The Big Box Has Arrived.......And It's a Game Changer

Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal, Patron of transport charity Transaid, has officially launched Malcolm Logistics’ 50ft Container at this year’s Multimodal exhibition in Birmingham’s NEC.

Witnessed by professionals from all areas of the industry, Malcolm Logistics was proud to unveil their newest intermodal innovation, which is set to revolutionise the way goods will be moved in the future.  

Now customers will have the facility to move 15% more freight per journey (over the largest conventional available container).  And, by using a combination of our eco-friendly Road and Rail services, we are able to achieve a 13% reduction in CO2 emissions per pallet.

Current Megafret type Rail Wagon’s will easily accommodate container lengths of 50ft (15.24m) maximum, however the a roadworthy trailer proved more of a challenge.  Motivated by a technical challenge, Malcolm Logistics began to consider the concept of a road legal trailer that could transport this 50ft Big Box.

The solution is the new 15.6m extended length skeletal concept trailer, designed specifically for the 50ft long container.  With a highly innovative design, manufactured by SDC Trailers, it is a first of its kind and has undergone stringent testing and safety approval.

Allan Campbell, Group Fleet Engineer at The Malcolm Group tells us more, “Malcolm Logistics is very much aligned with the Government’s ambitions.  In fact, for more than ten years now, we consistently pursued a carbon reduction policy, by exploring innovative multimodal opportunities to reduce the impact of our daily road and rail movements, while maximising potential savings in time, handling and fuel usage.’

‘Thoughts soon moved to utilising the additional space seen on trailers and wagons at either side of the conventional 45ft container and how this could be made road and track legal.’

‘After much hard work, research and proposals a successful solution was reached, which will transport eight additional pallets, versus its preceding 45ft container, increasing productivity and reduce fuel usage resulting in lower carbon emissions.”

Malcolm Logistics will have forty 50ft containers and twenty 15.6m extended skeletal trailers by mid-2014 bringing their total ‘longer trailer’ fleet to one hundred and fifteen.