Spooky

In the last post, I mentioned a regular run we do to Cornwall. I've never been lucky enough to get this, but no sooner do I mention it on here, it comes my way. Better yet, it was an amalgamation of two separate runs - one load of quilts, always 3 drops, and one load of envelopes to Redruth. For some reason, there were only five pallets of envelopes, so they were tucked onto the back of the quilts.





Anyway, let's keep things in the correct order. The Port Of Tyne are a very inclusive employer, very keen on keeping it's employees in the loop. So, over the course of the last week, every employee had to attend an "insight briefing" with the Port's management. All very noble, but very, very boring. As a result, it was 3 p.m. on Monday before I was able to get away. Had to top out the trailer on the way, and made it as far as Leicester on Monday night.





Started at five on Tuesday, and reached my first delivery in Newton Abott By eleven. Fairly easy to find, so I was on my again within half an hour. I had to run straight to Redruth, as I had to be there before two, then down to Falmouth where I spent the night, pictured below.

The following morning took me to Liskeard, where I got rid of the last of my quilts, and after checking with the office, I made my way to one of Cornwalls many clay pits and collected a full load of bagged clay for delivery to Worksop on Thursday morning. Dragging a full load over the steep hills of Cornwall is hard work, but cruise control and an automatic gearbox means I can sit back and let the truck do all the work.

Git rid of my clay early on Thursday morning and ran to Bradford and collected a load of steel wire for Newcastle. Delivered it, and went home.

Friday was spent on local work, running around the north-east, then an early finish for a long weekend - result!

I'm back

Well, hello again.

Don't ask me why, but I've had a sudden urge to start blogging again. I don't know how often I'll post, or how long it'll carry on, but here goes.

Still at the Port Of Tyne, and loving it. The little glitch about working Saturday was sorted out, and I've only worked two since. In the pay review earlier this year we got a rise, a profit share scheme and full sick pay, all of which helps to make it one of the best jobs in the area. When I started I was a floating driver, driving other peoples truck's when the were on holiday or on the sick, until a vehicle becomes free. Just before Christmas, I was licky enough to be handed the keys to a brand new truck, A MAN TGX with the top of the range XXL cab

The picture is of me delivering printing to the DVLA in Swansea. Printed products and envelopes make up a large portion of what we deliver, and baby products, tea and bedding are regular out-bound loads. We'll backload anything we can - beer, plaster-board, food, cardboard - you name it. We cover the entire country and our furthest regular drop is Redruth, which is about as far as you get before you fall into the ocean.

Surprisingly, we don't carry the sort of things you'd expect from a port. Bulk paper, timber and powders are rarely seen, because, although we are a division of the Port Of Tyne, we are a stand-alone company in our own right. We are responsible for getting our own work, and all of our contracts are with companies outside the port. Only the container division does work from the docks.

I should have known better....

....because the first cracks have appeared in the shiny facade of the Port Of Tyne. Nothing major, just little things, but I know from experience that little cracks can grow into big crevices. For instance, I was told that Saturday mornings would be "running in" only, yet last week I ended up loading a trailer for Monday. So, in order to clear the air and find out exactly what's what, I had a discussion with the Transport Manager, which the politicians would describe as a "full and frank exchange of views". It worked out exactly as I planned and we all know where we stand, so now I'm happy once again.

So, 4 weeks in.....

.....and it's going well. It's all fairly routine stuff, but well organised, and well run. For instance, there has always been a backload the moment I'm ready - none of this "ring back in an hour, and we might have something for you" rubbish. We have an office staff of about 12 for about 40 vehicles, so nobody in the office is over-loaded with work. Four of these are in direct control of the vehicles - one supervisor, one for planning and allocation, one for backloads and one for local work. The rest are for admin, driver training, HR and other bits and bobs. On the subject of driver training, Port Of Tyne are taking care of all aspects of the Driver CPC, so that saves me some money and hassle.

One thing I'm very impressed with is the network of friendly companies that allow us to use their yards for trailer swaps. If you're heading back with a load and run out of time, they might direct you to a local company, where you will drop your trailer, then go and park up for the night. During the night, a night-shift driver will bring a loaded trailer down from the port, swap it for yours, then go back. Next morning, you pick up the new trailer, and head off back down the road. This means that although the vehicles stop moving because we have to sleep in them, the loads can keep moving, thus getting more revenue from the fleet.

Last week was a fairly typical one for me. Started early on Monday, for deliveries in Blackpool, Leyland, Oldham and Cheadle. Then down to a farm in Cheshire for a load of potatoes back to the North-East. I spent the night at Lymm, and delivered them next morning to the KP Crisps factory in Billingham. I spent the rest of the day on locals, and was home Tuesday night. On Wednesday morning I loaded from Sunderland, and tipped in Liverpool. I back-loaded from about half a mile away, and went to Heywood for the night. During the night, a driver tipped a load in Manchester, then left me his empty trailer, taking mine back with him. On Thursday morning, I loaded again and headed back to Darlington. From there to Washington to pick up a double decker loaded with envelopes and ran down to Leicester. I made and early start on Friday, delivered part of the load in Leicester and the rest to Milton Keynes. It's harder to find return loads for the double deckers, as they can't be loaded through the back doors, so I had to hustle on over to Wolverhampton for mine. Fought my way back, through the Friday evening traffic, to the port. Finished late, but it's better than working Saturday!

Hello again....

....sorry it's been so long, but I've been a busy little bee.



So what's been happening? Well, David Fox Transport have had to struggle along without me, as a difference of opinion over working on Saturdays led to a parting of the ways. To be honest, it was no great wrench, as I knew from the day I started that we weren't best suited, and that I wouldn't last long.



So, after discussing it with the family, I decided I wouldn't take another job until a good one came along. This appeared a few months ago, and after a long and rigorous selection process, which included apptitude tests, driving assesment, medical and criminal record checks, I started work for the Port Of Tyne (http://www.portoftyne.co.uk/). Well regarded in the North East as a good employer, they offer above average wages, generous holidays, good pension and brand new vehicles. The work is UK-wide, Monday - Friday general haulage in using curtainsided trailers.

I've been there for 3 weeks, and so far, the experience has been pretty positive, but, as always, time will tell.

On and on we go....

...bouncing around the country like some kind of demented pin-ball. The last three weeks have been nuch the same as all the others, loads including paper, timber, fencing, plastic granuals, steel and soup, all delivered with my usual style and panache.

Most of it was pretty mundane, but one trip was something new for me. I took 25 tonnes of copper to the Royal Mint in South Wales to be turned into coins. Security was high, as you can imagine, and provided by police officers rather than security guards. I was expecting something grand and stylish, but it's really just a big factory on an industrial estate. Once inside, I was allowed to use the "facilities", which meant I could walk through the Mint un-escorted, though I was assured I'd be watched on camera EVERY step of the way. Well, there was money everywhere, lying on the floor, piled up in bins, coins of all denominations. I asked one guy about a bin full of £2 coins, and he said it was about £50,000 worth, but all of it was NBG (no bloody good) as the silver bit in the middle wasn't right. He said it would all be melted back down, but not re-used. I understood why I had to leave all my coins in a locked box at the gatehouse, so if I came out with any coins in my pocket, they'd know I came by them by nefarious means.

Looking across the Humber Estuary

Fencing for B&Q

Unloading paper. Each reel is 8 miles long

Same shit, different day...

...seems to sum up life at the moment. I shouldn't complain, because I was lucky to find any job at the moment, but sometimes I wonder why I bother working silly hours for piss-poor pay, for a guy who really doesn't give a toss about me or my life.

Anyway, The truck was up for MOT on Monday. The MOT (Ministry of Transport) test is the Government run safety test that all vehicles and trailers on the UK roads must pass every year. I didn't get my truck back until 10:30, then I did a quick local job with a flat trailer, then down to the Asda Import Centre in Teesport, where I picked up a double decker loaded for the Asda Ambient Distribution Centre at Lutterworth, Leicestershire. Unloaded there, and parked up at 6 p.m.

Started a 5 a.m. on Tuesday to be at Corus in Leeds by 8. A curtainsider loaded with pickled sheet (don't ask) waited there, so I threw over some straps and off I went. 4 easy deliveries in Leeds, Halifax, Castleford and Pontefract, then off to Immingham Docks for a load of aluminium ingots. As a load like this is worth about £50,000, I dedcided to leave the trailer safely locked up in the port, and spend the night in Immingham.

I started again at 6, and made my way to Walsall, Birmingham to deliver my precious cargo. From there I made my way to Cott Beverages, Kegworth, Nottingham and collected 26 pallets of fizzy drinks for Asda, and headed home for the night.

These were delivered to the Asda ADC in Washington, Tyne & Wear, on Thursday morning. After this, I returned to the yard and collected a loaded cabriolet trailer. A "cab" is a steel carrying trailer with a sliding canopy, which makes loading and unloading very quick. This one was loaded with 2 coils, sitting in the well, which makes the trailer very stable as the centre of gravity is so low. These went to a factory making radiators in Mexborough, near Doncaster. From there, it's a short hop back to Corus Leeds for more steel, this time bound for Scarborough on the North Yorkshire coast.

After this, on Friday morning, I ran back up to base, then into Teesport for another load to Asda Lutterworth. They took some time unloading, then I went back to Cott for more fizzy drinks, again bound for Washington. By this time, it was becoming increasingly obvious that I wasn't going to make it home on Friday night (BUGGER!!) so rather than sit in Fridays evening rush on the M1, I parked up early in Nottingham.

Saturday morning, bright and early, I ran up to Washington, tipped, then across to GKN Chep in Spennymoor and filled my trailer with empty "blues". I left this at the KP Crisp factory in Billingham, Cleveland for them to unload when they could be bothered, and legged it back to the yard, did my timesheets, and went home for some R'n'R.

Steel coils in the well.


The big coil at the front was 16,000 kgs, and the smaller
one behind 9,000 kgs. The canopy slides to the front or
back, so you can load right down the deck.


Lovely Immingham docks.