Business thriving at MML Contracts Ltd
06/10/2022
Operating out of Dungannon, Co Tyrone, MML Contracts Ltd is a haulage specialist operating with four Scania trucks and seven trailers in its fleet, covering all of Ireland and the UK. Irish Trucker spoke with company co-director Marty McGlone to learn all about the business – from its origins to what it has going on today.
These are busy times for MML Contracts Ltd – even with all the challenges out there at present for haulage companies – and the plan for directors Mark McLaughlin and Marty McGlone is to try and keep busy right through to 2023.
The two men formed the business in 2010 with the intention of establishing a haulage firm which delivers an excellent service for its clients and can be relied upon every time.
Today, MML Contracts Ltd is a business which is seemingly flourishing in the face of challenging times that the Covid-19 pandemic presented it over the past 24 months.
Irish Trucker touched base with Marty McGlone recently to find out all about the ins and outs of this Co Tyrone-based company and its hopes for the months ahead.
“The company is established 12 years and right now we have six full-time staff working here,” he outlined.
“The core of our business would be the two major trailer men that we have here beside us – JPM Trailers and Nugent Trailers.
“We deliver for both of them throughout Ireland and the UK and we also deliver for Kevin Woods Machinery in Ballybriggan and Rudd Mix in Pomeroy here in Tyrone.”
It all makes for busy times for MML Contracts Ltd, with the biggest challenge at the moment for the company obviously being the rising cost in fuel.
Its deliveries for JPM Trailers and Nugent Trailers alone see the company with seven to eight loads a week going over to the UK.
Busy times indeed and it’s all a far cry from where Marty McGlone started out in the haulage game.
“I would have started 30 years ago and drove for several companies and been in haulage all of my days.
“Diesel is in my blood, as they say, and always will be. Only problem is that it’s up 30 per cent from last October,” the co-director laughed.
Nonetheless, business is thriving even with the current high cost of diesel.
MML Contracts Ltd’s trucks are on the road week in, week out as the demand for the company’s service is at an all-time high, according to Marty.
“We’ve got extremely busy from the start of the pandemic,” he stated.
“We did have a quiet spell just when it started in March 2020 but once we opened again, after a couple of weeks it, it went back at it full tilt and we’ve been very busy ever since.
“It seems in the UK that they cannot get the stuff out quick enough at the moment.”
It takes the right trucks to get the job done and MML Haulage put their trust in the Scania brand when it comes its work.
With the latest addition to the fleet being made at the end of last year, the company’s trucks are on the road week in, week out for its clients and MML also uses subcontractors in order to meet the high demand.
“Right now, we’re operating with four Scanias and in the trailer department we have five low loaders and two flat beds,” said Marty.
“We stick with Scania here because of the good service and the fact that they have good resale value as well.
“The last one we picked up here would’ve been a 2018 S500 that we bought in December from A&M Commercials, dealing with Mickey McNally.”
Don’t be surprised to see to see another addition or two being made to MML Contracts’ fleet in the near future, with the workload currently at an all-time high for the Dungannon-based business.
All of that considered, the burning question is what has been the secret to success for the company over the past dozen years?
How has a small start-up grown into a thriving haulage business which is averaging deliveries over the UK for every day of the week.
According to Marty, experience and reliability is something which the company’s customers appreciate when it comes to their choice of haulage contractor.
“We have good experience and it’s not every man that you can get to put on the loads that we deliver,” he outlined.
“Sometimes the experience has to be paid for and we do provide a good service and go the extra mile for our clients as well.
“We could do with an extra driver here at the moment, but it’s so hard to get good drivers right now.
“Hopefully, we’ll be able to get one soon though as we’re extremely busy as things stand.”
Looking towards the coming months, the co-director hopes that the busy times can continue for MML Contracts Ltd.
Like any haulage firm, diesel and machinery prices are the premier challenges for the company and, if they can come through it, Marty sees a bright future ahead for the business.
“We can see the next few months being busy again. The only thing is the price of fuel and the price of vehicles too. It’s creeping up all the time as well.
“If we can ride out the fuel crisis, we can see it staying fairly busy for the foreseeable,” he concluded.
Great to hear.
MML Contracts
140 A Gortlenaghan Road,
Galbally,
Dungannon,
Co Tyrone
Tel: +44 7799 335 966
First published in Irish Trucker magazine Vol 25 No 4, August/September 2022
