Prime Mover November 2023

T H E P E O P L E & P R O D U C T S T H AT M A K E T R A N S P O R T M OV E

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November 2023

N OV E M B E R 2023

Allied Express Executive Action

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NOVEMBER 2023 $11.00

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INDUSTRY Carrier: St Vincent de Paul Spotlight: North East Bin Hire Showcase: Safety Tech & Applications Personality Profile: Michael May

INNOVATION Fleet: Prestige Civil Group Roadtrains: Mineral Resources Test Drive: Mack Super-Liner Delivery: Brisbane Valley Refrigeration

AUSTRALIA’S GUIDE TO UTES, VANS, LIGHT TRUCKS & PEOPLE MOVERS

Delivery Magazine inside: Pages 60-65.

MAGAZINE

Care.

Care.

It’s It’swhat whatwe wedo. do.

At Isuzu, we’ve always taken great carecare of our customers.

At Isuzu, we’ve always taken great of our customers.

We’re Australia’s number oneone truck… an honour we’ve heldheld for over We’re Australia’s number truck… an honour we’ve for over three decades. three decades.

ThatThat means more businesses put put theirtheir trust in usinthan anyany other truck brand. means more businesses trust us than other truck brand.

We understand thatthat reputations are are riding on us that’s whywhy Isuzu CareCare is is We understand reputations riding onand us and that’s Isuzu more thanthan justjust an aftersales service package. more an aftersales service package.

It’s part of our DNA. It’s part of our DNA. From dayday one,one, we support customers andand demonstrate thatthat reliability is is From we support customers demonstrate reliability everything.

We pride ourselves on being proactive and always going the everything. We pride ourselves on being proactive and always going the extra mile.mile. extra AndAnd as we to new frontiers, we’re finding newnew ways to help our our customers as look we look to new frontiers, we’re finding ways to help customers exceed their goals. exceed their goals.

Isuzu CareCare is what setssets us apart.

Isuzu is what us apart.

Always has,has, always will.will.

Always always

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MEET THE TEAM

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November 2023

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N OV E M B E R 2023

Australia’s leading truck magazine, Prime Mover, continues to invest more in its products and showcases a deep pool of editorial talent with a unique mix of experience and knowledge.

T H E P E O P L E & P R O D U C T S T H AT M A K E T R A N S P O RT M OV E

LESS FUEL, MORE PERFORMANCE

Allied Express Executive Action

Christine Clancy | COO

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With more than two decades of experience as a media professional, Christine has worked in newsrooms across Canada, Vietnam and Australia. She joined the Prime Creative Media team 12 years ago, and today oversees more than 43 titles, including a dozen print and digital transportation titles. She continues to lead a team that focuses on continuous improvement to deliver quality insights that helps the commercial road transport industry grow.

A seasoned transport industry professional, Peter has spent more than a decade in the media industry. Starting out as a heavy vehicle mechanic, he managed a fuel tanker fleet and held a range of senior marketing and management positions in the oil and chemicals industry before becoming a nationally acclaimed transport journalist.

Louise Surette | Journalist

Louise joins Prime Mover after nearly 25 years as a writer. Starting her career as a reporter at the Toronto Star, she has spent much of the last 15 years as a design writer and editor.

In 2020, she was shortlisted on the Richell Emerging Writers Prize list. Originally from Nova Scotia, she lives in Melbourne with her two children.

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INDUSTRY Carrier: St Vincent de Paul Spotlight: North East Bin Hire Showcase: Safety Tech & Applications Personality Profile: Michael May

INNOVATION Fleet: Prestige Civil Group Roadtrains: Mineral Resources Test Drive: Mack Super-Liner Delivery: Brisbane Valley Refrigeration

AUSTRALIA’S GUIDE TO UTES, VANS, LIGHT TRUCKS & PEOPLE MOVERS

ceo

Peter Shields | Senior Feature Writer

ISSN 1838-2320

Delivery Magazine inside: Pages 60-65.

*Compared with a typical 10W-40 oil over a 100,000 km oil drain interval.

William Craske | Editor

Over the past two decades William has published widely on transport, logistics, politics, agriculture, cinema, music and sports He has held senior positions in marketing and publicity for multinational businesses in the entertainment industry and is the author of two plays and a book on Australian film history. Like many based in Melbourne he is in a prolonged transition of either returning or leaving.

NOVEMBER 2023 $11.00

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editor managing editor, transport group senior feature writer

MAGAZINE

John Murphy john.murphy@primecreative.com.au William Craske william.craske@primecreative.com.au Luke Applebee luke.applebee@primecreative.com.au Peter Shields peter.shields@primecreative.com.au

business development manager

Ashley Blachford ashley.blachford@primecreative.com.au 0425 699 819

art director

Blake Storey blake.storey@primecreative.com.au Kerry Pert , Louis Romero, Tom Anderson

design journalists

Peter White peter.white@primecreative.com.au Louise Surette louise.surette@primecreative.com.au

design production manager

Michelle Weston michelle.weston@primecreative.com.au

client success manager

Salma Kennedy salma.kennedy@primecreative.com.au

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379 Docklands Drive, Docklands VIC 3008 enquiries@primecreative.com.au

Peter White | Journalist

Ashley Blachford | Business Development Manager

Handling placements for Prime Mover magazine, Ashley has a unique perspective on the world of truck building both domestically and internationally. Focused on delivering the best results for advertisers, Ashley works closely with the editorial team to ensure the best integration of brand messaging across both print and digital platforms.

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Peter has completed a Bachelor of Media and Communication (Media Industries) degree at La Trobe University, and he brings a fresh perspective to Prime Mover. He gained valuable experience at Upstart, La Trobe’s newsroom, work that has been supplemented by direct industry experience in a Council placement.

Peter has a strong interest in commercial road transport, and in contributing to Prime Mover’s efforts in growing the industry.

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CONTENTS

Prime Mover November 2023

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COVER STORY “I suppose it’s like the ten minutes before you run on for the Grand Final. To see it in action over the next couple of months in our busiest timeframe of the year and when our customers rely on us the most is super exciting.”

MR DEEDS

Prime Feature

STORIES

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Auto Focus Mineral Resources will deploy the world’s first fully autonomous roadtrains all of which will completely rely on SAF-Holland’s Neway AD Series Suspension.

TEST DRIVE

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High and Mighty Mack has captured a lot of attention with its integrated 70inch sleeper Super-Liner. Prime Mover puts it to the test in the outback.

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Regular Run

FLEET FOCUS Executive Action Successive investments in infrastructure and new equipment have set in motion a plan for major growth opportunities at Allied Express.

Keys to Deliverance Economic and social pressures can cause a strain on the lives of many people in our society. Vinnies is there to help.

34

Mr Deeds Prestige Civil Group provides a variety of services to its clients and its success can be attributed to the hard work and passion of its founder and his expanding team.

TRUCK & TECH

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Skip to the End From domestic detritus to commercial off-cuts and everything in between, Tom Hogan of North East Bin Hire is passionate about recycling, reusing and minimising landfill.

08 10 46 56 58 60 66 68 69 70

From the Editor Prime Mover News Safety Technology & Applications Showcase Personality Profile Prime Movers & Shakers Delivery ARTSA-I Life Members Truck Industry Council Victorian Transport Association Peter Shields’ Number Crunch

FROM THE EDITOR

Ancient Histories William Craske Editor George Westinghouse negotiated his first contract with Nikola Tesla on horsepower. The figure, if the surviving historical record is accurate, was $2.50 per horsepower of alternating current generated from Tesla’s polyphase induction motor. Tesla died destitute.

But it wasn’t for lack of production despite horsepower, as a measurable power unit, being notoriously difficult to quantify. The reason has a great deal to do with its origins to which Scottish engineer James Watt, who first adopted horsepower to promote his improved variant on the steam engine, played a significant role. Watt was keen to impress upon a market still, by 1776, dominated by horsedrawn carriers, before he condemned it to obsolescence, the concept of horsepower. To do this, he juxtaposed the amount of work a horse could do over a day, estimated ultimately as a force of 180 pounds, as a sustained output for an amount of energy transferred over time; besides oxen just doesn’t have the same ring to it. Not that it ever did. Mass management and horsepower, as we shall see, have been

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entwined in perpetuity. Horses had for millennia been harnessed the same way as oxen. Because such a harness could throttle a horse, load bearing legislation was put in place by the Romans. The Theodosian Code decreed the severest of punishment for anyone who hooked a load to a horse more than the equivalent of 500 kilograms according to Jean Gimpel’s landmark study The Industrial Revolution in the Middle Ages. It wasn’t until the erroneously named Dark Ages when a rigid, well-padded collar was adopted that properly placed the weight on the horse’s shoulders instead of its neck, enabling the horse to pull as much as the ox and to pull it much faster.

Having adopted the horse collar, European farmers soon switched from oxen to horses, with an immense gain in productivity — a horse could plow more than twice as much per day as an ox.

Having gained a much more efficient substitute for the ox, medieval Europeans promptly invented the heavy, wheeled plow to improve the productivity of their fertile but very heavy soil in the colder regions of Europe where deep furrows were required unlike the cross scratching in practice across the surface in the more arid regions of Mediterranean climes.

Today in motor vehicle specifications

horsepower is mostly interchangeable with kilowatts and Newton metres in usage despite alluding to different metrics such as compound units of torque, in the latter example.

Horsepower need not be limited to land. Callum Douglas makes an interesting case of such things in his WW2 book The Secret Horsepower Race, on the design and secret intelligence behind military air supremacy.

By this time Rudolf Diesel had made his indelible mark on industries that had until then primarily relied on heating water by burning coal as the predominant power source. It had been a 160-year reign all the same.

History, it would seem, is not yet done with the figure of James Watt who looms equally large over future industry. Tesla, for the recent rehabilitation of his name and contribution to engineering, might have been better to have had a unit of power named after him. One kilowatt is not, after all, the same as one horsepower. Nor is a patent equal to a legacy, which is controlled by the many not the few.

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PRIME NEWS

> Truck width limits increased in Australia Major changes to the national road vehicle standards have been made that will see an increase to the overall width limit on Australian trucks. The move anticipated for some time in parts of the industry was announced by the Federal Government as part of what it has called a Safer Freight Vehicles package. It is likely to have wide ranging ramifications for the industry across manufacturing, safety, productivity and new vehicle technology.

An increase of the overall width from 2.50 to 2.55 metres for new trucks, provided they are fitted with a number of safety features, is also expected to encourage the rollout of electric and hydrogen trucks from overseas.

It may also change the complexion of the strong local manufacturing market by encouraging involvement from OEMs from Europe, where the width dimensions now align with the local market. Elsewhere, manufacturers like Tesla, whose electric Semi previously exceeded the old truck regulations by a width of 34mm, are certain to welcome the dimensional increases which, under the Safer

Freight Vehicles package, come into effect from 1 October 2023. Under the changes the overall width limit for buses and trailers, however, won’t change.

New trucks under compliance must have devices to reduce blind spots, electronic stability control, advanced emergency braking, a lane departure warning system, better reflective markings, and side guards to stop pedestrians and cyclists from being caught up under the rear wheels of trucks. Additionally, a number of safety devices and sensors will be able to be fitted to trucks without counting towards the width and length measurements. This includes front and kerb view mirrors to better see around the front-left corner of the vehicle, external parts of camera monitor systems for improved indirect vision, blind spot sensors, and cross-view mirrors to see in front of bonneted vehicles.

This will ensure manufacturers and owners are not disadvantaged by fitting trucks with these road safety technologies. According to Truck Industry Council CEO Tony McMullan, A Kenworth prime mover crosses the Yarra River in Melbourne.

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alignment with international market regulations for vehicle mass and dimensions, as well as safety and emission technologies are key to allowing local manufacturers and importers greater access to the latest technology and models from global markets.

“Allowing 2.55m width vehicles on Australian roads meant that these vehicles could be fitted with the latest safety technologies and importantly will result in the faster deployment of zero emission vehicles in Australia,” said McMullan.

The Safer Freight Vehicles package comes in response to direct calls from industry to increase the width limit of trucks, and follows extensive public consultation and feedback according to Federal Assistant Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Carol Brown.

“These changes will be a real gamechanger for industry, businesses and other road users, as they will save lives by adopting technology to reduce the likelihood of crashes, while also lowering freight costs and supporting better environmental outcomes,” said Brown.

The National Heavy Vehicle Regulator, who previously identified current width limits as a barrier to the uptake of safety technologies, welcomed the announcement.

NHVR CEO Sal Petroccitto OAM said the regulator had long advocated for increased harmonisation of Australian vehicle standards with global standards.

“These changes will allow manufacturers to bring their latest designs, fitted with a full suite of safety and environmental technologies, to market in Australia,” he said. “We have been working with the Commonwealth, our partners and industry to explore how we can enact change to align with international standards and promote the highest possible level of safety.”

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PRIME NEWS

> Australia Post looks to fill thousands of transport jobs Australia Post is looking to recruit around 3,000 seasonal casuals as it ramps up operations in the lead to Christmas. This year’s seasonal recruitment drive is focused on finding people with specific skills, experience and licenses. At the top of Australia Post’s priorities are applicants with a valid forklift or truck license.

However, seasonal casual roles are also available for freight handlers and parcel processors across the delivery network.

Although roles are available across all states and territories, it was reported that New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland have the highest demand for seasonal casuals.

Australia Post Executive General Manager People and Culture, Susan Davies, highlighted the critical role that seasonal casuals play in helping Australia Post ensure deliveries reach customers in time for the holiday period.

A Volvo semi on linehaul.

“As we approach our busiest time of year, we’re looking to bolster our workforce to ensure we can meet increased demand and maintain the high level of service Australians expect from Australia Post,” she said.

“We’re looking for seasonal casuals to work alongside our existing team members and would love to hear from people who have a valid forklift or truck license, as well as people looking to work in parcel processing, deliveries and freight handling.”

Taking up a casual role at Australia Post over the Christmas period, Davies said, could possibly lead to future employment opportunities with the company.

“Working at Australia Post offers team members the opportunity to be a part of a great, supportive team and help to spread the Merry this Christmas,” she said. “Working in a seasonal casual role can also create opportunities to work with Australia Post beyond the end of the year.”

> Reddy Express to replace Coles Express

Artist impression of the new retail presence of Reddy Express.

Viva Energy has announced a new brand that will gradually replace Coles Express across the country. Launched in September, Reddy Express will operate alongside the On The Run (OTR) offer as it rolls out store conversions.

As part of the acquisition of the Coles Express convenience business in September last year, the convenience stores were to continue to trade under the Coles Express brand on a transitional basis, but over time would carry new store brands. Under the arrangements agreed with Coles Group, reference to 12

November 2023

‘Coles Express’ will be removed from the sites and replaced over the course of 3.5 years from completion of the acquisition, with most rebranded over two years.

Viva Energy is in the process of obtaining regulatory approvals to complete the acquisition of the OTR business first announced in April, which will see the extension of the OTR offer over time to the convenience stores that support the format. While some stores will likely move directly to OTR, a large proportion of the network will operate under the Reddy Express brand. The Reddy Express brand will support and enhance the existing offer, with coffee, snacks and high-quality food-to-go. Customers will continue to have access to existing loyalty programs, including participation in FlyBuys, the 4cpl discount dockets with Coles supermarkets and have access to Coles branded products.

The network will continue to carry the Shell brand and sell Shell fuel products

under a long-term brand licence agreement through to 2029. CEO of the Viva Energy Convenience and Mobility business, Jevan Bouzo, highlighted at the launch that the Reddy Express brand is extremely important to the business, team members and customers.

“Consistency and familiarity are critical to reassure our customers that they will continue to receive the same great service, offers, loyalty and rewards they enjoy today,” said Bouzo. “The transition of the Coles Express business over to Viva Energy has gone very well and the rebranding of these sites now to Reddy Express is the next step while we await the approval process of the OTR acquisition,” he said.

“Once approved, OTR will be our leading convenience brand which is planned to be rolled out across the network longer term and represents a world-class convenience offer matched with highquality Shell fuels.”

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PRIME NEWS

> Wickham Freight Lines takes delivery of historic 17,000th truck from Brown and Hurley Brown and Hurley has delivered its 17,000th truck to long-time customer Wickham Freight Lines.

The Warwick-based family business accepted delivery of the Kenworth T909 prime mover with key members of Brown and Hurley and Wickham’s in attendance. The new truck will fit within the Queensland organisation’s long-distance roadtrain fleet of which it deploys over 20 multi-combinations.

It joins 11 other T909s in the fleet and is the second of two recently ordered according to Human Resources Manager Thomasin Roberts.

“This is one of two we’ve had on the order list and we’re pretty excited,” said Roberts. “The truck will predominantly be scheduled through our roadtrain network running on the triangle from Warwick, Melbourne, Sydney and sometimes across to Ceduna in South Australia.”

The truck, not incidentally the 350th Kenworth it has purchased, will be carrying refrigerated freight. A 600hp Cummins X-15 powers the 97 tonne GCM rated Kenworth T909, which boasts a 50-inch aero roof sleeper cab.

The partnership between Brown and Hurley and Wickham’s spans nearly 50 years. Wickham Farms bought their first new Kenworth in 1978. By 1986 it had purchased Brown and Hurley’s 1,000th Kenworth W900.

“They then committed to purchase every thousandth truck that Brown and Hurley sold and this still continues today,” said Scott Walters, Dealer Principal, Brown and Hurley Kyogle, who was part of the historic handover.

“The Kyogle branch would like to extend great thanks to the Wickham Freight Lines team for their continued support and friendship,” he said.

That partnership with Brown and Hurley Kyogle, according to Roberts, has lasted throughout the life of the business.

“We do like to get in early with our vehicle orders with Brown and Hurley 14

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and plan out what we need,” she said.

“Usually, we like to work 12 months ahead which has helped us greatly especially during recent years with all the challenges manufacturers and suppliers have had to overcome.”

This new Kenworth T909, which comes with commemorative livery, is one of approximately 30 prime movers Wickham’s has purchased just this year.

Also present for the handover were Wickham Farms Co-Founders Peter Peter Wickham, Kevin Hurley, Darren Eather, Cheryl Wickham.

and Cheryl Wickham and Brown and Hurley Board Member Kevin Hurley.

Back in June Wickham Freight Lines celebrated the opening of Brown and Hurley’s new parts division in Warwick.

“We purchased our 50th truck from Brown & Hurley in 2001 and our 250th in April 2018 – we’ve seen significant growth over the last five years and we’re planning for the future through quality investments to support our customers increased demand for a reliable service,” said Roberts.

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PRIME NEWS

> Toll deploys new PBS Kenworth K200 B-triple combination Toll Group has put a new high productivity Performance-Based Standards (PBS) B-triple combination to work for its major customer, BOC Gases Australia. Towed by a brand-new Kenworth K200, Toll’s latest B-triple PBS combination features a Cummins X15 engine set to 600 horsepower and an Eaton Ultrashift automatic transmission. It has the ability to run on concessional mass up to 85 tonnes or a Higher Mass Limit (HML) with a 90-tonne mass load.

As part of Toll’s strategy for improved efficiency, the Kenworth B-triple has been granted PBS approval to operate within a transit route between Sydney and Adelaide.

“This has taken us quite some time to get up and over the line,” Toll Group National Manager – Gases, Cameron Taylor, told Prime Mover. “It was an idea that I had, and they’ve got it to come to fruition working closely with Gerrard Claassen who is our Equipment and Design Manager and our PBS expert.

So, for this to happen, there was a prime mover upgrade required which is why we’re now heavily going back to the Kenworth product.”

The B-triple completed its first run last week carrying pallets of gas cylinders for BOC, departing from Arndell Park, New South Wales.

“It was fantastic. There were no issues whatsoever on its first run out — Cummins handles the weight more

than adequately,” Taylor said. “We have to set our speed alert because under PBS this combination is capped at 90 kilometres an hour, so we heavily monitor that. But, in doing the debrief with the driver, he was very happy with the performance. It went out at 85 tonne and performed extremely well.”

According to Taylor, the Kenworth K200 was chosen purely for the reliability factor and its ability to handle these sorts of combinations.

“We will only strategically go with Kenworth or Volvo from now on,” Taylor said. “But, for this application, the K200 as a long haul and linehaul unit is a totally proven combination.“ He added, “We’re very happy with these new units.”

To formulate the B-triple, Toll split up a new MaxiTRANS Freighter B-double set rather than running an existing B-double. The unit is also equipped with Teletrac Navman GPS Fleet Tracking and monitoring software which provides Toll with real-time data and location upgrades, along with tracking of axle weights for safety and structural integrity.

Taylor said the B-triple has been pivotal for Toll’s major operations.

“The fact that we can have a B-triple that can run at a 90-tonne mass load is a game changer for us,” he said.

“It’s of enormous high productivity and it’s greatly beneficial to our major customer, BOC.

“We do national work for our gas customers and the product we have going between Sydney and Adelaide to coordinate with our roadtrains going to the west is a considerable amount.”

Gaining vehicle approval from the government for PBS, according to Taylor, involved a lengthy process with the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR).

“We had to go through a lot of hoops and hurdles to get vehicle approval,” he said. “This combination is 34.35 metres long, and there was considerable communication backwards and forwards from our equipment team and NHVR,” Taylor added.

“Initially we were only able to run the combination between Adelaide and Wagga Wagga, and then the challenge was to get network access into Sydney which took many months.

“But, we finally found a pathway forward and that was to base the B-triple here at Toll Chemicals in Arndell Park, Sydney. We’ve got a specific route that we must follow for access to get back out of Sydney most efficiently.”

With the first unit fully operational, Taylor revealed the company will be looking to roll out a PBS-approved fleet to support linehaul, bulk tanker and ISO operations in BOC’s national network.

“We’re looking at other high productivity combinations that we’re looking to roll out next year,” he said.

> Team Global Express welcomes three Volvo electric trucks Three Volvo FL Electric trucks have arrived at the Bungarribee depot of Team Global Express. The trucks will take part in an electric truck trial marking a milestone at the company’s West Sydney express parcels facility.

Using regenerative braking to extend the vehicles range, the new Volvo FL Electric vehicles have a range of between 150 to 250 kilometres and a 16-tonne GVM rating.

“These trucks are not only less noisy 16

November 2023

and more efficient but also incredibly innovative,” said Lauren Casey, Team Global Express ESG Project Coordinator.

“We have invested in onsite fast chargers that can provide a full recharge in just two hours, while our slow chargers require up to 11 hours – perfect for overnight charging.”

According to Casey, Team Global Express will focus on its fleet integration and the optimisation of daily parking of

60 electric trucks to ensure charging across its operations is uninterrupted.

The ‘Express Parcels’ fleet will become part of what has been called Australia’s largest vehicle electrification project.

The $44.3 million project, announced late last year, includes the purchase and operation of 24 Fuso eCanters, 36 Volvo FL Electric trucks and the associated charging and site infrastructure to enable vehicle integration into the depot.

www.geotab.com/au/

PRIME NEWS

> Zero emissions policy introduced for heavy vehicles The New South Wales Government has released a new net zero emissions policy for heavy vehicles. The Towards Net Zero Emissions Freight Policy will see the NSW Government work together with industry to support the transition to low and zero emission technologies, and to ensure the transport network is ready to adapt as technology and solutions evolve.

Focusing on reducing the carbon footprint created by heavy road vehicles and rail freight, the policy’s first step will include two-year trial to give extra mass zero emission heavy vehicles access to the state road network.

According to the NSW Government, this will allow the industry to invest

in the technology without sacrificing the payloads that underpin the freight business.

“This is an important step towards achieving net zero, while working constructively with industries,” said NSW Premier Chris Minns. “Reducing freight emissions requires a genuine partnership between government and industry.

“We’re always going to need a freight sector to get the essentials from A to B, so we need to make sure our freight industry is sustainable over the longterm.”

An online comparison tool has also been developed to support the transition, providing a free resource for the freight industry to

source information on the cost and environmental benefits of low and zero emission vehicles.

Minister for Transport, Jo Haylen, said many freight operators are already investing in low emission technologies.

“This policy means that the government is able to support industry to continue to invest in new and emerging technologies and reflects our joint commitment to reduce freight emissions,” she said.

“This isn’t just about cutting emissions and protecting our environment, it’s also about strengthening our economy through driving innovation, creating jobs and increasing competitiveness.”

> Exodas adds seven new Volvo trucks Yatala-based carrier, Exodas, has received its biggest order of Volvo trucks to date. Seven new Volvos ranging from an FM11 and a FH13 to FH16 600 XXL Globetrotter prime movers have recently joined the Exodas fleet.

They will be deployed across a range

of tasks including local distribution and multi-trailer linehaul.

“Obviously we love the product however it’s the backup and the people that we deal with from Volvo every day that gets us over the line every time,” said Exodas Managing Director Brett Tynan. “All our Volvo

Exodas Managing Director Brett Tynan and Mark Barnes VCV Australia.

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trucks are covered by gold service agreements, which give us a lot more peace of mind when it comes to servicing, backup and costing.”

Now in its 22nd year, the business began in 2001 with two trucks. The Exodas fleet now consists of 100 prime movers and 30 rigids and is supporting by a large fleet of trailers from curtainsiders to fridge vans.

“We mainly cover the east coast with depots on the NSW Central Coast, Yatala, Townsville, Bowen, Tully and Mareeba and cart a lot of time sensitive freight,” said Tynan. “Just knowing that if there’s an issue the driver can get help at the push of a button makes a big difference, it keeps our wheels turning and our business running.”

Trust is vital, according to Greg Sargeant Dealer Principal Volvo Commercial Vehicles Australia, in any partnership.

“It’s great to see Exodas’ continued success and growth,” he said. “We’re proud to have the Exodas team as part of the Volvo family and we look forward to supporting them for many years to come.”

November 2023

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3/10/2023 10:03 am

PRIME NEWS

> Single Transport co-owner wins major award

Carol Single with her award at the NatRoad Conference.

A Mackay-based transport company owner has been recognised with the Ted Pickering Award by the National Road Transport Association on the Gold Coast. The co-owner of Single Transport, Carol Single was acknowledged for her Outstanding Contribution to the Australian Road Transport Industry.

As a passionate advocate for road safety, Single has worked tirelessly with the Mackay Road Accident Action group, a volunteer non-profit association committed to tackling road safety issues in Mackay and the Bowen Basin.

She is a previous recipient of the National Trucking Industry Women of the Year award.

“Carol represents the best that our industry has to offer – someone who is deeply involved in their own business but who finds time to be a champion for safer roads,” said NatRoad Chair Paul Fellows. “Road freight arteries like the Peak Downs Highway are the lifeblood to the Mackay Region and the Bowen Basin, with thousands of vehicles using it daily. Fuel trucks alone are using it to move approximately six million litres of bulk fuel each day.

“Much of Carol’s work is behind the scenes but she has made a life-saving difference for her peers – and indeed all road-users – on those long stretches of North Queensland highway.”

Single, with her husband Ian, operate a business with five specialised crane trucks and service most of Central Queensland. Their company, Single Transport Services Limited, has been a fixture in Mackay since 1980.

In 1997, Single Transport Services was accredited with Trucksafe, the national business and risk management system that improves the safety and

professionalism of trucking operators nationwide. At the annual NatRoad Conference held this year at the Royal Pines on the Gold Coast, Dennis Harding of JSC Concrete Canberra was named NatRoad’s Professional Driver of the Year. Harding is a long-standing employee who was nominated for his devotion to safety, integrity and performance on the job.

Stephanie Arpasi of Dubbo firm Fardell’s Heavy Haulage was named the National Road Transport Association Youth Employee of the Year. A 22-yearold driver-operator, Arpasi has made a huge impact on colleagues in a short period of time.

Established in 2014, Fardell’s Heavy Haulage provides heavy haulage, general and bulk freight services, wet and dry plant hire and earthmoving solutions for the New South Wales Central West.

Shane Pendergast of Air Brake Systems in Hornsby, New South Wales was named winner of the National Road Transport Association Excellence in Operational Support Award for his years of making trucking a safer industry.

> Ron Finemore rolls out Super B to celebrate milestone truck Ron Finemore Transport has launched a new 30-metre long high productivity vehicle. The Super B combination is also the 300th Mercedes-Benz Actros in the fleet. It will be used to carry groceries for Woolworths between Sydney and Melbourne. The high-productivity combination features two quad-axle trailers that deliver a gain of six extra pallets over a traditional B-double set.

It also increases the truck’s payload to 50 tonnes. Both trailers can be loaded from the rear with a forklift, after the rear trailer has been split, which enables faster loading. This is made possible because the front trailer body can slide back over the king pin and axle set that sticks out when in normal operation.

Mercedes-Benz Trucks has partnered 20

November 2023

with Ron Finemore Transport for over 50 years.

The launch of the new Super B was celebrated recently at the Woolworths distribution centre in Mulgrave with Ron Finemore Transport Executive Chairman, Ron Finemore, Daimler Truck Australia Pacific President and CEO, Daniel Whitehead, and Vawdrey Director, Paul Vawdrey, all in attendance.

Daniel Whitehead said Ron Finemore Transport has been a fantastic brand ambassador for Mercedes-Benz Trucks.

“Ron Finemore Transport has set the benchmark for safety and efficiency for more than half a century and we are proud that Mercedes-Benz trucks have played a role in the company’s great

success,” he said.

Finemore said he was pleased to attend the handover of the 300th Actros and continue the company’s relationship with Mercedes-Benz and Daimler Truck.

“Our relationship with ‘Benz continues today because of three key strengths: safety, reliability and service,” he said.

“These are key strengths of ‘Benz and also the key values that RFT strives to deliver in its client relationships.

We look forward to continuing our partnership with Mercedes-Benz based on these core mutual strengths and values.

“Safety is the number one priority of Ron Finemore Transport and the Mercedes-Benz trucks tick all the boxes.”

> DHL introduces improved Volvo FL Electric DHL Supply Chain has taken the first Australian delivery of the Volvo FL Electric with second generation battery packs. The updated battery packs provide an increase in range over the previous range of FL Electric. Based at DHL’s western Sydney supply chain campus, the medium-duty Volvo FL begins the fulfilment of the company’s efforts in Australia to help achieve the Group’s target of 60 per cent electric vehicles in its lastmile fleet by 2030.

Dispensing with internal combustion power, the Volvo FL combines a 600-volt motor with a two-speed transmission to deliver a 5,500-kilogram payload. Four 66kWh Gen 2 battery packs provide power with charging times dependent on duty cycle and chargers used. A regenerative braking system tops up the FL’s batteries every time it decelerates.

Fitted with a Tautliner van body capable of carrying eight full-sized pallets, the Volvo FL will use 300-kilometre range to service various DHL Supply Chain customers. The Volvo FL’s battery-electric drivetrain emits no harmful particulate matter into the atmosphere and improves the amenity of the areas it travels through with significantly reduced noise levels.

DHL Supply Chain CEO, Steve Thompsett, said that the company is pleased to take delivery of the Volvo FL, with its state-of-the-art technology, in Australia.

“Updating our fleet to zero emissions vehicles is a priority in Australia and it combines well with the measures we’re taking to reduce our carbon footprint across our operations,” said Thompsett. “The breadth of DHL Supply Chain’s global footprint means that our company has already trialled and rolled out Volvo’s electric truck offerings in Europe, meaning that we could forgo an Australian trial and go straight to investing in these climate-benefitting vehicles.”

DHL Supply Chain Senior Vice President of Transport, Bill Rolfe, said the company’s launch of the Volvo FL Electric is in line with its aim of continual improvement.

“The addition of Volvo FL electric trucks is a simple way for us to transition to battery-electric technology, with a useful driving range, proven reliability and an intuitive driving experience that will resonate with our staff,” he said.

DELIVERY NEWS

PACCAR, DAIMLER AND CUMMINS JOIN FORCES

Cummins, Daimler Truck and PACCAR have announced a multi-billion-dollar partnership to accelerate and localise battery cell production. The planned joint venture between the major OEMs will involve a Chinese technology partner as the companies ramp up commitments to electric commercial vehicles and industrial applications in the United States.

Accelera by Cummins, Daimler Truck and PACCAR will each own 30 per cent of, and jointly control, the venture, which will initially focus on the lithium-ironphosphate (LFP) battery technology family for commercial battery-electric trucks. The remaining 10 per cent will go to EVE Energy, a Huizhou-based business in China, who will contribute its

battery cell design and manufacturing knowledge.

The total investment is expected to be in the range of $2-3 billion for a 21-gigawatt hour (GWh) factory.

According to PACCAR, the LFP battery cells produced by the joint venture will be able to offer several advantages to other battery chemistries, including lower cost, longer life and enhanced safety, without the need for nickel and cobalt raw materials. PACCAR’s European brand DAF, whose XD series was named the International Truck of the Year, is considered an ideal platform for the second generation of battery electric vehicles. Accelera by Cummins, Daimler Truck and PACCAR expect to see growing demand for battery technology

FUSO DELIVERS 900 NEW ELECTRIC TRUCKS The newest model of the Fuso eCanter electric truck has begun arriving at Yamato Transport in Tokyo — a world first delivery. Yamato’s vehicle delivery consists of standard cab, S-battery van vehicles with three compartments for dry, refrigerated and frozen functions.

“The introduction of EVs is one of the most important initiatives to promote our sustainable management,” said President of Yamato Transport, Yutaka Nagao. “In introducing EVs, it is important that they are easy to use for employees, as well as environmentally friendly and have good performance.”

Yamato Transport introduced the first generation eCanter six years ago and, based on the results, decided to introduce 900 units of the new eCanter nationwide.

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November 2023

The new model, with a 2-tonne payload capacity, is more manoeuvrable, making it suitable for urban deliveries. In addition, the charging port is mounted at the rear of the vehicle for easy daily charging.

“Fuso’s eCanter reduces the burden on drivers by offering them safe, low

The new model Fuso eCanter.

throughout this decade.

Cummins Chair and CEO, Jennifer Rumsey, said the strategic joint venture will enable the OEMs to create the necessary scale for access to cost effective and differentiated battery cell technology, ultimately creating value for commercial vehicle customers.

“We have the responsibility to decarbonise in a way that is best for all of our stakeholders and the planet,” she said. “This requires working closely with key partners. [The] announcement reflects that action.

“Not only are we advancing a key technology solution for our customers, but accelerating the energy transition in the United States.”

According to Daimler Truck CEO, Martin Daum, it will enable economies of scale beyond Daimler Truck.

“For Daimler Truck, partnerships and a strict focus on costs and smart capital allocation are the key levers to succeed on the path towards sustainable transportation,” he said.

“It is a key puzzle piece of our battery industrialization strategy, ensuring access to the right battery cell technology at the right cost.”

vibration driving without emissions,” said President and CEO of Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation, Karl Deppen. “This was highly evaluated

by Yamato Transport, who previously introduced 25 of the first generation eCanter back in 2017. We are honoured to support Yamato Transport in their continuing efforts to go carbon neutral as they deploy our EV trucks throughout Japan.”

Yamato Group has a target of a 48 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, followed by its zero emissions goal in 2050.

MFTBC first launched the eCanter in 2017 as Japan’s first mass-produced emission free, light-duty truck with low noise and vibrations for residential deliveries.

WAKE UP TO THE FACTS Did you know the highest number of fatigue-related events are recorded in November?

Discover more in Seeing Machines’ Guardian Insights Report 2022-23

guardian.seeingmachines.com/anz

COVER STORY

Isuzu FSR 140-260.

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EXECUTIVE

ACTION Successive investments in infrastructure and new equipment have set in motion a plan for major growth opportunities at Allied Express.

p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

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R

etail businesses that account for a vast majority of their financial gains in small, defined windows during the year rely heavily on Allied Express. The transport specialist executes the movement of goods for its retailer partners all over Australia and, in turn, must be prepared to ensure there are no hiccups involved in this task of product distribution despite the seismic changes felt across supply chains in recent times. Distribution, to its roots, must have continuous utility.

The business, whose new head office is in Sydney, caters primarily to two main markets. The first is a same day service for metropolitan deliveries in every capital city involving ad hoc courier or taxi truck work; the second is interstate deliveries moving 26

November 2023

through depot networks across Australia.

The resurgence of online retail that began in 2020 has failed to let up in the intervening years. That has brought with it, according to Allied Express Managing Director Michelle McDowell, real change to where and what the company delivers.

“Delivering to the online retail market means we’re delivering direct to customers in their homes,” she says. “That brings with it a whole range of different challenges when compared to delivering into businesses whether that’s warehouses or office places.”

Some of these challenges made it necessary not only to know when people are home, but what those homes look like and where they are situated. It’s all part of finding the best way to effect direct deliveries. Though

it might sound easy enough, Michelle insists it’s clearly not the case.

“We often have competitors come in and out of our market thinking this home delivery gig is great given the online retail activity out there,” she says. “But it is difficult particularly in our part of the market which tends to be the big and bulky items.”

Getting the item to the address, it turns out, is only half the problem. The other half is making sure the intended recipient wants the delivery at the proposed time and how they want it delivered. Heavy investment in information technology platforms for the company has naturally ensued. All IT is developed and designed inhouse by Allied Express. None of it is handled offsite.

“That gives us a real competitive advantage

At the Allied Express new facility at Bankstown Airport.

At nine metres a longer wheelbase on the Isuzu has allowed for greater payload.

because what we do is go to the market and with our customers imagine what services they want,” says Michelle. “Then we use our software to really develop systems to make that seamless for our own customer.

From the track and trace facilities and how we translate that into online portals so they can see the information and how we text message people when they are home to make sure those messages get to them quickly. That’s valuable information.

All that’s key to making sure that those deliveries can be done effectively.”

COVID wrought many extraordinary protocols on the cost of doing business not in the least the nature of business itself. Contactless. Cashless. Decentralised.

Though many freight carriers have since been able to scale back the protections

Chief Operating Officer Betty Zhang with Michelle McDowell.

put in place judiciously for employees and customers, the memory certainly lingers.

As the second quarter approached in 2020 many businesses were entering a void of uncertainty in which they were being asked to pit tried and tested operational integrity against a new challenge without an end in sight. Not least of all how they were going to handle different kinds of capacity including risk. For those businesses that got through, the period at present can be viewed as a belated moratorium. It was particularly tricky for Allied Express who found itself working at both ends of the market.

“Half of our businesses are online retail, but the other half is spread across many different industries that were really strongly affected by COVID,” Michelle recalls.

“While we really needed to look after our businesses that were booming, we equally needed to look after our businesses that really struggled during that period.”

Helping them to survive took on different guises. In some cases, it meant shifting into different markets, in others it required new business strategies and scrutinising their cost structures.

“What was good for our business was our people in quick time recognised those threats and opportunities to do things differently,” says Michelle. “And we had to react on those very fast. It was an interesting time to manage in the moment.”

Even in that very first week when a majority of the national workforce were suddenly uprooted and moved, with little notice, to a remote model, by about the third day, p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

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COVER STORY

when executives like Michelle were trying to grasp the magnitude of what was set to transpire, online retailing went through the roof.

“We had massive volumes, unprecedented volumes going through our network,” she recalls. “What was daunting was we had to handle that in what was really difficult circumstances. So we made the decision early on that we would work from the office. All our staff worked in the office the whole way through.”

It was interesting in the beginning and somewhat scary according to Michelle.

“There was great camaraderie that came out of that and a great relief that people were actually getting into an office and in a circumstance where they can interact and do something that was really valuable for the community during that period of time,” she says. “Our business is built on being flexible and really variable so we can scale up very quickly.”

To be able to do so it needs to be resourced well enough, depending on the circumstances, to adapt to new challenges and to anticipate changes beyond its control. In road transport there are many.

“Even during the course of a year those volumes change quite dramatically,” says Michelle. “We’re coming into a period of Black Friday and Christmas now where our volumes will increase significantly.”

Every driver at Allied Express is GPStracked through the personal digital assistant devices the company supplies to them. Location. Jobs completed. Workload throughout the day is monitored through a centralised system custom-built inhouse.

As subcontractors constitute the entire fleet the drivers choose their own vehicles.

Allied, however, will define what they will need for the work they have available. If a new contract is set to commence, requiring, as such, ten 10-pallet capacity vehicles they will go to the market and recruit for those roles. Whatever it needs in that fleet composition.

“We’ll do a lot of work on what that composition is and how we match the resources with the task at hand,” Michelle says. “We’re always happy to invest in ourselves to take the next challenge and that’s why we make sure every driver has 28

November 2023

got enough in the PDAs and tools of the trade. It’s always to back ourselves to be growing and we want to make sure that we’re at the very forefront of what we do and for our customer base to make sure that their service is always as good as it possibly can be.”

Nationally the fleet sits around 1000 vehicles. On top of that there is the linehaul trucks and agency partners, whose presence may fluctuate seasonally, but represents around another 1000 vehicles across Australia.

Having come out the other side of the COVID state of affairs, the business is set to reap the benefits of a purple patch for investment and expansion whose foundations were first laid down some 18 months ago.

New facilities have been wheeled out across most of the mainland capital cities with a new head office in Sydney’s Bankstown now fully functional. Only Brisbane remains.

The new facility at the back of Bankstown Airport has doubled its depot size and provided it the capacity and footprint to install a new automated freight sortation system. At a cost of nearly $10 million, it is the first of its kind in the world. The system will increase the accuracy and traceability of Allied’s freight, reduce handling, and improve the safety of its staff as the need to handle oversized and heavy items is significantly reduced.

“It has automated chutes with roller beds on them that will slow the flow and make sure we’re handling freight in a safe and manageable fashion,” explains Michelle.

“We’ll understand exactly where the freight is going and the size of the freight. If it’s non compatible or not suitable to go over the line or there’s some reason why it can’t travel through the system, we can quickly get it off the line without stopping the line and rectify whatever we need to rectify to get it back on the line.”

Going from a flatbed circular system was necessary given the remit of this arm of the business is fragile and bulky items like trampolines and outdoor furniture.

That can make it difficult to handle with physical labour often requiring two and three men lifts. Nor does it fit neatly in the

back of linehaul vehicles.

“The real challenge for us was to find a sortation system that would allow us to do a lot of that sort of stuff with the intervention of technology but in an environment where we looked everywhere around the world for a touch point and couldn’t find anything, at least publicly,” says Michelle. “We needed to go and develop a system ourselves and we did that with a partner in Beumer that has similar technology in different circumstances that they were able to adapt to the system our people had imagined.”

In short, baggage handling machines. The machine is being turned on next week following a launch event in September to

showcase it to customers.

“We really wanted our customers to come in and understand on a minute level why this machine is going to make such a difference to the way we do business but also what we can do for their businesses,” says Michelle. “I suppose it’s like the ten minutes before you run on for the Grand Final. To see it in action over the next couple of months in our busiest timeframe of the year and when our customers rely on us the most is super exciting.”

Another automated freight sortation system next year will go into the new Broadmeadows facility in Melbourne, a market many of Allied Express’ retail

customers are based.

“To have both systems working in conjunction will be incredible,” says Michelle. “We’re really excited about the throughput with both of these systems.”

By midyear 2024 it will have moved into the new branch in Brisbane. Allied has also moved facilities in Melbourne, Perth and Adelaide to accommodate the business growth trajectory over the next three to five years.

Freightways Group, which is the New Zealand group Allied Express is a part of, would appear equally enthralled by what the future holds for the Australian company. In September it listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. The dual

listing allows it to work with Australian fund managers that have a mandate to only invest in ASX-listed companies. This way Freightways broadens the investor base in line with current business activity.

Whether those short-term growth opportunities come through organic growth, unlocking new markets or via acquisition are not yet known.

Seeing what the critical mass size of the business can offer, however, is reason for excitement.

“Keeping with our systems right now to improve what we’re doing to make sure that we can get to our customers delivery points in a quicker, safer, damage-free way, that’s our key thing,” says Michelle.

Michelle McDowell. p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

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KEYS TO DE L Economic and social pressures can cause a strain on the lives of many people in our society. Vinnies is there to help.

Martin Pottage.

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November 2023

T

he St Vincent de Paul Society was founded in Paris in 1833 and was established in Australia in 1854. The Society, commonly known as ‘Vinnies’, has grown to now encompass more than 45,000 members and volunteers across the country who are dedicated to the aim of providing practical assistance to

disadvantaged people.

When most of us think of Vinnies the first things that come to our minds are the clothing collection bins and the retail stores where funds are raised from the sale of pre-loved items, especially clothing.

But Vinnies is much more than that.

A key part of the operations in New

E LIVERANCE South Wales is the process of transferring clothing and furniture items from their points of collection which requires an efficient logistics operation involving vehicles operating to and from bases located in a number of regional centres such as Armidale and Wagga Wagga, as well as metropolitan Sydney and Newcastle. The Society’s NSW State

Logistics Manager is Martin Pottage, who is based at the main distribution centre located at Auburn, near Parramatta.

Martin has accrued 23 years’ experience in the transport industry, having spent a decade as transport manager for Aldi Supermarkets where, along with other tasks, he was responsible for purchasing trucks including prime movers and

B-doubles. Today Martin manages a fleet of 70 vehicles across the state including trucks and vans, with Hino trucks as the brand of choice sourced through AdTrans dealerships.

“When I first started with Vinnies about five years ago a lot of the trucks and vehicles we had were quite old, so over the past five years I have sought to build

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FLEET FOCUS

Hino 300 921 in Sydney.

a fit-for-purpose fleet across the state focusing on using Hino vehicles to give me the consistency and reliability we need,” says Martin. “For a smaller size truck, the Hinos are very effective for what we need to do on inner city runs, and when operating regionally we get good fuel economy. They’re reliable and robust as well.”

Late model Hino trucks feature the Hino SmartSafe comprehensive safety package which includes pre-collision warnings which can autonomously activate the truck’s brakes if an object, vehicle or even pedestrian is at risk of being hit. Lane departure warnings and vehicle stability control are also part of the SmartSafe suite. The Hinos are serviced every 20,000 kilometres or six months depending 32

November 2023

upon what type of work they are doing and the consistent servicing results in ever-dependable reliability while the automatic transmissions reduce driver fatigue and widen the pool of available drivers who may not have experience in operating a manual truck.

A factor in Martin’s move to develop the fit-for-purpose truck fleet has been the move to higher Gross Vehicle Mass vehicles such as the Hino 300 921 models.

The trucks are operated by a mix of professional and volunteer drivers. Finding volunteer drivers, especially regionally, can be a challenge, as fewer people have available time due to the need to provide dual incomes in many households to meet the increasing costs of living. One

of the things Vinnies does for its paid and volunteer staff is provide the opportunity for anyone with a car licence to upgrade to a rigid truck licence.

“When I first started here volunteers were quite abundant, however that has changed,” says Martin. “Over the last couple of years, we’ve recruited drivers with HR, MR and LR licences and an obvious advantage is the training involved in them obtaining that level of licence such as properly securing loads and responsible driving. It’s important also, to be ensuring that our trucks are well looked after and that my team has the best equipment available.”

The Hino trucks are fitted with pantech bodies built by Patra Truck Bodies which have a mesh lining on the inner walls to

Martin behind the wheel of one of the preferred Hino trucks.

simplify the proper restraint of items being transported. They also feature 1,500kg D’Hollandia tailgate lifts which act as the rear seal doors for the body.

The trucks carry a variety of items and in addition to collecting clothing and usable household goods from the donation bins, trucks also collect furniture items from customers wanting to donate them, and then the trucks deliver the donated goods to a Vinnies facility or in some cases direct to a needy recipient. The trucks are also used for moving textiles from either Vinnies retail shops to another retail shop location or back to the distribution centres where the clothing items are sorted and graded. Another vitally important function the vehicles are used for is to provide community support, once

referred to as welfare. Short and long-term homelessness is a growing issue throughout the community and Vinnies is known for stepping up and providing the basic needs for people who find themselves in a crisis situation. Earlier this year Vinnies quoted NSW Street Count data showing a 34 per cent increase in the numbers of people sleeping ‘rough’ over the past year, and Census data shows that more than 35,000 people are without a place to call home in NSW. Vinnies is known for its community and CEO Sleepouts which are major fundraisers and bring media attention to the hardship faced by people experiencing, and at risk of, homelessness.

The Vinnies CEO Sleepout has raised more than $85 million nationally since it began in 2006.

According to Martin, the trucks in the Sydney metropolitan area are undertaking upwards of 45 community support deliveries each week. These usually involve the conveyance of essential items such as beds, mattresses, tables and chairs and chests of drawers.

“We guarantee they are delivered within 48-72 hours,” says Martin. “That way if you’ve got a mum or dad out there with two kids who have lost their home and they are put into emergency accommodation by Vinnies, we’ve got those essential items to them within that time frame, so they are not sleeping on the floor, and they’ve got somewhere to sit for dinner.”

The blue Vinnies trucks perform a very important task in ensuring people in need are not missing out on the ‘basics’. p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

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MR

Pat O’Sullivan.

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Prestige Civil Group provides a variety of services to its clients and its success can be attributed to the hard work and passion of its founder and his expanding team.

P

at O’Sullivan left school at age 14 and immediately went to work for his father’s asphalting company. Later he started his own modest company at just 21, borrowing his father’s Ford F100 ute to carry a few tools and some asphalt.

“School just didn’t work for me,” says Pat. “By the time my mates had finished school I could quote up jobs and I had started a business. I’d fix a few potholes here and there with a wheelbarrow and a shovel.”

The fledgling business grew to the point that in in 2004 Pat purchased his first truck, a 1979 Isuzu tipper. Pat had that $8,000 truck for about five years and it helped him obtain contract work with a construction company working on footpaths in the Melbourne area. That company was Guy Road Constructions and Pat credits Scott Guy with instilling the work and business ethics he has carried through on the journey of growing his own company.

“Scott became a bit of a mentor for me,” says Pat. “He said ‘Pat, if you do the right things and make some smart

moves you can do all right out of this job’. He was awesome, a ripper bloke.”

Pat’s operation kept growing with an additional truck followed by another, and then a bobcat. In times when he had no work of his won for the trucks and bobcat, Pat would do labour hire on someone else’s asphalt crew, mostly constructing driveways.

“Sometimes I forget the start of the journey because I’m so caught up with where I am now,” says Pat. “When I first bought the truck and bobcat I would just do whatever I could, doing quotes and picking up little driveway jobs here and there. I actually remember my first job that I got myself. I put an ad in a local paper for around 400 bucks a month, and someone rang me to do a footpath to their clothes line. I was stoked! I remember ringing my dad and said ‘Hey, someone’s rung me!’ It was $1500 and I was over the moon.”

Less than 20 years later, the one manone truck operation Pat founded is now known as Prestige Civil Group.

There is 150 people on the books and the business has diversified into other

associated areas.

“I’ve always looked at opportunities that complemented the other things I was already doing,” he notes. “I had contracts with councils and I was buying concrete through the major suppliers and the service was pretty poor to us little guys. We obviously didn’t mean much to them.”

Always on the lookout for a way to provide a better service, and to save money, Pat began looking at getting his own concrete plant, despite the negative attitude of his then, current supplier.

“I didn’t even think about mixing concrete and I had no idea to be honest.

I just thought I’m going to do this to show them I could,” he recalls. “Their plant was only 50 metres up from me and the day the silo came they started ringing me. It was a case of ‘Ah, you want to talk to me now.’”

Pat was only planning on servicing his own operation in order to supply the modest council contracts which were starting to come through. Upon hearing other civil contractors were also dissatisfied with the services available, p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

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Pat reached out to a few that he knew and asked if they wanted to buy some concrete mix. This area of business has grown to now include 15 agitator trucks of varying brands including a number of twin-steer Mack Tridents and a couple of mini-mixers.

Once the concrete plant was established Pat looked at carrying the sand and aggregate components for the concrete

New UD Quon livebottom semi as an asphalt paver nearby goes to work.

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mix and added a couple of tipper and dog combinations to service his own requirements and also those of several other contractors.

The Prestige Civil Group fleet is being progressively standardised across the Volvo Group brands such as Mack and more recently UD Trucks.

“We used to have an old UD and it was bulletproof,” says Pat. “I bought a couple

of the UD Quons for my livebottom semi-trailers and once I got into the Quons and the UD Croners I haven’t looked back.” He adds, “Those UDs are the comfiest trucks I’ve driven and we run them all through the business now in all avenues like our civil side.”

The UDs are, by no means, coddled on site according to Pat. “We give them a hard time and we’re

filling them up with asphalt and concrete and they stand up to the test,” he says. “They might be a little bit slower in some circumstances and might take five minutes longer to do a particular job, but we’ve probably saved 50 litres of fuel.”

What began as a one-man operation performing modest road repair services has grown to be a respected provider of

civil and road maintenance services to small and large corporate entities as well as state and local government bodies.

Traffic management and line marking services are now included in the suite of offerings with more than 20 specially equipped utes on call to handle the traffic management around construction zones. Vehicles and equipment are serviced in the company workshop.

Much of the work comes as the result of preparing and submitting a successful tender and Prestige Civil Group has its own estimating department where the people have the experience and expertise required to navigate through the complexities found particularly when dealing with local governments where a job may come from one particular department of a council, then other work from a different division.

“Getting work has never really been the issue but now we’re trying to grow into bigger jobs and chasing that work is a little bit harder and it seems to be very competitive these days,” Pat says.

“I’ve always looked at opportunities to complement the business. Because I’ve got a concrete business, I think about what else goes with concrete such as reinforcement steel. I knew I can sell steel to the guys who buy concrete.”

The expanding transport division provides bulk cartage services of products such as crushed rock for both clients and other suppliers.

“I built a soil recycling department, because we ripped out so many nature strips doing footpaths, I thought we could recycle this soil and re-sell it,” explains Pat. “We’re always looking to grow and now we’re trying to push the transport side of the business. We’ve got trucks in with Downer carting their raw materials to their plants and we also cart raw materials to sleeper manufacturers.”

From being a high school dropout Pat O’Sullivan has built a successful and vertically integrated business which features a senior management team including a CEO, CFO, Human Resources and, importantly, a health and safety division. Pat places a high value on his staff and runs an incentive program in appreciation of their efforts.

“I’m proud that I’m giving back, and I really do care about my people. This industry is like any other, there are some bad operators out there, but that shouldn’t ruin it for the rest of us,” says Pat.” I just want my company to be respected. I want it to be looked at the way I looked at and admired certain other companies on my journey.” p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

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SKIP Tom Hogan with Shannon Miles.

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P

TO THE END

From domestic detritus to commercial off-cuts and everything in between, Tom Hogan of North East Bin Hire is passionate about recycling, reusing and minimising landfill.

p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

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TRUCK & TECH

Isuzu FRR 110-240.

I

n Tom Hogan’s line of work, he never knows what he is going to find. There have been a few risqué items that may have made him blush, but he was quite impressed with the pair of javelins once found in a skip ready for pick up.

“For the most part it’s pretty boring offcuts and things like that,” he says. “The javelins were pretty cool though.”

Tom is co-owner of Albury-based North East Bin Hire which offers services to southern New South Wales and northeast Victoria. It has 15 trucks in its fleet and 900 bins available.

Tom is convinced that skip trucks are the hardest working trucks on the road, which makes him very fussy about what he purchases.

“Skip trucks are unique little animals,” he says. “We are bouncing into construction sites, going from no load to a maximum load and sometimes we’re up a hill sideways. You just never know where you are going to end up.”

For his latest truck, he decided to go for an Isuzu MY22 FRR 110-240, a mediumduty truck and a popular choice for commercial applications, including construction, distribution, and waste management.

Tom, who is formerly from Canada, has been in Australia for more than 25 years now. He still isn’t quite sure exactly how 40

November 2023

he fell into the bin hire trade.

“It was probably the craziest thing I’ve ever done in a pub,” he says, explaining that, in said pub, he agreed to go into business with his mate, Shannon Miles, who brings a construction background to the partnership.

“It’s been a great journey over the last three years, and we have been kicking goals,” adds Tom. North East Bin Hire was first introduced to Isuzu through the Blacklocks Wodonga dealership when the company found itself in dire need of a vehicle.

“We had a fossil of a skip truck that

A strap is fastened to the skip loader.

unfortunately came to its demise on a hot summer’s day, so we had to replace that,” Tom says. “It was at the height of COVID and everything was in short supply.”

Essentially, they measured up the new chassis on the FRR knowing it would accommodate the refurbished old skip lifting equipment. It was then put on a new cab chassis. From there that relationship grew as Tom realised it was the little things Isuzu could offer that make life as an operator a lot easier.

Fitting with existing equipment without extensive modifications was just one. He

also appreciated the fact that Isuzu was consistent with its spare parts, which he is often losing.

“The fact, for example, that Isuzu has one mirror for all trucks means it’s quickly replaced, and we’re done,” he says. “Even composite panels are so easy to replace, and it keep the trucks looking presentable.”

Having a relatively old fleet, drivability and safety features were also a factor for Tom when it came to choosing a vehicle.

Today, North East Bin Hire have five Isuzu trucks in their fleet, including its latest purchase, the Isuzu FRR 110-240.

This model is powered by a 4HK1-TCH engine that produces 177 kW (237hp) and 765Nm of torque. Tom’s is a 4 cylinder, 6-speed manual with a gross vehicle mass of 11,000 kg and a gross combination mass of 16,000 kg. He

purchased the cab chassis, but with a wheelbase of 4006 mm, it’s perfect for carrying a skip.

A lot of Tom’s work comes from building sites and because of his growing fleet, he has had the opportunity to be on the frontline of moving away from landfill as a first resort. The company often works with builders who are consciously getting involved and taking part in recycling and reusing projects.

“By no means are we eco-warriors, but there are just so many sustainability opportunities available where we can divert waste from landfill and even do some waste separation on site,” he says, recalling recently salvaging timber from a heritage building that was reused by a cabinet maker.

“Even just being able to divert steel

off-cuts from roofing sheets and other construction waste is such a good thing,” Tom says. “It’s good for the environment and a win for everyone.”

Meanwhile, Tom is pleased to know that in the unlikely event something goes wrong with one of the Isuzu trucks, the service at the Blacklock dealership does everything to ensure it isn’t off the road for very long. With one of his trucks in need of a coolant overflow tank cap, Tom was offered a loan from another truck until the delivery arrived, so there was no downtime.

“That’s the kind of customer service that makes you know that you are being looked after,” he said, adding that his next purchase will be an Isuzu.

“It is just well planted on the road, and even with a load it is a great driving experience.”

Tom secures a bin on the Isuzu FRR.

p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

41

TRUCK & TECH

AUTO FOCUS F Mineral Resources will deploy the world’s first fully autonomous roadtrains all of which will completely rely on SAF-Holland’s Neway AD Series Suspension.

Trailer drawbars await deployment at the Mineral Resources depot.

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November 2023

rom a two-person crushing contractor in 1992, Mineral Resources (MinRes) has completely evolved to become a majorly recognised player in the mining sector. Now, it houses the ability to deliver mining services to some of the world’s largest mining companies.

MinRes and its subsidiaries offer a full suite of pit-to-port mining and mining logistics services including exploration, planning, mine design and construction,

the construction and operation of minerals process facilities, commodity transportation and marketing services.

Undertaking a transformational growth journey that should reach its apex in the next five years, MinRes structures its business around four growth pillars: these being mining services, iron ore, lithium and energy. Continuous Improvement Manager, Danielle Machin, says based on its performance since 1992, the company is on track

meet its targets.

“We started in the industry predominantly as a service provider doing crushing plants, but we’ve since branched out into all areas of the mining industry and we’re taking on our own road haulage operations,” she says. “We do the largest payloads on a single engine prime mover, so it allows us to work on our own decarbonisation journey and put in innovations within our own roadtrain circuit to make it safer for all parties to share the road with us, and hopefully we’ll be able to share this knowledge with the industry.”

Headlining MinRes’ plans to break the glass ceiling from here on out are

the world’s first fully autonomous roadtrains, which from mid-2024 will be put into action for the fleet’s flagship Onslow Iron project in Western Australia. The project, which is ultimately the cornerstone of MinRes’ strategy to deliver low-cost, long-life iron ore operations, will ship about 35 million tonnes of iron ore per year.

In their operations, each 110-tonnecapacity triple trailer combination will carry 330 tonnes of iron ore for around 150 kilometres on a dedicated private haul road from the Ken’s Bore mine site to the Port of Ashburton. The ore will be transported to a 220,000-tonne enclosed, negative pressure storage

facility at the port, and from there, 20,000-tonne capacity transhippers will move the ore to cape-size carriers 40 kilometres off the coast. The entire fleet will be controlled remotely by a team of operators from a central operating centre in Onslow, but MinRes is also developing and artificial intelligencepowered monitoring system.

SAF-Holland will be crucial to the performance of the autonomous roadtrains. SAF-Holland’s AD390 suspension system, part of the OEM’s proven Neway AD Series, has been chosen exclusively to support the entire fleet.

“SAF-Holland are our preferred

p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

43

TRUCK & TECH

supplier for our trailer that we’re building,” Danielle says. To ensure the right suspension system would be fit-for-purpose on these autonomous roadtrains, MinRes analysed SAFHolland’s performance in the fleet with past applications. The results didn’t disappoint.

“So far in our unique operations, it’s stood up pretty well,” Danielle says. “We have the highest tonne single engine payload in the country, if not the world, and we’ve not seen any premature failures of their product to date. This has reduced downtime specifically. We’ve been able to run the assets at maximum capacity with no downtime incurred due to failure in suspension or axles.”

The implementation of autonomous trucks on their own can provide several advantages. However, combining technological expertise from Hexagon’s Autonomous Solutions with Mineral Resources’ operational knowledge, the autonomous roadtrains at MinRes will arrive with enormous benefits on a much larger scale.

“Drivers are an ageing workforce, they’re

in short supply in WA as I’m sure they are in the rest of the country,” Danielle says.

“So, it’s not about taking people’s jobs, but it’s about allowing us to provide a haulage solution indefinitely without the restriction of a workforce. Young people don’t want to drive trucks anymore, it’s not something that many people are breaking the neck to get into. So, this will be about future proofing our business.”

With 120 driverless roadtrains, driver fatigue risks will be completely eliminated at MinRes, along with lowered operating costs and reduced fuel use and emissions across the board.

“We’re hoping to be able to set the way and the parameters that these trucks drive, so that we’ll be able to monitor and drive fuel efficiency,” Danielle says.

“We’ll do this with the frequency in which the truck changes gears and by being able to control the revs and other factors like that. Whereas with drivers, you’ve got many different driver styles.

We’ll be able to pick what we deem is best and pretty much copy and paste that across the fleet, which will see that uniformity.”

A pair of Kenworth C509s.

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November 2023

Most notably, the units, pulled by Kenworth C509s, will give the fleet guaranteed dependability with SAFHolland’s Neway AD390 suspension.

“The AD390s, rated for a 300-tonneplus payload, are the ones we’re fitting them to for our off-road operations, but predominantly for our contract which is where the autonomous roadtrains will be running,” Danielle says. “We’re using their 20-tonne axle and suspensions for our trailer that we’re also having built for this custom operation. We see their quality as being far superior than the other ones that we’ve trialled on different sites, given our unique nature and weights that we haul.”

Safety is at the forefront of the project’s design. Grade separation on the roadtrains themselves will foremost ensure there is no interaction between the autonomous vehicles operating on the haul road and on public roads. In addition, testing has been progressing at MinRes’ Yilgarn iron ore operations since late 2021 ahead of the technology’s deployment at Onslow Iron.

The Neway AD390 suspension systems also play a major part in the field of safety. The product to be fitted across the fleet has been specifically designed and engineered to provide troublefree service. In the event of a minor breakdown, for example, such as a loss of air in the air springs, there are safety features integrated into the suspension that will allow the vehicle it is fitted on to be driven cautiously at slow speed, to

• • • • •

v

The autonomous roadtrains at work in Western Australia.

the nearest service facility.

In dealing with SAF-Holland to prepare for the monstrous roadtrain deployment, the OEM has taken all of MinRes’ needs into account.

This, Danielle says, is why the fleet is specifying its products for hundreds of more roadtrain combinations.

“They have been very good,” she says.

“We’ve had to make a few last-minute changes and they’ve been more than accommodating to help us.”

Having an OEM to rely on will be vital for MinRes’ future projects. With SAF-Holland in the picture, this will be a given.

“They have a trusted and recognised product, and they’re able to be flexible

Job scheduling and dispatch software that delivers on time •Proof of delivery, time stamped and auditable •Three-way SMS between dispatch, truck & customer •Real-time invoicing •Template driven software - works the way you do •Integrates with existing business tools

5,000+ active users Over 400K jobs per month dispatched Customers in 10 countries vworkapp.com

and adaptable,”Danielle says. “Just all-round, their customer service and their willingness to adapt as we adapt, and to be able to work with us and offer suggestions for innovation by increasing our weights to record weights.

“SAF-Holland has been part of this journey with us and I’m sure that will extend and carry on into the future.”

SAFETY TECHNOLOGY AND APPLICATIONS SHOWCASE

THE 3G

Navigating the transition to 4G networks is best done early before the planned switch by Telstra is underway.

I

n the transport industry, connected devices, including telematics systems, keep operations moving smoothly.

They help operators communicate with staff, monitor safety and fatigue, ensure compliance, optimise workflow, track vehicles and assets, in addition to so much more. However, a significant shift is on the horizon: Telstra will sunset its 3G network in June 2024.

While smartphones will be a primary concern during the 3G closure, any device communicating via a 3G SIM card will be affected. This means in-vehicle technologies that are a critical part of a transport businesses’ fleet management solution must be migrated to at least 4G technologies.

To keep the benefits of connected devices and telematics systems, it’s best to start the switch as early as possible according to Andrew Rossington, Chief Product Officer, Teletrac Navman.

“Connected devices rely on stable and reliable network connections for real-time 46

November 2023

monitoring, efficient communication, safety tracking, and compliance management,” he says. “As Telstra phases out its 3G network, devices relying on this technology will lose connectivity, potentially disrupting critical fleet operations.”

The transition from 3G to the faster, more efficient 4G networks is more than an upgrade. 4G-enabled tech offers more speed and connectivity, creating new opportunities to streamline and improve efficiency. These include increases in profit thanks to reduced fuel usage, less vehicle wear and tear, lower maintenance costs and safer drivers.

Real-time monitoring, route optimisation, safety analytics, and compliance management - all essential components of modern fleet operations - heavily depend on network reliability and speed.

The closure of Telstra’s 3G network, among all other network providers, means any devices operating on this technology will cease functioning. A smooth

transition is vital to avoid disruptions in operations and to harness these advanced networks’ benefits according to Andrew.

“Begin by conducting a thorough inventory of all devices within your fleet that rely on 3G connectivity,” he says.

“Take stock of your 3G-only devices, then use Telstra’s calculator to plan your migration of the 3G network and calculate your run rate.”

For those with 200 3G devices, they must migrate 13 devices per month, or three devices per week, before the 3G network shuts down.

Creating a comprehensive migration plan that considers the number of devices to transition and the specific needs of the fleet is another option.

“If you need more or different functionality, it’s an ideal time to check out all the options on the market,” says Andrew. “Improved safety and security features are available in newer mobile technologies, such as better encryption and authentication mechanisms, which

All the essential components of modern fleet operations depend on network reliability.

can help protect your assets and people.”

It’s also a good idea to allocate resources and schedule the transition to minimise operational disruptions. Factors like data usage and coverage should be weighed up before cost while communication with all team members will ensure they know about the upcoming transition and its implications. Training for these new devices will be key. According to Andrew utilising these enhanced capabilities will further benefit the transport team in the future.

“As your fleet takes on day-to-day activities, two-way communication with operators and satellite communications, even in remote locations, ensures your team is always connected,” he says. “This active connection to the office means your workforce can reach each other in emergencies.”

There are also significant benefits to newer mobile technologies, including faster speeds and improved connectivity. Fast and super reliable connectivity improves communication between different parts of the supply chain and helps to reduce delays and improve efficiency.

Real-time data in any traffic or weather

Andrew Rossington.

conditions, for example, and other factors can be transmitted more quickly and reliably. New technologies also have improved security protocols, such as better encryption and authentication mechanisms. This helps improve transport systems’ safety and security, protecting passengers and cargo.

AI-powered telematics systems have the capability to process vast quantities of data, converting it into valuable insights for enhancing safety, efficiency, and compliance in real-time. Some of the newer features require lots of bandwidth, so moving to 4G-ready tracking units

means it’s easier for businesses to roll out the latest technology.

Converting from 3G-only devices to 4G-enabled tech may be seen as a problem for another day, overshadowed by concerns about driver shortages, rising fuel costs and the everyday challenges of fleet management. But, according to Andrew, it’s important to consider that thousands of businesses across Australia will need to migrate – not just in the transport industry but across every sector – meaning demand for 4G-enabled tech will increase as the June 2024 cut-off date approaches.

“Our Professional Services Team works with clients to implement Teletrac Navman solutions to help customers monitor, measure, improve, and deliver complete customer satisfaction,” he says. “With experience across mining, construction, health, fast-moving goods and transport, the team successfully delivers end-to-end deployment for large fleets and enterprise projects with insights specific to your sector and organisation.”

Prepare for the shift from 3G by migrating with Teletrac Navman to future-proof your transport business. p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

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SAFETY TECH & APPLICATIONS SHOWCASE

CHO THE POWER OF

Geotab’s open platform allows for multiple technologies and integrated safety applications, which can provide a comprehensive view of the fleet inside and out. AI technology promises to take this even further.

T

he biggest telematics company in the world, Geotab, is on a mission to become the dominant player in Australia.

As part of this ambitious undertaking, the company is determined to deliver a user-friendly and cost-effective solution for fleets to either adopt or maintain best practices, depending on their maturity, in compliance and safety. An open platform is key to this.

Accessing crucial vehicle data on one centralised platform mitigates against information slipping through the cracks as can be the case when users must shift between different platforms. It also enables the user to scale up quickly or as they see fit.

Geotab offers three plans — Base, Pro and Pro Plus. These options will differ in appeal depending on the business and what it wants to achieve. The plans are priced accordingly and cater to standard telematics features like GPS tracking and fuel use through to enhanced safety tools, raw diagnostic information and right up to active tracking.

Transport businesses don’t stand still.

Geotab understands this and will help a 48

November 2023

business to scale up in times of growth.

Fleets can move up and down depending on their requirements at any time. New contracts, special projects and seasonal work can make additional demands on a business as it expands even if that expansion is only temporary.

“We believe in the power of choice,” says David Brown, Geotab Asia Pacific Associate Vice President. “We’re very flexible in the way that we operate and having the potential to scale up is at the core of our business.”

In the digital age, fleets must have the ability to customise the solutions they have come to rely on. On an open platform there’s also less limitations for customisation.

New alliances with technology providers in both driver monitoring and fatigue management applications have bolstered its offering on Marketplace, Geotab’s application trading place. This gives its customers a wealth of choice. Recent additions such as Logmaster and Sensata Technologies are just two of the 250 technology partners who are currently represented here.

For Geotab, the GO device is extracting

information from the truck. Information as it is happening in real-time is processed through here including fault codes, notification alerts and operator behaviour right down to whether the driver is wearing a seatbelt.

“Not only will our technology pool together all the information from the vehicle but the customer can add on to that as well,” says David. “The advantage that we have is you can scale up.”

For GPS tracking, Geotab offers the G09 device that provides raw data on driver behaviour, such as harsh braking, acceleration, vehicle speeds and potential impacts. If a fleet manager wants to delve even deeper on what’s happening inside the cab, a forwardfacing camera can easily be added to GO. For long distance tasks the electronic logbook, as it is a current requirement, can be added. So too tyre pressure monitoring.

“Given the amount of information being generated and coming through the vehicle no one else compares to that,” says David. “No one gets as much information from the vehicle as we do because we have solutions engineers who

OICE help make sure that every vehicle that we connect to we get from it as much information as possible.”

With 55 billion data points processed daily that’s a deluge of information even for the most experienced people working in telematics. The grey area in telematics has long been how to find the best way to interpret data to get the most out of it. But just how much time should be spent on data interpretation to make it meaningful in the decision-making process? It’s a daunting question given many fleets are already analysing the granular details of performance reporting to address areas that need improvement.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) would appear one way forward.

Geotab is embracing AI and views it as a resource with the potential to drill down even further on data. As it has 3.7 million connected vehicles globally there’s an opportunity to make use of it as a commodity. Anonymous data, that is data that can’t be identified as to who generated it, is collected in a Google Big Query database. The data can be separated via a tool called Geotab Data Connector which uses templates that can be applied to a host of categories from safety to maintenance to productivity. It’s ideal for businesses that want to uncover areas for operational and bottom-line improvements. This is where Geotab can provide real advantages to customers according to David.

Geotab is regularly announcing new alliances with technology providers.

“The template benchmarks against peers in the business and like-minded fleets in the industry as well,” he says. “For a last mile delivery business, it can look at data from a similar type of business to see where it compares and differs. It can give the fleet a very good snapshot of what’s going on at present.”

But where Geotab goes the extra mile with AI is in a new product called Project G. Currently in beta testing, Project G, similarly to ChatGPT, can generate answers to questions in a matter of seconds, slashing the time it takes to

collate numbers from reports. Want to know the least fuel-efficient vehicle in a fleet of hundreds? It will generate a report almost instantly.

Geotab is currently actively using Project G. The hope is they will offer it to market as early as Q1 next year.

“It’s quite unique to the telematics industry in that it bridges the grey area of obtaining the data and then making decisions based on it,” David says.

“That’s powerful for us and something which is a real game-changer that shows where telematics is really evolving.” p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

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SAFETY TECH & APPLICATIONS SHOWCASE

WEAPONS OF MASS

DIST R

Mobile phone use is one of the many causes of driver distraction.

With an alarming surge of nearly nine per cent in heavy vehicle related fatalities last year nationally, technology company, Seeing Machines, is determined to one day achieve zero transport fatalities worldwide and a new study is helping it get the point across.

A

first-of-its-kind study has uncovered staggering statistics, showing a raft of risky behaviours across almost 2,500 Australian and New Zealand fleets over a 12-month period.

The reality of these figures was made possible thanks to Canberra-founded, Driver Monitoring System (DMS) technology company, Seeing Machines, which is already saving lives on the road with its leading technology, installed in more than one million passenger and commercial vehicles globally.

Spurred by a report from the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator showing 182 fatalities from heavy vehicle accidents in 2022, Seeing Machines was especially concerned about the fact that driver distraction contributed to 71 per cent 50

November 2023

of those accidents. The company’s inaugural study was conducted using its flagship product, Guardian, a driver fatigue and distraction monitoring system that uses artificial intelligence to detect early signs of driver impairment and provide real-time intervention.

Titled 2022-23 Guardian Insights, the report focuses on Australia and New Zealand, extrapolating data from over 20,000 vehicles from thousands of fleets for the 12-month period to 30 September 2023. This data, processed through Guardian Live and verified by human analysts, enabled Seeing Machines to identify risky driving habits, which the company believes is an essential stride in its fight to mitigate preventable accidents. At a glance, Guardian captured more than one

million risky driving events throughout the reporting period. This included a significant number of fatigue events and even more distracted driving events, of which around 10 per cent indicated instances of mobile phone use. In fact, the company says, mobile phone use may be higher as this classification can only be reported where a mobile phone is visible in the video frame of footage captured. Paul McGlone, Seeing Machines CEO, says being able to take a deep dive into driver behaviour and what influences it offers priceless data.

“This report demonstrates how, with our proven Guardian technology, we continue to work towards our vision of zero road fatalities, by shedding light on the insights and performance data that influence driver and fleet

T RACTION On average 145 driver distraction events occur every hour.

behaviour,” he says. The data showed, over the course of the study, that there were significantly more distracted driving events compared to instances of fatigue. The data in the report has also identified times of day where drivers are most distracted, and the times when they appear more focused.

Based on total events captured, the report is also able to identify which day had the highest number of distracted driving incidents. These trends, while general, could provide fleet managers insights into their own scheduling system and assist with optimising their productivity while maintaining the highest level of safety for their drivers. When looking at fatigue events, Guardian analysts used two categories — drowsiness and microsleep. Drowsiness being when the driver’s eyes appear to be heavy and eye closures are dramatically slower or more rapid and the driver appears to be fighting the onset of fatigue. A microsleep, however, is when the driver appears to be in a state of sleep. The key indicators in this regard include uncontrolled eye closure, eye rolls,

long eye closures, and head bobs where the driver has lost control of their neck muscles. According to the report, most fatigue events occurred in the early hours of the morning, and were at their lowest in the early evening, irrespective of the kilometres travelled.

Like with distraction, these trends are good indications for fleet managers to base their own safety practices on, as they work to minimise the risk to their drivers and passengers, their vehicles, freight and the communities through which they drive.

Seeing Machines’ technology portfolio of AI algorithms, embedded processing and optics can power products that need to deliver reliable real-time understanding of vehicle operators.

The technology spans the critical measurement of where a driver is looking, through to classification of their cognitive state as it applies to accident risk. Reliable ‘driver state’ measurement is the end-goal of DMS technology. This includes monitoring critical safety events such as lane departure, monitoring vehicle control inputs like steering, pedal

use and what is known as camerabased approaches like that offered

by Guardian in which driver head pose, gaze and eyelid behaviour is monitored. Considered an industryleading driver fatigue and distraction solution, Guardian, according to Seeing Machines, which was founded in 2000, currently protects more than 800 transport companies with almost 52,000 connections in heavy vehicles worldwide and has been scientifically proven to reduce fatigue-related events by more than 90 per cent. For the company, who have committed to producing the Guardian report annually, the data it has collected for this recent study provides a compass for understanding and mitigating risk associated with distracted and fatigued driving events among fleet drivers. “Regrettably, driver fatigue and distraction persist as grim reapers on our roads,” says Paul. “Only by confronting these issues head-on and cultivating a shift in driver behaviour can we collectively strive toward our shared goal of ensuring more people return home safely.” p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

51

TEST DRIVE

HIGH & MIGHTY The journey is briefly interrupted by a cattle crossing.

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Mack has captured a lot of attention with its integrated 70-inch sleeper Super-Liner. Prime Mover puts it to the test in the outback.

M

ack Trucks marked six decades of Australian manufacturing with the unveiling at this year’s Brisbane Truck Show of its latest SuperLiner featuring a new fully integrated walk-through 70-inch sleeper. The new walk-through sleeper will be available in a variety of configurations as an option for the heavy haul oriented Super-Liner and the big bunk sleeper bolsters the Super-Liner’s already strong credentials as a heavy haulage and roadtrain prime mover with GCM’s available in excess of 200 tonnes, if required.

The 70-incher is more akin to a mobile apartment than a truck’s sleeper. In fact, it’s so roomy it was used as a recording studio for interviews by journos with Mack executives at the Brisbane Truck Show. At the time we were offered the opportunity to drive the Super-Liner on a route through central Queensland in a roadtrain configuration and some months later we find ourselves at the wheel of what is a stunning looking rig. The Super-Liner is liveried in show stopping glossy grey and black paint, combined with matt black fuel tanks and wheels reminiscent of vehicles featured in road warrior style movies which fits in well with the landscape along our route.

Our Mack journey commences in Mount Isa where we check over the Class 2 AB-triple combination which is grossing

90 tonnes with its 2,000-litre fuel tanks topped up. The load behind the trailers’ curtains consists of IBC’s filled with water, which at certain times of the year out here would be worth more than gold.

Following its impressive debut in Brisbane, the Super-Liner has been fitted with several additional components necessary for safe operation in the wider outback including a bullbar, LED driving lights and external air filters with high level intake scoops. It is impressed upon us that this particular Mack is a prototype and the only one in existence, so we commit to taking extra care of it. The first locally produced 70-inch sleeper equipped Super-Liners are expected to be delivered to customers in late 2024.

Roads in central Queensland commonly consist of a sealed single lane, which requires easing off the throttle before dropping the kerbside wheels into the dirt when confronted with another approaching roadtrain. This mostly happens seamlessly with the only communication required being a friendly wave of acknowledgement between the drivers. Lighter vehicles, many of them connected to large caravans, are required to pull completely onto the verge and stop for approaching roadtrains. Most do, but the occasional fool will risk stone damage to their windscreens and will try us on.

Steering 90 tonnes of truck off the sealed surface at 90 km/hr can be unnerving except for the sure footedness of the Mack’s steering and suspension which has undergone a comprehensive redesign including the steering box itself. The result is excellent stability which contributes to driver confidence.

Any steering input in a 44-metre long combination such as this can be amplified at the rear-most trailer and a ‘less is more’ approach to steering is a constant reminder to keep the left ear of the gold bull dog mounted on the bonnet aligned with the edge of the bitumen to maintain the correct position in the centre of the sealed lane surface. The Mack’s stability is achieved using parabolic front springs and Mack’s eight airbag rear suspension.

An occupational hazard for truck drivers in this part of the country are the herds of cattle which, even in this age of modern truck transport, can still be found being guided along stock routes by Aussie cowboys on horseback.

Confronted by a sizeable herd ourselves, timely advice is offered to us from one of the drovers to “Just keep rollin’, mate, they’ll get out of your way.” And they do, with no damage to livestock or Mack.

We arrive in Winton well before dusk and drop the trailers on the outskirts to enable us to run bobtail into the attractive town which boasts a wide main street and three thriving pubs p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

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TEST DRIVE

all within 100 metres of each other.

This is the location where AB “Banjo” Patterson wrote “Waltzing Matilda,” and the countryside befits the images of the lyrics of our unofficial national anthem.

After an excellent meal at one of the pubs, I retire to the Super-Liner’s inviting full size bed. Despite the heat, leaving the Ice Pack air conditioning running while enjoying a steak at the pub means the cab is comfortably cool upon my return so the Ice Pack is switched off.

The overnight temperature is easily maintained by keeping the air circulating through the use of the small fan fitted in the sleeper compartment. Hatch type windows on each side of the sleeper are equipped with insect screens and work well to provide cross-cab fresh air ventilation. On the exterior the window hatches are hidden behind the aero fairings. The blackout curtains between the sleeping and driving sections have a magnetic seal which keeps the light out, even though we are parked in an area well illuminated by streetlights.

The king size single bunk is two metres long by one metre wide and the inner

spring mattress helps induce a restful sleep until 4.00am when it seems every galah (of the feathered variety) in central Queensland is welcoming the approach of dawn from their vantage perches on the town’s powerlines.

The sleeper has a massive 2.1 metre ceiling height and is outfitted with a wardrobe with sizeable full hanging space as well as other storage lockers.

The use of the upright fridge provides the advantage of not needing to unpack a bunch of items in order to get to something located on the bottom. The control panel for lighting and the Ice Pack is readily accessible. It also provides USB charging ports.

The fridge, freezer and microwave oven look after the catering requirements while a DVD media player connected to a high-resolution colour television takes care of the entertainment.

The mighty 16-litre MP10 685hp engine delivers 3,810Nm (2,300 lbs/ft) of torque at as low as 1,000 rpm while achieving good fuel economy by hanging on in 12th gear and taking advantage of the 3.10:1 rear axle gearing. Not only does

the engine provide such impressive hauling capabilities, the three stage “PowerLeash” engine braking easily holds the 90 tonnes to account on descents with very little need to touch the service brakes. Stage one is an exhaust brake, stage two is an engine compression brake, and stage three is the combination of both. Using the selector wand at its spring-loaded fourth position initiates downshifting the transmission to maximise the engine braking effect without risking over revving.

The Bendix Wingman fusion safety system is standard equipment across the Mack optimised spec range and features lane departure warning, blind spot alarm, adaptive cruise control, collision warning and autonomous emergency braking.

On the return leg to Mount Isa we appreciate how the Mack Super-Liner has been designed with the needs of the Australian driver in mind, providing high levels of performance, safety, comfort and handling, combined with a spacious and well-appointed sleeper cabin environment.

Mack Super-Liner AB triple roadtrain.

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November 2023

Easily Retrofit to the Popular HOLLAND FW351E & FW331 Fifth Wheel

FLASHING RED WARNING LED LIGHTS FOR FAILED COUPLING ATTEMPT

HIGH INTENSITY WHITE LED LIGHTS FOR SUCCESSFUL COUPLING ATTEMPT

The HOLLAND ELI-te™ Fifth Wheel Coupling Assistant helps drivers GET IT RIGHT!

FAILED COUPLING – In the case of a failed coupling attempt, bright red flashing LED lights assist the driver to quickly recognize a potentially costly mistake.

SUCCESSFUL COUPLING – A successful couple triggers highintensity white LED lights, strategically aimed at the kingpin and lock for enhanced visibility during the inspection process, especially in poor weather and low-light conditions.

Robust electrical components: sealed one-piece harness, long-life LED lights, durable inductive sensors, and steel encased logic module ensure reliable operation in the toughest conditions.

SAF-HOLLAND (Aust.) Pty. Ltd ABN: 79004371215 | Sales: 1300 131 613 Email: sales@safholland.com.au

www.safholland.com.au

PERSONALITY PROFILE

SEASONS OF

CHANGE

Experienced industry executive Michael May is steering IVECO’s Australian operation through its significant reorganisation as it transitions from being a local manufacturer.

I

t’s an interesting time locally for truckmakers many of whom are finding new opportunities for their brands even as major changes loom over the horizon. IVECO Australia Managing Director Michael May is right in the thick of it.

Prime Mover: The IVECO S-Way has been well received in Europe. Do you anticipate a similar level of interest here?

Michael May: We’ve had a soft release of the product to the local dealer network.

It’s been interesting from a logistics perspective to get clear timelines as to when the product was ready for the local market. We also wanted to have product available, so when people came to the Brisbane Truck Show and saw the S-Way 56

November 2023

for the first time they can go back to their dealer and buy one.

PM: Is supply the challenge everyone says it is?

MM: It’s a unique situation where the demand for product is high in Europe as our market share is growing there on the back of the quality of the S-Way product.

The whole world market for transport equipment seems to be very strong and we’re still challenged by logistics and some component shortages, but there’s product flowing through locally now. We’re balancing the product we’re getting out of Europe with the way we want to grow here as well, because we are entering back into segments where once we’d been strong in the past,

particularly with the S-Way in single trailer and B-double applications. Much of the driveline is shared with some previous models, so that’s an advantage and the local network has a lot of the tooling, technical knowledge, training and the parts that are needed. But we also want to make sure when we start running those trucks here and in New Zealand that the network has a good understanding of the product.

PM: Is IVECO in Europe demanding you sell more?

MM: It’s a little bit the other way at the moment. It’s us asking for more. From a sales perspective, what’s improved since we’ve spun off from CNH is the link we’ve got into Italy. Having

to necessarily change where they bought, now because of this current supply and demand imbalance, they think about what else is out there. And when you look at those competing products the safety and technology and fuel economy are really good. So to get someone to actually step out of one brand and into another brand, for us that’s a real opportunity.

Michael May.

us as a separate region and myself reporting direct to Luca Sra, the global head of IVECO Trucks, gives really fast alignment and understanding about what we require. We might not have had that before.

PM: Does the booming local market situation present some opportunities?

MM: Post-COVID, I think some of the reaction of the industry initially was the sky was going to fall down, and actually the opposite has happened. If we look at the competitive landscape and we try to understand where we want the products to be positioned, we’ve got clarity and we’ve refined what we offer so we can fit the market well, particularly in the single trailer and 70 tonne B-double applications. If you take a look at that segment there are some pretty impressive European products available.

People who have never really had reason

PM: Can you comment on the new IVECO T-way model shown in Brisbane?

MM: The T-way is new for us, but not totally new as we had Trakker before and the T-way is the next generation.

We don’t sell that many of them here in Australia and we sell more in New Zealand mainly in the fertiliser spreader application. With the new cab and increased capability, it will let us into other areas including fertiliser, mining, forestry, and we also see some opportunity maybe for heavier duty applications and we’re quietly confident about the potential for that offroad product.

PM: What are the plans for the IVECO eDaily displayed at the Brisbane Truck Show?

MM: That product is a validation unit.

We are taking it steady by showing the vehicle, but we’re not yet exploring the market. It’s a showpiece really for validation and understanding how we equip our dealers and customers to charge, handle, operate, and own such a vehicle. Quite deliberately, we are going to spend at least the next 12 months with our innovation engineers because we see it as a real shift in the way we offer products. We’re still in the business of building trucks, and the eDaily is quite unique because, with a lot of the other vans their basic platforms come off a car-base so they have pressed-metal monocoque construction, whereas the eDaily has a true truck chassis. Everyone else has got lighter and cheaper and smaller, and we’ve retained quite a heavy-duty product which has now enabled us to have a good niche. As

battery vehicles have developed it’s given us the modularity and we have the ability to put one, two or three batteries in. The eDaily product is second generation and it’s a real truck and its 7.2 tonne GVM means it can carry 4 tonnes of payload.

PM: Will the eDaily stack up financially against internal combustion vehicles of similar capacity?

MM: As far as affordability I don’t have an answer at this stage. That’s something we’re learning more about from Europe where IVECO has developed GATES – Green Advanced Transport Eco System – which is looking at the question of infrastructure and affordability. In Europe it’s a little different because there are government incentives, whereas over here without those strong incentives, it’s a little less clear how that’s going to translate to transport companies.

PM: What’s the feedback been like so far?

MM: The feedback has been really positive. Customers in Europe are continuing to order in big volumes and are finding ways to make it work.

The eDaily has a pretty big motorhome customer base as well so it’s not just all about trucks.

PM: What’s happening with the IVECO electric heavy vehicles?

MM: IVECO has bought outright the joint venture we had with Nikola and that’s a good development for us as far as we are concerned, but we still share that S-Way cab with Nikola for the US market. We’ve also had some good discussions around hydrogen. It’s a new world now, autonomous driving is an opportunity in that space too and we’re looking into that at the moment and we’ve done trials in China and Germany.

One of the traits of IVECO being a relatively smaller company is it can be nimble, and it focuses on partnerships to accelerate projects which I don’t think we could have done alone. It’s a critical time for our organisation and IVECO is on the cutting edge, which is good. p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

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PRIME MOVERS & SHAKERS

NO SILVER BULLET

Catherine Baxter is a leader in making decisions which will have an important effect on the future sustainability of transport.

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atherine Baxter is Chief Operating Officer at Team Global Express (TGE) where she is responsible for safely and efficiently operating Australia’s largest intermodal freight network, leading a team of over 7,000 direct employees and several thousand contractors. TGE has a fleet of around 6,500 vehicles including trucks, aircraft and two ships.

With 30 years of experience in the industry, Catherine has a strong focus on safe and disciplined operations and has extensive experience and expertise in transport, having previously held executive roles in large national ASX listed businesses, including Aurizon, UGL, and Boral, and prior to joining TGE was the Chief Operating officer of Metro Trains Melbourne.

Catherine is a strong and well-regarded champion of diversity and improving 58

November 2023

gender equality in the workplace.

During her career, she has supported major change, including at Metro Trains Melbourne, where the company achieved a record 37 per cent of all train drivers being female. Since joining TGE Catherine has been a leader in highlighting the major role the transport industry can play in decarbonisation.

“There is no silver bullet,” Catherine told delegates at the 2023 NatRoad conference.

“There is no single magical key to reducing emissions and decarbonising. We are going to need a suite of solutions to meet our needs depending upon the freight we are carrying, what it’s being carried on, how far it’s going, how much it weighs and how quickly we need the freight to get there.”

TGE is on a decarbonisation journey and facing similar challenges to everyone else, namely that sustainable solutions are often

substantially more costly than traditional ways of operating. This is something Catherine openly acknowledges.

TGE is taking a multi-front approach to achieve its own environmental ambitions, starting with the transition to more efficient high productivity combinations such as A-doubles to reduce truck movements and therefore emissions, while also reducing costs.

“But it has to be weighed up against the requirement to still use diesel in the freight task, so it’s not going to decarbonise as quickly as we’d like,” she says. “But it’s part of the larger puzzle. For light and medium rigids there is likely a need to transition to electric vehicles depending upon the weight and distance requirements. The critical focus here is highly dependent upon a renewable source of energy and how it is being consumed by the truck and where the infrastructure is based. That’s

quite a challenge at the moment.”

TGE has already taken a giant first stride towards its electric vehicle future with the trial now underway based at its Bungarribee facility in Western Sydney where the first of 60 electric trucks from Fuso and Volvo have been commissioned.

Catherine acknowledges the total cost of ownership for electric trucks is currently more than double of an existing internal combustion engine truck and appreciates the $20 million grant obtained through the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) which, combined with a substantial investment by TGE, has made possible Australia’s (and likely the world’s) largest trial of electric heavy vehicles.

“The trial is the first step towards having a critical mass of electric vehicles that we can test,” says Catherine. “The good news is we’ve actually got the first of the trucks and we’re training our drivers. The feedback from them has been extremely positive and I also want to acknowledge the TWU because they have worked very closely with us and have been really supportive in the trials.”

Catherine also sees a gradual transition to hydrogen powered transport, but her view is we are not likely to see that as a largescale reality until toward the end of the current decade.

“To reach the decarbonisation goals as quickly as possible the industry can’t solely wait for new energy sources to come available, we’ve got to adopt additional measures now,” she says. “The OEMs we are working with are still working on making hydrogen fuel cells a reality and, in our business, we need liquid hydrogen not gaseous hydrogen. We may in fact see liquid hydrogen injection into our internal combustion engines before anything else.”

TGE’s access to multiple modes of freight transport means that rail could be an option depending upon the freight and where it has to go.

“There is a real emission saving in switching to rail but for shorter distances trucks are the way to go, and using renewable diesel is certainly a thing which will help, at least until locomotives are using batteries, and that’s not going to be anytime soon,” says Catherine. “In the meantime we must have renewable diesel and biodiesel. These blends are critical for us going forward. With biodiesel we are hampered because of the fuel tax credits system where we can only get a maximum of 20 per cent biodiesel in the blend despite many of the OEMs saying it is possible to increase the percentage.”

Renewable diesel, on the other hand, is chemically interchangeable with the

mineral diesel and as of July this year TGE will be able to accumulate Australian Carbon Credit Units.

TGE has also been taking steps in other areas to reduce its carbon footprint, from fitting solar panels to the roofs of its larger facilities, fitment of low rolling resistance tyres to its vehicles, and driver training which addresses fuel efficiency. A new generation telematics system is being rolled out across the entire fleet over the next couple of years which will make its own contributions to sustainability by facilitating more efficient routing.

“It isn’t easy in a network business to make this sort of change when you’ve got so much complexity and different activities and different sizes and style of fleet and different ages of the fleet, but we are committed to it,” says Catherine. “We look hard at how do we become more green, not by buying carbon credits, but how are we genuinely going to be green and make that change and work with the industry to make that change.”

The opportunity to decarbonise, according to Catherine, represents a road in front of the entire transport industry.

“The journey may not be easy but imagine the future when, not if, we get it right,” she says. “The benefits will be more than worth it.”

A slide from Catherine’s recent presentation on the Gold Coast.

p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

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DELIVERY: RIDING SHOTGUN

COOL UNDER PRESSURE As a fledgling business, Brisbane Valley Refrigeration has found another gear as it enjoys a shift in momentum.

W

orking under duress is par for the course for some people. That’s certainly the case for refrigerated trailer mechanic Nick Pye, whose business, Brisbane Valley Refrigeration, is thriving since it was founded in 2018.

Having, prior to this, worked at his father’s refrigerated transport company where he completed his apprenticeship before a spell at a Thermo King dealership, Nick, leaning heavily on this experience, went out on his own and hasn’t looked back.

Word-of-mouth, at first, proved so One of the IVECOs at work.

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strong it forced him to put on an apprentice. Then he added a trainee.

“Everyone kept ringing and I’ve got a big problem with saying no,” recalls Nick, who admits he has spent a lot of time on the phone after hours. That’s primarily because refrigerated goods are perishable. Repairing them is a time sensitive business especially when a trailer of prawns can be worth half a million dollars.

The customer portfolio of the business covers several big truck fleets, Exodas being one of them, as well as small outfits and many owner-operators.

Nick asks that fleets include his phone

number for drivers on the driver run sheets.

“They can call that number from anywhere in the country if they have dramas with their refrigeration,” he says. “I’ve got a breakdown network that covers them and includes follow up service and even what they’re buying, the new units and what they’re doing with the old units.”

He adds, “I take the whole headache for them.”

Brisbane Valley Refrigeration imports bulk parts both genuine and aftermarket. As one of the few service providers who maintained decent

Nick Pye.

stock levels by the end of 2020, the business came out of the COVID period far stronger than when it had gone in.

Major repair works such as insurance company referrals are handled in the workshop at Rocklea which also has some hardstand for heavy vehicles.

There are also two 12 x 24 metre sheds for holding parts and equipment.

The fleet has grown quickly in five years from an old Japanese truck, two Toyota HiLuxes, a Ford Ranger and more recently six new IVECO Daily 50C and 45C models with another two on order.

Each IVECO Daily is decked out specific to the technician working from it and features a customised pantech service body and rear work platform.

“Every mechanic works differently and the shelving inside is set up to reflect this,” says Nick. “This includes

the parts they want to carry, the work bench arrangement and OxyKits they use. They all have fridges and microwaves. It’s all about keeping staff happy and efficient.”

Given Brisbane Valley Refrigeration operates 24/7 this last part can’t be underestimated. On the refrigerated trailers, technicians are servicing the four-cylinder diesel engines that run the compressor and indoor generator.

The technicians will complete full engine work from head gasket rebuilds, water pump repair and replacement.

That’s just on the diesel side of things.

On the refrigeration side technicians can rebuild compressors, weld up gas leaks, and perform maintenance on refrigeration dryers.

“A lot of the units have three- phase plug-in so we’re quite proficient with electrical diagnosis and repairs,” says Nick. “It’s niche in the sense it requires

you to be smart enough not to get grubby as a day job but to enjoy doing the dirtier work with the motors. That’s the importance of having staff well looked after and all the equipment and tooling being suited for them because it can be difficult to find the right fits.”

That also relates, it turns out, to the physical attributes of the staff. One of the mechanics is nearly 7-foot tall. His IVECO Daily was made 150mm higher than the others to accommodate his height. With each vehicle covering about 60,000 kilometres annually, this is no small concession.

The automatic transmission is preferred by drivers given it makes backing into the rear of the trailers, where they spend most of their time, a cinch.

As a light rigid truck, the 180hp IVECO Daily is modplated and downgraded to 4.495 tonnes. d e l i ve r y m a g a z i n e . c o m . a u

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DELIVERY: RIDING SHOTGUN

The six new IVECO Dailys.

“They’re nudging that all the time,” says Nick. “They’re comfortable and handle the weight well. The Dailys deliver substantially better fuel over the other options in the fleet. It’s nearly half the fuel compared to the old NPR.” Per a hundred kilometres the Dailys are sitting in a range of 12.8 to 13.3-litres on fuel burn according to Nick. Structured on a 5 year/300,000km warranty, so far there haven’t been any warranty issues despite the vehicles working around the clock, travelling as far south as Kempsey in New South Wales and Dirranbandi to the southwest of Queensland.

“They’ve got good highway speed.

The IVECOs will sit on 110kp/h comfortably and make good fuel economy. They have no problems keeping up with traffic,” says Nick. “They look good. We opted for the business pack interior. That encourages everyone to look after them. Hopefully that will see a decent resale on the other side.”

During the COVID months Nick says the company could have deployed another ten vehicles if not for the same issue many across industry are still battling against.

“The right manpower is difficult to 62

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come across,” says Nick. “I’d rather stay at a comfortable size until we’ve got the right people come along and then grow in a structured, safe way.”

Most of the technicians have a transport industry background. Nick finds it makes a big difference to have the right transport orientated people for the job.

“We’ve always got someone that’s happy enough to go and do something at short notice,” Nick explains. “It’s quite fulfilling. You get a fair bit of satisfaction out of this type of work. It can be high pressure when you’ve got a loaded freezer to tend to and only a limited amount of time to make it right. All of us enjoy that competitive pressure.”

By way of endorsement, the company’s first customer is now its biggest customer. It too has upscaled in a short time from 20 trailers to over 100. That said, Brisbane Valley Refrigeration is equally approved of by independent operators as well.

“We’ll work on weekends or matchup to when they’re going out,” says Nick.

“We can communicate with them ahead of time so we know what we’re up against and we can get things fixed as fast as possible.”

Two more service bodies are presently

being built by Tex’s Manufacturing based in Yatala. These will go on IVECO Daily units.

“He’ll customise anything for us and he has common sense,” says Nick.

“Definitely the best body builder I’ve found who is the easiest to work with.

His service bodies I think will last at least three IVECOs or 15 years. It’s a good investment for us.”

Going forward, Nick’s plan is to have a fleet entirely consisting of IVECOs all with a service body and one with a tray on it. Even as a utility vehicle they are excellent around town according to Nick.

“You can put 2.5 tonne on the alloy tray and still achieve good fuel economy and they’re very stable,” he says. “I’ve got one that I’m waiting on a body for and I’ve put 8,000kms on it just running around as a ute because I quite enjoy it.”

Momentum, especially from a standing start, is not easy to achieve and once stopped even harder to replicate. Nick is aware the nascent business is riding on a wave that keeps building.

“When I started the business, I didn’t have any money. It was from a low base,” he recalls. “At 23, I had a pregnant partner who wasn’t working.

It was a long, slow climb up.”

But once the momentum arrived and it did soon enough, he put the right elements in place, which has enabled Brisbane Valley Refrigeration to grow and customise operations to suit.

For Nick the future is about keeping their longstanding customers happy and working in with the next big fleet.

In the short-term things are about to get hot. Entering the summer period, the business is expected to increase its workload by an extra 50 per cent.

“A couple of hot days there at the end of September and all of our phones started blowing up on the same day,” he says. “We got three new customers in about an hour with people ringing up with breakdowns. It’s a fine balance to try and remain very available and but also take orders and help out as much as we can. That’s the challenge.”

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MARKETPLACE

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Scan the QR code to find out more.

Our online marketplace is dedicated to the sale and hire of trucks, trailers and other transport equipment Australiawide. From low loaders and tag trailers to rigid-bodied vehicles and prime movers, you’ll find it here. Whether you’re looking for a deal or keen to sell some high-value assets, we have you covered.

FINAL MILE

TAKING CARE OF BUSINESS Mobile workforce platform, vWork, takes into account every aspect of last mile logistics, ensuring it is integrated to suit the many vagaries of that complex delivery process.

F

or B2B organisations, delivering on time plays a critical role in satisfying and retaining a customer base.

While this may be a given, with several factors contributing to a seamless last-mile delivery process, it’s easy for poor delivery performance to arise. This in turn potentially impacts customer relationships and

business reputation.

Delivering on time supports the efficiency of entire supply chains, with delays often disrupting workflows, increasing costs, and sometimes causing lost sales. According to vWork CEO, Roy Moody, effective last mile delivery processes also helps in avoiding non-compliance penalties wherever they might apply.

More efficient handovers are a feature of vWork’s technology.

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November 2023

“Ultimately accurate last mile delivery will improve a company’s bottom line by reducing the costs of supplying goods and other associated expenses,” he says.

“It’s important to address any potential issues affecting your ontime delivery capability while finding a technology solution that supports a smooth and highly efficient delivery process.”

This is where vWork comes into the picture. At a time when technology is reshaping every aspect of delivery services, making competition in the market fiercer, there are several ways it can guarantee on-time deliveries every time. vWork is a cloud-based solution designed to ensure businesses and their entire delivery fleets can better understand last mile delivery requirements for every, individual, customer.

“With a centralised data source, every driver has easy access to information, without which delivery delays and errors are likely to occur,” Roy says.

“Route mapping uses real-time road and traffic information to ensure drivers follow the best possible route for each delivery they are assigned to. With all drivers able to access the same information, there is greater service level consistency across the organisation.”

vWork enables delivery schedules to be matched against capacity and constraints.

vWork’s technology has the ability to update customers on expected delivery arrival times plus send texts and emails in advance, as well as offering real-time location tracking. It also enables three-way messaging between the customer, dispatcher, and driver enabling operators to better manage resources efficiently and deal with any issue that may present itself.

“Giving your customers a communication channel with drivers not only gives them greater peace of mind and a more personalised service,” explains Roy. “It also helps ensure goods are delivered to the right place, on time, while facilitating a more efficient handover. Customers can make necessary arrangements, such as meeting the delivery driver to receive goods, and plan their day much more efficiently around deliveries.”

Designed from the ground up to be integrated into existing tech stacks, vWork has also developed a range of off-the-shelf integrations for leading Australian accounting and telematics solutions. vWork’s telematics integration gives dispatchers pin-point GPS accuracy of all vehicle locations, which Roy says is a game changer for

last mile delivery logistics.

“Imagine giving your drivers the ability to locate precise drop-off points first time, every time, rather than wasting time circling a block for a building or loading bay, or even dropping off oversized goods in the wrong location altogether on large work sites,” he says. “The use of pinpoint GPS data when scheduling jobs for delivery not only speeds up deliveries where dropoff points are difficult to find, but it also minimises the chances and costs of lost or misplaced goods.”

The app also takes into account the driver’s hours, skills, location and available capacity to create a set of routes that allows for the greatest number of jobs to be completed in the least possible time. It enables delivery schedules to be matched against capacity and constraints whilst automatically working out the fastest and most efficient routes for hundreds of jobs and their delivery drivers.

By setting realistic delivery goals and deadlines, operators can ensure resources are allocated most efficiently and effectively to meet customer expectations. Plus, Roy says, it gives management a far better understanding of the causes behind

missed deadlines, allowing them to forward plan. “vWork also enables operators to record variations between the actual goods delivered versus the original order,” he says. “For example, if stock is damaged in transit or needs to be returned to the warehouse, this information is captured along with time of delivery.”

Through integrating vWork with inventory management systems, you get up-to-the-minute delivery information that helps you better manage stock levels, based on returns, damaged goods or ordering errors.

“Last-mile delivery performance can become highly reliant on the experienced knowledge of a handful of individuals within the business to get things right upon delivery,” Roy says. “By hosting customer data in one centralised location, such as an app, businesses and their entire delivery fleets can better understand the ins and outs of individual last-mile delivery requirements for all of their customers.

This is especially true where they might have very specific needs and need to continually adjust and update the information to improve the speed and quality of the last-mile service.” d e l i ve r y m a g a z i n e . c o m . a u

65

INSIGHT | VICTORIAN TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION INSTITUTE

Trailer response timing and harmonisation with European legislation

RACHEL MICHAUD

T

here are many upcoming changes to European Legislation that have been fueled by an acceleration in technology and the need to implement more sustainable solutions in transport. Despite the excitement of change, understanding current legislation and the differences and similarities between Australian Design Rule 35 and 38 (ADR 35 & 38) and United Nations Economic Commission for Europe Rule 13 (UNECE R13) still holds opportunity for improvement.

These are the regulations for heavy vehicle and trailer braking systems in Australia and Europe respectively.

In the braking space, ADR 35 & 38 were created to tackle Australian vehicles and trailers locally made and imported which are not compliant with the European UNECE R13 brake rule. These ADRs also deal with a small handful of local Australian requirements such as all heavy vehicles and trailers needing to park via mechanical means (by spring brakes), and not on air as in UNECE R13.

Australia is unable to harmonise completely with the UNECE R13 due a unique mixed market of vehicles with design platforms from Europe, Japan and North America. Heavy vehicles which are imported to Australia must either comply with UNECE R13 or meet the performance and test requirements of ADR 35. For trailers, the case is similar.

Typically European and Japanese imported heavy vehicles will comply 66

November 2023 de c e mbe r 2018

to the homologation requirements of UNECE R13. Locally manufactured North American vehicles will comply with ADR 35 and are mostly tested locally in Australia. The majority of trailers built in Australia utilise the timing and performance tests dictated in ADR 38/05.

Pneumatic brake timing is a key requirement for a trailer brake control system and must be measured for every unique circuit and submitted to the Federal Authority (Department of Infrastructure) for approval. This response time is key to ensure that the driver’s brake demand is received quickly enough by the trailer brakes to be effective in combination braking and provide sufficient braking performance.

So what is sufficient brake timing? Around 15 years ago, when ADR 38 Revision 2 was the latest local requirement, the air signal at the front coupling of the trailer had to reach the rear-most wheelend or actuator by no less than 0.35 seconds. The time measurement is taken from when the air pressure has built to at least 420kPa at the brake actuator and this ‘sufficient’

timing was based on the UNECE R13 requirement at the time.

When Antilock Braking System (ABS) braking modules and later Trailer Electronic Braking System (TEBS) modules entered global markets, it was realised that 0.35 seconds was too short a time frame for the modules to achieve.

ADR 38 was then revised to Revision 3 to extend the response time requirement from 0.35 seconds to 0.4 seconds. This was deemed sufficient by the market at the time. Figure 1 shows a commonly used TEBS electro-pneumatic brake valve.

To date, the latest ADR 38 (Rev 5) requires that all trailer pneumatic circuits still meet the 0.4 second time frame. However with TEBS now being mandated on most heavy trailers since 2019, it is becoming increasingly difficult for manufacturers to meet this timing requirement for some special purpose trailers that are often longer and/or wider. Often in testing, these circuits time anywhere from 0.41 – 0.6 seconds and beyond depending on the complexity of the control line and length of the service hoses.

Figure 1: A commonly used Trailer Electronic Braking System (TEBS) valve .

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Figure 2: Air timing limit must be met at the ’least-favoured’ service brake actuator.

Operators are motivated to fit TEBS to special trailers to benefit from the ‘intelligent’ capabilities of the modules, which improves their combination brake timing and compatibility. TEBS trailers, when towed by vehicles with electronic brake signal capability can actually meet application timing as quick as 0.15 seconds for a simple triaxle semi trailer circuit. However, for ADR 38 response time compliance the legal requirement is to meet the pneumatic only timing ignoring the electronic timing capability.

Neither the UNECE R13 nor ADR 38 rules allow for electronic timing to be used for compliance submission in place of the pneumatic timing. Trailers in this category that do not meet the pneumatic response timing need to be granted a non-standard trailer approval. This results in an additional cost and paperwork penalty for the manufacturer, despite having fitted the TEBS to access improved electronic brake timing. The air timing limit is illustrated in Figure 2.

Currently imported trailers to Australia have the option of complying with the UNECE R13 or ADR braking regulation. This includes the brake timing requirement which is consistent at 0.4 seconds. According to our European colleagues, apparently not. The actual wording for UNECE R13 from Annex 6 is the below: 3.5. Performance requirements 3.5.1. For trailers with a pneumatic control line the time elapsing between the moment when the pressure produced in the control line by the simulator

ARTSA-i 2024 membership applications are now open at www.artsa.com.au.

The PACCAR / ARTSA-i Industry Seminar is being held 30th November at PACCAR’s Bayswater site. Tickets are available via the ARTSA-i website.

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would bring much relief to Australian OEMs undergoing compliance testing for Control System Component Type Approvals (CTAs). Consistently, circuits will test at 0.42 seconds, meaning that modifications are needed to get the control line response to be below the 0.40 second requirement. Given that for the past ten years it has been technically acceptable for trailers to be imported from Europe with 0.449sec response timing, could our own ADR 38 be easily updated to reflect the same provision and harmonise with UNECE R13?

Ideally there would also be an alternative approval route for long and wide combinations to submit higher pneumatic timing ie. <0.6s under the provision that the electronic brake timing was <0.4s and additional measures were taken to confirm the TEBS unit was powered and functioning at all times without faults impacting the electronic brake signal efficacy. A simple large warning sticker on the front bulk head paired with a dual warning light circuit indicating power and fault status could assist. For North American prime movers, a trailer roadtrain module (TRM) or alternative device to transmit a ISO11992-2 compliant electronic control signal must be fitted. Towing Vehicles meeting UNECE R13 will already comply. The indicator light system would provide useful feedback to the driver about the status of the electronic brake communication.

reaches 65 kPa and the moment when the pressure in the brake actuator of the trailer reaches 75 per cent of its asymptotic value shall not exceed 0.4 second.

There is then a general condition given as per Annex 6, which many in Australia may not be aware of : Annex 6. 1.3. The response times determined in accordance with the provisions of this annex shall be rounded to the nearest tenth of a second. If the figure representing the hundredth is Rachel Michaud, five or more, the response time shall be ARTSA-i Life Member rounded up to the next higher tenth.

Given this, the UNECE timing requirement listed as 0.4 seconds is in fact 0.449 seconds.

Adoption of this interpretation by the Australian regulator would be helpful.

The additional 0.049 s may not sound like much of a difference, but when it comes to brake Figure 3: Indicator lights can be installed at the front of the rear trailer circuit response timing, to verify TEBS power status. p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

67

INSIGHT | TRUCK INDUSTRY COUNCIL

The long and winding road to 2.55m truck width

TONY MCMULLAN

I

n May 2019, I detailed in this column a renewed push by the Truck Industry Council (TIC) and its members, to increase the maximum vehicle width in Australia by 50mm, from 2.5m to 2.55m. I explained that when it came to maximum vehicle width, Australia was in a very exclusive, but not envied, position, being just one of six countries on the planet where maximum vehicle width is restricted to 2.5m. The others in the ‘2.5m club’ are Argentina, Japan, Lebanon, Morocco and South Korea. Even our Kiwi cousins across the ditch, ditched 2.5m in favour of 2.55m in 2017 and have never looked back.

This was not the first time that maximum vehicle width had been put on the table for discussion in Australia. Way back in the early 1990s the issue of aligning with the European maximum vehicle width of 2.55m was first raised by industry.

However, it was not until 2007 that the Federal Government decided that 2.55m vehicle width would be implemented in Australia, only to encounter pushback from some State jurisdictions, who had the legal authority to block vehicle widths greater than 2.5m on their roads.

Amid the original assurances, some truck manufactures produced trucks at the promised 2.55m width. Ultimately these trucks had to be modified, at considerable expense, back to 2.5m when the states won the day.

So why is 50mm such an issue? The answer is directly related to Australia’s 68

November 2023

position in the world hierarchy of annual truck sales and despite record new truck sales in Australia last year, we represent about 1.0 per cent of global truck production each year. However, with almost 80 per cent of new heavyduty trucks sold in Australia each year imported directly or being derived from truck designs from markets where the maximum vehicle width is 2.55m or greater, most of the heavy trucks sold in our market must be redesigned to suit our unique width regulations. That 50mm, the height of a credit card, is actually a very big deal and needlessly costs truck manufacturers and their customers, millions of dollars each year.

While adding unnecessary cost to heavy vehicles is never a good thing, there was a much more important downside to limiting Australian vehicle width to just 2.5m. Increasingly, there are many emerging advanced safety technologies that are currently available, or that are being developed in overseas markets, that rely on sensors placed on the outermost extremities of the vehicle. Many of these systems are designed to provide safety benefits to vulnerable road-users. In numerous cases, it is economically not justifiable to redesign these features for a low volume Australian market, with a unique 2.5m width limit. The upshot is that those new trucks with their latest safety and environmental features are left in their overseas home markets, or the features are removed for Australia because the cost of re-engineering and re-testing simply cannot be justified. At the very least, there are significant delays in bringing trucks with these features and systems to our shores.

TIC highlighted these issues at both state and Federal Government levels

and to their credit, the Department of Infrastructure and Transport, developed the concept for the Safer Freight Vehicle package. A view whereby a truck with a suite of the latest international safety systems, over and above those currently required by Australian vehicle regulations, would be allowed to operate on the Australian road network at up to 2.55m in width.

Australian truck manufacturers and importers are, if nothing else, a very patient group. After four decades of actively campaigning the merits of aligning with international vehicle safety and width regulations, Federal Assistant Minister Carol Brown announced in late September 2023, that she and Federal Transport Minister Catherine King, had gained the necessary State and Territory support and moved to sign the new and amended Australian Design Rules (ADRs) that will allow the introduction of the Safer Freight Vehicle package.

These regulations will allow vehicles fitted with an advanced safety package to operate at up to 2.55m on Australian roads. There are a few in-service boxes yet to be ticked, the main one being that the Heavy Vehicle National Law needs to be amended to allow such vehicles to operate on Australian roads, however that process is well underway, and it is envisaged that 2.55m trucks will be a reality in Australia by mid-2024. I do say trucks, because at this point in time the Safer Freight Vehicle package does not apply to busses or trailers. Those discussions are ongoing and must now be the priority.

Tony McMullan CEO, Truck Industry Council

VICTORIAN TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION | INSIGHT

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Regional operators indispensable for prosperity

PETERSTUART ANDERSON ST CLAIR

A

fter a three-year hiatus during the pandemic, the VTA was pleased to resume its popular series of Victorian Regional Forums, with visits conducted to Bendigo, Mildura, and Wangaratta, to meet with regional members, operators, and other industry stakeholders.

Over the years, the Forums have been a valuable way to engage with regional members we aren’t able to regularly see, as well as share important industry, productivity, and safety updates to our friends in rural Victoria.

This year was no exception, with our Forums delivering road and workplace safety updates through the involvement of our presenting partners Victoria Police, Worksafe Victoria, and the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator, along with sponsor TWUSUPER. Worksafe’s presentation had a particular focus on efforts to reduce lives lost in transport.

Over the past two years in Victoria 18 of the 25 heavy vehicle drivers lost were from the road freight sector. Injury prevention is also a major focus, with transport occupying a high number of claims alongside construction and manufacturing. Vehicle incidents, falls from heights, and body stressing occupy the most Worksafe claims in transport, along with mental health claims related to pressure and stress at work.

NHVR provided a comprehensive

overview about how technology is helping them enforce national heavy vehicle law. Equipment on NHVR has immense capabilities with respect to identifying defective or suspect vehicles, with mobile cameras able to provide insights into intelligence through registration scans. Situational alerts can then be sent out to officers on patrol for follow up and investigation.

Victoria Police Heavy Vehicle Unit, along with regional officers in Bendigo and Mildura, outlined key issues for them including fatigue, speed, vehicle roadworthiness, drugs and alcohol, and seatbelts. It was also sobering to hear stories of officers responding to fatalities, and the lifelong impact this can have on our first responders.

In the context of our Forums, it’s worth reflecting on the pivotal role regional operators play in sustaining the metropolitan and regional economies.

In many ways, they are the lifeblood of economic vitality, facilitating the movement of goods and commodities crucial to various industries. They link states’ vast regions to one another and to national and international markets, ensuring agricultural produce, manufactured goods, and raw materials can reach their intended destinations efficiently.

With agriculture the backbone of regional Australia, freight operators play an indispensable role in getting agricultural products to markets, here and abroad. Whether it’s transporting grains, livestock, dairy, or fresh produce, these operators ensure that farmers can access markets and consumers can enjoy fresh, local produce.

Regional Australia also hosts a significant manufacturing sector, which relies heavily on efficient transportation of raw materials, components, and finished products. Freight operators provide

the necessary logistics infrastructure to support manufacturing operations, helping industries remain competitive and viable.

Tourism is a major contributor to Australia’s economy, and freight operators facilitate this by ensuring that tourist destinations are well-supplied.

From food and beverages to equipment and construction materials for tourism infrastructure, these operators enable the smooth functioning of the tourism industry.

Our industry generates jobs and economic growth in regional areas. It provides employment opportunities for drivers, logistics professionals, maintenance workers, and administrative staff. Moreover, the industry’s growth fuels demand for related services, contributing to overall economic expansion.

Efficient supply chains are crucial for businesses to remain competitive.

Regional freight operators play a pivotal role in optimising supply chains by ensuring timely and cost-effective movement of goods. This efficiency translates into cost savings for businesses and consumers.

This year’s Forums have been a terrific way to engage with members and hear of their issues and concerns, many of which reflect those of metropolitan areas.

Regional businesses are being impacted just as hard by labour shortages, cost increases and infrastructure concerns.

Visiting our members in their own backyards has been a powerful and instructive experience and they can rest assured we have their interests at heart as we advocate for better outcomes for freight operators.

Peter Anderson CEO, VTA p r i m e m ove r m a g . c o m . a u

69

PETER SHIELDS’ NUMBER CRUNCH

Sounds Heavy

Care.

It’s what we do.

563 so far this year (+14.3 per cent), albeit from a base which was greatly affected by supply issues during 2022. The finish of the instant asset tax write off scheme in combination with rising interest rates was always expected to have an effect on the market, however we are still on track for a very strong, if not record, truck sales in the 2023 calendar year.

At Isuzu, we’ve always taken great care of our customers.

ISUZU

We’re Australia’s number one truck… an honour we’ve held for over HINO three decades.

The combined sales results of the members of the Truck

FUSO Industry Council show that while there has been a very That means more businesses put their trust in usslight than any other truck brand.

VOLVO slowdown in the growth of the market, Australia is still on We understand that record reputations us and Isuzu Care is track to record another year of are newriding trucks on joining the that’s why KENWORTH national fl eet. more than just an aftersales service package.

MERCEDES-BENZ September was the third month in a row that 2023 sales It’s part of our DNA. IVECO were less than the corresponding months during 2022. The September 3,345 new prime mover and and cab chassis From daytotal one,ofwe support customers demonstrate that SCANIA reliability is units was 42 less than September 2022 (-1.6 per cent) and everything. We pride ourselves on being proactive and always going the UD TRUCKS before anyone starts panicking, the massive results achieved extra mile.

MACK during the first half of this year should continue to carry the market another record. year-to-date accrual And astowe look to new The frontiers, we’re(YTD) finding new of ways to help DAF our customers 30,942 units remains 2,564 more than at the end of 2022’s exceed their goals.

FIAT September quarter (+9.4 per cent). Industry insiders continue FREIGHTLINER Isuzu Care is what setsthe usissue, apart. to say that demand is not but that supply remains the biggest challenge.

HYUNDAI Always has, always will.

The Light Duty category achieved 1,303 during September, 219 MAN less than in September 2022 (-14.4 per cent) and the accrual RENAULT for the first nine months of 2023 of 12,417 remains 348 more WESTERN STAR than at the same point last year (+2.9 per cent).

Medium Duty fared much better with 646 units for the VOLKSWAGEN month, compared with 630 last September, those additional FOTON MOBILITY 16 units converting to a 2.5 per cent improvement. The YTD of DENNIS EAGLE 5,873 maintained a positive position 241 units above last year (+4.3 per cent).

SEA ELECTRIC The ‘big banger’ Heavy Duty category continued on its FORD remarkable trajectory with 1,396 new trucks, 117 more than INTERNATIONAL during last September (+9.1 per cent) and the astounding YTD of 12,652 is 2,065 (+19.5 per cent) more than at the same CAB CHASSIS/PRIME point of what was a record year in 2022. With these sorts of M-B VANS results the Heavy Duty category could almost coast home to VOLKSWAGEN VANS a victory at the end of this December but we all know how competitive the OEMs are as they stake their claims for market RENAULT VANS share as well as net sales and this type of result can be expected FIAT VANS to continue, particularly as supply from overseas as well as the IVECO VANS local manufacturers becomes increasingly available.

FORD VANS The big van sector (GVM between 3,500kg and 8,000kg) had a great September with 609 new units, 112 more than during VANS September last year (+22.5 per cent) and the YTD accrual of TOTAL 4,510 showed a continuing upward trend with an additional 70

November 2023

Sep-23

YTD

Change

1060

10351

7.4%

447

4371

-7.9%

388

3747

4.0%

274

2576

57.1%

304

2564

19.8%

156

1161

15.3%

129

1159

17.3%

131

953

19.3%

80

860

-2.4%

83

779

41.1%

56

636

37.4%

70

562

53.1%

26

288

-20.2%

32

237

17.3%

22

216

-19.1%

38

133

-53.3%

18

128

-28.1%

3

85

28.8%

21

60

-

1

45

4.7%

5

20

81.8%

1

11

-75.0%

3345

30942

9.4%

190

1922

26.3%

70

807

42.1%

192

793

-24.4%

74

422

117.6%

25

343

1.5%

58

223

-29.9%

609

4510

14.3%

3954

35452

10.0%

P T a c

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