United Biscuits adds Longer More Efficient Trailers to Delivery Fleet

13 Aug 2014 --- United Biscuits (UB), the UK’s leading manufacturer of biscuits, is adding 62 new longer trailers to its lorry fleet in order to reduce carbon emissions and operate more efficiently. To support the company’s branding strategy, the trailers have been liveried in line with the company’s recent Jacob’s and McVitie’s advertising campaigns.

The new trailers are 15.65 metres long, two metres longer than standard existing trailers, and can carry 60 pallets of biscuits instead of the previous 52 pallets. By carrying larger loads, the trailers are expected to save 450,000 truck miles on UK roads each year, and reduce carbon emissions by 618 tonnes a year. UB are operating the trailers under a special licence as part of a 10 year Department for Transport trial.

The trailers are based at UB’s National Distribution Centre in Leicestershire. They will regularly depart with 60 pallets of biscuit varieties to be delivered to customers, and return fully loaded with biscuits and cake from one of UB’s factories – reducing empty miles.

The trailers have all been liveried to support the launch this year of UB’s marketing strategy. It groups most of the company’s sweet products, including Digestives and Jaffa Cakes, under the McVitie’s masterbrand, and most of the company’s savoury products, including Jacob’s Cream Crackers and Mini Cheddars, under the Jacob’s masterbrand.

Three different iterations of the McVitie’s “Sweeet” advertising campaign are used on 38 trailers. They reflect three animals in the “Sweeet” campaign: a tarsier (a small primate), a puppy and a kitten. The remaining 24 trailers are branded with the Jacob’s “Snack Happy” campaign.

Kevin McGurk, Group Supply Chain Director at UB, said: “These liveried trailers will make our company more efficient and more sustainable, and in a way that supports our major marketing campaign. They are a very visible example of how we are working across the organisation to make UB ever more competitive. UB has recently brought its supply chain together as one team and this is a clear example of what’s possible by working together with pace and ambition.”

The addition of the longer trailers builds on UB’s industry leading and multi-award winning “Fewer and Friendlier Miles” campaign launched in 2006. Since then UB has removed 20 million truck miles from UK roads, and has reduced its CO2 emissions from transport by 40%.