E x tra Mil e C hall e n g e
Kick off: UD Trucks Extra Mile Challenge Text: Makiko Segawa Photos: Nicolas Datiche
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couple of hours outside Tokyo, in the city of Mito, ancient capital during the Shogun era, UD Trucks unveiled a new competition. On November 25th, the first ever UD Trucks Extra Mile Challenge took place at the Japan Automobile Research Institute Test Center, the country’s largest automotive test course. Based on UD Trucks brand promise ‘Going the Extra Mile’, the Extra Mile Challenge is a full day competition which encourages customer teams to focus on becoming more fuel efficient, with higher uptime and lower operating costs. The underlying aims of the challenge are to promote safer driving by enhancing drivers’ skills and confidence, and to keep a customer’s business moving forward at all times. For this pilot edition, three teams from Australia - comprised of a driver and a
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fleet manager - competed in the rain on what felt like the coldest day of the year. Before the actual competition, everyone attended a seminar that included presentations on the UD brand, products and Extra Mile aftermarket support, as well as tips on pre-drive inspection, safety and fuel-efficient driving. Then the
teams took part in the challenge itself, which simulated a real transportation cycle: pre-inspection, maneuvering skills, smooth fuel-efficient driving and cargo pick-up and delivery. All the results were translated into Australian dollars, and the winner was the team with the highest revenue and lowest costs.
What does Extra Mile mean? “It is our philosophy of constant improvement at UD. It is the extra effort made behind the scenes, resulting in: · better products, with better reliability, better fuel efficiency, better uptime, better environmental protection; · and better service, we make the extra effort to contribute to the success of our customers’ day-today business.”
Back on the roads in Australia, the UD truck drivers taking part in the event move tons of bulk gas, liquid waste tanks, oil, and minerals. They are vital links in Australia’s national power grid today.
Naoaki Yukishita, Senior manager UD Trucks Brand Management
The cautious planner Mark Crammer, Director of Marsue Transport, currently has 19 UD Trucks. He carries a maximum of 200 gas cylinders, such as oxygen and nitrogen, with cylinders weighing as much as 84 kilos each. He transports all kinds of dangerous goods and notes, “It is a very dangerous
job and I am always cautious to have a safe drive – I am proud of my job because it supports the power of my country.” During the competition, he proved to be a excellent strategist; he checked the routes over several kilometers of track to get a clear idea of which areas would consume more fuel.
Josh Sprague of winning father-and-son Team Sprague
The father and son team A father and son team worked so well together that they earned the audience’s applause and respect. Peter Sprague and his youngest son Josh, who run a company called Lee’s Liquid Waste in Australia, participated in the contest. Sprague runs a family business with his wife and three sons. Liquid waste is the main item they transport with UD trucks, at times as much as 42.5 tons on long drives across the country. After more than 10 years working with UD Trucks, Peter admires his decade-long partner, “It
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