W&P from the southern German town of Prichsenstadt is a forward-thinking waste carrier, based in the state of Bavaria. The company has a fleet of hundreds of vehicles, including moving floor trailers. W&P recently bought several dozen K-Forces. The first in the series was collected from the Kraker factory in Axel by Alexander Wehr, CEO of the company, together with his son, which provided an opportunity for a fascinating conversation.
“I collected the first K-Force myself”
The large-series order of K-Forces is partly to replace depreciated moving floor trailers, while the remainder is earmarked to handle the company's continued growth.
“I collected the first Kraker myself from Kraker. I said that right away when we placed the order.” This resulted in Alexander Wehr travelling to Axel to first be given a tour of the factory by Patrick Wieland, after which he took delivery of the first W&P K-Force.
His visit was an excellent opportunity to speak to Alexander Wehr about transport and his views on it. It became evident during the conversation why W&P is so successful. Very few things escape Alexander's notice. All decisions are deliberate and based on research. The same goes for the choice of Kraker. “After getting to know Kraker, we immediately ordered a whole series. That was kind of funny. I said, OK, I'll order Kraker, but nobody expected this big order right away. ” The K-Forces ordered all have the same specifications, so they can all be used for the same work.
Consultation with drivers and the workshop
“Naturally, I did as much reading about Kraker and K-Force as I could, and at the IAA, I had a close look at the Kraker trailers. I also spoke to several companies and drivers that are already using Kraker. All of the stories were positive. I even bought a used K-Force to test it out. All of that together pointed in this direction. I sold that trailer again for a profit, by the way,” Alexander laughs.
“K-Force offers all kinds of benefits, such as saving time.”
Alexander is a strong advocate of the K-Force principle. “It offers so many possibilities, like saving time, for example. If repairs are needed, the screw concept ensures that this can be done very quickly and easily. If you replace a welded part, it takes more time and a weak spot remains. With K-Force, the replaced part is literally and figuratively new.” In a company with as many vehicles as W&P, it makes sense for them to have their own workshop. But W&P goes a step further than most other major carriers: they have also invested in the technology and equipment needed for screw joints. All of the maintenance and repairs on K-Forces are therefore performed in-house.
“When we place an order for trucks or trailed equipment, we involve our people in that too. We talk to our drivers and the people in the workshop. I listen carefully to their opinion, because they have to work with it. That does not mean that all the options listed would be ordered, but we do take the general, important issues into account.”
Ready for the future
W&P closely follows developments in the transport sector. “We ensure that we are ready for the future. W&P already has a number of electric trucks in its fleet, and all of the trailer vehicles will be electric in the foreseeable future. To be completely self-sufficient, we are building a large charging station for electric vehicles. The cost of this project, meaning the purchase of e-trucks and construction of the station, is close to EUR 20 million. But that comes with significant benefits at the end of the day, as we save on diesel, tolls and VAT. Plus we also emit less CO2. Other carriers can also charge their vehicles with us. We always try to be one of the first to keep up with the latest developments. We explore everything carefully first, however, and do not take unnecessary risks. But whereas others have yet to begin the transition, we will be driving fully electric in the foreseeable future. That easily comes down to savings of over € 4,000 per month per truck doing 10,000km.”
Alexander has long been fascinated by electric driving, so he was one of the first people in his area to buy a Tesla years ago. “I wanted to know how it worked, whether I liked it, and I do.”
The ‘four eyes’ principle
“At W&P, we work according to the four-eye principle: I submit what I want and what it costs to my brother Mathias, and then we have a look together what the risks are whether it can be done or not,” he says. And if it can be done, we will do it. In the case of this charging station, we both agreed: we can do it and we must do it now. Because of this way of working, our decisions are unanimous and it is never anyone's fault afterwards if something should turn out differently.
We have a major advantage over many other companies in our industry: we don't lease or borrow anything. We buy. And when an invoice comes in, it is paid. Everything that stands at our place is ours,” Alexander says decidedly.
The strengths of Kraker Trailers
“We are only at the beginning of our collaboration, so I can't really say how the trailers work in practice yet. What I can say is that we are pleased with how the purchase process went and all subsequent contacts. Let's put it this way: we have high hopes for K-Force. I am now in the factory for the first time and I'm impressed with the efficiency, with the clean way of working. When it comes to moving floor trailers, Kraker Trailers can do anything,” Alexander concludes. He still has quite a ride ahead of him in his new vehicle, the first from the major order.
