Longwood Transport opens new warehouse facility
23/07/2024
There are exciting times for international transport and logistics specialist Longwood Transport Ltd which recently opened a new storage facility with a 6,000-pallet capacity in Enfield, Co. Meath.
The purpose-built, state-of-the-art, secure warehouse in Enfield Business Park on the Trim Road services the needs of existing clients of the family-run business. It can cater for and store everything from a carton of personal effects to a 12-tonne pallet. Longwood Transport is currently handling a large amount of specialist steel coming from Asia as well as cars from Japan and timber products from China to name but a few.
The warehouse is fully equipped with a variety of forklifts with a lifting capacity of up to eight tonnes. It also houses an overhead gantry crane with a lifting capacity of 12.5 tonnes. While the company has capacity for standard palletised cargo, it specialises mainly in taking bulky or heavy material from shipping containers, storing it and delivering it to clients in a configuration they can handle.
“We could always ‘lift it and shift it’, but now we can ‘store it’ too,” says Cathal Byrne, who runs Longwood Transport along with his wife Tracey.
“We relocated last year from Longwood to nearby Enfield which is strategically located on the M4 Motorway. The need for the warehouse grew from our shipping and freight forwarding service. We have equipment to deal with awkward containers and can destuff difficult cargo out of shipping containers.
“It has been a good move for us,” he adds.
Longwood Transport was established in the mid-1980s by Cathal’s parents Tom and Camilla Byrne. Both were steeped in the haulage industry and therefore had extensive knowledge of it. Initially, their main focus was on agri products and container work in Dublin Port. Within a few years, Tom began to do some European work.
Having grown up around trucks, Cathal came on board full-time in 2001. At the time, three trucks were operating locally. In 2002, he started to push the European business while Tom concentrated on domestic container work.
In 2011, Cathal’s wife Tracey joined as office manager. The business continued to grow and by 2015, there were five trucks in the fleet. In 2017, Cathal and Tracey formed Longwood Transport Ltd. At this juncture, they began to focus on niche markets rather than increasing the size of the fleet.
“We had a very strong customer-base and decided to develop with them instead of outgrowing them. Our main objective was to do what we do ‘right’. This proved a good call as we still carry these core customers today.”
Cathal looks after warehousing and domestic transport, international movements, maintenance and the day-to-day running of the business, while Tracey is responsible for accounts and invoicing. As operations manager, Mark McKenna oversees shipping and freight forwarding along with day-to-day operations such as stock control. Longwood Transport employs five full-time drivers, while Cathal also does a few days on the road himself each week.
“It sounds very cliched, but for us our greatest asset is our team,” the affable managing director explains.
“They all take great pride in their work and have a deep understanding of the business. They will always go above and beyond to ensure the job gets done, and that nothing is ever a problem.
“In a small haulage business, the lads on the road are your ‘front of the house’ and a lot depends on them. Thankfully, ours have never been found wanting. In short, we pride ourselves on being a close-knit family business that places a big emphasis on doing the job right and getting home safe.”
The main services provided by Longwood Transport as follows:
• National and international transport: Longwood Transport operates a fleet of six trucks and trailers throughout Ireland, the UK and Europe which can carry everything from building products and waste to electronics, pharmaceutical products and foodstuff.
• Worldwide shipping and forwarding: The company offers ship sea containers and to and from Europe and Asia on a regular basis.
• Warehousing and storage: The recently-opened warehouse facility in Enfield has an internal capacity for up to 6,000 pallets or up to 7,000 tonnes of steel.
• Specialist material handling: Longwood Transport currently handles a variety of heavy and oversize products using a wide range of specialist equipment.
• Project management: Cathal and his team can plan, manage and execute your logistics project from start to finish; to bring it to completion on time and within budget in a safe and secure manner.
• Customs clearance: The family business boasts a diverse knowledge regarding customs requirements and clearance. Whether goods arrive via container, truck, deep sea or European ro-ro, they can assist with customs clearance into Ireland.
• Container handling: Longwood Transport specialises in handling containers of all sizes, 20-45ft. It operates a host of specialist equipment, including side-loaders which can lift fully-loaded containers up to 36-tonne from the trailer to the ground at a client’s premises in a matter of minutes. This allows for safe and handy loading and unloading from ground level.
• Destuffing and stuffing: This refers to the loading and unloading of difficult material from shipping containers from Longwood Transport’s facility. The company then redelivers them to the client on a curtain-sided or open vehicle to allow for easy off-loading.
• Dangerous goods and waste: The haulier is fully licensed and insured to carry most types of dangerous goods throughout Ireland, the UK and Europe. It also holds a licence to carry hazardous waste in Ireland, the UK and Sweden.
• Specialist transport: Longwood Transport carries out of gauge cargo and oversize loads throughout Ireland, predominantly from Dublin Port. It also operates a fleet of specialist coil carriers designed specifically for the safe transport of large steel coils up to 25 tonnes.
“Over the years, we’ve built very strong long-term relationships with clients and always pride ourselves in getting the job done and always doing it right,” Cathal continues.
“We operate a specialist fleet of vehicles which gives us a slight edge over standard haulage. And we have a wide array of partners and suppliers throughout Ireland and Europe which gives us the ability to handle any job worldwide.
“In addition, we have a first-class crew, most of whom have been with us for many years and who know our customers and their needs inside out. They all take great pride in the appearance of their trucks and vehicles which are always immaculately turned out.
“We operate a very modern fleet which is all main dealer-maintained. This cuts downtime to almost zero. Trucks are all on a rigorous service schedule and are regularly changed and updated. This has proven invaluable to us over the last few years as we can now guarantee service.
“Our motto is to never say ‘no’. Brexit, Covid and more recently issues in the Red Sea have all caused major issues for the supply chain. It means we have to constantly think outside the box to get goods to where they need to be when they need to be there.”
Cathal concludes by saying: “With the addition of the warehouse, we can now offer a vast array of services and take on a large consignment anywhere in the world. Ship it, strip it, stone it and deliver it to the client in Ireland as and when they need it.”
Longwood Transport Ltd
Enfield Business Park
Enfield,
Co. Meath.
Telephone: 086 192 7123
Email: [email protected]
First published in Irish Trucker magazine June 2024, Vol 27-3
