July 2005
Scottish-based truck distributor, AM Phillip Ltd, is celebrating its 50th year in business. From a small one-man band the company has expanded and developed into a multi-franchise business with sites in Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Dundee, Glenrothes and Forfar, with a further two specialist agricultural sites in Fraserburgh and Huntly.
The organisation was founded in 1955 by the present Managing Director, Alex Phillip and located on the same site in Forfar that now accommodates the company’s head office. Since that time it has sold over 5,000 Iveco commercial vehicles and supplied its services to a total of 15,000 customers.
“I started the business as a small rural garage offering maintenance and repairs and in those days I would consider working on anything from a puncture on a wheelbarrow to a gearbox on a heavy truck,” said Alex Phillip.
“The first truck I ever sold was a Fiat 170 tractor unit bought by a company called D & J McIntosh Transport from Arbroath. Trucks were a bit different in those days and it had none of the special features that you would find on a 44 tonne Stralis, its modern day equivalent.”
Over the years Alex has taken on a number of challenges, but one of the toughest, and the one of which he is most proud, was the development and installation of the first automatic gearbox in a Range Rover. This was installed at the request of a customer who suffered from Multiple Sclerosis, which made it very difficult for him to use a manual gearbox.
The result was a great success and he was invited to take the vehicle to the Range Rover factory at Solihull where it was examined and tested at great length. Subsequent orders followed, the most notable coming from Count Von Prudo, a close relation of the King of Spain at that time.
In 1979 AM Phillip became a service dealer for Iveco and in 1986, owing to the distributor’s efforts in both sales and aftersales, it was awarded the Iveco Ford Truck franchise. This proved to be an important milestone in the company’s history and it rapidly built up an ever-expanding order book of customers requiring new vehicles, servicing, repairs and parts, which continues in its role within the Iveco network today.
AM Phillip offer a complete range of Iveco vans and trucks from the 3.2 tonne Daily van through to the maximum weight 44 tonne flagship Stralis tractor units. In total, the branches carry an Iveco parts stock worth over £400,000 and large stocks of Iveco ‘all makes parts’ including batteries, wiper blades, filters, clutches, bulbs and water pumps are available for a range of commercial vehicles.
AM Phillip has also expanded its services to offer a range of trucks for rental and contract hire from the Forfar and Edinburgh branches.
The company continually strives to provide its customers with the most comprehensive service possible and to this end, year on year, it has added to the range of products and services available. As well as sales and aftersales service, the company offers an accident repair and paint spraying facility along with tachograph installation and calibration, and Class 7 MOT testing.
“Due to foresight, reinvestment and sheer hard work the company has enjoyed a great deal of success in the last 50 years and I am extremely proud of the fact that we still retain a number of customers who have been with us since the early years. Working alongside my sons Sandy, Graham and Gordon we are focused on offering our customers, new and old, the best and most competitive service possible over the next 50 years,” concluded Alex.