Global Trailer July 2019

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www.globaltrailermag.com ISSN 1839-5201

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INNOVATION

BUSINESS

NEWS

Kässbohrer Factory Tour Transport Logistic 2019 Review Kögel’s Latest Developments Tire2Oil Transforms Sustainability

Vawdrey is Future Driven Knorr-Bremse on Road Safety Market Report: France SAF-Holland CEO Interview

Major Supply Chain Announcements Trailer Builder and OEM News Social Media Trends Change Last Mile Industry Events and Technology Updates

Visualization coming into Reality Modular and Digital design

CIMC Vehicle’s modular and digital design beyond the existing design language allows customers to be unprecedentedly autonomous. Customers can be free to choose the configuration and appearance according to their needs and preferences.

www.cimcvehiclesgroup.com

COVER STORY FUTURE DRIVEN

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Vawdrey is the largest independent trailer builder in Australia. With yearon-year sales trending upwards, the company is committed more than ever to delivering world-class manufacturing for the global logistics operators that depend on safer and more efficient road transport equipment.

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“ORDERS ARE OFTEN SMALLER IN SIZE BECAUSE CUSTOMISATION IS IMPORTANT TO AUSTRALIANS …

JUST ABOUT EVERY TRAILER ORDER IS UNIQUE, AND WE WORK WITH MANY LEADING FLEETS IN THE ASIA PACIFIC REGION TO ENSURE THAT THE TRAILING EQUIPMENT THEY ORDER IS BUILT TO SPECIFICATION.” Paul Vawdrey

IN THIS ISSUE

Vawdrey Australia

BUSINESS 26 MARKET REPORT

How has the yellow jacket protest movement disrupted the trailer building and broader commercial road transport industry in France?

30 SHOW REVIEW

There was a notable surge in international interest at this year’s Transport Logistic trade fair held in Munich, Germany, and it’s not difficult to see why.

40 LAST MILE

The implementation of social media in modern supply chains has the potential to transform business practices.

44 FACTORY TOUR

Global Trailer inspects Kässbohrer’s mega factories in Ulm, Germany.

50 SPECIAL REPORT

Newly appointed SAF-Holland CEO, Alexander Geis, shares his career trajectory and professional vision.

56 CIRCULAR ECONOMIES

The production process of turning tyres into useable oil and gas could revolutionise sustainability practices for the commercial road transport industry worldwide.

FEATURES 39 KOGEL

Since 1934, Kögel has manufactured more than 550,000 trailers. At Transport Logistic 2019, the trailer builder unveiled its latest manufacturing developments and telematics technologies.

REGULARS

60 EVENTS

04 EDITOR’S NOTE

62 MEGATRENDS

06 NEWS

59 PREVIEW

49 KNORR-BREMSE

Knorr-Bremse, one of Germany’s most successful industrial companies, specialises in braking and other commercial vehicle systems. Its latest partnership is set to transform road safety throughout Europe.

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EDITOR’S NOTE

PUBLISHER

John Murphy john.murphy@primecreative.com.au

MANAGING EDITOR

Luke Applebee luke.applebee@primecreative.com.au

DESIGN PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Michelle Weston michelle.weston@primecreative.com.au

DIGITAL LEDGERS TO MAKE THE WORLD GO ROUND

ART DIRECTOR Blake Storey

DESIGN Kerry Pert, Madeline McCarty

INTERNATIONAL SALES

WHAT IF THE WORLD IS A SUPPLY chain and data standards ran civilisations? This is what the President of the Blockchain in Transport Alliance (BiTA) is working on.

As per the organisation’s prime directive, Duffy is committed to representing the most innovative companies operating within the supply chain industry. In particular, he aims to enable valuable commercial outcomes for BiTA members through the development and publication of opensource and royalty-free data standards.

In what he describes as an audacious task, BiTA is set on defining data standards to govern technology that enables the flow of goods and services that power the world’s economy.

A study on blockchain’s potential to facilitate a more efficient and seamless global trade shows that blockchain can help expedite customs procedures, reduce expenses and boost both global trade volumes and economies.

Co-author of Can Blockchain Technology Facilitate International Trade? and trade expert Christine McDaniel says blockchain can facilitate international trade across three areas: trade finance, customs and the provenance of goods.

She explained that even if a company is ready to use blockchain – technology that renders paperwork in freight movement obsolete – it still requires

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relevant government agencies to have the technical infrastructure and the willingness to adapt.

The widespread adoption of blockchain is only possible once the technological infrastructure is built, according to McDaniel.

Intermodal operators – all parties involved in containerised freight – could potentially benefit from the adoption of blockchain. If, for example, every container had a blockchain code on it that could be scanned and read into the application of the relevant entity, that would cut time spent confirming shipper identities and cargo content.

Similarly, delays in cargo movement can lead to costly detentions and even corrupted data – issues that could be rectified with the uptake of blockchain.

The hardest part of implementing blockchain is getting it started. For McDaniel, the desire to adapt is there but it needs government to build a technological infrastructure.

Meanwhile, Duffy is ‘setting the stage’ by redefining interoperability across supply chain and transportation technologies to unlock ‘tremendous’ value globally.

Ashley Blachford ashley.blachford@primecreative.com.au

CLIENT SUCCESS MANAGER

Justine Nardone justine.nardone@primecreative.com.au

CONTRIBUTORS Tim de Jong

HEAD OFFICE

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ARTICLES

All articles submitted for publication become the property of the publisher. The Editor reserves the right to adjust any article to conform with the magazine format.

COPYRIGHT

Global Trailer is owned by Prime Creative Media and published by John Murphy. All material in Global Trailer is copyright and no part may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means (graphic, electronic or mechanical including information and retrieval systems) without written permission of the publisher. The Editor welcomes contributions but reserves the right to accept or reject any material. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of information, Prime Creative Media will not accept responsibility for errors or omissions or for any consequences arising from reliance on information published.

The opinions expressed in Global Trailer are not necessarily the opinions of, or endorsed by the publisher unless otherwise stated.

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“On roads across the globe: JOST keeps us rolling!”

Trusting the market leader.

Truck and trailer manufacturers around the globe trust in JOST’s comprehensive range of components.

Customer-orientated solutions, innovative products and a worldwide supply of spare parts make JOST the number 1. www.jost-world.com

NEWS INTERNATIONAL ASIA CAMBODIA Global supply chain business, CEVA Logistics, is expanding its presence in the emerging southeast Asia markets with the opening of an office in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

CEVA has been operational in Cambodia for six years through a network partner, providing freight management services to a number of multinational and local customers.

The new facility is reported to offer a full range of global services in multimodal, land transport, sea-air and EPZ / CFS facilities. CEVA is now assuming responsibility for all its network operations and financial services, billings and intercompany settlements with improved control over business as well as the expansion of product propositions.

“Cambodia is a country with vast opportunities for growth,” said CEVA Logistics Managing Director – South East Asia Cluster, Russell Pang.

“And with our longstanding regional expertise and newly opened office, CEVA is well positioned to provide robust logistics solutions that will facilitate rapid business development for our clients and contribute to the development of the logistics sector in the country.”

CEVA’s operations in the emerging Southeast Asia markets span Cambodia, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Laos. These rapidly emerging economies present considerable growth potential, according to CEVA. Cambodia, for instance, is growing at a pace of 7.1 per cent in 2017 according to the World Bank. This accelerated growth provides significant development opportunities in the transport and logistics sector.

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CHINA Equipment specialist, SAF-Holland, has announced leadership changes, following the resignation of President China and member of the Group Management Board, Guoxin Mao. Guoxin Mao resigned from his office with immediate effect on 31 May 2019. At the same time, Alexander Geis, CEO of SAF-Holland, appointed Jürgen Knott as President China effective from 1 June 2019.

In this capacity, Knott will report directly to Geis.

Knott started his professional career at Robert Bosch in 1989, and since 1998 has held managerial positions with this company and Knorr-Bremse.

In his most recent position, Knott served as General Manager Sales and Marketing - China and Japan and Managing Director Germany at the US company, Meritor, one of the world’s leading suppliers of axles, pneumatic braking systems and vehicle components for commercial vehicles, buses and construction machinery.

Knott studied at the University of Applied Sciences in Esslingen, Germany and is a certified engineer in mechanical/automotive engineering, specialised in vehicle construction.

“Jürgen Knott brings us extensive management expertise from the areas of operations, product development and sales of axles, brake systems and chassis components for commercial vehicles, along with longstanding experience in intercultural leadership, especially in China as well as Asia,” said Geis.

“With Jürgen Knott as Head of the Chinese management team we are now very well positioned locally to successfully opening up the growth potential for truck and trailer components in China.”

Alibaba CEO, Daniel Zhang.

CHINA China-based e-commerce and technology conglomerate, Alibaba Group, is reported to be considering raising close to €17.9 billion through a secondary listing in Hong Kong, following its 2014 record float of €22.3 billion in New York.

The deal, according to Reuters, would give Alibaba a reserve of funds to continue investing in technology.

Alibaba Group is working with financial advisers on the offering and is aiming to file an application confidentially in Hong Kong as early as Q3 2019, three people told Reuters on condition of anonymity as the plans are not public yet.

They cautioned that many details were not clear, including the planned size.

A spokesman from Alibaba declined to comment, according to Reuters.

Earlier this month, Alibaba Group announced its financial results for the quarter and fiscal year ended 31 March 2019.

“More and more, Alibaba is becoming synonymous with everyday consumption in China, growing

NEWS

ASIA our base to 654 million annual active consumers and extending our penetration in less-developed cities,” said Alibaba Group CEO, Daniel Zhang.

“Our cloud and data technology and tremendous traction in New Retail have enabled us to continuously transform the way businesses operate in China and other emerging markets, which will contribute to our long-term growth,” he said.

Alibaba Group Chief Financial Officer, Maggie Wu, said the conglomerate delivered a strong quarter and excellent year, with revenue growth of 51 per cent [€12.4 million] as well as robust user growth and engagement across its ecosystem.

“Excluding the effects of consolidating acquired businesses, revenue would have increased by 39 per cent yearover-year,” she said. “Over the years, our steady profit growth and cash flow have enabled us to strengthen our core business, invest in new businesses and create unique value for our customers. These investments have expanded our total addressable market and positioned us well for long-term growth. Looking ahead to fiscal 2020, we expect revenue to be over RMB500 billion [€64.7 billion], reflecting our confidence and positive momentum going forward.”

CHINA Revenue climbed by 4.1 per cent to €15.4 billion, with operating profit up 28 per cent to €1.2 billion driven by the completion of a Supply Chain agreement in China, according to Q1 2019 financial results announced by Deutsche Post DHL Group.

The logistics company confirmed that earnings contributions from DHL divisions were ‘encouraging’, while

the surge in earnings was driven by non-recurring income from completing a Supply Chain partnership with SF Holding in China initiated at the end of 2018.

Previously announced restructuring costs at Supply Chain and in the new eCommerce Solutions division reportedly slowed earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) growth.

“The first quarter played out as we expected,” said Deutsche Post DHL Group CEO, Frank Appel.

“We achieved growth in all five divisions,” he said.

“This shows that we are very well positioned in attractive markets and that our fundamental growth drivers are intact.

“E-commerce continues to boom all over the world and although some momentum has been lost, global trade is still on the rise, just as we expected for 2019. We are therefore on track towards our target of generating more than EUR 5 billion in EBIT in the coming year.”

The Supply Chain division increased revenue by 4.6 per cent to €3.3 billion in the first quarter. New business also continued to perform very well, according to DHL. The division concluded additional contracts with an annualised total volume of €180 million in the first quarter. Operating profit surged to €486 million (2018: €55 million) due to non-recurring income. As a result of concluding the Supply Chain agreement entered into with SF Holding in China at the end of 2018, the division recorded a one-time positive EBIT effect of €426 million.

In addition, a portion of the funds generated from the SF transaction were reinvested into restructuring the Supply Chain business, mainly in the UK. Adjusted for one-off

effects Supply Chain recorded an EBIT increase of 12.4 per cent.

DUBAI Dubai-based logistics company, Aramex, has reported revenue growth of four per cent to 1.234 million AED (€300,693) compared with 1.190 million AED (€289,967) in Q1 2018.

Revenues would have reportedly grown by eight per cent excluding the impact from currency fluctuations, mainly in the Libyan Dinar, South African Rand and Australian Dollar; and the company’s strategic restructuring of its domestic operations in India.

Net Profit for the quarter rose by four per cent to reach 108 million AED (€26.3 million), compared to 103 million AED (€25 million) in Q1 2018.

Net profit was negatively impacted by the amount of 10.6 million AED (€2.5 million) due to the implementation of IFRS16 and currency fluctuations.

However, Aramex’s strategic restructuring of domestic operations in India delivered a positive contribution of 6.7 million AED (€1.6 million) to net income.

“We continue to benefit from the healthy growth in global e-commerce volumes; however, we have started witnessing pressure on International Express margins due to lower and more competitive pricing,” said Aramex CEO, Bashar Obeid.

“Our key priorities for this year are to continue to invest in upgrading our service level across all our core markets, while progressing aggressively in executing our digital transformation roadmap. This will help us boost operational efficiencies to cater for rapidly changing e-commerce business requirements, including faster shipping and delivery solutions at lower costs.

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ASIA

Aramex was founded in 1982 and is the first Arab-based company to be listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange.

“Our Integrated Logistics and Supply Chain Management business had a great quarter, thanks to our efforts to mobilise assets and resources to capitalize on the increase in demand for those services, especially from regional retailers aiming to boost their online sales,” he said.

Iyad Kamal, Chief Operating Officer at Aramex, added: “In Q1 2019, we continued to improve operating efficiencies and accelerated our digital transformation efforts in order to enhance service levels, especially in the last-mile delivery. These initiatives will help us win in the long-term, as we will be able to handle more capacity more efficiently and at a lower cost.

“Another trend that positively impacted our business this quarter was the entrance of major Middle East retailers into the online sales space as part of an omni-channel approach, which is why we are investing in servicing this promising market. We also launched our new, partially automated fulfilment centre at Dubai Logistics City, which has improved our logistics and supply chain management solutions and offering.

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“Our operating expenses have increased by eight per cent in Q1 2019 following the expansion of our infrastructure in key markets like Saudi Arabia. Today, we have more than 150 pick-up points across Saudi Arabia with aggressive plans to further expand our presence, in an effort to make it as convenient as possible for customers to pick up their packages and ship with Aramex,” he said.

Aramex’s cross-border International Express business grew by seven per cent to 533 million AED (€129.8 million). This performance is mainly attributed to the continuous growth in cross-border e-commerce, which registered double-digit growth across most of Aramex’s markets, mainly Turkey, Asia and North America.

Shipment volumes surged by 22 per cent in Q1 2019, yet lower margins prevailed.

The Domestic Express business dropped by three per cent to 257 million AED (€62.6 million) due in large part to the strategic restructuring in India and fluctuations in foreign currency, mainly in the South African Rand and Australian Dollar. Excluding

those factors, the business would have grown by seven per cent. The e-commerce Domestic Express business performed very well in GCC markets, and registered doubledigit growth especially in Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Freight Forwarding growth stabilised at one per cent to 287 million AED (€69.9 million), with Oil & Gas segment experiencing strong doubledigit growth.

The Integrated Logistics & Supply Chain Solutions business experienced strong growth of 23 per cent to 85 million AED (€20.7 million), owed in large part to Aramex’s efforts to service the major regional retailers’ strong appetite to tap into omnichannel sales model, which led to strong demand for warehousing, sorting, and last mile delivery solutions.

“We continue to maintain a positive outlook for the remainder of the year,” said Obeid.

“However, the fast-changing landscape means that we will have to grow market share by being more competitive with our pricing, more efficient with our offerings and excelling at the quality of our service. We will carry on investing in automation and other technologies as part of our digital transformation roadmap to improve our operations and enhance the overall customer experience.

“Despite lower margins, we remain confident about our Freight Forwarding business, driven by our internal restructuring efforts, the introduction of new dedicated teams and our aggressive push into new verticals. We are also optimistic about the opportunity to expand our logistics and supply chain solutions in the region,” he said.

NEWS

EUROPE CZECH REPUBLIC A new package freight and supply chain facility in Prague is coming soon as businesses in the Czech Republic increasingly take advantage of export opportunities, according to United Parcel Service (UPS).

The package sorting and delivery centre in Tuchoměřice, near Vaclav Airport, will reportedly be located in a key economic region of the Czech Republic where companies are turning to exports to grow their business.

“Prague and Středočeský kraj are the Czech Republic’s leading export regions, with companies active in the industrial manufacturing, retail and high-tech sectors,” said UPS Czech Republic Country Manager, Marcin Krzak.

“Many of these are small businesses, and this new facility will allow us to more efficiently connect our customers to export opportunities through UPS’s smart global logistics network.

“UPS has been serving Czech businesses for over 25 years, and last quarter we grew our export volume in the Czech Republic by more than five per cent thanks to increasing crossborder business.”

The Prague centre, scheduled to open Q1 2020, will have an operating area of nearly 9,000 square metres and a sorting capacity of 5,000 packages per hour.

The new facility will also bring package, freight and supply chain services as well as the headquarters of UPS Czech Republic, Slovakia and Ukraine under one roof.

UPS has operated in Europe since 1976 when it established domestic operations in Germany. UPS has since developed a comprehensive European service portfolio; it first

entered the Czech market in 1992 through service partner, Czech Parcel Service, which UPS acquired in 1999.

EU Technology company, WABCO, is launching a trailer monitoring and remote diagnostics solution, TXTRAILER PULSE, in June 2019.

WABCO’s TX-TRAILERPULSE is a trailer-focused Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity solution which combines real-time track and trace functionality with additional remote trailer health and diagnostic information. The solution is the first of its kind, combining both trailer tracking and advanced remote diagnostic in one solution at a price level which allows fleet-wide deployment across all trailer types.

Complementing WABCO’s comprehensive fleet management solutions, the system can be easily installed as an OEM fitment or as a retrofit option for fleets. The solution enables fleet operators, as well as trailer leasing and rental companies, to better track, maintain and manage assets.

“An incredible 70 per cent of today’s operational trailers in Europe are not equipped with any form of connectivity solution,” said WABCO Vice President and Fleet Solutions Global Business Leader, Philippe Colpron.

“TX-TRAILERPULSE offers a costeffective way to optimally track and manage trailers and is agnostic to the trailer type, enabling fleets with mixed cargo to apply the technology.

“We are achieving this by building on the strength of IoT and the power of cloud connectivity, enabling our customers to better optimize vehicle maintenance schedules and increase fleet operational productivity,” he said.

Directly connected to the trailer electronic braking system (TEBS), the solution captures and processes TEBS and trailer diagnostics data via the web-based TX-TRAILERFIT portal, which assesses the technical health of the trailer and can provide, for example, root cause indication and repair hints. Additionally, users can monitor the TEBS’ use over a trailer’s lifetime and check critical TEBS events. Health and diagnostics insights can be shared easily and securely with workshops and service partners building a digitally connected repair and maintenance chain, creating a direct positive impact on the total uptime of fleet vehicles.

Vehicles already equipped with WABCO’s TX-SKY fleet management solution can integrate TX-TRAILERPULSE into their existing back-office platform, enabled by advanced IoT and cloud computing technologies.

TX-TRAILERPULSE enables operators to see, manage and control their vehicles and operations from a central point.

WABCO has already secured its first customer, ahead of the product’s commercial launch in June. French transport company Dom’Azur, which specialises in heavy duty transport with a focus on the transportation of exceptional loads, will equip its fleet with WABCO’s new digital system.

“There is currently no comparable solution on the market,” said Dom’Azur CEO, Bertrand Vivier.

“We expect the rich functionalities of TX-TRAILERPULSE to optimise the use of our trailers and also our trailer maintenance flow.

This will help us to maximise our fleet’s uptime significantly,” he said.

“As the industry evolves, we are W W W. G LO B A LT R A I L E R M AG . C O M / G L O B A L T R A I L E R / 9

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NEWS

EUROPE working to stay ahead of change – supporting our customers to transition, benefit from, and be successful in an ever-evolving transportation world,” said Colpron.

“TX-TRAILERPULSE is a direct response to the current market demand for such advanced, costefficient, digital fleet management systems.

“This proves once more that WABCO occupies a unique position as a reliable, future-focused partner to the commercial road transportation ecosystem, enabling fleets to be leaner, greener and safer in their daily operations,” he said.

Colpron presented the solution to the cloud computing community at the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Benelux Summit in Amsterdam on 17 April 2019. The AWS Summits brings together technologists, leaders and experts from across industries to showcase flexible, reliable and scalable solutions that utilise cloud computing technology.

FRANCE French tyre manufacturer, Michelin, has agreed to acquire European telematics provider, Masternaut.

This move is, according to Michelin, in line with the Group’s development strategy in the services and solutions business, leveraging the experience it has gained following the Sascar and NexTraq acquisitions in the US. Masternaut operates mainly in France and the UK; it provides a technical platform to offer on-board telematics solutions to optimise vehicle fleet management and monitoring; and manages over 220,000 mostly light utility vehicles under contract.

“Michelin is consolidating its expertise in telematics, enabling us to optimise

customer mobility and respond to the needs of a changing market,” said Michelin General Managing Partner, Florent Menegaux.

“Masternaut represents a further step in the expansion of our services and solutions business, especially in Europe and for light vehicle fleets,” he said.

FRANCE Equipment specialist, SAF-Holland, and French manufacturing company, LOHR Industrie, have agreed to partner on electric trailer axles.

Jointly developed electric trailer axle, AXEAL (ACLe Elecronic Assist Lohr) works independently from the prime mover’s main drive and regenerates energy during acceleration and braking, and is reportedly 15 per cent more fuel efficient.

The central mechanical system of the e-axle includes a differential, a reduction gear and a power take-off unit that can be coupled when altered to drive a peripheral system such as a hydraulic pump. The electric motor, when not in use, can be disconnected from the transmission

to drive peripheral systems.

SAF-Holland’s contribution to the overall system will be the SAF TRAKe. The use of this trailer axle allows vehicle transporters to load and unload in urban areas at night. As a result, the truck and trailer combination overall must meet all legal requirements for noise and exhaust emissions.

The first semi-trailers for the transport of passenger cars were equipped with this new application in the first quarter of 2019 for test purposes.

In the weeks to follow, the first LOHR customer vehicles equipped with AXEAL will be delivered to US company, Virginia Transport, and South African company, KDG Logistics. The findings gathered during actual operation will be directly incorporated into further development. LOHR will also be adding AXEAL to its product portfolio for vehicle transporters starting in the second half of 2019.

“This cooperation is an excellent example of a targeted exchange of know-how while at the same time representing a milestone in the use of our TRAKe electric trailer axle in

LOHR and SAF-Holland partner on e-axles.

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EUROPE series,” said SAF-Holland CEO, Alexander Geis.

“We are simultaneously committed to helping reduce the total cost of ownership and helping our customers comply with ever more stringent noise and emissions restrictions,” he said.

The cooperation is initially set up for 10 years and includes an extension clause. The worldwide distribution rights of the AXEAL system are held

by SAF-Holland.

“SAF-Holland is the ideal partner for the global marketing of this system due to its international presence and expertise in the development of electromobility solutions,” said LOHR Industrie CEO, Christian Fity.

LOHR is a private French group established in Alsace near Strasbourg. For more than 50 years it has been a global specialist in the design, manufacture and marketing of goods transport systems.

GERMANY Equipment specialist, JOST, has confirmed 2018 was its best year ever, achieving organic growth of around 10 per cent and record sales of €755 million, according to a recently released annual report.

JOST CEO, Lars Brorsen, was very pleased with the company’s performance in the 2018 fiscal year.

“It took a lot of energy and determination to achieve this result,” he said. “All regions contributed – Europe performed well, as did Asia, despite experiencing a temporary market decline in 2018. In North America, we even managed an impressive 28 per cent organic growth compared with 2017 and gained additional market share.”

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Christian Terlinde, added that JOST achieved its highest profit of all time amounting to €53 million and was able to further reduce leverage from 1.2x to 0.85x.

“We signed a new refinancing agreement that gives us more flexibility for future acquisitions,” he said. “We want our shareholders to benefit from this success and will therefore propose to the Annual General Meeting that the dividend be increased from €0.50 to €1.10 per share.”

Dr Ralf Eichler, JOST Chief Operating Officer, said there were many challenges to overcome including rising metal prices, scarcities in the supply chain, higher freight costs and unexpected high growth in sales, particularly in the US. “If you want to respond quickly and flexibly to changes in the market, you have to be able to adapt your production process at short notice,” he said. “Which, of course, is exactly what our team did. In 2018, we achieved an adjusted [earnings before interest and taxes – EBIT] margin of 10.7 per cent, very close to the previous year’s level of 10.9 per cent.”

Looking to the future, JOST Chief Sales Officer, Joachim Dürr, is confident that the Management Board remains committed to outperforming all relevant markets in all segments by building on its good global position.

“We also intend to increase the share of higher-value products in our total sales – for example couplings with sensors and automatic lubrication systems.

“In the field of manoeuvring systems, we see a strong trend towards steered axles, which will help our TRIDEC products gain new business in 2019.

“In Ebro, our portfolio has a strong brand for hydraulic cylinders, from which we can generate additional growth. It is important that we continue to offer customers added value. This will enable us to consolidate our market position and acquire additional market share,” he said.

Following commercial vehicle trends, specifically autonomous driving, Dürr said safe communication between the truck and trailer is essential. He added that JOST is working closely with OEMs and fleets to define new interfaces.

JOST’s Management Board also commented on sustainability and clarified its environmental responsibility in light of mandates to reduce commercial vehicle emissions.

Brorsen said JOST aims to reduce the amount of grease used in vehicles with its new biodegradable, highperformance lubricant among other initiatives.

Ultimately, JOST is focused on quality, reliability and flexibility to ensure longterm success, according to Brorsen.

Eichler agreed that this ethos applies to every part of the company and are key factors that influence future performance.

“We have learned a great deal in recent years,” he said. “Our current workforce and expertise with robust processes puts us in a strong position. In a volatile industry like ours, willingness to change is essential – because standing still means going backwards.”

GERMANY Vehicle leasing company, PEMA, was presented its 15,555th semitrailer from Schmitz Cargobull at the Transport Logistic trade show

NEWS

EUROPE in Munich, Germany.

Schmitz Cargobull Sales Director, Boris Billich, and Head of International Key Accounts, Jörg Irsfeld, formally presented the latest trailer to PEMA Managing Director, Peter Ström.

“Along with business success, our personal contacts have also grown and deepened over the years,” said Ström.

“This foundation of trust has proven invaluable for both parties,” he said.

Billich said that15,555 trailers for PEMA symbolise a positive partnership and reflects the quality of Schmitz Cargobull’s products and services.

“We are proud of the success that we have achieved together over the years and view the future with healthy optimism,” he said.

PEMA is reported to regularly acquire trailers Schmitz Cargobull, with orders ranging from state-of-the-art refrigerated semi-trailers to universal curtainsiders and tipper trailers for agricultural harvesting.

PEMA is said to be reliant on the experience and quality of Schmitz Cargobull. In addition to its modern product portfolio, the company also offers a comprehensive service network with 1,700 workshops throughout Europe together with optimum spare parts supply.

“In times of high cost pressure, fleet owners need to have the total cost of ownership (TCO) under control,” said Irsfeld. “This transparency benefits both the customer as well as the lessor.”

PEMA, which was founded 1976, is considered by Schmitz Cargobull to be a pioneer in the commercial vehicle leasing sector and currently employs around 450 people. The

fleet encompasses more than 18,000 units and the company’s own service network includes more than 25 sites in nine European countries. The modern PEMA fleet offers a diverse range of transport solutions capable of handling the needs of companies in the logistics sector.

GERMANY German trailer builder, Krone, received the Green Truck Trailer Innovation Award last month for Smart Capacity Management.

The jury reportedly praised the sustainable increase in transport efficiency made possible by the use of Krone’s Smart Capacity Management, which is an information exchange platform connected to freight exchange where digital data is received from the sender and forwarded to the shipper and consignee (and vice versa).

Krone Managing Director Sales & Marketing, Dr Frank Albers, accepted the award on behalf of the entire Krone team.

“The currently available payload and loading area, type and quantity of goods as well as the current location are determined from the digital data of the Krone telematics system installed in the trailer in conjunction with the electronic braking system, load space recognition and load carrier sensor system, and compared with the data from the transport orders offered by the freight exchanges in real time,” Krone said in a statement.

“The freight forwarder receives additional transport proposals for goods according to the ‘either-or principle’, which are displayed in the Krone telematics portal for booking.

“When a transport order is booked, the digital delivery note data is transferred directly to the ERP systems

of the parties involved in the shipment during the journey of the trailer. This ensures the best possible utilisation of the trailer and increases transport efficiency, i.e. empty runs are avoided, available loading capacities are used and CO2 is saved.”

Krone is exhibiting Smart Capacity Management this week at the Transport Logistic trade fair in Munich, Germany.

The Green Truck Trailer Innovation Award (semi-trailer/trailer) was presented for the first time on the eve of Transport Logistic 2019.

GERMANY German trailer builder, Kögel, has been recognised for excellent management of a medium-sized company after receiving the Axia Best Managed Companies Award.

“We are very proud of this award because it confirms that Kögel has taken the right path, and it encourages us to continue unabated along this path,” said Kögel Trailer Managing Director, Thomas Eschey.

Partner and Head of the SME Programme at Deloitte, Lutz Meyer, said Kögel, like all of the award winners, is characterised by exemplary management that uniquely combines strategic vision with innovation, a sustainable management culture and good corporate governance.

“With this approach, they are helping to secure the economic future of Germany whilst also serving as models for other companies,” she said.

“What we aim to do with the Axia Best Managed Companies Award is to build an ecosystem and network for excellently managed mid-sized businesses – in Germany and around the world,” said Axia BMC Programme Manager, Markus Seiz. “We W W W. G LO B A LT R A I L E R M AG . C O M / G L O B A L T R A I L E R / 1 3

EUROPE congratulate Kögel and are delighted to see them join this exclusive circle of successful companies.”

Audit and consulting company Deloitte, WirtschaftsWoche Magazine and the Federation of German Industries (BDI) use the award and the quality seal as a way of recognising excellent management of medium-sized companies.

logistics company providing road transportation services across Europe.

Headquartered in Pescara, Italy, Dema Service has approximately 100 employees and three offices located in Italy, Poland and Czech Republic.

“We are excited to join CH Robinson, one of the world’s largest thirdparty logistics (3PL) providers, and contribute to the company’s strong presence in Europe,” Dema Service co-founder, Mauro de Lellis. “Our extensive local market knowledge in combination with CH Robinson’s global network will allow us to provide world-class service to customers.”

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ITALY US transport company, CH Robinson, has announced the acquisition of Italian road transport business, Dema Service.

“The acquisition of Dema Service is

an exciting milestone for CH Robinson and will strengthen our existing footprint in Italy, one of the largest road transportation markets in Europe,” CH Robinson President – Europe, Jeroen Eijsink. “We are eager to work with Dema Service’s customers to offer our full suite of logistics services to help improve their supply chains.”

This is the second European acquisition for CH Robinson in 2019.

The company recently acquired the freight forwarding group, Space Cargo, which expanded CH Robinson’s presence in Spain and Columbia.

Dema Service is a privately-owned

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NORTH AMERICA CANADA North American Internet of Things (IoT) and transport connectivity specialist, Geotab, has completed its acquisition of BSM Technologies.

Providing telematics and asset management solution for more than 165,000 vehicles across government and private fleets in Canada and the US, BSM brings 20 years of fleet management expertise while contributing significantly to the over 1.7 million fleet telematics subscribers utilising Geotab products and services globally.

“The government telematics markets are key opportunities for us,” said Geotab CEO, Neil Cawse.

“Considering BSM’s existing activity, level of knowledge and successful history, this transaction not only increases value and multiplies our service offerings to government customers but also strengthens our partner ecosystem that is focused on this vertical market,” he said.

With an expanded team and BSM’s advanced development in optimisation, winter ops, thirdparty integration and off-road equipment tracking to be included within the Geotab Marketplace solution portfolio, Geotab and its network of resellers are now further equipped with the tools necessary for future success in key growth areas including: municipal, state and provincial government and off-road construction equipment markets.

“We are excited to experience how BSM will strengthen our ecosystem and believe that the resultant platform enhancements will benefit our customers around the globe,” said Cawse.

“With BSM’s activity in the government space coupled with

Geotab’s proven success and commitment to security and scalability, our working in tandem will dramatically accelerate Geotab’s presence across North America, particularly in the electric vehicle space, which is an increasingly important emerging market,” he said.

US US OEM, CIMC Intermodal Equipment (CIE), increased chassis production in 2018 by 53 per cent, compared with 2017 data, and recognises its premier dealers for contributing to its outstanding success.

The OEM produced a total of 45,441 chassis in 2018.

“We were able to obtain this growth based on continued demand from our existing customer base and expanding our dealer network,” said CIE Vice President Sales, Trevor Ash, vice president sales. “Our products have been recognised as the gold standard in the industry.”

CIE has significantly increased production and sales over the past three years as results have been realised from many operational and organisational improvements as well as a renewed focus on customer demands for chassis design and quality in North America. The 45,441 units produced in 2018 at CIMC’s South Gate, CA and Emporia, VA facilities is record output for the company.

“There is no single definitive reason for our success in 2018,” said CIE President and CEO, Frank Sonzala.

“The record number of chassis built is due to many initiatives that were started back in 2016. Our chassis are the highest quality with the best total cost of ownership results for

our customers.

“We have the ability to take care of our customers both large and small because we listen to their needs and provide exceptional service.

Another reason for our success is the exceptional quality of our employees.

With an employee-centric culture and world class products we will continue to build our market share in North America,” he said.

CIE has also recognised its premier 2018 dealers for their exemplary level of sales, service and industry involvement.

The CIE premier dealers for 2018 are: ILoca Services, headquartered in Aurora, IL with two additional locations; Hale Trailer of Voorhees, NJ with nine locations; Star Leasing Company, Carmel, IN includes ten additional locations; National Chassis with locations in South Gate, CA and LaPorte, TX; and Transworld Equipment Corp, Shrewsbury, NJ. “CIMC has an outstanding field of international CIE dealers,” said Ash. “The five we have recognised as 2018 Premier dealerships have especially contributed to our success through their outstanding accomplishments on behalf of the dealer-CIMC Intermodal Equipment partnership.”

US US Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM) has selected Broshuis for the delivery of trailers for the Heavy Equipment Transporter (HET).

The assignment, 170 pieces of PL2 pendular semi low loaders with eightaxle lines, is in collaboration with Oshkosh Defense. In addition to the delivery of the trailers, the contract also includes service and support W W W. G LO B A LT R A I L E R M AG . C O M / G L O B A L T R A I L E R / 15

NORTH AMERICA for the coming years. The total order value is more than €50 million and is the largest ever in Europe, in the area of heavy transport trailers. Delivery will take place in the coming years.

After a tendering round with several candidates, an order followed for the delivery of three prototypes, which were extensively tested by US defence for four months. The Kampen family owned business succeeded in the extensive trials and won the contract.

Broshuis has invested heavily in new production facilities in recent years, which means that this large order can be built entirely in-house in Kampen.

Because of this expansion, there is sufficient capacity for this large project together with the recently acquired Danish Defense Order. The capacity for commercial orders has also been increased by 25 per cent.

This assignment is a huge step for the company, due to the large number of PL2 pendulum axles (2,720). Broshuis claims to be a market leader in pendular axle trailers.

US US-based asset management company, Blackstone, will enter an agreement to acquire assets from three of GLP’s US funds for a purchase price of $18.7 billion USD (€16.7 billion).

This overall transaction totals 179 million square feet (166 million square metres) of urban, infill logistics assets, nearly doubling the size of Blackstone’s existing US industrial footprint.

Blackstone Real Estate’s global opportunistic BREP strategy will acquire 115 million square feet for $13.4 billion USD and its income16 / G L O B A L TR A I L E R / I SS U E 47

oriented non-listed REIT, Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust (BREIT), will acquire 64 million square feet for $5.3 billion USD. “Logistics is our highest conviction global investment theme today, and we look forward to building on our existing portfolio to meet the growing e-commerce demand,” said Blackstone Global Co-Head, Ken Caplan.

“Our global scale and ability to leverage differentiated investment strategies allowed us to provide a one-stop solution for GLP’s high quality portfolio,” he said.

“GLP was able to leverage our deep operating expertise and global insights in the logistics sector within four years to build and grow an exceptional portfolio,” GLP Chief Investment Officer, Alan Yang.

“We are proud of the business our team built and are confident it will continue to flourish under Blackstone’s leadership. We are looking forward to expanding our footprint in the United States to continue to seize key opportunities in the US market,” he said.

“These properties are a complementary addition to our stabilized commercial real estate portfolio, which is oriented toward our highest conviction themes, such as logistics,” said BREIT Chairman and CEO, Frank Cohen.

Established in Singapore, GLP is a global investment manager with $64 billion USD (€57.2 billion) assets under management in real estate and private equity funds. Its real estate fund platform is one of the largest in the world, spanning 785 million square feet. GLP entered the US real estate market in 2015 and through a

series of major acquisitions became the second-largest owner of logistics real estate assets in the country by aggregating high-quality, modern logistics assets across 36 major markets. GLP will remain invested in the US across real estate, technology, and credit and is committed long-term to the US market.

Blackstone’s real estate business has approximately $140 billion (€125.2 billion) in investor capital under management. It operates around the globe with investments and people in North America, Europe, Asia and Latin America. Blackstone is one of the leading owners of logistics properties today with assets in North America, Europe and Asia. In the US, Blackstone built and sold Indcor and successfully replicated this strategy with Logicor in Europe. Inclusive of this transaction, Blackstone has acquired over 930 million square feet of logistics globally since 2010.

US US suspension specialist, Hendrickson, is creating a purposebuilt engineering support trailer as part of a sponsorship deal with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLL Racing).

RLL Racing and Hendrickson recently announced a multi-year partnership that will see Hendrickson become an associate sponsor of the team’s NTT IndyCar Series program.

The engineering support trailer will reportedly be used throughout the season beginning with the 103rd running of the Indianapolis 500.

“The addition of a third trailer devoted exclusively to our engineers will enable us to maximise information sharing between our most important

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NORTH AMERICA assets – our human capital,” said Bobby Rahal, team co-owner of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing with David Letterman and Michael Lanigan. “In addition to using the state-of-the-art trailer to its full extent, we are looking forward to sharing technology.”

The design of the engineering support trailer features a single wheel INTRAAX suspension that maximises the interior dimensions and usable space for the race team. It debuted at Indianapolis Motor Speedway as the team prepares for the Indianapolis 500 on May 26. The team won the 2004 Indy 500 from pole with Buddy Rice as the driver.

“For Hendrickson, advanced technology and innovation continues to drive our product development engineering process,” said Hendrickson President and CEO, Gary Gerstenslager.

“We look at all industries for inspiration and new ideas, and INDYCAR has always been at the top of the list. The opportunity to partner with Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing on their Engineering Support Trailer and to share technology was an easy decision for Hendrickson.

We are proud to be associated with RLL,” he said.

US US-based transport and logistics company, XPO Logistics, has ascended to number 180 on the Fortune 500 list.

The annual ranking in Fortune Magazine is based on 2018 company revenue of $17.3 million USD (€15.5 million).

XPO Logistics also took the number one ranking among all transportation and logistics companies.

“We’re honoured to advance among the top 200 companies on the Fortune 500, and take the top spot in transportation and logistics,” said XPO Logistics Chairman and CEO, Bradley Jacobs.

“We’ll continue to invest in our surest path to sustainable growth — futureproofing our customers’ supply chains through innovation,” he said.

In 2018, Fortune named XPO to its Fortune Future 50 list based on 17 predictive growth factors, including board composition, environmental, social and governance standards, and the share of managers and employees who are female.

Retail company, Walmart, was ranked number one on the Fortune 500 list with a revenue of $514.4 million USD (€461.1 million); oil and gas company, Exxon Mobil, took second place with $290.2 million USD (€260.1 million); and technology company, Apple, came third with $265.5 million USD (€238 million).

US North American supply chain service provider, JB Hunt, will introduce a pool of 500 additional 53-foot trailers that businesses can reserve for drop trailer purposes, with plans to accelerate available units as market demand grows.

Carriers will reportedly make offers to transport the trailers using Carrier 360 by JB Hunt, the company’s digital freight matching platform.

The new service is a part of JB Hunt’s continued effort to create the most efficient transportation network in North America.

JB Hunt President and CEO, John Roberts, said 360box – a trailer pool and drop-and-hook service, adds

capacity to a customer’s supply chain while moving more freight that is efficient for both customer and carrier.

“Usually only large carriers with available resources can provide this type of drop-trailer service,” he said. “By using our trailers, however, shippers with consistent freight can now connect with the power of small carriers and owner operators, which together represent 83 per cent of all drivers.”

By eliminating the immediate need to load and unload trailers, 360box will prevent the loss in productivity that can occur during a live delivery such as dock door wait and detention.

Drivers simply drop the trailer in a designated area and go on to their next load. The service offers shippers flexibility with their freight management, adds capacity to their supply chain, and provides access to one of the industry’s largest poweronly carrier bases. For carriers, 360box eliminates the operational cost of maintaining trailers and increases driver productivity.

“As much as one-third of a driver’s day includes idle time and empty miles,” said JB Hunt Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer, Shelley Simpson.

“When considering there are 3.5 million drivers, that’s a lot of waste,” she said. “360box is designed to transform that inefficiency into productivity, keeping drivers on the move with full trailers.”

The 360boxtrailers will reportedly be equipped with technology that provides end-to-end load tracking and monitoring. The company completed installation of tracking technology on all 100,000-plus company trailers and containers in 2018.

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OCEANIA AUSTRALIA The National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) and the Australian Road Transport Suppliers Association (ARTSA) recently released a joint report that found one in five relevant new heavy vehicles manufactured in Australia are now Performance-Based Standards (PBS) approved.

NHVR CEO, Sal Petroccitto, said the joint report demonstrated the success of Australia’s world-leading PBS scheme.

“In 2017, 17 per cent of relevant new heavy vehicles were PBS approved, in 2018 we saw that increase to 20 per cent of relevant new heavy vehicles,” he said.

“PBS vehicles deliver significant benefits to productivity and have been shown to be involved in 46 per cent fewer crashes than conventional vehicles.

“The success of the scheme over the past decade is a clear statement of the industry’s desire to be safer, smarter and more innovative.”

The report shows: One in five relevant new heavy vehicles manufactured in 2018 were PBS approved, up from one in six in 2017; 1,900 new approvals for new PBS combinations in 2018, an increase from around 1,400 in 2017; in the last five years total new PBS combination approvals have doubled, while the heavy vehicle market has only grown by 20 per cent over the same period; more than 55 per cent of PBS approvals are for truck and dog combinations; and PBS approved prime mover and trailer combinations have doubled in the last five years.

ARTSA Chair, Martin Toomey, said 18 / G L O B A L TR A I L E R / I SS U E 47

the PBS scheme was encouraging heavy vehicle renewal nationwide.

“One of the key benefits of the PBS scheme has been to accelerate the renewal of the heavy vehicle fleet nationwide,” he said.

“The median age of PBS vehicles is four years compared to 12 years for the entire heavy vehicle fleet.

“New equipment has the benefit of more modern safety systems, including better braking and improved stability. By encouraging the uptake of PBS vehicles we can make our roads safer for everyone.”

AUSTRALIA Australian Naval Infrastructure has ordered 16 modules of Cometto’s self-propelled MSPE Evo3 70t to help carry future generation surface ships and submarines.

The deal was closed via Australian trailer builder and exclusive Cometto agent in Australia, The Drake Group.

Cometto’s reputation for the quality and reliability of its products aligns with Drake’s high engineering, performance and innovation standards.

The six-axle MSPE 6/4/2,43 Evo3 70t is, according to The Drake Group, the best in the business.

The order from Australian Naval Infrastructure includes 16 of these units in addition to two 368kW power packs, providing more than 6,000 tonnes of payload capacity and furthermore the ability to reach a total capacity of 10,000 tonnes.

“We’re proud to continue our relationship with Cometto and excited to work with Australian Naval Infrastructure on this high profile project ”, said The Drake Group Sales Manager, Sam Drake, Sales

Manager at The Drake Group.

“We’re pleased to see the MSPE line continue their history of handling the largest loads imaginable in the country,” he said.

AUSTRALIA The ISO tank container market, which already boasts a global fleet of more than 550,000 tank containers, is growing by more than eight per cent a year. Most tank containers are either stainless steel or carbon steel.

The investment marks an exciting milestone for the CEIF, which has now invested $64 million across 10 transactions. The Innovation Fund is the largest dedicated Australian investor of its kind, drawing on $200 million in CEFC finance and operated with the assistance of ARENA. This latest Innovation Fund investment is part of broader $7.9 million capital raising by Omni Tanker to help it scale up its manufacturing operations to supply ISO tanks internationally.

Omni Tanker’s core business is based on a patented technology invented by the late William (Bill) Rodgers. The technology is used to construct a seamless thermoplastic corrosion barrier with an extraordinary interface strength to a carbon fibre composite tank structure.

Under CEO Daniel Rodgers, Omni Tanker has developed a dominant market position for aggressive corrosive chemical tank haulage within Australia. With approvals now granted for its tanks to transport dangerous goods in the US and Europe, the OmniTAINER is being exported globally. Omni Tanker is also undertaking research

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OCEANIA and development on a variety of other tank transport applications and other industry opportunities from its platform technology.

“Globally we are seeing significant growth in the tank container market, and transporters and operators are all seeking new ways to improve safety and drive profitability,” said Rodgers.

“Our proven technology is compelling for users of transport tanks and we are scaling our production capability to meet the global demand.

“With this investment we will substantially expand our NSW

manufacturing plant and invest in our specialist workforce, enabling a major increase in production capacity by 2020.

We are also pursuing other avenues for the technology in collaboration with the University of New South Wales and other industry partners through initiatives including the UNSW centre for Automated Manufacture of Advanced Composites (AMAC) and the Australian Government’s Advanced Manufacturing Growth Centre (AMGC),” he said.

Gust added: “This investment is about supporting leading-edge

innovation to tackle transport-related carbon emissions, which are a significant part of the greenhouse gas emissions challenge. It continues the strong focus of the Innovation Fund in supporting a diverse range of cleantech companies which are capitalising on new business opportunities emerging from our clean energy transition.

Companies such as Omni Tanker demonstrate the exciting potential of Australian innovators to lead the transition to a low carbon economy.

We are pleased to be able to support Omni Tanker in this next important phase of its growth.”

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FUTURE DRIVEN

VAWDREY IS THE LARGEST INDEPENDENT TRAILER BUILDER IN AUSTRALIA. WITH YEAR-ON-YEAR SALES TRENDING UPWARDS, THE COMPANY IS COMMITTED MORE THAN EVER TO DELIVERING WORLD-CLASS MANUFACTURING FOR THE GLOBAL LOGISTICS OPERATORS THAT DEPEND ON SAFER AND MORE EFFICIENT ROAD TRANSPORT EQUIPMENT.

I

t takes a passionate ethos and understanding of Australia’s freight movements, along with a certain degree of confidence in the competitive trailer building market, to rise among the competition – the kind of confidence that Vawdrey Australia has had for over 40 years.

From the disparity of Victoria’s bustling metropolitan areas and droughtaffected New South Wales to the regional roads that connect Queensland to the other states and territories of Australia, the national freight task is as varied as it is arduous. That alone can be a daunting prospect for an OEM attempting to tackle Australia’s diverse road freight challenges. For Vawdrey, however, there are a wealth of opportunities to explore to improve the day-to-day operations of businesses Australia-wide – the kind of opportunities that Director, Paul Vawdrey, relishes.

This freight task, in general, demands road transport that is durable enough to endure long-distance trips (often city to city) as well as trailer componentry with suitable ingress protection to ward against the sun-kissed dirt and dust that can negatively impact the longevity of regional fleet assets. To contrast, inner-city operations typically require vehicles with the right mix of articulation and optimised tare weight to ensure fewer truck movements. These complex

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and seemingly contradictory requirements are the kinds of challenges that Vawdrey Australia investigates and solves to ensure that it builds and supplies the best equipment in the interests of assuring optimal fleet utility.

The Australian market is very different to the US and Europe, according to Paul Vawdrey.

“Orders are often smaller in size because customisation is important to Australians,” he says. “Just about every trailer order is unique, and we work with many leading fleets in the Asia Pacific region to ensure that the trailing equipment they order is built to specification.”

Of course, commerce in Australia is flourishing and there are skeletal trailers running containerised freight between the ports and intermodal facilities, while B-doubles (the most common trailer configuration seen

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in the country) seem to rule the main roads.

While transport activity contributed more than $122 billion AUD (approx. €74.9 billion) to the economy in 2015-16, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the transport industry alone made a notable contribution – accounting for $77 billion AUD (€47.2 billion) or 4.6 per cent of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The Australian Road Transport Suppliers Association (ARTSA) reported late last year that heavy vehicle registrations were at their highest since the industry body began reporting on registration data five years prior.

ARTSA’s data suggests that there were in total 44,000 new vehicles registered for 2018, exceeding the record in 2017 by over 5,000 vehicles.

Now more than ever, Australia’s road transport industry is turning to the likes of Vawdrey for state-of-the-art trailing equipment that enables better safety, efficiency and longevity.

Today, the OEM is renowned for its innovative and high productivity semitrailers, but Paul Vawdrey reflects on how Australia’s largest privately-owned trailer building company came to be.

“The Vawdrey Australia story began in September 1974 when my father, Mick Vawdrey, set up shop in Melbourne and immediately got to work on truck bodies for local companies and owner-drivers,” he says.

“Establishing a successful body building business from scratch is a tough task, especially in a country like Australia, where the climate is unforgiving and the road network is notoriously harsh.

“But growing it into a national marquee brand that is constantly resetting the bar on innovative trailer design is a Herculean challenge – especially so when tied to a wheelchair.”

Despite being wheelchair-bound, Mick Vawdrey found strength in what others might have perceive as a disadvantage. He told Paul Vawdrey that in hindsight, the wheelchair was an asset to the business as it made him focus on growing the business rather than lose himself in the actual production process.

September this year will mark 45 years of operation for Vawdrey Australia.

For a company that has grown from a modest body building workshop in the Melbourne suburb of Braeside to a national manufacturing powerhouse, it can be said that the list of innovations brought to Australia by the father-son duo is simply incredible.

As an integral player in the evolution of Australia’s semi-trailer building industry, Vawdrey Australia has established a reputation based on quality, innovation and dedication – a reputation that the family business continues to uphold.

“Having spent 40-plus years manufacturing truck bodies and semi-trailers, Vawdrey Australia understands the unique challenges Australian operators have to face – and provides a wide range of solutions – and the company’s portfolio is constantly expanding,” Paul Vawdrey says.

Refrigerated transportation is a booming industry in itself in Australia. The continuous development of the Iceliner freezer van has seen Vawdrey Australia expand its presence in the heavy-duty refrigerated markets in Northern Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia. Iceliner freezer vans, Vawdrey Australia’s calls on in-house technical expertise to tailor trailer designs to meet and exceed the operational requirements of its customers.

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according to Paul Vawdrey, emphasise efficiency, reliability and productivity.

“With quality insulation and solid trailer design, the Iceliner can hold cargo temperatures extremely low, which is ideal for fleet operators moving perishable commodities across great distances,” he says.

One way that trailer builder can optimise the Iceliner for productivity under Australia’s Performance-Based Standards (PBS) high productivity scheme is to overhaul its axle configuration.

“By implementing a quad-axle system, for instance, superior weight distribution enables vehicle operators to load trailers with higher allowable weight, which could maximise payload potential,” Paul Vawdrey says – explaining that the advent of the PBS scheme has given many transport companies the opportunity to achieve higher productivity and increased safety by using specially designed, oversized equipment. “Vawdrey Australia has embraced technological innovation, gradually implementing PBS across our entire product portfolio to suit various applications.”

Since 2012, Vawdrey Australia has played a major role in enabling the PBS scheme to expand beyond the classic truck and dog segment and brought it to the general and refrigerated freight market, effectively helping Australia’s road transport community cement its reputation as the most progressive in the world.

Vawdrey’s PBS journey began with the design of a Super B-double capable of hauling two 40’ containers at once, operating under strict PBS guidelines set out by the state of Victoria’s traffic and road authority. Less than a year later, it rolled out a whole range of Super B-double combinations based on the same concept, marking a major milestone in increased access for Higher Productivity Freight Vehicles (HPFV) under the new Victorian Freight & Logistics Plan introduced by the Victorian Coalition Government in August 2013.

More recently, this year, Toll Group specified the Super B-double combination from Vawdrey Australia. It is, according to the transport and logistics company, the largest road transport vehicle currently in use in Singapore.

“The super B-double is an amazing 2x40-footer trailer that has enabled us Owens Transport – with branches in Australia, New Zealand, and a network spanning Asia, Europe, North America and South America – bolsters its containerised freight operations with Vawdrey quad quad Super B-doubles.

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to increase productivity and provides intergateway haulage services between three terminals – Pasir Panjang, Keppel and Brani,” a Toll spokesperson says.

Paul Vawdrey says the Super B-doubles in Australia are typically fitted with Electronic Braking Systems (EBS), side underrun protection and a quad-quad suspension system to satisfy route access and Performance-Based Standards (PBS) requirements. “The super B-double design cuts travel time, vehicle usage and fuel consumption while enabling bigger payloads,” he says.

In a joint report between Australia’s National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) and ARTSA, one in five new heavy vehicles are PBS approved. In the last five years, the total of new PBS combination approvals have doubled, while the heavy vehicle market has only grown by about 20 per cent over the same period. Interestingly, more than 55 per cent of PBS approvals are for truck and dog combinations. It is clear, based on recent data, that demand for Vawdrey Australia’s high productivity trailers are on the rise.

Following this positive uptake in PBS approved equipment, Vawdrey Australia brings other innovations to market including variations of the Wingliner. “The Australian Wingliner provides the security and load restraint benefits of a van with the flexibility of a curtain-sided trailer,” Paul Vawdrey says – adding that Vawdrey Australia has sole distribution rights for the Wingliner in Australasia. “With handheld remote-control operation, its doors release, fold up and store flat against the roof within a matter of seconds, providing an unrestricted work area. Vawdrey Australia manufactures dry freight van and refrigerated Wingliner models in rigid, semitrailer and B-double configurations.”

The Wingliner is also ideal for transport operators looking to increase their bottom line, according to Paul Vawdrey. “This innovative

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 “HAVING SPENT THE PAST 40-PLUS YEARS MANUFACTURING TRUCK BODIES AND SEMITR AILERS, VAWDREY AUSTR ALIA UNDERSTANDS THE UNIQUE CHALLENGES AUSTR ALIAN OPER ATORS HAVE TO FACE – AND PROVIDES A WIDE R ANGE OF SOLUTIONS – AND THE COMPANY’S PORTFOLIO IS CONSTANTLY EXPANDING.” Paul Vawdrey Director

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A Vawdrey Super B-double combination operating in Singapore.

trailer design allows even more productivity on each and every trip without sacrificing safety,” he says. “It is ideal for progressive companies looking at implementing the latest in trailer design.

The original Wingliner concept was developed by Austrian company Wingliner International in 1996. Excited by the concept on-show in Hanover, Germany, at the time, Vawdrey Australia teamed up with Wingliner International to develop a Wingliner product for Australia’s roads. The developments have continued, and the Wingliner is still considered to be a novel, futuristic concept.

Taking load restraint to the next level, Vawdrey has its Buckle-less curtain system that combines safety and efficiency.

“People want a load restraint system that is safe, reliable, and works time and time again,” Vawdrey says. “The Buckle-less curtain is a system that has no buckles, no gates, and no gimmicks, which is exactly what the market is after. The load-rated curtain’s strength comes from carbon fibre straps that are connected to the roof of the trailer using a pivoting double roller system. A specially designed lower hook and tensioning system provides the tension required and flawless load restraint. The curtain is tensioned vertically via a complex position ratchet system.”

In addition to its Iceliner and Wingliner trailer builds, Vawdrey Australia provides a comprehensive product range including robust skeletal trailers that are designed for durability and ease-of-use, Titeliner models from rigid, dog and pig trailers through to semi-trailer configurations and various dry freight vans to cover any client requirement.

To bolster such a diverse trailer portfolio, Vawdrey also adds value with innovative technologies like the Auto Lock Deck System, which optimises deck handling safety and efficiency.

The Auto Lock Deck system promotes a safer workplace environment through innovative design.

According to Vawdrey, the Auto Lock Deck is a boon for the commercial road transport in terms of performance gains.

“The Auto Lock Deck is simple to operate and can save up to 10 minutes for every deck movement,” he says. “To lower the deck, the operator simply selects the unlock function, lifts the deck to disengage the locks and then lowers the deck to the desired position.

It ratchets through each of the locking positions on the mezzanine deck posts when lifting to provide a fast and simple method of lifting the deck by forklift.”

The Vawdrey Auto Lock Deck also negates the need for vehicle operators to work beneath a deck or to remove the deck from the vehicle to adjust the deck height, which significantly improves Occupational Health & Safety (OH&S) practices.

Ultimately, Vawdrey trailers are tailored to accommodate the needs of the industry and emphasise safety and efficiency.

“We have built a reputation on our ability to custom build products to meet the exacting needs of our customers,” Vawdrey says – adding that his team is always looking to achieve greater efficiency gains through PBS implementation. “Our national presence continues to grow as we look after our local and international clientele. Demand from logistics businesses worldwide is on the rise for valuable safe and efficient trailing equipment branded with the Vawdrey name.” www.vawdrey.com.au

International freight forwarder, VISA Global Logistics, specifies Performance-Based Standards (PBS) approved quad-axle skeletal trailers from Vawdrey Australia.

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trailer axles

Challenging themes are our motivation:

WE FIND THE RIGHT AXLE FOR YOU! gigant – Trenkamp & Gehle GmbH | Germany

www.gigant-group.com

GENIUS IN

FRANCE EVEN THOUGH THE FRENCH TRAILER INDUSTRY IS REELING FROM DISRUPTIONS ARISING FROM THE YELLOW JACKET MOVEMENT, THERE ARE ECONOMIC REFORMS IN PROGRESS THAT ARE KEY TO THE STATE’S INDUSTRIAL RECONQUEST.

T

rading economics indicate that the French economy grew 0.3 per cent on quarter in the three months to March 2019 – the same as in the previous period and matching a preliminary estimate and market expectations. Household consumption rose further while fixed investment eased and net foreign demand contributed negatively. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rate in France averaged 0.78 per cent from 1949 until 2019, reaching an all-time high of eight per cent in Q3 1968 and a record low of -5.30 per cent in Q2 1968.

French industrial production increased in 2017 and 2018, which the State says is part of the country’s ‘industrial reconquest’. This is being achieved by ‘courageous policy choices’ that the country is in the process of implementing.

These include: reduction of tax on capital; the relaunch of the cultural battle for industrial jobs with a view to making new generations understand that industry means innovation and real career prospects; investment in innovation, specifically research tax credit, two years of extra amortisation for robotisation for industrial SMEs and the Fund for Innovation and Industry; as well as a major European component: the creation of a Franco-German electric battery sector that is set to enable the creation of about 2,000 industrial jobs in France over the following three years.

In 2018, 60 new factories opened, while only 40 closed. Over the last two years, three of every four threatened industrial job has been saved along with 90 per cent of threatened industrial sites. The French Government is investing €500 million in ‘Industry of the Future’, while 10,000 SMEs are being lent assistance and €15 billion has been invested in the Investment in Skills Plan (PIC – Plan d’investissement dans les compétences).

In protest of President Macron’s economic reforms, particularly rising fuel prices and living expenses, the yellow jackets movement (which formed

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late last year) has since disrupted roads and fuel depots and incited riots, garnering international attention.

The French market in terms of commercial vehicle registrations was down 4.2 per cent at the end of April but it is still maintaining high levels, according to Marketing Director at Chereau, Christophe Danton.

“The sales tendency (order intake) for 2019 is so far very good at +14.9 per cent,” he says. “This good result does not reflect our global 2019 vision as we plan a significant slowdown for the second semester due to the following reasons: financial results of transport companies – there was clearly a financial impact due to the yellow jackets (French strike movement that started mid-November); less transported volumes; and a driver shortage.”

Jean Baghdad, Managing Director of SAFHolland France, confirms a positive trend that reflects ‘relatively good’ economic data in the country with reference to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth (2017: +2.3 per cent; 2018: +1.5 per cent).

MARKET REPORT

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MARKET REPORT

The yellow jacket movement has impacted France’s commercial vehicle industry.

“The market has developed very well, especially the trailer market with +14 per cent growth in 2018,” he says. “The first four months of 2019 also show positive figures with new registrations of +9 per cent for trucks with more than five tonnes and +8 per cent for new trailer registrations. For 2019, the same number of pieces is expected as of 2018 because in France there is still a lack of drivers and mechanics and this slows down growth.

For SAF-Holland France, this means a stable market setting and positive prospects for future growth.”

Meanwhile, the likes of Schmitz Cargobull has been operating in France for the past two decades, initially with the opening of a sales office. The trailer builder’s France headquarters is within close proximity to Lyon and features a yard for used trailers and a warehouse for spare parts.

Head of Marketing Communications & PR, Anna Stuhlmeier, says a sales and after-sales team covers the whole country together with 120 service partners including 20 reefer specialists dedicated to the repair and service of the Schmitz Cargobull Cooling units S.CU. “Two other outlets are reported to be located in Rennes and Nancy in order to offer the best services in the whole country,” she says.

The French market is innovation-oriented, according to Stuhlmeier, and French customers request the best technologies available in order to track and control their Total Costs of Ownership (TCO).

“Telematics, data management and financial services are also growing market segments where Schmitz Cargobull offers the best technologies,” she said. “The reefer customers demand high quality standards (ATP) and flexible products due to the density of the distribution network. The French market

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remains highly influenced by the culture of distribution, which requests strong and competitive products for example within the dry freight segment. Given the development of the business via internet that trend should get stronger in the next years.”

One major trend that is clear, according to Schmitz Cargobull, is the call for action on climate change and CO2 emissions.

“Together with the EcoDuo solution and the electrical cooling unit, Schmitz Cargobull is perfectly in line with those requests and brings relevant proposals to the market,” Stuhlmeier says.

In terms of supporting industry events in France, Schmitz Cargobull is exhibiting its latest transport solutions, including the curtainsider S.CS Power Curtain, reefer S.KO Cool Smart, tipper S.KI and S.KO Express along with financial and maintenance offers, via a roadshow set for September.

“As one of the major players in Europe, the French commercial vehicle industry has

Kögel Cargo The solid long-distance runner TH E

a strong tradition for innovation due to very competitive market conditions,” Stuhlmeier says. “The medium-term innovations and requests will be influenced by the services (finance, second- and third-life of used trailers and preventive maintenance) as well as data management (cold chain and distribution).”

JOST also supports the commercial road transport industry in France, providing operators with fifth wheels, landing legs, axles, turn tables, hitches (ROCKINGER), king pins, container components, hydraulic cylinders and steering systems (Tridec).

The heavy-duty equipment specialist has head offices in Ris Orangis, south of Paris, and offices in Lattes, which is close to Montpellier.

Around 28,245 trailers were registered in France in 2018. JOST confirms the main trailer builders in the country include Fruehauf, Benalu Group, Chereau, Lamberet, Magyar and Legras and ASCA. Known for changing the way trailer builders think about axles – specifically multifunctional e-axles that can electrically charge integrated components such as refrigeration units – VALX expanded its service network following the employment of a French sales representative earlier this year.

After an extensive trip throughout France, according to Bart van den Boomen, sales representative at VALX, the company has signed agreements with TIP France and Bassigny among others. “In the past four years, Reseau Poids Lourds – a family business that first opened its garage doors in Rozay-en-Brie in 1977 and offers a new and used truck sales service, spare parts support as well vehicle rental services – has purchased 336 trailers on VALX axles from Lecitrailer.”

While France’s growth may have slowed, according to the International Monetary Fund, it remains resilient and job rich, in part reflecting important labourmarket and tax reforms implemented in recent years. These key areas for reform involve safeguarding fiscal sustainability and bolstering public-sector efficiency; boosting employment and productivity; and strengthening the resilience of the financial sector.

NE

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ENERATI

ON

NOVUMNEW

2019

WINNER CATEGORY CONCEPT

OF TRAILERS

www.globaltrailermag.com



High payload thanks to low tare weight

 

User-friendly handling High degree of individualisation

NOVUM generation – Profitability taken one step further! com . l ge e o w.k w w

A OF THE

MIND

TRANSPORT LOGISTIC 2019 BROUGHT THE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD IN SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT AND ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURING TO GERMANY. FOR THE GLOBAL COMMERCIAL ROAD TRANSPORT COMMUNITY, THERE IS A LOT OF PROGRESS TO PROCESS.

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unich played host to one of the largest logistics trade fairs in the world, according to the event organisers, with 2,374 exhibitors gathering a crowd of around 64,000 people.

Transport Logistic 2019, which was held 4-7 June, has seen a notable surge in international interest, specifically among the exhibitors present at the event, according to Messe München Managing Director, Stefan Rummel.

“We saw strong growth from China, where the number of exhibitors almost doubled by 30 to 64, he says. “As part of the Silk Road Initiative, Chinese companies are increasingly looking for cooperation partners in Europe.”

Schmitz Cargobull is embracing digitalisation with is SmartTrailer app.

Talk of driver shortages was a prominent talking point at the fair, according to Rummel.

He added that in addition to striving for more attractive working conditions, Artificial Intelligence (AI) could help in the long-term, potentially forming more transparent and efficient supply chains.

Federal Minister of Transport, Andreas Scheuer, contributed to a panel discussion on the major challenges affecting the logistics industry, emphasising the need to make growing traffic flows even more efficient, affordable, digital, environmentally friendly and climate friendly.

Regarding the global economy, Frank Appel, CEO of transport and logistics company, Deutsche Post, remains optimistic, stating that although current US-China relations are currently not conducive to this, goods are finding their way despite customs disputes.

Connecting industry with innovative componentry

JOST, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of vehicle connection systems, modules and components for trucks and trailers, made its presence known with a focus on innovative

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SHOW REVIEW

It is estimated that around 64,000 people gathered in Munich, Germany, for Transport Logistic 2019.

products and intelligent assistance systems.

At Transport Logistic 2019, the equipment specialist presented its automatic KKS Comfort Coupling System, which according to Head of Marketing, Holger Koch, is the basis for future generations of autonomous vehicles.

“The KKS offers greatly increased safety, as manual procedures such as cranking and connecting or disconnecting electrical connectors and air hoses are no longer required,” he says.

The Modul E-Drive electric landing gear was also on show, which is reported to offer significantly higher comfort, work safety and efficiency.

At the trade fair, JOST showcased the only axle in the world with a housing that stores compressed air for the brake system and pneumatic suspension – the DCA AIRMASTER. ROCKINGER with a triedand-tested RO*50E towing hitch, which is characterised by its robust, low-maintenance design and its simple and safe operation.

The proven ROCKINGER release lever principle prevents incorrect coupling caused

by the locking process being triggered too early or by jerky coupling, as is necessary when using a standard pin lifting system, according to Holger.

Paff pneumatic remote operation is in its second generation. JOST also brought its organic high-performance lubricant for fifth wheel couplings, ball bearing turntables and kingpins.

“The biodegradable lubricant is ideally formulated for use in combination with the LubeTronic 5Point minimal lubrication system, providing a very environmentally friendly solution to the issue of lubrication,” Holger says.

“Our diverse range of advanced products give our customers from the transport sector clear added value.”

To make the trade fair doubly attractive for commercial road transport decision makers, BPW offered a range of exclusive maintenance, telematics and intelligent brake deals.

This trend of maximising the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) over the lifetime of commercial vehicles is something that BPW is fully embracing with its suite of products from trailer maintenance contracts with telematics incentives to brake lining wear sensors that function continuously and without contact.

JOST Airmaster tyre inflation system.

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Transport Logistic 2019 was hailed by many as a positive place to celebrate innovation in equipment manufacturing.

The BrakePadMonitor allows hauliers to proactively schedule service appointments instead of changing brake linings too early or too late, which according to BPW, can often cause costs to skyrocket.

As a global market leader for trailer axles and running gear systems, BPW is at the forefront of digitisation, networking and electromobility. Its latest innovation, the iGurt, uses standard lashing straps to create an intelligent load securing system.

An easy-to-use buckle equipped with sensor technology simply clips onto the straps and constantly measures the preload and reports any changes immediately.

In another solution, the ‘digital seal’ from Idem Telematics provides security for the rear portal doors by monitoring the door contact non-stop.

“All of the innovations are intuitive to use and reduce typical causes of errors and costs in day-to-day transport operations,” according to Ralf Merkelbach, Head of Key Account Management for Major Fleets in Europe at BPW. “On top of this, they can also be networked with the cargofleet 3 open telematics platform from Idem Telematics. This not only brings transport companies greater transparency than ever before, but also provides new documentation options for transport,” he says.

The AirSave tyre pressure control system that BPW is showcased in Munich also offers this networking option.

The BPW subsidiary, Idem Telematics, exhibited a new version of its telematics hardware in the form of the TC Trailer Gateway PRO, which enables wireless networking with sensors and devices in the trailer, which is reported to lead to a simpler and cheaper installation due to improved cable management.

“We are making it even easier for transport companies to get started with telematics and to then expand the applications gradually according to their

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needs,” says Idem Telematics Managing Director, Jens Zeller. “We are therefore providing a truly modular telematics concept because it grows flexibly in line with requirements and can incorporate expansions and changes at any time.”

BPW also sees cause for celebration in the field of electromobility: the eTransport electric drive axle is now being installed mainly in municipal special-purpose vehicles that are being converted from diesel by the specialist company Paul Nutzfahrzeuge in the German town of Vilshofen an der Donau. More and more companies and institutions are said to be working towards an electric transport breakthrough.

Tyres, aerodynamics and trailer security

Celerity DRS is a European distributor of PSI automatic tyre inflation systems for commercial trailers and has recently expanded its portfolio to exclusively distribute the Airtab drag reduction system.

Sustainability by reducing fuel consumption and emissions, as well extending the lifecycle

SHOW REVIEW

JOST on show with its broad range of componentry.

of tyres, are essential for future-proofing road transport equipment, according to Celerity DRS. The Airtab is designed to alter, control and smooth the airflow around a vehicle to reduce drag and improve fuel efficiency.

Meanwhile, Tyre Pressure Management Systems (TPMS) for commercial road transport fleets are rising in popularity, following Giti Tire’s official TPMS launch in the UK earlier this year. The Singaporean company has its roots in the tyre industry that dates back to 1951. It currently has eight production centres in three countries, including a newly opened factory in South Carolina, US. Germany’s TireMoni provides truck and bus TPMS, including sensor technologies, remote SMS warning functionality and an Internet of Things (IoT) platform for individual TPMS solutions.

Trailer builders like Krone also presented their own TPMS for commercial vehicles.

Krone’s system is linked to Krone Telematics and features two sensors per axle and are mounted on the rim of the tyre valve – the sensors measure tyre pressure and temperature per wheel and transmits the signals to the telematics unit in real-time.

Global technology company, WABCO, aims to improve the safety, efficiency and connectivity of commercial vehicles. One of its latest products is OptiLock – a locking system that secures trailer loads. The concern the company is addressing is trailer vulnerability,

specifically the issues that fleet operators face when parked, at a service station or driving on public roads where trailer breaches are said to be commonplace.

Optilock is a range of high-quality mechanical and electronic locking systems that are reported to be tailored to suit most vehicle applications. They are also designed to ensure freight arrives at its destination intact, on-time and uncontaminated.

WABCO says that theft is not the only threat caused by an unsecured door – modern freight hauliers also need to be prepared to guard against the substitution of genuine goods with counterfeits, the transportation of unregistered goods and even the risk of inadvertent human trafficking.

WABCO OptiLink solutions are reported to provide more than a record of guardianship. For example, by preventing temperature changes due to unauthorised opening of refrigerated vehicles.

The ELB-Lock is an electronic door lock system that supports a flexible multi-stage security concept. It has wireless operation capabilities for additional measures of protection.

Refrigeration

The Vector HE 19 (High Efficiency) temperature-controlled trailer system from Carrier Transicold is an ultra-modern design that delivers a reduction in fuel consumption of up to 30 per cent, creating a 10 per cent saving in weight, cuts noise by 3 dB(A) and is reported to offer up to 15 per cent savings in maintenance costs.

Carrier Transicold, which operates in Germany as Carrier Transicold Deutschland, is a part of Carrier, a leading global provider of innovative heating,

Netherlands-based OEM, Talson, debuted its latest aluminium swap body.

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ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC), refrigeration, fire, security and building automation technologies.

“The new Vector HE 19 is a huge step forward for trailer refrigeration,” says Carrier Transicold Director – Central Europe, Andreas Wallmeyer. “It delivers huge performance advantages for our customers in just about every area. ”The unit combines current innovative technology, like the all-electric E-Drive TM system, with new technology designed to significantly improve our customers’ fleet efficiency, performance and sustainability.”

Carrier Transicold has improved its Vector range, optimising the internal architecture and redesigning it to increase sustainability and efficiency. The Vector HE 19 system combines the E-Drive technology with an improved multi-speed engine design, bringing fuel savings of up to 30 per cent when compared to the existing Vector 1950 – the equivalent of saving 5.4 tonnes of carbon dioxide

Technology company, WABCO, launched its trailer monitoring and remote diagnostics solution, TX-TRAILER PULSE, in June.

(CO2) annually. Due to a lighter frame, compressor and fans, the overall weight of the unit has been reduced by 82kg, increasing payload potential. It is also 3 dB(A) quieter than a standard Vector 1950 unit, making it around 50 per cent quieter in operation.

The Vector HE 19 unit features the latest components, including a new, Stage V compliant diesel engine with electronic engine control. It also calls on the proven performance of a hermetic compressor and economiser, as well as the efficiency of a microchannel heat exchanger condenser, which delivers a 40 per cent increase in refrigeration capacity during pull-down, while reducing the chance of refrigerant escape by 50 per cent.

A redesigned upper airflow management creates a much more efficient airflow, helping to ensure the integrity of the cold chain. This is primarily achieved through a larger condenser air inlet opening and a change in the evaporator air flow orientation, helping to maximise the Coanda effect – the phenomena of a jet flow remaining ‘attached’ to a curved surface. The system also features a single, ultra-efficient evaporator fan, which helps to improve heat exchange throughout

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the evaporator.

One of the key components in the Vector HE 19 is Carrier Transicold’s forward-thinking, all-electric E-Drive technology that works by removing the mechanical transmissions found in conventional belt-driven equipment and converting the unit’s or truck’s engine power into electricity via a generator, which drives the refrigeration system. Another benefit is a sustaining refrigerant containment for a projected average annual leak rate of only three per cent.

For fleets looking for a significant reduction in emissions, the new Vector HE 19 unit will also be available as an engineless option. The engineless trailer will be energised either by the truck’s engine through the Carrier Transicold ECO-DRIVE power module or through the trailer’s axles, which, when connected to a generator, can be used to supply a battery that subsequently powers the system. In standby mode, the unit still provides up to 14,800-watt cooling capacity, which equates to 85 per cent of the system’s total capacity. By removing the cost and weight of the diesel engine entirely, the all-electric Vector HE 19 unit presents a cost-effective way to meet tightening innercity emissions regulations.

The new trailer system has been designed with the operator in mind and improves on the current generation product in every area, even down to its new APX control system using Controller Area Network (CAN) technology, which allows multi-speed engine control and management of all actuators and sensors to optimise refrigerant flow and temperature control. Carrier Transicold integrates, for the first time in Europe, a large screen graphical display improving user experience.

The Vector HE 19 unit is available in up to three different compartment configurations and provides high and constant levels of heating to all compartments thanks to the E-Drive Technology that significantly improves temperature regulation for multitemperature operation.

With new developments in cold chain management, Schmitz Cargobull showcased its S.KO COOL SMART refrigerated body with electric S.CUe cooling unit. The OEM says it

SHOW REVIEW

can therefore be completed, even in the event of an unlikely failure of a module, without negative consequences for the cargo.

Developments in trailer building

is equipped with the TrailerConnect telematics system as standard and features a digital temperature recorder and other functions designed to improve the transparency and efficiency of trailer fleets.

The S.Cue is reported to ensure efficient and environmentally friendly transportation of cooled goods. It is said to operate completely emission-free and is intended for the distribution of both refrigerated and ambient goods.

In a joint collaboration between Liebherr and Krone, the Cool Liner, fitted with a new Celsineo cool system, made for a prominent display. Following requests from logistics firms to maximise the reliability and costeffectiveness of refrigerated transport, Celsineo provides a patented technology that enables modularity, scalable performance and redundancy.

Conventional cooling units have a central refrigeration circuit, according to Krone, and when it fails it can negatively affect temperature-sensitive cargo. The Celsineo, however, addresses this flaw by spreading cooling capacity across three indentically structured plug & play refrigeration modules (each contains a separate, hermetically sealed refrigerant circuit with just a few components).

The target temperature set in the trailer can be maintained by just two modules. The route

Known for its heavy duty and special vehicles, Ulm-based Kamag Transporttechnik presented the new generation of its Wiesel swap body transporter at the trade fair.

The manoeuvrable lift transporter has reportedly been designed for rapid handling and transporting of swap bodies around logistics yards and terminals.

The vehicle, according to Kamag, stands out due to its flexible adaptability to accommodate different parking heights. It also features a high level of driving safety and runs with low fuel consumption.

Kamag Transporttechnik, part of the Transporter Industry International (TII) Group, has sold more than 2,000 Wiesel swap body transporters, mainly in the DACH region. In major logistics companies, the Wiesel is also being used in France, Italy and Poland. The OEM expects demand to grow in other European markets in the future.

The Wiesel is being successfully used at the logistics yards of numerous customers, according to Kamag. These include well-known logistics companies, mail-order businesses, postal and parcel service providers as well as many industrial companies. “With the Wiesel, we help our customers to organise their intralogistics processes more efficiently and more cost-effectively,â€? says JĂźrgen Dirr, Area Sales Manager and responsible at Kamag for the swap body transporter business.

Kamag is based in Ulm and produces industrial vehicles, modular transporters and terminal logistics vehicles.

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Schmitz Cargobull is poised to bring smart trailers to market with its latest products and services.

Kamag is adamant that the Wiesel is a leading solution for in-company handling operations and is constantly being optimised. There is now an emission-free version complete with electric drive as well as driverless, self-navigating vehicles that are currently being piloted with customers.

On the lighter end of the trailer building market, Schmitz Cargobull exhibited the S.CS universal X-LIGHT curtainsider semi-trailer, which has been further optimised with a reduction in chassis and body weight. With an unladen weight from 4,975kg, the X-LIGHT curtainsider offers a higher payload without compromising on quality or strength when compared to its predecessor.

The trailer builder also flaunted its award winning EcoDuo vehicle concept, which was designed to be ecological and economically efficient. The combination is two standard trailers connected via a dolly which is then coupled to a prime mover. Schmitz Cargobull asserts that by reducing fuel consumption, as well as the CO2 emissions per transported tonne, this combination helps to reduce traffic, relieve strain on roads and bridges and can also mitigate driver shortages.

Other curtainsiders that garnered a lot of interest at Transport Logistic was Krone’s Profi Liner with the Safe Curtain – a load securing curtain reinforced with high-strength steel strips – and the ‘comfort’ variant of the Mega Liner.

Due to these innovative side curtains, vehicle operators can reportedly open the trailer in under 30 seconds, significantly cutting loading and unloading times.

In the spirit of pushing innovation even further, Eastern German OEM, Fliegl, showcased its latest innovations in trailer design, including the Fliegl Blitz canopy top for curtainsiders. This is a new roof structure that exclusively uses spring wire rather than plastic. The wire is reported to be considerably sturdier, does not become brittle due to material fatigue and meets the demands of the full vehicle lifecycle can even be recycled.

Fliegl also exhibited its Clever, Light, Guided (CLG) Mega Dolly, which features a coupling height of around 920-950mm, which is reported to be ideal for maintaining a compact and flat statutory height limit of four metres.

The CLG ‘principle’, according to Fliegl, involves the use of a rigid under-

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coupled drawbar that joins the CLG dolly to the prime mover using conventional tyre couplings. The stable slewing ring prevents the semi-trailer from swaying, while the extended traction bar and pivot point which is moved far back to the rear optimises handling.

Talson from the Netherlands has earned a reputation as a leading box manufacturer and one of Europe’s most renowned air cargo semi-trailer builders. The company brought its upgraded 7.45 aluminium swap body to Munich, emphasising environmentallyfriendly intermodal transportation.

First produced between 1990-2000, Talson’s 7.45 aluminium swap bodies are upgraded to meet current requirements for lighter weight and robust trailing equipment – in line with EU sustainability targets.

The T.SWAU BK is said to make a difference with its weight that is on average 750kg lighter than other products on the market, according to Talson. Its modular design and aluminium composition eliminates the need for sourcing primary production raw materials while helping to protect the world’s resources.

The box body is manufactured using a special aluminium sandwich design. The modular aluminium side panels comprise six separate plates that are riveted to aluminium omega profiles allowing cheap and fast repairs

SHOW REVIEW

when needed. Being a lightweight and highquality material, the aluminium has good UV resistance (non-yellowing) and is easy to clean due to low dirt adhesion. This trailer is also equipped with a multifunctional Talfix load securing system and is suitable for double-deck applications enabling multi-level loading with 700kg capacity per one metre.

Back in Germany, local OEM, Kögel, presented two trailers in the atrium at the east entrance at Transport Logistic. One was a new variant of the Kögel Trucker Trailer. The KTT is reported to be the outcome of an opinion poll that Kögel conducted with professional drivers at the Truck Grand Prix, the Wolfsmeile festival and at motorway services. Kögel asked what makes the perfect trailer for truckers?

At the trade fair, the KTT was fitted with the Kögel FastSlider quick opening and closing system. With this system, Kögel has responded to drivers’ needs for shorter loading times and provided a quicker, easier and safer handling method for both loading and unloading. Many other optional helpful functions round off the NOVUM generation trailer, which has been adapted in line with drivers’ requirements.

The newly developed lightweight semitrailer container chassis with a central extension was also present. The Kögel Port 45 Triplex also made its début at IAA Commercial Vehicles 2018. For transport logistic 2019,

Krone brought its telematics, trailer and tyre pressure management system developments to Transport Logistic.

Kögel’s engineers fine-tuned the chassis for an even lower tare weight. With a tare weight of just 4,450kg in its basic form, a technical gross weight of 41,000kg and a fifth-wheel load of 14,000 kg, the container chassis is said to be ideal for transporting 20’, 30’, 40’ and 45’ ISO containers as well as 40’ and 45’ Highcube containers.

The OEM’s third exhibit was the new NOVUM-generation Kögel Cargo Rail.

This rail-loadable variant also has the optimised external frame profile and the improved body that characterises the NOVUM generation. As well as making the Kögel Cargo Rail even more robust, these features simplify handling in daily use.

In addition, the Kögel Cargo Rail of the NOVUM generation features a high level of customisation possibilities, and can be adapted to the specific requirements of forwarding companies. With a low tare weight starting from 6,350kg in the basic version, it is reported to be cost-effective to drive. www.transportlogistic.de

FAST FACT

German OEM, Kögel, diversifies with its proprietary axle.

At Transport Logistic 2019, 2,374 exhibitors from 63 countries were present, which was a 10 per cent rise from 2017 (2,162).

Around 64,000 visitors from 125 countries attended the event, which saw an increase of five per cent (2017: 60,726), whereas 30,000 came from abroad. The fair covered 10 halls and an outdoor area – a total exhibition space of 125,000-square-metres.

The top 10 exhibitor countries to Germany were: Netherlands, Italy, Belgium, France, Poland, China, Austria, Spain, UK and Czech Republic.

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The brands of the BPW Group: BPW I ERMAX I HBN-Teknik I HESTAL I idem telematics

*compared to conventional competitive solutions

„I think transport non-stop.“ #howdoyouthinktransport

…time savings in bearing and brake service.

With intelligent and reliable BPW running gears for your trailer fleet, you can measurably minimise downtimes. This will make your transport business even more successful. | www.bpw.de

INDUSTRY

A MASTER I N M U N I C H SINCE 1934, KÖGEL HAS MANUFACTURED MORE THAN 550,000 TRAILERS. AT TRANSPORT LOGISTIC 2019, THE TRAILER BUILDER UNVEILED ITS LATEST MANUFACTURING DEVELOPMENTS AND TELEMATICS TECHNOLOGIES.

The NOVUM generation of Kögel semi-trailers are relatively lighter in weight without compromising their durability.

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ith its commercial vehicles and solutions for freight-forwarding companies and the construction industry, the company has been providing ‘Made in Germany’ engineering quality for more than 85 years. During this period, it has maintained its passion for transport and innovation, enabling it to offer proven, long-lasting added value to freight-forwarding companies.

At this year’s Transport Logistic trade fair held in Munich, Germany, Kögel presented two trailers. One was a new variant of the Kögel Trucker Trailer (KTT), which is reported to be the outcome of an opinion poll that Kögel conducted with professional drivers at the Truck Grand Prix, the Wolfsmeile festival and at motorway services. Kögel asked what makes the perfect trailer for truckers? At the trade fair, the KTT was fitted with the Kögel FastSlider quick opening and closing system. With this system, Kögel responded to drivers’ needs for shorter loading times and provided a quicker, easier and safer handling method for both loading and unloading. Many other optional helpful functions round off the NOVUM generation trailer, which has been adapted in line with drivers’ requirements.

The newly developed lightweight semi-trailer container chassis with a central extension also made an appearance at the show. The Kögel Port 45 Triplex made its début at IAA Commercial Vehicles 2018. For transport logistic 2019, Kögel’s engineers fine-tuned the chassis for an even lower tare weight. With a tare weight of just 4,450kg in its basic form, a technical gross weight of 41,000kg and a fifthwheel load of 14,000 kg, the container chassis is said to be ideal for transporting 20’, 30’, 40’ and 45’ ISO containers as well as 40’ and 45’ Highcube containers.

The OEM’s third exhibit at Transport Logistic 2019 was the new NOVUMgeneration Kögel Cargo Rail. This rail-loadable variant also has the optimised

external frame profile and the improved body that characterises the NOVUM generation.

As well as making the Kögel Cargo Rail even more robust, these features simplify handling in daily use. In addition, the Kögel Cargo Rail of the NOVUM generation features a high level of customisation possibilities, and can be adapted to the specific requirements of forwarding companies. With a low tare weight starting from 6,350kg in the basic version, it is reported to be cost-effective to drive, too.

To complement its trailer building acumen, Kögel brought its telematics technology to the fore.

The Kögel Trailer Telematics Module (KTTM), combined with the Electronic Braking System (EBS) modulator, a cooling unit, or an optional tyre monitoring system delivers essential data about the semi-trailer’s operating state. The Kögel Telematics web portal can be used to evaluate this data as needed.

Kögel Telematics is available for all vehicles in the Kögel product portfolio. Depending on the trailer type, there are different telematics packages with various data transfer options, optional hardware equipment and pricing.

Kögel Telematics is also available as a retrofit. This enables operators to retrofit Kögel telematics in existing fleet vehicles. www.koegel.com

FAST FACT The company headquarters and main production facility of Kögel Trailer are located in the Bavarian town of Burtenbach.

Kögel also has factories and offices in Ulm (Germany), Duingen (Germany), Chocen (Czech Republic), Verona (Italy), Kampen (Netherlands) and Moscow (Russia).

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LAST MILE THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN MODERN SUPPLY CHAINS HAS THE POTENTIAL TO TRANSFORM BUSINESS PRACTICES.

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arket research in the US suggests that the number of social media users worldwide in 2019 is 3.484 billion, up nine per cent compared to 2018 results. Similarly, web traffic share by device is most favourable by mobile (52 per cent), remaining stable year-on-year.

The digital marketing experts at Smart Insights claim that the global increase in social media usage since January 2018 is nine per cent. Saudi Arabia has the largest social media penetration in 2019 at 99 per cent, which is well above the global average of 45 per cent. Other countries with the largest social media penetration include Taiwan, South Korea and Singapore. Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria have the lowest levels of social media penetration.

German database company, Statista, compiled a ranking of the most popular social networks worldwide by active users (October 2018) using data from the Global Web Index panel that showed that Facebook is ruling supreme by the million. With over two billion active users it holds the majority market share.

Google’s YouTube is second with Facebook-owned WhatsApp and Messenger not far behind.

Following these trends closely, it makes sense that Duabi-based logistics company, Aramex, is building a social media integration to modernise its supply chain operations.

US cloud communications business, Vonage, is working with Aramex through Nexmo, the Vonage API Platform, to integrate directly with the WhatsApp Business

In an April 2017 survey on US consumers who shop online, most of the respondents stated that United Parcel Service (UPS) is the parcel service that usually delivers the items they purchase.

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solution. In addition to existing messaging capabilities via Nexmo’s SMS APIs, Aramex can message customers directly through WhatsApp and use its location capabilities.

Large and small e-tailers, as well as new digital logistics operators, are using new and disruptive ‘Last Mile Delivery’ technologies.

These technologies help companies complete the final, most important step of the process: the timing of package delivery. To remain competitive, Aramex wanted to upgrade its technology-enabled solutions to allow for faster and more efficient last-mile delivery.

Leveraging the WhatsApp ‘Live Location’ feature to ensure more accurate deliveries to those areas without traditional zip codes or addresses, Aramex turned to the Nexmo Messages API, transforming the last mile by using programmable communications.

The Aramex-WhatsApp Business solution service, supported by Nexmo APIs, provides Aramex customers with a highly integrated communication and messaging channel.

With the service, Aramex is able to offer features such as ‘find the nearest Aramex location’ and ‘track and trace’ functionalities.

Aramex plans to incorporate future digital enhancements, including ‘on-demand and customised customer interaction for shipment notifications’.

“By leveraging Nexmo APIs to integrate with the WhatsApp Business solution, we are able to efficiently communicate with our customers and receive precise delivery instructions,” says Aramex Chief Digital Officer, Mohammed Sleeq. “This

LAST MILE

Logistics firms around the world are exploring new digital technologies to offer more personalised and efficient user experiences.

communications transformation has helped us enhance our last mile delivery process, and allowed us to become more effective on the ground. It also helped in reducing the number of contact centre interactions and improving the quality of service we provide to our customers.”

Omar Javaid, Chief Product Officer and EVP & GM of Nexmo, the Vonage API Platform, is adamant that forward-thinking enterprises such as Aramex want to differentiate themselves by how they engage customers and are moving

FAST FACT Earlier this year, Aramex opened an e-commerce facility in Dubai, which features new technologies including a ‘Pick to Light’ system that uses light-directed picking technology to improve accuracy and efficiency, and an automated conveyer belt system.

Aramex Head of Logistics, Saeed Mukhtar, said the centre would expand the company’s global logistics capacity and enable more start-ups and established businesses receive, process and deliver orders to customers through effective supply chain management.

beyond traditional business communications to do so.

“By tapping into Vonage’s unique combination of offerings, Aramex created deeper customer engagement through more meaningful interactions,” he says.

“We are honoured Aramex selected Vonage for its transformative efforts.”

The implementation of social media in a supply chain business is as old as the technology itself. The United Parcel Service (UPS) has been embracing connectivity with its end users for as long as Facebook and Twitter have been functional. At first, these social media platforms served as an extension of the courier business’ customer services and direct line of communication with the online community.

Like its ambitious rivals, UPS is also developing digital products to streamline its last mile delivery capabilities. In February this year, UPS launched its eFulfillment program to help sellers worldwide manage multiple marketplaces. While the application is e-commerce, it is only matter of time until these online stores integrate with social media platforms and drive growth in the last mile sector.

UPS began piloting this program in 2017 as a way to provide cutting-edge fulfillment and logistics options with access to multiple marketplaces. Pilot participant Tidal New York saw sales of its New York City-made flip flops more than triple during the pilot.

“To be able to sell across multiple stores and marketplaces is insanely attractive,” according to Tidal New York co-founder, Tim Gibb. “The ability to focus on growth instead of managing our infrastructure allows us to pursue business that we wouldn’t otherwise have had the bandwidth to go after.”

The uptake of social media in the commercial road transport industry as well as the broader logistics sector seems to be gradually rising. About 57 per cent of survey respondents, according to IDG Research Services, claimed that they do not use social media in their supply chain would be open to the idea of using it if it became available. www.globaltrailermag.com

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ME L B OU R N E CO N V E N T I O N & E X H IB I T I O N C E N T R E

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INDUSTRI U N D E R TA K I N G THE CONCEPT OF FOUR MEGA FACTORIES IN ONE CAMPUS IS QUITE INVENTIVE. FOR GERMAN TRAILER BUILDER, KÄSSBOHRER, THE EVOLUTION OF THIS PLANT FROM WHEN IT FIRST OPENED TO NOW IS PARTICULARLY IMPRESSIVE, CONSIDERING THE MANUFACTURER PRODUCES THE WIDEST RANGE OF EQUIPMENT IN EUROPE THAT MEETS THE NEEDS OF GENERAL CARGO, COLD CHAIN, INTERMODAL, CONSTRUCTION AND LIQUID AND BULK GOODS TRANSPORTATION SECTORS.

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anaging the needs of the most versatile customer base in more than 55 countries with made-to-order equipment guarantees vehicles with the fastest delivery times, in an industry that requires complex management excellence, according to COO Ahmet Yilmaz, is what the Adapazari campus achieves with four mega factories combined.

“Adhering firmly to lean production principles, all aspects of planning and production operate in a ‘plan, do, check, act’ cycle that yields constant improvement,” Yilmaz says. “Improving production with automation and robotic technologies where necessary, today Adapazari campus operates in Chassis delivered to paint shop via RFID latching crane systems.

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a 365,000-square-metre area with total annual production capacity of 20,000 vehicles.”

When Adapazari campus opened in 1993, the product range was similarly rich however the production capacity was a sixth of what it is today and was successfully carried out without the four mega factories one campus approach. In line with advancements in manufacturing technologies as well as addressing and managing the needs of a growing international customer base, capacity increase investments, product quality investments and automation and robotic manufacturing capability investments were constantly carried out.

“In 2014, onsite advanced surface coating technology Cataphoresis / KTL facility with waste water treatment facility was completed, allowing us to augment customer benefit to the maximum by presenting KTL as standard instead of an option in vehicle more vehicle types like tippers and heavy duty platforms as well as standard vehicles,” Yilmaz says.

FACTORY TOUR

OUS Between 2011-2017 the company invested 54 million euros into its automation and robotic manufacturing capabilities.

“The robotic paint application procedure, for example, allows for a quality guarantee uniform primer and top-coat paint application on KTL surfaces, resulting in 60 per cent paint savings that benefit the customer and the environment,” Yilmaz says.

Since June 2019, the campus also hosts a state-of-the-art low-bed and specialised vehicle factory that has capacity to produce 2,500 vehicles per year in double shifts. It is said to be the highest production of its type in Europe.

The four mega factories at the Adapazari campus also feature efficient use of 65

different production technologies, including automated welding, cutting and painting.

Adapazari campus is the only facility in Europe to use KTL and metallisation techniques under same giant roof.

The importance of utilising specific facilities per product line

The manufacturing of Kässbohrer’s widest product range is achieved through its

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lean management philosophy. Since 2008, Adapazari teams have working within lean principles where everything is defined, measured and improved using a set of lean tools including Balance Score Cards (BSCs).

“We maintain a centralised quality management including audit standards and quality assurance,” Yilmaz says. “For quality assurance, the journey ending at perfect Pre-Delivery Inspection (PDI) is improved with Eight Disciplines (8D) problem solving skills, jishukens, kaizens and hoshin-kanri methods where each production team and its members participate in the improvement of the process.”

Producing the widest product range in one site offers efficiencies in sourcing of raw materials and supplies to the same location as well as common usage of KTL and paint facilities. However, the unique differences of products and their production techniques are greater than the benefits of sharing basic production facilities, according to Yilmaz. The real efficiency is in complexity management, executed according to lean principles and dedication to quality assurance supported by digital systems like Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems like SAP.

The journey to perfect PDI check improved with lean methodologies.

the complexity of manufacturing the widest product range while accommodating the requests of the most versatile customer bases.

“ERP systems like SAP support our analogue efforts,” Yilmaz says.

“We position ourselves not only as a manufacturing company but as a technology company as well, which is why we have a project management office dedicated to integrated information assets and knowledge management. This unit provides the necessary physical and virtual infrastructure enabling most efficient centralised knowledge management. SAP ERP is just one of the many virtual planning tools that our project management office maintains to provide efficiency in execution and data in analysis processes.”

This application of SAP for trailer building is a major point-of-difference when compared to other OEMs. In terms of high diversity management, Kässbohrer’s usage of SAP is the best example in the world, according to Yilmaz. “Due to our excellence in implementation of lean and quality principles and methodologies, we are unprecedented in the world for adopting ERP systems like SAP to our own processes hence augmenting total efficiency in manufacturing.”

Running efficient production cycles

The implementation of SAP software across the site is critical for daily operations. Lean management and quality management are foundations that Kässbohrer uses to manage KTL facility and metallisation under one giant roof.

Dedication to perfection

Kässbohrer is unique in that it has its own dedicated PPG office. As the second largest coating specialist in the world, PPG offers surface presentation, coating and painting control as well as tracking systematics.

In terms of PPG’s refinishing process and quality assurance, the PPG office implements a management and inspection program for surface preparation, coating and painting. This enables better quality process dominance and workflows within the Kässbohrer campus.

Taking ‘Enginuity’ to the extreme

An important part of the campus is the Research and Development (R&D) facility, which engages in innovative developments, stress tests, spot testing and features a temperature box.

“The R&D and prototype test centre

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FACTORY TOUR

on campus was established in 2009,” Yilmaz says. “This site consolidated all our innovation activities and coordinated our involvement in international projects like the European Commission backed Aeroflex Project [see breakout box] to research next generation road vehicles in accordance with EU sustainability targets.”

Kässbohrer’s success with Trailer Innovation Awards, 2017 in Safety Category and 2019

FAST FACT The Aeroflex Project involves the development of energy efficient, safe, comfortable, configurable and cost-effective vehicle concepts, adapting them to everchanging working conditions. The goal of this program, which is supported and funded by the European Commission, is to develop and demonstrate new technologies, concepts and architectures for complete vehicles meeting future logistics and comodality needs and a clear focus on zero emissions.

Chassis Category can be attributed to this R&D and prototype test centre, which initiated prototyped testing and validated Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) with the assistance of 100 engineers and research fellows.

Kässbohrer Digital including Digital Trailer Control for automated trailer processes was also launched by this centre in 2014.

The centre has produced over 200 product, process and service patents in the last decade and has published 65 articles and contributed to EU white papers on aerodynamics.

Aside from advanced research in material, digital, aerodynamics fields, the centre also carries out continuous product improvement activities.

Kässbohrer has the widest product range, each itself are designed, tested, validated to be manufactured to the highest technological manufacturing capability available. With feedback from the most versatile customer base in 55 countries as well as each country geographic conditions, specifications and legal requirements, Kässbohrer today manages a product portfolio of over 1,000 unique products.

The safety, quality and customer benefits of these products and options are all designed in 3D at the centre while virtual safety and quality tests are performed.

“All these options and products are tested in the prototype centre, using the testing facilities available like stress testing, spot testing, material testing, electronics lab as well as temperature box,” Yilmaz says. “The R&D centre also supervises live road and physical tests that cannot be performed in the prototype centre to assure our customers get the best product on the market in which ever transportation segment they operate.” www.kaessbohrer.com

Robotic paint application saves 60 per cent of paint for the benefit of the environment.

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PROUDLY AUSTRALIAN

VAWDREY.COM.AU

INDUSTRY

E Y E I N T H E DETAIL

KNORR-BREMSE, ONE OF GERMANY’S MOST SUCCESSFUL INDUSTRIAL COMPANIES, SPECIALISES IN BRAKING AND OTHER COMMERCIAL VEHICLE SYSTEMS. ITS LATEST PARTNERSHIP IS SET TO TRANSFORM ROAD SAFETY THROUGHOUT EUROPE.

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he European Commission has set an expectation that in the years to follow all trucks will be equipped with driver assistance systems. This technology is designed to detect pedestrians and cyclists in close proximity of commercial vehicles and warns the driver of potential collisions. From 2022 onwards, new trucks released in the European Union (EU) will need to be fitted with a turning assistant system and from 2024 this will apply to all new registrations of trucks.

With a keen eye for capitalising on key global megatrends, German technology braking specialist, Knorr-Bremse, continues to diversify its portfolio. Last month, the company announced a new collaboration between Mobileye and Knorr-Breme TruckServices, which will see the development of a new turning assistant with integrated driver assistance system ProFleet+ as a retrofit solution. The companies also plan to further intensify their cooperation in the future and to provide their customers with additional road safety products.

Mobileye has been at the vanguard of the deployment of computer vision for automotive safety for 20 years and its technology is reported to be used by various vehicle manufacturers.

The strategic partnership combines the proven Mobileye technology with the specific know-how of Knorr-Bremse for applications in the commercial vehicle sector as well as its wide distribution and service network. This collaboration will allow fleets across Europe to easily equip their vehicles with one of the world’s most sophisticated advanced collision avoidance technologies, designed to make roads safer for everybody.

The jointly offered driver assistance system offers features such as lane departure warning, headway monitoring and warning and forward collision warning, as well as a turning assistant that alerts the driver when cornering on road users in the blind spot.

It comprises vehicle-mounted cameras (Vision Sensor) and intelligent realtime data calculation. This provides significantly more reliable results than comparable ultrasonic or radar solutions. In this way, tedious false warnings can be avoided. ProFleet Assist+ is solely designed as a warning system and does not actively intervene in vehicle control. As a result, subsequent integration into existing vehicles or fleets is easily possible. The product is also available without

the turn assist function, consisting only of a forward-facing camera and driver assistance functions such as forward collision warning and lane departure warning.

Alexander Wagner, Vice President Aftermarket EMEA of Knorr-Bremse Commercial Vehicle Systems, believes that major accident areas can be defused with this technology.

“The state-of-the-art is that we can effectively assist the driver in avoiding crash and cornering accidents,” Wagner says. “The system that we will offer in cooperation with Mobileye on the European market is an excellent opportunity to take action long before the turning assistant systems will be mandatory for new commercial vehicles in the European Union.”

Lior Sethon, Vice President and Deputy General Manager of Mobileye’s Intelligent Mobility Solutions Division, says it its Mobileye’s long-term goal to increase road safety.

“The partnership with Knorr-Bremse TruckServices gives us the opportunity to make our world-leading accident prevention technology available to a broader market,” Sethon says. “Our cooperation combines solution know-how, service capacities and partner networks, all brought together to help reduce traffic accidents and help save lives.” www.knorr-bremse.com

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INTENS O P E R AT I O N A L F O C U S EQUIPMENT SPECIALIST, SAF-HOLLAND, RELEASED ITS FY’18 RESULTS ALONG WITH ITS OPERATIONAL AND TACTICAL PRIORITIES FOR THIS FINANCIAL YEAR.

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AF-Holland CEO, Alexander Geis, who was appointed at the end of February 2019, has reported that the Group significantly exceeded its sales target, which was most recently adjusted in October 2018.

The agenda of the new CEO consists of three points. Following an unsatisfactory earnings trend in the Americas region in FY’18, the equipment specialist is accelerating the reorganisation of its US business with a project dubbed ‘FORWARD’.

The focal points of this project, according to Geis, include the optimisation of the production and supply chains, the product portfolio, the aftermarket business and the purchase of materials.

Meanwhile, in order to position itself successfully for further growth opportunities in the Chinese market, SAF-Holland has set up an experienced team of experts to support local management during the start-up of the new plant in Yangzhou and the integration of all other Chinese plants into the Greenfield project.

In a third series of measures, SAF-Holland intends to look at the more efficient use of its net working capital across the Group,

SAF-Holland CEO, Alexander Geis.

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SPECIAL REPORT

IFYING particularly through the stricter management of inventories and receivables. After years of recording strong sales growth, SAF-Holland’s priority in the current financial year will be on achieving operational excellence to support its long-term growth strategy.

At €1.301 million, Group sales in the 2018 financial year were 14.2 per cent higher than the previous year’s figure of €1.139 million.

Organic growth reached 12.2 per cent for a total of €1,278 million. V.Orlandi, York Transport Equipment and Axscend, which were consolidated for the first time in the reporting year, contributed sales of €70.9 million. Currency effects had a negative impact of €40.8 million.

The Group’s adjusted earnings before interest and taxes (adjusted EBIT) amounted to €89.6 million (previous year: €91.2 million). This decline was mainly due to

the significantly lower result of the Americas region. As a result, the adjusted EBIT margin was 6.9 per cent, which was below the previous year’s figure of 8.0 per cent.

The adjusted result for the period increased by 5.3 per cent to €55.5 million (previous year: €52.7 million) due to an improvement in the finance result and a lower tax rate. Adjusted basic earnings per share amounted to €1.22 (previous year: €1.16), and diluted adjusted earnings per share equalled €1.05 (previous year: €1.00).

Based on the expected macroeconomic and industry environment and weighing the potential risks and opportunities for the 2019 financial year, the Group Management Board of SAF-Holland expects sales at the Group level to grow in a range of 4 to 5 per cent.

From today’s perspective, SAF-Holland expects an adjusted EBIT margin around the midpoint of the range of 7 to 8 per cent for full-year 2019 (previous year 6.9 per cent). This assumption is based, in part, on the expectation of continued solid earnings performance in the EMEA, China and APAC regions.

It is also based on the Company’s anticipation of further reductions in start-up costs for the restructured plant network in the Americas region in 2019, as well as a simultaneous optimisation in the process chains and integration of capacity planning and logistics processes.

China Yangzhou Greenfield Project.

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

An interview with Alexander Geis

Global Trailer sat down Alexander Geis to learn more about his career trajectory and professional vision for SAF-Holland.

Q: You have been with SAF-Holland for more than two decades. Since July 2011, you have been a Board member and in 2016 you were made President of the EMEA region. Can you describe your professional journey with SAFHolland?

A: In 1992, I joined Sauer Achsen Fabrik (SAF), and I initially completed an apprenticeship as an industrial clerk. In 2001, as the head of the service/spare parts department, I took on my first management task. From that point on, my role went uphill quickly.

Between 2009 and 2016, as head of the Aftermarket division, I expanded the spare parts business into an internationally successful branch of SAFHolland. I have been a member of the Group Management Board since July 2011 and President of the EMEA region since January 2016. In this capacity, I have been able to decisively strengthen the European business and developed it into the company’s most profitable region. I am very proud of this achievement. Since the end of last year, I have also been responsible for global purchasing at the SAF-Holland Group as the Chief Procurement Officer.

Q: Board Chair, Martina Merz, has stated that you have exactly the right skills needed in the next phase of SAF-Holland’s corporate development.

Do you agree? What does the future potentially hold for SAF-Holland?

A: When Martina Merz asked me if I could envision succeeding Detlef Borghardt, I did not hesitate a second. It is a great honour for me to be able to actively shape the further business development of SAF-Holland – a company I have been with for more than 25 years – in this outstanding position. I have a great team working with me helping to unlock our organisation’s full potential and continue on our successful path.

SAF TRAKr.

“WE ARE ALSO CONTINUING TO LOOK FOR COMPANIES WITH WHOM WE CAN FURTHER EXPAND OUR PRODUCT AND TECHNOLOGY PORTFOLIO AND OUR MARKE T COVER AGE.” Alexander Geis SAF-Holland CEO

Q: The Management Board at SAF-Holland say that you will be focusing on stabilising the North American arm of the business and developing a long-term ‘Strategy 2025’ to promote further growth for the business.

Can you unpack these ideas for us? What can you tell us?

A: The overall situation in the North American plant network has improved in the first quarter of 2019. SAF-Holland launched the project FORWARD on 1 March 2019 to systematically realise the significant optimisation potential identified and drive forward the turnaround. The focus is on the optimisation of the production and supply chains, the product portfolio, the aftermarket business and the purchase of materials. We are still at the beginning of the strategy development process. The kick-off meeting took place in the US at this year’s Leadership Conference held at the end of March. Currently, our plan is to provide information to the broader public about ‘Strategy 2025’ in the first half of 2020.

Q: Former CEO, Detlef Borghardt, played his part in ensuring SAF-Holland reached the position of the world’s largest manufacturer of trailer axles in 2018. Can you tell me how SAF-Holland under your leadership will maintain this market lead?

A: Under Detlef Borghardt’s leadership,

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SPECIAL REPORT

the SAF-Holland Group has become one of the world’s leading suppliers of truck and trailer components. Today, we have major manufacturing facilities in Europe, North America and China, with our spare parts and service network operating in almost every market worldwide. Under my leadership, we will work even more intensively on our existing core markets – Europe and North America – and build and expand China with the new Greenfield project, thereby laying the foundations for future organic growth. We are also continuing to look for companies with whom we can further expand our product and technology portfolio and our market coverage.

Q: SAF-Holland’s purchase of Stara Group demonstrates a strong track record for expansion and further growth. Can you elaborate on this?

A: We were very active in the area of M&A last year, particularly in reference to our acquisition of V.Orlandi in Italy, York Transportation Equipment in India and Axscend in the UK. The V.Orlandi acquisition strengthened our no. 2 position in fifth wheel couplings in Europe while expanding our market presence in this segment around Russia, the Middle East and Australia. At the same time, SAF-Holland has thereby increased its specialty business with couplings and drawbar eyes for trailers and specialised commercial vehicles in areas such as industry, agriculture, forestry and mining. The York acquisition has facilitated our entry into the attractive Indian and Asian Pacific markets for trailer axles, trailer suspension systems and components.

With our acquisition of Axscend in the UK, the focus was on expanding our technology portfolio with digital trailer applications. With the acquisition of the Stara Group, we were able to purchase our former distributor for trailer axles and suspension systems in Finland and Sweden as of 1 February 2019. As previously mentioned we continue to monitor the market and will make acquisitions when we believe it makes sense.

Disc brake wheel ends ready for final assembly.

Q: International expansion has been a major trend for SAF-Holland, driving sales in Europe, North America, China and Asia. Do you have any comments to share about this worldwide growth in general?

A: In general, the trailer markets in Western Europe and North America have reached their limit in terms of number of units. In these markets, we intend to continue growing by increasing the content per trailer and growing our spare parts business. We expect above-average growth in the medium to long term, particularly in the BRIC and NEXT 11 countries (Egypt, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines, Mexico, South Korea, Turkey and Vietnam). Our expansion, which includes the Greenfield in China and the acquisition of York in India, should be seen in this context.

Q: SAF-Holland announced in February 2019 that it joined the UN Global Compact – the largest initiative responsible for corporate governance. How vital is this initiative for SAF-Holland? Do you have any other comments to share regarding SAF-Holland’s sustainability goals?

A: We see our commitment to the United Nations’ largest global initiative for responsible corporate governance as an important step towards strengthening SAF-Holland’s long-term commitment to sustainability. Being a global company presents added challenges such as respecting human rights in the supply chain, and more. With this in mind, we made the decision to revise and adapt our Code of Conduct and join the UN Global Compact. This is how we intend to demonstrate and make certain that our sustainability principles apply everywhere and that we can see the progress we have achieved.

We have realized that our aim to develop the best products for our customers, our society and our environment, goes hand-in-hand with developing the most innovative solutions. SAF-Holland achieves this by taking a holistic view of the entire value chain. Our sustainability strategy includes both the efficient use of resources in production and the continuous analysis and optimisation of processes to determine their effect on climate and environment. Because

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our products have their largest environmental impact during their service life, we have also made this one of our focal points. Here is where our claim of ‘best-in-class’ takes tangible form as we enable our customers to save fuel using our lightweight concepts, lower their direct costs and reduce downtimes due to the exceptional longevity and durability of our products.

With sustainable products and efficient production processes, we bring together economy and ecology. This not only helps us save resources and conserve the environment but also creates financial benefits for our company.

Q: Are there any new products or strategies that you are excited about?

Please elaborate.

A: Here I would like to highlight our telematics and connectivity specialist Axscend in the UK, which we acquired in July 2018. This company designs solutions to manage trailers entirely digitally, enabling fleet operators to achieve appreciable cost advantages and efficiency gains. With the patented TrailerMaster Connect Connectivity solution, an intelligent interface for the joining technology that is typically equipped with a telematics unit, each trailer can be upgraded or retrofitted to a smart trailer with numerous databased functionalities.

The second exciting topic that comes to my mind is lightweight construction.

In the past few years, we have been able to achieve massive weight savings with our trailer axles – and this process is far from complete.

In terms of products, I would like to point out our electrified trailer axles.

Our SAF TRAKr works as a generator with a power of 30 kilowatts, which can quickly go up to 50 kilowatts during braking. The power generated can be used to operate equipment that uses electricity, such as the refrigeration

Final assembly of axles.

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 “OUR SUSTAINABILIT Y STR ATEGY INCLUDES BOTH THE EFFICIENT USE OF RESOURCES IN PRODUCTION AND THE CONTINUOUS ANALYSIS AND OPTIMISATION OF PROCESSES TO DE TERMINE THEIR EFFECT ON CLIMATE AND ENVIRONMENT.” Alexander Geis SAF-Holland CEO

unit. The SAF TRAKe temporarily relieves the tractor’s drive with a maximum output of up to 120 kilowatts.

Q: Have you observed any particular market trends worth noting?

A: Over the past few years, the licensing regulations for commercial vehicles in China have been made significantly more stringent. After the implementation of previous restrictions in earlier years regarding the maximum weight, total weight per axle and the dimensions of a road train, stricter safety regulations came into force at the beginning of 2019. After a one-year transition period, the GB 7258 standard has now made the installation of disc brakes for the transport of dangerous goods mandatory since 1 January 2019.

According to this standard, the front truck axles and all trailer axles need to be equipped with disc brakes.

Starting on 1 January 1 2020, the rear truck axles and all trailer axles for Dangerous Goods transportation will also need to be equipped with air suspension systems. These regulations will also apply to all trailers with sidewalls and grid structures. SAF-Holland is well positioned with its weight-saving components and its

SPECIAL REPORT

SAF-Holland fifth wheel.

range of air suspensions and axle systems with powerful disc brake technology for the relevant demand.

A second important trend for us is emerging in the US. Whereas the majority of trailers in Europe have been equipped with disc brakes for several years, just over 20 per cent of trailers use disc brakes in the US. The US is still dominated by the traditional drum brake, which is clearly inferior in terms of performance, weight and ease of maintenance. Also, from a safety standpoint, disc brakes have clear advantages as they feature better braking performance. For example, the braking distance for a truck equipped with disc brakes is reduced by 20 per cent from 129 metres to 104 metres at a speed of 75 km/h.

In the medium term, the share of disc brake technology in the US is anticipated to increase to 30 to 35 per cent. SAFHolland has been playing a pioneering role in the European market for years and has extensive knowledge. With the use of disc brake technology in its axle systems, the Group can increase its value-add per

vehicle by 50 per cent or more.

A third trend I see is the addition of telematics systems to the trailer. The most important integration functionalities include lighting function control, load testing and optimisation, data evaluation from tire pressure monitoring systems and EBS, patented performance data and the status evaluation of the brake system. We recognised the accompanying business potential early on and therefore acquired the British telematics and connectivity specialist Axscend last year. The system developed by founder Tim Steer and his experts sends important trailer data from the brakes, lights and tires, for example, to an app that informs fleet managers in real time about the condition of their fleet.

Q: Do you have any other comments you would like to share?

A: I would like to say a brief word about digitisation. For SAF-Holland digitisation means on the one hand combining our mechanical products with sensors and electronics, i.e. the integration of electronic intelligence into our axles, suspensions and fifth wheels. This connection is absolutely necessary in order to first make automated driving possible and then to make it a reality. Another aspect of digitisation is the intelligent combination of our systems and the evaluation of the data obtained. Among other things, this enables us to monitor the wear of components, such as brake pads, and avoid causing any damage to the trailer. This is further accompanied by optimising the maintenance intervals and minimising corresponding downtime. Fleet operators also receive accurate real-time information about the position of the trailer and the load and condition of the cargo. Having access to this information allows the operators to better optimise their route and service planning. Our customers are the focus of everything we do. www.safholland.com

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CIRCULAR

ECONOMIES TURNING TYRES INTO USEABLE OIL AND GAS IS AN IMPRESSIVE FEAT FOR TIRE2OIL. THIS PRODUCTION PROCESS IS SET TO TRANSFORM SUSTAINABILITY PRACTICES FOR THE COMMERCIAL ROAD TRANSPORT INDUSTRY WORLDWIDE. [ Story by Tim de Jong ]

D

anish entrepreneur, Lars Boysen, is working to recycle tyres into various usable end products. The main method is a pyrolysis process.

Danish fleet owner, DSV, is a ‘happy’ customer for the new company (see breakout box), but Boysen considers a totally new way of dealing with residual products.

Pyrolisis means ‘to disassemble with fire’ and is also known as dry distillation – organic material is being extracted. Examples of pyrolysis include the production of charcoal and wood gassification. Tyres mostly constitute oil, steel and carbon powder.

The factory in the Danish town of Egebjerg recently produced its first litre of useable oil. Like their plan, the Danes succeeded in recycling the first batch of car and trailer tyres. From worn-out tyres, synthetic gas was

harvested which can be used in turbines or generators to keep a village the size of Egebjerg warm during winter.

A more sustainable perspective

The perspective of tyres being recycled into reusable materials is gigantic.

“By the end of the year we will be processing around 50 tonnes of tyres per day, but this is nothing compared to the potential that these technologies have,” Boysen says – adding that annually 13 million tyres are

S. Sotkov and Lars Boysen.

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TIRE2OIL

End-of-life tyres are being repurposed by innovative companies such as Tire2Oil.

written off and only 3.4 million tyres are being reused. “Of all the worn-out tyres the destination of 40 per cent of them is unknown. Most of the time they are being processed into granulate, but a significant part is being exported again.”

According to Boysen, there is growing demand for products that originate from the pyrolysis process with worn-out trailer tyres.

“Like for instance carbon powder is facing growing demand in Europe,” he says. “It is being used in several endproducts. Actually, we don’t yet even know all possible applications.”

There is also serious demand for carbon powder in China and India, a semi-finished product widely used in various production processes.

“The same can be said of the oil that we extract from the tyres,” Boysen says. “The oil can be used in producing paint, or redistillate to produce chemicals like acetone. It can be used as a fuel for ships and as a cleaning material in tanks of any kind. It can be used as a diesel fuel, but this time, we’re talking about a renewable fuel.”

He expects that the oil generated from old tyres can also replace palm-oil.

Pushing for a circular economy The European tyre industry has seen the rise of Tire2Oil. According to Boysen, a modern tyre manufacturer has to invest four million euros to make their current

production process circular.

“For giant manufacturers like the wellknown tyre brands, that’s little more than nothing,” he says, comparing Tire2Oil to a little seed. “You can stand on the seed, and it’s gone, certainly its potential. Or you let it grow and see what advantages can be gained form it for you and for your company.”

Boysen mentions the price of carbon powder currently is about 1,200-1,500 euros per tonne. If recycled, it costs about half that price. “Carbon powder is worth more than the oil we generate.”

All recycled products can be used again in producing new tyres, but there are many rules to consider when re-using materials in tyres.

“Before you’re allowed to sell tyres which contain recycled carbon powder, they must be tested in practice during seven years,” Boysen says. “The steel that comes from old tyres may be made ready for reuse, but again, this has also got to be tested. Lawmakers play a key-role in realising processes that bring change.

Even for carbon powder, certificates of recognition appear to be necessary.”

Boysen is convinced that this all going to work. “At a certain moment, paper recycling was something new,” he says. “I remember my dad being most doubtful about this development. Reading a newspaper made out of recycled paper? Nowadays, this is very common. But it’s a process that takes time.”

Small plants

According to Boysen, Denmark has some 29 plants where waste is being processed.

“In ten years, they will all be gone,” he says, predicting that waste streams will be dealt with locally instead of on a bigger scale, which is the case now.

“It is not sustainable when you drag your waste to all corners of the planet in order to get it recycled, which is very much the case now. I expect this to end.

Recycled tyre products can be used to produce new tyres but there are legalities to consider.

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TIRE2OIL

Oil as a byproduct from used tyres.

During the pyrolysis process we generate gas which can be used to warm our village here, in Egebjerg.”

Boysen expects this to become the trend. Remanufacturing waste is going to be a local business. “It saves us many transportation costs of semi-finished products. This is also a reason why eventually, I expect the traditional tyre industry to invest in a process like ours.”

All kinds of tyres

The plant in Egebjerg can process all kinds of tyres. All equipment for it is made in Denmark. The process takes place in a compact production line.

During our visit, we saw a number of trailer tyres from several manufacturers, for instance of Krone and of GiTi. The tyres are broken down to very small pieces after which they are heated without oxygen to very high temperatures.

The resources of which the tyres consist, stay in shape. During several production stages, the gases, the oil and the carbon powder are being separated.

The plant in Egebjerg now has one production line, which can handle 15,000 tonnes of tyres annually, or two million tyres. This generates 6,300 tonnes of oil, 5,700 tons of carbon powder, 2,250 tonnes of steel and 750 tonnes of gas.

An international outlook

Boysen and his team are not the only ones involved in the business of tyre recycling. The intention is to triple production in Egebjerg.

“We still have sufficient space to realise this at this location,” he says. “Getting the tyres over here is no problem either.”

Other countries which take to this method of recycling are China and Colombia. In Europe, there is interest for the Danish model, most obviously from Spain, where a similar production line is being established.

Companies in Turkey are working with the same process as well, according to Boysen. “It is clear, that this is a disruptive industry. But we have to conclude that the seed I was referring to, has started to grow into an alternative way of production of which no one can deny that it is very sustainable. Should

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a tyre manufacturer look closely at the investment and the expected returns when investing in this recycling method, he will conclude that it takes only two years two earn back his investment. If you compare this to the traditional system, where you have to work with much larger amounts to invest in processes, and where it takes some twenty years to earn it back, than this is a quite a promising technology.” www.tire2oil.com

DSV ON TI RE2OI L Søren Lund is the Fleet Manager at DSV, managing a fleet of approx. 10,000 trailers.

His challenge is to reduce tyre costs as much as possible. This inspired him a few years ago to start importing Ultra Seal, a sealant from the US that proved successful in the trailer fleet at DSV. “Before Ultra Seal we changed 14.000 tyres a year, now it is only 8,000 on a bit more trailers,” Lund explains.

At present, Lund orders his trailers on Westlake tyres which perform as premium tyres, but with a lower purchase price, he says. Lund is a true advocate of both Ultra Seal and Tire2Oil: “Ultra-seal is not harming the environment, and can as a liquid, be flushed directly into the drain. It has no negative effect if the tyres are scrapped by granulating, pyrolysis or burning. T2O has a general license to collect and scrap tyres, and I expect them to be used by many more fleet owners. Denmark is slightly different than other countries as a scrapping fee is paid by the distributor when the tyres are sold. This money goes back into collecting and scrapping the tyres. Pyrolysis is more environmentally friendly than any other scrapping method because there’s no emission or waste, so I think it will have a great future worldwide.”

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FOR EDITORIAL ENQUIRIES: luke.applebee@primecreative.com.au FOR ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES: ashley.blachford@primecreative.com.au

OUT OF

PRECEDENT FOR

ON THE QUEST TO BECOMING THE FIRST TRULY GLOBAL ORGANISATION IN THE HISTORY OF TRAILER MANUFACTURING, CIMC VEHICLES HAS LEARNED THAT STAYING TRUE TO A GRAND VISION DOESN’T PRECLUDE STRATEGIC FLEXIBILITY.

PERSE VERANCE D [Story & Interview by Sebastian Grote]

avid Li, General Manager of CIMC Vehicles, the trailer building arm of China’s International Marine Container (CIMC) Group, isn’t quite what you’d expect of a man who has built a €1.93 billion industrial empire from the bottom up.

Distinctly humble in his bearing and refreshingly unpolished in his language, the industry veteran is enveloped in an aura of authenticity and adventure that is much more Silicon Valley than Shenzhen Special Economic Zone (the official jargon for a giant business incubation area the Chinese government has set up across the bay from Hong Kong to help local businesses connect more easily with the western world).

As such, there is nothing imperious about Li laying out his plan to build the world’s first international trailer building company – only genuine excitement in an idea so captivatingly grand that it would arguably suit an intrepid start-up more than an asset-rich manufacturing firm operating FAST FACT in a time of extreme economic volatility.

CIMC Vehicles’ US subsidiary, Understanding the phenomenon that is Vanguard, is currently finalising CIMC Vehicles is therefore not so much a construction of a second factory in question of mapping out the business itself Trenton, Georgia. The €32 million as it is one of getting to know the man manufacturing plant will eventually employ 400 people and produce behind it – a scenario akin to US start-up 10,000 semi-trailers annually.

Tesla, which is largely dependent on the

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MIND

A KEY TALKING POINT OF THE 2014 IAA COMMERCIAL VEHICLE SHOW, THE BRUISED RUSSIAN ECONOMY HAS FAILED TO TURN ITSELF AROUND IN TIME FOR THE NEXT EDITION OF THE ICONIC EVENT. WILL IT STILL CONTINUE TO OWN THE CONVERSATION, THOUGH? [ Story by Sebastian Grote ]

M

uddling through the longest recession since the turn of the century, Russia has racked up a sizeable budget deficit and is on track for yet another year of negative growth. Meanwhile, the prospect of fiscal relief is growing distant, with oil in a bear market after closing below $40 a barrel in August – theoretically making for a highly dramatic narrative in the lead-up to the largest transport industry gathering on the planet.

But if you ask Denis Krivtsov, head of Russian OEM, Tonar, the country’s fragile economic state doesn’t necessarily mean it will become as prominent a topic as it was in 2014, when the Ukraine conflict and the annexation of Crimea were still fresh in mind and the European Union (EU) put an abrupt hold on west-east trade.

According to Krivtsov, much of the western trailer community has since found

new growth potential in the heart of Europe and the still-sprawling east of the continent, leaving Russian businesses alone in dealing with what could be the most severe market slowdown in a decade or two. As a result, he says it is now up to the domestic transport equipment community to consolidate ahead of the parliamentary election in mid-September, which is hoped to give the battered economy a much-needed boost.

“The Russian economy hasn’t really improved much since the last instalment of IAA. In fact, many local businesses have since folded as they simply refused to learn from the last crisis,” he explains – pointing to the EU’s recent decision to prolong economic sanctions against Russia until 31 January 2017.

In August 2016, the Financial Times publically wondered whether Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos was intending to drive everyone else in US retail crazy. The reason: Bezos is on a mission to re-define the classic concept of retail logistics. Instead of outsourcing the whole process, he set up a complex in-house transport network that has been aggressively expanding its reach, capabilities and capacity in the logistics and distribution arena over the past year or so. As part of the process, the Seattlebased company is now operating thousands of trailers emblazoned with Amazon’s logos acrosss North America. In Europe, Amazon is expanding rapidly as well, potentially making it a key talking point of the next IAA.

PEOPLE TO WATCH

THE

ALEXANDER DOBRINDT, GERMAN FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

ELEMENT ALBEIT A SUBSTANTIAL BUSINESS EXPENSE, VISITING A TRADE SHOW LIKE IAA IS A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO MEET SOME OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE IN COMMERCIAL ROAD TRANSPORT IN THE FLESH – A KEY ADVANTAGE IN THE DIGITAL AGE. [ Story by Sebastian Grote ]

F

rom wireless connectivity to electric mobility, the digital world is slowly infiltrating every aspect of commercial road transport. Yet although high technology is expected to dominate the conversation at this year’s IAA Commercial Vehicle Show in Germany (see page 52), it will be people that ultimately set the narrative. In fact, there is a distinct irony to the rise of technology in the manufacturing, according to best-selling US author, Daniel Pink, who has found that forging personal relationships is becoming ever more important as skill-sets evolve and demand more cognitive proficiency.

So-called ‘thought jobs’, as Pink puts it, require a higher level of creativity, problem-solving prowess and out-of-the-box thinking, meaning that in order for a business to be successful, leveraging the unique human element behind each employee is key.

FAST FACT According to Russian Economy Development Minister, Aleksey Ulyukaev, the country’s economy is set to grow in the near future, as “the situation in the real sector of economy is improving and the dynamics of industrial production are positive”.

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globaltrailermag.com

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As such, he says fostering personal relationships in real life, for example in the context of a trade show, will ultimately help businesses become more profitable.

In line with Pink’s assumption, Global Trailer has selected ten prominent individuals that have the potential to put their mark on the 2016 edition of the largest global transport industry gathering – either by attending it or as the subject of intense discussion. www.globaltrailermag.com

Germany’s Federal Minister for Transport and Digital Infrastructure, Alexander Dobrindt, is slated to officially open the 66th IAA Commercial Vehicle Show in Hanover.

Dobrindt recently made headlines in Germany when he proposed self-driving vehicles in Germany should be fitted with a black box that is able to record specific details of an accident, much like in the aviation industry. According to newswire, Reuters, his proposal would require drivers to stay seated in front of the steering wheel, even tough they may not have to pay attention to traffic or actually steer. Despite that cautionary measure, Dobrindt approved six German cities – Hamburg, Munich, Ingolstadt, Düsseldorf, Dresden and Braunschweig – to become testing grounds for self-driving vehicles as part of a US$89 million (€80 million) project.

İIFFET TÜRKEN, KÄSSBOHRER As the Executive Board Member responsible for Business Development at German OEM Kässbohrer – which is part of the Tirsan Group, the largest trailer manufacturing company in Turkey – Türken is considered one of the most influential personalities in European trailer building, and one of the most powerful women in the global transport equipment industry. The now 44-year-old joined the Tirsan Group in 1996 after graduating from Bogaziçi University in Istanbul and has since been stirring up Europe’s trailer building landscape – helping establish the Kässbohrer brand amongst the top ten in Europe.

PETER SIJS, TIP TRAILER SERVICES Overseeing the procurement processes for a 71,000-unit strong fleet that covers some five billion kilometres every year, Sijs, Services and Sourcing Operations Leader Europe at TIP Trailer Services, is considered one of the most influential people in Europe’s transport equipment industry. Having to replace up to 15,000 trailers annually, TIP Trailer Services spends an average of €30 million per year on parts alone – prompting Sijs to work closely with component suppliers and OEMs to leverage the latest in technology and develop new strategies to create competitive advantages. Most recently, he collaborated with German braking specialist Knorr-Bremse on the development of the company’s awardwinning iTAP system with FleetRemote functionality.

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WORLD EVENTS

THE GREAT AMERICAN

TRUCKING SHOW 22-24 AUGUST Dallas, Texas, US The Great American Trucking Show is an interactive and all-encompassing public convention of trucking professionals. More than 500 exhibitors meet at GATS, representing truck, trailer, engine, component and parts manufacturers, among many others. GATS exists to create an interactive, energising environment entirely focused on trucking’s improvement.

FTR TRANSPORTATION

CONFERENCE 2019 10-12 SEPTEMBER Indianapolis, Indiana, US Historic Union Station FTR’s annual conference is recognised for delivering the most complete and comprehensive outlook on freight transportation in North America. Attendees receive indepth information from industry leaders on all the surface freight transport modes. www.ftrconference.com

www.truckshow.com

COMTRANS 2019 2-7 SEPTEMBER

Crocus Expo, Moscow, Russia As the only exhibition of commercial vehicles in Russia, COMTRANS is a bi-annual event that provides the leading global and domestic manufacturers of commercial vehicles with the opportunity to present their achievements at the largest exhibition platform in Eastern Europe – in IEC Crocus Expo. www.comtransexpo.ru

NORTH AMERICAN

COMMERCIAL VEHICLE SHOW 2019

28-31 OCTOBER Georgia World Congress Centre, Georgia, US The first North American Commercial Vehicle Show (NACV Show) in 2017 hosted 439 exhibitors covering 370,000 square feet of net exhibition space at the Georgia World Congress Center. Thirty per cent of exhibitors are headquartered outside of the United States. A total of 6,000 unique visitors and 9,000 visits for the four-day show represented industry leaders, suppliers, top fleet owners and managers and 234 accredited international journalists. www.nacvshow.com

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KEEP A LOOK OUT Breakbulk Middle East 2020 25-26 February Dubai World Trade Centre, Dubai www.middleeast.breakbulk.com

SOLUTRANS 2019

19-23 NOVEMBER Euroexpo, Lyon, France Now in its 15th edition, Solutrans remains a benchmark event for technological innovation and transportation solutions in France. It is not only a forum for the entire commercial transport industry, but a meeting place for all industry professionals associated with road haulage and urban transport. www.solutrans.eu

MEGATRANS2020 1-3 April Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre Melbourne, Australia www.megatrans.com.au FOR Logistic 2020 12-15 May Prague, Czech Republic www.forlogistic.cz CEM 2020 13-15 May Kraków, Poland www.ilmexhibitions.com/cem IAA Commercial Vehicles 2020 24 September - 1 October Hanover, Germany www.iaa.de

INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION FOR

TRUCK, TRAILER, TIPPER, TANKER, TYRE OEM & ALLIED INDUSTRY 2019

22-24 NOVEMBER

Transport Scandinavia 2021 15-17 April Herning, Denmark www.transport-messen.dk

CIDCO Exhibition & Convention Center, Mumbai, India Truck, Trailer and Tyre Expo has been instrumental in providing an apt platform to the industry players and OEMs to explore the market potential for their products in India, according to the event organisers. The Expo is set to showcase a complete range of commercial vehicle technologies and products as well as provide B2B networking opportunities. www.trucktrailerntyreexpo.com

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M E GATR E N D S

LO C K AND LOAD AN INVENTIVE DELIVERY SYSTEM BEING TESTED IN THE US COULD INSPIRE ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURERS TO DEVELOP A NEW TYPE OF SEMI-TRAILER SPEC’D FOR LAST MILE APPLICATIONS.

R

ecent data suggests the market share of express parcel deliveries in the US is 46 per cent. With demand for timely deliveries on the rise, logistics companies and OEMs are innovating to stay ahead of the competition.

Former Tesla and Uber engineers are testing an autonomous parcel delivery vehicle which has the potential to influence last mile innovations in the future.

US-based logistics company, OnTrac, has partnered with last mile logistics and automation start-up, Boxbot, to test a new autonomous delivery system.

Boxbot – which was founded by experienced Tesla and Uber engineers, Austin Oehlerking and Mark Godwin – is a vehicle with lockers that can be booked for timely deliveries. Customers who Could a semi-trailer function as have scheduled this service will receive a text notification upon the a mobile mailbox in the future? vehicle’s arrival and then the customer should be able to retrieve their package by using a unique code.

OnTrac President, Rob Humphrey, said his company has worked of a safety driver during testing. with Boxbot for months to test its technology, identify new ways in This concept could be adapted, on a larger which autonomy can improve the delivery experience and integrate within scale, via semi-trailer implementation. the existing OnTrac delivery infrastructure.

While, the preference for inner-city OnTrac and Boxbot are due to expand testing later this year in Northern mobility would be to adhere to rigid-bodied California, US. As part of the expanded partnership, Boxbot is reported to vehicle designs – for manoeuvrability and be operating as a regional service provider for OnTrac, handling last-mile access reasons – it would not be a stretch to deliveries through Boxbot’s fleet of delivery vans and drivers. consider the possibilities of building trailing Boxbot will reportedly manage these deliveries via a unique system that equipment with a series of in-built lockers. combines an automated local hub, located close to residential areas, with a fleet of street-based delivery vehicles. Boxbot’s automated local hubs The benefits with a semi-trailer design store and sort parcels before automatically loading them for delivery. Also, include greater storage capacity and better security. Also, this trailer could also be Boxbot’s fleet includes two types of vehicles: parcel delivery vans and selfdriving electric vehicles that can manage more complex deliveries, like those uncoupled from the prime mover and requiring signatures. parked to function as a mobile locker storage system.

The Boxbot delivery vehicles can be re-loaded with packages throughout the day at automated hubs. The start-up claims that by automating this As the parcel market continues to process, vehicle operators using this system will be more efficient in their boom, both in and outside of the US, day-to-day operations because they will not need worry about loading, specialised manufacturers and logistics organising or finding packages. firms will continue to explore new ways of Last year, Boxbot received an Autonomous Vehicle Testing Permit from the meeting, and possibly exceeding, consumer California Department of Motor Vehicles. Also, to comply with California demand. www.globaltrailermag.com regulations, Boxbot’s autonomous vehicles operate under the supervision

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Efficiency runs in the family.

THE IDEAL SOLUTION FOR EVERY TRAILER WHEELEND: THE ST7 AND THE ST6.

With their potential to reduce weight and minimize downtimes, wheelends can play a valuable part in making your fleet even more efficient. With the trailer-specific two-piston ST7 brake, Knorr-Bremse set new standards in the 22.5-inch wheel segment. The identically designed ST6 version for compact wheelends is extending the success story to 19.5-inch applications. Tipping the scales at less than 32 kilograms, the ST6 is a real lightweight, enabling you to save fuel and/or increase the payload. | www. knorr-bremseCVS.com |

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