Truck and Track Autumn 2021

www.truckandtrack.com Autumn 2021 Truck and Track 43 UPN – (UNITED PALLET NETWORK) – FINALIST – MULTIMODAL – PALLET NETWORK OF THE YEAR 2021 We are now the only privately owned network exclusively involved in member focussed pallet networking. UPN do not have outside investors driving for returns and for profit. Our owner, and our management team have been in the sector from the start and we still hold those early values that networks were built on. Our focus has always been on our membership working closely in partnership with them and growing our business in conjunction with them not through them. The APN (Association of Pallet Networks) has highlighted that growth in the sector has been unparalleled in 2021. How has UPN grown and what do you see as the key growth factors? It’s great to see the Pallet Network Sector seeing such tremendous growth. This is testament to the offering and service we and our members all provide to our customers. UPN actually saw by far the most significant percentage growth of all the networks which demonstrates the confidence customers have in our services. Home deliveries have been a huge growth area. More and more people have been working from home and spending their free time, and money not spent on holidays doing DIY and gardening. Without us delivering the goods this would not have been possible. Your senior management team at UPN is highly experienced in the sector – tell me a bit more about how this is helping your evolution as a network? I want to continually ensure that our members have the right level of support and our excellent senior management team certainly provide this. With what is probably the strongest management team in the sector with the most extensive pedigree of relevant experience, our membership and customers have a really solid foundation of industry expertise to draw from. Experience only comes with time and we are fortunate that our management team at UPN have so many years of service under their belt. A strong cohesive member network is crucial to stable growth, how are you building strong relationships with and between members within the UPN network UPNs members are our customers, we must always remember that. At UPN we are continually and actively working together with our members in a true partnership with each and every member. We positively encourage dual marketing highlighting the strong partnership bonds between us. Our dual branded fleet liveries are testament to this with our fleet menagerie ever growing right across the UK and Ireland. “The key to a really successful Pallet Network is clear, strong, and objective two way communication” Pallet Networks are quite unique in their make up as we are bringing independent companies together but need them to work collectively and not as individuals. That is why we established “Team UPN” to build a strong powerful nationwide team ethos of communication, support, and true collaboration. The key to a really successful Pallet Network is clear, strong, and objective two way communication, it is crucial that we listen to our members, involve them as much as possible and definitely not dictate to them. Regular regional and national meetings enable UPN and our members to share ideas, discuss developments and ensure that we are all moving forward as a cohesive network. Indeed many of the fantastic IT support and services that UPN offer today have been as a result of these meetings, but as I said there is no point in having meetings if you don’t listen. The Pallet Network Sector has been around now for just under thirty years, how do you see the sector evolving over the next five / ten years? Pallet Networks in the UK have now definitely reached the “mature” stage but with new markets opening up outside of Europe will provide further opportunities for those networks interested in developing within these arenas. From our part as we see new technology being developed, we will look how this can benefit our network. This is an area that UPN is continually looking at to ensure we stay at the forefront in our sector. The important thing for us here at UPN is that we maintain our core ethos and that is to continue to provide an ever improving high quality service for our UK customers and our members. www.upn.co.uk UPN Managing Director - David Brown An excellent senior management team - Our membership have a really solid foundation of industry expertise to draw from