See how Nfive UK Express used Haulage Exchange to build repeat work, access subcontractor capacity and generate £220k in HX revenue.
Tristan Bacon — Published 17 August 2026
For almost 16 years, Nfive UK Express has used Haulage Exchange to find work, build long-term customer relationships and extend its capacity beyond its own fleet.
Based in Blackburn, the four-person family business operates two Euro 6 18-tonne curtain-siders. Through HX, it can supplement those vehicles with subcontracted capacity, find return work across the country and continue serving customers when its own fleet is unavailable or unsuitable.
In the last 12 months alone, Nfive has invoiced for around £220,000 of work taken through HX, before operating costs. Over its time on the platform, the company has also built up 2,470 positive delivery feedbacks.
For director Salim Lorgat, though, success is about more than fleet size.
“I don’t believe growth should simply be measured by how many trucks you have.”
Salim’s experience in transport began long before Nfive UK Express joined HX.
His family previously ran a furniture manufacturing business, with its own trucks delivering goods across the UK and into Ireland. That gave Salim first-hand experience of running vehicles, managing an operator licence and understanding the practicalities of transport.
When the furniture business closed, a family member in the Midlands who was already using the Exchange suggested Salim put that experience to use.
In 2010, he started with a single 7.5-tonne curtain-sider and joined the Exchange.
Moving into carrying goods for other companies meant learning a different side of the industry, from pricing work to managing customer expectations. Salim quickly realised that winning a load was only the beginning.
From the early days, Nfive UK Express focused heavily on reliability.
That meant training drivers properly, communicating early when problems arose, tracking vehicles and only accepting work that could be completed legally and reliably.
“Honesty plays a big part long term. If you have any issues or delays, you must inform your customer in good time.”
That approach has helped Nfive accumulate 2,470 positive delivery feedbacks since joining the Exchange.
For Salim, those feedbacks do more than improve a company profile. They show prospective customers that Nfive UK Express has a long track record of completing work successfully.
“Our feedback says the story.”
Over time, individual Haulage Exchange jobs led to repeat work.
Some HX customers began using Nfive regularly, with vehicles working for the same businesses for months at a time. By the years leading up to Brexit, Nfive had developed a strong stream of automotive-related work supporting supply chains connected with major manufacturers.
Salim believes the strongest customer relationships are built on reliability rather than simply quoting the lowest rate.
“It’s not about money, it’s about reliability.”
That reputation became one of Nfive’s most valuable assets — and helped the business grow.
Within around three to four years of joining the Exchange, Nfive had grown from its original 7.5-tonner to operating two 18-tonners and two trailers.
Salim says much of that expansion was self-financed through the work the company generated on HX.
But the following years also showed why haulage businesses need to be able to adapt.
Brexit disrupted much of Nfive’s established automotive workload. Covid then affected regular work again, while changing emissions requirements added to the cost of keeping the fleet compliant.
Rather than relying solely on a small group of established customers, Nfive could return to HX and find other loads.
For Salim, that is an important benefit even for haulage companies that already have their own customer base.
Demand changes. Vehicles break down. Drivers become unavailable. Regular customers can reduce their workload.
Having access to another source of work — and another source of capacity — gives operators more options when circumstances change.
Today, Nfive deliberately operates a leaner fleet.
Salim is moving towards retirement and has reduced the business to two Euro 6 18-tonne curtain-siders, based around Manchester.
But reducing its owned fleet has not meant reducing what Nfive can offer customers.
When a customer’s requirements exceed Nfive’s available vehicles, the company can use HX to find additional capacity.
That could mean another HGV, a smaller vehicle, urgent cover or a suitable vehicle in another part of the country.
“Haulage Exchange has never let me down in finding subcontractors. We can always get the job covered.”
That flexibility means Nfive does not have to own every type of vehicle a customer may occasionally require.
Its own fleet can handle the work that suits it, while subcontractors provide extra capacity when demand exceeds what is available internally.
That becomes particularly valuable when something unexpected happens.
Salim gives the example of an owned vehicle breaking down while carrying a customer’s goods. Rather than simply telling the customer that the delivery cannot continue, Nfive can source another vehicle through HX, arrange for the load to be transferred and keep the delivery moving.
The same approach helps when a driver is unavailable, a vehicle is delayed on another job or an existing customer suddenly needs extra capacity.
HX also helps Nfive make better use of the vehicles it already owns.
The company carries out a lot of long-distance work, which can leave a truck a long way from Lancashire once the delivery is complete.
Traditionally, a haulier might rely on existing contacts in that area and call around looking for something heading back.
Through HX, Nfive can search a much wider pool of available work near wherever its vehicle finishes.
“Even if you’ve got your own customers, at least you can get your return loads as well, so you’re not doing empty mileage.”
That gives the business more confidence to accept work further afield, while increasing the chances of keeping the vehicle earning on the journey back.
Despite the geographical reach of the business, Nfive remains a small family operation.
The current team consists of Salim, his wife, his son and one additional driver.
Salim’s wife helps manage the company when he is away, while his son is learning the business with a view to taking on more responsibility in future.
He has already passed both his Class 2 and Class 1 licences. Salim deliberately wanted him to learn the job from the road as well as from behind a desk, including drivers’ hours, vehicle operations and the realities of completing haulage work on time.
Technology has also helped a small team manage a much wider operation.
One of the biggest changes for Salim has been adopting the HX Driver App.
Previously, he would often need to send job details to drivers manually, relay instructions and answer calls from customers asking whether a vehicle had arrived, collected or was on its way.
Now, when Nfive accepts a job, Salim can send it directly to the driver through the app.
The driver receives the collection and delivery details, contact information and job notes in one place. This reduces the risk of an instruction being missed when information is passed across calls, messages or emails.
Drivers can then update the job as it progresses, including:
Customers can see those updates too, meaning they do not have to call Salim every time they want to know where a vehicle is.
Salim also asks subcontractors to use tracking where possible, allowing him to check their progress without repeatedly contacting the driver.
“I hardly get any phone calls because the customer can see. They can track my vehicle as well.”
He says the Driver App has made such a difference that he wishes he had adopted it sooner.
“It’s given me a lot of free time.”
SmartPay has also reduced the administration involved in working with subcontractors.
Nfive currently manages around 10 to 13 subcontractor invoices in a typical month.
Previously, Salim would keep track of invoices and make separate payments. Now, approved payments can be managed together through SmartPay.
He estimates the payment process can take around five minutes.
Nfive also uses HX’s invoicing tools for its Exchange work, reducing the amount of separate administration required.
Together, the Driver App and SmartPay help a four-person operation manage customers, drivers and subcontractors without needing a large back-office team.
After almost 16 years on the Exchange, Salim is gradually stepping back from the day-to-day running of Nfive.
His focus is increasingly on passing what he has learned to his son — not just how to find work, but how to operate responsibly, understand drivers’ hours, communicate properly with customers and protect the reputation of the business.
That experience has also changed how Salim thinks about growth.
Nfive has operated more vehicles in the past than it does today. But reducing the owned fleet has not stopped the company from serving customers across the country, finding return work or accessing additional capacity when required.
Instead, Salim sees sustainable growth as having reliable work, strong customer relationships, a good reputation and the flexibility to adapt when the market changes.
“The future for us is about continuing to adapt. Sustainable growth, good customers, reliable work and maintaining your reputation are more important.”
From one 7.5-tonne truck in 2010 to almost 16 years of repeat business, 2,470 positive delivery feedbacks and around £220,000 of HX revenue in the last 12 months, Nfive has changed considerably.
But Salim’s biggest lesson has remained consistent:
“Your reputation travels further than your truck.”
Get access to 15,000 haulage loads a day on Haulage Exchange
Nfive UK Express joined Haulage Exchange in 2010. Since then, the family-run business has used HX to find haulage work, build repeat customer relationships and access additional capacity through subcontractors.
In the last 12 months, Nfive UK Express has invoiced for around £220,000 of work taken through Haulage Exchange, before operating costs.
Nfive operates two Euro 6 18-tonne curtain-siders and uses HX to find additional capacity when its own vehicles are unavailable, unsuitable or already committed. This allows the company to cover extra customer demand without needing to own every vehicle type itself.
Nfive uses Haulage Exchange to search for suitable loads near where its vehicles finish deliveries. This helps the company reduce empty running and make better use of its trucks on long-distance work.
Nfive uses the HX Driver App to send job details directly to drivers, share collection and delivery instructions, update job statuses, upload PODs and provide tracking information. Salim says this has reduced manual communication and the number of customer calls asking for delivery updates.
