The organisation system for trade vehicles

What needs to be considered when planning?

Storage boxes and vehicle shelves enable tradespeople to equip and organise their vehicles securely and, more importantly, with efficiency. Thanks to the standard and customisable solutions available, a suitable system can be found for every requirement. However, even when working at the customer's site, the same old rule applies: Gain a solid overview of the problem and then implement a solution! Only with a practically oriented plan can tools, machines and materials be stored such that they are easy to transport and close at hand when needed.

Performance improvement through quality

Why buy a professional organization system?

Customization

As a tradesperson, you will have your own system of organising tools and materials. But those who employ workarounds and temporary solutions may already have noticed: Only a professionally equipped vehicle can use the available space efficiently and optimise the weight distribution.

Working efficiently

Whether you are looking for the right tool on the road or on site, carefully planned out vehicle shelving saves time, effort – and above all frustration. Speedy loading and unloading, a good overview of the available tools and materials, and of course the safe and legally compliant transport of goods is guaranteed when using verified professional systems. It also looks a lot more professional to customers and colleagues alike when you don't have to spend a long time looking for the right tool every time.

Our system concept

For this reason, many tradespeople rely on a professional organisation system such as vehicle shelving with suitable storage boxes and system cases. Because so many products are available for all kinds of vehicle model, this immediately raises the question: Where do I even start?

Forward planning

How to master the planing?

As experts for vehicle organisation systems, bott, Festool and TANOS have developed a practical guide to help you with planning. Forward planning of your vehicle equipment covers three points:

Selecting the vehicle
Defining the vehicle shelving/equipment
Planning the load and selecting suitable system cases

Selecting the vehicle

Do you already have a trusty vehicle that you use for work? If you do, you can simply skip this step because this is about preparing the most efficient combination of vehicle and shelving system according to your requirements.

Of course, this is only worth it if you intend to acquire a new vehicle – or wish to, for example, find out which model in your vehicle fleet is most suited to being upgraded with an organisation system. If, however, you only have one vehicle and do not wish to acquire a new one, upgrading could still result in maximum efficiency.

A question of weight

The first question you need to ask yourself is this: "How do I actually work – and what does this mean I always need when I am on site?" This is not just important when it comes to deciding how many drawers you need or how much space you should dedicate to each tool. It is also about the total weight of all the tools, machines and materials in the storage boxes, drawers and compartments – and the distribution of this weight. The question of how big a "buffer" you usually need is also important in this respect.

Experience shows that a load of 1.5 t generally covers the standard needs of a joiner or painter. For this reason, vehicle shelving systems made from aluminium are an optimal solution. They are simultaneously torsion-resistant and light-weight enough to leave a fair amount of wiggle room in the loading weight.

Threshold of 3,5t

Organisation systems made from wood or heavier metals can contribute a significant amount to the overall weight of the vehicle – thus restricting how much can be taken up by portable materials, tools or machines.

Your vehicle's maximum permitted load weight also plays an important role. Above all, ensure that the total load weight does not exceed the threshold of 3.5 t – or that you possess the required driver's licence class if it does. Your vehicle dealer is sure to be able to offer you a suitable vehicle model and may, if in doubt, recommend a model with more axles if the load weight does need to be that bit higher.

The importance of a load distribution plan

When you have determined how much weight you usually transport, it might be a good idea to create a load distribution plan. This shows you how your vehicle's load differs from the load distribution originally intended by the vehicle's manufacturer, without organisation system, tools and machines. An uneven load distribution can influence the way the vehicle drives and can lead to greater wear of parts of the vehicle body under particular strain.

Practical equipment

So that nothing is missing!

Of course, there needs to be space for you and your co-workers as well as for your tools – and when working on site with a customer, it must be ensured that the interior of the vehicle can always be accessed via the appropriate doors without problems. After all, what good is perfect load distribution if the space in the loading area ends up being too tight? So, when selecting a vehicle, ask yourself the following questions:

How many doors (and sliding doors) are required?

Are windows required for daylight?

Does the interior need access to electricity? Where in the interior, if required, will lights be fitted?

What security measures need to be fitted to protect against break-ins?

Is a partition wall or net required?

Does said partition wall need a window?

Is the standard size of the driver's cab big enough or is, for example, more legroom required?

What should the roof liner and interior trim look like? Are there colour clashes between the manufacturer's trim and the vehicle equipment trim?

Based on these questions, it is possible that a new vehicle does not need to be acquired to accommodate the organisation system. In some cases, the equipment specialists can modify and customise the vehicle body.
The brand of your vehicle is usually not relevant when equipping it with an organisation system – you can mix and match to your heart's content.

Buy or lease?

What are the key factors?

Regardless of whether you acquire a new vehicle with a built-in organisation system or wish to upgrade an existing vehicle, there is the question of expense. This usually entails three options:

1. Lease the vehicle and vehicle equipment
2. Lease the vehicle and purchase the vehicle equipment
3. Purchase the vehicle and the vehicle equipment

Of course, which of the options is best for you financially depends on the relevant package on offer. In general, however, it can be said: Generally, leasing is worth it if the vehicle is to be used for up to four years before being replaced. If the vehicle is going to be in use for longer, or if this is part of a general long-term investment, purchasing makes more sense. However, each case should be calculated individually.Options 1 and 2 from the list above also entail specific conditions that should be taken into consideration when making a decision: If you lease both the vehicle and the organisation system (option 1), they will be considered a single unit. That means you need to return both at the end of the lease period. This also means you cannot separately purchase and re-use the organisation system. However, this would be possible if you only lease the vehicle but purchase the vehicle equipment (option 2). Whether this makes sense for you depends to a large degree on whether the organisation system will also be compatible with your next vehicle. If the dimensions differ, you would, for example, have to pay additional refitting costs.

Collect quotes and offers and gather advice

If you need a new vehicle in order to efficiently transport your machines and tools using a suitable organisation system, a trusted vehicle dealer of your choice is sure to be happy to help you find the right vehicle. Try making a list of the most important points you wish to consider so you can communicate them without forgetting anything. Then the dealer will know exactly what properties you consider to be the most important and can pick out the most suitable models for you. Alternatively, you could also get advice from the equipment specialists. They have many years of experience working with a variety of vehicle models and are familiar with the requirements their customers typically have.

Tip: Let the vehicle dealer give you a couple of quotes for one or more vehicles and take them to the equipment specialists – they can tell you how much it would cost to fit the organisation system in each specific vehicle. This will give you a great overview of the total costs and time required.

Some providers, such as bott, can guide you along the whole journey to acquiring an efficient trade vehicle with an integrated organisation system. This all-inclusive service includes everything from ordering a vehicle to fitting your required vehicle shelving units to delivering it to your workplace. This is without a doubt the most convenient option for tradespeople. However, if you have a specific vehicle model in mind, e.g. a low-cost second-hand vehicle, you can also provide the vehicle yourself and let only the fitting of the organisation system be conducted by specialists. This would mean more effort on your part but may save money. In any case, you should take care of getting your new vehicle licensed yourself.

If you have any more questions about searching for the perfect vehicle for your organisation system, we would be happy to answer them here.