A burgeoning regional Victorian business is driving its growth with the aid of 10 Scania trucks, some of which are racking up 1300km per day and returning significant fuel efficiency gains along the way.
Gouge Linen and Garment Services started life in the 1940s as a dry-cleaning business in Shepparton, northern Victoria. Owned by the Priestly family since the 1980s, the business has two distinct elements, a dry-cleaning business and a commercial laundry.
The laundry focuses on collecting and delivering linen for accommodation and healthcare customers, as well as cleaning industrial workwear for a wide range of clients.
The company’s fleet of vehicles is constantly on the move, travelling the equivalent of 15 laps of Australia each month.
The main laundry in Mooroopna, near Shepparton, is now being augmented by a new, purpose-built laundry in Geelong which is twice the size of Mooroopna and underscores the business’ plans for growth over the medium term.
A 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,” says John Calleja, Chief Executive Officer of Gouge Linen and Garment Services.
“We pretty much go to every town in Victoria, so we have an extensive range and footprint. We service around 1300 customers, ranging from a 20-bed hotel up to 1100-room premium hotels in central Melbourne.”
Gouge is also active with small aged-care homes up to major hospitals in Melbourne and regionally, and its uniform business launders around 55,000 garments per week.
“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,” John adds.
“We’ve got an unwavering focus on three key areas; the quality of the linen and uniforms we provide, our customers receive what they order every time, complimented with great customer service.”
The new facility in Geelong can produce the equivalent volume of Mooroopna, but eventually it will be almost double that capacity. Across the company Gouge has 500 employees and 52 trucks, of which 10 are Scanias, two prime movers and eight rigids.
The trucks comprise 420 P and 460 G prime movers, and a mix of 280, 320 and 360hp rigids in 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.
“The Scania trucks have been on the fleet only a short while,” says Damian Marston, General Manager of Logistics, who has been in the company for two years.
“I have a strong warehousing background, but fleet was new to me. It has the same KPIs and cost level triggers. I looked at our trucks and our maintenance program and focused in on that. We went to tender and met Roger Lake, Scania’s Account Manager, and he has been sensational from the start, very transparent and accommodating with us.
“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.”
John says it’s important for the company to know its drivers are in good quality, safe trucks.
“We want them to be comfortable. They do a hard job; they’re moving trolleys around for us. So, we want to provide them a good tool of trade.
“Safety is a daily conversation in our business. 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. On the safety side, driving a Scania provides superior safety features, visibility in the trucks, along with the side and turning cameras.”
“When we went out to tender, the Scanias had a higher level of safety spec, which also helps attract drivers. They’re living in the truck most of the day.”
Damian says their drivers also like the Scania in-dash driver support system that scores their driving style.
“They bring it up in their toolbox meetings, proud of their scores, they’ve taken photos on their phones of the dash with their performance. It drives a healthy level of competition, and they are optimising their performance and driving with a positive attitude.
“Scania supports our drivers through this and with Scania Driver Training. It separates Scania from the rivals that we also work with that the Scania training is available. 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.”
Damian says the cost-saving on fuel, travelling as far as the fleet does, is also a contributing factor to their choice of truck – some of the Scanias are doing around 1300km a day, with two shifts.
“Both the outward and return journeys see the trucks fully loaded, so the fuel savings really add up,” he says.
John is also impressed with the corresponding environmental benefits the Scanias offer.
“This is important to us as a business. The distances we cover being a regional business makes electric trucks a challenge. That technology’s not right for us, yet. So, having Scanias that are really fuel efficient is an important thing for us,” John says.
The company’s goal is that that fleet will continue to grow, and Scania will be part of that growth.
“Some of the hospitals allow for a bigger delivery vehicle, but we do need a mixed fleet because the accessibility constraints, but we’re keen to maximise the fuel efficiency benefits of the Scanias. That’s where our biggest bang for buck’s is going to be over the term,” Damian says.
“The Scania warranty and parts availability is also critical for us. There are some trucks in the market that don’t keep enough stock locally. The reality is you can’t afford a truck to be off the road for waiting for parts. The Scania dealer network is good and there’s a dealer down in Geelong, so that came into play as well.”
John says he also likes the Scania Fleet Monitoring tools.
“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. And that’s really what’s driven our investment in the Scania fleet. 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.”