Platform for the food and beverage industry
Wim Boydens' company from Torhout, West Flanders, has become a major player in the field of conditioned and refrigerated transport of food in ten years, both for pallet transport from A to B and for distribution rounds.
It all started for Wim Boydens on Nov. 9, 2011, when he started his one-man business with one refrigerated truck and a modest website. Ten years later, the specialist in conditioned transport counts 54 drivers, three clerks and 38 vehicles. "I am of the principle that an entrepreneur must dream and think, but also dare and above all do. Today, that is the only way to succeed," says the business manager. "I deliberately chose to specialize in national and international conditioned and refrigerated transport between -30° and 30° C of food products. This ranges from fish, meat and vegetables over meals and frozen products to spices, sauces and chocolate."
4D Trans today operates mainly in the Benelux and France. It provides express transport of refrigerated pallets, distribution rounds from distribution centers to stores or between stores and express deliveries. To that end, it has 28 trucks from 12 to 44 tons, eight vans from 3.5 to 5.5 tons and two shuttle trucks. "We supply butchers, caterers, hospitals, schools ... you name it. For several companies, we handle the complete distribution of their goods. These people specialize in producing food products, but often have little or no knowledge of logistics and transport. Then they can come to us," Boydens says. "For larger customers, a lot of stops per trip often have to be planned. We work out the entire route in advance and pass it on to the customer so they can get everything ready. We pick up the goods and deliver them to the various locations." 4D Trans stands for quality and service. In the food sector, there are many technical and hygienic safety requirements that must be met, and these regulations are becoming stricter and more extensive every day. The transport company has had the BRC label for more than three years, which guarantees in the market that a safe product is delivered to the consumer. The HACCP accreditation, in turn, proves that 4D Trans knows and controls food safety risks. This year, Boydens also plans to obtain IFS certification.
4D Trans, meanwhile, continues to grow steadily. As such, Boydens and his team are proud with the awards they have won in recent years. "After a few nominations as fastest growing company, we won the Trends Gazellen Transport & Logistics in 2018 and were awarded as Trends Gazellen Ambassador for West Flanders in 2019. We have since been nominated again for the Trends Gazelles 2021. Surely this proves that we are doing a strong job in a competitive market," the business manager indicates. "Yet we must not rest on our laurels, because setbacks are always around the corner. Because of Covid-19, for example, the distribution to the hospitality industry has almost completely disappeared and we had to look for a new interpretation there." The company is also continuously optimizing its service. Therefore, among other things, it invested in an IT platform with an intranet for the drivers and an extranet, where customers track their shipments in real time, pass on new orders and simplify administration. "We also want to build our own refrigerated warehouse in the near future, where we can store customers' goods for just-in-time delivery," Boydens concludes. "Growth is important, but the human nature of my business still comes first for me. An employee is a person, not a number. And my people appreciate that. You can feel that when they come into the office after a busy work day to have a chat."
