Transuniverse has concluded a partnership agreement with the reputable British Europa Worldwide Group. From 1 June, the groupage division of Europa Road will take care of Transuniverse’s shipments to and from Greater London and England. They will also take on responsibility for the customs processes. As an exclusive partner, Transuniverse will take responsibility for these tasks in our own country for Europa Road. Every day, two express shuttles leave for the hub in Dartford, which significantly reduces delivery times in England.
“The United Kingdom has been one of Transuniverse’s core markets for several years. Many customers are served directly, but for smaller and medium-sized shipments, we work with a few strong regional partners: Caledonian in Scotland, Neill & Brown in the north of England and Twente Express in the Midlands and the Birmingham area. In the south of the country and Greater London, up until now, we worked with a number of local partners who were responsible for distribution in their own regions. Brexit fundamentally changed the situation because it put an emphasis on good and fast customs processes”, says Kevin Van Ongeval, Group Operations Manager for Transuniverse.
“Small players with local depots have limited options in terms of customs storage. They also have difficulty coping with the clearance and other customs tasks. With Brexit, it soon became clear that we needed to join forces with a larger partner in England, one with an extensive network and established customs services. We found that in Europa Road”, Kevin explains.
Europa Road
Europa Worldwide Group is one of the largest transport and logistics companies in Great Britain. Europa Road’s groupage department has an ultra-modern central hub in Dartford, which is in communication with thirteen regional hubs each day. Dartford is also the hub for transports to and from Europe. One of Europa Road’s specialisms is express groupage.
Exclusive partnership
Transuniverse is now Europa Road’s exclusive partner in Belgium. Every day, two of Europa Road’s own trailer combinations come from Dartford via the Channel Tunnel to Wondelgem. There, the trailers are unhitched and the lorries return to the UK immediately with two trailers that we have ready and waiting.
“Thanks to the efficient use of trailers, a 24‑hour service between both hubs and fast processing of customs formalities, together we can guarantee faster service provision between Belgium and England. This means we can compensate for most of the time lost in the chain as a result of Brexit”, Bart De Scheemaecker, Traffic Operator for the UK & Ireland, clarifies.
Best-possible service provision
Thanks to this collaboration, both parties can offer their clientele the best-possible service provision and increase their market share. “In the next phase, Europa Road will also make use of Transuniverse Forwarding’s connections to the European destinations that the company does not serve itself, so it can offer its clientele a door-to-door solution”, Kevin adds.
More and faster transports
“In the UK, we now have a strong strategic partner in every main region with a large regional hub. That means, that in addition to the two departures by the express groupage service with Europa Road, we can also guarantee six to seven departures per day to the other UK regions. And by using more guided shipments we can also reduce transit times considerably”, Bart states.