For over 35 years, WA Bos Semi Trailer Equipment has kept its operations local. The family-owned and operated business has manufactured trailer equipment out of Bellevue, Western Australia, since 1990, having been helmed by founder, Bob Wright, and his decades of road transport experience.
Following its inception, WA Bos Semi Trailer Equipment serviced customers with an intimate charm and a ‘no-nonsense’ approach to both manufacturing and its associated services. This approach continues to be enjoyed by a loyal pool of customers, even as Bob has passed the baton to current General Manager, Mark Nicholas.
“We don’t import anything we build, it’s all local,” Mark says. “We’ve got 18 people employed here and we rely on our customers. That’s how we’ve done things for 35 years, and we’re doing alright.”
Among this collection of customers devoted to WA Bos Semi Trailer Equipment’s one-stop shop value proposition is C.D. Dodd, a major metal and battery recycling company which operates out of five purpose-built facilities across WA. The third-generation family-owned business has long relied on WA Bos Semi Trailer Equipment for custom builds to suit its varied operations which extend to scrap metal decommissioning, mine site cleanups and onshore scrap metal and battery recycling services.
“We have worked with WA Bos Semi Trailer Equipment quite a lot during our time in the industry,” says C.D. Dodd Fleet Manager, Esko Laanesaar. “They have mostly built side tipper trailers for us which we use between sites and the yard. We have a few road trains of those which travel between Kalgoorlie and Perth.”
C.D. Dodd recently approached WA Bos Semi Trailer Equipment for a trailer build that would be tailored to its new Volvo FM electric prime mover – a tri-axle flat top trailer with the flexibility of twist locks and bolsters for containers.
“We were one of the first in WA to have the Volvo,” Esko says. “We were thinking about how we were going to use it and wanted to build a really custom-made trailer with the same Volvo paint on it.
“The flat top trailer is mainly being used in metropolitan areas. That’s what it was built for. In the scrap metal industry, every load you pick up is different. So, we’ve tried to build something that would be as universal as possible.”
C.D. Dodd’s vision for the trailer was clear. It would require very robust and high-quality products, and this meant using Fuwa K Hitch running gear.
“We put C.D. Dodd onto Fuwa K Hitch around five years ago and they’ve been using their components ever since,” Mark says. “C.D. Dodd has bought about 16 trailers from us in the last five years as well as 10 tri-axle dollies which have all included Fuwa K Hitch disc brakes and airbag suspensions. So, C.D. Dodd has been pretty consistent and loyal to both us and Fuwa K Hitch.”
These particular Fuwa K Hitch components have made a reappearance on WA Bos Semi Trailer Equipment’s latest build for C.D. Dodd where they have also been specially tailored to the prime mover’s electric application. This can particularly be seen with the fitment of the Fuwa K Hitch disc brake axles, one of them being a lift-up unit which limits tyre and axle wear when the combination is not fully loaded.
“The lift-up axle is set up automatically,” Esko says. “If there are loads exceeding 10 tonnes put onto it, it lowers itself to the ground. And as soon as you unload the axle, it retracts up. It also has manual override, so if the load is around 10 tonnes and you’re driving over bumps or uneven terrain, the axle won’t move up and down.”
Fuwa K Hitch air suspensions have also increased the handling and performance of the combination.
“The air suspension systems have been performing very well so far,” Esko says. “We think air suspensions are more accurate and better to have, so we decided to go with them.”
While Esko and C.D. Dodd praise the efficiencies that Fuwa K Hitch’s products bring to the custom flat top trailer and its operations, Mark and WA Bos Semi Trailer Equipment vouch for the other benefits in the way of reliability and servicing.
“The Fuwa K Hitch components on this build are really good,” Mark says. “They’re very reliable and easy to maintain. We’ve had zero issues to date with Fuwa K Hitch axles. They’ve been bulletproof.”
The service that WA Bos Semi Trailer Equipment receives from Fuwa K Hitch is also second to none.
“Availability is generally off the shelf,” Mark explains. “Fuwa K Hitch supports their product really well and they’ll often come and show us how to fit things up.”
WA Bos Semi Trailer Equipment fits Fuwa K Hitch products on a fairly regular basis. For Mark, the exceptional performance of the components therefore comes as no surprise.
“We fit Fuwa K Hitch running gear on a lot of trailers,” he explains. “Many of our customers choose their axles and suspensions because of how reliable they are.
“Because of this, we get nothing but good feedback on the Fuwa K Hitch products we use. The team over there are very friendly and helpful, and their products have proven their worth.”
