Krone Trailers UK has helped a theater and music tour specialist to gear up for a busy year as the sector continues to bounce back after covid.
Southern Van Lines provides transport and logistics for some of the biggest names in theater and music, as well as for festivals, conferences and corporate events. Based in South London, it runs a fleet of 15 tractor units, 40 trailers and five rigids. The company required some more 4-meter trailers to assist on contracts into Europe, carrying high value soundboards and other sound equipment. It turned to Krone UK which supplied two Krone Dry Liners.
“We have had Krone trailers on the fleet since 2018 and really like them. They are good value and the drivers like using them,” Charles Colley, director of Southern Van Lines, said. “We paused further fleet investment during Covid as obviously events stopped for a long time, so we were engaged in other logistics work. However, the industry has bounced back, including contracts taking us into Europe which is one of our specialisms.
“We needed some more 4m trailers and Krone was our first port of call. They were able to offer much quicker delivery than some of their competitors, which was important to us as we need these trailers for the busy spring and summer season. They were also competitively priced which always helps.”
The Krone trailers also fit in perfectly with Southern Van Lines’ truck livery.
“Krone paints them in the Jamaican Blue shade which is a great fit with our own metallic blue colour scheme,” added Charles. “We also appreciate the extra security features like the additional locking bar across the rear door handles.”
Southern Van Lines specialises in working on UK and Europe-wide tours as well as one-off events. The company also provides secure storage for theatre props, staging and equipment in its six warehouses. Its trucks all meet the latest European emissions standards, ranging from 30ft trailers to 45ft flat floor mega-cubes, equipped with tail lifts, tie rails, load bars and ramps.
The company’s new Dry Liners are based on Krone’s universal modular chassis, featuring an optimized welded assembly and robust bulkhead connection. For increased stability in the event of collision damage, the chassis is equipped with a raised front rail as standard, and protected lights are mounted on the diagonally reinforced, ramp-compatible rear. The trailers are made in Germany but sold and supported by Krone UK.
“After sales from Krone UK has been really good, we’ve had no issues,” Charles said. “Parts are more readily available than from some other brands, meaning we can more easily get hold of them as required.”