Krueger partners with Calibre Steel

Krueger has a history of contributing many product innovations to Australia’s transport industry, and with a clear commitment to quality and efficiency, it continually pushes the boundaries in an effort to deliver the very best to its customers.

The business has done this for the entirety of its proud 45-year history. Although recently, it embarked upon a new partnership with leading steel supplier, Calibre Steel, in an arrangement that will increase efficiency for Krueger while allowing it to access some of the industry’s best products and personalised steel supply.

As part of the arrangement, Krueger has moved the majority of its steel procurement to Calibre Steel so that it can continue to access BlueScope Australian-made steel and offer the high-quality trailers and short lead times it has become renowned for.

“Steel is our single biggest and most important commodity,” says Krueger Director of Engineering and Supply Chain, Steven Teofilo. “It forms the backbone of every trailer, so we go through so much of it.

“The partnership with Calibre Steel is more than just steel supply. They’ve got a lot of knowledge across their expert team, and they help us solve problems as a real one-stop shop solutions provider.”

The partnership sees Calibre Steel supply Australian-made 250 and 350-grade TRU-SPEC steel to Krueger in various dimensions for use across all of its product lines, ensuring consistency and reliability.

“TRU-SPEC is BlueScope’s cleanest and highest-grade steel that we use for laser cutting,” Steven says. “It’s the best of the best in the BlueScope range, and when we talk about the quality of Krueger products, that’s where we’re starting – with the best steel we can get our hands on.

“We start with the best steel so customers know exactly what they’re getting, where it’s coming from and so we can put assurance behind what’s going into our product.”

Under the arrangement, Krueger can call on Calibre Steel’s in-house secondary processing capabilities including plasma and oxy cutting. Due to the supplier’s involvement, once a delivery arrives onsite there is much less handling and processing required from Krueger’s end, resulting in more efficient manufacturing.

Another key benefit of the collaboration is Calibre Steel’s close proximity to Krueger’s manufacturing facility which results in reduced material transportation costs and greater on-call access to Calibre Steel’s specialist account service team – all this while still enabling Krueger to source the same high-quality Australian-made steel plate products it has utilised for decades.

“Calibre Steel is based in an adjoining suburb to us, meaning that transportation is greatly reduced with as little as 10 minutes’ travel,” Steven says. “Multiply these time savings across a schedule of regular deliveries and the efficiency gains really add up.”

Calibre Steel is also geared up to provide Just in time (JIT) delivery, project management and forecasting as required. Importantly, all supplied steel is quality assured with full traceability, ensuring Krueger continues to enjoy a premium reputation in the transport industry.

“As a manufacturer, it’s important to continuously identify processes and techniques that grow our competitiveness,” Steven says. “Efficiencies could come through new technologies, such as our new state-of-the-art fibre laser cutting machine which we introduced last year, or via logistics and supply chain improvements such as those provided by Calibre Steel.”

In addition to locally made steel plate products, Calibre Steel also has access to some of the highest quality global steel mills which provide even greater scope for Krueger to continue to look into more product innovations – with the possibility of exploring different grades in the future should the need arise.

Calibre Steel Customer Relationship Manager, Maddie Dharmapala, who has extensive experience in the steel industry and works closely with the Krueger team, says the opportunity to partner with Krueger on such a large scale has been very exciting.

“Krueger is well known and highly regarded in the road freight industry for its quality trailing stock, innovative trailer designs and modern manufacturing processes,” she says. “It’s extremely rewarding for Calibre Steel to partner with such an operation and assist the company in reaching its corporate goals.”

In addition to reducing steel transportation costs and providing Krueger with secondary processing capabilities in the form of weld packs, Maddie says another area in which Calibre Steel adds value to Krueger’s operations is through its customer service and support.

“Calibre Steel’s transport team is well qualified and extremely knowledgeable of the industry,” she says. “This understanding sees us ideally placed to provide Krueger with the best service on material selection as well as high levels of overall support. We’re only a 10-minute drive away, very accessible and eager to help.”

As well as its ability to supply quality Australian steel structural plate and laser plate, Calibre Steel also holds local stock of quench and tempered products made by BISALLOY Steel.

In addition, a vast global network of partner producers allows the company to source more specialised steel and alloy products for clients that may require these materials.

“They’ve got a very wide and large network, not just in Australia but globally,” Steven says. “If there’s something that’s not even available in Australia, they can reach out to mills all around the world for it – and they’ve helped us with things like that.”

With Calibre Steel heavily involved in its supply chain, Krueger can guarantee its customers ultimate adaptability and customisation in their trailer builds.

“If customers are looking for something custom, we can reach out to Calibre Steel and they’ll be there,” Steven says. “If customers have really strict requirements, this is where Calibre really shines. They can help find what we need, wherever it’s coming from, and get it to us in a really short time.”