To celebrate his 50th birthday, owner of Toowoomba based Daltrans Bulk Haulage, Dallas Kropp, has treated himself to three brand new Kenworth T659s, and three sets of A-doubles, all running on Hendrickson’s premium integrated suspension and axle with long-life wheel end package.
The business is heavily involved in the agricultural space, delivering bulk commodities such as wheat, barley, cotton seed, fertiliser and more, to Brisbane port for export, as well as throughout Queensland and northern New South Wales.
Dallas comes from a cattle farming background and says he fell into trucks almost by accident. “I owned a farm and to help pay the bills, I started driving a truck. Once I sold the farm, I went into trucking full time.”
His company currently runs a fleet of 11 trucks – 10 Kenworths and one Volvo – and 13 trailer sets, predominantly A-doubles, with a few AB-triples thrown in for good measure. The AB-triples are used for some of the longer runs.
The three new A-doubles will help accommodate the company’s growth. Image: Daltrans“I never thought I’d come to own the amount of equipment we now have. My background in farming puts me in good stead with our current clients, because I can see their operations and what they do – and I understand what they’re all about.”
When he started Daltrans in 2015, Dallas says he saw the benefits of the Performance Based Standards (PBS) scheme early on, going straight into using A-doubles.
“PBS A-doubles aren’t an option but a way of life for operators like myself. Almost everyone in this space has gone that way and it’s very hard to compete if you’re running B-doubles. You’re looking at about 15 tonne more payload on an A-double as opposed to a B-double,” explained Dallas. “People make all these comments about PBS but if you’re not embracing it, you’re only hurting yourself.”
Dallas has also been using Hendrickson axles and suspensions since starting his business, with all trailers in the fleet now running on Hendrickson’s INTRAAX suspension, MAXX22T air disc brake system and HXL7 wheel end bearing package.
This premium axle and suspension system offers significant weight savings over similar designs, allowing Dallas to achieve payloads of up to 58 tonne on his A-doubles. In addition, the HXL7 wheel end package helps to keep the trailers working more of the time and reduce maintenance costs.
“Firstly, the team at Hendrickson have a good product, and secondly, they back it up. They are the two most important things in this business. We’ve used other brands of axle and suspension over the years, when we’ve either bought floor stock or bought trailers second hand – but we found the back-up support and customer service hasn’t even come close to what Hendrickson offers,” said Dallas.
“If I’ve ever had any issues, Hendrickson is very quick to help us out. They always back their product and get it fixed, with minimal downtime. They are there, on time and ready to go when you need them. And on top of that, they’re priced very well within their market.”
These new prime movers bring the truck fleet up to 11. Image: DaltransDallas says Hendrickson’s overall durability and generous five-year/1.2 million kilometre wheel end warranty have been major drawcards too.
On top of being a great birthday present, the newest Kenworth T659s and A-doubles to join the fleet has Daltrans well placed for growth.
It was three years ago that Dallas decided to treat himself to the new rigs and he was excited to see them join the fleet earlier this month. “At the time, I thought there are two things I’m never going to do again: turn 50 or buy three trucks and trailer sets all at once,” he said.
“I’m fortunate that we’re coming into a good season, with a bumper crop, so having the work for them and good staff on board for our growth is always the biggest challenge. By growing our fleet using our own trucks instead of sub-contractors, it gives us a bit more control over our future too.”
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