Transporting foodstuffs at Carmagn with the Actros
Economics & Logistics
The Actros vehicles used by Carmagn in Apulia cover 200,000 kilometres each year transporting fresh produce over the Alps. A task which is only possible with a two-person crew.
Black and white. Alongside the black “Brutale” model, Carmagn now also has nine new, white Actros 1845 models in operation.
International transport from Apulia to central Europe is very demanding, both in terms of the mileage covered and the length of time the driver spends behind the wheel. It's enough to know that the distance from Bari to the Italian border in Brenner alone corresponds to a thousand kilometres of motorway driving. The subsequent journey to the Benelux countries is as far again. That means that a tractor unit is only capable of making one return journey per week. With this trip, the company has to make sure that all of the costs are covered and that the company is making a profit. Perfect organisation and cost control are thus the two deciding factors in staying ahead in this market.
The Mallardi family from Sant'Eramo in Colle, a town in the province
of Bari, has been successfully operating in this business since 1971 –
with organisation and costs under control. Right from the very start,
Andrea Mallardi has always covered plenty of kilometres, notably in
transporting agricultural produce from Apulia to the northern Italian
fruit markets. As early as 1974, he purchased his first refrigerated
body allowing him to increase the range of products transported to
include all produce which required a controlled temperature. Among
those products were hung meat which would later become a staple
transport job in which the company from Apulia would specialise. With
son Nunzio entering the company, the perspectives were broadened. Thus
the Carmagn company came into existence. It currently runs a fleet of
45 tractor units and 70 semitrailers.
Carmagn has 90 employees and most of those are drivers. The company has two drivers in each tractor unit improving productivity and punctuality on long tours.
Beautiful and strong. Andrea Mallardi opted for the Actros 1863 Brutale with fine chrome components and 463 kW output – as a flagship for Carmagn.
Even the operating radius of the trucks has increased in size – each week, they drive to Germany, France, Great Britain, Belgium and the Netherlands. “We set out fully laden with typical seasonal produce from the south of Italy”, explains Mallardi. The range of products is just as diverse as the palette of agricultural products available: grapes, chichory, turnips, onions, artichokes, fennel, salad and other specialties which are destined for shelves north of the Alps. "We load the vehicles directly at the producers or at collection points and deliver them to wholesale markets or logistics platforms belonging to the distributor chains", explains the entrepreneur. The trucks then return with other foodstuffs and often with hung meat.
“Transporting such a broad range of produce requires keeping a particularly attentive eye on hygiene and the maintenance of a constant temperature in the cargo areas”, says Mallardi. “Our customers stringently and regularly check these two points using both the printout of the temperature records and by means of a bacteria probe on the inner walls of the semitrailer. That's why, after each transport job, we test the correct function of the cooling system and also completely sterilise the interior of the vehicle.”
In view of the duration of the journeys, Carmagn has to ensure that
the capacity of the trucks is used in the best possible way. For this
reason, we tend to use two drivers on most of the international tours.
Economically speaking, this is, of course, a fairly expensive
solution, but, for the sake of speed and punctuality, it is
necessary.
“We mostly transport fruit, veg and fresh meat”, explains Mallardi. “These products must arrive in the shops within the space of just a few days after harvesting or slaughter, but before that can happen, they need to cross the whole of Europe. A delay of just a few hours leads to problems in the entire supply chain. This means that the trucks need to drive with as few interruptions as possible. And the only way of sticking to the rules for driving and rest times is by having two drivers in the cab.” In this way, each of Carmagn's vehicles can complete one full, long journey per week: “They leave on Saturday and, depending on the destination, arrive back here on either Wednesday or Thursday. After that, the drivers can relax until Saturday before starting a new tour.”
Organised in this way, each tractor unit covers up to 200,000
kilometres per year. That means we need to choose vehicles which are
very reliable and which can also be replaced at short notice. “If
we're delivering a supply of artichokes or hung meat, we can't afford
to be held up due to a breakdown en route”, tells Mallardi. “That's
why we only use the best brands and we replace our vehicles every four
years.”
When looking for the best truck, the entrepreneur from Apulia came across the Actros and now he has ten vehicles of the latest generation in his fleet: nine white 1845 models and one black, chromed “1863 Brutale” model, one of the first to be delivered in Italy. This special model is an advert for the OM 473 engine with 460 kW output.
“I wanted the Brutale as a sort of flagship for the company. It really stands out with its shiny finish”, explains Mallardi. “The company's first Mercedes was acquired in 1988 and since then, I really value the quality and reliability of the brand. The Actros is also the model which, throughout its entire history, has always offered the best technological innovations and this continues until today. For example, the PPC system fitted in all of the new vehicles which we've procured.”
After nearly a year of intensive operations, Mallardi is particularly happy with the one figure he sees as the most decisive factor for a commercial vehicle: the diesel consumption. “The Actros has the lowest consumption of all the models in our fleet, registering an average of 3.5 kilometres per litre. A top result when you bear in mind that the vehicles drive fully laden through mountainous regions.”
Photos: Michele Latorre
Contact
Nunzio Mallardi, Carmagn Srl
Tel. no.: +39/0803032751
Email: amministrazione@carmagn.it
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