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Iceman Group, a tale of tenacity

For Iceman Group, it all began when founder, Cindy Marshall, and her partner, Ron Inman, embarked from the United States en route to Australia in the 1980s.

Prior to their arrival in Queensland, Cindy and Ron were working at Thermo King in the US – Cindy was running the parts division of the business while Ron was a service technician, until they decided to have a crack at the game themselves. For Iceman, that date in the history books is 24 March 1984.

Cindy, according to the management team at Iceman, had a great reputation for being an innovator within the refrigerated road transport industry. Her love and passion for the industry is ultimately what gave Iceman its well-known motto of Australia’s ‘transport refrigeration experts’.

Although Cindy unfortunately passed in August 2017, her legacy lives on through Iceman’s committed management team who live and breathe the values she brought to Australia all those years ago.

“We’re still around, and that’s one of Iceman’s biggest highlights as we celebrate the milestone of four decades,” says Iceman Group National Workshop Supervisor/Technical Support, Billy Harkness. “Back in the day, we were up against the dealerships. We didn’t really have the advantage of selling brand-new refrigeration units so we used to mainly do maintenance and repairs. Towards the middle part of the 40 years, we started to refurbish our own units and then sell them out to the marketplace.”

Today, Iceman is based in every capital city with a major repair centre in Perth and four workshops in Brisbane, one in Cairns and three in Melbourne, along with a mobile trailer mechanical and refrigeration repair network throughout Sydney, Queensland, Perth, Darwin and Adelaide and subcontractor repairers in the wider outer country regions as well.

Iceman Group’s Murarrie, Queensland, facility. Image: Iceman Group.

Iceman Group Director, Robert Maguire, has been instrumental in this growth. He initially came across the company as a customer looking for a solution in the middle of the ‘90s, and since purchasing Iceman in 2017 with his business partner, Jason Murray, he led it through its national expansion from end to end and saw it shift from having a local subcontractor model to being a national company-owned business with various workshops.

“I had my own transport business at the time, and Iceman provided a solution that could service all brands,” he says. “It didn’t matter what make my fridge was, I could simply take it to them and they’d handle everything I needed.

“When we acquired Iceman, it had one facility in Brisbane and a mobile service truck in Townsville. Since then we’ve expanded significantly, establishing our own network in every capital city. My experience in the industry indicated that there was a strong need for a comprehensive, one-stop shop for all trailer repairs.”

In 2018, Iceman acquired Transport Innovators to complement its transport refrigeration network. This marked the beginning of a strategic shift and the launch of Iceman’s national expansion plan – a development that the management team believes Cindy would be immensely proud of today.

Iceman, through its branches in major capital cities, offers a comprehensive range of services including mechanical, body, smash and refrigeration repairs. As a one-stop shop, customers can drop off their vehicles at any of Iceman’s facilities where its technicians can access and review their entire vehicle service history from any location.

“We can access our management system to understand what was completed on a unit during its last service,” Robert says. “We can review detailed history reports and provide superior service, including warranty management, because we know specifics such as when the starter motor was fitted.”

Additionally, Iceman has started to manufacture refrigerated rigid bodies to meet its customers’ specifications. As Robert notes, this capability allows it to build custom units from the ground up, offering another advantage to those choosing Iceman for their needs.

Since Robert joined the business, he carefully selected his management team and workshop managers based on their extensive industry knowledge. Collectively, this group contains over 400 years of experience in transport and repairs.

Robert believes this wealth of experience has positioned Iceman strongly for the future, as the team has a deep understanding of both customer needs and the nuances of transport repair.

Looking ahead, he emphasises that Iceman’s primary focus will be on continuing to expand its network to support both new and existing customers.

“We also aim to improve turnaround times for equipment repairs,” Robert says. “By offering a one-stop shop approach, customers won’t have to rely on multiple repairers to get their vehicles back in service.”

As Iceman celebrates its achievements and adaptability, the management team credits much of its success to the loyal customers who have supported them over the years.

“The strength of our customers has enabled our growth,” Robert says. “But, without the skill and loyalty of our entire workforce around Australia, our progress would be greatly limited.”

Iceman Group has the ability to build custom refrigerated trailers to customer request. Image: Iceman Group.

The post Iceman Group, a tale of tenacity appeared first on Trailer Magazine.

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