Krueger, as many may know, is a family-owned and operated business with an impeccable 46-year history of quality and innovation.
The trailer builder is at the forefront of modern trailer design, with its versatile ‘Kurtainer’ curtainsiders, open decks, skeletal trailers, freezer vans, dry vans and other custom builds with detailed engineering and enhancements to optimise safety and higher productivity.
Krueger’s ability to produce extremely high-quality trailers (which according to the company lasts decades on end) can largely be attributed to the business’ aluminium of choice. For the roofs of all its trailers, Krueger selects Capral’s aluminium sheet and custom extrusions.
“We’ve been using Capral’s aluminium for over 20 years,” says Krueger Supervisor – Purchasing, Daniel Hunt. “That’s as far as my records go, but it’s probably been a bit longer than that because we’ve been using Capral for most of our 46 years in operation.”
“It’s been an enduring and positive long-term relationship based on Capral being innovative with a deep knowledge of product and material. That product knowledge, materials knowledge and innovation is always available to us as we look to develop our product offering to our customers.”
Krueger purchases Capral’s aluminium sheet metal for its trailers – primarily the curtainsider units – as well as custom aluminium extrusions which are produced to the particular profile Krueger requires.
Image: Krueger.With both companies manufacturing their respective products locally in Melbourne, the collaboration works well for Krueger’s operations.
“You need to reflect that Capral has had a long-term presence in the Australian market, and that market has changed over time,” Daniel says. “The amount of supplies has changed over time, but Capral has remained strong.
“They also have a local presence, like we do, and we always seek to support Australian producers of materials. Because Capral is local and they produce the items we acquire, we’re able to get them from an Australian producer which is important to us.
“Those are factors of our continued dealings with Capral, but it also comes down to their technical support and product knowledge. We don’t simply buy a commodity from Capral, we also collaborate with them to produce items to our designs. That ability to collaborate technically and across our product offering is why we choose them.”
Capral’s aluminium extrusions run the full length of Krueger’s trailer roofs, and on either side. Spanning up to 14 metres in length and 2.5 metres wide, these trailers are built to be both light and robust.
“The aluminium we use from Capral is utilised in the production of our roof components and our roofs overall,” Daniel says. “Like all aluminium products, it has to be lightweight but also be able to withstand the impact of travelling for long distances over a long period of time.
“Our trailers last up to 40 years, so those roofs have to be able to withstand in a high-stress environment and then be able to maintain their strength and their integrity, and that’s what we see in the aluminium supplied by Capral.”
Having a one-piece extrusion in the shape and profile that it requires allows Krueger to produce semi-trailers efficiently, at high strength and as one piece with ease.
“Aluminium is key to our operations,” Daniel says. “By having that length of product and having it available to our operations from a local supplier which supplies just-in-time (JIT) in the quantities we need, it allows us to have both minimal inventory and maximum support.
“Getting that one-piece extrusion particularly allows us to keep our costs as low as possible and our complexity low, while producing what our customers want. It means we can produce a trailer that is robust and endures for the lifetime that it does.”
Capral’s ability to serve all of Krueger’s direct needs, Daniel says, has been key.
“Capral has excellent products and innovation, and that’s their key selling point,” he says. “The basics are always addressed, such as delivery in full and on time, but they also support our unique needs for a large product.”
Meanwhile, Daniel says the implementation of Capral’s lower carbon aluminium option, LocAl, is on the horizon.
“We’re starting to explore the use of LocAl and that’s been the discussion point for 2024 with Capral,” he says. “Our customers, in particular our larger corporate customers, are starting to enquire around it as they seek to fulfil their obligations to lower emissions and source materials which support that.”
LocAl’s two lower carbon aluminium options, LocAl Green and LocAl Super Green, are among the lowest carbon aluminium options available in the world. The global average for carbon emissions per kilogram of aluminium is 13.9kg, which compares to LocAl Green’s 8kg carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂e)/kg Al and LocAl Super Green’s 4kg CO₂e/kg.
In recent times, Capral displayed its unwavering commitment to sustainability and responsible resourcing through the announcement of its membership with the Infrastructure Sustainability Council (ISC).
The partnership integrates LocAl into ISC’s rating scheme, and by being officially listed on its ISupply database, it provides project developers with robust, environmentally friendly material options that support their sustainability objectives.
Capral ties this commitment in with a relentless dedication to customers such as Krueger which rely on its materials to such a large scale, and in turn, the support to deliver them.
“Capral’s service is excellent,” Daniel says. “We’re always reaching out to them for their support with short-term needs or unique products. That’s what we find when we go to Capral, they’re always able to support us and are always willing to work with us.”
Image: Krueger.The post Quality through the roof appeared first on Trailer Magazine.