The Development of Swedish Road Transport Companies: Incentives and its affect on the truck

Abstract

Volvo Trucks has in recent years noticed a development where some of their smaller customers have developed from traditional haulers into something that more looks like thirdparty logistics providers. From having only a small number of employees, they are becoming larger both in terms of employees, assets and offered services. They invest in logistical services such as their own terminals and distribution systems. The purpose of this report is to map the incitements behind this kind of development and to see what potential impact this has on the perception of trucks and its features. Is the truck still a focal point of these companies, or is it just another asset? By using data from both deep interviews and a quantitative survey the authors have gathered a base of information to compare and analyze together with existing statistics, research and theory. The results indicate that there are more than one way to develop as a transport company, and that the incentives behind the development might differ depending on which type of company you run. Regardless, the respondents and existing theory in our research agrees upon the fact that we are moving towards fewer and larger entities on the market, potentially leading to less focus on the truck.