Howard Porter (manufacturer)
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Manufacturing |
| Founded | 1936 |
| Founder | Howard Porter |
| Headquarters | Spearwood , Australia |
Area served | Australia, Asia |
| Products | Semi-trailers, truck bodies, bus bodies (historical) |
Howard Porter is a prominent Australian industrial manufacturer specializing in the production of semi-trailers and truck bodies.
History
Established in 1936 by Howard Porter in Fremantle, the company originally operated as a coachbuilder crafting wooden horse-drawn carts. Remaining under family management for three successive generations, it was eventually sold to international owners during the 1990s. By 2004, ownership transitioned to Giulio and Roy Lombardi, with the company's operations having moved to Spearwood.
Between the 1950s and 1990s, Howard Porter produced bus bodies for various clients such as the Metropolitan Transport Trust, its successor Transperth, the Western Australian Government Railways, and subsequently Westrail. In the 1970s, it partnered with Custom Coaches on select projects. The firm later redirected its efforts toward manufacturing bespoke semi-trailers and truck bodies.
In 2006, the company grew through the acquisition of competitor SFM Engineering, a fellow semi-trailer manufacturer. A notable achievement occurred in 2010 with the fulfillment of a contract supplying 320 trailers for the Gorgon gas project, which was reportedly the largest trailer order in Australia at that time. To broaden its presence in Asia, Howard Porter launched a subsidiary named Global Trailer Solutions in 2012.