Scania heavy tippers popular among drivers in South Korea

Wookwang Development, a waste collection company in South Korea, has been using Scania heavy tippers for the past 18 years. Here, Taejin Lim, Vice President of the firm, outlines the many reasons why Scania is his No.1 truck of choice.

Taejin Lim is a man on a mission, rising to every challenge with dogged determination. Since the establishment of Wookwang Development in 2000, the company has grown to a solid organisation of 100 loyal employees. Located in the Samjeong-dong district of the city of Bucheon-Si in South Korea’s Gyeonggi-do province, the company specialises in the collection, intermediate treatment and transportation of construction waste. 

He believes that one of the main reasons his staff tend to stay is that they are “incredibly fond” of the Scania trucks they drive. “I am very proud of our low employee turnover rate compared with other companies in the industry,” he says.      

It might well also have something to do with the fact that he’s a good listener. “Whenever we need to purchase a new truck, I listen to the drivers’ opinions. They say that Scania trucks don’t tend to suffer from minor failures, and tell me they are really fond of the brand. So, it’s quite an easy decision for me. We now own 31 Scania tippers out of 51 trucks in total.”

Employee welfare key

Taejin Lim is very focused on employee welfare. “I believe that happy employees can make a successful company,” he says. “I know things could be better, but our head office has a cafeteria serving three meals a day, which is open around the clock. This is important, especially for the employees on site who start working in early morning. We also have a barbecue party every Friday.” 

A lasting partnership with Scania 

Scania has been “a great business partner” for many years, he says. “We first bought from Scania in 2000 when the company was established, replacing the vehicles with 26 new Scania tippers in 2016.” 

Despite a rapidly changing world, Scania continues to serve their purposes well. There are plenty advantages to choosing this brand, he says.

“I value the excellent fuel efficiency offered by Scania. While we have monthly fuel costs of over EUR 160,000, cost savings are still significant.” 

Taejin Lim also considers Scania’s supply of spare parts to be outstanding. “Whenever one of our trucks needs to be sent to a Scania workshop for repairs, they are carried out quickly while it takes two to three days to get a vehicle from one of the other brands back on the road.”  

When it comes to Scania Services, he feels satisfied although “this is the only area where there is room for improvement. Our trucks get a regular service without any big issue. Staff and technicians at the Incheon workshop provide a flawless service and are very kind. However, Scania has only one workshop in the Incheon area, so the waiting times can be quite long. There are many Scania trucks on the road here, and the demand for services is high. I’d be very interested to know if there are any plans to open up another workshop here.”

On for a challenge

Taejin Lim, makes time for plenty activities outside work. He sometimes takes a day off to do some voluntary work, and is active in the motorcycle community. But one of his favourite pastimes is acquiring new driver’s licences. He now holds many including for a passenger car, heavy-duty truck, trailer and even an excavator. “It’s fun to learn something new and set myself a challenge. Sometimes I fail a driving test, but then I take it again and again until I pass. It gives me a great sense of joy when I finally pull it off.”