When ALFIK Shore Base Services needs to transport something bulky, awkward, out of the ordinary, the team turns to Streamline Shipping Group. It’s that simple.
The firm has two strands to its operations – supplying port operations plant machinery and labour to construction, renewables and freight companies on Orkney, and providing maintenance and supply services to the global oil and gas industry.
It’s in this second field that Streamline enables ALFIK Shore Base Services to excel, routinely moving items between Orkney and a variety of destinations including England, Gibraltar, Scotland and Germany.
“The oil industry is low notice, high demand,” said ALFIK’s managing director, Brian Corse.
“And in our line of work, nothing is ever simple. Expectations are high, deadlines are tight, and we’re transporting machinery and equipment – not pallets – so everything is a one-off job.
“But the team at Streamline is never phased. They just get it done.”
In one instance, ALFIK needed a significant haul of oil equipment moved to Gibralter – but delays earlier in the supply chain had made deadlines tighter than usual.
Brian said: “There had been a few delays in the project and things were running around a week behind schedule. No-one thought the cargo would make it to Gibralter on time.
“But Streamline handled everything – all the paperwork, all the connections, all the handling. Even though things were running late, Streamline managed to get the equipment to our client two days early!”
On another occasion, one of ALFIK’s clients left approval of a job to the very last minute, said Brian.
“We had to ship some machinery from Orkney to Invergordon. Although we had indicated that we needed around a week’s lead time, the job was only approved the day before it was required on site.
“Other hauliers might have panicked, but not Streamline. I don’t know how they did it, but they managed to get it on site when it needed to be there.”
“There aren’t many businesses nowadays that you can’t find fault with, but Streamline is one of them,” said Brian.
“They’re good at everything. I could phone them up today needing something shifted from the UK to Egypt, and they would handle everything – the logistics, the ship agency, the paperwork.
“They treat our customers as if they were their own, and that gives us confidence that they will always deliver a high quality service.”
For Brian, it’s this attention to detail and willingness to go above and beyond that makes Streamline stand head and shoulders above the competition. That goes some way to showing why the two firms have worked together in various capacities for over 40 years.
He said: “I could send out a request for a quote on a Friay night at 9pm or on a Sunday and I’ll get a response right back. They’re always on it. The centralised quote team, the directors, Vanessa and the team here in Orkney – everyone is very accessible and approachable.
“Sometimes our clients do a check on other shipping companies, looking to save money, but Streamline has never been beaten on price. So, not only do they offer a high quality of service in a specialised area of work, but they are very competitive, too.
“And their level of efficiency is off the scale. The trailers are always tidy, the drivers are polite, the ratchets and lashings are in good condition, they turn up when they say they will, and they are totally safety conscious.
“Streamline is streets ahead of other hauliers, and it’s a very impressive standard to set across the whole team for a business of that size.”
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