ARMAGH commercial vehicle dealer SOS Sales has agreed a lucrative £8 million contract with GRW Tankers in South Africa to supply its products into Ireland and the UK.
In October, SOS visited its headquarters in Worcester, Western Cape, to meet owner Gerhard van der Merwe, who created GRW with the mission to build world-class road tankers.
Following a tour of its state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities, SOS has signed up to act as an authorised distributor for GRW in the UK and Ireland and has placed the multi-million order for tankers, the first of which have now arrived.
And it is understood a second order for 100 more tankers has also been agreed, to be delivered in 2024-25.
Established by James Scallon in 2003 and employing seven staff at sites in Armagh and at Ellesmere Port in England, SOS Sales will focus on the provision of the full range of GRW liquid tanker products, which includes specialised vehicles for food and chemical transportation including hazardous liquids which can be held.
The partnership, which is supported by Danske Bank, makes SOS Sales the largest customer to GRW in UK and Ireland and will see it bring the flagship specialised liquid tankers to private sector clients.
SOS Sales chief executive James Scallon said: “We’re thrilled to have GRW as a strategic partner and to lead their distribution within Ireland and the UK to industry.
“As a provider of new and used tankers and trailers across the globe, we strive to provide and source for our many customers the best in class within tankers, and we know GRW has one of the world’s most advanced liquid tanker manufacturing plants.
“This partnership underpins our focus in SOS Sales on excellence, and we are delighted to have agreed the first suite of tankers which have started to arrive in Armagh, with more en route to Belfast port. Sales are already in place for several of the first fleet, so popular is GRW as a manufacturer.”
Gerhard van der Merwe added: “We are excited to be back in the UK and Irish market with SOS supplying existing and new customers with high quality tankers, which have proved their superior structural integrity over many years dating back as far as 2006.
“Our expanded product offering includes petroleum, ADR and food grade liquid and dry bulk tankers. SOS will provide the after-sales service to ensure optimal up time for our products.”