McNaughtans body building equipment
- From the July 2011 issue.
In 2010, McNaughtans launched a range of body building equipment including Pecolit fibreglass sheeting, fibre reinforced plastic (FRP) plywood and tread plate. Only one year later, the new range is ubiquitous in Australia’s trailer manufacturing industry.
Producing FRP in-house is a huge cost factor for companies manufacturing refrigerated transport equipment, as it can be both labour intensive and time consuming. As a result, Australian companies tend to source cheap alternatives on the global marketplace. Yet the imported material can tie up capital, which will have a negative effect on cash flow and negate the competitive price advantage.
Therefore, McNaughtans has come up with a concept to maintain competitive without sourcing imported material. “The new refrigerated range was designed to provide the industry with a cost saving alternative, increased efficiency, inventory savings and reduced labour cost; enabling body builders to devote more of their time to building bodies,” says General Manager Bob Platten. “McNaughtans stocks Pecolit fibreglass sheeting, Fibre Reinforced Plastic (FRP) plywood and tread plate, and also provides body builders with the option to order directly from McNaughtans’ suppliers if necessary.
“We believe that Pecolit and FRP plywood are an ideal alternative for body builders that are currently manufacturing their own FRP sheeting.”
By sourcing via McNaughtans, the need for fibreglass moulding flatbeds is eliminated, thus increasing floor space and potentially reducing labour and rent, and increasing turn-around on trailer bodies. “In addition, Mcnaughtans stocks aluminium propeller plate tread plate and a five bar tread plate, both of which are fully polished,” says Bob. “These products are all designed to help streamline the production of small bodies which can require the same amount of time and labour as is needed to build large bodies.”
Therefore, McNaughtans is confident that the new refrigerated equipment range will provide body builders with a one-stop alternative that is able to substantially reduce overheads and streamline the production process. “After one year in the market, we are proud to see that our all-Australian alternative has been embraced by the Australian market,” Bob says.
