For over 100 years, the Bearfield family has specialized in the processing and distribution of high quality hams, gammon, gammon steaks, bacon, and other specialty pork products. The business has been in the same family for five generations, using the principles of service and quality to set themselves apart from the competition. They now own and operate three fully licensed factories, each specifically designed for their tasks with the latest technological innovations. Bearfield’s is also approved for exporting their products. Headquartered in London, they service the entire UK region. This article is for Premium Members only. Please login below to read the rest of this article.
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Situation
Bearfield’s wanted to expand their services by offering same day delivery of their ham and gammon products. Though their facilities were state of the art, the fork lifts used in their outdoor lot to load the trucks were constantly exposed to water and brine, leading to premature corrosion. The corrosion was interfering with the reliability of the fork lifts, often causing delays in filing orders and making on time deliveries.
Since it was so important to Bearfield’s to be able to make same day deliveries to their customers, it was crucial for them to have reliable, dependable fork lifts. Their supplier at the time was simply not meeting their needs in terms of providing reliable transportation and backing it up with high quality service and maintenance.
Approach
Bearfield’s contacted BT, which analyzed the situation. Since the company needed a fork lift which was capable of operating in a congested area with confined spaces, as well as one which could stand up to the environmental issues at the facility which were causing excessive corrosion, they recommended a Cargo CBD 1.8 four-wheel counterbalance truck. This truck was recommended because it came standard with anti corrosion treatment, and it was capable of working with the company’s existing fleet of trucks and other vehicles.
The vehicle was equipped with standard anti-corrosion specs, but BT modified it even further to help make it reliable under any operating conditions. Front mud flaps were added to help protect the front axle and parts. The unit was coated with epoxy paint in a two part process. Then, all the fittings were coated with zinc and pins were plated with chrome. Micro switches were water sealed to keep water and brine out of the electronic components. Finally, a protective underplate was installed below the engine compartment to keep water out.
Impact
Bearfields was pleased with the new fork lift, primarily because it was backed by a much better service and maintenance contract agreement. The new vehicle was more reliable, which allowed the pork product supplier to increase productivity at the facility. Workers were able to keep working for longer periods of time without having to stop to fix the fork lift. Most important, the more reliable vehicle allowed Bearfield’s to make the transition to same day delivery, which improved their level of customer service. Bearfield’s plans to stay with BT for their future needs when it comes to work vehicle needs. [/show_to]
