I agree but fam, he's making soooo many errors that people like him have gone before, Including me. I think he has a massive ego which he needs to get a handle on before he goes to the wall forever.
Is the ASHVILLE AGGREGATES LIMITED Plot 5 Link Park Thorney Mill Road West Drayton??? If so that has gone into liquidation on the 10th November, a winding up order was issued from a supplier due to none payment. He seems a nice guy i have seen it time and time again though. Own a company start spending like a millionaire, but before you earn the millions.
As long as your not replacing them the moneys good shame you didn't sell them earlier when everyone was fighting over themselves for wagons but such is life. Great informative content again well done Daniel and production team.
Great video Daniel. Personally though, I would have kept the units and subbed them out when you didn’t have any work for them. Or picked up a cheap flatbed or curtainsider and run bagged aggregate. But I’m a driver, not an operator. Good job, nice price.
I am a retired operator. IME, the one thing you should never do is drill down into daily figures when working out a loss. You are just diluting the loss in your head. Look at the high level loss, on at least a monthly basis, but ideally the annual loss. This is because you dont look at profits on a daily basis, you look at them monthly, quarterly and annually. We were making losses on our 8w grabs, and in the end I had to sit down and look at the big picture. When you look at standing costs plus running costs and you are making a loss its time to change direction or get rid. I think you made the right call. Good luck for 2023, its going to be a rough year.
As an accountant, I reckon those lorries were probably generating more background revenue in the form of the RU-vid videos you made with them, such as the Merch collection video. So they might have been worth holding on to.
Nice congrats. Could’ve been much worse and when you’re looking back in 10 years this is just one of the many things that comes with scaling a business. Onwards and upwards 🙌
not being sentimental about possessions is something we could all benefit from, even with personal items sometimes you have to cut the cord. Happy Christmas everyone
Daniel, you do wear your heart on your sleeve BUT your honesty will win any client to do business with you. The shady clients that do not give you a fair crack of the whip....want ejecting from your list. The only thing I would say about selling kit is you have to remember the buyer will have to factor in the rebrand of the company colours on your kit. A client of mine in the old days was a large company based in London with green vans, we finally persuaded them to go white with a better adhesive logo. It saved them £800 x 240 vehicles....not bad client management. Keep the honesty Daniel...you WILL get better business.
Your forever in a moving market. Well done for seeing that the cost out way the value? More so when your attached to them. One door closed and another one will open. Stick to you gut feeling and you will never go wrong. Great episode Dan.
You got good prices for them, good clean kit and well looked after. Im gutted i got outbid as there was a good crowd in the auction floor that day. When you looked at the figures months ago the sentimental end kicked in and you kept them, CFO says the same and it just confirms, January and first quarter is going to be tough the right move was made to sell. If anything you can always go again once the time is right.
I'm sure the 2 complete artic units were your pride and joy, but as you seen months ago they were not paying there way. I've done work for a couple of companies that had a 2nd driver on a wagon to run them over night. Still uses fuel, drivers need paying, but the revenue helps cover the daily operating costs. However being where your located I would guess not as the limitations on wagons would prohibit this. Anyways keep up the nice clear way you explain your business logic.
Plenty of firms cashed in when prices were higher for 2nd hand trucks!! Followed quickly by closing they’re doors and walking away with cash in the bank rather than going broke. Your doing great, keep at it if it works for you, you keep people employed and people enjoy working for you, that’s some feat on its own.
I am a small sole trader who operates within the driver training industry in the Birmingham area. Just would like to say that you inspire me to think bigger. I solute you and your work ethics.
Only real way to make artics profitable is to run them 24 hours a day. You could use them for your work in the day, and then contract the tractor unit out with a driver at night, say on parcel or supermarket work. It’s no good keeping them if they don’t make a good profit, only needs one mishap to knock a years profit on the head.
I would of kept one tractor unit, so you could rent trailers for flat bed work, but if you are going to get new articles, you should look into one with a crane on the tractor unit for loading containers onto a flat bed or other larger items which won't fit on the hook loader truck
@@jackhoward5458 true, but that affects profitability. Daniel here is saying a 2T difference in payload could have made it economical to run the artics.
Crane trucks cost a fortune, you need the specialist work for them much of the time to make them profitable, plus as Alexis wrote, they reduce the payload and Ashville was already losing 3 tonnes per load on the steel bodied tipper on steel wheels, over the alloy alternatives so a crane truck would make the tipper trailers or any other full weight work unviable.
Regs need a serious overhaul here in the UK.. Finland is allowed a gross weight of 76 tons on their roads, Norway allows 50 - 60 tons, Sweden allows 64 - 74 tons, Denmark is trialing up to 70 tons.
That would mean major up grading of existing bridges and viaducts to accomodate the extra load capacity....good for business for major civils contractors during the works, but a knightmare in delays caused for road users.
in answer to your question, if i was in your shoes - id have personally kept 1 tractor and 1 trailer, and the money i made from selling the other set, pay off any finance, and with the change by a low loader trailer for transporting machinery from job to job. that way, that one tractor is multifunctional, it can do tipper work, and heavy haulage (to a degree). Me and my Dad run our own logistics business and scrap business - so we have been have a long hard think the past couple of months weather to get artics. we where really close to buying them but then we held off, but are plan now is to buy 1 high power tractor unit, a low loader and a box trailer. that way that one tractor can serve both our businesses. it can move pallets round in the box trailer. but can do the odd but of heavy recovery.
Hopefully he can focus more on the construction firm now . I feel he doesn’t put enough energy in the construction firm . With the amount of equipment and raw materials he should be doing larger commercial building projects
It’s just down to experience all round… Daniel had experience of aluminium bodies getting abused so went with steel, but steel was too heavy… Horses for courses and he’ll know next time. The only truly sad thing here is that the “drop-of-the-hat-versatility” he had by having artics on the fleet has now gone for the time being. Always a good watch, always good to listen and learn to your experiences 👊
Danial, my thoughts, but remembering hindsight in mind. You did ask for comments. Your breakdown of figures as you said didn’t include some standing and no running costs. It didn’t have the earnings listed either. If you were losing 80 quid a day x 2, why did you keep them as long as you did? Being tractor units and sleeper cabs they could of gone up the road, either carrying your own aggregates or sub contracting to other hauliers. All sorts of trailers are available to rent short term to see what will maximize your payload, earning potential and your versatility to keep them profitable. It would of taken some effort to make it work, but when you invest in a product as you did, that’s the nature of the beast. As the tractor units were in good working order and the trailers specced well for demolition and aggregates a long life could be expected. Putting one in part exchange against a light alloy spec your competition is running was an option, along with renting a flat bed trailer to do multiple deliveries of your bagged aggregate locally or further afield. The roll on/off with the grab/crane is to heavy to get lots of bags on. The replacement cost of the units is now to expensive and prohibitive for new investment. Truth be told Terry is probably to busy with the 8 wheelers to put the required time into the artics. Did you contact Kel-Berg to see what they would offer you? Is it a buyers or sellers premium and what did it cost to get the vehicles to Ireland? The ASHVILLE logo should of been stripped off prior to the sale, for many reasons. On a financial note, your finance manager is all about figures and if you are not careful will become an asset stripper. Tin hat on ready for fall out 😂🏴🇺🇸
Hi as they are now sold and you are buying some new eight wheel tippers. Why not have two equipped with trailer couplings and buy two short trailers for use when you need the extra capacity on longer runs. I know some of the work you do the space is too small for trailers.If you were to buy two used trailers the cost would be very much less there less money would be tied up in them. There are plenty of these available at auctions and even if they needed a small amount of work to bring them into good order it may be worth thinking about. At the same time a three axle low bed trailer could be used to move your large excavator when needed. There about eight or nine good used truck auctions around the country and it could be worth thinking about
You might not have needed new Units for the volume of work you had but instead get a cheaper 65 plate euro 6 unit with cash (25-35k). It might not hurt as much if its parked up with no work at times and with a smaller overhead it might work out. Also you would still have access to your own Track Unit for them quick business pivot opportunities. Anyways, keep up the hard work and #MerryChristmas and a #HappyNewYear to #TeamAshville 💪
Problem with used trucks is lack of warranty and usually you’re buying someone else’s rubbish, companies maintain their vehicles differently, drivers drive different to the screwdrivers which can have a huge effect on the wear and tear of individual vehicles, breakdowns and being off the road is the biggest cost which could actually cost you the difference you save between new and used
Daniel personally i wouldve kept the tractor unit & sold the trailers. Get the aluminium trailer body to get more material. Now as you dont have them anymore other companies will capitalize on getting more jobs as there will be in the future.
spudman6553 steel body is much sturdier but much heavier so you can treat it worse and put bigger material like rubble, broken concrete etc, but uptimately carry less. Aluminium is lighter but if you throw big material in or do demo work the body wont be long getting damaged and heavily dented
Great video. You listened to the advise (props to the CFO for showing why the lorries should go) and you stuck with a decision.As you said it is deposit money for new tippers. Expand the business where you know you can make money. Daniel have a great Christmas. Ps, I have had to go elsewhere to get my train fix 🥳
It was the Administrator that is selling the assets. If it Is the ASHVILLE AGGREGATES LIMITED Plot 5 Link Park Thorney Mill Road West Drayton??? If so that has gone into liquidation on the 10th November, a winding up order was issued from a supplier due to none payment.
Every tool or vehicle that you own in a company should generate profit or pay for itself by being used all the time so if it doesn't do that then you get something that will, that's just how it is goes. I think you made right decision, also you had it for 3 years and it did make money so you didn't lose that much Daniel.
If that’s how quickly the auction went I advise finding a new auction house because that was horrible and all that auction house cares about is turning over their auctions as fast as possible
Yes they were a success overall D. Especially in the context that they supported your operations and offerings to your customers in getting profits in other areas of your business. Sometimes loss leaders are necessary to generate a profit overall. That’s business
could have left them parked in the yard collecting depreciaton on them and any job you get is gravy as long as you price accordingly. And yes the lack of forsight to compare cost/benefit of alloy trailers vs steel is a lesson to learn, alloy tippers could save a tonne probably so look at that too though the problem is always trying to get backloads and carting concrete/rubble is a potential problem as alloy is so easily damaged, maybe use technology and have a video call with the driver and terry coukd decide what truck will take what waste from sight aka keep half the tippers steel bodied so you can take te rock/concrete in the steel and the rubble/slop etc in the alloy bodies. as i said use technology to improve customer service and the companies bottom line by pricing live on the spot instead of blanket pricing of say 20 quid a tonne or whatever. keep up the good work and have fun, i think last time i saw you driving a truck you found that spark, the smile and the simple joy of driving your toys and remembering all the jobs you did, the struggles and now you have the toys and bit by bit you are winning.
Smart decision. Personally, I'd find an older used tractor unit to keep around thats paid with not too much into for those rare instances. Yes, i know idle equipment costs, but those "rare" times you need one you have one.
you could sublet for asphalt works, for example my employer gets 70 € per hour (62 british pounds) for the truck trailer with a minimum rental of 8 hours without VAT you can rebuild your old trailer for 3000 euros (2600 pounds) I am the driver of the truck and work an average of 10 hours a day with a consumption of 130 liters a day. I drive an average of 300 km per day with an average waiting time of 5 hours per day. the days when I don't have to drive in asphalt I work with the same trailer (same model as this one sold now) in soil and demolition works without any modification). is just an idea to calculate once and a stable income
would love to see a video with your CFO breaking down in detail how for example a Three and half year long lease term looks exactly from tax benefits to true costs from financing costs to tires. as always great stuff !
The thing is it looks good on paper or spreadsheets. The logistic of what you can offer as a business has decreased slightly but someone else has bought your old plant to to put to work and hopefully make money
Diversity is a misnomer in my opinion. Better to be specialised, even if you're in only one niche and grow your rep there than be all over the place with trickles. If he's got one side nailed down, thrn any other side business can't be treated as a side business, it needs as much attention as the main business needed at the outset to grow it, i.e., he couldn't be passive, e.g., when there was work, he had to go out there and get / find work for it. But now we're getting into the realms of what he is. Is he a person that starts and grows businesses, e.g., an entrepreneur or the businessman who grows what he has. If the former then he needs good people around him to manage each division. If the latter, stay in your lane, lol. I had a feeling I'd get to that one, lol
Great honest video. I just love SCANIA tractor units and loved watching them in action on your channel - shame they had to go. I am not in the same business as you so cannot tell you what I would have done - however when I sold my older Audi diesel estate (popular with tradesman and builders) I too had so many tire kickers to deal with I wished I sent it to auction for a quick sale. I held on for a week, and really glad I did because in the end a really friendly and well deserving roofer bought my car - it went to a good home at a price I wanted - winners all around.
Personally, I would have kept one complete unit. It would be handy for the occasional job. For example, collecting the office units. But it's not my business, so congrats on the sale of them.
having a Unit sitting there still has fixed costs, which you're not going to get back with the occasional job. If you haven't enough work that's profitable for a vehicle, better to hire someone else in for the work when you need them and concentrate on what's profitable for you.
@@medler2110 I have no idea what renting a tractor unit costs, but in other areas, 1:10 ratios (and higher) are not uncommon; i.e. one day of renting costs as much as 10 days of owning. So sitting around 89% of the time would still be cheaper than renting. And it gets worse if you have to rent a whole day for a 1-hour job.
@@HenryLoenwind To make your average truck a worthwhile investment it has to work, unless its a specialist piece of equipment and you can factor the costs of it standing for long periods into the work it does. So for occasional jobs renting one in or getting an outside haulier is far more cost effective. Many companies do rent trucks and trailers, sometimes for quite long periods of time, months at a time to cover seasonal peaks of work.
Don’t forget to take out the auction fees too. It’s currently a truck sellers market. I would have sold privately and made a minimum 20-35000 more for the business easily
I’d of defo just kept one tractor unit and I would of invested in a flat bed trailer that could of done Skelly work to and put it on container work when not in use
Daniel, lots of great advice on here. However we can all give good advice when it’s not our money or business. You made the decision that you felt was right for your company. Companies up and down the country will be making the same decisions. The only difference is that they are not on the internet and being put under the microscope with everything they do. End result you have cash flow that can be invested back into the business, which in the current market is not a bad thing to have. Whatever you do, there will always be someone who knows better!! Only you know if it was the best decision and how it will help the company for the future. Thank you for the content and the informative dialogue 👍
Hey Daniel, great video as always brutally honest as well. The only thing you should take away is the lesson you referred to, before you press the button on a big decision do some critical thinking outside the P&L you already did. No rules just running through options to see whether there were any, such as the trailer only option, also how they could have been rented to another company who didn’t want to buy, maybe with driver?
The class 1 trucks are the prestiage of any haulage company and you have calculated a loss of £80 per day. What is not in the video content is future loss if the units had been kept and also better utilization of hgv drivers to more profitable parts of the business. If class 1 trucks are required, renting is a better option for short term needs and you still have your class 1 drivers.
Im a class 2 class 1 with driver cpc and ADR trained to keep up the dcpc. Ive not driven since jun 2018 because may main job is being an accredited diagnostic tectnician for audi lets just say in the north west. Ive been taking home £1600 per month fixing anything that needed fixing however the job fell into family life. Wagon driving was mega. Mainly 44 tonne artic fully laden from brewery. £800per week back in 2016. Cant believe how farback my main job and career has fell. Besides keep up the good work. If i remember right wagons have to go at a certain time for a company to retrieve its tax back. Love ashville, not beeen watching long but like what i see. All the best
Why did you not pull the tractor units from the auction knowing you had made a mistake. If they are paid for park them up, remove of O license till better times. Then purchase the alloy trailers
Brilliant explanation. Just one thing at the end, you can't open up an extendable trailer and put two lumps on it. Have to go twice. Saying that. Done it many times
By the time euro auctions have had there cut, auction fees, transport you wouldn’t be getting the full value, only time we sell at auction if theirs a problem with the product, otherwise sell private let the punters come to you, remember turnover is vanity, profit is sanity!!!
To make a business profitable and fit for the future you have to disconnect your heat from certain things you own , also employ people who take the weight off you so you can focus on the future. That's why you employed your CFO Also by selling the units you free up cash. In the long run it makes your business even more of a success . It's dog eat dog . You won't get eaten Daniel!
Great video, very brave showing us. Thank you for showing us what it really takes to run a business. Really like the video. May you have ongoing success. With you all the way.
Hi Daniel, It's a tough decision but you must be guided by your CFO otherwise, what's the point of having him/her there. Anyway, I'm sure you will be able to offset other items purchased by claiming the vat back. 😉
Would've bit the bullet with the auction and run lighter trailers & then I would've got into other uses instead of just aggregate hauling also. Diversification.
So you would have to take the standing costs of those trailers when they're stood, on top of the costs of the existing trailer and tractor unit, before making a profit.
@@medler2110 Gotta spend money to make money unfortunately, especially in a logistics/aggregates - Its almost always more expensive to sell good equipment and buy new, so he probs would've been better repurposing as opposed to selling and buying new but what do we know, hes the business owner.
