Hertsens

What Hertsens does

Hertsens Transport is a Belgian family-owned bulk transport company headquartered in Kruibeke and operating across BeNeLux, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and (per stated expansion plans) Eastern Europe. The company was established in 1988 by Arnold Hertsens, evolving from agricultural contracting work the family had performed since 1978, and is currently led by second-generation family members, with Alexander Hertsens as General Manager responsible for commercial tasks and planning, Filip Hertsens heading the in-house garage, and Caroline Hertsens administering the family's real estate branch.

The company's core offering is Walking Floor (self-unloading) transport, in which aluminium-bodied semi-trailers with moving floors unload roughly 90m³ of loose bulk cargo in approximately 20 minutes without external equipment, supplemented by kippers (about ten units), 6×4 camion remorque trucks for skip and demolition containers (eight units), and articulated dumpers (ten to twelve units including Volvo A25G models). Fleet maintenance and roadside breakdown services are handled internally by Hertsens Services BVBA/SPRL. Hertsens describes itself as the market leader in Walking Floor transport across its core geographies, with a proprietary hydraulic tarpaulin system highlighted as a differentiator on driver safety and unloading speed. Adjacent group entities include Alfitra NV (sea container transport, established 1999) and Blitz (EV charging infrastructure founded in 2021).

Hertsens generates revenue through B2B contract and per-trip transport fees, with no public pricing disclosed. The customer base spans major recycling holdings, municipalities (including a long-running Antwerp household waste contract dating to 1990), construction and infrastructure firms, agricultural shippers, and consumer-goods clients moving palletized loads. Sales are conducted directly via phone, email, and a multilingual corporate website (Dutch, English, French, German). Hertsens holds transport licences across Belgium, the Netherlands (NIWO), Germany (KrWG), Luxembourg, and Wallonia, including dangerous-goods permits, and conducts community-facing brand activity through its annual Truckrun event, which in 2025 drew approximately 500 spectators and a 150-truck convoy.

Name

Hertsens

Legal name

Hertsens BVBA

Website

https://transport.hertsens.eu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1988

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Hertsens Transport is a Belgian family-owned bulk transport company and self-described market leader in Walking Floor transport across BeNeLux, France and Germany, serving waste and recycling, construction, agriculture, and consumer-goods clients with a diversified fleet of self-unloading trailers, kippers, container trucks, and dumpers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Bulk Transport Services

NAICS

Specialized Freight Trucking (4842), Specialized Freight (except Used Goods) Trucking, Long-Distance (484230), Specialized Freight (except Used Goods) Trucking, Local (484220), Transportation and Warehousing (48-49)

SIC

Trucking & Courier Services (No Air) (4210), Trucking (No Local) (4213), Refuse Systems (4953)

akta.pro primary industry

Dry Bulk Trucking (End-Dump/Walking-Floor/Hopper) (TLADAKAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

C&D Transfer Stations & Consolidation (BPALAJAB), Dry Bulk (Hopper/Pneumatic) TL Carriers (TLADADAE)

Keywords

• Bulk transport services
• Walking floor transport
• Waste transport logistics
• Self-unloading trailers
• Construction materials hauling

Headquarters

HQ city

Kruibeke

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Bulk Transport Services: B2B transport service fees charged for hauling loose bulk goods using Walking Floor trailers, kippers, camion remorque, and dumpers. Services span waste transport, recycling, construction materials, agriculture, and 'clean goods'. Revenue is generated through contract and per-trip arrangements with enterprise clients across multiple sectors.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Hertsens Transport provides B2B bulk transport services using a diversified fleet of Walking Floor self-unloading semi-trailers, kippers, camion remorque (6×4) container trucks, and articulated dumpers. Services focus on hauling loose bulk goods, recyclable waste, construction materials, agricultural products, and palletized merchandise for recycling holdings, construction companies, municipalities, and agricultural clients across BeNeLux, France, and Germany. The in-house workshop supports fleet maintenance and is also offered externally.

Product overview

Hertsens Transport operates as a logistics and transport services company offering a fleet-based service portfolio centered on Walking Floor (self-unloading) semi-trailers as its core offering, supplemented by tippers, container trucks, articulated dumpers, and an in-house workshop. The company also has a related subsidiary, Blitz, focused on electric vehicle charging infrastructure. The product portfolio consists of specialized transport equipment with automated loading/unloading capabilities, primarily serving the recycling, waste management, construction, and agricultural sectors across Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, and Germany.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Blitz: Electric vehicle charging station company founded in 2021 by Filip, Caroline and Alexander Hertsens, providing charging infrastructure throughout Belgium.

Products and services

• Walking Floor Transport Self-unloading semi-trailers (also called push floor or walking floor) that automatically load and unload loose bulk goods. The trailers feature a moving floor mechanism that unloads approximately 90m³ of cargo in about 20 minutes. Made of aluminum with iron reinforcement. Transports recycling materials, waste, agricultural products, and palletized or big-bag goods. Serves recycling companies, construction firms, agricultural clients, and municipalities across BeNeLux, France, and Germany.
• Kippers (Tippers) Transport 6×4 and 6×2 trucks primarily used for transporting soil and sludge from construction sites. Hertsens operates approximately ten kippers in its fleet.
• Camion Remorque Transport 6×4 trucks used for transporting skip containers and demolition containers. The fleet consists of eight trucks.
• Dumper Transport Articulated dump trucks (knickgelenkte dumper / tombereaux articulés) used on construction sites for carrying heavy loads. The fleet includes ten to twelve machines, including Volvo A25G models.
• Workshop (Werkplaats) Maintenance Services Fully equipped workshop for fleet maintenance and repairs, including roadside breakdown service vehicles. Maintains Hertsens' own fleet to top condition and also offers maintenance and repair services to external companies, demonstrating fleet expertise and quality standards.

Quantifiable outcome

• Walking Floor trailers unload a full 90m3 cargo in approximately 20 minutes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Hedin AutomotiveminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 28 September 2025Sponsor and partner of the Hertsens Truckrun 2025 event. Hedin Automotive is a Mercedes-Benz dealership and service provider.
• Daimler TruckminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 28 September 2025Sponsor and partner of the Hertsens Truckrun 2025 event. Daimler Truck manufactures Mercedes-Benz trucks used in Hertsens' fleet.
• CargofloorminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 28 September 2025Sponsor and partner of the Hertsens Truckrun 2025 event. Cargofloor is a manufacturer of moving floor systems for semi-trailers.
• Sanders PartsminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 28 September 2025Sponsor and partner of the Hertsens Truckrun 2025 event. Sanders Parts supplies parts and services for trucks and trailers.
• Q8 (IDS)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 28 September 2025Sponsor and partner of the Hertsens Truckrun 2025 event. Q8 (IDS) is an energy and fuel company.
• InterbandminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 28 September 2025Sponsor and partner of the Hertsens Truckrun 2025 event. Interband is a branding/communications partner.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves11 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• VDB Logistics (Van den Boomen): Belgian specialist in bulk and container transport with walking floor trailers serving the recycling, construction, and agricultural segments in the same Benelux geography. Comparable fleet composition and customer overlap with Hertsens.
• Smeding Groep: Dutch bulk and walking floor transport specialist serving recycling, agricultural, and construction customers across the Netherlands and Belgium. Directly comparable due to similar equipment focus and adjacent Dutch market presence.
• Group Smet: Belgian container transport and bulk logistics specialist with walking floor, tipper, and container chassis fleets serving waste and construction sectors across BeNeLux. Closest functional peer due to overlapping equipment mix and customer base (recyclers, contractors, municipalities).
• Verstraeten Group: Belgian family-owned bulk transport company with walking floor and tipper operations serving recycling and construction customers in Flanders and beyond. Operates an essentially identical asset base and use cases as Hertsens and competes head-to-head for waste-haul tenders.
• De Dijcker Transport: Belgian bulk transporter originally acquired (in part) by Hertsens in 2012; the residual entity still operates walking floor transport in the same BeNeLux waste market. Useful comparable because Hertsens' 2012 deal was effectively a tuck-in of a direct competitor.

Broad incumbents

• SUEZ Recycling and Recovery Netherlands: Major European environmental services group with substantial waste transport and bulk material handling operations in BeNeLux and France. Comparable because it operates its own dry bulk and walking-floor-style trailer fleets to move recyclables and C&D waste, though at much greater scale.
• Renewi: Public Dutch/Belgian waste management and recycling company providing collection, processing, and transport of bulk waste streams. A significantly larger player that operates its own fleet of bulk hauliers across the same BeNeLux geography as Hertsens, making it the closest broad competitor in waste transport.
• PreZero Recycling: European recycling and waste services arm of the Schwarz Group operating across Germany, BeNeLux, and surrounding markets. Operates bulk transport of recyclables comparable to Hertsens' customer-facing work, though PreZero is more vertically integrated into processing rather than pure haulage.

Others

• Daimler Truck (Mercedes-Benz Trucks): OEM supplier of the Mercedes-Benz tractor units in Hertsens' fleet (8 new tractors acquired in 2023). Acts as upstream equipment provider and event sponsor; relevant as a commercial partner but not a competitive peer.
• Cargofloor: Manufacturer of moving-floor (walking floor) systems for semi-trailers based in the Netherlands. Listed as a Hertsens event sponsor and serves as the equipment supplier to most European walking floor fleets; an ecosystem player rather than direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/hertsens.transport
• Facebookfacebook.com/hertsens.transport

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hertsens