In simple everyday terms, we told the story of how they haul huge loads quickly, efficiently and safely for the country's core industries. 

Heavy loads, huge volumes; by rail
A distinct business within British Rail, Trainload Freight (TLF) carries regular bulk loads of heavy materials over relatively short distances throughout the UK.

Longer-distance general freight is handled by
Railfreight Distribution (RFD).The development of intermodal container technology and the advent of a direct rail link into the European market via the Channel tunnel present key opportunities for RFD. By contrast,
Trainload Freight's business is focused on heavy industrial customers in the UK. There are four TLF Profit Centres: Coal, Construction, Metals and Petroleum.

Supporting the UK's heavy industries
Our core customers, accounting for 80% of our business, can be counted on the fingers of two hands. Together with a further 260 customers, they are undeniably central to the UK economy.

They are the UK's heavy industrial companies. On their behalf, we haul a variety of materials: raw minerals, coal, steel, oil, industrial and domestic waste.

Our trains rarely travel long distances; 60% of the journeys are less than 50 miles. But long distances aren't at the heart of our business. Safe, efficient and reliable trainloads, each on average weighing over 1,000
tonnes, are.

It's not too much to say that we provide a vital link for many of the UK's pits, power stations, steel works, chemical plants, construction projects and petroleum refineries. Who else could deliver 75 million tonnes of
coal, 10 million tonnes of oil, 20 million tonnes of metal exactly when and where required in a single year?

Partners in heavy industry
So how do we keep the wheels of heavy industry turning?

Above all, by forging strong partnerships with our customers. We're in the business of meeting their heavy haulage requirements. This is the fundamental objective driving our performance and development. We see
ourselves not simply as hauling materials for heavy industry; rather, as a business working within heavy industry. A natural perspective, given that we often work as an integral part of a customer's production process.

We aim to provide a cost-effective high quality service, whatever the distance or nature of the journey required. To this end, we build flexibility into our operations, The overwhelming majority of our trains run direct from source to destination with no intermediate marshalling.
We can thereby secure fast, efficient, regular haulage of materials for our customers to load and unload at their own private sidings.

Our commitment to meeting customer needs has proved vital to the success of our own business. Competing not with the support of Government funds but purely on the quality and price of our service, we are the most profitable business sector within British Rail.

Investing together
As partners in heavy industry, we undertake considerable investment in technology and resources focused on meeting customer needs.

Environmental factors are a key consideration. We work closely with our customers to develop environmentally sensitive heavy haulage services in line with both UK and EC standards. As the quietest diesel yet built the Class 60 locomotive sets new levels in power, durability and efficiency, with a working life of over 40 years and the capability to haul up to 4,000 tonnes per journey. The first 50 Class 60s are now in operation and a further 50 will be delivered by early 1992.

Our investment is on-going. Last year we spent some œ4 million on research studies for such projects as 'hush rail' and we are already working on the next generation of locomotives. We are also working with private wagon companies in developing quieter, more efficient and
environmentally friendly rolling stock incorporating low track force bogies.

Our partners reciprocate with their own investment in heavy haulage by rail: some £1.5 billion in custom-built terminals and over £500 million in tailor-made rolling stock. As an example, 99% of the wagons hauled by
Trainload Petroleum are owned by the petroleum companies themselves or are leased from private wagon suppliers.

Partnership in action
We employ some 16,400 people throughout the UK. Our mainline diesel locomotive fleet numbers over 500. We have 25 locomotive depots, 11 wagon repair depots and 51 principal traincrew depots. We also serve 975 private sidings and terminals.

Without such extensive resources, we would not be able to sustain the heavy haulage partnership with our customers.

The seamless service
We provide a continuous, vital haulage cycle for many of the country's industrial processes. Working as long-term partners with each of our customers, we adapt our rail haulage services to their individual requirements. Haulage requirements inevitably change over time and
can even fluctuate from day to day. Our flexibility enables us to respond quickly to these changing demands; increasing or decreasing schedules as and when called upon to do so by our customers.

The future for heavy haulage
In the next decade, we aim to consolidate our position as the most efficient, reliable and environmentally sensitive national carrier of regular, bulk freight loads.

To this end, we will continue to work closely with our partners - planning our investment and development to meet our customers' changing needs.

In recent years, our strength and stability have enabled us to adapt to structural changes in the coal and steel industries. We now see exciting opportunities for growth in other areas, particularly aggregates and related
materials such as waste. By such measures as applying the British Standard 5750 Quality Assurance system to our activities, we are responding to these challenges with a cost-effective, high-quality heavy haulage service which is second to none.