Freight Assist Australia, since opening its doors in Victoria in 2012, has evolved into a national linehaul and warehousing company with one key mission – to provide uncompromised service as one of Australia’s most efficient and reliable supply chain providers.
As part of its ongoing quest of transporting more freight with less trucks, this mission is now being further supported with the company’s latest productivity-orientated move.
Freight Assist Australia has just launched another Performance-Based Standards (PBS) Vawdrey B-triple trailer combination. The sixth road train in the fleet, having a Gross Combination Mass (GCM) of 85 tonnes and a payload of 47 tonnes, has proven to be extremely efficient.
“The B-triple has made a huge difference,” says Freight Assist Australia Managing Director, Dean Wrigley. “It has definitely reduced the amount of trucks that we use on a daily basis. We’re saving around two B-double loads a day, so I’m really happy with the productivity of it.”
Dean now plans to order another six B-doubles and additional A trailers from Vawdrey to get even more B-triples on the road.
“We run a KPI report on all of our linehaul vehicles and we measure each combination’s performance in terms of capacity, weight, margins and utilisation,” he says. “The B-triple data has demonstrated improvements in our operations. We’re doing really well with maximising efficiency while ensuring we fully utilise our own fleet.”
Dean says the introduction of B-triples has also improved the business’ bottom line.
“In a competitive market and uncertain economy, the road trains have assisted our earnings by reducing our linehaul operating costs,” he says. “It’s a no-brainer for us. The more freight we can put on less trucks the better.”
The B-triple was joined by a new PBS A-double combination as well. Both trailer sets have been dedicated to transporting palletised goods in Freight Assist Australia’s Brisbane corridors.
Freight Assist Australia Site Operations and National Linehaul Manager, Raylene Dale, has been instrumental in maximising their load capacities.
“The B-triple has been fantastic,” she says. “With more tonnage and cubic metre availability, we are moving more freight with fewer trucks – creating improved financial and operational outcomes.
“The B-triple moves well. The feedback from our drivers is that it’s easier to drive than our A-doubles because of the dolly required in that particular configuration.”
Aside from heavy vehicle equipment, Freight Assist Australia has been experiencing significant growth in other areas of the business as well. The company has solidified its presence in South Australia by opening a new depot in Adelaide.
Meanwhile, it’s also expanding its presence in Victoria. The business has taken possession of the site next to its existing Altona depot which, as of 1 July, will expand its warehouse to a total of 12,000 square metres.
Further to this, Freight Assist Australia is building a new purpose-built facility in Willawong, Queensland. The 7,000-square-metre warehouse is expected to be operational in the first quarter of 2026.
The company now has its sights set on New South Wales. According to Dean, Freight Assist Australia is on the hunt for a suitable location to relocate its Sydney 3PL warehouse and distribution operations into to cater for its current and future growth strategies.
“Watch this space,” he says.
