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The family firm was founded in 1870 by Elphinstone
Stirling, grandfather of the recently retired managing director
William Stirling and the great grandfather of Peter, David and Andrew
Stirling.
Using horse drawn lorries the business started life
as coal merchants and carriers in Kirkintilloch and Glasgow itself.
The first motorised lorry was purchased in 1921 and
the business developed into hauliers involving a variety of goods
but specialising in the transportation of bulk products.
The company, Peter D. Stirling (PDS), was incorporated
on 13 December 1960 and in 1961 it moved into rail transport and
leased a terminal from British Rail at Cadder, near Glasgow. At
this stage the company was run by William and his late younger brother
Gordon.
Over the years the company continued its growth handling
such materials as pig-iron, china clay from Cornwall and salt from
Cheshire.
Continued expansion, especially in rail activities,
forced the company to look for larger premises and in 1981 PDS purchased
land at Mossend where it has since established the existing rail
handling, storage and haulage operations.
Mossend Railhead is at the hub of rail freight business
in Scotland and is ideally situated 2.5 miles from both the M74
and M8 motorways.
Presently, PDS has 30 employees and handles the following
products: steel, metals, limestone, clay products, coal and tank
traffic. |
