way are part of the fleet operated by Gouge Linen and Garment Services, which started in the 1940s as a dry-cleaning business in Shepparton.
The business has two distinct elements, a dry-cleaning business and a commercial laundry and has been owned by the Priestly family since the 1980s.
The company’s fleet of vehicles is constantly on the move, travelling the equivalent of fifteen laps of Australia each month with the laundry focusing on collecting and delivering linen for accommodation and healthcare customers, as well as cleaning industrial workwear for a wide range of clients.
The main laundry in Mooroopna, near Shepparton, has now been supplemented by a new, purpose-built laundry in Geelong, which is twice the size of Mooroopna and underscores the plans for growth over the medium term.
The dry-cleaning and uniform cleaning operation based in Niddrie, in the northern suburbs of Melbourne is also part of the business.
“We cover all of Victoria and southern New South Wales,” said chief executive officer of Gouge Linen and Garment Services, John Calleja.
“We pretty much go to every town in Victoria, so we have an extensive range and footprint, servicing around 1,300 customers from a small 20-bed hotel to an 1100-room premium hotelsin central Melbourne,” he said.
“We have been in a growth phase over a long period, and in Mooroopna, we’ve been close to capacity. That drove the need to create more
space in a purpose built, highly automated laundry plant.
“Across the company we have 500 employees and 52 trucks, of which 10 are Scanias, two prime movers and eight rigids,” Calleja said
The company’s Scanias include 420 P and 460 G prime movers, and a mix of 280, 320 and 360 hp rigids in both 4×2 or 6×2 configurations.
In addition to the three sites in Mooroopna, Niddrie and Geelong, there are satellite distribution sites in Bendigo, Ballarat and metro Melbourne, that receive bulk linen from the cleaning facilities.
General manager of logistics, Damian Marston has been with Gouge for two and said the Scania trucks have been only on the fleet for a short while
“I have a strong warehousing background, but fleet was new to me, however it has the same KPIs and cost level triggers,” Marston said.
“I looked at our trucks and our maintenance program and focused in on that when we went to tender and met Scania’s account manager, Roger Lake.
“He has been sensational from the start, very transparent and accommodating with us,” said Marston.
“When we had agreed on pricing, there was a wait on supply, but Roger found us some trucks that had become available, so we went ahead.
“The relationship between Scania and the bodybuilders made it pretty easy, too,” he said.
“It is important for us for our drivers to be in good quality, safe trucks,” Calleja said.
“We want them to be comfortable, because they do a hard job; they’re moving trolleys around for us and so on, and so we want to provide them a good tool of trade, and as an organisation we’re really keen to drive efficiencies through the business,” he added.
“I still remember when Damian told me the fuel efficiency the Scanias would be getting, and I said that would be awesome but prove it,” Calleja added.
“Scania loaned us a truck for a demonstration, and they delivered what they promised. So Scanias have proven to be efficient, safe and comfortable,” he said.
Marston said that the cost saving on fuel, traveling the distances the fleet does is a contributing factor,” Marston said
Some of the Scanias are doing around 1300 km a day, with two shifts, fully loaded on both the outward and return journeys so the fuel savings really add up.”
“In concert with the fuel efficiency, there’s the environmental benefits,” Marston said.
“This is important to us as a business because the distances we cover being a regional business make electric trucks a challenge,” he said.
“That technology’s not right for us, yet, so, having Scanias that are really fuel efficient is an important thing for us,” Marston emphasised.
“Safety is a daily conversation in our business, and we’ve got to focus on it all through the day.
It’s fair to say we’ve improved our fleet with the acquisition of the Scanias, because on the safety side, driving a Scania provides superior safety features, visibility in the trucks, along with the side and turning camera,” Marston said.
“When we went out to tender, the Scanias had a higher level of safety spec, which also helps attract drivers,” he said.
“They’re living in the truck most of the day and they like the Scania in-dash driver support system that scores their driving style.
“The drivers bring it up in their toolbox meetings, because they are proud of their scores, in fact they’ve actually taken photos of the dash showing their performance
“That drives a healthy level of competition, and they are optimising their performance and driving with a positive attitude,” Marston said.
“Scania supports our drivers through this and with Scania Driver Training and that separates Scania from its rivals,” he said.
‘It just rounds out the package; the drivers have a comfortable truck, a safe truck, and they get real live feedback on how they’re driving the truck,” Marston said.
The company says that its goal is that that fleet will continue to grow, and Scania will be part of that growth, apart from smaller trucks that Scania doesn’t offer, which Gouge has an ongoing need for to deliver smaller loads to some customers with restricted access.
Gouge Linen drivers Brendan Everest-and Tony Carter.
“Some of the hospitals allow for a bigger delivery vehicle, but we do need a mixed fleet because of accessibility constraints, but we’re keen to maximise the fuel efficiency benefits of the Scanias which is where we will get our biggest bang for the bucks over the term,” Marston said.
Marston said that the Scania warranty and parts availability is also critical for Gouge.
“There are some trucks in the market that don’t keep enough stock locally, and the reality is you can’t afford a truck to be off the road for waiting for parts, so the Scania dealer network is good,” he said.
There’s a Scania dealer down in Geelong, so that came into play as well,” Marston added..
Gouge is also active with laundry services from small aged-care homes right up to major hospitals in Melbourne and across the regions, and its uniform business launders around 55,000 garments per week.
“The uniforms range from mechanics overalls to pharmaceutical, food manufacturing and abattoirs, as well as front-of-house uniforms for hospitality.
“We do like the Scania Fleet Monitoring tools and we’re looking at the maintenance costs we’re incurring and comparing against the kilometres and the age of the vehicle and the fuel efficiency, ” said Calleja.
“That’s really what’s driven our investment in the Scania fleet, because I’m an accountant, so it’s really simple for me, if the numbers stack up and I’ve got a truck that’s better for our drivers, safer for our drivers, then that’s a great outcome,” Calleja concluded.
