Exacompta truck drivers use cashless payment

The historically protected building designed by Gustave Eiffel on Canal Saint Martin in the middle of the 10th arrondisement in Paris houses one of the French capital’s last factories. It is here that the company Exacompta produces diaries and other stationery such as files, folders, signature books, plastic pockets and even cash register rolls, to mention just a few of the items in its extensive product portfolio. Every day, ten to twelve artics arrive loaded with paper rolls or other basic materials. At the same time, 200 to 300 pallets of finished products leave the facility.

The company has more than 3 000 employees worldwide and runs its own fleet in Paris, consisting of three artics and three distribution vehicles. All traffic operations at Canal Saint Martin are managed by a single person: Bernard Brouck. He is Head of Purchasing at the Paris plant and also responsible for inventory management. “I can only allot 10% of my time to scheduling and fleet management. So everything needs to be organised as simply as possible.”

This is why Brouck has hired the vehicles via CharterWay. The maintenance, repair, technical approval and resale of the Actros 1843s and Antos 1824s therefore are not his problem. If a vehicle should break down, CharterWay immediately provides a replacement. The MercedesServiceCard means further relief for him. The drivers, for example, use the vehicle-related MercedesServiceCard to refuel at over 2 700 petrol stations in France.

As the Exacompta vehicles mainly operate on round trips to the large fully automated warehouse with 30 000 pallet slots in Vémars north of Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport, they have to use a section of the A1 motorway for which there is a toll charge. So Bernard Brouck is glad that the toll charges are paid via the MultiBox of the MercedesServiceCard.

The fleet manager was convinced by even more advantages: the use of the Full Select Card, for example, can be limited to certain days and times of the day. This minimises possibilities of misuse, for example, in the event of unnoticed loss. “Our cards don’t work between 4.30 p.m. and 7 a.m. and on weekends.”

Additionally, thanks to the MercedesServiceCard, the company is not charged value added tax when refuelling in France. The monthly invoicing service substantially reduces Bernard Brouck’s administrative and control workload. FleetBoard’s telematics system also contributes here.

The frugality of the Euro VI engines was just one of the reasons for the decision in favour of Mercedes-Benz: “Our idea was that the image of our company group should be mirrored in the good image of our vehicles. And we needed services like those offered by the MercedesServiceCard that simplify day-to-day business. Mercedes-Benz meets both requirements!,” says Bernard Brouck.

Photos: Hans Müller

* MercedesServiceCard is not applicable to the UK market.