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JUST A THOUGHT PUBLISHED BY Prime Creative Media Pty Ltd ABN 51 127 239 212 11-15 Buckhurst Street, South Melbourne VIC 3205 Australia Telephone: 03 9690 8766 Fax: 03 9682 0044 Email: enquiries@primecreative.com.au Publisher and Managing Editor: John Murphy Editor: Tim Giles Contributors: Paul Matthei Correspondents: Will Shiers (UK), Steve Sturgess (US) Subeditor: Amy Morison Advertising Manager: Trevor Herkess: 0411 411 352, trevor.herkess@primecreative.com.au Client Success Manager: Justine Nardone, justine.nardone@primecreative.com.au Production Manager: Michelle Weston Circulation & Subscriptions Manager: Bobby Yung Designers: Michelle Weston, Blake Storey, Kerry Pert, Madeline McCarty REGISTERED BY Australia Post - ISSN 1445-1158 SUBSCRIPTION 03 9690 8766 subscriptions@primecreative.com.au

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SITTING IN THE POWER SEAT

W

ell, the dust has settled after the Federal Election and the world has returned to something approaching normality, as the Coalition Government settles in to try and survive for a full term. All of the concerns in the lead-up to the election about the return of the dreaded remuneration tribunal were just that, concerns.

From the viewpoint in Canberra, the issues around freight transport and trucking industry are now out of sight and out of mind. The politicians will be too busy running around trying to shore up their position and cozy up to those senators to hold the balance of power in the Senate to bother with us.

There is a danger that the trucking industry could very easily slip off the radar and then drop to the bottom of many people’s priority lists. This is not the time to find ourselves at the bottom of anybody’s priority list, there are a number of issues which need to be addressed squarely and now.

Not only do we have the extremely important complete rewriting of the Heavy Vehicle National Law, but we also have on the road trialling of a completely new Road User Charge. There’s also the issue of how we and the regulators measure roadworthiness and all that will entail for the current accreditation landscape.

We’re also looking at the integration into the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) of the three largest State road authorities’ roadside enforcement arms. Victoria are jumping onto the boat sometime this year, with New South Wales to follow next year and then Queensland sometime later. This is going to create a major change in the atmosphere around regulation, if we’re lucky.

We are told that we are living a period of a slowing economy, but there seems to be plenty of economic activity going on in the transport sector. Major infrastructure projects are set to continue for the next few years and high levels of truck and trailer sales tell us there is plenty of business going on out there in the transport economy.

However, there are still some necessary transport infrastructure improvements which have not been addressed in the current projects. When the Australian economy does pick up, and we can expect it will, there is going to be increased demand on the transport sector to enable this growth to reach its potential.

Then, there are also some perennial problems which have dogged the trucking industry forever and a day. Even with the much-improved permit system which the NHVR seem to be developing, there are still massive vehicle access issues in just about every state, and especially for the eastern seaboard.

The points above are our shopping list, and we have a bunch of politicians sitting in Canberra who are feeling very pleased about themselves, and maybe a little comfortable. It would seem that now would be the time at which to strike and to stir up these politicians and get some of the items on our list ironed out, before we get back into the panic stations attitude which inevitably reappears around 18 months out from any possible election.

Now is the time when the trucking industry can get the ear of the people in influential positions and present them with well-researched and well-structured data that will help inform sensible legislation for the trucking industry. This is not the time to be chanting slogans and issuing provocative statements. Now is the time for quiet diplomacy behind-the-scenes to get some real change happening at the seat of power.

EDITOR www.dieselnews.com.au

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ISSUE 112

Contents

14

TRADITIONALLY SMART OR SMARTLY TRADITIONAL

For any transport operation it is necessary to find the right mix, for GLW transport in Perth the choice has been to be traditionally smart or smartly traditional. The leadership team seems to have found the right balance between trucking tradition and running a smart modern operation.

26 HAULING OUT OF THE RIVERINA

40 MOVING TELEMATICS AHEAD

The Riverina is home to a large number of operators who are hauling out of the area with a wide variety of local produce on board. Diesel talks to one of those operators at JDP Logistics.

The telematics landscape is constantly changing with the pace of new technology driving product development. Now, a well-known telematics supplier is getting a reboot and Ctrack is working on moving telematics ahead.

34 DIVERSITY AND EXPERIENCE

42 THE BIGGER THE BETTER

At T&M Heavy Mechanical and Site Services, diversity and experience underpins the success of their West Australian truck repairs and haulage business.

For many people, when it comes to truck cabins, it is always the bigger the better, or so it seems. Volvo have come up with a new bigger cabin for the FH, the XXL, so Diesel checks it out.

36 FUNDAMENTAL ISSUES FOR LIVESTOCK

56 ACCESS, ACCESS AND ACCESS

TRANSPORT

At the recent conference for the national livestock trucking industry, two fundamental issues for livestock transport were discussed and the latest developments explained to the audience.

Ask any operator about three of the main issues which constrain productivity in their business and they will tell you what they are, access, access and access. Diesel looks at access discussions past and present and whether we can expect any realistic change.

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NEWS AND VIEWS

One of the ATA founders is honoured, there’s a ground breaking Melbourne agreement on truck access, a Linfox driver is awarded as a hero, Austroads are ignoring fridge width advice, there’s a first anniversary for the dobbing line, Volvo are running hard to catch Kenworth, the NHVR unveils a new journey planner and is biodiesel back?

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DIESEL WORKSHOP

There’s a wide variety in Diesel Workshop in this issue, with an innovative new converter dolly, a Braking Special, a Tyre Pressure Special and articles on fuel tank choices, suspension maintenance and saving on suppliers.

76

S-WAY BETTER THAN STRALIS

The S-Way is a huge improvement over the Stralis it replaces, reckons Diesel’s European Correspondent, Will Shiers. But could Iveco have done a bit more with the interior?

80

SHELL ROTELLA SUPERRIGS AMAZES AGAIN

Diesel’s US Correspondent has long been a judge at the top truck show in the US, the Shell SuperRigs. He reports from this year’s event.

82

GETTING CLOSER EVERY DAY

Chinese trucks have been knocking on the door of the Australian truck market for quite a few years now and the point at which a Chinese truck will be accepted here is getting closer every day.

POD has a close look at the latest contender, the Foton Aumark S.

76

48 THE BIG LITTLE TRUCK OR THE LITTLE BIG TRUCK? Driving the new Standard Cab Hino 500 does beg a question about what is going on here, is this the big little truck or the little big truck? Even if you don’t know the answer, it is clear this new model has a lot going on and has introduced some new concepts into the medium duty truck market. www.dieselnews.com.au

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NEWS & VIEWS

LINFOX TRUCK DRIVER HONOURED The latest Bridgestone Bandag Highway Guardian named by the Australian Trucking Association sees a Linfox truck driver honoured following his remarkable actions and compassion at a multi-vehicle crash site in February.

Andrew Hastings was travelling west on Victoria’s Western Freeway when he came across the collision between two passenger vehicles. As the first on the scene, he immediately used his fire extinguisher to suppress flames and aid an injured woman out of her car, before rushing to the aid of the severely injured driver of the other vehicle.

After administering first aid to the man’s wounds until paramedics arrived, Andrew then pried open the passenger door in order to sit with and comfort the driver while he received treatment.

“Andrew Hastings’ actions are the definition of going above and beyond the call of duty, and he is undoubtedly a deserving recipient of the Bridgestone Bandag Highway Guardian title,” said Geoff Crouch, Australian Trucking Association Chair. “It’s in the face of adversity that we see the true gems

of our industry. The Bridgestone Bandag Highway Guardian accolade is a fitting way to recognise these incredible individuals.”

Linfox has a commitment to safety under its internal ‘vision ZERO’ initiative, working towards no workplace injuries

or motor vehicle incidents. According to Victoria Road Manager at Linfox Intermodal, Paul Gregory, Andrew leads by example in this area.

“As a driver, Andrew is safe and law abiding,” said Paul. “Andrew takes pride in his job: he is always well-presented in uniform and gives informative feedback during tool box meetings. Andrew’s aspirations are to become a driver trainer. His eagerness has already been demonstrated and clearly there is a care factor for his peers.”

According to Bridgestone Australia and New Zealand Managing Director, Stephen Roche, Andrew’s actions are worthy of significant praise.

“The Andrew Hastings story is heartwarming and confronting at the same time. His actions go well beyond his job description, and the level of compassion that he showed is nothing short of incredible. We are honoured to recognise him with the Bridgestone Bandag Highway Guardian title,” said Stephen.

To nominate a Bridgestone Bandag Highway Guardian, visit the ATA website. www.truck.net.au/highwayguardian

COULD VOLVO OUTSELL KENWORTH? With Volvo topping the heavy duty truck sales figures for the past two months, is it legitimate to ask, could Volvo outsell Kenworth? In the figures published by the Truck Industry Council for June 2019, Volvo sold 225 heavy duty trucks, while Kenworth achieved 202. This leaves Volvo just 50 trucks behind Kenworth’s 1154 total sales for the year in this market segment.

At this point last year, the two topped the rankings but Kenworth had achieved 1333 total sales for the first six months of 2018, while Volvo had just tipped over the thousand, at 1009. Volvo has been running a close second for some time but never got quite as close as it has in the last couple of months.

There could be a number of factors at play in these figures. Volvo may be delivering a number of bulk fleet sales together at one time with the effect of causing a blip in sales, while, at the same time, Kenworth are in the process of changing over to the new T410 and

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DIESEL September-October 2019

T360 models, with an inherent dip in production as the changeover is made.

If this is the case, the overall number may well show Kenworth comfortably back at number one by year’s end. However the rise of Volvo, Scania, Mercedes Benz and MAN in the last couple of years does show a longer term structural change is happening, with the market moving towards a preference for European cabover prime movers.

The reasons for this structural change in the truck market may be many and varied, but could well reflect an increasing focus on safety systems and driver monitoring. There has also been a much improved fuel consumption drive throughout the European brands, offering lower fuel use across the board with every new development in engine and driveline technology. Operators are targeting minimising fuel burn.

This development in the market has been reflected in the changes coming though from the traditional US truck and engine

developers. New integrated driveline packages are now available from Cummins and Eaton in both Kenworth and International. Mack are selling an integrated own brand driveline and Daimler have a similar package waiting in the wings from Freightliner.

In terms of safety systems and driveroriented design. The new Kenworths, the T610, T410 and T360 have demonstrated a major move to integrated safety systems and comfort coming to the fore. The advent of the Mack Anthem and the Freightliner Cascadia will see this trend continue across the the North American brands.

It would be a big mistake ever to write off the Kenworth brand or the Paccar organisation. The market dominance this truck group has known for many years is based on a solid foundation and many years of trust built over time through both the manufacturer’s hard work and the dealer network’s ability to relate to its customers.

NEWS & VIEWS

BRUCE MCIVER RECOGNISED IN BIRTHDAY HONOURS Bruce McIver has been recognised in this year’s Birthday Honours by the Queen and appointed as a Member of the Order of Australia for his significant service to politics and the road transport industry.

He was part of the small group who founded what became the Australian Trucking Association (ATA) in 1989, held the position of Chair from 1991 to 1994 and was a trust fund director from 1992 to 2015. He was the inaugural President of the Livestock Transporters’ Association of Queensland and President of the Australian Livestock Transporters’ Association (now the Australian Livestock and Rural Transporters’ Association).

The period in which Bruce McIver was chairman of the Road Transport Forum, later the ATA, can be characterised as one of consolidation of the foundations for an organisation which could last the course and do the job for which it had been formed.

“I am one of those kinds of guys who

if I find a need and believe I can make a difference I would do it,” said Bruce McIver in an interview, ten years ago, during research into ATA history. “I felt that by 1994, I had done what I had set out to do and it was time for someone else to take it to the next step. Also, around this time, in my business we were starting to get involved with the mining industry and this took up more of my time. For the three-year period in which I was chairman, I was working there virtually full-time.

Andrew Higginson (Executive Director of the then RTF) and I developed a very close relationship over those three years. It was a very trusting relationship.”

Bruce McIver stepped back from the RTF to concentrate on his business.

He eventually sold what had become the McIver Corporation in 2003 with the intention of retiring. He must have missed the cut and thrust of the political life, however. Going on to serve as the President of the Liberal National Party in

Queensland, in the formation of which he was deeply involved.

“I think if we didn’t have the RTF, and then the ATA, the industry would look a lot different to the way it looks now,” said McIver. “I think there would have been a lot more actions like blockades, there would have been a lot more accidents and a lot more problems like that.

We’ve had one little ruckus, as far as blockades go, in 20 years.

“The number of fatalities is down at the same time as the tonnage of freight being moved has increased dramatically. We now have B-doubles and B-triples on the roads, I don’t think we would have got them.

We’ve ended up with an industry that is more efficient, moving twice the tonnage it did 20 years ago. I think it’s been a real benefit to the nation’s economy. I think we could have gone a lot further in the last 20 years, and should have done. It really needs somebody dig in there now and give it another boot to get things going.”

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NEWS & VIEWS

PLANNING THE ROUTE FORWARD The National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) continues in its planning the route forward for a truly national truck regulation regime with the introduction of the NHVR Route Planner, which replaces the Journey Planner.

This looks like another small step towards the genuinely national system trucking operators were promised ten years ago and which is materialising at a frustratingly slow rate, so far. At least this new map can be utilised to determine which authorities control which road.

The issue of access has been a major bugbear for both the trucking operators and the NHVR as both strive to get the road managers to follow some basic rational processes to make access permission a simpler task and more consistent. Operators often have to wade through many hours of research to find

out which road authorities are in control of each section of any proposed route and the under-funded and sometimes outright obstructive road managers are often slow to react to any permit applications.

The new Route Planner has been designed to make it easier for trucking operators to plan their journey with accurate and up-to-date road information; and a ‘Street View’ feature that allows users to visually review locations and surroundings.

The tool also features detailed Road Manager boundaries; extra map layers for vehicle types, rest stops and networks; and handy draw and measure tools.

Drivers using Route Planner can view approved road networks for heavy vehicles and pinpoint locations that require access applications.

Route Planner uses improved Geographic

Information System (GIS) mapping information, including data from the Public Sector Mapping Agency, Google Maps and MapData Services.

For those who used the previous version, the IDs and access to existing routes have been carried across onto the new system.

The NHVR recently held a free webinar for operators to learn about upgrades to the Portal.

Anyone interested can visit the NHVR Portal Help Centre for information on how to use Route Planner: www.service. nhvr.gov.au/#page=informationHub/ routePlannerTool The route planner tool can also be used to plot out the route Sal Petroccitto and his team may have to follow around mainland Australia to get the road authorities to agree to a national consensus on access and truck regulation.

NOMINATE A TRUCK TECHNICIAN APPRENTICE Now is the time for anyone involved in the trucking industry to nominate a truck technician apprentice for the 2019 Cummins Technology and Maintenance Conference Scholarships. These are awarded to three winners will get to attend at no cost to themselves the Australian Trucking Association’s (ATA) Technical and Maintenance Conference (TMC) to take place at Kangan Institute’s Automotive Centre of Excellence in Melbourne’s Docklands.

“The Cummins TMC Scholarships are an initiative that provides young heavy vehicle apprentices with the experience and tools needed to develop industry skills and knowledge,” said Geoff Crouch, ATA Chair.

Awarded to three heavy vehicle apprentices, the scholarships provide the opportunity to be hosted at the TMC, taking part in educational sessions and practical workshops relevant to their training and career, while building professional networks.

“Not only will the scholarship winners be hosted at TMC, they will each be paired with an experienced industry mentor for support and assistance in making the most of their conference experience,” said Geoff. “This is a unique opportunity to learn from some of Australia’s most knowledgeable trucking

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DIESEL September-October 2019

industry professionals.”

Three nominees will be selected as winners of the 2019 Cummins TMC Scholarships, which includes: full registration to the 2019 TMC including social events and VIP seating at the Castrol Vecton Gala Awards Dinner, return airfares and accommodation, a pre-conference tour of the Cummins Melbourne facility,

a Cummins merchandise pack, and an assigned conference mentor.

“The scholarships are an exclusive opportunity for heavy vehicle apprentices to get a valuable insight into our industry,” said Mike Fowler, Cummins South Pacific’s director of engine business.

Nominations for the 2019 Cummins TMC Scholarships close on September 13.

NEWS & VIEWS

PEACE, QUIET AND LOW EMISSIONS IN THE WEST It would seem there is a growing likelihood of peace, quiet and low emissions in the west of Melbourne after an agreement between the Victorian Transport Association (VTA) and Maribyrnong Truck Action Group (MTAG) to incentivise freight operators to upgrade to lower emissions trucks, as a condition for using curfewed roads in the area to the west of the Port of Melbourne for longer hours.

The initiative could pave the way for other suburbs, around Australia, where there is a conflict between the needs of the economy from the trucking industry and the concerns of local residents in the areas the trucks have to traverse. The agreement could be used as a model in cases where improved access can be granted in return for cleaner and quieter transport operations.

The Smart Freight Partnership – Inner West announced by the Victorian Government evolved from the Maribyrnong Cleaner Freight Initiative, developed by the VTA and MTAG and proposed to government in 2017.

A key aim of the proposal was to lessen the environmental and amenity impacts of trucks in the community, whilst providing an economic and productivity

incentive for freight operators that invest in new trucks with lower emitting, ‘cleaner’ engines.

The Smart Freight Partnership is an Australian first in terms of encouraging freight operators to modernise their fleet and is seen by industry and the community as one way of reducing the age of Australia’s ageing heavy vehicle fleet.

With an average age of 14.9 years Australia has one of the oldest truck fleets in the developed world, prompting industry groups to come up with incentives for operators to transition to new trucks that are quieter, safer and use less fuel.

The initiative is also an example of how traditional adversaries can work constructively together to achieve solutions that benefit residents and operators.

“Industry and community groups can achieve great things when they work together and acknowledge their individual needs and interests can be achieved through compromise and mature discussions,” said Peter Anderson, VTA CEO. “It is encouraging that the Victorian Government has recognised the merits of the visionary plan we developed with MTAG by establishing

the Smart Freight Partnership, which we look forward to implementing in conjunction with operators, residents, Freight Victoria and local and state governments.”

As part of the Smart Freight Partnership, an Environment Freight Zone covering Somerville Road and Moore, Francis and Buckley streets in Melbourne’s inner west will be established. Access times to these roads will be reduced for trucks that don’t meet current emission control standards, resulting in a reduction of two hours per day for the first two years, followed by a further two-hour reduction per day in subsequent years.

In its plan, the Government has not included curfews for Williamstown Road and Buckley Street, which the VTA and MTAG included in the original proposal.

Trucks manufactured on or after January 1 that meet stricter emission control standards (ADR 80/03 or Euro-5) will have three hours more access on weekdays than the older trucks and two hours more time on Saturdays.

Industry-led training is a key element of the program which includes measures to deliver driver awareness training on local access, safety and amenity issues.

NEWS & VIEWS

AUSTROADS IGNORING INFORMED ADVICE A research project by a government agency into heavy vehicle dimensions sees Austroads ignoring informed advice. The project has neglected to take into account the findings of the expert panel inquiry into national freight and supply chain priorities.

“Last year the expert panel inquiry into national freight and supply chain priorities recommended better supply chain integration, including common standards such as the width of refrigerated truck trailers, that should align with major international partners,” said Geoff Crouch, Australian Trucking Association (ATA) Chair. “However, current research work underway by government research body Austroads is exploring moving to an overall permissible width of 2.55 metres, ignoring the international benchmark of 2.6 metres, especially for refrigerated truck trailers.

“The ATA welcomes the Austroads project’s stated commitment to international harmonisation and exploring greater width, but productivity benefits and supply chain integration do not happen because you write it in a project brief. You’ve actually got to get the policy settings right.

“An increase in allowable width to 2.6 metres would enable refrigerated trucks to utilise thicker insulated walls without loss of payload. In 38 degree outside

temperatures, these thicker walls would reduce heat gain by 36 per cent and deliver a fuel saving of 2,500 litres per typical refrigerated vehicle per year.

“Austroads reference the expert panel finding on the need for international harmonisation on the width of refrigerated truck trailers in their own project brief, but have then proceeded to rule it out of scope.

They claimed the benefits of harmonising for refrigerated trailers to justify the project, and then refuse to look at what is actually needed to achieve those benefits.”

Geoff said that the limited scope of the Austroads project would limit the findings.

“The ability of this project to contribute to our understanding of the issues involved in harmonising vehicle dimensions with major international partners will at best be limited,” said Geoff. “This is a research project, not a policy decision, which makes it the best time to consider the issues and evidence for actually aligning with major international partners.

“The expert panel inquiry drew on 127 submissions and meetings with over 200 individuals, 28 peak bodies and 90 businesses. Austroads and its government members should actually take note of the outcomes of this consultative process, which was vastly more rigorous than the process undertaken for determining the scope of this limited research project.

“It would be disappointing if the commitment of governments to delivering a freight strategy, improving productivity and supply chain integration was to fall at the first hurdle of just researching what was actually recommended by the expert panel inquiry.”

DOBBING LINE IS ONE YEAR OLD This week the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator’s (NHVR) dobbing line is one year old. The service is more correctly called the Heavy Vehicle Confidential Reporting Line (HVCRL) and it has taken almost 1,500 calls in its first year of operation.

The line is intended for use by truck drivers and supply chain coordinators.

The idea is for them to be able to report unsafe practices confidentially if they see them in the course of their work.

If anyone comes across problems with business practices, fatigue, mass, dimension or loading issues, speeding concerns or vehicle standards or safety problems, they can call the number provided and report whatever it is which has caused concern. It is important to note here that someone spotting a speeding truck should not phone this number, give that one to the local police to track down.

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DIESEL September-October 2019

“What the hotline provides is a safe, confidential way for people to report unsafe or unfair practices,” said Aarron Unger, NHVR National Intelligence Coordinator. “Over the past year the hotline has proved incredibly necessary in making our roads safer for everyone.

“It’s provided our Investigations team with the information they need to look into the minority of organisations across all duty holders that are doing the wrong thing. We’ve received almost 1,500 calls, accounting for almost 900 individual reports with fatigue, mechanical safety and business practices the things that are coming up consistently from callers.

“We’ve also recently moved the hotline within the NHVR, after an initial phase with CrimeStoppers, so that people can be assured that they will get someone on the end of the line with the right expertise. I’d encourage anyone with a safety concern to call 1800 931 785. The

hotline is staffed 7am-4.30pm (AEST) Monday to Friday.”

According to the NHVR, the Hotline is intended to improve safety in the industry by allowing people to report appropriate information which may include: An incident or situation which affects the safety of a heavy vehicle or its operation; A procedure, practice or condition which endangers the safety of a heavy vehicle driver, their passengers, other road users or the community; A procedure, practice or condition which leads to non-compliance with Heavy Vehicle National Law. Calls to the confidential hotline will be free from any landline in Australia (and some mobile providers) on www.nhvr.gov.au/hvcrl The Heavy Vehicle Confidential Reporting Hotline was funded by the Australian Government through a $250,000 grant from the Heavy Vehicle Safety Initiative.

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OPERATOR PROFILE

Traditionally

SMART or smartly TRADITIO For any transport operation it is necessary to find the right balance between trucking tradition and running a smart modern operation. For GLW transport in Perth, the approach has been traditionally smart or smartly traditional.

R

unning a trucking operation is a difficult balance at any time.

There are always competing issues, all of which influence the kind of operation and the chosen philosophy within the business. This is certainly the case for GLW Freight, based in the Perth suburb of Forrestdale,

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DIESEL September-October 2019

in the city’s southwest where many of the transport operations of Western Australia are based, with its easy access to the roads to the east.

In fact, GLW Freight runs three separate operations. Firstly, there is the east/west operation which runs regularly to Melbourne and Sydney, plus runs

across to Brisbane. There are also a number of trucks involved in a tipping operation, running out into the rural areas of WA loaded out with fertiliser and sometimes returning with grain.

Thirdly, there is a container loading fleet hauling fully loaded containers out of meat works in the regional

OPERATOR PROFILE

NAL WA area to the port at Fremantle.

The business has grown from an operation started by owner Graeme Woodall in Katanning. Originally, he was running refrigerated vans in and out of the meat works in the town. After he sold the business back in 2004, he moved to Perth and began a different transport operation in 2007.

“We had shifted to Perth, because my wife is a Perth girl,” says Graeme.

“I got bored, so I started running containers around the wharf. After that

GLW Freight is based in the Perth suburb of Forrestdale, in the city’s south-west where many of the transport operations of WA are based, with its easy access to the roads to the east.

“THE FLEET IS GOING THROUGH A GROWING STAGE AT THE MOMENT, TO A TOTAL NUMBER OF 26 TRUCKS. THIS IS THE NUMBER REQUIRED FOR THE PLANNED EXPANSION OF THE BUSINESS.” we had also started working on the unpacking of containers. I took on a second truck and a second driver, but he wanted to do east/west work, so we just grew from there.”

The growth for the company has

been considerable since that relatively recent restart. The basic business model, in terms of truck use, sees brand-new trucks being used for east/west runs.

Once they hit one million kilometres or so they are taken off this task, put into

www.dieselnews.com.au

15

OPERATOR PROFILE

the workshop for a rebuild and then used as a relatively new truck to do rural tipping work.

“The trucks are probably only on the east/west route for three years,” says Graeme. “But when we were going through the EGR years, that stuffed our system up quite a bit. We ended up keeping older trucks. It is only in the last couple of years that we have got to the

position that we were aiming at.”

The fleet is going through a growing stage at the moment, to a total number of 26 trucks. This is the number required for the planned expansion of the business. If the expansion plays out a little differently, then some of the older trucks may be retired to suit the requirements of the customers.

Six of the trucks are involved full-

time on the east/west line haul work.

The rest of them are divided evenly between the bulk work in rural areas and the more straight forward container haulage component. This means the fleet is divided evenly into thirds, helping flexibility within the fleet when one set of tasks may be more active as another goes quiet.

Although the fleet is mainly Kenworth,

“THE AGE PROFILE OF DRIVERS IN THE FLEET IS RELATIVELY HIGH, AS IT IS BECOMING MORE GENERALLY IN THE TRUCKING INDUSTRY.” there is a sprinkling of Volvo trucks working in the tipping section. Some have been obtained when acquiring another fleet and one was purchased to suit the preferences of an older driver.

“The Volvos have worked for us and one particular driver wanted to drive one because he is a little older,” says Graeme. “He is happy, and for good drivers you just look after them.”

INTERSTATE VS INTRASTATE

Once trucks hit one million kilometres or so they are taken off east/west, into the workshop for a rebuild and then used as a relatively new truck to do the rural tipping work.

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DIESEL September-October 2019

All of the work the fleet handles in the east/west segment is functioning as a two up system. This way of working does give plenty in efficiency, but can be problematic when trying to get the right driver for the right truck with the right partner. The way the two-up system works for GLW means each driver gets two and a half days at home in Perth each week.

The age profile of drivers in the fleet is relatively high, as it is becoming more generally in the trucking industry. When Graeme refers to his younger drivers, he’s talking about drivers around 45 years old. These drivers tend to work in the local container fleet, while the older drivers tend to be those working on the east/west runs.

The majority of the long-distance freight being hauled by GLW is as part of contracts for a couple of major customers. If there is any spare capacity to fill, it is often on the west to east leg of the journey, as the major customers keep the east to west trailers generally full.

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OPERATOR PROFILE

The business has grown from an operation started by owner Graeme Woodall in Katanning.

Most of the time, two of the trucks are on the Melbourne run, two on the Sydney run and another two are based in Brisbane, running between there and Albury/Wodonga.

“The operation in Brisbane works, I’ve got a good guy over there,” says Graeme.

“He organises the other driver. They’re the best drivers I’ve got, I never hear from them and I never see them. We’re in the throes of putting another one on, who will just run between Brisbane and Sydney.

“I don’t really want to run these remote operations, but when you’re asked to do it and you’ve got a good driver that you know and, you know they can do it, it’s possible. If we didn’t have the right driver, we wouldn’t do it. We been very, very lucky with the drivers we’ve got over there. One of them has been with us for nine years and the other one for five years, and they have never had a day off.”

This means Graeme and the operation’s Financial Officer, Andrew Lange, are experiencing the two sides of trucking in Australia. One part of the operation is running entirely within the Western Australian trucking regulations and another part of the business is running entirely under the Eastern states’

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DIESEL September-October 2019

“WHEN DIESEL VISITED THE COMPANY’S DEPOT IT MADE A GOOD IMPRESSION, WITH WELL-PRESENTED EQUIPMENT BEING LOADED AND UNLOADED, WHILE OTHERS ARE UNDERGOING REGULAR ONGOING MAINTENANCE.” rules, and their National Heavy Vehicle Regulator-based regulations. To keep abreast of the latest industry issues, the business is a member of the Western Road Federation and NatRoad.

The fleet is covered by the National Heavy Vehicle Accreditation Scheme and the drivers all work under basic fatigue management. The combination of two-up driving and BFM for the east/ west runners works well and there are very few issues. The long distance team also includes a husband and wife two-up team.

“They are very good,” says Graeme.

“If you climb into the truck, it’s like it is brand-new.

All of the trucks in the fleet apart from the one Volvo are Kenworth K200s, with just Kenworth T909 working on a long-term ammonium nitrate contract into the Pilbara. When specifying a new truck Graeme usually gets them rated

at around 90 tonnes GCM, which can be extended up to 106 tonnes, if and when required.

DEVELOPMENT OF THE FLEET None of the trucks have any GPS monitoring equipment fitted. Some of the trucks have dash-cams, but these are the drivers’ own equipment. However, Graeme and Andrew say they are considering checking out some form of camera monitoring in the cabins, with a view to fitting them in the future.

“I’m old school,” says Graeme. “But it has just reached a point where it has to change. We are looking into a possible system to fit in the trucks in the future.

Maybe I trust people too much. We are being asked by our customers to fix something in the trucks. It should help us to avoid problems in the future.”

The containers which the fleet handles come out of a meat works in Katanning

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OPERATOR PROFILE

as well as as another meat facility in Esperance. All of the full containers are bound for Fremantle Port and export. The trucks used are the Western Australian pocket road trains, at 27.5 m long,

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DIESEL September-October 2019

carrying a 40 foot container on the lead trailer and a 20 foot container on the second trailer. The 40 foot container can weigh anything up to 32 tonnes, with the 20 foot on behind, from 18 to 22 tonnes.

When Diesel visited the company’s depot, it made a good impression, with well-presented equipment being loaded and unloaded, while others are undergoing regular ongoing maintenance.

“We’ve progressed through the years in our location,” says Andrew. “We’ve been here for about 12 months. At the previous location, around the corner we were there for just over three years and outgrew it. This new facility has got room for growth, in terms of the facilities here, but we probably need more parking. We have 102 trailers, if they all came in at the same time there wouldn’t be enough room.”

There are just over 30 people working in the business, but 26 of those are drivers, two are mechanics and then there is the small management team. With a low administrative base, the operation boasts a high level of

“WHEN SPECIFYING A NEW TRUCK GRAEME USUALLY GETS THEM RATED AT AROUND 90 TONNES GCM, WHICH CAN BE EXTENDED UP TO 106 TONNES, IF AND WHEN REQUIRED.” productivity across the team.

Just about everyone who works in the business can drive a truck, so that if there is an issue and a truck need to get from A to B, there is someone who can step into the breach, get the job done and get the delivery to the customer.

“I have never had a plan in all of the years I have been running a business,” says Graeme. “Growth will be organic, if you hear of something, you have a crack at it, and if it works… the main thing is getting the right people. I probably do it the wrong way round, I get a good team and then go looking for the work.”

OPERATOR PROFILE

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RURAL TRUCKING MATTERS

DON’T FORGET THE

TRUCKS

The Australian Livestock and Rural Transporters Association (ALRTA) has the best interests of rural transporters at heart. When the Federal Parliament forgets to protect the trucking sector, the ALRTA is there to remind them.

O

ver recent years, it has become increasingly evident that vegan activists are using dedicated websites and Facebook pages to incite individuals to engage in illegal acts such as breaking and entering, trespassing and harassing people who are conducting legal farming, processing and livestock transport activities in Australia.

For example, Aussie Farms Inc publishes information detailing the location of more than 3,000 livestock farms and processors where it alleges animal abuse is commercialised.

Individuals are encouraged to capture images or videos at these sites to upload onto the Aussie Farms online sharing platform. Consequently, individuals incited by Aussie farms have engaged in a range of illegal acts in an effort to obtain images and videos.

To combat this problem, on July 4, 2019, the Federal Government introduced the Criminal Code Amendment (Agricultural Protection) Bill 2019 (‘the Bill’) which would establish two new offences relating to the use of carriage services (i.e. websites, Facebook pages and so on) to incite trespass or property offences on agricultural land. These offences carry serious maximum penalties of up to five years imprisonment.

Bravo! It’s about time governments took concrete action to protect legal farming, processing and livestock transport activities from vegan activists who are hell bent on economic terrorism.

However, there is one small problem.

The Bill doesn’t protect trucks at all.

Most alarmingly, it might even make matters worse.

While the objective of the Bill is laudable and well-intended, the scope is limited to the incitement of illegal acts

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DIESEL September-October 2019

on agricultural land only. The Bill defines agricultural land as including farms, feedlots, sale yards and processors.

It does not extend to heavy vehicles on public roads that are servicing agricultural land.

Most businesses that fall within the definition of agricultural land are highly reliant on trucks to move agricultural produce to or from their premises. In particular, abattoirs have very limited livestock yarding capacity and are often restricted in their ability to feed and care for livestock for extended periods.

Trucks deliver livestock on a regular schedule to ensure a sufficient continuum of supply for operational purposes.

In circumstances in which vegan activists are prevented from entering agricultural premises (for example by onsite security or police), it is normal practice for activists to instead target any trucks servicing the premises during the protest period.

Trucks attempting to enter or leave agricultural premises are physically exposed and extremely vulnerable to activist activities. Over the past 18 months there has been repeated incidents across Australia during which trucks were specifically targeted by vegan activists.

Typically, the activists form human chains to prevent movement of vehicles, they climb onto bull bars and trailers, they insert their own limbs into trailers to take photos of animals, they bang on doors and scream verbal abuse at drivers, and all the while they challenge drivers to respond so it can be recorded and posted online. In some cases, activists have even attempted to steal the keys of a truck while it was in motion or remove the pins that secure the tail gate so animals can escape directly into the road corridor.

These activities directly threaten the safety and welfare of livestock, drivers, members of the public and the protestors themselves. While ALRTA supports the right of individuals to protest peacefully, advocate or engage politically, such activities should not interfere with lawful business activities or put the safety of people or animals at risk.

Just as is the case for businesses operating on agricultural land, incitement of illegal activities involving trucks servicing agricultural land is a problem of national significance. If the Bill is passed in its current form, activists will continue to incite illegal activities against trucks with impunity, and may even be incentivised to more actively target trucks in future because of the relative lack of regulation in this area.

Addressing this unintended consequence is necessary to protect trucking businesses, but also to protect the interests of businesses operating on agricultural land, a key objective of the Bill.

The Bill has been referred to the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee for review. The Committee will consider the Bill and may make recommendations to amend the Bill as appropriate.

On behalf of the six state associations and 700 grass roots members around Australia, the ALRTA has asked the Committee not to forget the trucks.

Specifically, the ALRTA have sought an amendment to establish an additional offence that would apply where a person uses a carriage service to transmit, make available, publish or otherwise distribute material with the intent to incite another person to unlawfully impede, interfere, harass, damage, deface (and so on) a heavy vehicle engaged in moving goods to agricultural land or from agricultural land.

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RURAL TRUCKING MATTERS

HAULING OUT of the Riverina

26

DIESEL September-October 2019

RURAL TRUCKING MATTERS

As one of the most important areas for growing fresh produce in Australia, the Riverina is home to a large number of operators who are hauling out of the area with a wide variety of local produce on board. Tim Giles talks to one of those operators at JDP Logistics.

A

rriving at the Riverina can often come as a surprise. You can be driving through dry cattle country, which hasn’t seen much rain in a long time and then, when passing over a small rise, you’re in a green and vibrant landscape with every kind of fruit being grown in large well-kept paddocks.

The irrigation systems of the area have meant that large sections of the country close to the Murrumbidgee River have become one of the food bowls of Australia. All of this produce has to be exported from the region, hence a large number of transport companies specialising in hauling various farm-

related products from this large rural area to the major metropolises.

One of these operations goes under the name of JDP Logistics, based in Leeton, in between Griffith and Wagga Wagga, close to the Murrumbidgee River. This operation has carved out a niche for itself hauling local produce out of the area to the capital cities, mainly Melbourne and Sydney, plus occasionally Brisbane.

Jono DePaoli has been working in the trucking industry since he was 16, for over twenty-five years. Like many rural operators he likes to run what he would call ‘good gear’, and was proud to display his latest acquisition, a Western

Star 4900, at the Livestock, Bulk and Rural Carriers Association Conference in Griffith earlier this year.

His first experience was working as a tyre fitter in his father’s business, also located in Leeton. After graduating to work in the transport yard, he then went on to working in the transport operations office. In fact, he still does work for his father, George DePaoli, but also likes the idea of running his own race.

Over 10 years ago Jono came up with a long-term goal to develop the JDP Logistics business as an entity which he could develop for his family as something he could build and pass onto the next generation over time. As a Jono DePaoli, founder of JDP Logisitcs.

“QUOTE.”

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27

RURAL TRUCKING MATTERS

result of having a foot in two camps, he’s walking around with two mobile phones.

He also has his mother helping out with bookkeeping.

After starting out with just one truck, the fleet has grown. There have been changes over time moving from conventionals to cabovers and then back to conventional trucks.

The tasks handled by the fleet are many and varied, from some general freight, all the way to commodities like rice and then refrigerated van work, including meat and chicken. With this amount of variation in the freight carried, JDP Logistics is like many operators in rural areas, carrying a wide variety of trailers to cope with seasonal variations in the freight task in the local area.

“We’ve been getting a bit of steady work with our refrigerated vans from a mob in Griffith, which is pretty good,” says Jono.” That keeps the boys pretty busy. I only used to run singles, I tried

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DIESEL September-October 2019

a B-double once before and it didn’t work with what we’re doing. I went back to singles again, but we’re trying a B-double again. One of my drivers actually asked if he could try the bigger truck.

“So far so good, it’s working well.

We only use 32 pallet trailers, because we have conventional prime movers. I see a lot of the big companies are now running these 36 pallet trailers, but I’m concerned about driver comfort and I want to have a bonnet on the front.”

NORTH AMERICAN FLEET The oldest truck in the fleet is driven

by Jono’s cousin, who is a qualified mechanic. He loves it and he does not want to get out of it. It is a bit of a an anomaly as it is a Kenworth T904 fitted with a Caterpillar C 15 engine, a pre-ACERT model.

“If those engines ever came back out again, I would certainly buy one,” says

“THE TASKS HANDLED

BY THE FLEET ARE MANY AND VARIED, FROM SOME GENERAL FREIGHT, ALL THE WAY TO COMMODITIES LIKE RICE AND THEN REFRIGERATED VAN WORK, INCLUDING MEAT AND CHICKEN.” Jono.”What that truck has done, it has over 2,200,000 km on it, and it just keeps plodding along. If I get a good truck I keep it, but if something is costing me money, I sell it, it’s as simple as that.

“I use two mechanics and make sure that every week each of those trucks goes over the pit and has been checked

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out. That’s the only way to do it, it’s too expensive to break down by the side of the road. I won’t muck around, if the mechanic walks in and says something has got a little bit of movement or might have a little wear, I tell them to take it off and replace it. It’s easier to do it here than up the road.

“I actually had Cummins tell me to stop bringing the trucks in for tuneups, because I was bringing them in too early.

So I said to them, they are looking over them and will see if there is anything going wrong. Especially with the EGR engines, because we couldn’t get the fuel economy that I was chasing.”

Of course, those engines are now a thing of the past for this fleet. In fact ,the latest additions to the fleet are powered by Detroit DD 13 engines. This was Jono’s first Detroit engine and he reckons he’s pretty impressed with its performance so far.

JDP Logistics run all of the classic North American truck engines, with the C15, a Cummings E5 ISX and the latest additions fitted with Detroits.

“I can’t say anything wrong about that E5, Cummins have done a very good job with that engine,” says Jono. “They get reasonably good fuel economy, but nothing can match that Detroit. When it was pulling singles, it was averaging 2.2 km per litre and running up on its weights most of the time. We average it out over three months, to get a good idea.”

Although most of the work is heading to Melbourne and Sydney, with some Brisbane work thrown in, on the day of Diesel’s visit a truck was heading off to Adelaide with a load. Jono does do some freight into the big city markets, but prefers to concentrate on freight which is consistent 12 months of the year and not so seasonal.

“I reckon, I can say that I am very lucky with the four drivers that I have got working for me now,” says Jono. “As they say themselves, they are old school drivers, it doesn’t worry them what they have to do. If they have to wait then they will wait, they don’t whinge they don’t whine, they are there to do a job.

“They stick to the books, they don’t do anything stupid and that is what we want.

The industry is too hard these days.”

Unusually, for an operation in this area, the drivers working for Jono are relatively young. Two are around 40, another is in their late 40s and there’s only one who could be regarded as ‘an older driver’. This is in a clear contrast to his father’s fleet, which has drivers in their 70s, still turning a wheel.

RULES AND REGULATIONS “Everyone here struggles for drivers,” says Jono. “A lot of them have gone back to doing work like farming. The simple fact is, that with the rules and regulations, everything has changed from what they are used to. A mistake in your book can cost you a fortune. Honestly, we are policed to the max and it gets ridiculous

30

DIESEL September-October 2019

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RURAL TRUCKING MATTERS

after a while. When you are pulled up and get a defect for a reflector which is missing, it is going too far.

“We had a trailer which we use for three months of the year for cotton.

We took it to be tested, the brakes are working, but not to their satisfaction. The way he carried on about it, it was like we had robbed a bank. I told them I would take it back and get it to work properly.”

The fleet works under all of the National Heavy Vehicle Accreditation Scheme sections. When it comes to fatigue, all the drivers are working under Basic Fatigue Management. Even though it is only a small fleet, John has a girl working full time to ensure compliance in all of the schemes.

“If you are going to compete with some of the big companies we’re up against you have to have all of this compliance on-board,” says Jono. “You have to be up to date with everything. I am currently working on an agreement with one of our customers and this has meant we are fitting some cameras on the front of the trucks looking at the blindspot at the front. The major customers like this sort of thing and I am trying to make it bit easier and safer for our drivers, especially in the city. You can lose a small car in front of those bonnets sometimes.”

The GPS tracking system which has been fitted will not only give a live location data, but also will let the driver know when something like a service is due to take place. In the future, tyre wear information can also be included in the system. However, at the moment it is mainly used purely to see where a truck is to inform customers as to its ETA at a delivery point.

“I don’t worry about my drivers, they are pretty good bunch,” says Jono.”I will not tolerate any crap, we are here to do a job, let’s do it properly. If you’re not going to do it properly, don’t do it at all.

“I’m happy with the business as it stands, I would like to keep it as a family business. One day I’m loading their truck for them, the next they are coming to talk to me about a problem. We always work things out, if there is something wrong, they will come and talk to me about it.

When you start getting too big, things start getting missed.

“I am not really pushing to get any bigger than four trucks at the moment.

32

DIESEL September-October 2019

“WHEN IT COMES TO COMPETING FOR FREIGHT CONTRACTS, ONE OF THE ISSUES WHICH OFTEN REARS ITS HEAD IS THAT OF SAFETY SYSTEMS.” I would just leave it at that and see how the boys go. I have a son who is 14 and I have told him that, if he wants to he can start working with the trucks. But, I would prefer him to go and do something else, that he wants to do. My daughters are younger, it’s up to them.”

Surprisingly, around the area where JDP Logistics is working, the B-double they are running at the moment will probably be enough. Many of the company’s competitors working in the same area are getting out of B-doubles and returning to single trailer work. One of the reasons is because it is difficult to find the drivers who are willing to drive them.

Jono finds it easier to get drivers who are willing to do the Sydney and Melbourne runs because they are the kind of task that can be done in a single shift. Most of the work is at single pick ups and drop offs so that issues of getting the trucks at home in time are minimised.

BUSINESS TO BUSINESS Outside a couple of quite large operations in the area, many of the potential customers for a business like JDP Logistics are relatively small.

However, Jono has noticed that some of the bigger trucking operators are now trying to move into the area and are talking to these smaller companies about hauling their product.

Small businesses like JDP Logistics have to be aware of this increased competition and the possibility that rates may be moving down as these larger companies move into the area.

“It’s the old industry story,” says Jono. “We need something to stop this problem. I don’t know how, I don’t have the answer, but if they had someone looking after transport companies who could say that you can’t run under a particular amount, but you can run

anything above it. It would put us in a fair playing field.

“Then it would all be on the service that you provide. It would give a lot of us smaller companies the chance. As a small trucking company, there is no way that we could compete against some of the prices that they are putting on some of the jobs. It is absolutely ridiculous.”

When it comes to competing for freight contracts, one of the issues which often rears its head is that of safety systems. On this subject the larger national companies will point to sophisticated and integrated technical solutions to problems like fatigue. Jono sees the issue as a conflict between a technological solution and good old common sense.

“There are vibrating seats and the cameras watching the drivers,” says Jono.

“There is no such thing as getting there at a certain time, if you are that tired. We pull up and we just change the time slot.

There is no reason to push yourself, it might not be that they are being pushed, they could be crook, it could be 100 different things. Sitting down on a seat that vibrates is not going to fix it.

“I would rather my boys just pull up and have a couple of hours and I will deal with it later. I don’t think that my boys have ever run late for a time slot, I always give them enough time. I will not take on work if they are not allowing the right amount of time. It’s just not worth doing it.

“Years ago, I saw companies pushing drivers and it gets them nowhere. I used to see the drivers coming in, who were doing a Brisbane run and they were doing between 5000 and 7000km per week. I saw one bloke, a subbie, hopping out of an Aerodyne, he forgot he was in an Aerodyne fell flat onto the concrete.

He insisted that he was okay, but I told him he was not and to get some rest.

“At the end of the day, it all comes down to common sense. We’re only human, trucks are only nuts and bolts. An old bloke, years ago, told me if you are going to have a bloke who is going to do this job and do the right thing by you and look after his truck, he’s got to walk out and get excited about driving that truck. That’s why we try and do up our trucks the way they are. I have picked up two customers because of the way my trucks look.”

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RURAL TRUCKING MATTERS

DIVERSITY AND

EXPERIENCE At T&M Heavy Mechanical and Site Services, diversity and experience underpins the success of the West Australian truck repairs and haulage business.

W

hen Tim Bowman left school there was no doubt he would pursue a career in the transport industry, it was all he ever wanted to do, but not even Tim could have envisaged just how far that passion would take him.

Two decades down the track and Tim and wife Melissa run T&M Heavy Mechanical and Site Services, a business that operates out of Bunbury and Port

Hedland in Western Australia and which is about to mark its 10th anniversary.

T&M has specialised in heavy vehicle mechanical repairs from the beginning, but in more recent times has extended its reach to the road haulage sector.

“You could call it a fairly unique business, we’re pretty diversified and you wouldn’t find a more diverse business over here (in WA),” says Tim. “To have mechanical, air conditioning, auto electrical

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services, road transport, there’s not too many around like that and then there’s the variety of things we can haul based on the diversity of our fleet, from walk-in floor trailers, to tippers and bulk tippers, and then interlock trailers.

“With 18 prime movers and more than 50 trailer combinations, it really gives us a lot of scope, with wood chips, logs, grain, lime and fertiliser some our main business.”

Starting out in Bunbury, T&M expanded

RURAL TRUCKING MATTERS

into Port Hedland earlier this year, with the business now split fairly evenly between the mechanical and road transport sectors.

BUSINESS ROOTS Tim, who grew up in Tasmania where he trained as a heavy diesel mechanic before moving to WA at the age of 19, said the expansion of the business had been a gradual process, starting with just him and his wife Melissa and building to a staff of 35 today, including 16 truck drivers.

When it comes to mechanical repairs, clients come from the trucking sector and mining industry, with T&M also supplying a number of mechanics on labour hire contracts to several mines in WA’s Pilbara region.

With its clients running 24/7 operations, T&M runs to the same timeframes to ensure any issue, at any time of day, is resolved as quickly and seamlessly as possible. To do that, they require the same easy and immediate access to parts, for which they rely on Truckline.

“We’ve been with Truckline since the beginning basically,” says Tim. “When I opened our first workshop in Bunbury they were literally two doors down, and we’ve had a great relationship with them ever since.

“They were right there then and they’re still right there whenever we need them.

They know what you want and go above and beyond to deliver that. We run a 24/7 business and we need parts to back that up. With Truckline you can ring them on a Sunday and they’re there, and for us availability is key. Their stock levels are great, they carry what you need, they’ve got everything and that’s key. Day to day, it’s a one-stop shop really.

“The experience the staff have can’t be underestimated either. Having someone

on the end of the phone with years of experience is so important, and the staff tend to stay around so you’re able to build relationships and they get to know your business.”

These values are important to Tim as he runs his own business on the same principles: quality service and expert advice. To maintain this reputation, T&M appreciates the importance of keeping abreast of industry developments and trends, and Tim is engaging with the Livestock and Rural Transport Association of Western Australia (LRTAWA).

The LRTAWA represents the state’s rural transporters, ensuring policy decisions affecting the industry support the viability and safety of rural transporters, primary industry and the communities they service.

Truckline is one of the LRTAWA conference sponsors, and proud of its association with the organisation, as well as appreciative of the support extended

by LRTAWA members like Tim. They in

turn value Truckline’s involvement and the assistance these sponsorships provide in pursuing the issues that matter to members.

Ten years on, Tim still works across all aspects of the business, from truck repairs to jumping behind the wheel for a haulage job, while Melissa keeps the accounts and admin side of T&M running as smoothly as the vehicles it runs and services.

There won’t be any slowing down either as T&M motors into its second decade, with Tim and Melissa always on the lookout for new opportunities. There won’t be any big celebrations either for the anniversary milestone; maybe just a few moments of reflection on how far they’ve come.

“I grew up around the industry, my father and uncles operated or owned trucks and machinery, so when I left school I was never going to do anything else,” says Tim. “But I could never have envisaged the business we have today and the way it’s expanded and grown in so many different directions. Never in a million years.”

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RURAL TRUCKING MATTERS

FUNDAMENTAL

ISSUES FOR LIVESTOCK TRANSPORT

At the recent conference for the national livestock trucking industry, two fundamental issues for livestock transport were discussed and the latest developments explained to the audience.

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here is a very specific reason as to why many rural trucking operators become members of separate industry associations from those representing most of the trucking industry. Many of the problems with which the industry has to deal with are sector-specific. As a result, Australia has a strong group of State rural carrier associations as well as a national peak body – the Australian Livestock and Rural Transporters Association.

This year it was the turn of the Livestock and Rural Transport Association of South Australia to host the national livestock conference in Adelaide. Each year the national ALRTA conference moves from state to state.

As part of the discussions at this conference, two fundamental issues which affect livestock transport all over Australia were brought into the limelight. There is the issue of effluent falling from the trucks onto the roads and the associated problems created by this. The second is about workplace health and safety for drivers trying to load livestock crates and having to work at heights during the loading process.

The grassroots of the industry are lobbying for improved policy and procedures for these problem areas. In the current program for the ALRTA there are a number of ongoing programs.

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DIESEL September-October 2019

SAFER LOADING FACILITIES AND PROCEDURES One of these is to develop a national ramp standard which can be applied to facilities where animals are loaded and unloaded.

There is also project to trial a user pays safe loading frame which has been under test Victoria for some time.

One the people who has been driving a project to fit loading frames at sites where livestock trucks load and unload has been John Beer, who is currently Vice President of both the ALRTA the Livestock and Rural Transporters Association of Victoria. A few operators have been involved dealing with farms, saleyards and abattoirs.

Because there is no national standard for loading and unloading ramps, it is very difficult for livestock transport operators who are in and out of these facilities to get their operators to modernise and make their loading facilities safe for drivers.

The ALRTA has published a guide to safe ramp design, and operators are being encouraged to hand these over at facilities which are not up to scratch. Unfortunately, the word guide is included in the title, and there is no imperative for the facility owners to make safer loading facilities available.

The drive to develop a loading ramp standard was kicked off when an unfortunate truck driver in Stawell in country Victoria was killed when a loading ramp failed. After the ensuing inquest, the

coroner involved asked why there was no standard in Australia for the construction of animal loading ramps. The process has developed slowly from this point.

“We are sending three representatives to meeting with Standards Australia at the start of the development of the new standard,” said John. “We are likely to have a fair bit of influence on the development of the standard.”

Parallel to this process has been the development of a pivoting loading frame, which can be used by the driver to access the livestock trailers and the animals on board without having to indulge in dangerous practices such as climbing up the outside of the cattle crate or walking along the trailer roof.

There is an example of this design in a Victorian abattoir. It’s basically a series of walkways and gates, which can be rolled up to the side of the trailers using powered wheels.

“The safety access frame is a case trial of the concept of the driver being separated from the animals. It enables drivers to be working at heights and not in direct contact with the animals on board but still able to unload the trailers.

“In 2017, the ALRTA Animal Welfare Committee proposed a trial it to build a pivoting access frame at a facility,” said Sue Davies, ALRTA Project Officer. “This was to test feasibility of a user-pays access system,

RURAL TRUCKING MATTERS

which could recover access frame costs.

“A site in southeast Queensland was chosen for the trial. During the process of installation there have been a number of technical challenges requiring site-specific solutions, now the frame moves parallel rather than pivoting towards the trailer.

“The research phase of the project will see a 12-week user-pays trial to establish a price point that people are willing to pay.

During this time the use of the frame will be voluntary. The price is expected to be somewhere between $5 and $15 per usage.

“We will then be able to calculate the length of time it will take to payback the original construction costs. If this model proves viable, it will, hopefully, encourage other facility operators to offer this kind of safety equipment.”

SOLVING THE EFFLUENT PROBLEM There has been a lot of work put in to develop roadside effluent disposal facilities where they are needed. There is also a code of practice being developed for the disposal of effluent from livestock trucks.

“With my husband, I do a lot of loading and unloading of stock,” said Fiona Wild, ALRTA Treasurer and long time member of the Livestock and Rural Transporters Association of Queensland. “One of my chief jobs is washing out to crates. I feel like I know a lot about s**t.”

“WE NEED TO HAVE PARTNERS FROM THE FARMING COMMUNITY, THROUGH TO SALEYARDS, ABATTOIRS AND, OF COURSE, OURSELVES AS TRANSPORTERS.” This is how Fiona opened her presentation about the treatment of effluent in livestock trailers and the issues it creates.

One of the major causes of the issue comes from the owners of the animals being loaded, not sticking to the curfew rules on feed and water in the lead up to the animals being loaded onto a truck.

“Queensland is the largest beef producer in Australia,” said Fiona.” We have more than 40 per cent of the national herd in Queensland and we produce 54 per cent of the nation’s total beef production in terms of value. Brisbane is Australia’s largest fresh meat export terminal.

“This means there is a lot of poo.

There is definitely a need for roadside effluent dumps as urban development is encroaching more and more into rural areas. There have also been greater development of a large feedlots in southeast Queensland.

We have seven export abattoirs and three domestic abattoirs located in this relatively small area.

“We, as an industry, have endeavoured

to put in effluent dump tanks, but, unfortunately, they do not cater for the amount of effluent which is produced. We can probably get about 250 to 300 litres in our tanks and if we don’t have effluent dump sites situated in the right places on our routes, we have a big issue.

The ALRTA sent a delegation to New Zealand, where there are a number of roadside effluent dump sites, to see how the system works there.

Most of the livestock being transport in southeast Queensland travels along the Warrego Highway at some point. As a result, this is the route where the problem of effluence has become most obvious.

“The ALRTA have applied for and received funding from the Heavy Vehicle Safety Initiative program to construct a roadside effluent disposal facility,” said Sue Davies, ALRTA Project Officer. “Together with Transport and Main Roads Queensland, we are considering sites on the Warrego Highway to the east of Toowoomba. Our initial proposal was to build a facility on a breakdown pad near Toowoomba, but local

An appropriate rural carrier’s ullbar decorated the stage at the LRTASA Conference in Adelaide.

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RURAL TRUCKING MATTERS

Fiona Wild, ALRTA Treasurer and long time member of the Livestock and Rural Transporters Association of Queensland and Sue Davies, ALRTA Project Officer.

support for this has fallen away.”

The team has now gone back to the job of identifying potential sites and then working with local authorities and other stakeholders in order to get the first effluent facility up and running. There is also a possible site which has been identified in Victoria.

“With limited grant funding and some potential earnings from effluent products, we’re looking at getting the best project outcomes from the most strategic locations,” said Fiona. “We are also spreading the message that effluent from transporting livestock is a shared responsibility and one which is highly visible to transport operators, but needs a supply chain solution.

“In regards to the management of effluent we are developing a code of practice. We’re also looking at the implications for operators and the costs of implementing any changes. We also need to look at the effluent disposal facilities as part of the solution.

“We need to have partners from the farming community, through to saleyards, abattoirs and, of course, ourselves as transporters. Unfortunately, as transporters we seem to be the easiest target to pick on in regards to managing effluent. It is important that all other parties buy into this concept and not leave us sitting pretty with whatever it is

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DIESEL September-October 2019

coming out the back of our trailers.”

If a registered industry code of practice is to be set up, it will need to include guidelines for the industry under the chain of responsibility provisions on how to manage effluent. Effluent loss is classified as a load restraint breach. All of the parties involved in the supply chain moving the animals need to be involved and informed on the requirements of any practice which is put in place.

The code will use a risk-based management process identifying them and proposing control measures. This will help businesses work out what actions would be a reasonably practical in their circumstances.

“At the moment, we have a couple of places in the southeast corner and they are sites which are know as ‘S**t Hill’ and that is exactly what they are,” said Fiona.

“Unfortunately, the volume which is being collected in the back of those trailers is beyond the capacity of the dump tanks.

When the effluent is dumped by the side of the road it is an inconvenience to the other road users with its smell and also a danger to the environment. It then creates a problem for those particular local councils when it is happening.

“We do not want to advertise ourselves as people who are doing the wrong thing, but, unfortunately, we have been put in that position. By having a code of

practice we are then looking at how we are increasing the awareness of what we are trying to do and following best practice in animal welfare.

“Biosecurity is another issue at these points. We’re creating problems around the biosecurity of the effluent being dumped and also about where those cattle have come from. If they have been taken out of places where there is fireweed or giant rat’s tail, we’re creating an issue along the side of the road.”

Effluent dump sites will reduce the problem significantly and action on a code of practice is now happening. The ALRTA invited a wide range of stakeholders for consultation and, as a result, 35 entities turned up with representation to get involved with the issue. The meeting also served as an educational process with the purpose to inform others within the supply chain about the problems with which the livestock transported are having to cope.

A working group was formed and is now meeting to develop a draft code practice for the industry. When the draft is completed it will be sent out to all of the stakeholders for comment and alteration.

The next step in the process will be to present the finished code to the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator for them to assess it as a code of practice which it can register. It is hoped that this process will be complete by the end of 2019.

RURAL TRUCKING MATTERS

You heard us, BUT DID YOU LISTEN TOO?

The Livestock, Bulk and Rural Carriers Association (LBRCA) is a not-for-profit grassroots industry association representing heavy vehicle transport businesses in New South Wales. We are one of many ‘peak industry groups’ communicating to a plethora of government agencies and other relevant stakeholders. We’d like to think we do a decent job, we’ve been doing it for 35 years.

W

hat sets us apart from the rest of the other associations is our committee including the president are volunteers. They do not get paid. They fulfil their role without complaint. They are not coerced or influenced to take the role on. They do their role on their own accord, off their own back and not for personal gain.

For the gain of industry. For the future of the industry.

When our fledgling grassroots association kickstarted back in 1984, Neville Wran was the Premier of NSW and the Australian Labor Party (ALP) had controlled office for eight years. Looking back, our industry experienced similar issues in 1984 as we do today in 2019.

Reflecting to those early years, communication was plentiful but frankly, far from effective.

Since 1984, LBRCA has worked alongside 11 different NSW Premiers; six ALP and five Liberal. And with each change of government, we clean the dust from the records and get ready to re-play the same songs, but to a new audience.

It’s a fact that ineffective communication within our industry has been an expensive exercise.

Numerous research projects, white papers, government reviews and

enquiries have afforded our industry an abundance of anecdotal and evidencebased information to inform policy positions and strategies. These are often duplicated, re-hashed or re-born every few years, and often the outcomes or recommendations are the same.

Back in 1993, our association

were for our committee back in 1984.

This sector moves so slowly that you need to line it up against a guide post to ensure it’s still moving. And when it does appear to gain momentum, as sure as the sun rises in the morning governments and their structures change leaving industry with a range of unresolved

“TODAY, 24 YEARS LATER WE HAVE PROGRESSED WITH ROAD TRANSPORT CHARGES BUT ARE A THOUSAND KILOMETRES OR MORE FROM THE FINISH LINE.” strongly advocated for sensible national regulation charges following a Federal Government decision to increase diesel fuel excise by 20 per cent and sales tax by 10 per cent. And three years later in 1996 we supported our members with the introduction of national road transport charges. Sound familiar?

Today, 24 years later we have progressed with road transport charges but are a thousand kilometres or more from the finish line. And this scenario is not isolated. First and last mile, effluent and load restraint, heavy vehicle access and fatigue remain a key focus for the current LBRCA committee, just as they

challenges and broken networks. We start again at ‘ground zero’, and the familiar cycle starts.

The problem is that our industry seems to be regularly listened to by government representatives at the coal face but are only being heard by the government decision makers.

If you only hear, you don’t listen and if you don’t listen, you don’t understand.

So why is industry still playing a broken record?

It’s due time for decision makers to block out noise, stop simply hearing and start listening to their representatives who are communicating at the coalface.

www.dieselnews.com.au

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CONNECTED TRUCKS

MOVING TELEMATICS AHEAD The telematics landscape is constantly changing with the pace of new technology driving product development. Now, a well-known telematics supplier is getting a reboot and Ctrack is working on moving telematics ahead.

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he pace of development in technology used in the trucking industry can sometimes be breathtaking. New brand names come and go as different technologies leapfrog each other.

The telematics market in Australia is now becoming a more mature market with a more level-headed approach to adopting technological solutions within trucking businesses.

One of the well-known names in telematics is moving forward with the technology it has on offer. Ctrack has been around since 1986, when it was known as Digicore, and is now owned

by Inseego Corp, a global leader in a number of important telematic solutions.

Inseego sells its telematics solutions

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DIESEL September-October 2019

under the Ctrack brand, including fleet management, asset tracking and monitoring. With over 30 years of experience, Ctrack operates in 50 countries and employs over 1,000 staff globally.

Jim McKinlay, who established Telogis in Australia and was General Manager for Verizon Connect in the region, recently took over leadership as Managing Director for Australia and New Zealand. Since then, the company says it has embarked on a journey of transformation and growth.

Ctrack sells software as a service but can supply the hardware within a truck as well. Its portfolio spreads across the entire range of telematics.

“One of the good things about us

is that we can be flexible in terms of tailoring solutions for our customers,” says Joanne Biddle, Ctrack Marketing Manager ANZ. “If somebody needs something, and we don’t do it currently, we will work out how we can best implement it into the hardware. We program all of the hardware to suit each customer’s individual needs before we send it out.”

According to Ctrack, its solutions can be deployed across all types of vehicles, trailers, plant machinery and equipment, from five to up 45,000. The range of solutions run across a range of industries such as resource management, mining, supply chain and logistics.

Customers are looking for a number of benefits from using Ctrack systems,

CONNECTED TRUCKS

including improved safety, increased efficiency and reduced costs. Ctrack also hold multiple industry accreditations and their products are 100 per cent hosted in Australia.

“In terms of our product, it is very comprehensive and all of the standard functionality a trucking operator would expect to be included is available,” says Joanne. “One of our strong points is our level of Application Program Interface (API) integration with other systems a customer may already have within their business.”

Ctrack now have an integrated camera solution, Iris, which is being tested at the moment, is able to handle multiple cameras on a vehicle and able to both recording video onboard and stream video direct back to base, live, if needed.

“The main way we approach anything is by starting with the customer’s needs, to look at what their pain points are,” says Joanne. “It might be something like the company has a high cost on a monthly basis as a result of accidents. Another fleet might need extra help with fuel tax

“WE FIRST NEED TO UNDERSTAND THEIR BUSINESS AND WHAT THEIR NEEDS ARE AND FROM THERE WE CAN TELL THEM WHAT THE BEST SOLUTIONS ARE.” credits. Others are looking for better tracking of drivers and fatigue.

“We first need to understand their business and what their needs are and from there we can tell them what the best solutions are. It may be a straightforward plug and play option or something much more complex.

“This is where our ability to tailor systems comes into its own. If somebody needs additional functionality which isn’t in our standard offering we can usually create a solution which achieves it and then we integrate it into the system for them.”

At the moment, Ctrack are busy finalising upcoming product launches, including Routing and Scheduling, Electronic Work Diary, and the integrated camera solutions. Joanne informed Diesel that there would be some great

dashboards coming through for reporting in the next couple of months too.

Like all of the telematics developing companies in Australia, Ctrack are working on an electronic work diary solution. Getting to the point of having a usable EWD is only half a battle, the company also have to get their system approved as a legitimate substitute for the paper diary and this is proving to be quite an onerous step for all telematics providers.

“We are putting our attention into our expanded product portfolio and then we can start moving beyond that,” says Joanne. “From our point of view, it doesn’t matter whether your fleet has got two vehicles or 22,000 vehicles our equipment will perform the functions required in any size fleet.”

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TRUCKS ON TEST

THE

BIGG THE BETTER

For many people, when it comes to truck cabins, it is always the bigger the better, or so it seems. Volvo have come up with a new bigger cabin for the FH, the XXL. Tim Giles checks out one of the new models on a test drive to see whether the adage is true.

A

nyone who has spent any time on the road living in a truck will tell you that one of the things which is at a premium in a truck cabin is space. Spending a week or more living in a truck cabin means you have to have quite a bit of gear just to live, but also you need quite a bit more, just in case…

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DIESEL September-October 2019

One of the limiting factors for European truck makers competing in the Australian truck market is that their home markets, in Europe, are very strictly limited in overall vehicle length. Standard truck length for a semitrailer in Europe is 16.5 metres, add in the 13.5 metres long trailer and you’re left with just three metres between the front of the trailer

and the absolute front of the truck.

Trucks coming out of North America suffer from no such limitation. In the US there are no truck length regulations, the only limiting factor is the practicality of getting a truck and its trailer onto the road and manoeuvring from delivery to delivery point. As a result, trucks there can have enormous sleeping cabins, but

TRUCKS ON TEST

ER it also means that it is not uncommon for a US truck maker to offer something like a 60-inch sleeper here in Australia.

Australia does have length limitations but they are less constricting than the European rules. The growth of the B-double and its domination of the truck market has seen a de facto limitation on the length in the prime mover. Maximum overall length for a B double is 26 metres and the limit for the dimension from the rear of the trailer to the kingpin is 20.5 metres. This gives Australian truckmakers a bit more space to play with than their European counterparts.

Historically, US cabover prime movers

have been able to use larger cabins than the Europeans. However, some years ago Volvo in Australia realised it was possible to extend the FH in length by using side panels from the conventional VN models sold in the United States. With a smart redesign of the cabin roof, Volvo had a larger cabin available to compete with the North American prime movers.

The original XXL proved to be quite a successful option. Not only in Australia but also in some areas of Scandinavia where length regulations allowed for bigger cabins, in some cases. Unfortunately, when the new FH was released in 2014 the complete cabin redesign did not include a bigger cabin option.

At the time, the major competition at the top of the heavy duty truck sales charts was between the Kenworth K200 and the Volvo FH. One of the major factors which had increased sales for Volvo was its bigger cabin option.

It has taken some time, but driven by the requirements of the Australian truck market and some other truck markets around the world which would prefer a bigger cabin, Volvo have developed an XXL for the new shape FH. This is the truck which Diesel took for a test drive from Brisbane, west into country Queensland for a night out to check out the sleeping arrangements.

HOW BIG IS THE XXL? The magic number when we’re talking about the cabin space is often the dimensions of the bunk available. In the case of the XXL we’re talking about a bed which is 2,130mm long and 1,065mm wide at its widest point, in the middle.

There are cutouts at either end for the driver’s and passenger’s seats.

The overall dimension of the Globetrotter cabin is 2,475mm in length and 2,495mm in width. It is 2110 mm from the flat floor of the cabin to the top of the roof and the distance from the rear of the drivers seat to the rear wall of the cabin is 990mm. To achieve this extension the rear wall of the cabin has been moved back 250mm. Compare these numbers to similar measurements in just about any other cabover on the market and it is clear this is quite a roomy cabin to live in.

By adding in larger body panels into the overall cabin design, Volvo had to put extra research and development into the new cabin to ensure it would pass the stringent Swedish cabin strength test.

Every element within the cabin design is integral to that test rating including the windscreen which is glued into place to improve overall strength.

The boffins at Volvo headquarters in Gothenberg Sweden really crunched the numbers and found there would be enough sales for this kind of cabin in Australia, Scandinavia and some other parts of Europe where tanker and tipper operators do not run up against the 16.5 meter overall length limitation.

The numbers supplied by Volvo here in Australia, back to the decision makers in Gothenberg, were able to quote plenty of Volvo customers from the past who had used the old FH XXL and were looking for the model to be reintroduced. This pent up demand would be one of the major factors in the decision to reintroduce the XXL. In fact, Volvo had announced that the XXL would be returning to the Australian market way back in 2017 at the Brisbane Truck Show. Obviously, at that time the go-ahead had been given for the new larger cabin but it has taken until now for development work to complete the process.

This larger cab fits into a specific segment in the truck market. The design is very similar to the FH prime mover with the standard cabin. However, the extra dimension for the larger cabin is simply for improved driver comfort.

When an employer buys a truck like this for a particular driver, it can be regarded as some form of reward for hard-work and loyalty or as a gesture

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TRUCKS ON TEST

which may keep the driver working for a few years longer.

This XXL option is going to be available on any FH model in the current Volvo range. There are no special requirements for the type of truck onto which it can be fitted. It is likely that the vast majority of these larger cabins will be fitted to the flagship top of the range models like the one tested on this occasion, fitted with a 700hp 16-litre engine under the hood. There is only one option for this cabin, the Globetrotter with its higher roof.

HOW MUCH ROOM IS THERE IN THE NEW XXL? As a cabin in which to live, this does feel quite roomy. The overhead lockers are the same size as those which would be fitted in the standard sized cabin.

However, the increased length of cabin does mean that there is an extra 50

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DIESEL September-October 2019

“THERE IS ENOUGH ROOM FOR THE DRIVER TO WANDER ABOUT IN THE CABIN WITHOUT BEING CONSTRAINED BY SPACE LIMITATIONS. THIS PARTICULAR CABIN DESIGN HAS BEEN HONED OVER SEVERAL GENERATIONS OF VOLVO CABS AND DOES ITS JOB VERY WELL.” litres of storage under the bunk. This can be accessed by lifting the bunk and the side lockers are also accessible from outside the cabin.

This does mean that this particular model does offer more storage which is accessible from outside the cabin.

This is an improvement, because one of the problems from which many European prime movers suffer, when compared to their North American counterparts is outside storage.

Directly under the bunk there are

two large storage bins which can slide out like drawers onto the flat floor of the cabin. One of these can be a refrigerator.

They do provide a good amount of storage for the driver to supplement that in the overhead lockers above the windscreen.

There is enough room for the driver to wander about in the cabin without being constrained by space limitations. This particular cabin design has been honed over several generations of Volvo cabs and does its job very well.

TRUCKS ON TEST

As a bed this is a very comfortable place to spend the night with its interior spring mattress crowned with a gelfilled mattress topper which makes it easy to take a rest. There is also an excellent addition in this particular model, with the ability to lift one end of the bunk up using a small electric motor.

This turns the comfortable bunk into a comfortable place for a driver to sit and put their feet up.

Another option, which is available in the new cabin, and one which this driver would choose. Instead of having the AMT controller fixed to the side of the driver’s seat, it is possible to option a pushbutton control on the dashboard. This means the pull-out fridge under the bunk can be situated closer to the drive’rs seat, making it more easily accessible when driving.

With this AMT and the engine with power and torque like the 700hp power plant included in this package, it is not very often that the driver has to intervene manually with the transmission. Normally, the only kind of intervention needed is the switch the AMT from auto to manual in order to maintain the current gear for a specific reason, usually when climbing or descending a grade.

EVEN MORE OPTIONS This model, as tested has the single crawler gear option, with a short extension fitted onto the transmission.

This is an aid to startability and drivability for a truck like the one tested, which is rated up to 130 tonnes GCM. This is becoming a regular feature of Volvo truck specifications since the company introduced its crawler options last year. Some truck buyers are choosing taller rear axle diff ratings, to improve fuel economy, but at the same time including a crawler gear to maintain the required startability. On this particular model, tested here, the axle ratio is 3.40:1 making the truck run at 100 km/h at 1400rpm.

This truck includes the driver alert system, which monitors driver input on the steering wheel and other controls as a way of detecting any reduction in alertness on the part of the driver.

There is also the forward collision warning system. This is enabled at all times when the truck is in motion and will warn the driver if they’re closing in on an

The rear wall of the cabin has been moved back 250mm.

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There is an extra 50L of storage under the bunk which can be accessed by lifting the bunk and also accessible from outside through the side lockers.

object which may cause problems. This uses the same video and radar systems which the active cruise control uses but is always active, whether the driver has chosen cruise control or not. This is a kind of belt and braces approach to anti collision warning, which the driver now has whether they want it or not.

As long as the combination is fitted with an EBS system, this forward collision warning system will bring the truck to a halt if it has detected an issue and if it judges braking to be the only way to avoid a collision.

This truck it also fitted with a blindspot alert, which detects any vehicles on the passenger side of the truck and illuminates a red light in the nearside mirror if it detects something in the blindspot area. If the driver indicates to turn left an alarm will sound, and the horn will go off.

This truck was not fitted with one particular option, but it may be of interest to some operators. There is now a new extension to the Volvo Dynamic Steering (VDS) system which has been on offer for some time. The VDS Evolution can be adjusted by the driver through the heads up display in

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DIESEL September-October 2019

the dashboard. The steering wheel feel can be fine tuned to suit a particular driver’s preference.

Not only can the system be adjusted so that the steering is light in slow moving situations but heavier at highway speed, but when lane keeping is activated it will actually kick the

steering back into its lane if it detects a drift across from one lane to another. It is also possible to adjust the bias of the steering to compensate for effects like a steep road camber or a strong crosswind on a long haul.

Of course, this truck has active cruise control, lane keeping included. It would seem this level of safety system is on the cusp of becoming standard in just about every new heavy duty prime mover in long-distance line haul applications.

All these different applications need to be controlled and many of them can be set using buttons on the steering wheel. Volvo has probably broken the record for the most buttons on a steering wheel for trucks sold in Australia. There are nine buttons on the left and eight on the right, as well as two rocker switches.

All of these control the settings for the safety features as well as the heads up display directly in front of the driver and the information screen to the drivers left.

At the end of the day, it has taken a long time for Volvo to get it’s big cab back, but with the reintroduction of the XXL, the company is able to get out there and compete head-to-head with the big boys.

TRUCKS ON TEST

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DIESEL September-October 2019

TRUCKS ON TEST

THE BIG LITTLE TRUCK OR THE LITTLE BIG TRUCK? Driving the new Standard Cab Hino 500 does beg a question about what is going on here, is this the big little truck or the little big truck? Even if you don’t know the answer, it is clear this new model has a lot going on and has introduced some new concepts into the medium duty truck market.

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hese Hino 500 Standard Cab models are one of those invisible segments of the market, overshadowed by the bigger, more glamorous and exotic trucks on our highways. The humble little 11 tonne GVM truck is one of those unsung workhorses of the transport and logistics world.

The Hino 500 Standard cab 1124 and 1126 are simply a platform on which to carry something from A to B, whether it be a pile of parcels, a broken down car, a few pallets of beer or a small tankful of liquid. The job is rarely noticed and only rarely over a long distance, but every town will have plenty of trucks like this going around keeping the wheels of business rolling.

Of course, it is not just the Hino which goes unnoticed, it is all of the trucks of this size doing this kind of work which go largely unnoticed or uncared for. What sets the new Hino apart is how this new model has introduced a step-change into the way we have to think about truck design in this part of the market.

Having said all of these positives about the new 500, the fact of the matter is it is still just a truck and one which will perform some pretty mundane tasks in the overall freight tasks of its working life. The chances are the driver who takes this out of the yard and around town every day will have little idea about what is going in the truck. It’s the nature of the beast, just get the freight on the truck, off the truck and

make sure you get the con notes signed.

This thought provokes another question for Hino. Why throw so much innovation and sophistication at such a mundane truck? The answer to this one is probably, because they can. This truck is made in this way, not just because it can, but because Hino believes it can demonstrate the value of what it is bringing to the table to anyone who cares to look.

The whole 500 Series Standard cab range brings a much more sophisticated platform to the table but these 11 tonne GVM examples also bring another innovation to the table, a five- litre engine which will knock your socks off. The new power plant comes from a bit of pragmatic lateral thinking back in Japan, but sets a new precedent here in Australia.

What has to change, as from now, is our idea of what a Japanese truck is like and how it performs. The old way of thinking about what a Japanese truck is like and how it performs which has been less and less relevant over the past 10 years.

The change can be traced back to the change in the Japanese economy. After decades of steady growth and an economy in, seemingly, permanent boom, when Japanese truck makers were driven by a growing domestic demand, overseas sales for the truck makers were an afterthought and very little adaptation to target markets took place.

All of this changed when the Japanese economy tanked in the late nineties and

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TRUCKS ON TEST

didn’t improve much before the GST hit ten years later. This ongoing period in the doldrums meant the truck manufacturers had to wake up to export markets and start to think seriously about non-domestic truck sales and adapting design to suit operators other than the Japanese.

This has seen an unprecedented series of developments in Japan, alongside the purchase of two major Japanese players, UD and Fuso, by European truck makers.

Research and development dollars have been used to ensure from the outset that new designs are suited to the rest of the world, as well as the Japanese home market.

THE NUTS AND BOLTS OF THE 500 When it was first revealed in Japan last year, the new Hino 500 Standard Cab for Australia didn’t look that spectacular at first sight. The ever-conservative Hino designers had tweaked the basic cabin design, but only a real expert would be able to tell.

It is not until you drill down into the nuts and bolts of the new 500 that the step changes become apparent. The engine looks different, feels different and is different. The way this power plant

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DIESEL September-October 2019

works with the programming for the Allison automatic transmission makes it even more different.

The smarts included in the electronics are the instantly obvious change to the casual observer and Hino has only scratched the surface of what the currently available computing power is capable of.

The level of state-of-the-art safety systems included in the package are probably one of the biggest indicators of how far we have come.

The latest and greatest safety system appeared in top-end luxury cars and then the most expensive high value high mileage top power prime mover, but in a small city run around truck loaded with a variety of odds and ends to deliver? The inclusions of these systems tell us a change is happening and it is happening fast.

If the truck looks little changed on the outside, sitting in the driver’s seat tells a different story. Turn the key and the dashboard lights up. The display looks distinctly non-Japanese. This is not a functional read out of a few numbers with little design thought. This is a well designed graphical interface which tells

a story which is easy to comprehend and use by the driver.

There is also plenty of choice for the driver to decide which indicators they want to look at as they are driving along.

There’s a the straight forward analogue clock coupled with a read out of the trip odometer and a fuel consumption figure for that trip.

Scroll through to the green leaf option and the driver gets a live read out of acceleration and fuel consumption. on two simple bar indicators. Keep these bars small and the driving economy goes up, then they are rewarded with a score at the top left showing how well they are doing.

Next comes this driver’s personal favourite, the graphical representation telling you what is going on with the active cruise control, following distance, and its settings. Smart use of these systems can have a relaxing effect on the driving conditions, even in busy city traffic.

There are many more options which can be revealed and set by the drivers, customising the heads-up display. This test drive didn’t allow enough time to go through all of the options and get it set up

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TRUCKS ON TEST

A driver who just jumps into this truck with no prior knowledge and heads down the road will not do any worse than they did with their previous truck.

just right for the driver’s taste. Let’s leave that to the full-time driver.

This is one of quite a few things this driver will need to know. The truck is not going to react the same way as their previous truck did. To get the best out everything which is going on here, they are going to need some new information to use this new truck properly.

This need to train a driver for this truck might set off some alarm bells, but have no fear, a driver who just jumps into this truck with no prior knowledge and heads down the road will not do any worse than they did with their previous truck. It’s just that they could do so much better armed with some understanding of the set up and systems on tap.

THE HEART OF THE MATTER Once out on the road and negotiating traffic in a loaded truck it is possible for the driver of the new Hino 500 to begin to understand the heart of the matter. This engine declares its difference as soon as the driver puts their foot down. This is a different engine note, the rpm levels look a bit low and the transmission is grabbing the next gear well before one would normally expect.

Take a look at the engine and its specifications and the reason for this difference become obvious. This is a medium duty engine with a heavy duty

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DIESEL September-October 2019

sensibility. This Diesel truck test took two different variants out on the highway of the FD model, the 1124 and the 1126. These are both fitted with the A05C engine, one at 260hp and the other at 240hp.

The 260 puts out maximum power at 2300rpm and maximum torque at 884Nm at 1400rpm, but the torque is still over 800Nm at 2300rpm. The 240 puts out maximum power at 2300rpm and maximum torque of 794Nm at 1400rpm, but with torque still over 750 Nm at 2200rpm. This 5.1 litre A05C four cylinder engine has been developed from the six cylinder engine used in some of Hino’s larger trucks. Its success at the larger end of the market prompted Hino to try and use the same technology at a lower GCM. This may be one of the problems which will be created because of the use of this particular engine in this particular application. For anyone who has driven a wide range of heavy duty trucks over the years, this is a very easy engine to understand. Keep your eye on the rpm levels, let the engine lug if it wants to. Anyone used to keeping a 15 litre Caterpillar engine between 1,250 and1,750rpm will feel at home here.

The fact of the matter is, many of the people who will be tasked with driving this particular 11 tonne truck could well have come out of a progression from a large

ute, to a large van or perhaps a light duty pantech and then upgraded to a medium duty truck. Their experience will be more about high revving engines, basic manual gearboxes and car-like transmissions. From that point of view this truck will feel and sound very different.

Because this A05C Engine is such a low revving torquey engine, when using the eco-setting on the Allison gearbox, the impression, to a casual observer, is of a lazy engine, not working very hard. However, the fact of the matter is, despite this impression it is getting the job done extremely efficiently and is more than a match for any high revving comparable engine.

Any driver looking for a different perception from this engine and gearbox only needs to click the switch to power mode on the Allison 2500 transmission.

Suddenly, the rpm levels get much higher and the rate of acceleration seems to increase considerably. We can be sure that the fuel consumption also increases at the same time.

In actuality, in most situations the power mode is not needed, the way the truck actually performs in eco mode is more than a match for any of the competition.

However, the boy racer in our truck driving community will be able to make lots of noise and race the traffic between traffic

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TRUCKS ON TEST

lights if they really want to.

On this test drive the power mode did come into its own, climbing Mount Ousley from Wollongong to Sydney with a loaded truck. Selecting power saw the engine get up past 2000rpm and pull like a good’un.

If power mode had not been selected, the truck would have still made the climb more than adequately, perhaps taking little more time, but the job would have been performed with a lot less noise and fuss, in a much more relaxed way.

It seems that the days have gone when anyone driving a Japanese truck knew when to change up because the over revving buzzer came on. Going by the markings on the tachometer, the ideal rpm, marked in green, is between 900rpm and 1800rpm.

Anyone buying this new Hino 500 will be expecting to get the much improved fuel consumption which is being claimed for the truck. If they want to get that sort of result then it would be a good idea to make sure the driver is properly informed about the best way to drive this truck, with this engine.

It doesn’t take much, the smarts within the Allison transmission do most of the heavy lifting when it comes to ensuring the truck in the right gear at the right time.

However the driver needs to be shown not to be concerned about the relatively low rpm levels and relatively low noise level they are experiencing. This engine is at its best between 1500 and 2000rpm.

ON HIGHWAY EXPERIENCE On Diesel’s test route the truck climbed Mount Ousley easily while sitting at 1600rpm, in a relatively high gear and

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DIESEL September-October 2019

Turn the key and the dashboard lights up. The display looks distinctly non-Japanese.

accelerating past trucks working their way down through the gearbox. The way it pulled in this kind of situation is very impressive.

On another climb and in cruise control the truck sat at 63 km/h at 1750rpm without any fear of the engine not getting the job done. The transmission was in eco-mode.

The other advantage of the fact that this A05C engine is a downsized model is the fact that it is possible and have a proper engine brake. This is not an old exhaust brake, this is a genuine compression brake and, as such, effective when descending long grades at high masses. On this test the truck would hold just under 100km an hour downhill when the correct gear is selected manually.

If the driver can get the rpm level up to around 2000, the engine brake will hold on quite well on a loaded truck. It is simply a matter of making sure the right

manual gear is selected on the descent.

All of the functions involved with active cruise control can be controlled from a single round multifunction button on the right-hand side of the steering wheel. Meanwhile a similar button set on the left of the steering wheel controls the information screen directly in front of the driver.

In terms of the time taken on this road test, it was not possible to go through the many available options on the information screen in front of the driver and on the wide range of functions which can be available from the infotainment unit in the middle of the dashboard.

However, one of the more interesting items is a tyre pressure monitoring system. Anyone who wants to use this system simply needs to option in the tyre pressure sensing dust caps, a small electronic sender unit, which is plugged into the trucks CANbus and then acquire the app which can be loaded into the entertainment system.

Then they will find a tyre pressure monitoring option on the central screen and the driver can use this to check that tyre pressures are within the desire parameters, at any point. If the tyre pressures go outside of the set parameters then the system will post up an alarm to say where the over pressure or under pressure has been detected.

This small addition is just one of the many options which will be coming down the pike for truck buyers. The multiple options made available to buyers of the top end prime movers are nowgoing to be offered to those buying the smaller trucks in the fleet.when buying the smaller trucks in the fleet.

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TRUCKS ON TEST

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INDUSTRY ISSUE

ACCESS, ACCESS

&A

Ask any operator about three of the main issues which constrain productivity in their business and they will tell you what they are, access, access and access. Diesel looks at access discussions past and present and whether we can expect any realistic change.

T

he transport industry is now entering a period of great potential in terms of change, change which has been a long time coming. The Transport Ministers of Australia have asked the National Transport Commission (NTC) to lead the review of the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL) in a process of consultation with stakeholders.

One of the most important aspects of this review is the stated desire of the Ministers’ committee to get the NTC to start from a clean sheet of paper solution, getting rid of the past issues and roadblocks.

The statements made by NTC recognise that the current law is not best practice and openly admits it’s outdated, complex, long, prescriptive and does not support road safety outcomes. On the review process website it states, “We are going back to basics to review the law

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DIESEL September-October 2019

from first principles.”

Five simple aims have been identified by the review, to improve safety for all road users, support increased economic productivity and innovation, simplify administration and enforcement of the law, support the use of new technologies and methods of operation, and provide flexible, outcome-focused compliance options. This is a set of aims with which no-one working with road transport could argue.

The review will be wide ranging with eight topics on which a discussion paper has been released and a consultation period is in process. One of the most important issues identified is that of access, a subject which has been front and centre of discussions on the improvement of productivity in trucking forever and a day.

Highly prescriptive state laws had restricted the growth of the trucking

industry when the pioneers of road transport were breaking new ground after World War II. There was an improvement in the standard of living of the general population at that time and one of the contributory factors had been the freeing up of road transport to be able to compete with state-owned rail operations.

One major contributor to the rapid growth of the interstate freight transport industry, opening up access all around Australia, had been the Hughes and Vale v NSW case, back in 1954. As a result of the landmark decision taken by the High Court of Australia in this case, road transport operators had been given permission to trade freely across state borders.

Over time, the restrictions were further eased as GCM allowances crept forward and speed limits increased, but the wide variations in rules across borders

INDUSTRY ISSUE

CCESS continued to create issues.

By the early nineties progress had reached a tipping point, real change was needed to cope with an economy coming out of the ‘recession we had to have’. On March 12, 1991, the then Prime Minister, Bob Hawke issued a parliamentary statement called, ‘Building a Competitive Australia’ about getting the economy going.

“In telecommunications, in aviation, in road and rail transport, in removing through national uniform regulations the requirement for business to meet six or seven different standards, we are achieving fundamental gains in efficiency,” said Hawke.

Many in the trucking industry are still waiting.

It was around this time that some major steps occurred in the development of B-doubles. Initially limited to just 23 metres long, these were much more productive trucks and were allowed to travel under permit on prescribed routes. By the mid 90s, 25 meters long combinations were able to get on the road and, after a prolonged

period of lobbying the 26 metre B double came into existence with a trailer length restriction allowing for larger cabins and improved driver comfort.

Over time, the permit requirements for B-doubles and access issues became clearer as a clearly defined B-double network emerged. It was the existence of a consistently regulated and as of right access for these higher productivity trucks which led to the explosion in the number of B-doubles on our highways. This enabled the trucking industry to cope with a fastgrowing freight task during the period of a driver shortage.

The change in regulations to allow 26 metre B-doubles, in 2004, was the last change in prescriptive truck regulations, allowing greater access for high productivity vehicles to the Australian road network. Ever since that time, the only way to get an even higher productivity vehicle on the road has been through the Performance Based Standards (PBS) process.

The PBS scheme had been touted

as the ongoing solution to the everincreasing need for improved productivity as ongoing economic growth drove an exponential growth in the freight task on our roads. Unfortunately, even though truck designers and operators came up with many and varied high productivity vehicles to improve efficiency, a recalcitrant, antiquated and restrictive access regime across the country severely limited the ability of PBS to improve road transport efficiency.

“In the late 1980s, longer semi-trailers and B-doubles were allowed to operate on limited access arrangements in every State and Territory,” says Gary Mahon, Queensland Trucking Association CEO and a member of the Expert Panel appointed

by NTC to guide the review. “It was not until national action occurred that much wider application was adopted that derived significant efficiency benefits.

“Today, we have similar arrangements for PBS where they operate in limited arrangements within their state. All levels of government need to champion wider

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INDUSTRY ISSUE

adoption across a national network to deliver a step change for road freight efficiency. The circumstances of the late 1980s cannot continue to be repeated. It is unacceptable for déjà vu all over again.

“We are a vast country and highly decentralised with a relatively low population. Transport costs will always be a challenge, but we are a culture of ingenuity and resilience. We cannot continue with our inefficiencies being such a handbrake on our economic performance. We are an internationally facing economy and an efficient road freight sector is a key ingredient to prosperity. Efficiency needs to be re-energised in road freight as regulation limits remain stuck on a 1990s clock.”

ACCESS, ACCESS AND ACCESS In its call for submissions during the consultation period on access issues, the NTC clearly identified the issues which have dogged the trucking industry for the past 20 years. People working in the trucking industry are hoping that higher productivity vehicles will enable them to cope with the growing freight task into the future. They will be watching and waiting as the consultation period plays out to see if there will be some genuine solutions to these issues in the recommendations embedded in the new HVNL when it appears next year.

In its comments calling for feedback, the NTC tells us it understands there are inefficiencies under the heavy vehicle access arrangements, the current system results in too many permits, delays for

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operators and inconsistent outcomes.

It points out that even when low risk routes are pre-approved, where risks are already known, operators still need to apply for permits.

There are a number of statements with which many operators are currently pulling their hair out trying to improve productivity would agree, like, “Road managers do not necessarily have a high degree of expertise with heavy vehicle classifications which can complicate and protract access decisions. The decision-making process is prescriptive and inflexible.”

At the moment the access debate turns on complex interrelated issues.

The transport operator can get a vehicle approved as a particular class of vehicle and get access for over 90 per cent of the proposed route, only to find one local authority unable to sign off on the vehicle, unwilling to discuss the issue and unable to give the operator an alternative.

There is often a lack of transparency on these issues and an application disappears into a bureaucratic black hole while the poor truck operator has to wait for the OK. For many stuck in this situation, the end customer is unwilling to wait and looks for an alternative.

This lack of clear access guidelines for all roads is also having a detrimental effect on the PBS scheme. Often the truck operator will have to take the risk of building a vehicle to handle a task before they have access confirmed. This can make PBS a risky business, with vehicles parked up waiting for permission to move. Even when there is

in principle agreement to allow a particular vehicle on a route, there is no limit to the timescale on which the final permission needs to be granted, more delays.

Operators are often unable to get guidance from the authority on what would be acceptable and have to make a series of applications, get them rejected and then decrease masses or lengths until an application gets over the line. On all access decisions made by state authorities there is no avenue for external review of a decision.

This is a complex and perplexing issue and one which is going to take some real clarity on the part of the ministers to find a genuinely workable solution. At the moment there is no cut through on the access decision making process because of the tiered nature of the way our roads are managed.

The National Heavy Vehicle Regulator may understand that a route is good to use and have the technical nous to prove it. However, the actual road manager may have allegiance to either the state authority or the local authority and therefore doesn’t feel the need to explain a decision to anyone. Until there is some compulsion to come up with quantifiable explanations for access decisions the current impasse looks set to continue.

The initial aim of this HVNL process was to act as a circuit breaker to introduce some rationality into the system. However, the NTC’s initial discussion says it all when it tells us, ‘The community has low levels of awareness and understanding of freight and the freight industry’.

INDUSTRY ISSUE

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DIESEL WORKSHOP

THE ROAD TO TRUCK AND TRAILER

STABILITY The disconnection between the type of braking systems available, globally, and the regulations in Australia which specify brake performance has been an ongoing issue in the trucking industry. The introduction of mandatory electronic braking systems is having the effect of bringing the legislation up to date with the technology.

T

he last 30 years has seen a series of ongoing discussions about Australian Design Rules governing braking on trucks and trailers, ADRs 35 and 38. Over this period the way trucks and trailers brake has changed beyond recognition.

Meanwhile, the actual ADRs governing the braking systems have lagged considerably behind.

First there was antilock braking systems (ABS), but now there are many acronyms in this space. The main technology to be included in the mix is electronic braking systems (EBS).

However, this technology enables a number of other functions to be used, like Roll Stability Control (RSC) and electronic load sensing.

Twenty years ago these kinds of technology started to appear on top end European prime movers, but over the ensuing years these kind of technology are now able to be fitted to any new vehicle and are regularly retro-fitted to older trailers.

These systems take road safety to another level and operators who are running these systems report fewer incidents. However, this improved performance was not mandated for quite some time.

The reason for the reticence on the part of legislators to drive the introduction of these state-of-the-art

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DIESEL September-October 2019

systems was a resistance in many sectors to the use of this modern technology.

Driving a truck with full EBS feels very different from a traditional combination with a dumb braking system.

As a result, drivers unused to the new systems complained of brakes not working and coming on when they weren’t supposed to. Operators in rural areas have remained resistant to ABS as they contend it is a dangerous system to use on dirt roads.

On the other side of the fence, truck safety experts were pointing out that it was possible, if those setting up the system weren’t careful, for a prime mover to be fully compliant with ADR 35 pulling a trailer compliant with ADR 38 and be unable to brake properly, especially when unladen.

EBS technology was seen as a solution to bring all truck and trailer combinations up to a safe standard as it uses load sensing and smart apportioning of braking effort to slow the combination as safely as possible.

Even after the EBS became commonly available, the mandating of such a system did not come into force in the face of pushback from traditionalists in the industry. This led to Australian trucking fleets comprised of vehicles with the latest, safest technology except for their braking systems, which remained largely unchanged since the

1960s. This led to countless issues around ensuring brake compatibility within trucking operations.

A major incident on the Princes Highway at Batemans Bay in New South Wales served as a catalyst for change to the way braking regulation would be formulated. The tanker crash resulted in a number of deaths and led to a detailed investigation of the incident. At the end of the process it was the coroner who asked why stability control was not mandatory on vehicles when the consequences of a loss of stability was so tragic.

As a result, the NSW Environmental Protection Agency made it mandatory for all vehicles carrying dangerous goods in the state to be fitted with stability control.

This rule meant that just about any dangerous goods carrying vehicle had to fit some form of stability control, as they would almost inevitably pass through NSW at some point.

This change has prompted those considering the latest iteration of braking standards to finally get on board with EBS. The next truck braking rule change to ADR 35/06 will see stability control starting to be fitted to all heavy trucks from November 2020 in a number of stages. The rule change for trailers is much sooner with ADR 38/05 requiring stability control on all new trailers from November this year.

BRAKING SPECIAL

GETTING READY FOR INTELLIGENT TRAILERS

T

he trucking industry is now in the process of getting ready for intelligent trailers as a result of the upcoming mandating of stability control systems on all new trailers. Wabco has been engaging with the industry to ensure that diesel workshops and road transport fleets are familiar with the latest developments, utilising its Intelligent Trailer Program (ITP).

This proactive effort to educate the industry at all levels as the changes to Australian Design Rules (ADR) for trailers introduce the mandatory use of Electronic Braking Systems (EBS).

This process is ongoing, according to Blair Rundle, Wabco Product Support Manager.

Truck workshops need to know how to perform electronic diagnostics, whereas trailer manufacturers must be familiar with the end-of-line process i.e. how to correctly fit Wabco equipment and set parameters in the interests of achieving optimal performance and component longevity.

“We have software diagnostic programs for our Trailer EBS,” says Blair. “It’s a simple process to familiarise yourself with when ‘end-oflining’ a trailer.

“Wabco Trailer EBS-E controls intelligent brake and air suspension functions, which leads to shorter braking distances and delivers greater safety for vehicle operators as well as other road users and the

wider community. This particular system processes a rich flow of data, functioning as a central platform for trailer intelligence.”

Wabco’s Trailer EBS features Rollover Stability Support (RSS) as a standard function, which helps the vehicle operator keep the truck-trailer combination under control and makes it compliant under the new ADR. There is also a trailer-focused Internet of Things (IoT) solution known as TX-Trailerpulse which combines real-time track and trace functionality with additional remote trailer health and diagnostic information.

“Modern fleets in Australia are chasing remote diagnostics via telematics,” says Blair. “Wabco is currently testing TX-Trailerpulse in the Australian market and it is set to be a valuable addition to the ITP suite.”

SmartBoard is an integral feature of ITP as it displays key trailer information and allows the driver to operate EBS and air suspension functions.

“Users can see everything from axle load and mileage status to tyre pressure and brake pad wear via a physical display on the side of the trailer,” says Blair. “Trailer EBS and air suspension functions can also be used via SmartBoard.”

For truck drivers and fleet operators with Android smartphones, Wabco has a mobile solution known as OptiLink.

This app can monitor and control trailer

functions wirelessly. With just one interface, users can complete pre-ride checklists, access important trailer information and receive automated alerts. OptiLink iOS (for Apple devices) is set to launch soon.

“In forestry, vehicle operators are not authorised to leave their truck cabin while the trailer is being loaded,” says Blair. “To keep track of how much timber is being loaded, a driver with the OptiLink app can monitor the weight on the axle groups in realtime. This enables a more efficient and safer operation, especially when you consider a fleet’s adherence to compliance within the Chain of Responsibility (CoR) context.”

Another safety concern that Wabco allays with ITP is the capability to reverse safely into a loading dock.

“TailGuard supports smarter and safer reversing while also keeping a close eye on blind spots,” says Blair.

“This system can automatically apply the brakes on a vehicle at a pre-set distance – anywhere from 50-200cm – from an object in the rear blind spot.

“TailGuard can also pulse the brake pedal as warning for the vehicle operator. The vehicle will stop at a loading dock, hold the brakes for about three seconds and allow the operator to position their trailer to be flush with the dock. The pulsing of the brakes is also useful for improving safety when working with blindspots.”

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DIESEL WORKSHOP

WHAT’S TRU-SHU ALL ABOUT? Anyone visiting the Brisbane Truck Show earlier this year would have seen the scrum around the Tru-Shu stand and may not have had the time at a busy show to have investigated further. Diesel Workshop has.

T

ru-Shu is designed, developed, tested and manufactured by ASET Engineering an operation based in Hartley, in country South Australia. ASET Engineering engages in research and development as well as manufacturing to support its freight business, All-Size Equipment Transport Services (ASET Services).

The specialised freight work performed

by ASET Services has required the development of specialised trailers. These trailers have features that simplify the loading and delivery of over-dimensional freight around Australia. A further key aspect of the company’s goal in design is to minimise maintenance and breakdowns on its equipment.

One of the features of the development work has included designing improvements to current components or sections of trailers including suspension, brakes and ramps. Some of these developments are stand-alone products that have greatly benefited the ASET company and it is one of these developments which is now being offered to the market.

Tru-Shu brake shoe support mechanism is the first of several smart ideas developed

by ASET. There will be other products that improve safety and minimise maintenance costs coming onto the market over time.

DEVELOPMENT OF TRU-SHU For many years, ASET owner Ken Pitt had been frustrated at the amount of brake shoes that were quickly going out of alignment and being prematurely replaced. This problem rendered the trailer or prime mover liable to being defected at a roadside inspection.

This is a common problem in the industry of which, any workshop which maintains vehicles or removes brake

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DIESEL September-October 2019

defects will be aware. The cost was unacceptable to Ken as replacing each one cost well over $1,000, not including down-time. In some cases, it can be a much greater cost and a safety issue, as the S-cam can come loose and smash into the drum bolts, disintegrating them

onto the road and rendering that brake entirely ineffective.

Not happy to put up with this wasted time and money, Ken, Gordon and their team got to work to find a solution.

After a few years of experimentation an effective solution was found. Since that point the fleet at ASET Services has never had a brake shoe ride out of alignment.

The problem was gone.

The obvious next step was to share the benefit with others in the industry. The final result is the product now known as Tru-Shu. A patented, tested and engineerapproved solution to a decades old problem. A simple to apply one-off remedy.

For an outlay of a few hundred dollars per trailer the problem is instantly eliminated.

Whenever brakes are replaced the Tru-Shu will bolt back on with only the addition of new single-use bolts.

BRAKING SPECIAL

NOT ALL TEBS ARE

W

ith the imminent changes in ADR38/05 legislation, Knorr Bremse reckon it is important to know that not all Trailer Electronic Braking Systems are equal.

The Knorr Bremse TEBS has dual load sensing capability, which means it can sense if the prime mover is a North American or European based truck. This is important because different truck types have different onset and coupling pressure characteristics, which may affect the brake balance of a combination.

A wide multi volt operating range of 9-32V, helps mitigate problems with voltage drop in multi trailer combinations.

Besides anticipating potential rollover in a corner by reducing the speed to prevent the trailer rolling over, some systems are able to correct trailer swing and react to sudden lane change manoeuvres that could lead to loss of control and potential rollover of a combination.

A TEBS with the ability to perform multiple auxiliary functions is available. It can use both pneumatic and electronic input/output functions. On some systems the raise/lower valve automatically returns the trailer to its ride height at programmed speed, which helps reduce

EQUAL

damage to trailer suspensions.

On longer combinations it is necessary to split and readdress the CAN signal to the local and rear trailer modules, giving optimised electronic brake timing in even the longest of combinations of up to seven trailers.

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DIESEL WORKSHOP

BRAKING SPECIAL

HALVING THE TIME TO CHANGE BRAKE ROTORS

E

very workshop is looking for solutions which save time on a task. Usually, if time can be saved it can also make the job safer and easier. That is certainly the case for workshops adopting the Brakemate System.

Brakemate reduces the likely hood of an injury from the manual handling of 30-45 kg calliper and the 70kg rotor/hub, it takes the high risk out of the separation of rotor and the hub which is often performed manually. The Brakemate system uses hydraulics to remove them from the vehicle. Those same hydraulics can then be used to separate hub and rotor. The

equipment also includes a gadget for removing the calliper before removal.

Using air over hydraulics, the system virtually eliminates the physical effort involved in an often difficult job.

Diesel Workshop spoke to Hermant Singh, Workshop Manager, who has a team of 13 technicians maintaining a 95 strong fleet at Latrobe Valley Bus Lines from Morwell in Victoria, about the impact the Brakemate has had in the company’s workshop.

“Brakemate will lift the calliper, break the hub out and let you change the rotor on it, all while you are standing up,” says Hermant. “You don’t have to bend down

to lift anything. Also, we can do the job in half the time. Our mechanics come in all shapes and sizes so, with this equipment our smaller people can do this heavier work.”

From Hermant’s point of view he sees eliminating the chance and cost of serious injury to a technician as another advantage on the system. There is no need to lift or carry any of the heavy components involved.

The company has also invested in a windscreen lifter as well, to handle another of the heavier tasks in the workshop. This means one mechanic can handle a job, which used three in the past.

MERITOR BRAKE SHOE KITS AND DRIVE HEADS AVAILABLE AS MERITOR GENUINE

C

ustomers familiar with the Meritor product offering may have noticed subtle changes to packaging as the global axle and braking maker reminds customers it is an original equipment provider to some of the world’s biggest truck brands.

The company produces axles and drivelines for a wide range of heavy commercial vehicles and has made some branding changes designed to send a clear message to customers about the quality of the products they are fitting to their vehicles.

“Product that is approved as original equipment will be transitioning into the new Meritor Genuine brand as part of a global initiative,” said Adam Carroll, Meritor Australia Product and Marketing Team Leader. “The Meritor Genuine brand

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DIESEL September-October 2019

represents our flagship offering. We invest millions of dollars globally developing and testing innovative products that satisfy the most demanding of truck manufacturers.

“By putting the Meritor Genuine brand on the box we’re letting customers know they’re purchasing a product that has met or exceeded the most stringent requirements out there for safety, durability and reliability.”

The first products in Australia to transition to Meritor Genuine brand were the popular range of brake shoe kits for truck/trailer and bus, commonly referred to in the industry as the ‘KSMA’ range.

The majority of these kits are riveted and assembled locally in Melbourne using the same quality componentry, processes and equipment approved by the company globally.

“We started with the brake shoe kits because they are our largest and most well-known product group.” said Carroll.

“More recently we’ve also rebranded our replacement drive heads to Meritor Genuine but there remains a suite of other replacement parts, from universal joints to king pin kits, that we also produce to the same exacting standards for many of our original equipment (OE) customers and which will be transitioning from Meritor to Meritor Genuine in the future.

“It’s all about letting customers know they have a clear choice. If they’re looking for a product that will perform as well as that fitted to the truck when it first rolled off the production line it’s a simple matter of looking for the Meritor Genuine brand on the box.”

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DIESEL WORKSHOP

TYRE PRESSURE SPECIAL

MAINTAINING

CORRECT

TYRE PRESSURE

T

here are many well-understood benefits of maintaining correct tyre pressure. The air inside tyre provides internal forces necessary for the tyre to perform as intended. Despite this many tyres are operated outside of their recommended pressure for various reasons. It can be challenging to maintain tyres particularly on commercial vehicles.

Checking pressures takes time and requires access to vehicles that often don’t stay still for long.

To help optimise tyre performance Goodyear Dunlop has been working towards improving the way pressure maintenance is carried out in the field.

Fleet Audits, Drive Over Readers and TPMS are different approaches to this problem although the goal is the same.

Fleet audits are undertaken by tyre technicians using digital tread depth and pressure gauges. The results are collated and allows a high-level view of a fleets condition. Over time this information can assist in identifying which vehicles need additional maintenance. Having an operator inspect the tyre also allow for other observation and feedback.

A Drive over Reader is designed to

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DIESEL September-October 2019

be installed at a fleet depot or other commonly travelled area. Trucks need to simply drive over the reader in a straight line and at a steady speed up to 18 km/h.

No sensors or equipment need to be installed in the tyre or wheel. As each tyre contacts the reader an optical system and laser is used to determine the tread depth. The tyre pressure is derived by measuring the tyres footprint and weight using an array of sensors. The system also provides visibility of the weight distribution between axles and sides of the vehicle.

Goodyear’s Tyre Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS) uses battery powered sensors on each wheel transmitting pressure & temperature data every two minutes. A telematics box is mounted to the vehicle collecting the tyre information and transmitting it to a cloud server via mobile networks. To ensure maximum availability the device works with multiple mobile networks switching automatically based on signal strength.

Algorithms are applied to the data collected to detect issues before they become problems. If an issue is detected or limits are exceeded an automatic alert is sent to the fleet or service

provider. Knowing exactly which tyres need attention and where the vehicle is can enable targeted maintenance and help maximize uptime.

Goodyear is focused on using technology to improve the value of our products and services. Fleet Audits, Drive over Readers and TPMS are some of the ways Goodyear help customers get the best performance out of their tyres.

A Drive over Reader is designed to be installed at a fleet depot or other commonly travelled area.

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DIESEL WORKSHOP

TYRE PRESSURE SPECIAL

NEW COMMERCIAL

TYRE PRESSURE MONITORING SOLUTION

B

ridgestone launched a new gate based tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS) at the 2019 Brisbane Truck Show, designed to enhance and strengthen its Total Tyre Management model. The new gate tyre pressure monitoring technology is being introduced to the Australian and New Zealand market, offering returnto-depot applications, such as metro delivery, refuse, construction and bus fleets, more regular and efficient pressure checks, in turn reducing the risk of tyre related break downs.

The gate technology uses an external sensor mounted on each wheel position’s valve, each with a unique identifier to measure tyre pressure and temperature.

As the vehicle passes between the magnetometer activated gates, the data is received and uploaded to a cloud-based reporting system twice a day. The system also features logic to immediately notify depot or fleet managers to critical alerts, such as a low pressure value or unusually high temperature, via email or SMS. As the hardware is all standalone, installation of the system is simple and cost effective, with no need to remove existing tyres to implement the technology.

According to Bridgestone Australia and New Zealand Managing Director,

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DIESEL September-October 2019

Stephen Roche, the launch of the gate TPMS technology demonstrates how Bridgestone is committed to providing business solutions that complement our strong product line up.

“The introduction of Bridgestone’s gate technology is a major advancement for the industry and will allow us to bolster our fleet offerings,” said Roche. “The technology is designed to alert fleet operators of potential issues before they become a problem, and streamlines what was previously a manual task in the yard.

“Bridgestone’s strong and trusted reputation has been built on providing quality tyres, and continues to be strengthened by our commitment to building on our service offering. Our true value to customers comes through a solutions-oriented approach, marrying the most appropriate products with the right level of service.”

The installation of the gate TPMS allows operators to automatically check tyre pressure when a vehicle enters or leaves the yard, increasing the number of checks, providing more frequent and up to date data.

Bridgestone National Commercial and Solutions Business Manager, Jon Tamblyn, understands how crucial it is to keep fleets on the road, and estimates the technology

will provide a 70 per cent reduction in tyre related failures.

“Slow leaks are difficult to detect, and often they are not picked up until it is too late,” said Tamblyn. “It only takes a few days for a slow leak to become a critical issue, or worse, result in a catastrophic failure.

“Fleet operators understand the importance and cost-per-kilometre benefits of running at the optimal pressure, and through the regular, automated checks our gate technology is designed to deliver, operators will be able to ensure their vehicles are at the correct pressure when they leave the depot.”

Bridgestone has invested significantly in its commercial solutions offering over the past few years, with the implementation of its locally developed B Mobile platform digitising and streamlining the traditional workflow for service technicians, and the continual evolution of the Total Tyre Management approach.

The new gate tyre pressure monitoring system is an extension of Bridgestone’s investment to the industry, complementing Total Tyre Management. The data collected through the technology will also be integrated into the B Mobile platform, with low pressure warnings creating action items in fleets within the system.

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DIESEL WORKSHOP

CAPRICORN PULLING

FOR TRUCKING AND

TRANSPORT Since 1970, Capricorn have been helping auto repairers get a better deal, and in recent years the cooperative has turned its attention to assisting those in trucking and transport too.

T

he Capricorn cooperative started as a group of 11 independent workshop owners who wanted to leverage their collective buying power to get a better deal on parts and other essential supplies.

Today, the 20,000 strong membership contributes over two billion dollars in sales to auto suppliers annually, giving the group some serious muscle in the automotive repair industry.

The system works by incentivising Capricorn Members to purchase from the cooperative’s network of Preferred Suppliers who include the biggest names in the industry. These incentives include reward points which Members can use to effectively discount their purchases.

Members also benefit from the ease of consolidating all their bills into a single invoice and instant trade credit with all Preferred Suppliers who are part of Capricorn’s extensive network. Members also access a range of essential business services that they can use to help run

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DIESEL September-October 2019

and grow their businesses.

Those in trucking and transport stand to benefit greatly from the reward point program, as points are distributed in proportion to spend. And of course, with the higher costs of parts and supplies for trucks and buses, it’s easy for those in the commercial sector to see some quick results.

James Smekel from Universal Bulk Transport is one such new Capricorn Member who is already receiving significant returns.

“I’ve only been a Capricorn Member for around five months and I’ve already earned around $1,500 in reward points.

I’m not spending any more than what I was before either. If anything, I’ve found my suppliers tend to give me even better prices now that I am a Capricorn Member,” James says.

That said, the real power of Capricorn is more than just the rewards returned.

The Capricorn Trade Account gives Members instant trade credit with more

than 2,500 suppliers to the industry, covering everything from air brakes and agricultural equipment to waste services and windscreens.

“We’re only a small company, but for us, our Capricorn Trade Account just makes it so much easier. When purchasing anything from a supplier, you just call them up, give them your Capricorn Number and it’s done. There’s no having to sort anything out. They just send you your order straight away and Capricorn takes care of the billing,” James says.

James also credited the ease of having all his expenses on the one consolidated bill as one of the main reasons he signed up: “It’s all about having one account. It’s one account that wraps up thousands of accounts in one hit. And especially when you purchase from a lot of different businesses. We’re not just a bulk haulage business we’re a diesel mechanic as well, that is the other side of our company. With Capricorn we now have all our orders with all our different suppliers listed on the one bill. It’s saving us so much time and hassle at the end of the month,” James says.

The more workshops join the Capricorn network, the more the power of the cooperative grows. So now is the time for any repair business to get involved and share in the benefits of membership.

With no membership fees to pay and everything to gain, James described the decision to join as a ‘no brainer’.

“I’d definitely recommend joining Capricorn to any other trucking or diesel workshops. Why wouldn’t you want to get more back, just for doing your normal business,” James says.

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DIESEL WORKSHOP

CONVERTER DOLLY

HITS THE ROAD There’s a new kind of dolly out on the highway and Bob Woodward, Chief Engineer at the Australian Trucking Association explains what it’s all about.

V

olvo Product Trainer and friend of the ATA Bill Manton has hit the road from Brisbane to Darwin, trialling the ATA Industry Technical Council’s exciting ‘proof-of-concept’ project – a new converter dolly design.

Led by the ATA Industry Technical Council and MaxiTrans, the project further developed a rigid drawbar converter dolly after issues were raised about the dynamic issues with hinged drawbar converter dollies, especially with brake reactivity and tyre wear.

With the support and provision of materials from MaxiTrans, Hendrickson, Alcoa Wheels, Bridgestone, Jost and Wabco, a prototype of the converter dolly was developed and put on display earlier this year at the Brisbane Truck Show, gaining an overwhelming

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DIESEL September-October 2019

amount of interest to trial the dolly.

Bill Manton is the first to have trialled the dolly, taking it 7,000km on the return Brisbane to Darwin trip in a series of truck combinations including a Type 1 Road train Class 2 combination, a Type 2 Road train Class 2 ABB Quad and a BAB Quad.

While trialling the converter dolly, Bill was also taking Volvo’s new XXL Cab for a test run, to see how each would handle on the journey. Setting off from Volvo’s Wacol site, Bill had the truck set up as a B-double, towing the dolly through to Toowoomba.

From Toowoomba, Bill had the combination set up as a Type 1 (A-double) unit to see how the dolly handled. He drove out to Dalby before getting someone else behind the wheel to assess how the co-driver was driving

with the double road train combination.

During the rough areas along the Toowoomba to Roma route, Bill said the truck handled well and the dolly tracked as good as a B-double combination.

“The dolly was very stable over the rough sections,” Bill says. “There is noticeable reduced sideways movement and I was able to gain a tighter lateral tracking measurement whilst travelling over rough sections. It was also a great trip to get the feel for the Volvo XXL’s room and appreciate its refinements and large space in the bunk area.”

As manufacturers and suppliers are looking for safer designs, and operators are seeking improved productivity with safer outcomes, the converter dolly project and Bill’s trial have

DIESEL WORKSHOP

played an important role in enhancing industry safety and productivity.

The needs of our industry are constantly changing, and the ITC is essential to ensuring operators and businesses stay up to date with best practice.

On the return journey from Darwin, Bill was joined by fellow Volvo Product Trainer Tim Sweeney.

“I’ve got to say, I have personally done this trip many times on two-up express and I can honestly say this is the best truck ever,” Bill says. “I have been doing such a tough job in that environment, but the mattress is fantastic, sway and sideways movement is very limited and cabin noise is quiet. It’s comfort at its best.”

Coming through Mt Isa, Bill and Tim coupled the combination as a BAB-quad, moving the converter dolly further away from the truck. Bill and Tim noted a decrease in the handling stability, increased drag and increased fuel consumption, just by moving the dolly back in the combination.

Bill estimated the increased sideways movement to be approximately 100-150mm sway on the fourth trailer though rough sections of the road.

Since finalising the trial, Bill has provided the ATA’s Industry Technical Council with a detailed report analysing each aspect of the dolly’s performance. Bill’s report noted that compared to normal air suspension dollies, the converter dolly has much better handling in all areas.

“There is absolutely no kickback felt in the cabin from the dolly over rough bumps which will contribute to a better freight ride over the dolly. It’s an amazing design and the best dolly I have ever towed,” Bill says.

MaxiTrans CEO and Managing Director,Dean Jenkins, says despite being an essential part of the trailer combination, the dolly is often neglected and overlooked, however due to the advent of A-Doubles, it has certainly become increasingly important.

“MaxiTrans, in conjunction with the ATA, have been working together on the concept for quite some time and although the rigid drawbar may not suit every combination, the recent feedback from initial trials demonstrate the safety benefits,” Dean says.

“In conjunction with the Volvo XXL demonstration journey from Brisbane to Darwin, the team found the combination to be very much more stable over rough sections, with reduced sideways movement, better towing in a straight line and absolutely better handling in all areas compared to a normal air suspension converter dolly with the normal hinged drawbar for on highway work.

“This is such a great initiative for MaxiTRANS to be involved in, assisting in making a real difference by delivering improved safety and handling for the wider transport community.”

For more information or to get the Industry Technical Council membership kit, head to www.truck.net.au/ITC

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DIESEL WORKSHOP

THE DIESEL STORAGE DEBATE: POLY VERSUS STEEL Now may be the time to run through the pros and cons to help in the diesel storage debate: poly versus steel.

A

round the world, especially throughout Europe, polyethylene tanks dominate steel when it comes to storing 10,000 litres or less of diesel. However, Australia lags behind in its take-up.

This is rapidly changing due to some significant and key advantages a poly tank has over steel, especially within the Australian environment.

Polymaster outline some of the advantages that polyethylene diesel storage has over steel.

DOESN’T RUST Fundamentally, a poly tank doesn’t rust.

Stainless steel has the real potential to deteriorate over time and rust, allowing water to enter the tank. Welds are a weak point and become a significant concern as steel tanks have flat roofs. These flat surfaces tend to hold water with no runoff, further encouraging metal degradation.

A well-designed poly diesel fuel tank is manufactured in Australia for our weather conditions. It’s UV protected with a domed roof and comes with a 20-plus year tank design life. There is no need to repaint a poly tank like you do steel, its coating is for life.

STRONG AND FLEXIBLE There is a myth associated with a poly diesel tank not being as strong as steel.

If you have ever seen a truck or a piece of machinery ‘hit’ a steel tank, you know the consequences. It will either pierce the skin of the tank or crease it, which will attract oxidisation of the steel.

A poly fuel tank, on the other hand, will absorb the ‘hit’ and bounce back into shape.

To make bunded diesel tanks

74

DIESEL September-October 2019

even tougher, Polymaster has a range of ‘drag skids with bollards’ available for high traffic areas and manoeuvring around the site.

EASILY LOADED/UNLOADED Poly tanks are much lighter than steel.

There is no need for heavy equipment to load/unload a poly diesel tank. Empty, they weigh less than 800kg whereas heavy steel can sit at 4,500kg.

When empty, a forklift with extended tines can easily relocate a tank around a site or load it on the back of the truck. If it is on a skid, the job is even simpler.

vulnerable points where oxidation can take hold.

The Polymaster tank is Australian made, designed for our environment and after 25 years of tank manufacturing, the tanks have been proven to last.

CONDENSATION BUILD-UP With a steel tank outside on a hot day, condensation builds up on the inside, causing water to form. Water in diesel is extremely harmful and expensive to your engine. A poly tank eliminates this condensation.

STEEL IS MORE EXPENSIVE MANUFACTURE QUALITY Australia is a pretty harsh environment for equipment. Many importers over the years have become unstuck with how demanding our weather and conditions are and the overwhelming majority of steel tanks are built overseas.

A poly tank is manufactured in ‘onepiece’ whereas a stainless-steel tank has overlapping welds creating potentially

Comparing ‘like-for-like’ a steel tank is approximately 30 per cent more expensive than poly. Setting up bulk diesel on-site for the first time you are likely to save up to 25c per litre compared to the service station bowser. With that type of saving a poly diesel fuel tank will pay for itself within the first six fills of a 10,000litre tank. The accountant will be happy with that decision.

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GOING GLOBAL

S-WAY

Better than Stralis The S-Way is a huge improvement over the Stralis it replaces, reckons Diesel’s European Correspondent, Will Shiers. But could Iveco have done a bit more with the interior?

L

ast November a set of images of a new truck, purporting to be the Stralis replacement, appeared online. It looked fantastic, and I couldn’t wait to publish them in Commercial Motor magazine. But all of a sudden, a legal letter arrived from Turin, informing me that they had been obtained illegally and warning me off.

It said the shots were of a study vehicle “with no official value” anyway. Oh no, I thought. What a pity! My disappointment wasn’t only that I couldn’t publish them,

A new multi-function steering wheel, with 22 switches, puts a lot of controls at the driver’s fingertips.

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DIESEL September-October 2019

but that there was a chance this smartlooking truck wasn’t actually the Stralis replacement after all. And there was me thinking that this could be the vehicle that gives Iveco the image boost it craves and deserves.

Well, I’m pleased to say that the new S-Way is indeed the same vehicle, as I discover at the official launch in Madrid in July. In fact, the only difference I can see is that the truck in the spy shots doesn’t have mirrors, whereas S-Way currently does.

In my humble opinion it looks fantastic.

Iveco’s drivelines have always been hugely respected, and now it has a cab that it can be equally as proud of. But needless to say, not everyone shares my view, and the first pictures of the new truck posted on social media attract the usual barrage of abuse from the keyboard warriors.

“Scania and Volvo’s red-headed stepchild,” comments one, and “it looks like a Scania that was described over the phone,” says another. It seems everyone on social media is a truck designer.

Yes, it does have hints of Scania S-series about it, particularly the grille, but is that such a bad thing? And besides, modern trucks do increasingly look alike, which is the inevitable consequence of designing them to be as sleek and slippery as possible.

THE CABIN The S-Way’s 2.5m wide cab is brand new, sharing just 20 per cent of components with its predecessor.

One of the more notable features are new, longer doors, which have been extended to cover the second step. As well as improving security (and giving somewhere for truck-proud drivers to leave their dirty shoes on the way in), this also enhances the aerodynamics.

The door closes with a reassuring clunk, which isn’t something I’m used to with Iveco. Other external features worth mentioning are new LED headlight clusters, which incorporate running lights, fog lamps and indicators, and one-piece side windows.

The S-Way’s cab is mounted slightly higher than Stralis’s, which has allowed Iveco to increase the size of the external lockers.

A host of aerodynamic improvements has been made, including a new air kit, side skirts, and integrated bumper

GOING GLOBAL

about too, helped by the recessed middle over-screen locker. Storage has been greatly enhanced, and I like the console on the floor in the centre of the dashboard, which features cup-holders and an A4 drawer.

The one-piece lower bunk is wider, and the bed module, which controls the lighting, heating, radio and door locks, is now positioned centrally. Pockets and USB ports are located at both ends, meaning the driver can sleep either way around.

The driver’s seat is new, has a thicker cushion, and 4.5cm more vertical movement.

A new multi-function steering wheel, with 22 switches, puts a lot of controls at the driver’s fingertips. Everything on the left is related to the infotainment, and everything on the right assists with driving. It’s squared off at the base, which should be welcomed by more rotund drivers.

The ignition has been moved higher up, freeing up leg space. Now it consists of a slot for an electronic key and a stopstart button. A mechanical handbrake has been retained.

The dashboard incorporates a 7in touch-screen infotainment system, with DAB radio and phone mirroring using Apple Car Play. It’s Bluetooth-equipped,

deflectors, which optimise airflow.

Together they play a part in reducing the drag coefficient and making the prime mover four per cent more fuel efficient than the Stralis. European hauliers can expect to achieve at least a further one per cent improvement when Iveco introduces a mirrorless camera system, which is surely only a matter of time.

INSIDE STORY While the Stralis is hugely popular in southern Europe, particularly Spain and Italy, it has a bit of an image issue with some UK drivers. Much of this stems from its interiors, which while perfectly competent, aren’t as plush as some rivals.

It doesn’t matter how great a truck is to drive, if the interior lets it down, it will never win over drivers.

With this in mind, what I want to see is plenty of soft-touch high-quality plastics, leather, a splash of coloured stitching here and there, and maybe some wood or brushed aluminium accents. But most

importantly, absolutely no lowest-bidder plastics! This is Iveco’s chance to really raise its game.

When I climb the well-positioned steps (still only three of them despite the higher cab), and take my first look, I’m a little underwhelmed. It all appears to be perfectly good, with better quality materials, and definitely represents a massive improvement over Stralis, but it’s just a bit average.

When trucks are in development there are normally battles between the design department and the accounts department.

And on this occasion, I can’t help but feel that the good guys won the argument with the exterior, and bad guys won with the interior!

But there are still plenty of highlights inside, perhaps the most significant being the additional space. As the cab sits higher, the engine tunnel has been reduced from 205mm to 95mm. The redesigned roof gives 2.15m of standing space, and there’s more room for moving

MAGIRUS SPECIAL EDITION In a nod to its heritage, Iveco unveiled a Magirus special edition S-Way at the launch. The truck features a classic two-tone livery, incorporating the famous M logo.

A lot of time and effort has clearly gone into the cab’s high-spec interior. It features a TV, microwave, high quality leather seats, with tasteful red stitching around the dashboard and steering wheel. It’s proof that Iveco can indeed produce a truly classy interior when it puts its mind to it.

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GOING GLOBAL

The redesigned roof gives 2.15m of standing space, and there’s more room for moving about too, helped by the recessed middle over-screen locker.

has voice recognition and a dedicated truck navigation system. The driver can also use it to access a Driving Style Evaluation tool.

Lighting has been enhanced, with LED dimmable ceiling lamps. They are activated by a rotary controlled switch, located on the upper shelf above the driver.

So, you see, there have been some massive improvements to the interior, it’s just that Iveco hasn’t set a new standard.

Caption

ON THE ROAD S-Way’s driveline is exactly the same as Stralis’s, which is good news as far as I’m concerned. I’m a big fan of Iveco’s Cursor engines, which punch well above their weight. They are paired perfectly with the ZF TraXon (Hi-Tronix) gearbox. Dieselpowered S-Ways get a choice of 9-, 11- or 13-litre engines (330hp to 570hp), while CNG and LNG vehicles (Iveco is actively promoting natural gas as an alternative to diesel in Europe) have either the 9- or

13-litre (270hp to 460hp). Prior to the launch I’d heard rumours of a 16-litre option, but they proved to be false.

I get the chance to drive one at a race track just outside of Madrid, but with just two laps, it’s difficult to give a worthwhile appraisal. What I can tell you though is that Stralis’s superb driving dynamics remain. Visibility through the new one-piece side windows is great, but the new mirrors are rather large, and may prove a hindrance at

THE RANGE The S-Way is the first truck to be launched in the manufacturer’s WAY heavy range. Although initially only available in one size, a narrow cab (2.3m) and different roof heights will appear next year. These will be joined by the X-Way light construction truck, and the T-Way multi-axle Trakker replacement.

The truck is expected to be about five per cent more expensive than Stalis, and Iveco says this will be more than off-set by improved fuel economy.

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the approach to intersections.

I am impressed with how quiet the S-Way is, both in terms of engine noise and the lack of in-cab squeaks and rattles. Rewind 20 years or so and Ivecos made more noise than this at a standstill with their engines turned off!

IN SUMMARY I know beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but in my opinion the S-Way looks fantastic. In fact, I’m struggling to think of a prettier cabover design. Although I am slightly critical of the interior, overall the S-Way represents a massive improvement over its predecessor.

Yes of course Iveco could have thrown millions more Euros at the interior, and potentially given both Mercedes and Scania a run for their money, but it would have resulted in a significant price hike, and is that what Iveco’s customers want?

The operators I spoke to at the launch event were all hugely impressed, one describing it as looking like a Scania, but without a Scania price tag.

I’ll leave the last words to another social media pundit: “I’ve got to say, for an Iveco it looks really good. I’d have one.”

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Theresa S. DeSantis captured Best of Show honours at the 37th Shell Rotella SuperRigs with her 1985 Peterbilt 359 EXHD with a 2016 East trailer.

SHELL ROTELLA SUPERRIGS AMAZES

AGAIN

Diesel’s US Correspondent has been a judge at the top truck show in the US, the Shell SuperRigs. He reports from this year’s event.

T

his year it was off to Albert Lea, Minnesota for the annual Shell SuperRigs, the top truck glamour show in North America. It is more than that, of course, because 12 of the trucks in the show are chosen for the SuperRigs Calendar.

It doesn’t matter how the trucks place in the show, except Best of Show is guaranteed a place. The photographer and art director go out to recce sites that make good photo locations, then they scan the lot, there were 90 trucks there this year, for the other 11 to fill the calendar and give the competitors their month in the limelight.

Meanwhile the judging line was busy for two and a half days as the

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four judges, chosen from the trucking media, scored the competitors for appearance, originality and workmanship, ranking them with Best of Show and two runners up, five places each in Tractor, Tractor-Trailer and Classic, with sub classes for Limited Mileage and Show trucks, Peoples’ Choice and Hardest Working Trucker.

Other categories scored for special prizes were best Interior, Engine, Theme and Chrome. And one evening is given to picking the Best Lights.

And it’s not just the glory. There’s a lot of cash, Shell product and Shell ‘My Miles Matter’ loyalty points to be won.

Best of Show was Theresa DeSantis with her 1985 Peterbilt 359 and 2016 East trailer with the theme The Witches

Inn, featuring a lot of spider webs, spiders, witches, bats and other familiars on the beautiful red and black paint. To top it off, a pair of black boots were atop the hood tilt handle in a reference to the Wizard of Oz. It was a new entry, not seen before at SuperRigs, but it was the star of the show.

I have been a judge for some time and cannot remember when a womanowned and driven truck has picked up Best of Show. For her efforts, DeSantis picked up $10,000 for top place award plus she pulled in best theme and best engine.

HARD-LUCK STORY While DeSantis truck was judged the best working truck, the most attractive

GOING GLOBAL

with outstanding attention to detail was Jake Lindamood’s beautiful black and blue show Peterbilt. But it didn’t score a point.

On the way to this year’s SuperRigs in Albert Lea, Minnesota., Lindamood stopped at a truckstop for a meal and while he was inside, some envious and demented driver pulled the fifth-wheel pin. Lindamood set out and the trailer slid off the fifth wheel and dropped onto the ground, luckily not destroying the landing gear but taking out the rear frame, light bar and one of the rear fenders.

What sort of lunatic does that? It is stupid and incredibly dangerous, because the trailer could have stayed on the fifth wheel onto a freeway, then separated and caused a horrendous accident.

Lindamood continued to the show, but the contest judges had to rule the truck out of the Show Truck category. After all, a show truck has to be perfect to show and be judged.

It was a bitter disappointment not just to Lindamood, but to many of the other contestants, because the truck is such a jewel. And despite having the most incredible chromed-up engine, under the rules it couldn’t even be judged for that or lights at night.

Bad luck Jake. Bring it back next year and take away the gold. And to the person who pulled the pin, rot in hell.

Bad luck story was Jake Lindamood whose truck was vandalised. Engine shows the quality of work on his show truck.

GOOD-LUCK STORY David Gramberg lost a leg several years ago in a motorcycle accident but he was there at 2019 SuperRigs polishing on his truck. A late arrival, he had not much time to make the judging line, especially as he’s also lost the use of his right arm. So in true SuperRigs spirit, his competitors helped clean and polish the truck to a third place in the prime mover division and the Most Hard Working Trucker award.

That’s a stellar example of the camaraderie of SuperRigs. In the 30 years I have been a judge I have seen many such selfless examples of competitors helping others to show the best they can.

And SuperRigs is all about showing the best you can. These are the most spectacular supertrucks on the highway.

They are working trucks and they reflect a part of the industry that is giving its best to make America great.

All power to them.

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PROOF OF DELIVERY

GETTING EVERY DAY

Chinese trucks have been knocking on the door of the Australian truck market for quite a few years now and the point at which a Chinese truck will be accepted here is getting closer everyday. POD has a close look at the latest contender, the Foton Aumark S.

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DIESEL September-October 2019

PROOF OF DELIVERY

CLOSER I

f there is one thing which Chinese truck makers are good at in the Australian market, it is in providing us with a false dawn. Over the last 10 years there have been a series of Chinese truck manufacturers appearing on the market and hoping to look like a serious contender in light duty and a potential contender in medium duty.

So far, all of the attempts to break into this market, which is extremely competitive and dominated by three highly professional Japanese truck manufacturers Isuzu, Hino and Fuso, have not been successful. JAC Trucks came and went. Likewise, JMC trucks appeared for a short time then disappeared in a short few months.

Foton is now pushing its product into the

Australian truck market in its third attempt.

The brand first appeared here over 10 years ago, imported by the company which was then also importing Western Star, MAN and Dennis Eagle. The brand reappeared a few years later under the Ateco umbrella, bringing in both small trucks and utes, but again, this was relatively short lived.

With the latest entry into the market

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by Foton, it’s clearly a serious attempt by a major Chinese brand to enter into the Australian truck market and develop a real presence. This is a factory-backed operation in Australia with key personnel coming here from China and running the organisation.

Foton appear to have quite an ambitious program. Starting with the 4.5 to 7.5 tonne GVM light duty Aumark S and then following this up later this year with a medium duty truck running at 12 tonnes GVM. This latest entry to the market also has the advantage of being an up-to-date truck and not something which looks like it might have been available from a Japanese manufacturer 15 or 20 years ago.

The latest models have been specified to get a lot closer to their more established Japanese competitors.

Where these trucks sit in the current market is a subject for some discussion.

These are brand-new trucks, fully compliant with the latest exhaust emission regulations and fitted with an array of electronic aids,

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An up-to-date truck and not something which looks like it might have been available from a Japanese manufacturer 15 or 20 years ago.

but they are likely to be sold at a price much lower than would be expected for a similar specification from a Japanese manufacture.

This suggests that instead of competing head-to-head with a new Japanese truck, these trucks will be competing against

good quality secondhand Japanese trucks which are only a couple of years old. In this case, the bundle, which includes a four year warranty and four year free scheduled servicing will be attractive to quite a few potential buyers in this segment of the market.

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There are none of the looseness or rattles which can often effect poorly finished Chinese product when it arrives here.

THE LOOKS DEPARTMENT The Foton Aumark S fares quite well in the looks department with a design which is clearly in line with the latest truck aesthetic. The grille at the front gives away the strong relationship that Foton has with the Daimler Truck organisation with its close resemblance to the style used on the front of the latest heavy duty MercedesBenz in Australia. By the way, this cabin is fully ECE R29 crash test complaint.

Underneath is the Cummins 3.8 L ISF engine which is rated at 152hp (112kW) at 2600rpm and puts out 500Nm of torque between 1200 and 2000rpm.

The transmission is a six speed ZF manual gearbox.

The truck is fitted with electronic stability control, ABS, ASR and it also has hill start assist and uses disc brakes allround. There is also a reversing camera, cruise control, electric mirrors and a (not very effective) lane departure warning system in the base specification.

THE DRIVING DEPARTMENT When an all-new truck appears on the market with little pedigree and is largely unknown to Australians, there can be some trepidation over whether this truck is up to the mark. For any brand, first impressions are always important and this does have the right look and feel as you approach it, open the door, climb in, put the key in the ignition and start it up.

There is none of the looseness or rattles

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which can often affect poorly finished Chinese product when it arrives here. This truck sounds good and feels tight, there is no play in the steering and the gearbox linkage appears precise. There is also an impressive turning circle enabling the truck to U-turn in many road situations.

This is a good start for any truck wanting to make an impression here in Australia.

All round visibility in the truck is excellent with the driver position giving them good views all around. The mirrors are also well placed and effective. Their fitting to the outside of the doors is also substantial with a long bar running along the top of the door to hold the mirrors in place. The mirrors can be controlled from inside the cabin and this proves to work quite well.

A key factor in reassuring the skeptical driver of a new brand is how well the truck brakes. There is no doubting the effectiveness of the braking system in bringing the truck to a halt. However, this is a fully air brake system, something which is unusual in a light duty truck. We are used to hydraulic brake control in this kind of truck.

Using air brakes means it is more difficult to apply the brakes gradually and it does need a little bit of practice for the driver to get used to applying the brakes gently in a stop and go situation.

Because this is an air brake system the handbrake control is similar to that found in heavy duty trucks. This is not a problem to those used to bigger trucks but it does work in a very different way to the typical handbrake in this size of truck.

The engine power from the 3.76 litre Cummins is reliable, torquey and smooth.

The six speed ZF gears goes up and down through the years with ease. First gear is quite low and in many situations, it is possible to take off in second gear. The ratios appear to be well spaced so that in top gear at 100km/h, the engine is running at around 2250 rpm.

This is a six-speed gearbox with the default position being dead centre between three and four. The driver has to push the lever to the left to get first and second then to the right to get fifth and sixth. This might take a little bit of time to get used to, but is not too complicated.

Reverse is right over to the left and push backwards.

After driving for a while, it becomes clear that it is a good idea, with a loaded

truck on a climb to keep the engine revs above 1500rpm. Below that the engine does not lug very well, even though, officially, maximum torque is available from 1200 to 2200rpm. Having said that, the torque which is available from 1500 up past 2000rpm, is very effective torque and the truck pulls well on a grade.

On a downward grade the engine brake is very effective. Choosing third gear on a very steep downhill section and selecting the engine brake, saw this driver only have to apply a small amount of braking on the steeper sections.

DRIVER’S COMFORT The driver seat is firm but comfortable and there are a number of buttons on the steering wheel for cruise control, the entertainment system and the telephone via bluetooth. It is possible to connect the phone to the truck via bluetooth, an auxiliary socket or a USB. The USB socket is hidden behind something which looks like a button and this cover looks like it could be a little frail.

In terms of storage, the design is quite well served. The central seat folds down and on this is a document holder, two inadequate drinks holders and another small compartment. However, between this seat and the drivers’ seat, behind the gear stick, there is more storage and good drinks holders in a good position.

The display directly in front of the driver is actually quite well-designed with a very clear and crisp LCD screen in the middle telling the driver speed, distance etc. This is joined by a speedometer and tachometer on either side and an air gauge and fuel gauge above. The adblue gauge is integrated with the fuel gauge and this is lit up in a blue colour to differentiate it from the diesel level in the tank.

In terms of noise levels, this truck works quite well. It is relatively quiet while the engine note is quite strong, but this is a Cummins is after all.

Overall, the truck tested here appears to be very well finished. This is a lot better, in terms of overall manufacturers finish, than any other Chinese truck which has been tested on the roads of Australia. It looks like the Foton organisation in China really want to have a genuine go at a long term presence in our market. On the strength of the product on offer and the overall packages being sold, it must be worth a look.

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