RHCV invests in workshop success
Renault Trucks dealer RH Commercial Vehicles (RHCV) has reported significant expansion over the past year, investing £500,000 across its sites to develop and expand its services, including its workshop offering.
The company sells, leases, services and repairs HGVs and LCVs across the East Midlands. It employs 140 staff and has expanded from four (Nottingham, Leicester, Alfreton, and Northampton) to six sites – with two new locations in Newark and Peterborough.
RHCV has been a Renault Trucks dealer since 1986. It is an authorised selling agent for Renault Trucks and provides new and used sales, servicing and parts for the full Renault Trucks range as well as all-makes parts and servicing for commercial vehicles. It offers a full range of sales and aftermarket services including parts, sales, dedicated paint shop and designated MOT bays.
RHCV is also responsible for a full portfolio of Isuzu Truck services covering sales, service and parts for selected sites after first appointed as its truck dealer in Northampton in the autumn of 2020.
The 2021 investment facilitated the opening of its Newark site and a new 8,000 sq ft workshop with three high bays, fitting up to nine trucks.
Later in the year RHCV announced the acquisition of its Peterborough site, which has four service bays. After a year of growth and restorations, RHCV reports that workshop revenue increased by 26 per cent in 2021.
James Daykin, group aftermarket manager at RHCV, explained: “We have spent a lot of time and money investing into our sites in the past year, especially focusing on bringing our workshops to a high standard.
“For example. all our workshop floors have been professionally resurfaced and painted and we have added new parts carousels. In doing so, we can provide not only the best standard for our customers, but a clean and safe working environment for our team.”
Parts is an important part of RHCV’s service offer, with the company stocking £1.5million pounds worth of Renault approved parts. The workshops in Nottingham and Newark are fully equipped with the latest parts management systems, including a ‘vertical storage R-Mag carousel’.
The compact storage and retrieval unit, which has a continuous series of shelves known as carriers, means parts are stored carefully, maximising space and can be accessed quickly and efficiently. Once activated, the machine rotates and the selected product is presented, via the quickest route, to a suitably positioned workstation.
RHCV also recently became an Approved Tachograph Centre at its Alfreton and Leicester sites, a significant investment for the dealership, creating a new service to its customers and offering a one-stop-shop.
On discussing the obstacles RHCV has met in 2021, James said that the shortage of skill and HGV drivers is a challenge that has been felt across the industry. With that in mind, more so than ever, James has found that retaining and attracting employees is key to managing a successful workshop.
He added: “Having a solid, determined team creates the building blocks for a workshop to succeed. At RHCV we strive to retain our employees and help develop and expand their skillset within our teams.
“To do so, we are in constant communication with our staff, checking in to make sure they are happy, they are pleased with their working facilities, have training paths assigned to them for personal development and are properly remunerated.
“Ensuring your teams are well looked after and developing within the business is the ultimate key. Which is why we have gone above and beyond to develop our sites and introduce new incentive schemes and added benefits for our technicians.
“It’s crucial that every single part of our operation is working efficiently together to provide the best service to customers, and that requires a harmonious team that is striving to do the best at each stage of the workshop process.”
RHCV recently announced development plans for its Northampton site, which includes a new seven bay workshop due to be completed in 2022.
