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A Stallingborough company is charting a course to business success with the help of three new Mercedes-Benz vans.
Davian Shipping Services specialises in the storage, delivery and collection of hazardous chemicals and gases to and from ports throughout Britain.
Supplied by South Killingholme dealer H&L Garages, the new vans are all Medium-length Mercedes 311CDI chassis cabs. They were fitted with platform bodies by G Broughton & Sons, of Barnetby, Lincolnshire, and light-weight, removable frame-mounted covers by East Coast Marine, of Grimsby.
Davian now operates 10 Sprinters – the latest three were all additions to the fleet – as well as four Ifor Williams trailers.
Established 26 years ago by the late David Holden, whose son Ian is now a co-director with his partner Annette Anderson, the firm operates from a three-acre site on Europa Way.
“These new additions to our fleet will extend our load capacity and enable us to provide an even better service to our customers,” declares Annette Anderson, who says the company is always looking for opportunities to expand.
“As agents for Ashland Chemicals and Marichem Marine, a lot of our work entails the transportation of hazardous chemicals and gases,” she explains. “We are fully registered and safety checked, and all our drivers are ADR-trained for the carriage of dangerous goods to comply with Road Traffic Regulations.
“We have also built up a solid reputation providing efficient, dependable road haulage and contract deliveries for local authorities, as well as providing distribution and warehousing facilities.”
Davian Shipping Services switched to the three-pointed star of Mercedes-Benz in 1998, after its previous vans struggled to cope with the high mileages required. The company now aims to replace its vehicles every three years.
“Our Sprinters average about 300,000 miles without any major problems,” continues Annette. “They are unbeatable in terms of reliability and hold their value a lot better than other makes of van, which means their ‘whole-life’ costs are significantly lower.”
Safety is another important consideration for Davian Shipping Services, which is always conscious of its Duty of Care obligations to employees. The Mercedes Sprinter bristles with active and passive safety aids including the latest Adaptive ESP® stability system, which dynamically monitors a vehicle’s load status.
Like all new retail Sprinters, Davian Shipping Services’ vans came with a free Mercedes-Benz Service Package. Under this, all labour costs, materials and lubricants required in routine servicing will be covered for five years or 60,000 miles, whichever is reached first.
“We have an excellent working relationship with H&L Garages too,” adds Annette. “The dealer’s staff are very professional and they service our vehicles out of hours, which reduces our ‘downtime’.” |
| | | Sprinter The benchmark of its class with superb load space |
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