MA Ponsonby has grown from one truck operated by founder Mike Ponsonby - a winner of the SOE’s Volunteer of the Year award - into a business with more than 15 Scania trucks and a fleet of specialist trailers. Mike is still managing director, and his son Jack is operations director. Two more sons are specialist heavy goods vehicle (HGV) drivers.
The Litchfield-based business has been a specialist in construction plant and other heavy haulage for more than 20 years. It operates a trailer fleet includes HIABs, step frames and low loaders. The company has been a FORS member for 10 years and currently holds FORS Gold level accreditation.
MA Ponsonby recognised that its increased size and scale meant that it needed to move away from pen-and-paper administration to maintain its productivity. The company invested in HaulTech’s transport management system (TMS).
“HaulTech has delivered efficiency all round for us,” said Jack Ponsonby. “It is very easy to implement and to use. It enables us to plan and manage our work in a smarter way. It also saves us a lot of time compared to using an A4 paper diary. We are a small team and run a tight ship, so freeing us up to focus on other areas of the business has a huge impact. It helps significantly with compliance, too.”
According to HaulTech, the TMS can reduce administrative processes by up to 80%. It also helps haulage companies to control and cut operational costs. The TMS enables users to create, schedule, assign and manage jobs through a single point of data entry. It also streamlines invoicing and can integrate with accounting software such as Sage.
“Proof of delivery adds another level of professionalism to our customer service,” said Jack. “It also means that we get the data at head office quickly and in a uniform format. It means that we can shorten the time between job completion and submitting an invoice.”
“This was our first TMS so it was an important investment for us,” added Jack. “We chose HaulTech over other providers because they run their business in a similar way to us. They have a huge focus on customer relations and are a close-knit team. You never feel like a small fish in a big pond.
HaulTech offers a portfolio of haulage solutions, including TMS, WMS, tracking and vehicle cameras. For further information, visit www.haultech.co.uk.
