Some people might struggle to retain their enthusiasm after 35 years in the same industry. This isn't the case for Bevan Group’s Sales Director Roy Shelton. Instead, the road transport sector in which he has spent his entire career stands on the cusp of a ‘green’ revolution, Roy’s passion burns more brightly than ever.
Roy is the leading light behind its latest venture. En-Veco – the name is an abbreviation of ‘environmental vehicle conversions’ – was established in 2020 to support operators as they transition to more sustainable road transport solutions.
As well as producing high-volume Voltia conversions of Nissan’s fully electric e-NV200 XL van, En-Veco offers a comprehensive service covering other chassis that employ gas as well as battery power, including hybrids. Its contention is that alternatively fuelled vehicles require specialist bodybuilding knowledge and skills.
In 2018 Bevan Group was entrusted to build box bodies for two of the first three domestic customers – DPD and Wincanton – on FUSO eCanters, the world’s first fully-electric light truck to enter series production. En-Veco is also currently working with a utility on a hydrogen conversion project.
Key to Bevan Group’s success – having won the inaugural Commercial Motor Bodybuilder of the Year in 2017 it did so again in 2020, the only other occasion on which it has entered – are its commitments not only to product and process innovation, but also to the development of its people.
Roy Shelton began his own career in 1985 as a YTS trainee with truck rental giant BRS – his talent was spotted quickly and he won two consecutive ‘Apprentice of the Year’ awards. Having worked his way up through the BRS ranks, during which time he was a Bevan Group customer, Roy moved in 1999 to GeoPost, where he took on responsibility for a fleet of 3,000 trucks and trailers.
Given his background, it’s no surprise that Roy believes strongly in supporting colleagues and providing them with opportunities to develop their own careers. “We’ve invested significant resources in training over the last couple of years,” he explained.
“This has given members of the company team the skills they need to work on vehicles that rely on alternative sources of power and can pose particular challenges for bodybuilders – it’s very easy, for example, to destroy an electronic management system if you don’t know what you’re doing. En-Veco has the expertise to avoid these pitfalls.”
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