Deliveries to and from Tilbury Port and the Docks?

Delivering into ports and docks is something that we enjoy doing here at Arrow Light Haulage, when  delivering or collecting from a port it is something thats easy when you know how. We are local to Tilbury docks / port and a short drive to Felixstowe and Harwich. Docks and ports are areas that our drivers are familiar with.

Image by Danny McL via Flickr

If you don’t do it correctly then you will hold up the collection or the delivery and in some cases you may fail to deliver or collect.

Failing to collect or deliver from a port is a serious issue for a courier, it is something that incurs port fines (and we have heard that customers really don’t like this).  This is something that needs to be taken into account when pricing for this type of work. This isn’t the type of work that can be co loaded and needs just dedicated vehicles.

A few years back one of our bigger customers were feeling the pinch, so they went to a cheaper courier (or so they thought) the cheaper courier had no inkling about how to deliver into a port and in the space of a month racked up £30k in port fines for missed slots and deadlines. Our customer came back to us and the cheaper courier was fired because the reality was they were far more expensive.

It’s not just port fines that cost, its days of missed production if your component doesn’t reach its ship in time, the down time for a factory waiting for a new piece of kit.  All this needs to be taken into account if you are shipping goods abroad, if not done in the correct manner, can cost you a whole heap of money before they have even left the country.

Kevin Arrow
Same day couriers

Do you drive without business insurance?

Do you or your staff drive goods and items without the right insurance?
The money saved from having a member of staff deliver an urgent item or package, rather than a same day courier, is often wiped out if they have an accident. In fact it can cost a whole lot more.

People are often insured for their journeys too and from work, but not for work related errands that they may carry out. If they have an accident (their fault, or someone elses) then the items are not insured and neither are they. It's essential if staff are going to deliver anything work related, that you check that they have business insurance.

You may think its more expensive to use a courier service, and truth be told even if you were aware of the facts about insurance, corporate manslaughter and your liabilities / responsibilities, you would still choose to make the false economy or sending your staff to deliver the goods.

Kevin Arrow

5 things you need for an accurate courier quote

When you need a quote from a same day courier, there are some things you will need to know before they answer the phone!

1. What is the item to be transported?
2. How heavy is it?
3. What are it’s dimensions?
4. Collection Postcode
5. Delivery Postcode

Often we get calls saying “how much for delivery” but prices are worked out on the type of goods and services required. If you know the above 5 things, you will get your quote quicker.

Sarah

Same day courier delivery company

West Thurrock Office Moves?

The only thing more stressful than a move according to psychologists is death and divorce. In this blog we are going to share some tips to make your small business move more efficient and less stressful.

Unlike a house move moving the location of your business, if not done correctly could cost your business money. Virtually all offices moves can take place over a weekend so there is no disruption to your day to day business.

Image via Wikipedia

A well planned office move would include booking your office removal service with plenty of notice. It should be treated like any other large project carried out by your company. The relocation experts treated as project managers as that is what they are for you. Once you have assigned this you move should run smoother and together you will assess whether you can do a staged move.

Every office has non essential equipment that may be able to be moved or placed into storage before the main move or prior to your lease expiring. This allows you actual move day to receive priority attention.

Check what equipment your office movers have, for example an electric stair climber would be very useful if you your office furniture has to go up and down lots of flights of stairs. The right type of crates can make all the difference and you will need to check that your moving company has crates or will organise their hire on your behalf.

Sometimes a few jumbo transits is far more time effective than one large 7.5 tonne vehicle. What this means is a vehicle can be loaded and sent to the new premises and the next vehicle loaded whilst that vehicle is unloading instead of waiting for one large vehicle to be packed and loaded.

Whatever you do decide to do to move your office make sure you have several quotes so you can compare the services offered.

A well planned move needn’t be stressful it can be as simple as leaving one office on Friday and going to a new office on Monday.

Good luck

Kevin

Couriers: time saving and cost effective?

Courier delivery services can save time for either individuals or businesses.There are times throughout the year that we need either a local or long-distance deliveries for gifts or other time sensitive packages. These types of delivery services can ensure that your package arrives on time, as agreed. You’ll find that these services will provide you with the comfort of knowing that your package is safe, and in good hands.

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Even if there is plenty of time, talk to your courier service about getting the items delivered sooner. Last minute planning puts a premium on these kinds of courier services.Depending on the company you choose, it could be a large operation, right down to a one-man and his van. Furthermore, you can have regularly scheduled pick-ups and drop-offs to specific locations (known as multi-drop), or to drop off points that are predetermined by the delivery service. These predetermined drop-off points will more likely be less expensive than the latter.Such courier services can provide companies the financial assurance they need with reduced costs when compared to well-known big name courier services. In fact, if you require their services on a regular basis, it is easy to strike a deal with them. That would save you or your company money.

The biggest time savings when using a courier or van delivery come in the the form of saving you hours arranging quotes and chasing prices.

Quite simply an excellent service will save you hours on the phone, hours that you should be using to generate sales in your business and elsewhere. Often a courier company will get a quote into a company and a company will ring round trying to save two or three pounds on a delivery. An hour later they call back and book the service – in that hour they have called lots of people for quotes. The cost of the phone calls and the cost of the person making them is far more expensive than the saving made.

Sarah
Courier deliveries throughout the UK

At Arrow Light Haulage we are happy to endorse

Great for smaller parcels and smaller volume, say 5 -10 a day.

worldwide-parcel services

For all your Europe and other international destination parcel delivery.

The Cupcake Courier for Essex...

Over the last few weeks we have been in talks with various companies that produce cupcakes, and how to deliver

Image via Wikipedia

them. Up until recently, the safest and most secure way of delivery has been via same day courier, as it’s the only way to guarantee the cupcakes won’t be turned upside down during their journey to the customer. Sometimes the baker plain mistrusts the courier to complete safe delivery, and wastes valuable baking time delivering!

Unfortunately all that makes delivery very expensive for the people who hand bake and ice the cup cakes. For example, we would charge £15 per delivery / drops of cupcakes, minimum of 5 orders. This can make it too expensive for customers to buy.

Obviously there are still the marketing companies and companies who understand the powerful message that delivery by express courier send, but they have yet to embrace sending out baskets of designer cupcakes to their clients and potential clients….

The problem is, by sending the cupcakes the cheapest method possible means sending them by Royal Mail, and that means they may get bashed, and rotated a number of times before they arrive on the customers doorstep.

The solution is to prevent that, and the way to do that is through the creative use of packaging.

Cupcakes by Courier

The original ‘cup a cake’ container was devised in the US for holding the cupcakes, their icing and keeping them fresh. Last week, I spoke to Kim at the Cup a Cake company and she said the containers can be shipped to the UK for around $100 to $150

So if you are looking to ship cupcakes around the UK, here is the solution for your airtight cup a cake containers. The cupcake company may have to take a deposit from the customer, and the customer promise to wash and return the empty containers so they can be re-used.

A small investment in the right packaging, and you can deliver cheaply and safely to your long distance customers.

Kim Fuga from Cup A Cake can be contacted via kfadmin@cupacake.com

Delivered safe, even upside down

and as you can see from the image, they stay in place upside down.

Kim’s website is here http://www.cupacake.com/default.asp

We hope that helps with the safe despatch of your cupcakes, we suggest you try it out with one or two local postings to be sure the method works to your satisfaction.

Here at Arrow Light Haulage, we have enjoyed getting creative and thinking outside the box (and right back in it) to solve your courier delivery problems with cupcakes.

Alternatively, you know where we are if you would like an express delivery quote.

Sarah

safer cupcake deliveries

PS, if you found this blog useful, please leave a comment – it helps us to know what are the right things our readers would like to see from us.

Time critical delivery from West Thurrock and Dartford

Courier delivery services can save time for either individuals or businesses.

There are times throughout the year that we need either a local or long-distance deliveries for gifts or other time sensitive packages. These types of delivery services can ensure that your package arrives on time, as agreed.

You’ll find that these services will provide you with the comfort of knowing that your package is safe, and of course in good hands.

Image via Wikipedia

Even if there is plenty of time, talk to your courier service about getting the items delivered sooner. Last minute planning puts a premium on these kinds of courier services.

Depending on the company you choose, it could be a large operation, right down to a one-man and his van. Furthermore, you can have regularly scheduled pick-ups and drop-offs to specific locations (known as multi-drop), or to drop off points that are predetermined by the delivery service. These predetermined drop-off points will more likely be less expensive than the latter.

The biggest time savings when using a courier or van delivery come in the the form of saving you hours arranging quotes and chasing prices.

Quite simply an excellent service will save you hours on the phone, hours that you should be using to generate sales in your business and elsewhere. Often a courier company will get a quote into a company and a company will ring round trying to save two or three pounds on a delivery! On one hundred packages, that’s a big difference but on one item?

An hour later they call back and book the service – in that hour they have called lots of people for quotes. The cost of the phone calls and the cost of the person making them is far more expensive than the saving made!

Sarah Arrow

Same day couriers that deliver from all over the UK and back again.

Thurrock Businesses: Getting around the postal strike

With the Royal Mail set to strike, small businesses across the country will be affected. Here at Arrow Light Haulage we have been thinking up some solutions as to how to continue business as best as possible and where a courier is essential.

Firstly and perhaps most importantly, Parcel Force is not going to strike. That means the cheapest option for sending out parcels and packages under 5kgs is still available.

So if you are a business that sends out one or two parcels a day, and send your invoices by email and pay your customers by Bacs, you will be in a strong position to carry on business as usual.

Until the 14th of October, if you click the link above to book your parcel delivery through Parcel Force and type ‘new’ at the checkout, you will receive a 15% discount.

Secondly, as mentioned above. Use bacs to pay suppliers instead of posting cheques, it’s greener and far more efficient. If you are sending invoices, send them by email too. If like us you have to send additional documentation, scan and email that too. Again it’s greener, faster and far more efficient than the Royal Mail.

For companies that use direct mail for their marketing campaigns, have a look at other methods such as an email mailshots – think of the benefits to your carbon footprint as well as the traffic to your website and the ways to reach customers that may not respond to direct mail. If you need support for this we recommend business consultant Jeff Nutbeem, he can be found via his website – Small Business Consultant

You could be really old fashioned and pick up the phone and call the customers direct and send them a tailored email afterwards. More time consuming perhaps, but may have better results. If the Phone isn’t your thing then talk to an expert, we recommend Shaun Gisbourne at Phone for Business

More importantly, when to use your courier.

Use them when you usually do - for same day deliveries, for urgent items, for fragile items. You may think you need to use one for your every day mail service but the truth is, you can do a lot of it now via email, fax and instant messenger. These are often secure and safe, and if it really is that confidential you will already be using a courier to deliver it.

Sarah

Same day couriers in Essex

PS if you need to send birthday cards either send them with a present, arrange friend to do it if they live nearby, send a video via email – think a bit creatively! The chances are this won’t be the last strike and we can find ways not to let it affect our businesses or personal lives.

Please note, we have used an affiliate service to obtain the codes and links for the Parcel Force discount.

Happy Birthday Arrow Light Haulage

Posted by Kevin Arrow on September 19th, 2009 Edit | 1 Comment

7 years trading today.

As with all birthdays, there are a lot of people to thank for helping us get this far.

My wife Sarah, without her there would be no blog and no reason to go to work. Her unflinching dedication, belief in me and support is priceless. Her enthusiasm brings a light to the transport world. Thanks Sarah x

Angie Taylor, Angie finds us fresh talent, most of whom are out working today on an office move. When the going gets tough Angie dusts off her gloves and gets behind the wheel. Thanks Angie, it’s all appreciated.

Michael O Steen, like Angie he is a hard worker. Whether it’s driving, lifting or shifting Mike gets it done. Wicked sense of humour, working with Mike really makes the day fly by. Thanks Mike.

Jamie Durham, Jamie was our star person when our first big contract came through. We were nervous and sweating (just a tiny bit) but Jamie was there on site to help us complete it in a cool, calm professional manner. Thanks Jamie.

Colin and his wife Lynn, who gave us a short term loan in 2005 to finance our expansion back then. Sarah saw it was paid back a month early. It wasn’t easy but they believed in us and the loan enabled us to get our second vehicle. You couldn’t wish for a better business people to be your in-laws. Thanks.

A huge thanks goes to Barbara Saul, she listens to Sarah’s harebrained website schemes and that means we are all free to get on delivering the goods. She has also enabled us to manage our subcontractors better, blog better, and in the next few weeks there will be changes coming to the website. Babs will be bringing Arrow Light Haulage up to date and with Sarah yelling advice from the sidelines, it won’t be easy. Thanks Babs.

Paul Riggs, competitor, friend and big supporter. Over the years work has flowed back and forth between our companies. Advice given, support offered, coffee drank. We set up at the same time and unlike others who set up at the same time, we are both still trading. Paul, put the kettle mate. Cheers.

I would also like to thank in particular Clive Arrow and his wife Dorothy. They are the only Arrow’s that took an interest and understood how hard it is to be your own boss. Thanks Uncle Clive, Auntie Dorothy for all the listening and support, it really has meant a lot to us

To everyone who has worked for us, past, present and future – thank you.

Here’s to another 7. Cheers

Kevin Arrow – founder, driver, floor sweeper & now blogger for Arrow Light Haulage.

The difference in courier services, explained

There are a few types of couriers / courier services and they are easily confused.

First we have the most common type which are the parcel couriers or carriers. They take parcels and packages up to 25kgs in weight and when they are sorted (usually at a central depot) they are then multi- ped to their destination. Prices range from £ 5 upwards and delivery is done overnight, 48 hours, 2-3 days or another length of time that you specify.

Most people when they call a courier they assume that they are the parcel carriers, they are getting a low cost but high volume service. Breakages are not uncommon.

Check before you call.

Then we have Same day couriers or Express couriers who work with urgent consignments that have to be delivered right NOW! These are more expensive because they are ad hoc and a specialist service in some cases. Arrow Light Haulage specialises in same day courier work with vehicles up to 7.5 tonnes. Breakages, well so far we have had 100% success in 7 years of trading. We are very lucky.

Confusing the two types of courier service may mean your parcel is dispatched same day but costs you 4 times the price! Check which service you require and if you are not sure, then call for advice.

Sarah
0800 917 6084 (calls are free)
Courier Services in the UK

Related articles

• Do You Know What You are Delivering?
  
• Basildon same day courier services - vehice sizes
• Same day courier? what size van do I need?

The greener printer in our office

A few weeks back we delivered a ‘green printer’ to France (with the kind assistance of Darren Porter) for marketing and PR company Edelmann.
As a greener delivery company, it’s important to find someone who is going ‘that way’ when we arrange delivery of certain items – so it’s not so damaging on the environment (15% of emissions are from road transport).

HP OfficeJet 8500

We also collected the HP 8500 to trial ourselves at the same time. We take extra care with our back office and try to make is as green and efficient as possible. Waste is the worst kind of ‘not-green’ in this office, and we are often looking at creative ways to recycle things.

The printer, it’s a dream to use so far. We scan all our documents in and store them, we are often a companies unofficial back up of their delivery documents. We have saved approx 4 hours a week on scanning time alone.

We also have a an upcoming Business Scene event on the 2nd of July. I printed 150 red, black and gray invitations and only used a quarter of the ink that I normally do. I have enough ink to print up 100 or so posters for the Business Scene event in Brantham a few weeks later.

We also print a fair few invoices a week and other documentation and so far I am pleased with what the printer is saving me, in both time and money.

I must point out at this point, this printer isn't a laser printer, but an inkjet printer - and a viable greener alternative to a laser printer.

Thanks Tom @ Edelmann for reminding me to update everyone on my thoughts and progress with the printer.

I shall keep you posted as to how I get on with it.

Sarah

PS did I mention I LOVE the fact it's wireless...

Collecting and delivering from West Thurrck and Dartford : Furniture

Do you need a furniture courier? do you have items of furniture that you have bought from a store, free-cycled or ebayed?

• Sofa


• Chairs


• Antiques


• Sideboards


• Dressers


• Beds


• Cabinets


• Desks and other items of office furniture

Arrow Light Haulage the Essex based same day courier company are happy to quote to move your items. Whether they are high value or sentimental value, we look after them as if they are our own.

All our furniture deliveries are wrapped in felt blankets if they are not packaged already, then strapped to the vehicle - so they don't slip and slide in transit.

Whether it's one item or a houseful, we can offer you help and a two man team if items are really heavy.

Kevin

0844 884 3331

Same day courier

Related articles

• Awkward courier delivery


• Same day delivery in Basildon


• Delivering to Deadlines in Thurrock

Geting your freight delivered when YOU need it

Have you ordered goods / cargo from abroad, had it arrive in the UK and then found your import house or freight forwarder is reluctant to schedule your courier delivery to you, for another 2 weeks? Their lorries are always too busy or you live too remote to be part of the regular delivery schedule? Frustrating and annoying are words that spring to your mind when this happens.

Sometimes the collecting part isn’t a problem but the fact that the forwarders are not 24/7 like us means you cannot collect your goods yourself (losing a days pay from work or having to take a days holiday). Time is money and it can be as equally frustrating to sit and watch it being wasted.

We are based in Essex near Tilbury port, a drive from Harwich & Felixstowe and are 10 minutes from the M25, in other words we are real close to your goods. You no longer have to wait - if you want your goods we can collect on your authorisation and deliver.

We can also collect and store for you to collect at your own convenience.

After waiting for your items to reach the UK you may just decide to cut out all the hassle and ask us to be your courier and collect and deliver for you.

Contact us on 07816 528421 and ask for Kevin, or call the office on 0844 884 3331.

Alternatively send me an email and I’ll get a quote back to you. I’ll need to know the collection postcode, the delivery postcode, the item size and description of the item. If you are unaware of the service you will need, just say so and I can give you a price for each option.

Kevin.

Same Day Couriers easing your delivery hiccups

Related articles

• Same day courier? what size van do I need?
• Basildon same day courier services - vehice sizes
• Awkward courier delivery
  

Same day courier? what size van do I need?

If you are looking to book a same day or next day courier service, you need to know what size vehicle you need.

You van depends on the size and the weight of the items of freight or cargo, here are some guidelines -

*Small Van - up to 500kgs

*Transit van - up to 1000kgs

*LWB Transit / Sprinter up to 1500kgs

*Luton - up to 1100kgs, mainly used for bigger bulkier items.

(Both our Luton's have tail lifts)

Call us and we will happily advise you 0844 884 3331, local rate wherever you are in the UK.

Kevin

Awkward courier delivery

How often is it you get a parcel or a package and you are not in? It's frustrating isn't it. Depending on what type of courier service you use, you can actually schedule around the delivery times in order not to waste time or money.
Type of courier services that will allow flexibility -

*Store to door delivery
Generally the courier collects your item at the retail store or retail park warehouse and delivers it to your home. You pay delivery yourself and arrange it with your chosen courier company, so it it's delivered when it suits you, and not when it suits the retailer.

*Same Day courier
The goods or cargo are collected and delivered on the same day, with modern day technology, its fairly easy top give an accurate delivery time and in the event of traffic, the driver can always call ahead and let you know.

If you are sick and tired of waiting around for couriers and deliveries, give us a call and let us know, we may be able to help.

Sarah
0844 884 3331

West Thurrock Same Day Delivery

Related articles b

• Same day delivery in Basildon
  

West Thurrock and Dartford same day couriers

Here we are, talking to Business Video Productions about being a West Thurrock same day courier and what is different about our business. We talk about our sustainable beliefs, our testimonials and what we do. You get to see the team behind Arrow Light Haulage!



Sarah

Delivering to Deadlines in Thurrock

When something is urgent and has to get there to a deadline, the best option is to use a same day courier service but what exactly does that entail?

A same day courier uses a dedicated vehicle to collect your goods and then goes straight to the delivery destination. Now here's the tricky part, some people say they do same day but actually co load your cargo with another customers cargo. Nothing wrong with that until you have something smash because its fragile and should not be transported with anything else. Oh yes, and you will still pay premium price...

When booking make sure you specify that goods cannot be co-loaded and if they can and they are non urgent, tell that to your courier too. Of course when you book an express or same day courier, you are booking a premium service and the price reflects that level of service and urgency.

We are happy to collect and deliver same day urgent goods in the Thurrock area, to all over the UK. We don't co load and we don't miss a deadline. Priceless really ;-)

regards Kev
07816 528421

Related articles

• Light Removals in Basildon

• Had Your Parcel Slung Over a Fence Lately?


• Air freight drops as global trade siezes up


• Beware of Rogue Couriers - Antiques Trade press (arrowlighthaulage.co.uk)

Hauliers up in arms over hard shoulder use!

My dear wife is up in arms today, she is concerned about the hard shoulder running.

In theory it’s a good idea -  ease congestion by using the hard shoulder. It certainly saves money on widening the roads, but for a government so obsessed with Health and Safety, I cannot think why they would believe this is a good idea! In all honesty a few months back, I thought it was a good idea, now I am not so sure.

Imagine this scenario, a 44 tonne lorry has broken down at 4.15pm. The recovery services are called and the driver is waiting to be recovered. Rush hour arrives and drivers without thinking pile into the hard shoulder, making it impossible for the lorry to be recovered quickly, causes more congestion and puts the drivers life at risk.Hauliers up in arms over hard shoulder use!

I can see her point of view regarding lorries carrying hazardous goods / chemicals. Yes, they could get rammed and spilled and cause a far bigger catastrophe to the environment than what widening a lane would.

Would congestion actually ease? Would the traffic actually flow better for using the hard shoulder?

Where I am based in Thurrock a section of the A13 has had Chevrons painted in. Most vehicles drive evenly spaced with one chevron between them. This shows when there is an accident - the vehicles slow and effortlessly move lanes, because there is now the space to do that. Yes the traffic slows but it doesn't stop.

Could the government look into doing and enforcing these ways rather than putting peoples lives at risk?

 

What do you think?

 

Kevin

 

Moving your trampoline via courier

Often we buy things and then when we move house we have a near cardiac arrest about how we are going to move them! A Trampoline is one of those items, a shed/ gazebo is usually the other one

Generally speaking to move a trampoline (if applicable) you would first removed the supports for the safety net, You would not necessarily have to dismantle all of the poles and neither would you have to remove the net ties.

Once removed this can them be strapped together and easily lifted by two people onto your removal van.

The main body of the trampoline may or may not have to be dismantled depending on the size of the removal vehicle. Having said this I would strongly recommend removing the canvas and the protective paddings to prevent damage during transit, thus leaving only the metal frame.Moving in Essex? You need Essex Removals, Jan 2009

If you need any help, or are reluctant to do it yourself, we can always do it for you you. Just give us a call or drop us an email.

Sarah

The Most Expensive Delivery in The World?

Seriously how much for delivery… $42 million dollars if it was a Nasa space shuttle. Nasa are planning on selling their old ’stock’ delivery  / shipping and handling is $42 million dollars.

Why so much? Moving a wide, heavy load is expensive.  A fully loaded shuttle can take up to three hours to move one mile.  Now in this instance it will not be carrying the fuel so it should be able to move that bit faster. Banksmen and other technical and non technical support is also required. You cannot just through a shuttle on the back of a lorry and hope there will need to be police escorts and co-ordination with the highways agencies etc. It could be split down and sent by road and air but most likely it would be shipped.

If you can afford to buy one, I am sure the delivery charges are not a problem the good news is decommissioning fees are also included!The Most Expensive Delivery in The World?

What would you say if Nasa called and ask YOU to deliver a shuttle? ;-)

Kevin

Delivering big, awkward, bulky items but most certainly NOT space shuttles