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Battling the transport industry giants, a smaller private company is cutting a growth swathe through the jungle of metropolitan courier and transport work.

Melbourne based Metropolitan Express Transport Services Pty Ltd is single minded in its attention to detail and adherence to sound business strategy. As a result it has become quite a dynamo in the ultra competitive local transport industry since its establishment in 1986.

Founded by Tony Van Keulen, Metropolitan Express is now in the preliminary stages of interstate expansion after establishing a strong geographic base in Melbourne with substantial facilities in Dandenong, Campbellfield and Tottenham.

Sam Pantou bought into the company eight years ago and now proudly shares equal ownership with Tony – together they are focused on sustainable growth, fleet improvement and both local and interstate expansion.
It has not been a rush decision to reinvent the company; rather an analysis of how to grow its operations and provide a continuing high level of service for clients – new and existing. As its name suggests, the company provides metropolitan express transport services in Melbourne. A fleet of cars, vans and utilities cater for the courier needs, whilst the taxi truck fleet includes a modern fleet of trays, taut liners and semi trailers as well as an extensive range of crane vehicles. Ancillary to this Metropolitan Express provides a full logistics and warehousing service. A recruitment firm, Corporate Personnel is an important partner of Metropolitan Express helping to deliver its all purpose transport solutions. The organisation supplies specifically trained drivers and staff to Metropolitan Express as it strives to deliver the best services to its ever-growing client list.

Business growth is being enhanced by a fleet replacement program delivering more reliable, higher productivity vehicles. “When you first establish a transport business it’s difficult to go out and buy or justify new trucks and equipment,” Mr Pantou said. “Now however, we work on a business model of buying brand new equipment. All the new trucks we purchase are part of a management decision to turn over trucks every five years or so; it will keep our vehicle fleet relatively new and staff morale at a high, it also eliminates the OH&S issues we were getting with the older vehicles.” The current fleet is made up of an equal number of Metropolitan’s own vehicles and the same number of sub-contractors.

While planning began more than two years ago, the fleet replacement program was implemented in earnest about 18 months ago and is now attracting interest from various business sectors. Companies concerned with image and issues including OH&S and new chain of responsibility legislation are particularly interested. All Metropolitan’s trucks are Isuzu and range from NPR 250s with tray bodies to FVR 950s fitted with cranes for specific contracts, through to Giga prime movers. Mr Pantou said the company was keen to secure trucks suitable to the application. “Isuzu FVMs were purchased for the ‘ad hoc’ work and are fitted with mezzanine floors and hydraulic tailgate lifters,” Mr Pantou said. “We always gear up the vehicles to deliver on the special needs of the contracts we win,” he explained. “It’s all part of providing service needs to our customers – we don’t just want to be seen as a transport company; we want to be referred to as a partner in their business. “Every one of our trucks is Isuzu and we made a conscious decision to keep it that way. I’ve had every other company trying to entice me to trial one of their trucks but we’ve made a stance to keep the fleet Isuzu,” Mr Pantou said. “From a re-sale point of view, it is a stronger brand than many others out there and the reliability of the vehicles has greatly reduced our repairs and maintenance costs.” Mr Pantou said it was also important that truck drivers were given genuine consideration in fleet management decisions. “We don’t get negative feedback about truck performance or issues regarding the trucks’ air conditioning or heating or other minor issues and that keeps the motivation of the drivers up which is half the battle,” he said. “Drivers are the front of the company and set the image for our clients, if you can’t keep them motivated then it can definitely have adverse effects on the business long term. “Our market research indicates a customer preference for a service using new trucks with motivated drivers. We demand that all our vehicles are suitably equipped and our drivers are aware of their role in providing the service levels expected. Service and maintenance is also taken care of in-house, by dedicated mechanics. “We decided that if we were going to excel in this business then we needed to be fair dinkum and compete at a higher level to give us an edge,” Mr Pantou said. “We are a medium sized organisation and at a minimum we need to provide what our larger competitors are offering and then try to add more. We are focused on being leaders in our field.” According to Mr Pantou Metropolitan Express has experienced substantial growth in the past few years. “One of the keys to our growth is the fact that we are hands on as owners. We have very good managers onboard and Tony and I are actively out seeing clients and negotiating new business,” he explained. “Most of the new business opportunities have been created by Tony and myself. At the end of the day customers love the fact that they are dealing with the owners. If you are dealing with a rep or similar there is often a need to refer issues back to management to get approval which can complicate things,” he said. This direct approach has developed many long term relationships with clients according to Mr Pantou. Mr Pantou said the transport industry is somewhat volatile at present with challenges ranging from spiralling fuel costs, OH&S issues, chain of responsibility and also driver shortages. “Although the conditions are demanding, this climate presents opportunities for companies with the necessary management skills to succeed while others fall behind,” he said. “Some of Metropolitan Express’ most recent accomplishments include supplying vehicles or services to blue chip clients such as Onesteel, Smorgon, Bridgestone Tyres, Bob Jane T-Marts, Australian Envelopes and BOC Gases.”