J W Morrison

J W MORRISON CELEBRATES 45 YEARS WITH A SAPPHIRE EDITION RENAULT!

Customised promotional model vehicle specialists, Search Impex, are delighted to announce the release of an anniversary edition 1:50 scale Renault T480 High (6×2, single wheel tag axle) tractor unit, complete with 3 axle, bulk tipper trailer, customised in the livery of well-known Scottish operator J W Morrison Haulage.

(Note: The models have been based on WSI’s existing bulk tipper trailer tooling. J W Morrison is fully aware of this and accepts there are some differences in specification between the model and the actual tipper).

The model has been produced exclusively for Search Impex by WSI Models as a certificated Limited Edition (155 Pieces).

Operating from the site of the former Cloverhill Farm on the outskirts of the historic market town of Strathaven in South Lanarkshire, J W Morrison Haulage Contractor was established in 1978 by Joe Morrison. Having started his working life as a panel beater, Joe and his wife, Doreen, went on to set up Morrisons Motors – a car repair business – which grew rapidly and at its height employed 10 people. However, in 1978, and due to a long established interest in trucks (Joe’s father having been a lorry driver), Joe took the decision to wind down the car repair business and to purchase a tipper truck – a Leyland Reiver 6×4. Setting out as an owner driver, Joe quickly picked up work from local quarries. With his newly acquired truck – and also thanks, in part, to having the foresight to invest in an early version of a mobile phone – he soon found the volume of work available from local quarries and aggregates suppliers afforded him the opportunity to invest in an additional tipper and driver.

By 1991, and now with 3 tippers on the road, Joe found and purchased a former farmhouse and some surrounding land which proved an ideal site on which to park up the trucks. As the business continued to grow, a slight shift in the type of work being undertaken saw an increase in the amount of inter-quarry work and this necessitated the addition of tractor units and trailers to the fleet which, until that time, had comprised solely rigid tippers.

The Company is now well into its second generation with Joe and Doreen having been joined by their son, Paul, his wife Pauline and their daughter Andrea. Very much still a proudly family owned business, J W Morrison runs a mixed fleet of around 20 HGV’s comprising both articulated and rigid bulk tippers and embracing Renault, DAF, MAN & Mercedes truck marques. Operating throughout the UK, the business specialises in the bulk haulage of quarry materials, coal, road salt, animal feeds and distillery by-products.

The main fleet is instantly recognisable with a distinctive brown and cream livery but, with a highly commendable 45 years of service to the bulk tipping industry, Joe decided to mark the sapphire anniversary of the business by adding a flagship new Renault T and bulk tipper trailer to the fleet. Resplendent in its unique 45 years sapphire anniversary livery and complete with light bars and Scottish piper logos to the cab corners, the new Renault is proving something of a head turner when out and about on the road – so keep an eye out for it!

The models are available from Search Impex (whilst stocks last) and are priced at £175 each (including UK delivery & VAT).

For details of availability of this and other models, collectors can visit the Search Impex website at www.search-impex.co.uk or call on 01332 873555.