Woods Transport scoops top prize

Woods Transport won three awards, including Best Overall Truck, at the recent Boot to the Headlight Show in Swords, Co. Dublin and thrilled with the company’s success was its managing director Brendan Woods.

Woods Transport managing director Brendan Woods

Since setting up Woods Transport in 2001, Brendan Woods has seen his business flourish. Having started out with just one truck, the company fleet now stands at 13 and with further plans for expansion, the sky would appear to be the limit for Brendan and his staff.
The Cashel, Co. Tipperary native takes enormous pride in the appearance of his fleet and this is reflected in the number of prestigious awards his trucks have won at various trucking events in the past few years. He was the big winner at the recent Boot to the Headlight Show at the National Show Centre in Swords, walking away with the prize for Best Overall Truck as well as the Best Scania and Best Fleet awards.

“We were delighted to win three awards, and to win the one for Best Overall Truck for the second year running was a great achievement. We invested a lot of time and money in the entry and I think it was worth it at the end of the day,” Brendan says.
The Boot to the Headlight Show has become a major event in the Irish trucking calendar since it was first staged in 2005. Run over two days in August, it has everything for the trucking enthusiast and is a great day out for all the family. There are over 200 categories and twice as many prizes. Among the categories truckers can enter are Best Owner Driver Truck, Best Company Owned Truck, Best New Truck, Best Working Truck, Best Vintage Truck, Best Light Commercial, Best Rigid and Best Construction Truck. The Show also features trade, accessorise and exhibitor stands and live music and entertainment.

Woods Transport won Best Overall Truck for its depection of the John B Keane play 'The Field' on its new DAF XF105

At last year’s Show, Woods Transport won Best Overall Truck for its images of John B. Keane’s famous character from ‘The Field’, the Bull McCabe on a new DAF XF105 which, incidentally, was the first such model sold in Ireland. This year, a Johnny Cash theme came up trumps for the company.
Explaining why he chose Johnny Cash to adorn his new Scania R620 Topline, Brendan says: “I always liked him as a singer and his music appeals to both young and old. I think it’s fair to say he has become an even bigger legend since he died.”
Brendan has invested thousands of euro in airbrushing all of his trucks and having them fitted with all kinds of accessories, ranging from alloy wheels to DVD players. He spent in excess of €30,000 in transforming this year’s winning entry into a virtual ‘home from home’. He explains: “As well as the airbrushing, we fitted such extras as a TV, DVD player, coffee maker, fridge freezer and microwave oven. One of our drivers, Richie Forde, spends most of the week in the truck so we’ve tried to make it as comfortable as possible for him!”

Brendan Woods has investede heavily in airbrushing all of his trucks and having them fitted with all kinds of accessories

He adds: “Due to the high quality of delivery service and parts we receive from AD Bracken in Mountrath, it helps to keep our running costs to a minimum.
Brendan’s mobile works of art have helped to raise the profile of his fleet to the point where the trucks are instantly recognisable all over Ireland. Envious glances from fellow truckers and awe-struck looks from the general public are part and parcel for his drivers every day.
He says: “No matter where you go, the trucks are commented upon. Both the Bull McCabe and Johnny Cash themed trucks have created a phenomenal amount of interest. It’s got to the stage where people along the street are taking pictures of the trucks with their camera phones.”
Each week, the Woods’ fleet is washed and polished to the point of obsession. And given the line of work the company is involved in – steel transportation – it can be quite a job to keep them looking immaculate.

A mechanic by trade, Brendan was involved in the family business Woods Plant Hire in Cashel before branching out on his own six years ago. Woods Transport operated out of Birr for two years before moving to Mountmellick in 2005. The decision to relocate to the Co. Laois town was taken on account of it being the headquarters of Midland Steel, whom Woods Transport works exclusively for.
Midland Steel is owned by Brendan’s brother Tony and over the past few years, has grown into one of the largest steel companies in Ireland. Raw steel is transported from the ports of Dundalk and New Ross to Mountmellick and after the steel is fashioned, it is then transported to building sites all over Ireland.

The Woods Transport team with the mobile works of art in the background

“The success of Midland Steel has had a very positive impact on our company. And because of it, we simply wouldn’t have the time or resources to transport materials for any other company. We have enough on our plate as it is.”
Woods Transport operates from the same depot as Midland Steel in the Bay Road Industrial Estate, Tullamore Road, Mountmellick. And while the advantages to this are obvious, Brendan feels Mountmellick’s central location has also contributed to his company’s success.

“Mountmellick is an ideal base for a transport company. It is only a one-and-a-half-hour drive from Dublin and nowhere in Ireland is any more than four hours away from you. I have found it to be a much better location than Birr because not only is it more central, but it is also serviced by better roads. It is also that bit closer to Dundalk Port where we draw a lot of our steel from.”
As already mentioned, Brendan currently has 13 trucks on the road, 10 of which are DAF. His other models are the prize-winning Scania R620 Topline and two Scania and Iveco rigids.

Due to the nature of the work, wear and tear on trucks and trailers are inevitable. That is why Brendan tries to upgrade his vehicles and equipment as often as possible. “Most of our trucks are fairly new, and none of them are more than 10 years old. We have 30 flat trailers, which are suited to steel haulage, and they are all less than two years old.”
Now living in Holycross, Co. Tipperary, Brendan is a veteran of the truck fest circuit in the UK going back many years. “I’d be a regular visitor to Edinburgh and Peterborough. Not so long ago, the Irish trucks weren’t up to that standard. But that has all changed in the past few years.”

Brendan entered his first truck competition at Truck Fest in Limerick four years ago. “We managed to pick up a couple of prizes, which gave us a great boost. The interest in entering competitions grew from there,” he says.
Not surprisingly, Brendan is a big fan of the Boot to the Headlight Show which is now regarded as one of Ireland’s foremost outdoor truck shows.
“It has grown into a huge event over the last three years and is eagerly looked forward to by all trucking enthusiasts in this country. Great credit is due to the organisers Austin Bell, Tony Judge and Sean Doyle for making it the event that it has become,” he concludes.