Livestock hauliers Davidsons of Irongray celebrate 100 years in business

The very much family business, it is now run by a fourth generation and is now based at Lochfoot, Dumfries. The founder of the company, Fred Davidson, originally from Kirkland, Irongray – hence a name that's too well-known to change!

A bit of background behind the success of a business that has survived a century in trade.

The founder, Fred, was eager to transport anything he could, with the first sight of the maroon coloured floats being seen in Dumfries-shire in 1921, a few years after he started a Dumfries to St Ann’s run with a solid wheeled 16hp bus with some pretty precarious accommodation inside and outside.

That Albion bus was capable of reaching about 22mph and carried up to 16 passengers – how things have drastically changed now!

The late Bob Davidson and his two Bedford lorries in 1939 Ref:RH300121278 Rob Haining / The Scottish Farmer...

Fred’s grandsons, Billy and Bobby, took over with three lorries in the inventory in 1976. They moved from Irongray to Southpark, Lochfoot, but kept Irongray on the front of the lorries, and still do to this day.

Unfortunately, Fred passed away in 1985 aged 86, followed by his son, Bob Davidson, a year later aged just 64.

Over the next 40 years, Billy and Bobby built up the business to 12 lorries. There were many business setbacks, including BSE in 1993 and foot-and-mouth in 2001. The drivers were paid off in 2001, but fortunately the family managed to re-employ drivers for cull duties – a job which was not for the faint hearted.

When Billy and Bobby took over the running of the business, their mother and father did the books from 1976 until they retired. Billy's wife, Jean, then took on the wages and Bobby's wife, Susan, did the accounts. Sadly, Susan passed away in 2019 and has been dearly missed by all.

In 2016, the next generation, Robbie and Linzi, took over the running of the lorries, all the office duties and computer jargon! Also, in that year Billy retired and Bobby had hoped to do less – but that has never really worked out as he is still on the driving seat today.

The operating licence that they've had for the last 100 years has progressed to the stage where the family now run 14 lorries and 10 trailers. The team currently run all Daf artic units bar, from four Daf rigids for the smaller on farm jobs. The lorries are all serviced between Solway Daf, at Dumfries and McDougall Commercials.

the three lorries Billy and Bobby took over with in 1976. They moved from Irongray to Southpark, Lochfoot, but kept Irongray on the front of the lorries, and still do to this day Ref:RH300121271 Rob Haining / The Scottish Farmer...

“We run a full Daf fleet purely for the service on the new lorries – we simply cannot fault them. Especially when we are hauling livestock, we need assistance immediately for any breakdowns, both are always on tap at getting there as quickly as they can,” said Robbie, adding that McConechy's Tyre Services, in Dumfries, fits all tyres for the lorries and their response time is also immaculate.

The artic lorries will be turning 100,000km over the tacho annually and tend to be changed every four years to keep all the kit fresh. However, the six-wheeler rigids will be run to the ground and will see 1,000,000km in their lifetime.

“After the lorries have done that kind of miles, they don’t owe us anything. We keep the rigids that bit longer as we find it hard to find a good six-wheeler without having to buy them brand new.

"We are moving slowing towards buying everything new because it keeps everything fresh and it feels good to have a tidy fleet of lorries to look onto.

the current set of 14 lorries and 10 trailers. In which the team currently run all Daf artic units bar from four Daf rigids for the smaller on farm jobs Ref:RH300121275 Rob Haining / The Scottish Farmer...

“The livestock haulage business has changed a lot over the years. It used to all be small lorries and now we are onto big double deckers to get the numbers on board to make it viable,” said Robbie.

Bobby added: “The first double deck livestock trailer arrived in 2012 and we are now running three. We were told when the first one arrived that it would never work!"

The current staffing consists of eight additional full-time drivers, with Bobby and Robbie making it just one short of a football 11!

“The team is enough to keep the business running due to a shortage of drivers in the industry. As soon as you mention hauling livestock, no one is keen.

"It can be a dangerous job, and it is not always easy as you need to have your wits about you when loading the cattle,” said Robbie, who has a man who watches the driver’s hours on a tracking system to ensure everyone is abiding the rules.

"Luckily, most of the jobs we undertake can be pre-planned on the Friday night for the following week to allow to plan ahead for drivers’ hours.

"The majority of the custom is working with fat cattle direct to slaughter – AK Stoddarts, at Ayr; Highland Meats, at Saltcoats; and Scotbeef, at Bridge of Allan. As well as working with our local auction markets – Dumfries, Castle Douglas, Ayr, Lanark, Stirling and Carlisle – to provide a service for our customers.

"We also shift a lot of livestock from the Western Isles, especially Islay and Tiree, down into local men in Dumfries and Galloway, along with any farm-to-farm haulage that our customers require."

The latest diversification of the business is egg transportation, which required a fridge trailer. Robbie’s sister, Emily, got the team involved with Noble Foods, and this will be the fifth year they will have travelled from Newton Stewart down to Southerness and back up to Carlisle for a trailer swap with eggs.

old and the new, the Commer Superpoise next to the modern DAF CF rigid lorry Ref:RH300121263 Rob Haining / The Scottish Farmer...

“It was another feather in our cap. We have one man on that job full time for easier management and he is able to sort out any problems himself and make his own arrangements. He has the initiative to get on with the job, so it makes life easier for us knowing that lorry will more or less run itself,” said Robbie.

On the general side of hauling, they also take on any jobs they can get their hands on by carting fertiliser, hay and straw out of the Borders and into Dumfries and Galloway.

“I always run with my diary in my hand and will take on any jobs that we can to ensure our customers are happy. We have always gone by the saying – 'empty miles are not paying miles' and the lorry has to be full to bring in the money,” added Robbie.

“The farming industry has been fluctuating year on year and we're finding that a lot of farms have been sold because they are either not able to be viable or with the younger generation not willing to come through.

"Even within the livestock haulage side of things, there are fewer companies about. That means we must all stick together and work together where we can."

The current Brexit restrictions regarding exporting livestock has not had a huge effect on Davidsons of Irongray because they don’t do a lot of that kind of trade. However, even though the team are not directly exporting any livestock, there has been a lot of additional paperwork going into the abattoirs for extra traceability.

A picture from the early eighties, Bobby, Robbie, Fred, Cousins Gary and William, Bob and Billy posing in front of a Volvo rigid trucks used at the time . Ref:RH300121279 Rob Haining / The Scottish Farmer...

“There has been a lot of hauliers held up across the water, in Ireland, but we are lucky we just work locally. Even given the pandemic side of things, it seems to have made us busier than ever.

“We are hell for leather just now and are running at full capacity for our current operating licence so we can’t drastically expand just yet. The size of the business we have is perfect and running the business mainly myself, I can cope with the workload as it is without having to get in additional management staff to help, which would, of course, be an additional cost,” said Robbie.

In January, 2021, Billy and Bobby (who are twins) turned 70, at the same time the business turned 100 years old. So, there are plenty of celebrations on hold which the family can’t wait to celebrate for their wider family, friends and customers.

“Having built such a reputable business over the last century, we are hoping this can continue on for another 100 years!” concluded Bobby.

Funny stories over the years

Billy got a phone call on a busy Sunday night from a foreign accent wanting snowdrops shifted. He put the phone down thinking it was a prank from a neighbour.

Then the phone went again from the lady of a local B and B (Mrs Marshall, Eastland Farm), saying she had a Dutch man staying and he wanted four tonnes of snowdrops bulbs taken to Wolverhampton that he had dug up under licence.

He did the job and the customer was delighted!

the late Fred Davidson posing in front of the solid wheeled 16 hp Albion bus in 1921 Ref:RH300121277 Rob Haining / The Scottish Farmer...

* * *

In the 1970s Bobby had to transport 20 Blackface ewes for the late W Sheddon, Balgerron, to Stranraer Sherriff Court because he was having a dispute with a tup he had purchased. It became a celebrated dispute.

They made a circle out of people in the car park and let the ewes out to see if anything would happen with the tup. "Unfortunately, the tup was more interested in the judge with his long wig!" said Bobby.

[Editor's note: We carried a famous headline of the time: "Dick vet said ram was fertile".]