Spriggs Mercedes-Benz service game is set to be a winner

PRESS RELEASE – Courtesy of Arthur Spriggs & Sons www.arthurspriggs.co.uk 

Respected haulier Arthur Spriggs & Sons is launching a major push into the commercial vehicle service market, with ambitious plans to open a string of maintenance depots across the South of England.

The company already has a large, impressive workshop at its headquarters site in Tewkesbury, which has been granted ‘Authorised Repairer’ status by Mercedes-Benz and FUSO Trucks.

Now it is building on this foundation by embarking on a programme of extensions and improvements at the site, and creating up to 25 new jobs, as well as laying plans to develop similar facilities elsewhere.

The project is being headed by highly experienced professional Perry Reeves, recruited by Arthur Spriggs from the Mercedes-Benz Dealer Network, where he ran a Dealership group in the South-East of the country.

“I was hugely impressed by the drive and ambition of Managing Director Chris Spriggs, and by the size and potential of the Tewkesbury site, so did not hesitate when this opportunity arose,” he said. “The established facilities rivalled those of any commercial vehicle dealership and our plan is quite simply to create one of the finest workshops in the country.”

The depot has 17 full-length bays and five inspection pits, as well as two dedicated ATF lanes in which inspectors from the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency undertake MoT tests on trucks. There are also two bays in which Arthur Spriggs’ own technicians test Class 4, 5 and 7 vehicles – including vans and minibuses up to 3.5 tonnes gvw.

The workshop is open from 6am to midnight five days a week, and on Saturday mornings. The workshop is staffed by a team of 12 fully qualified technicians backed by service advisors and parts specialists – who maintain a £360,000 stock.

Two Service 24h vans are on standby around the clock to provide emergency roadside assistance, while Arthur Spriggs also delivers Mercedes-Benz GenuineParts as often as twice a day to operators across an area extending to the Cotswolds, Wales, Worcestershire and Bristol.

Tachograph calibration, tyre-fitting, wheel alignment, diesel and AdBlue supplies and a full-height brush wash are all available on-site.

By the end of the year Perry plans to recruit as many as eight more technicians, extend the workshop opening to 24 hours a day, install at least two new 28-tonne commercial ramps and create a dedicated while-you-wait servicing area for van customers.

Until recently around three quarters of the Arthur Spriggs fleet of Mercedes-Benz trucks was based at the same premises, but the company has acquired a new site close by to which the haulage operation is now being transferred.

“This will allow us to focus this entire facility on providing the best possible levels of after sales service to our customers,” explained Perry. “Arthur Spriggs is already one of the best in the Mercedes-Benz Dealer Network in terms of its customer satisfaction scores. Now our aim is to expand the business while working even harder to deliver the highest standards of workmanship and care.”

As well as its Tewkesbury base, Arthur Spriggs runs a haulage depot near Rushden, in Northamptonshire. The plan is to open a second workshop there early next year, in addition to expanding the entire Operation with two more Haulage and Service depots in East and West Sussex to replicate the Tewkesbury site with a fleet of trucks operating alongside a new bespoke workshop and parts department.

“Arthur Spriggs is in a great position,” continued Perry. “The fact that we are also in the haulage business means we know exactly what kind of pressures operators are facing, and what they need in terms of support to keep their fleets on the move. Our haulage business is also able to support customers if need be – we can provide a truck to help complete an urgent delivery if a vehicle suffers a breakdown.”

“Our message to hauliers is this: We’re on your side, we understand your business and can provide the help you need – come and talk to us.”

Arthur Spriggs & Sons was founded in 1918 by Chris Spriggs’ grandfather, and has remained in family ownership ever since. As well as haulage, warehousing and vehicle maintenance services, the company is also the official transport and logistics partner of the Bloodhound SSC project, which is working to create a land-speed record car capable of reaching 1,000 miles per hour, and has recently signed a deal to sponsor the Crescent Yamaha World Superbike racing team.

Read about how Cladding Coatings helped manage the external refurbishment of the building here.