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Telematicsupdate:

Telematicsupdate:

bamboozledby big data?bamboozledby big data?

A ‘Truck & Bus Builder’ Report

Seventh Edition

The European Truck-Trailer Report 2015

PUBLICATION DATE

NOVEMBER 2015

PRE-ORDERYOUR COPYTODAY!

16 Don’t get bamboozledby big data.No matter whether you run onecommercial vehicle or one thousand, timeand effort spent carefully specifying atelematics system best suited to yourparticular operation will pay offhandsomely. Sometimes this may meansimply accepting what is on offer fromvehicle manufacturers. But there isevidence aplenty that the surprisingly largenumber of independent systems suppliersin this corner of the commercial vehiclebusiness will continue to thrive as demandfor telematics grows stronger and stronger.Tim Blakemore reports.

20 What makes home-grownmanagement talent morefruitful?From truck drivers to technicians, engineersand top managers, skills shortages are rifethroughout road transport at present. Pleasfor government assistance or evensympathy seem to be falling on deaf ears.So maybe Scania’s innovative DIYapproach to management training is set tobecome a trend-setter.Tim Blakemore reports.

23 News from the northTruckScot Sceneas seen by Transport News.

24 People and jobsDieter Zetsche is ACEA president for 2016.Europa Worldwide Group has a newfinance director. World-class techniciansfrom the UK win prizes in Sweden andJapan. Bob Holt is back at Terberg DTS.

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CV


CV CONTENTSDecember 2015

14 20

16

3December 2015 Commercial Vehicle Engineer

4 Commentand points of view

7 NewsClimate-change conference puts EUtruck-makers on the defensive.

8 NewsTime to think again on truck weights anddimensions? Arctic circle tyre testing rivalryhots up.

9 NewsDaily delivers automatically forAbel & Cole. Self-driving cars collect SMMTinnovation award.

10 NewsScania’s aftermarket ambitions heralded atMaidstone opening.

12 NewsMaking hay while the sun shines in theEuropean trailer market.

13 News from the northThe Transport News Truck Advocate onLondon’s “safer lorry” scheme; 16-seaterminibuses; and rules on insecure loads.

14 NewsRenault Trucks gears up for another driveinto the lightweight truck market.

9

4

What is to be done about cutting greenhouse gas emissions fromtrucks and buses in Europe? The question has taken on a new,unprecedented urgency following this month’s historic UnitedNations Paris negotiations on climate change. The answer settledon long ago by European vehicle manufacturers and EuropeanUnion authorities is a scheme to make it mandatory for the fuelconsumption (and thus CO2 emissions) of new trucks and buses tobe “certified, reported and monitored” with the aim of making iteasier for operators to take dependable data on greenhouse gasemissions into account in vehicle specification and buyingdecisions. Sounds fine in theory, but the more time that passeswithout any clear indication of precisely how this scheme will workin practice, and especially the fancy but highly questionable VECTO(Vehicle Energy Consumption Calculation Tool) computer programon which it depends, the more vocal its critics become.This month, even before the Paris talks came to an end, the

criticism became so loud that it is hard to imagine how theEuropean Commission and ACEA (the vehicle manufacturers’association) can dare to ignore it any longer. The influentialInternational Council of Clean Transportation (ICCT), the not-for-profit independent research organisation credited with running thetests that ultimately led to the exposure of Volkswagen’s caremission test-cheating shenanigans, has published a hard-hitting,thoroughly researched report comparing recent European action (orlack of it) on greenhouse gas emission from “heavy duty” truckswith what has been happening in the US (page 9).The headline conclusion is this: “The US truck fleet will become

significantly more efficient and technologically advanced in comingyears, altering a trend that has persisted for more than a decade,largely because new efficiency regulations in the US will drivevehicle technology improvements. In the absence of comparable EUregulatory standards, the new tractor-trailer fleet in Europe is likelyto stagnate, with respect to efficiency technologies, and fall behind.“An ACEA conference on “reducing CO2 from road transport

together” was scheduled to take place in Brussels this month buthad to be postponed when the Belgian government extended itsexceptional security measures in the wake of the November terroristatrocity in Paris. The ICCT report surely needs to be addressedhead-on at the rescheduled conference in February.But ICCT is not the only independent research body to put

forward attention-grabbing recommendations on possible solutionsto the pressing problem of road transport’s greenhouse gasemissions.So too does the Centre for Sustainable Road Freight (CfSRF), a

consortium of Cambridge and Heriot-Watt universities and variousorganisations in the freight, logistics and vehicle engineering sectors.Revolutionary changes in the way goods vehicles are used are

necessary to achieve a meaningful reduction in carbon emissionsfrom the UK’s road transport fleet and assist in the nation’sgreenhouse gas reduction target for 2050, according to a recentCfSRF study.Like the latest ICCT report, this should be required reading for the

European Commission before it takes any more faltering steps alonga greenhouse gas reduction path signposted simply VECTO.

Why CIRAS should notbe confined to LondonbusesNext month, starting on 4January 2016, employees ofLondon bus operations onTransport for London (TfL)contracts will become the firstin UK road transport to haveaccess to CIRAS (ConfidentialIncident Reporting and AnalysisSystem), a highly-regardedscheme which has beenoperating successfully for atleast 15 years in the railindustry (Commercial VehicleEngineer August).This welcome development

follows a year-long campaignstarted by an anonymousLondon bus driver (Bus DriverX) and an Oxford Street buscrash survivor-turned-campaigner (me). The adventof CIRAS for London busoperations will be watchedclosely by this campaign’s

supporters on the LondonAssembly, including DarrenJohnson (Green Party),Caroline Pidgeon (LiberalDemocrats) and Richard Tracey(Conservatives). They areamong those now pushing forCIRAS to be extended to all TfLcontractors, including truckoperators, not least because

trucks on TfL Crossrailcontracts have been involved inincidents resulting in threecyclist deaths in the past twoyears alone. The number ofpeople killed in London busincidents so far in 2015 standsat twelve, 20 per cent morethan in the whole of 2014.TfL nevertheless deserves

some credit for havingaccepted, finally, that CIRASshould be extended from railinto bus operations. But whyconfine this only to the capitalcity?As CIRAS head Paul Russell

himself recently confirmed in aSafer Oxford Street guest blog,the scheme is now open to allbus, coach and truck operatorsin the UK. What an auspiciousopportunity then for trafficcommissioners such as NickDenton to build on TfL’sprudent decision by requiringall applicants for hgv or psvoperator licences to be CIRASsubscribers. Verifying anapplicant’s CIRAS subscriptionwould impose no extra cost onhard-pressed trafficcommissioner budgets. Andwith CIRAS annual subscriptionfees starting at only £350 and

Comment

Commercial Vehicle Engineer welcomes letters, comments and tweets. Follow us on Twitter @CVEngineer1.Write to the editor at Aztec Media Services Ltd, 1 Bankside, Churt Road, Hindhead, Surrey GU26 6NR,e-mail: [email protected], telephone 01428 605605, fax 01428 714278. Please be sure to include your postal address and a daytime telephone number.

Points of view

Commercial Vehicle Engineer December 2015

Time passes, paint dries and there is VECTO

London buses:first in UK with CIRAS access.

following a sliding scale linkedto turnover, it would be hard forany operator to argue that thecost is prohibitive.Nick Denton takes issue with

my observation that trafficcommissioners seemunconcerned about what Iregard as TfL’s manifestcomplacency over its own roadtransport operational safety(Commercial Vehicle EngineerApril and May). Making CIRASsubscription a precondition forO-licence applicants wouldsurely be a good way ofdemonstrating convincingly thathe really does “give a damn”about operational safety.TfL controls one of the UK’s

largest bus operations. Whenan organisation like this isfinally persuaded to adopt aproven safety monitoringsystem like CIRAS, it could beseen as a welcome sign that atlast, under pressure fromcampaigners and publicofficials, the road transportindustry is beginning to moveaway from box-tickingcompliance towards a morerobust, auditable safety culture.Tom KearneyLondonwww.saferoxfordstreet.blogspot.co.ukTwitter: @comadad#LondonBusWatch

Air quality and dieselengines: don’t lay allthe blame on trucksGovernments ought to betaking some of the blame forpoorly supervised validation of

December 2015 Commercial Vehicle Engineer 5

exhaust gas analyses. Theyhave shifted political emphasisto carbon dioxide (CO2),alleged climate-changesorcerer.Unfortunately, the perverse

behaviour of internalcombustion is that the moreenergy provided by explodingfuel the greater the residue ofnitrogen oxides (NOX). Only byclever electronic balancing ofair and fuel inputs can thepolitical aspirations beapproached – and even thenchemically assisted filtration inthe exhaust pipework isneeded.Beyond the regulatory limits

put on car exhausts, completepurification can be done withdrips of ammonia in thecatalytic cleaning system. Thisis increasingly the methodchosen for diesel engines invehicles grossing above 3.5tonnes: they are benefitingfrom redirection of technicalattention to cutting carbondioxide without spoiling poweror fuel economy.At November’s meeting of

the Leyland Society themanaging director of DafTrucks in the UK, RayAshworth, proclaimed hisdiesels to be completely toxicsfree. In that case let’s hear nomore from environmentalmischief-makers.Excited political enthusiasm

for unaffordable electrictransport should be calmeddown as well. What is thepoint of it when diesel exhaust

becomes as pure as ambientair and emits less carbondioxide than the presentnational electricity supply?Every day, London‘s Evening

Standard daily newspaperpublishes the previous day’spollution statistics includingnitrogen dioxide and fineparticulates. I have observedthem for most of the past year.Only a couple of times havethey exceeded the “low”definition (150 parts per billionof NOX and 50 micrograms percubic metre of air ofparticulates) and even then bya mere smidgen. The figuresare a far cry from the readingstaken on the kerbside of a fewroutes of slow congested traffic.John Dickson-SimpsonTransport Press ServicesLondon

Spare a thought fortruck tyres at higherspeedsMuch has been written abouttyre safety in CommercialVehicle Engineer, so yourreaders’ attention should bedrawn to an issue recentlyhighlighted in North America.In eleven US states, almostunbelievably, the heaviest(class eight) articulatedcombinations, grossing typicallyup to 36.3 tonnes, are allowedto travel as fast as 75mph(121km/h) on designatedroads.In many other states the

truck speed limit is 70mph(113km/h). One consequenceof such liberal speedrestrictions is a tyreperformance challenge. A spateof tyre failures on class-eighttractor unit front axlesattributed to prolonged high-speed running has led Paccar(maker of Peterbilt andKenworth trucks in the US aswell as Daf Trucks in Europe),to recall 2,000 vehicles forfitment of speed limiters set at65mph (105km/h). The move,backed by the US NationalHighway Traffic SafetyAdministration (NHTSA),follows a recommendation fromtyre-maker Michelin. Its XZAsteer-axle tyres seem to havebeen especially vulnerable oncar transporter rigs with frontaxle loads close to the tyres’maximum rating.Low tyre pressure was found

to be a contributory factor intyre-related accidentsinvestigated by NHTSA, but

Tom Kearney


excessive speed is reckoned tobe the main cause. Last April’sincrease in the UK maximumspeed limit for trucks on dualcarriageways, from 50 to60mph (80 to 96km/h), shouldperhaps have beenaccompanied by an officialreminder that a 20 per centspeed uplift increases the riskof tyre failure.Alan BuntingHarpendenHertfordshire

Should the DVSA havemore power to act onunlicensed drivers?Government proposals to allowthe Driver and VehicleStandards Agency (DVSA) todirectly prevent unlicensed orimproperly licensed driversfrom driving vehicles ratherthan having to call on thepolice would help improve roadsafety.

At present when the DVSAneeds to prohibit a vehiclebecause the driver doesn’t havethe appropriate licence, thepolice must be contacted totake action. But in aDepartment for Transportconsultation on “Motoringservices strategy”, it isproposed that DVSA staff begiven the power to demandlicences are produced and toseize vehicles.

Cutting out a layer of policingfor this common issue wouldnot only mean swifterresolution but also ensure thatdrivers would not be on theroad without correct licenceentitlement. It’s clear thatpolice resourcing is increasingly

under pressure. Allowing theDVSA to take on responsibilityfor this important licensingissue would make UK roadssafer. It would also complementanother DVSA initiative called“remote enforcement”. This isdesigned to allow the agency tofocus resources on non-compliant operators, in effecthelping the industry to policeitself. To help highlight non-compliant serial offenders,larger operators are beingencouraged to use “applicationdevelopment interfaces” (API) tolink their fleet managementsystems to various agencies,thus automatically exchangingoperational data to demonstrategood practice.

Another positive action wouldbe to make Driver Certificate ofProfessional Competence(DCPC) and digital tachographcard information available tooperators as part of a drivinglicence check. A recent LicenceCheck survey found universalsupport for detailed CPC datato be made available tooperators as part of the drivinglicence checking process.Ensuring that unlicensed

drivers never leave a depot inthe first place by making theirlicence entitlement and otherqualification informationavailable from a single sourcewould seem to tick severalconsultation boxes.Richard BrownManaging directorLicence CheckNottinghamwww.licencecheck.co.uk �

Points of view

Richard Brown

Alan Bunting

Cutting carbon dioxideemissions from heavy

commercial vehicles is set tobecome a top priority morethan ever before formanufacturers and operatorsalike following this month’shistoric United Nations Parisnegotiations on climatechange. Two weeks of talksended with an agreement,

partly legally binding andpartly voluntary, betweennearly 200 countries to cutcarbon emissions. No suchagreement has been reachedbefore. The first clearindication of exactly howEuropean vehiclemanufacturers propose to reactto the UN’s COP (Conferenceof Parties) deal seems set tocome at a Brussels conferencerun by ACEA (Association desConstructeurs Européensd’Automobiles), a big Brussels-based European association ofvehicle manufacturers, on 16February. The event, under thebanner “Reducing CO2 fromroad transport together”, wasoriginally planned for thismonth but had to bepostponed following theBelgian government’s decisionto extend its exceptionalsecurity measures in the wakeof the Paris terrorist atrocity inNovember. Speakers on theoriginal programme includeScania’s new chief executiveHenrik Henriksson, DutchMEP Wim van der Camp,Iveco “brand president” Pierre

Lahutte, Daimler’s commercialvehicles boss WolfgangBernhard and UPS Europepresident Cindy Miller.One topic sure to be raised at

the February event is the Indiangovernment’s decision thismonth to introduce anationwide ban on all trucksand buses over 15 years oldfrom next year. Another is a

report published this month bythe influential Berlin-basedInternational Council on CleanTransportation (ICCT) whichlambasts European truck-makers and legislators forfailing to take as much effectiveaction on CO2 emissions astheir counterparts in the USover the past ten years.“The US truck fleet will

become significantly moreefficient and technologicallyadvanced in coming years,altering a trend that haspersisted for more than adecade, largely because newefficiency regulations in the USwill drive vehicle technologyimprovements,” says the report.“In the absence of comparableEU regulatory standards, thenew tractor-trailer fleet inEurope is likely to stagnate,with respect to efficiencytechnologies, and fall behind.“Heavy trucks are responsible

for one third of CO2 emissionsfrom transport in the EU, andthis proportion is growing, saysICCT. Only seven EU countries(Germany, Poland, Spain,France, Italy, Netherlands and

the UK) are reckoned to beresponsible for as much as 75per cent of all EU CO2

emissions from heavy trucks.“The real-world fuel

consumption data we analysedsuggests that the average fuelconsumption of newtractor/trucks in Europe has notchanged substantially in wellover a decade,” says Rachel

Muncrief, ICCT lead researcher.“With other global automotivemarkets progressing, the EUwill need to move tomandatory CO2 standards tomaintain its technologicalleadership in heavy-duty fuelconsumption and CO2

emissions.”At present the European

Commission seems determinedto base its truck and bus CO2-cutting legislation on a labellingscheme using a computerprogram called VECTO (VehicleEnergy ConsumptionCalculation Tool) but thisapproach had started to attractgrowing criticism long beforethe UN talks in Paris(Commercial Vehicle EngineerApril).“The EU is taking a similar

approach to consumerinformation and labelling as itdid for passenger cars over adecade ago,” says ICCT Europemanaging director Peter Mock.“In the end the EU opted formandatory standards for carsand we believe a similarpathway for trucks would makesense as well.”More information from

www.theicct.org. �


News

Climate change conference putsEU truck-makers on the defensive

In the fast lane to greenhouse gas reductions?US trucks are set to overtake their European counterparts, according to ICCT.

A small Finnish village more than 300km north of the Arctic Circle and with only about 4,000 inhabitants may seem animplausible global centre for car and commercial vehicle tyre development. Yet Ivalo certainly fits the description, asunderlined this month by announcements from two leading tyre-makers, Michelin of France and Hankook of Korea.Michelin’s European Technology Centre has been testing tyres at Ivalo’s Fox Farm site for more than twenty years. Lastyear around 2,000 Michelin winter tyres, including about 400 truck tyres, were tested there. Now Michelin has bought the60 hectare (150-acre) Fox Farm site including 20 hectares (50 acres of tracks) so that it can “control its own testequipment and top up winter testing resources”.

Within days of the Michelin announcement came news from arch-rival Hankook that Test World of Ivalo had beencontracted to build a new test centre for Hankook’s exclusive use. Test World was acquired by the UK’s Millbrook ProvingGround for an undisclosed sum two months ago (Commercial Vehicle Engineer October).

Hankook expects its new Ivalo site to be up and running by next December. At least two other tyre-makers, Nokian ofFinland and Goodyear, already have winter tyre test operations in Ivalo.

“Our company has been putting emphasis on regionalised product development,” says Ho-Youl Pae, head of HankookTire Europe. “We strongly believe that Hankook premium products must be developed and tested within their designatedregion, reflecting specific road and weather cinditions to fit exactly the local market needs during the entire year. Aproduct’s time to market is a key decisive factor nowadays. The new proving ground in Ivalo will boost the effectiveness ofour winter testing here in Europe.”

Ambient temperatures in this part of Finland, about300 km north of Rovaniemi where many vehiclemanufacturers have winter operation test sites, oftentypically range from zero to minus 30 degrees Celsius.

8 Commercial Vehicle Engineer December 2015

News

Areview of UK legislation ontruck weights and

dimensions is being proposedby the country’s top-sellingtruck-maker. Speaking inLondon this month in the run-up to the historic UnitedNations climate-changeconference in Paris, Daf Trucks’UK managing director RayAshworth said that concernabout global warming and

carbon dioxide emissions fromroad transport was one ofseveral reasons why changes toUK truck weight limits maynow be overdue. A 46-tonnesgross combination weight (gcw)limit for six-axle articulatedtrucks has been in force in theIrish Republic since April 2013,he points out. This compareswith the UK’s current 44-tonnes-gcw limit for similar six-axle trucks. “The higher limitmay mean I would sell fewertrucks, but it would be betterfor the environment,” saidAshworth. And in theory atleast, the opportunity offered bya higher weight limit to carrythe same amount of freight withfewer trucks could also helpalleviate the current acuteshortage of truck drivers.Turning to another hot topic,

the safety of vulnerable roadusers such as cyclists andpedestrians, Ashworth repeateda call he first made about a yearago for any new standardsrelated to vehicles to be nationalrather than local. He has inmind schemes such asTransport for London’s “saferlorries” legislation, now in force,

which sets its own standardson truck mirrors andsideguards. Like many othertruck-makers and operators,Ashworth is fearful of the chaosthat could ensue if localauthorities elsewhere beganfollowing TfL’s example bysetting their own individualtechnical standards forvehicles. “Give us the problemand let us solve it,” he said. “Ifwe’re going to have a standard

let’s have it across the country.”Maybe that proposed legislationreview could look at how safer,more environmentally-friendlyurban artics like the AbbeyLogistics “silent mode” Daf CF4x2 tractor with shortFeldbinder semi-trailer thatwent into service earlier thisyear could be encouraged asmore manoeuvrablereplacements for rigids in townsand cities, suggested Ashworth.Looking forward to 2016, the

Daf Trucks boss forecasts“calmer waters” for the UKtruck market, with the total

number of six-tonnes-plusregistrations probably aroundwhat he describes as “the newnorm”, between 42,000 and43,000. This would be more orless the same as expected for2015. Daf Trucks will end thisyear with a market share ofaround 27 per cent, reckonsAshworth, consolidating the“market-leading” position it hasnow held for 20 years. Last yearDaf Trucks chalked up 8,616six-tonnes-plus registrations intotal giving it a market share of24.9 per cent, ahead ofMercedes-Benz on 18.7 per centand Scania on 13.7 per cent.One factor threatening to put a

brake on UK truck market growthis limited bodybuilder capacity inthe wake of the introduction ofthe final phase of EuropeanWhole Vehicle Type Approval,points out Ashworth. This wasone of the main reasons why Dafhad introduced its “tip, skip, graband hook” scheme of pre-bodiedtrucks in October for theconstruction, waste and utilitiessectors.“Of course, customers will

continue to prefer to spec theirvehicles from the ground up,“said Ashworth at the time. “Butequally we understand thatimmediate availability might berequired where contractssuddenly crop-up or where aspecific tipper, skip-loader orgrab is needed to fill a gap inexisting work. Our tip, skip andgrab programme will ease thepressure.” �

Daf Trucks boss Ray Ashworth:concerned about bodybuildercapacity.

Time to think again on truckweights and dimensions?

Arctic circle tyre testing competition hots up


News

One of the biggest UK ordersto date for the innovative

eight-speed ZF automaticgearbox in the new Iveco Dailylight commercial vehicle rangehas come from Abel & Cole, anorganic food home-deliverycompany with a reputation forprogressive, highly professionalfleet management. Thecompany, based in Andover,Hampshire, was among thefirst to react strongly more thanfour years ago to theCommercial Vehicle Engineerexposé of shockinglyunprofessional and unsafehome delivery operations at abig Sainsbury supermarket inSurrey (Commercial VehicleEngineer March and April2011).At the time there were 107

commercial vehicles in the Abel& Cole fleet, nearly all at 3.5tones gvw, operating fromseven depots and makingaltogether about 30,000 homedeliveries per week. Now thereare 169 vehicles in the fleet,making about 65,000 homedeliveries per week. NickCannell, the Abel & Coletransport manager in 2011who showed us how thecompany’s policies and practicein areas such as driver training,vehicle maintenance androuteing and schedulingcontrasted sharply withSainsbury’s, is now logisticsmanager. He explains why thelatest order for 42 chassis-cabs(seven additional and 35replacement) has gone to Iveco

and why 17 have beenspecified with the eight-speedHi-Matic gearbox. Abel & Cole’scarefully-specified Paneltexbodies have been transferredfrom old chassis to the 35 newones.“The new Daily’s mix of

reliability, durability and lowtotal cost of ownership is aperfect match for ouroperational needs,” saysCannell. “We have enjoyed astrong relationship with bothIveco and Hendy (the south-coast-based Hendy van andtruck dealer group) for manyyears. Our 100 per cent Ivecopolicy continues on the back ofthis relationship and the on-road performance of the

vehicles.” Drivers are especiallykeen on the eight-speedgearbox, reports Cannell. This,combined with the latest fuelefficiency figures, haspersuaded him to specify theHi-Matic with every new Dailyorder from now on. “We’veachieved a fleet-wide averageof 26mpg this year, no meanfeat when you consider thestop/start nature of the work,”says Cannell. “Drivers whoneed a little help meeting ourmpg targets have found the Hi-Matic gearbox very useful,especially when combined withlessons learned in our drivertraining programme.”An Abel & Cole 3.5-tonner

typically clocks up around

35,000 to 40,000 milesannually. Vehicles generally arekept in service for six years,though bodies are transferredfrom old to new chassis-cabs.“We are an environmentally-

conscious company, sotransferring our customrefrigerated bodywork to thenew Daily makes perfectsense,” says Cannell. “Thebodywork incorporates anumber of non-recyclablecomponents, and we knowanyone who bought ourvehicles second-hand wouldlikely dump the bodies inlandfill. By refurbishing andtransferring the bodies we doour bit towards ensuring asustainable future for all.” �

Daily delivers automatically for Abel & Cole

Aproject focused ondevelopment of self-driving

two-seater cars has won the 2015Automotive Award for Innovationfrom The Society of MotorManufacturers and Traders(SMMT). The LUTZ (Low-carbonUrban Transport Zone) Pathfinder

project, entered by Transport Systems Catapult, a not-for-profit MiltonKeynes-based body, took first prize in the influential awards scheme aheadof "highly commended" entries from Leyland Trucks and Oxford AdvancedSurfaces (Commercial Vehicle Engineer November).

The awards were presented in London last month at the SMMT annual dinner.“The quality of entries was extremely high and judging was tough but we

were agreed that Transport Systems Catapult should be recognised for itswork in helping put Britain at the forefront of connected and autonomousvehicle development," says SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes. "Technologiessuch as these represent a huge area of growth for the UK’s automotive

industry, with the potential to deliver 300,000 new jobs within the next 15years. The LUTZ Pathfinder trial is not only an innovation in itself but willprovide invaluable data, experience and learning for the whole sector.”

More information at www.smmt.co.uk/aai.

Self-driving cars collect SMMT innovation award

Leyland-builtDaf “future truck”: highlycommended by SMMT judges.


News

Scania’s newest truck andbus dealer workshop in the

UK is up and running thismonth following an officialopening by Nicola Clase,Sweden’s ambassador to theUK. The one-hectare (2.5-acre)site near Maidstone, Kent, isjust off the M20 motorway,replacing two others in thesouth-east, at Sittingbourneand Dover, now judged to be inunsuitable locations.Technicians, parts andadministration staff havetransferred from Sittingbourneto Maidstone where 34 full-time Scania (Great Britain)employees are now based. Butthe plan is to double thisnumber as business grows,according to Scania (GreatBritain) south east regionexecutive director AdrianInscoe. Already the Maidstonesite is open around the clock.The workshop with its fivedrive-through bays and one ATF

(authorised testing facility)lane, including the pitdemanded by Driver andVehicle Standards Agency ATF

specifications, is described as“state of the art”. Total projectcost is put at around £6million. What makes thisworkshop so special?“From exceptional working

conditions to the very latestspecialist tools and diagnosticequipment to automaticlighting, an in-house recycling

station, a sustainable water-drainage system andphoto-voltaic roof panels, thissite has it all,” says Inscoe. It isthe second new UK dealer siteto follow the latest globalScania dealer template. Thefirst was opened in Inverness inMay.Scania (Great Britain)

managing director ClaesJacobsson is determined tostep up the rate at which thecompany’s aftermarketbusiness is growing, measuredin workshop hours and partssales, as it gears up for thelong-awaited introduction of anall-new truck range next year.

Two years ago, whenJacobsson moved to the UKfrom Sweden, about £60million of Scania (GreatBritain)’s £689 million annualturnover came frommaintenance and repair work,with around £101 million fromparts sales. Last year‘s partsand service revenue grewstrongly even though overallrevenue fell slightly as a resultof the expected dip in the newtruck market. The ten-year“rolling parc” (vehicles inservice up to ten years old) ofScania trucks and buses in theUK now stands at around50,000 after growing slightly

last year for the first time sincethe start of the 2008 globalfinancial crisis. Jacobsson isconfident that this rolling parcwill keep on growing for thenext five years, returning to the2008 level by 2020. The totalnumber of workshop hours soldby Scania (Great Britain) dealerworkshops this year is expectedto be around 1.1 million, up byabout ten per cent on last year.A similar number of workshophours is expected to be sold bythe independently ownedScania truck and busworkshops run by companiessuch as Keltruck, TruckEast andWest Pennine Trucks, that makeup about half the network.“We are looking for a record

number of workshop hours soldin 2015,” said Jacobsson at theMaidstone site opening thismonth. “Scania Maidstone is aclear statement of our intent tocontinue building for the futureand to provide our customerswith the highest possible levelsof quality and service. Togetherwith our purpose-built Invernesspremises, Scania Maidstonerepresents the latest majorinvestment in our UK networkinfrastructure. The programmewill continue in 2016 with theupgrading of several existing UKsites now either planned orunderway.” �

A cut above other dealerworkshops? Sweden’sambassador Nicola Clase andScania (Great Britain) managingdirector Claes Jacobsson at theMaidstone opening.

Scania’s aftermarket ambitionsheralded at Maidstone opening

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SILENT NIGHT

12

News

Most of Europe’s trailer-makers are facing the turn

of the year in buoyant mood,with sales forecast to continuegrowing strongly in 2016. Thatis according to Clear, a London-based consultancy specialisingin this sector of the commercialvehicle market. In its latestreport on the west Europeantrailer market, Clear forecaststhat sales next year will reachthe third highest figure onrecord. “Trailer demand willexceed the 2006 level, thoughit is unlikely that the level of2007 and 2008 (just beforethe global financial crisis) willbe seen again,” says Clearmanaging director GaryBeecroft.There is no trailer registration

scheme in the UK, so precisesales numbers are hard toestablish with any certaintyhere. Beecroft is confidenthowever that the number ofnew trailers sold in the UK thisyear will exceed even the 2014figure, itself a record high.Trailer sales in the Netherlandsare up 22 per cent, year-on-year, up 61 per cent in Italyand up 42 per cent in Spain,

he reports. “What we areseeing in these markets isbasically catch-up demand,”says Beecroft. “In manyEuropean markets the demandfor new trailers has been so farbelow the long-term trend levelfor so many years that as soonas companies regain theconfidence to invest in newassets, the floodgates areopened and two or three yearsof exceptional increases arepossible.”The latest annual results

published this month by theKrone group, one of Europe’sthree biggest trailer-makers(together with SchmitzCargobull and Kögel), tie inlargely with Clear’s assessment

of the market, though Krone’sbig agricultural equipmentdivision evidently hasconsiderable influence on thegroup’s overall figures.“The expiration of European

Union milk production quotasand the consequences of theRussian/Ukrainian crisis havenaturally had an impact onKrone,” says managing directorBernard Krone. “Consideringthese factors, we are indeedsatisfied with how businessdeveloped in the 2014/2015fiscal year. We are currentlyexperiencing fierce competitionin both markets - agriculturalmachinery and commercialtrailers. Our sales have shownsteady growth in the past few

European trailer sales: returningoperator confidence could “openthe floodgates.”


Making hay while the sun shinesin the trailer market

years and logically this trendcannot be expected to continueevery year. The group’sprojections for the current fiscalyear are moderate andanticipate a decrease in salesby a single-digit percentage.”Krone group turnover in its

2014/15 financial year is €1.6billion (£1.2 billion), slightly upon the previous year. Nearly 30per cent of the group’s revenuecomes from its domestic market(Germany). About 65 per centof Krone’s exports areaccounted for by trailers, theremaining 35 per cent fromagricultural machinery.Krone has four trailer-making

plants in Germany and one inTurkey. �


WWW.TRANSPORTNEWS.CO.UKNEWS FROMTHE NORTH ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN

Q. In addition to my day job, I run a small taxi operation consisting of six private hire vehicles. I have the opportunity to supply a local hotel with a shuttle service to the airport; however this would require the purchase of a 16 seater minibus. Do I need an operator licence and do I require the use of tachographs?

A.

Q. I have just returned to work in the construction industry as a driver/labourer. My employer has told me that I no longer need to use a tachograph. Is this accurate?

A.

Q. We have interviewed a potential new driver and discovered that he has a conviction for using a ‘dangerous vehicle’ under

Act. He claims it was only because his load was not secure and that nothing had actually happened. Can you explain the legislation to me?

A.

CORRECTION –

Q. We are sending a unit and trailer to London for a one-off job. Do we have to comply with the new rules relating to cyclist safety or are they for London based operators only?

A.

GRT is a transport and training organisation specialising in road transport legislation and regulation, offering a range of commercial vehicle compliance services, advising on a number of issues, and operating across Scotland and the north of England.

In conjunction with Transport News, GRT presents this regular Q&A column dealing with compliance and legislation issues relating to road haulage. Readers who have any queries can call 01236 422517, visit www.grtconsultants.com or post questions on Twitter page, @GRTConsultants.

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NEWSBEATSCHMITZ Cargobull, one

of Europe’s largest trailer manufacturers, has approved Goodyear Ultra Grip Max T as original equipment fitment on its trailers for customers operating in severe winter conditions.

Goodyear’s recently introduced truck winter tyres will be available in sizes 385/65R22.5 and 385/55R22.5 for trailers destined for regions such as the Alps, the Nordic countries and Russia.

14 Commercial Vehicle Engineer December 2015

News

Volvo Group’s Renault Trucksdivision is set to return next

year to the 7.5-tonnes-gvwsector of the UK truck marketafter an absence of nearly threeyears. The new lightweightRenault 7.5-tonner is part ofthe D (for “distribution”) rangeunveiled in Lyon, France inJune 2013 at the same time asthe all-new Euro-6 C-, K- andT-ranges spanning grossweights from 10 to 44 tonnesand above (Commercial VehicleEngineer July 2013). But sincethen the Nissan plant in Spainwhere narrow-cab (2.0 metres)D-range Renault trucks from3.5 to 7.5 tonnes gvw are builthas been concentrating on left-hand-drive versions for sale incontinental Europe. Now, abouta year later than expected, theplant is ready to put right-hand-drive models into production,according to a relieved RenaultTrucks UK commercial directorNigel Butler. He has had no7.5-tonner to offer dealers andoperators since production ofthe Midlum ended at Euro 5 in2013. Speaking in London thismonth at an end-of-2015 pressconference, Butler confirmedthat UK orders for the new D-range lightweight would start tobe taken “by the end of 2016.”Details of UK specifications areunlikely to be revealedmuch before nextsummer but it isalready clear that thetruck will be

powered by a three-litre dieselengine driving through a six-speed automated-manualgearbox. The cab originatesfrom Dongfeng, the big Chinesetruck-maker in which VolvoGroup now has a 45 per centstake. Generous payloadresulting from a low kerbweight is likely to be one of thenew Renault 7.5-tonner’s mainselling points, taking it intocompetition mostdirectly with Isuzuand Daimler’sFuso. These twoJapanese truckmarquesaccounted forabout 36 per centof all 7.5-tonnerregistrations in theUK last year(Commercial

Vehicle Engineer February),with Daf Trucks and Iveco stillheading the sales league tableat this weight, between themtaking more than 50 per cent ofthe market sector.Even in its heyday the

Midlum at 7.5 tonnes wasnever a big-seller, usuallywinning a market share of nomore than about two or threeper cent. But Butler and hisVolvo Group UK colleagueswould doubtless be more thansatisfied if the new D-rangemodel were to sell that well inits first year, building on thecurrent Renault Trucks successat the light end of the cvmarket with Master vans andchassis-cabs at 2.8 to 4.5tonnes gvw from theRenault/Nissan car- and van-making alliance. The number ofMaster light commercialvehicles sold by Renault Trucksdealers in the UK has morethan doubled this year, reportsButler, from 650 in 2014 to1,450 in the first elevenmonths of 2015. “We’ve

worked closely with ournetwork to approach the lightcommercial vehicle market in amore professional way,” hesays. “Sales teams have beenstrengthened and we’verecently launched our Ready forBusiness pre-bodied offer. Thisis starting to generate moresales volumes for us.”The three bodies at present

in the Ready for Business rangeare a Luton box-body, dropsideand tipper, all from VFS ofSouthampton. Other body typesare soon to be added to thispre-bodied range, revealsButler, all offered with a three-year, 100,000-milecomplete-vehicle warranty. ARenault Trucks contract hirepackage for the Master range isexpected to be introduced earlyin the new year, initially aswhat Butler describes as a“white label finance offer” (withthe finance deal provided by athird party but branded asRenault Trucks) but possiblylater as another string to VolvoGroup UK’s BRS bow. BRS

(originally British Road Serviceswhen it was part of theNational Freight Consortium) isthe group’s contract hire/truckrental operation for whichButler continues to beresponsible following the

Gearing up for another driveinto the lightweight truck market

D-range7.5-

tonner: takingorders from the end

of next year. Mastersales by Renault Trucks dealers:more than doubled this year.

Nigel Butler: “Where will the UKtruck market go next year? Wethink it will be static.”


News

extensive Volvo Groupmanagement restructure of sixmonths ago (CommercialVehicle Engineer July)including the merger of manyVolvo Trucks and RenaultTrucks sales and marketingsupport functions. “It’s been agood solid year for BRS,providing finance plusmaintenance and other added-value services such as tyremanagement,” says Butler.Around 2,000 trucks are runby BRS at present, accountingfor about 15 per cent of allRenault Trucks UKregistrations.What is going to happen to

these registrations next year?Butler expects recent stronggrowth in the whole UK truckmarket to peter out next year.But, like his boss Volvo GroupUK managing director ArneKnaben, he is confident thatthe Renault Trucks marketshare will continue to growstrongly. “There is a really goodvibe around Renault Trucksthese days,” says Knaben. Thissentiment seems to be reflectedclearly in the 2015 salesfigures. “I look at our Euro 6heavy truck market share(above 15 tonnes gvw) and lastyear it was about 3.3 per cent,aside from the Euro 5 carry-over,” says Butler. “This yearwe expect to finish at about 5.7per cent. There has been greatgrowth overall. Our truck saleshave more than doubled. Thenumber of Range-T tractor unitregistrations this year is doublethat of last year. The C and Kconstruction industry range isgrowing phenomenally well -with sales up 84 per cent onlast year.” One early indication

of the strong impression beingmade by the C and K ranges onthe demanding UK tipper truckmarket came at the end of2014 with an order for a K4308x4 from MacWilliamDemolition of Coatbridge, NorthLanarkshire. Managing directorCraig MacWilliam hadpreviously favoured MAN eight-wheelers and put several otherchassis to the test beforesettling on the Renault.“Crucially, I felt that the range Koffered the best value overall,“he said.MacWilliam Demolition is

now on what Butler describesas “a long list of conquestcustomers.” He acknowledgesthat further lengthening of thislist depends at least as muchon the service quality of theRenault Trucks UK dealernetwork as it does on truckquality and performance.“Service quality KPI (keyperformance indicators) willcontinue to be the big thing for

us in 2016,” says Butler. “I’vebeen going through plans withdealers over the past couple ofmonths. It’s great to see howpositive these guys are. Theywant to invest and develop thebusiness.” He points to SparksCommercials of Southamptonin particular. The long-established family-ownedcompany (founded in 1990)joined the Renault Trucksnetwork five years ago and thenwasted no time in expandingeast and west along the southcoast into Portsmouth andPoole. Then last summer camethe £1.5 million acquisition ofComplete, a Swindon-basedcommercial vehiclemaintenance firm, which hastaken the Sparks RenaultTrucks dealer group north intoWiltshire.Thompson Commercials of

Hull is another Renault Trucksdealer with expansion plans.The company is spendingabout £1.5 million on a newworkshop at a former LittleChef cafe site on the A1 nearBoroughbridge, NorthYorkshire. This is due to openwithin the next few months.“Dealer investment is set tocontinue in 2016, not least onseveral new ATF (authorised

testing facility) test lanes,” saysButler. There are 13 ATF testsites at present in the 62-pointRenault Trucks UK dealernetwork.Butler is working on the

basis of forecasts that put thetotal number of six-tonnes-plustruck registrations in 2016 ataround 42,000 or 43,000,largely unchanged from thisyear’s final figure. “It’ll be reallyinteresting to see where thewhole UK truck market goesnext year,” he says. “We think itwill be static.”But the 7.5 tonnes gvw

sector of this market seemscertain to be anything butstatic, if only because of the re-entry of a Volvo Group division.Seasoned Volvo employees maybe reminded of the company’schequered history at thisweight, long before it acquiredRenault Trucks. The wretchedPerkins-engined Volvo FLC 7.5-tonner was in production for nomore than a couple of years inthe mid 1990s. Then came theequally unhappy period duringwhich Volvo’s UK dealers foundthemselves selling andmaintaining (frequently) theoriginal Fuso Canter, between1998 and 2001. That wasbefore Volvo sold its stake inMitsubishi Fuso to Daimler.Fifteen years on and

prospects for the RenaultTrucks D-range at 7.5 tonnesnext year look like a differentkettle of fish entirely. �

Service quality: crucial KPI forRenault dealers next year. SparksCommercials and ThompsonCommercials have made biginvestments recently.

Building fast: the lengthening listof Renault Trucks conquestcustomers includes MacWilliamDemolition of Coatbridge.


Statista, a global research and statistical analysis firm based inHamburg, Germany, reckons the annual value of theworldwide commercial vehicle telematics market will hit no

less than US$40 billion (£26.5 billion) next year.About eleven months ago Statista was commissioned by MiX

Telematics, a big South Africa-based group with a strong presencein the UK market (especially on buses and coaches) after buyingthe Siemens VDO vehicle-tracking and fleetmanagement business in2007, to carry out a detailedstudy of commercial vehicletelematics trends in fourEuropean countries: France,Germany, Spain and UK.“There’s no doubt in today’s

world that the fuel efficiency gains provided by telematics solutionsis a given,” says MiX Telematics marketing and operations directorSteve Coffin, summarising what he sees as the key findings of thestudy. “Progressive operators are therefore now looking beyond fuelsavings alone by seeking to derive additional value from theirtelematics systems. To succeed in this aim, bespoke solutions needto be developed for specific operational issues. Here, the greatestbenefits are unquestionably realised when operator and supplierscollaborate and work in partnership. This, in our view, representsthe way forward for our industry.”

One progressive operator who certainly would not argue with thethrust of these findings is Allan Davison, operations director atHoyer Petrolog UK. This Huddersfield, West Yorkshire-basedcompany, part of the giant Hamburg-based Hoyer group, is

reckoned to operate the UK’sbiggest fleet of petroleum,bitumen and fuel-oil tankers.Completion of an £8 millioncapital expenditure programme inlate 2014 involved 253 newtrucks, 11 new petroleum tankersemi-trailers and 26 new bitumentrailers. But even then Davisonwas talking about furtherexpansion plans for this year.Those plans came to fruition,resulting in an order for a further50 new Euro-6 trucks, 20 fornew Hoyer contracts and the

No matter whether you run onecommercial vehicle or one

thousand, time and effort spent carefully specifying atelematics system best suited to your particular operation willpay off handsomely. Sometimes this may mean simplyaccepting what is on offer from vehicle manufacturers.But there is evidence aplenty that the surprisingly largenumber of independent systems suppliers in this corner of thecommercial vehicle business will continue to thrive as demandfor telematics grows stronger and stronger.Tim Blakemore reports.

Don’t getbamboozled bybig data

MiX Telematics marketing andoperations director Steve Coffin:“Progressive operators arelooking beyond fuel savings.”

Driver-facing camera from MiX.Ewing Brothers of Dungannon:reckoned to be saving £300 permonth per vehicle with the MiXtelematics Fleet Manager.

remainder to replace old vehicles.MAN has been having a hard time of it recently in the UK truck

market, not least as a result of well-documented failures of its D26engine at Euro 5, centred on the engine’s exhaust gas recirculation(EGR) cooling system (Commercial Vehicle Engineer June). Davisonhas long tended to favour MAN over other marques (though lastyear’s big order included 69 Scania tractors) and he evidently is notabout to change his mind as a result of the D26 reliability problems,

even though he bemoans theeffect on downtime of havingto put about 220 tractorsinto MAN dealers for enginemodifications. Nevertheless,all 50 of the latest newHoyer Petrolog tractors, itsfirst at Euro 6, come fromMAN.

“We are operating a fleet of

349 Euro 5 vehicles and this is our first foray into the Euro 6market,” says Davison. “After extensive fuel economy trials weconcluded that the whole-life cost of the MANs was lower than thecompetition whilst the performance of the existing Euro 5 vehicles,and the associated service network, gave us assurance that theongoing service performance would be continued. Our customersare reaping the rewards of the efficient and cost-effective solutionwe can offer in the management of their fuel delivery network. Ournew fleet investment has been delivered to service this.“ The latestbatch of new Hoyer Petrolog tractors, including eleven fitted withthe ubiquitous Drum Hydrapak oil cooler-cum-reservoir-cum-controlhydraulic pumping kit from Gardner Denver, went into service inJuly.

Microlise telematics systems of the sort offered by MAN Truck &Bus UK since 2006 and adopted last year by Daf Trucks as afactory-fit option (well standard actually on the latest Daf Euro 6line-up) are well liked by many ofthe UK’s biggest truck fleets. ButScania’s own in-house telematicssystem also has a good

reputation, with all the signs pointing to further big advances in“connectivity” refinements when the long-awaited all-new Scaniatruck range is unveiled next year. So which of these systems doesHoyer Petrolog UK favour, or does it agree with Bibby Distributionthat it is altogether more cost-effective to stick with eachmanufacturer’s own telematics system, avoiding compatibilityproblems by segregating truck marques by operating location(Commercial Vehicle Engineer December 2014)?

Davison’s surprising answer tothis question is, in effect: none ofthe above. The telematics systemused by Hoyer comes from anindependent company, RainkineThompson Ltd (RTL), based inHyde, Cheshire and with anoffshoot operating in Australia.Despite its bold website claimthat RTL offers “competenciesunmatched in the commercialvehicle telematics industry” thiscompany certainly has a muchlower profile among mostcommercial vehicle operatorsthan rivals such as MiX,Masternaut and Microlise, thoughits former tachograph analysisdivision, Foster Tachographs ofPreston, Lancashire is reasonably

well known. But Foster Tachographs split away from RainkineThompson seven years ago.

So why is RTL still the sole supplier of all telematics systems usedon Hoyer trucks in the UK? Davison’s answer is an object lesson inwhy one size definitely does not fit all in this sector. “We startedusing telematics about seven or eight years ago,” he explains. “One


Hoyer Petrolog UK operationsdirector Allan Davison: “Wewent down the RTL routebecause they providedeverything we needed.”

Messenger system from TimoComof Germany: claimed to be“revolutionising user workflows.”

Bibby Distribution: sticking withtelematics systems from MAN andMercedes.


thing we had to do was ensurethe systems met all safetyrequirements associated with petreg (petroleum regulation)vehicles. We went down the RTLroute because they providedeverything we needed and theyhad the necessary pet regaccreditation. At the time thetelematics systems from vehiclemanufacturers were not as goodas they are now. These days theyare pretty good.” Is there a hinthere of a possible opening for theMAN/Microlise system at HoyerPetrolog UK in future? Davisondoes not rule it out entirely butalso makes it clear that he is notabout to start trying to fixsomething he does not regard asbroken. “We haven’t been out totender on telematics for quitesome time,” he says. “We may well do that. I’d like to see somedata from MAN and do some comparison work.” But Davisonagrees firmly with the MiX Telematics survey finding about theimportance of sensible integration of all a vehicle’s data-gatheringand telematics systems. “At the moment we have software andhardware in the cab,“ he says. “Sometimes the software is not fromRTL but the hardware is. We have forward-facing cameras that atthe moment aren’t from RTL. What we want to do is get thispackage through one supplier and have it completely integrated.But the really smart bit, and it’s in use by Hoyer in continentalEurope now, is to have all this interface with our planning systems.So when someone loads a vehicle and presses a button in the cabour planning system will know how much has been loaded. Thenwhen the driver delivers the load another button press will tell ourplanning system which will then automatically invoice our customeror perhaps even go into the customer’s system and automaticallyinvoice their customer. We do have this operating already on thecontinent and it works pretty well. We’re at an advanced stage ofdeveloping it here in the UK.”

But Davison is wary of pressing on too far and too fast with suchintegration, despite its obvious attractions in operational efficiencygains, for fear of alienating Hoyer clients. “Sometimes clients insiston a certain type of telematics,” he says. “We generally share bestpractice with our continental colleagues but sometimes decisionshave to be made based on client requirements. Nevertheless, we

are pretty close to getting a fullyintegrated telematics systemwhich gives us all the driver andvehicle data on safety andefficiency, together with track andtrace, and fully integrated with our planning software. I’m prettyoptimistic it will be up and running by the end of next year in someof our businesses in the UK. A complete roll-out will depend on ourclients.”

One pitfall Davison is determined to avoid is identified in anothertelematics survey conducted only last month. This one is on analtogether less grand scale than the MiX Telematics affair, butnonetheless offers some useful tips for any fleet manager ortransport engineer fearful of being swamped by telematics data.AGM Telematics was set up in Corby, Northamptonshire 15 yearsago by George Weston and Alan Stoole, initially selling third-partysystems. Six years ago Matt Redfearn joined the company astechnical director and the company’s own AGM RouteMastersystem was born. Now the system is in use by a surprisingly widerange of van, coach and truck operators.

Last month’s survey covers a sample of 50 operators usingvarious telematics systems.

Asked if they could easily access and quickly retrieve vehicledata, no fewer than 30 said they could not. Indeed most of themadmitted that their systems are so difficult to use that they are often

left idle.“We often hear from operators

who find the system they havebought difficult to use,” saysGeorge Weston. “To add to theirfrustration, many operators saythey receive little support fromtheir supplier when they call in toreport the difficulties they areexperiencing. This prompted us toput a few basic questions to asample of telematics users abouttheir experiences. Frankly, wewere surprised at the numberwho said that they have endedup paying for a system on a long-term contract that is quiteuseless. It really is quite

Daf telematics system fromMicrolise: standard with all Euro6 trucks on repair andmaintenance contracts.

Express Coachways: using AGMRouteMaster system for the pasttwo years.

to try and contact drivers on theirmobiles, because we can seewhere they are on the screen,”says Regan. “This enables us tocall ahead with accurateestimated time of arrival, monitorany traffic snarl-ups, and ofcourse keep a record of exactlywhere and when our drivers areat any given time.”

One recent telematics systemrefinement that has been greetedwith some scepticism by many

old-school truck drivers and indeed many of their bosses ispredictive automated gearchanging based on satellite and mappingdata stored in the vehicle’s on-board computers and/or transmittedto it. Scania, Volvo and Mercedes were among the first with suchsystems. Early this year a similar system was introduced by Daf forits ZF AS Tronic automated manual gearboxes. Can systems such asthe Mercedes PPC (Predictive Powertrain Control) really delivermeasurably better fuel economy than a skilled driver?

One operator now fully convinced that it can is Potter Logistics ofRipon, North Yorkshire. A two-year-old Actros tractor in the Potterfleet has been retrofitted with PPC.

Average day-shift fuel economy for the double-shifted truck is saidto have gone from 9.2 to 10mpg, including a peak of 10.6mpg inone November week.

“This vehicle is worked hard, clocking up some 4,000km perweek on some challenging routes,” says fleet manager ColinBamford. “Following discussions with Northside (the local Mercedesdealer) we decided it offered the best opportunity to gauge PPC’seffectiveness. The system was fitted nearly two months ago and onthe evidence of what we’ve seen so far it looks really good. We’renot able to make an accurate comparison for the night-shift yet,because the truck has not always had the same driver, but theimprovement in mpg performance during the day has been reallyimpressive.”

If the day-shift savings were replicated at night, the annual fueland AdBlue cost savings would amount to £4,342, calculatesBamford.

The cost of fitting PPC is less than £1,200, including a day’sdriver training. “On this basis we’d recoup the outlay in a little overthree-and-a-half months,” says Bamford.

If only all telematics systems were capable of delivering such arapid return on investment. �


Daf “driver performance assistant”:more useful data on informationpanel from January 2015.

straightforward, and all aboutmatching a flexible fleetmanagement solutions package tothe operational and commercialneeds of the industry. OurRouteMaster system is a powerfulcloud-based modular toolsetwhich comprises three coremodules: planning, dispatch, andtracking. These can be usedindividually or all togetherdepending on the requirements ofeach operation. Either way, thedata managed by the system areinstantly accessible andretrievable, which apparently iswhere a lot of other systems falldown.”

Expressway Coaches of Rotherham, South Yorkshire, has beenusing the AGM RouteMaster system for about two years in its 18-coach fleet. Director Peter Regan found himself using the system

recentlyfor a whollyunexpectedpurpose, when thecompany was the victim of an attempted insurance fraud.

“We installed the system mainly so we could track thewhereabouts of each vehicle with greater accuracy,” he explains.“We hadn’t anticipated this type of application but clearly it is abonus. When the false claim was made against us, we were able toquickly resolve the situation bysending a pdf of the actualminute-by-minute time sheet tothe insurance company. Noquestion, this saved a great dealof time and expense whichotherwise may have been spent inattempting to prove ourinnocence.”

Expressway coaches work on awide range of jobs: from school-runs, airport transfers andday-trips in the UK to fully-managed holiday excursions tocontinental Europe.

“These days we no longer need

Andrew Page:using MasternautConnect on 900vans.

Potter Logistics: two-year-old Actrosretrofitted with “predictivepowertrain control”.


Finding, recruiting and retaining enough employees with therequired skill-sets is already one of the biggest problemsfacing many if not all road transport businesses, and it is set

to get even more challenging in future, if only because ofunforgiving demographics. This is one sweeping assertion withwhich scarcely anyone would argue, it seems. But when it comesto finding solutions to the problem, there is no such consensus.Focusing on the current acute shortage of qualified truck drivers in

the UK (upwards of 50,000 at present, by all accounts), both theFreight Transport Association (FTA) and Road Haulage Association(RHA) have been clamouring for government help with costlydriver training. The pleas have fallen on deaf ears, judging by lastmonth’s spending review speech by chancellor of the exchequerGeorge Osborne. Sketchy and highly contentious plans to raise £3billion for depleted government coffers through an “apprenticeshiplevy” on all companies with an annual payroll above £3 million

What makes home-grown

management talentmore fruitful?

What makes home-grown

management talentmore fruitful?From truck drivers to technicians, engineers and topmanagers, skills shortages are rife throughout road transportat present. Pleas for government assistance or even sympathyseem to be falling on deaf ears. So maybe Scania's innovativeDIY approach to management training is set to become atrend-setter. Tim Blakemore reports.

were revealed by the chancellor, but there was no mention of anyfunding mechanism for hgv driver training, as demanded by FTAand RHA among others.“It is essential that we get a driver apprenticeship, otherwise the

levy is simply a tax on payroll,” complains RHA chief executiveRichard Burnett. “An apprenticeship without funding for the coreelement of training ahead of the hgv driving test would be largelymeaningless. That is what would happen under current businessdepartment policy - a policy that makes no sense. Training for thetest lies at the core of any haulage driver apprenticeship and setsthe quality platform for the apprenticeship as a whole. The RHA iscalling on skills minister Nick Boles to accept that truth and toscrap the opposition to funding driver training.”FTA skills development manager Sally Gilson is similarly

unimpressed by the latest government spending review. “It seemsas though the chancellor expects large companies to fundapprenticeships that they may not be able to provide,” she says.“That is unless the skills minister reverses his earlier decision toreject hgv apprenticeships. Setting a target of three millionapprenticeships will not plug the significant skills shortages thatthe freight industry is currently experiencing. There has alreadybeen an eleven per cent spending cut to the adult skills budget sofor those who do not fitinto an apprenticeship,mainly the over 24s,funding is nearimpossible to find.”Truck driver vacancies

are by no means the onlyones proving increasinglyhard to fill, points outFTA. Engineering is asector where postsgenerally stay vacant foreven longer, according tothe association, whosemembers collectively runabout 220,000 goodsvehicles, around half ofall those in service in theUK. The latest FTAsurvey of transportmanagers found analarming 76 per centover the age of 45, andnone under 24.The grim picture

painted by statistics likethis is an all-too familiarone to Claes Jacobsson,managing director ofScania (Great Britain). “We (Scania) have an ageing sales-force ingeneral across Europe,” he says. “They are very talented, goodpeople, but a lot of them are 55-plus, and most have a technicalbackground.” This sort of background may well be ideal for salespeople concentrating purely on truck and bus hardware. ButScania, like most of its rival truck-makers, is intent on generatingmore and more revenue from “softer” services and products thatgo way beyond the vehicles themselves. In these circumstances anageing workforce with limited experience of the wider businessworld and lacking training in modern management skills can soonbecome a serious handicap.Jacobsson’s counterpart in Denmark, Janko van der Baan, has

tackled the problem head-on, changing more than half of his salesforce in less than 18 months. One of the new Danish recruitspreviously worked in toy retailing and has no technical knowledgeof commercial vehicles. Yet he’s doing “a tremendous job,”according to Jacobsson. “He doesn’t have any technical skills, butothers in the organisation can help with that, on vehicle

specifications for example. But he really understands thecustomers’ businesses and how Scania can help them. It’s adifferent mindset.”Is the implication of this that seasoned Scania truck and bus

sales people in the UK ought to be feeling a little nervous aboutlong-term job security, even with a long-awaited all-new truckrange due to be unveiled next year? Not a bit of it. Jacobsson is atpains to emphasise that he has no intention of blindly followingthe Danish or any other model and that he has his own plans fordeveloping what he describes as “the right blend between home-grown managers and those coming into the company from otherdisciplines or industries.”At the heart of these plans is an innovative management training

scheme run jointly by Scania (Great Britain) and LoughboroughUniversity. It delivers initially a certificate and then a diploma inautomotive retail management. The courses are designed to act asstepping stones towards MSc (Master of Science) or MBA (Masterof Business Administration) degree courses for those who wish tofollow this route. But they are proving highly effective already intheir own right, both for thetrainees and the company.The whole project started

early in 2013, a few months before Jacobsson came to the UK,but he is nevertheless unstinting in his praise for it. “I was notinvolved in the development of the scheme but I’m a bigsupporter,” he says, paying tribute in particular to the work doneby Laurence Medina, the company’s tireless head of learning,development and process improvement. Practising what shepreaches about the merits of continuing professional development,Medina has just completed an MBA course, which she candidlyadmits was “traumatising” as well as satisfying.Last month the first 15 trainees preparing for final graduation

from Scania’s management trainee course at Loughborough earlyin the new year were at the company’s Milton Keynes base,together with most of the company’s senior management team, fora no-holds-barred review of what the three-year course haddelivered - and failed to deliver. Medina is determined that a “grosslist” of any areas in which the training has fallen short ofexpectations will be acted on so that it becomes even moreeffective and efficient in future. But everybody at the initialgraduation review meeting last month, trainees and seniormanagers alike, was evidently in no doubt that the training schemeoverall already can be judged a huge success and will continuewith a fresh intake of trainees. Dave Cussans, the former MAN


Claes Jacobsson: “We wanted the courseto be tailor-made for Scania. We want tobuild everything from the foundation up.”

Laurence Medina: practising what shepreaches by taking MBA course.

22

Truck & Bus UK operationsdirector who joined Scania(Great Britain) as south westregion executive director fiveyears ago, spoke on behalf ofall the senior managers whohad acted as managementtrainee mentors over the pastthree years. “Absolutely wefeel it was worthwhile,” hesaid. “It’s early days but thereis surely enough evidencehere today for us to say thescheme is a resoundingsuccess. The feedback fromLoughborough University hasbeen outstanding, and wehave a group of young peoplehere now with far more self-confidence and knowledge,and they are spreadthroughout the country, fromLand’s End to John O’Groats.There are surely future seniormanagers among them.”Simply gaining a place on

the course was far from easy.The first 15 were chosenfrom around 70 initial applicants.Course module headings include “finance for managers”,

“creating a business plan”, “introduction to product and consumerlaw”, and “introduction to employment law”. Though all directfinancial costs associated with the course, including mentoringtime from senior managers, is borne by Scania, assignmentsinevitably mean students, all of whom have fulltime day-jobs, have to give up some free time.One graduate reckons the course took around400 hours of his time over a 30-month period,though he makes no complaint about this.The secondment process, under which

trainees spend maybe six months working awayfrom their usual base, did attract some criticismthough and duly earned itself a place on theMedina “gross list”, forsometimes failing to take fullaccount of a disruptive effecton home life.Many of this first cohort of

graduates have come throughthe highly-regarded Scania(Great Britain) apprenticeshipscheme, run by Skillnet. Onehad worked for ten years as atechnician at the big Scaniaworkshop in Bellshill,Glasgow before applying forthe management course. Likeseveral graduates, heconfesses that before startingthe course he would havelacked the self confidencenecessary to deliver anypresentation to a criticalaudience. Not any more.One graduate is now a

used trucks sales manager.Another is a processimprovement executive,based in south-eastern

England. And yet anothermanages all-makes partssales (under Scania’s VRS -“vehicle related parts”banner) at a small dealersite in the West Country.Andy Ledbury, former

apprentice technician andnow workshop controller atScania’s Abingdon branch inOxfordshire, points out thathe already makes good useof much of what he learnedon the course “on a dailybasis.” Like severalgraduates, he alsoemphasises how the coursehas given him greater self-confidence and awillingness to challengemanagement practices hesees as not really up toscratch.Claes Jacobsson accepts

that it would have beeneasier, and doubtless a gooddeal cheaper in the short-term at least, to put

employees through “off-the-shelf” management training. “Plenty ofpeople can provide that, but we wanted the course to be tailor-made for Scania,” he says. “We want to build everything from thefoundation up.”All of which sounds like a fine, worthy objective. But does he

not share similar worries on management training to those of theRHA and FTA on driver training: namely thecost? Scania employees who have beenthrough the new management training courseare under no contractual obligation to stay withthe company for any set period afterwards. Sothere is nothing to stop a rival truck-maker orany other organisation from poaching them.“I don’t see it as a cost, I see it as an

investment,” says Jacobsson. “If we invest inthese people they will bebetter trained and,hopefully, more loyal. Theywill carry the brand and thevalues of the company andits culture, which in Scaniais extremely important.That’s what managers aredoing. They are caretakersof the culture, so to speak,making sure that we live upto our core values ineverything we do.”As for the risk of spending

a small fortune on trainingsomeone over several yearsonly to see them take thoseskills to a rival, thisevidently is not somethingover which Jacobsson islosing any sleep. “We don’twant to put shackles onanyone,” he says. “We’drather they stay with thecompany because theychoose to.” �

South west region executive directorDave Cussans: “Early days, but thereis surely enough evidence to say thescheme is a resounding success.”

South east region processimprovement executive Lisa Campbell:“Now I see how my job fits into theentire business.”

Abingdon workshop controller AndyLedbury: “We all use what we’velearned on a daily basis.”

Used truck sales manager GiorgioFagnani: “Transformation in self-confidence.”

“We don’t want to putshackles on anyone, we’drather they stay with thecompany because they

choose to.”


Pictured on the A1, in the vicinity of Torness Power Station, is a new 4x2 DAF XF460 for James S Hislop, Kelso. Photo: Gary Smith.

Norscot Truck & Van Ltd have recently supplied this DAF CF370 FAS to Panda Rosa Metals based in Aberdeen. Powered by the 370bhp MX11 engine with the ZF eight speed gearbox, it is fitted with Hyva skip equipment and an easi-sheet. The paintwork is by Smart Refinishers and the livery by Driver Signs.

This tidy MAN TGS26 480 tag axled unit has joined the Fochabers based GA Duncan & Sons fleet. Photo: Mervyn Walker.

The fab four! Drummond Distribution of Bathgate has put these DAF LF180 rigids into service. The quartet was fitted with Tekbo curtainside bodywork and Dhollandia 1,000kg tail lifts. Supplied by Lothian DAF, the 12 tonners also come with six speed manual gearboxes, rear air suspension and 4,750mm wheelbases.

Mills Contractors of Perth added two Volvo FMX tippers to its fleet during September. The 420hp 8x4 rigids were supplied by Volvo Truck and Bus Northern and feature Fruehauf tipper bodies.

WWW.TRANSPORTNEWS.CO.UKNEWS FROMTHE NORTH ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN

23December 2015 Commercial Vehicle Engineer

24

People


Daimler chief executiveDieter Zetsche has been

elected 2016 president ofACEA (Association desConstructeurs Européensd’Automobiles), a big Brussels-based European association ofvehicle manufacturers. Hesucceeds Renault Group andNissan Motors boss CarlosGhosn who completes twoconsecutive twelve-monthterms as ACEA president at theend of this month.

“I am particularly honouredto lead ACEA next year as2016 marks the association’s25th anniversary,” says MrZetsche. “This will be anopportunity to build on theprogress made by our industryover the past two and a halfdecades, and to tackle futureinnovation and challenges. Keypriorities in the coming yearsinclude decarbonising roadtransport, improving air quality,and paving the way forconnected and autonomousvehicles, which are all animportant part of our responseto meeting tomorrow’stransportation needs.”

Mr Zetsche, 62, was born in

Turkey and graduated inelectrical engineering at theUniversity of Karlsruhe in hisnative Germany. He joinedwhat was then Daimler-Benz inits research department in1976. Mr Zetsche has beenDaimler chief executive andmanagement board chairmanfor the past ten years. He alsoheads Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz cars division.

ACEA represents 15 Europe-based car, van, truck and busmanufacturers. They are BMWGroup, Daf Trucks, Daimler,Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Fordof Europe, Hyundai MotorEurope, Iveco, Jaguar LandRover, Opel Group, PSAPeugeot Citroën, RenaultGroup, Toyota Motor Europe,Volkswagen Group, Volvo Carsand Volvo Group.

More information atwww.acea.be.

Europa Worldwide Group,one of the UK’s biggest

privately-owned transportcompanies, has a new financedirector. He is Robert Ross, asenior manager for the past tenyears at PwC, a bigaccountancy firm, beforejoining Dartford, Kent-basedEuropa two months ago. MrRoss fills the vacancy createdby the departure of RussellKeep, now understood to betravelling on what he describesas a “gap year”. Together withtwo other long-serving Europaemployees, Andrew Kennedyand Grenville Turner, Mr Keepwas part of the management

buy-out team which tookcontrol of the company in2007 when he became chiefexecutive. Two years ago a 90per cent shareholding inEuropa was acquired byAndrew Baxter, former jointowner of RH Freight, theNottingham-based firm whichin March 2011 became part ofthe giant Kuehne + Nagelgroup of Switzerland. Theremaining 10 per cent Europashareholding was bought by MrKeep, who agreed to stay on fortwo years as finance director,reporting to managing directorAndrew Baxter.

“Russell has been an asset tothe firm over many years andwe wish him all the best,” saysMr Baxter. “Europa feels like avery different business than itwas two years ago. HavingRobert on board with all hisexperience will reinforce ourposition even further andprovide a springboard for long-term growth.”

Europa has around 500employees at twelve UK sitesincluding what is claimed to bethe country’s largest Europeangroupage hub. The companyalso has a base in Hong Kongand offers air, sea andwarehousing services as wellas road freight. Group turnovergrew nine per cent last year toaround £80 million.

“Joining a great team and atsuch a pivotal time on Europa’sjourney is an incredibly excitingventure for me,” says Mr Ross.“The business has hugepotential for future growth andtrack record which proves that

it isn’t afraid to capitalise on theareas that will see the companybuild on its current success. Nodoubt, 2016 will be an excitingyear for Europa.”

Krone, one of Europe’s threebiggest trailer-makers, is to

have a new marketing bossfrom next month. He is IngoLübs, promoted from head ofpublic affairs and OEM (original

equipment manufacturers)management to the newposition of head of marketing,filling the vacancy created bythe departure of TobiasEichberg. Mr Eichberg hasbeen Krone marketing directorfor the past three years. Forfour years before that he ran hisown consultancy firm, EichbergConsulting, and previouslydirected a big agriculturaltechnology show in Germany.The Krone group manufacturersagricultural machinery as wellas road-going trailers. Now,according to Krone, MrEichberg is leaving thecompany to “take up acompletely different challengein southern Germany.”

Mr Lübs, 37, first worked inKrone’s sales and marketingdepartment between 2004 andthe end of 2009. Then he leftto run his own company, LübsServices & Solutions, beforereturning to Krone’s Spellehead office last February ashead of public affairs.

“He is a proven long-termmarketing professional withtwelve years of experience inthe industry,” says Krone’ssales and marketing managingdirector Gero Schulze Isfort.

People

Don’t keep your careermoves to yourself.Just changed jobsor just about to?Commercial Vehicle Engineerreaders would like to knowabout it.All you have to do is contactus on 01428 605605,fax 01428 714278,e-mail: [email protected],and leave the rest to us.

Dieter Zetsche

Ingo Lübs

Robert Ross and Andrew Baxter


People

Jaguar Land Rover as trainingmarket support manager.Before that he had been atechnical trainer at Volkswagen.Mr Doyle has been Isuzu Truck(UK)’s senior trainer sinceJanuary 2015.

The latest world finals of thebiennial Scania Top Team skillscompetition were held lastmonth at the Swedish truck-and bus-maker’s base inSödertälje, south of Stockholm.A team of four technicians andone parts specialist from the

“His expertise in the press andevents area is a further buildingblock upon which thecombined efforts of ourdedicated and highly motivatedteam will continue to projectthe company towards thefuture.”

Commercial trailers accountfor about 65 per cent of theKrone group’s turnover,according to its latest results.These show annual turnover at€1.6 billion (£1.2 billion) forthe 2014/15 financial year,slightly up on the previousyear’s figure. Krone points outthat these results wereachieved despite difficultiescaused by “the Russian crisisand the ending of EU milkproduction quotas.”

The world-class capability ofBritish commercial vehicle

technicians has been ondisplay again lately, in separateskills competitions at venuesthousands of miles apart. One,run by Scania, was in Sweden.The other, run by Isuzu Motors,was in Japan.

Last month in the Japanesecity of Fujisawa, a UK teamfinished third in the 43-teamfinals of the latest annual globalskills competition run by IsuzuMotors. A team from Japantook first prize, ahead of NewZealand in second place.

The three members of theteam representing the IsuzuTruck (UK) dealer network areSimon Abnett from MC Truck &Bus of Maidstone, Kent; SteveTancock from Harry MooreCommercials of Exeter, Devon;and Liam Doyle, senior trainerat the Isuzu Truck (UK) base inHatfield, Hertfordshire. Their

third place in what Isuzu callsthe I-1 Grand Prix came after afull day of practical and writtentests for the 43 finalist teams infront of an audience of about1,000 at the new Isuzu Motorstraining centre in Fujisawa. Thetasks included measuringcylinder head wear beforeengine re-assembly, andvarious testing, inspection andfault-diagnosis challenges.

This is the secondconsecutive year that a UKteam has been among the topthree in the global Isuzu skillscompetition. Last year a teamled by Tony Hicks, in his finalyear before retiring as an IsuzuTruck (UK) technical trainer,came away with the top prizeafter beating all finalists from30 other countries. Tim Hicks,Tony Hicks’ son and now headof service, warranty andtraining at Isuzu Truck (UK),says that the third-placeachievement of this year’steam, comprising differenttechnicians and a new coach,is just as impressive. “It wasanother fantastic performanceby the UK team,” he says.“This is the sixth year that wehave entered this competitionand our experience is nowshowing through. To achievesuccessive podium finishes isunprecedented. Each year thequality and standards requiredto be successful get higher andhigher, as more and morecountries enter. With 43 teamscompeting for the title this year,the event had the largestnumber of contestants in itshistory.”

Liam Doyle joined IsuzuTruck (UK) in January 2013 asa trainer/training developer. Hehad previously worked for

Nottingham depot of theKeltruck dealer group won itsplace in these finals by winningfirst the UK finals, againstteams from 67 other Scaniaworkshops, and then thewestern and southern Europeanregional final, beating teamsfrom nine other countries.

Last month in Sweden theRobin Hoods from KeltruckNottingham came within awhisker of taking the biggest ofall Top Team prizes, finallyfinishing second only by the

People

Team from Japan wins Isuzu’s 2015 global technical competition, ahead of New Zealand and UK.

The Keltruck Nottingham Robin Hoods: Richard Baker, Rob Warnes,Craig Waller, Rob Farmer and Paul Morris.

All at sea: marine engine fault-finding was one surprise Top Teamfinals test.


narrowest of margins to a teamfrom New Zealand.

“In a competition whichinitially saw some 8,000Scania technicians and partsprofessionals from 70 countriestake part, it is hard to overstatethe success and achievementof the Keltruck Nottinghamteam,” says John Wainwright,Top Team project leader atScania (Great Britain). “Notonly are they the top fiveScania aftersales professionalsin Europe, they can alsojustifiably claim to be amongthe ten best worldwide. Icongratulate themwholeheartedly for a fantasticperformance.”

The twelve teams in the TopTeam world final were facedinitially with five practical andone theory test on the first day.This resulted in eight teamsbeing knocked out, leavingteams from Australia, Brazil,New Zealand and the UK tobattle it out on day two. In skilltests against the clock, firstAustralia and then Brazil wereeliminated. The final trialbetween the New Zealand andUK teams involved solving acomplex electrical problem on atruck. New Zealand emergedvictorious in a nail-biting finale.

The five members of theKeltruck Nottingham RobinHoods team are Craig Waller,foreman and team leader;foreman Rob Warnes; assistantforeman Rob Farmer; assistantforeman Richard Baker; andparts supervisor Paul Morris.Tony Smeed is team co-ordinator and Graham Pageteam coach.

Top Team prizes include€40,000 (£29,000) for theworld final winning team and€30,000 (£22,000) for therunner-up.

For a video of the Scania TopTeam 2015 world finals clickhere:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSoZ_Praiz4

The first three successfulapplicants for an innovative

four-year engineeringapprenticeship scheme beingrun jointly by the FreightTransport Association (FTA) andGist, a big contract logisticsoperator, started work lastmonth. Lewis Wilcox is based

at the Gist depot in Barnsley,South Yorkshire; Jack Franklinat Thatcham, Berkshire; andJames Halsey at Spalding,Lincolnshire. The intention isfor all three to become vehicleinspection engineers employedby FTA at the end of theirapprenticeship. What is in it forGist, a subsidiary of the giantgas-supplying Linde group ofGermany, especially when thecompany already has its ownapprentice technicians?

“We have for many yearsmanaged our ownapprenticeship schemes toensure experienced vehicletechnicians are available tomeet the needs of thebusiness,” says Gistengineering director Sam deBeaux. “We currently haveeight apprentices working inGist workshops. We aredelighted to assist FTA with thedevelopment of apprenticerecruitment and training as webelieve it is vital for the supportof FTA and the widerdistribution industry.” Each ofthe FTA/Gist apprentices hasbeen allocated a mentor. Theplan is that the apprentices willstart to work alongsideengineers in the FTA’s VIS(Vehicle Inspection Service)division in year-three of theirtraining.

“Their four years of learningoffers them the opportunity ofworking with Gist in theirdepots in a professionalenvironment and learning fromour own team of engineers,”says FTA operations directorJune Powell. “This will enablethem to develop the knowledgeand skills to become FTAengineers of the future.Through this fantasticapprenticeship scheme FTA is

able to give something back tothe industry and believes it willhelp encourage other youngpeople to enter a career inlogistics.”

More information atwww.gistworld.com,www.fta.co.uk.

Cheshire-based trailer-makerand bodybuilder Cartwright

Group is keen to recruit a freshintake of apprentices nextmonth following the success ofa scheme started three yearsago.

“Since we launched ourapprenticeship scheme inSeptember 2012 it has gonefrom strength to strength,” saidgroup managing director MarkCartwright last month at thecompany’s latest annualapprentice awardspresentation. “Many of our firstyear’s intake have alreadyprogressed up the career ladderand are now shortly due to takepermanent roles withinCartwright. Our second- andthird-year apprentices areequally committed and makinga significant contribution to theorganisation.”

One Cartwright apprenticewho has gone way beyond thebasic two-year scheme is JoshRedfern. He is now taking amechanical engineering degreecourse at ManchesterMetropolitan University.

This year’s Cartwright“apprentice of the year” is 17-year-old Thomas Tutty fromSale, Cheshire. The threerunners-up are Peter Holt,Jacob Ritchie and RhysMcAvoy.

“Selecting just fourapprentices out of our 2014intake was a tough decision,”says Mr Cartwright. “Each ofthe four youngsters has had anexemplary first year and set anexample for others to follow.What we have foundparticularly interesting is theindividual skill-sets they are

developing as they completetheir rotations around thebusiness. Not only have theybecome an integral part of ourworkforce, they are learningskills to take with themthroughout their working lives.”

More information atwww.cartwright-group.co.uk/apprenticeships.

Ian Chisholm has beenappointed managing director

at the Society of OperationsEngineers (SOE), a London-based engineering instituteformed by a controversialmerger 15 years ago of theInstitute of Road TransportEngineers (IRTE) andInstitution of Plant Engineer(IPlantE). There are around13,000 SOE members in totalat present, down from around20,000 at the time of themerger.

Mr Chisholm, a formerfurther education lecturer,joined SOE as engineeringexecutive in 2001, filling thevacancy created by theretirement of Clive Price.

Mr Chisholm later becamethe body’s head of operationsand communications butsuddenly was called on toassume overall managementcontrol when Peter Walsh leftthe chief executive’s postunexpectedly in October 2014after less than a year in thejob. Mr Walsh, a miningengineer, returned to his nativeAustralia nine months ago(Commercial Vehicle EngineerApril). Mr Chisholm wasappointed executive directortemporarily in October 2014while a firm of head-hunterswas called in to find a newchief executive. The closingdate set for applications was22 June 2015.

Last month Mr Chisholm’sappointment was madepermanent and his job titlechanged from executivedirector to managing director.

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Thomas Tutty, Jacob Ritchie, Peter Holt and Rhys McAvoy

June Powell

SOE is one of three bodies(together with the RoadHaulage Association and TheSociety of Motor Manufacturersand Traders) in the partnershipwhich owns the UK’sCommercial Vehicle Show, nexton in April 2016 atBirmingham’s NationalExhibition Centre (NEC). Butwith a falling membership SOErecognises the risks inbecoming too dependent onincome from this event. “I willexplore new funding andinnovative revenue streams thatwill guarantee the sustainabilityof the organisation,” says MrChisholm.

Workshops run by AquilaTruck Centres at

Kingsbury, Warwickshire andby Scania (Great Britain) atAvonmouth near Bristol figureprominently in the latest annualawards presented by HoyerPetrolog UK to its two maintruck suppliers. The awardsscheme was started five yearsago by the company, part of thegiant Hamburg-based Hoyergroup, which runs the UK'sbiggest fleet of petroleum,bitumen and fuel-oil tankers.The main aim is to incentiviseworkshops and their staff underheadings such as compliance(vehicle prohibitions), safety,annual roadworthiness test(MOT) pass rates, and uptime.Most trucks in the HoyerPetrolog UK fleet come fromMAN, the remainder fromScania. All maintenance andrepair work is carried out undercontract by these twomanufacturers' franchiseddealer networks. Hoyer runsthe awards scheme itself,including a black-tie dinner forthe MAN awards, with about80 guests. Operations directorAllan Davison is in no doubtabout the value of the scheme."If you can improve uptime inour business by only one

quarter of a percentage pointyou can pay for this awardsscheme five times over," hesays.

Aquila Truck Centres(Kingsbury) is the winner ofthis year's MAN dealer of theyear award from Hoyer. "Thisworkshop has demonstratedsignificant year-on-yearimprovement in all Hoyer'scriteria for safety, complianceand service," says Mr Davison.An Aquila Truck Centresweekend shift supervisor,Henryk Wisniewski, is Hoyer'sMAN technician of the yearaward winner. The "outstanding

performance of the year awardgoes to Steven Wall, HoyerPetrolog UK's location transportmanager at Kingsbury.

Hoyer's top dealer award thisyear for workshops maintainingits Scania trucks goes to ScaniaAvonmouth. The award waspresented to the workshop'sgeneral manager Mark Wilsonand service adviser RhydianHarris by Hoyer Petrolog UKmanaging director Mark Binns.Dave Pougher from Avonmouthis Hoyer's Scania technician ofthe year, with Kevin Hood of

Scania Purfleet taking the"outstanding performer of theyear" award.

Former Iveco UK salesdirector Stuart Beeton has

joined MAN Truck & Bus UK assouth west regional salesmanager. Mr Beeton left Iveco,a subsidiary of CNH Industrial,about six months ago as thecompany was preparing tomove its UK head office fromWatford to the CNH IndustrialUK base at Basildon, Essex. MrBeeton's departure came a fewmonths after Bob Lowden hadsuddenly resigned as Iveco UKmanaging director after only sixmonths in the job.

Another new recruit at MANTruck & Bus UK is DavidGillott, joining the company assouth east regional salesmanager.

Mr Gillott has been groupbusiness development managerat Allports Group, a RenaultTrucks dealer, for the past year.Before that he spent eightmonths setting up a Caterpillartruck and constructionequipment dealership inSudan.

Mr Gillott's previous UK jobsinclude business developmentdirector at Prohire and salesdirector at Fraikin, a big truckrental and contract hireoperation, between 2005 and2008.

“It gives me great pleasure towelcome Dave and Stuart tothe team," says MarkRoberson, MAN Truck & BusUK's head of truck sales south."A new year always offers afresh start and we feel 2016will be an exciting time withthese two gentlemen on the


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team. They have brought a wealthof ideas and experience to thecompany.”

Former Isuzu Truck (UK) fleetsales manager Bob Holt has

returned to Terberg DTS (UK), theWest Yorkshire-based supplier of"distribution tractors" (often calledyard-shunters) as specialist trailersales manager in a newly createddivision. Mr Holt previouslyworked at Terberg DTS beforejoining Isuzu early in 2011. Heleft the company in October 2014to join Strongs Plastic Products, aTamworth, Staffordshire-basedsupplier of bodywork material.

At Terberg DTS Mr Holt nowreports to Richard Woodings,head of UK and Irish Republicsales, and is focused on specialisttrailers such as those made bySeacom of Germany and Liftec ofFinland.

“Our relationship with bothSeacom and Liftec has gone fromstrength to strength in recentyears, with trailer sales into theUK increasing year-on-year," saysTerberg DTS (UK) managingdirector Alisdair Couper. "Byestablishing trailer sales as astand-alone division withambitious future product plans,and combined with the return ofBob Holt, we believe that thereare substantial growthopportunities for us in this sector.Bob fully understands the Terbergbusiness model as well as beingextremely well-known andexperienced within the industry,so his presence will give thedivision a major boost. In 2015so far we have had a record yearfor our specialist trailer sales. Itmade sense for us to create thisas a stand-alone division for whatis now a recognised andsuccessful product group withinour overall company portfolio.” �

Henryk Wizniewski

Mark Wilson and Rhydian Harris

Bob Holt

Ian Chisholm

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