More cargo, more sustainability, lower costs
Interview with Jeroen Naalden, CEO of Burgers Carrosserie BV
"Trusted in Transport, Driven by Innovation": This principle has been true for the trailer body manufacturer Burgers since 1925. Today, especially established retail players such as Action and Jumbo are among its customers, who rely on the combined strength of the Dutch company in the rapid expansion of their logistics networks.
Wirtschaftsforum: Mr. Naalden, for over 100 years, Burgers Carrosserie has enjoyed great trust in the logistics industry – and has been tirelessly driven by innovations, remaining faithful to its mission.
Jeroen Naalden: Naturally, a lot has changed over such a long period – after all, a century ago, horse-drawn carriages often still constituted the backbone of logistics. Accordingly, in the early years, our company focused mainly on the transport of agricultural products, until after World War 2 the focus shifted to the manufacturing of closed-body trucks. From the 1960s onwards, the world-famous Dutch flowers became the main cargo of our vehicles – because just a few kilometers away from our headquarters in Aalsmeer is also the largest tulip auction house in all of Holland. For many decades, we therefore developed trucks that were specifically tailored to the unique requirements of transporting flowers across Europe.
Wirtschaftsforum: Today, however, retail chains are primarily your main customers.
Jeroen Naalden: The flower business began to decline in the 1990s. Around the turn of the millennium, Ton Burgers, in the 3rd generation of entrepreneurs, managed to secure two particularly attractive clients for our company, the Europe-wide active clothing retailer Zeeman and one of the largest Dutch supermarket chains, Jumbo - and in this course also developed our double-decker trailer, which still represents our core product today. In 2010, Action also became our client, after their trailer supplier had to declare bankruptcy. Burgers then took over its existing warranty obligations and simultaneously began to deliver more trailers, supporting Action in its tremendous growth in the Netherlands as well as in Germany, Poland, and now also in Italy and Spain. Today, 90% of Action's 1,500-trailer fleet comes from Burgers.
Wirtschaftsforum: What are the advantages of your double-decker trailer?
Jeroen Naalden: Compared to a regular trailer, our product can transport 60% more cargo – mathematically, this means that every third trip can be eliminated, resulting in substantial savings on toll costs and fuel, as well as a corresponding improvement in sustainability. At the same time, personnel costs are significantly reduced, which is also a compelling argument in times of widespread shortage of skilled workers. For driving distances over 250 km, the purchase has usually paid for itself within a year. We are also currently working on further improvements so that our solution can integrate even more seamlessly into our customers' existing logistics processes: for instance, we want to introduce a dock-to-dock trailer at the centenary of Burgers that can be loaded and unloaded without external lifting equipment.
Wirtschaftsforum: At the same time, you are also introducing a new smart telematics system into the market.
Jeroen Naalden: It is a plug-and-play solution where the microprocessors on the circuit board are protected from moisture and shocks, such as those that occur during truck transport on the road. Even under these sometimes adverse conditions, a stable, yet wireless connection can always be ensured. This system not only enables precise monitoring of important metrics like tire pressure or battery status but also creates an important basis for preventive or predictive maintenance. At the same time, the system provides important protection against damage or loss by also detecting unusual movements of the tailgate - since we make our side walls from a robust wooden construction, that is actually the only way cargo could go missing.
Wirtschaftsforum: What else does the future hold for Burgers?
Jeroen Naalden: By now, our trailers are not only running on European roads but are also already in use in Japan and South America. This has already proven that we can adapt our solution effortlessly to the specific traffic requirements of other continents. Just in time for the 2026 Soccer World Cup, we also want to make an important statement for more sustainability in North America and are already in initial discussions to this end. This further opening up of new markets will be based on the five core values that have made us strong for a century now: cooperation, clear communication, effective participation of employees and customers, respect, and commitment.