He had thought that taking a trailer into an indoor show would be unusual, to find two of our own builds, almost side by side seemed most unlikely so he was keen to call us and tell us of the situation.  Nothing unusual we said, without realising how deflating this must be.  After all even our exhibition vehicles and larger articulated trailers are taken indoors for many shows at Excel and the NEC. Honda have used two of our light weight articulated trailers at a single event.

But there was even more excitement in store for our new colleague. Using our specially designed gas ram system he was able to set the trailer up within 20 minutes.   Canopy and banner board up, platform down, steps and skirts on and trailer brushed out and literature in position in under 30 minutes.  Nothing unusual in this apart from the fact that he began to realise that all the stands surrounding him shoed virtually no progress in the time it had taken him to position and set up the trailer.  The others had managed to lay a carpet or two. Some had piled up furniture but here he was, a new boy on the block, all finished and ready to leave before most had even managed to unlock their tool boxes.

And so it dawned on him how time saving and therefore cost saving an exhibition trailer can be.  If you look at the cost of attending just one exhibition with a traditional stand build, it can put you off exhibiting for life.  Not only are there design costs, material cost, but there are crew costs, overnight accommodation costs and all of these just keep mounting up.  Compare that to one man driving right in, setting up and leaving 30 minutes later.  Not surprising that some of our clients who find it essential to attend indoor events can more than cover the investment in a trailer that can last them 20 years by simply using it at a couple of indoor events.

Those of us who have been in the business a long time can and of course do often take the trailers we design for granted and often forget about the basics.  In this instance it has taken the enthusiasm of a new colleague to reconnect us with one of the most fundamental reasons for choosing to invest in an exhibition trailer.  And that is that over time (and quiet a short time) the investment will more than pay for itself not just in increased sales and business but in the cost savings it can offer in comparison to other forms of promotional activity and especially traditional stand building be it indoors or out.  We forget how cost effective a trailer is in comparison to the traditional marquee.

We may be a leading designer and manufacturer of exhibition trailers at Freeway but were ar always happy to go back to basics.  If you wnat to know more about what an exhibition trailer can do for your business take a look at our web site….www.exhibitiontrailer.co.uk   or call us on 01480 861990

That said we do have available two exceptional 13.6 metre trailers each with double gull wing extensions plus a rear slide out extension pod.  So very spacious trailers.  these have been extensively refurbished for re-sale but left empty of furniture for the new owner to fit out at minimum expense.

In so far as specialist vehicles are concerned these too have been in short supply but as of late they do seem to be becoming much more available.  Many of the specialist vehicles that we have on offer come from public service either from local authorities or from national services such as the National Health Service.  As such, any buyer can be sure that they have been well cared for and well maintained (although there are always exceptions!) and very often come with very low mileages.  Some new ones into stock have in fact been sold within days of coming into the yard.

We always aim to keep a supply of 3500kgs specialist vehicles in stock but rather like smaller trailers they are difficult to source.  The benefit being that such vehicles can be driven by anyone with a standard driving licence whatever their age and date of the original licence.

In addition we do at Freeway Trailers offer a full search service and we even have our own motor auction specialist who can trace specialist vehicles for sale and do the bidding for you.  It is not an easy thing to do to attend a motor auction and this we can do for you.

In addition we also provide a full refurbishment service which includes external painting and graphics plus interior build. For help and advice call us on 01480 861990.

For many the cost of  traditional methods of advertising such as on TV or posters, local radio are going to be prohibitive as the media itself “cashes in” by hiking up their advertising rates.  I guess guerilla marketing will come into its own with many a big name  and small name making use of mobile marketing to push themselves infront of the crowds.  Vehicle and trailer advertising could be very useful.  Imagine parking one of your exhibition vehicles in a prime spot!  Ok it will take some careful thought but I bet there are some interestign places to park that others have not thought of exploiting.

There are no laws to prevent the slow drive around public roads in exhibition vehicles, perhaps supported by promotional staff on foot.  No horrendous media charegs for this sort of activity.  It works believe me.  I have been innocently driving clients vehicles with promotional activity the last thing on my mind when stopped and asked about the product or service mentioned on the graphics.  OK, I also admist to being stopped and laughed at when seen driving a vehcile we had painted pink and then dressed with pink dice and pink furry steering wheel…not to mention the pink furry seat cover.  Whilst that particular incident was embarrassing it proves the point that people notice exhibition vehicles and are not even afraid to stop and make enquiries.

So come come back to where I started, the Olympics.  Whatever I think fo them personally they may be a great opportunity for you to promote your business without lining the pockets of those so carefully trying to exploit their monopoly. Think laterallya nd think

Whilst one of our surgeries has worked as far a field as Israel and Croatia we have also built animal ambulances for use on the island of Malta.  That said we have until now never had a set product range of vehicles and this we are planning to change during 2012 with the introduction of  various standard vehicle layouts which will all be branded with our Trailtrek branding.  These fixed vehicles will include the Trailtrek Veterinary Ambulance, Trailtrek Courier and Trailtrek Carrimor.  These being available in new vehicles, second hand vehicles or client supplied vehicles.

Our new vehicles feature a new style aluminium cage system that offers many benefits over our traditional stainless steel cages with a significant lower cost….so a great bargain for our clients.  We are often asked what vehicles are recommended and in truth most  are suitable these days.  The vans now on the market are exceptional value for money and great to drive so we have no issues with using VW, Citroen, Nissan, Peugeot, Fiat and many more. That said we are more than happy to offer advice on the right choice in so far as size of van is concerned for each individual job.  Shown with this blog is an animal ambulance recently completed for a new service being launched in the north West.  The PET COLLECTOR animal ambulance service will be commencing business this February.

Most recently we have added Dog Grooming vans to our range and we can now offer new or second hand units in this range to. Generally speaking these are based on Long wheel base vans but for those who prefer we can supply in trailer format too.  Although for trailers our clients do need to check that they have the appropriate driving license.

For more information take a look at our web site  http://www.exhibitiontrailer.co.uk/animal-welfare.php or for more information call us on 01480 861990 or write to us at info@freewaytrailers.co.uk

At freeway we have build dozens fo training vehciels and training trailers and they have ranged in size for the smaller 3500 kgs chasis cab conversions through to full HGV articulated trailers with slide out extension pods.  The largest trailer supplied was actually a second hand exhibition trailer with double extending pods converted into a mobile exam roof for budding electricians.  Sounds crazy but more people were happy to sit examinations if they did not have the cost and inconvenience of travelling long distances to a local college or office block.

Traditionally those using mobile training facilites have been in one way or another IT orientated.  But this is in no way the extent to which mobile trainign can be used.  We have created mobile art rooms, trainign facilities for gas and electrical engineers, biler maintenance staff and even cooks.  Recently we built a professionally fitted out kitchen within a Fiat Ducato chassis cab conversion where students not only studied and trained but also had the facilities to serve the results of their endeavours.  So there is no limit to what can be achieved.

If you feel that your business can cut costs and imporve servcies by taking your training into trainign vehciles or training trailers then give us a call for more information on the services which we can offer.  If budgets are tight we need not build new.  We can use and convert second hand vehicles.  call us on 01480 861990 or look at our web site on www.exhibition

We could have left it there, fitted the equipment, taken the money and another job done.  But curiosity was aroused plus our natural instinct to want eveything to be above board and ethical.  So how to check on a CE marking! How to check if it is authentic and legal? Well, dealing with a reputable supplier and this is a very easy task and one which the supplier is more than happy to help with…after all they are proud of the mark (even though most keep it quite small and discrete).  We found the reverse when dealing with someone dishonest and frankly out of our depth.  The gentle world of exhibition trailers does not train you to deal with the blatantly dishonest where a bounced or cancelled cheque is the greatest crime you are likely to come across.

In the end we found an overseas expert in this particular type of specialist product and it took him all of 15 seconds to tell us the CE marking on the equipment concerned was for sure incorrect. The model concerned being dated and for various techncial reasons unsuitable for such approval. Wow!  What does one do.  In the end we had to break the news to the client who had of course purchased the equipment in good faith. Not a nice thing for us to have to do but we felt that it would be completely wrong of us not to say and of course we had to refuse to install.

So the moral of the story is that if you see a CE marking that just doesn’t look quite right…it may be wrong.  We are amazed that people will do this sort of thing  but perhaps when building and selling exhibition trailers we are just too used to dealing with good honest suppliers and clients ….and long may that continue.

We are firm believers in individual design and build.  No two products are the same, neither are competing companies in the same market, so why on earth they should be expected to have identical trailers is beyond us. The showroom design needs to reflect the individuality and the product offering of each company.

Some of our clients are looking to attend well attended public events and wish to display consumer product to a mass audience…..which is a whole world away from those making multiple business to business visits each day to show off their product range and to take stocking orders.  One design needs to be wide open and inviting, bright and cheerful whilst the other can be much more intimate, personal and individual, with the visitor being specifically invited on board.  So no two mobile showrooms should ever be the same.

Even trailer versus vehicle is a difficult one, but nothing could compare to a recent client who asked us to advise on the pro’s and con’s of displaying their products in a chassis cab build against that of a panel van conversion with long wheelbase and high roof.  Whatever angle we looked at the problem from the same answer came up that either would do just as well.  We resorted to a decision being based on price but even here we were stumped as the value of the stock being displayed was going to be so high that it dwarfed the valued of the vehicle build. Money, or perhaps we should say saving a few pounds, was not important to the client.  In the end we came to the conclusion that there was no right or wrong and so we chose the chassis cab option simply because our gut feel said that this was the better way to present the image concerned.  So quite a subjective decision. But then again many such decisions are just that.

Thankfully other mobile showrooms currently in build have not presented us with such a dilemma.  It’s nice to have it easy some of the time!  If you have a product that you wish to display then come and talk to us.  We have over 25 years of experience in the business and can show you a very exciting portfolio.  Call Raymond on 07988 849970.

The older the trailers the more challenging the work, as you can never quite tell what you are going to find when, say, you remove a worktop, look under a sink or lift up a carpet tile. Sometimes it can be just plain scary with damp, mould, or corroded steel suddenly coming into vision.  Last year we saw it all, the good, the bad and the ugly.

This year has however started with a refreshingly different situation and our specialist trailer refurbishments section reports a less than usual phenomenon.  This year, rather than working on old and somwhate uncared for trailers we are currently working on a number of our very own recent builds, some of which are less than 9 months old.  Now, before you get the wrong impression or jump to the wrong conclusion  we have to say that there is nothing wrong with what we built….no complaints and no failures.  Indeed, quite the contrary in fact.  Last year we found many clients had little choice but to work to very restricted budgets and in such circumstances a small specialist company like ours can provide a very flexible response that larger more impersonal companies cannot offer. As a result many of our 2011 clients had to settle for trailers with less features than would otherwise be the case.  However our uniquely constructed exhibition trailers are designed with change in mind and having been successful during a tough trading period, giving our clients a great return on their investment, they are now confident enough to spend a little more on a few additional features by having their virtually new trailers booked into our trailer refurbishments programme before the new season approaches.

Our advanced methods of build allow our clients maximum flexibility in making low cost alterations to their trailers even when once built. A great investment for the future as no one can predict how their trailer may need to be operating in a year or two’s time.  Thus we can change furniture, fabrics, wall decoration, adds skirts, flagpoles or generators to name but a few items. But more important we can make considerable structural changes without too much hassle and even add extensions as we have done on a small trailer recently built.  You can see this on You Tube at Freeway.wmv

One more important issue that we have not mentioned is trailer servicing.  Trailers themselves require very minimal maintenance but this does not mean any at all!  When you are about to commence a new roadshow season you really must ensure that your trailer running gear, brakes and coupling are all in tip top condition and we can do this for you.  Avoid break downs, or worse still, accidents, and make sure your trailer comes to Freeway Trailers Ltd before the new season commences.  Call us on 01480 861990.

Such designs ranged as you can imagine from the modern (the shopping concourses at airports) to the clearly neglected and antiquated and I am sorry to have to list Clapham Junction station within this later group…….though in defence one has to say that it is a very clear and functional layout.  So each and everyone had faults and merits which led me onto pondering our own exhibition trailer designs.  At Freeway we offer a full creative design service which covers not just the appearance of the trailer but also the practical operation of set up and take down, through to content and even external graphics.  We have fairly simple computer based systems for the production of quick scaled plans and side elevations plus a state of the art 3D computer modelling system that can generate life like visuals and an overwhelming diversity of technical information and calculations.

Over the 25 years that I have been generating exhibition trailer designs much has actually stayed the same based on sound practical principals though details have improved with technology and better components.  On the other hand the purposes for which clients wish to use  trailers and special vehicles has certainly changed.  Simply hospitality at outdoor events has been replaced by a diverse range of practical sales, markets, training requirements.  Obviously styles and colours have changed too and I now cringe when I think of all the dark brown interiors I used to create….which were the height of fashionable taste!

With this blog I am showing just one example of our 3D modelling system which is a visual generated to illustrate two of the recruitment trailers we recently built for the Royal Navy.  Each trailer features a double gull wing extension with each being designed to operate independently.  However, to widen their effectiveness you can see that we created a linking stage and canopy so that the two trailers can be combined together to create a super stand at larger events such as the London International Boat Show.  You can see an actual photo of this set up on our web site at www.exhibitiontrailer.co.uk

If you are planning a roadshow activity and are not too sure of the ebst way to achieve your objectives then why not let us help you.  With the wide experience that my colleagues and I have in the industry and having in our time created some notable exhibition trailer designs, we will almost certainly be able to help you.  In the first instance why not give Raymond a call on 01480 861990 for some honest, friendly practical advice.  better still visit us at our factory to see the real thing in production.

For marketers each new season or new product launch is a challenge to be welcomed, an opportunity to do things better, differently with success the reward. Let’s be honest we would not be doing the job if we weren’t creative, adaptable and up for a fight, with the desire to win and be the very best at what we do.  Yes, winning new business, retaining existing accounts or perhaps simply surviving is going to take up all of our energies.

What is certainly predictable with a reasonable degree of certainty is that those who go out, reach out, visit their clients visit their prospects with planned roadshow activities are certainly going to fare better than those who do not.  It is they who will be in the “winners enclosure” at the end of 2012. For no longer can any brand or any business, however large and however successful, relax and sit on its laurels. It needs to be out there, it needs to be out in front of its public.  And the only satisfactory way to do so is to initiate thoughtfully planned and executed roadshow activity whereby the product or service can be seen, tried and tested, touched, consumed or plugged in.  No longer can you rely on the customer coming to you or to a static exhibition.

And of course there is in this a great opportunity for the smaller company, the ones with the smaller market share,  to become the wolf in sheep’s clothing. With good planning and a purpose built trailer or vehicle from Freeway Trailers it is perfectly possible to launch an audacious roadshow activitiy that can increase market share, build brand loyalty and create an image in a way that advertising will not do.

In the past few weeks alone we have been active in creating some great plans for next year with a variety fo clients ranging from soft drinks to heating systems, electronics to toys.  So if you want to put your company into the starting blocks for 2012 and you want some fresh, value for money proposals that will suit your market and your budget then why not write to raymond@freewaytrailers.co.uk