UK Pallet Truck Specialist Setting the Standard for Post-Brexit Adaptation

With Brexit now a done deal, and Britain no longer a part of the European Union, many businesses that conduct trade with customers in EU member states are struggling to adapt following the eleventh hour trade deal agreed on 24th December; mere days before the end of the transition period on New Year’s Eve. One organisation that appears to have all its ducks in a row, however, is pallet truck specialist Midland Pallet trucks, which has introduced numerous changes in recent months to ensure the team is well prepared to effectively navigate the new normal.

The leading importer and provider of high quality manual handling equipment for warehouses, such as high lift pallet trucks, drum loaders, and machinery jacks, has implemented a wide scale upgrade to its existing IT infrastructure, introducing new hardware and software to enhance the firm’s technological capabilities.

As part of this upgrade, Midland Pallet Trucks has partnered with a top courier software provider to better integrate its logistics data with other vital aspects of the business, including its accounting package. In doing so, Midland Pallet Trucks is ensuring that its team has access to the essential information now required to fully and accurately complete all necessary customs export paperwork and documentation for EU orders.

While the new IT infrastructure ensures that Midland Pallet Trucks is able to navigate Brexit-related logistics challenges almost seamlessly, the team has also identified a need to expand in a bid to handle change both effectively and efficiently. And as part of the organisation’s ongoing commitment to supporting the local community, Midland Pallet Trucks is pleased to announce that vital support at this time has come from two professional airline pilots who have been unable to fly due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on global travel. The team are thrilled with the new hires, and are excited to work alongside the aviation experts until they can fly once more.

“They say everything comes at once, and last year it really did,” says Midland Pallet Trucks Managing Director, Phil Chesworth. “We had been busy preparing for Brexit when the global health crisis hit, and so we were particularly concerned that the pandemic would hinder our efforts to adapt as we needed to in order to seamlessly transition to export requirements under the new trade deal agreed in December.

“While it’s been difficult, we are incredibly proud of how the team has responded, being ready and willing to get to grips with new technologies, and we’re also delighted that we’ve had the support of our new hires who have helped us enormously as we tackle the new admin tasks resulting from Brexit.”

In addition to the numerous new administration tasks that Midland Pallet Trucks is handling, the organisation has also been facing uncertainty regarding product demand, with the agreed ‘Free Trade’ deal not quite being as ‘free’ as many think.

Previously, Midland Pallet Trucks was subject to an 8% fee for all China-manufactured warehousing equipment imported into Europe. Following Brexit, the firm is now subject to a further 8% fee under legislation stating that free trade is only applicable to UK manufactured goods. The good news, however, is that the price increase does not appear to be deterring Midland Pallet Trucks’ loyal customer base, with 2021 sales are soaring as customers continue to demand top quality.