LOOKING AHEAD
With a new MD and senior management team
CUSTOMER SPOTLIGHT
How going digital formed the ‘lynch-pin’ for ER success
CLANDESTINE PREVENTATIVE SYSTEMS
There’s a new Aquarius Checking App for that
From Managing Director Mark Johnston, welcoming everyone to this summer issue of CONNECTED in our 20th
The co-founders of Aquarius, Guy Reynolds and Dave Bailey, look back over their working partnership that spans 30 years, and look forward with a new senior management team at the helm.
the
Stephen Bremner and Gabrielle Lawrence from L Lynch Plant Hire & Haulage Limited discuss how going digital was the ‘lynch-pin’ for Earned Recognition success.
Jo Elms, Director at Operator and Driver Support Services (ODSS) provides her 10 top tips to help transport operators and compliance managers get ready for DVSA’s audit processes.
With operators being urged to make their drivers be more vigilant to the risk of clandestine activity this summer, Marc Caplin advises how the new Aquarius Clandestine Check can help.
Subir Gupta discusses why since the 2020 roadside record-keeping requirements came in, more and more operators are using the tachograph to calculate driver’s pay, and why Time & Attendance is fitting the purpose of both the compliance and payroll teams.
WELCOME
to the Summer issue of CONNECTED, and it’s an extra special one for me personally; my first one as the Managing Director of Aquarius.
Having worked in the industry for more than 20 years, this promotion is a significant milestone in my career and I am sincerely thankful for the trust placed in me by the co-founders, Guy Reynolds and Dave Bailey - and I look forward to continuing to work closely with them during the transitional period and whilst they wind down on their day-to-day management of the business.
With a great team around me, and with great customers and partners, I am looking forward to embracing this new role and continuing to develop our market leading position, and bring even more value to our customers.
Sustainability and innovation will continue to be at the heart of what we do to ensure we always stay ahead of the technical and compliance curve; and can continue to provide real digital solutions that help and support all of our customers in road transport.
I would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate my colleagues Neil Chetwynd and Liz Haselden, who have been promoted to the senior management team and together we are looking ahead to maintain the company’s growth trajectory. In addition to Subir Gupta, Marc Caplin and Ian Hudson being promoted to the management team.
Back to this issue, and I’d like to extend my congratulations to L Lynch Plant Hire & Haulage Limited also, who recently gained Earned Recognition. To mark this achievement we spoke to Stephen Bremner, the Fleet & Health and Safety
Mark Johnston Managing Director
Director and Gabrielle Lawrence, the company’s Transport Compliance Manager for this issue’s Customer Spotlight.
Also, following Border Force’s clandestine entrant civil penalty scheme being overhauled in February 2023, and the scheme requiring operators to have effective preventative clandestine systems in place, we have created a new Clandestine Check in the Aquarius App. Find out more on page 14 about how drivers can use the App to record vehicle checkins in line with Border Force’s specific checklist. Alongside this, you can also watch our free Clandestine Webinar, which we recently hosted with Laura Hadzik (Partner and Head of Commercial Road Transport at JMW Solicitors LLP).
As always, we hope you enjoy reading this seventh issue of CONNECTED, there’s lots of news and compliance advice as always; and please do get in touch if you’d like to be featured in a future issue, or have ideas for technical or compliance-related stories.
Finally, on behalf of the new senior management team, I’d like to say thank you to everyone who has sent us congratulatory messages on social media and via email, and to those who came to see us at the recent RT Expo event following the announcements. It means a lot, thank you.
Mark Johnston Managing Director
DIGITAL PARTNERSHIP THAT SPANS 30 YEARS
As you may have read or already seen, we are celebrating our 20th anniversary this year, but the company’s co-founders Guy Reynolds and Dave Bailey, who recently announced they are stepping back from the day-to-day general management of Aquarius with Mark Johnston being appointed the new Managing Director, go back even further. Together, they have enjoyed a working partnership that spans three decades, and here to mark this milestone, they share their digital journey.
We first met when we worked at an international dairy company in Birmingham back in the early 1990s. Guy explains: “I was employed as the company’s Network Manager, and Dave, just 20 years of age at the time, had joined as a trainee accountant. Soon after joining the company, Dave realised that accountancy wasn’t for him, and with my support, he was able to transfer over to the network team (IT department). Together we also worked with Georgina Allsop who was the Depot’s Accounting system, and who since 2010 has worked at Aquarius in the finance department.”
Throughout our time at the firm, the parent company acquired many smaller dairies as part of its growth strategy back then, and it was our role in IT to help onboard the newly acquired staff, as the ethos was very much focussed on ‘embracing people’ – a principle we later embedded into Aquarius’s core values, and which remains today.
Fast forward a couple of years, and the parent company sold its UK operation, and while we both remained employed, the people-focused ethos sadly changed. Guy said: “Dave had now been working with me for a while, and it was obvious for all to see that he had an amazing talent for IT and software development. As such, we started a small ‘hobby’ company alongside our jobs at the dairy company - and then one day, I got a call out of the blue from an old colleague who was working at the MG Rover Group. At this point in our careers, this call marked a significant turning point for both Dave and I.”
MG Rover, which had just been sold by BMW, needed a new sales, planning, and forecasting IT system to be created from scratch – and we got the job, and given the enormity of the project, we both left the dairy company to take on the task full-time. The software system we wrote proved so successful, that it was adapted for Jaguar Land Rover and was used in 143 countries worldwide. Such was its impact globally; Jaguar Land Rover brought the software outright from us.
Dave continues; “Then in 2004, Guy and I formed Aquarius IT, and a year later the stars aligned again. Guy went to the 2005 CV Show and by chance he met with a tachograph analysis company that was looking for a software partner in preparation for the imminent introduction of digital tachographs. At exactly the same time, MG Rover went into administration, which wasn’t good but it opened up the opportunity for us both to forge ahead and develop an analogue and digital tachograph analysis system.”
“In IT terms, the skills and experience we had gained in writing and developing software for MG Rover and Jaguar Land Rover, seamlessly transferred into writing technical and mathematical calculations for Drivers Hour’s Law,” confirmed Dave.
As a result, and in readiness for the introduction of digital tachographs in May 2006, Aquarius launched the road transport industry’s first integrated analogue and digital tachograph analysis software, called ClockWatcher.
For the first time, this software enabled road transport customers to easily selfanalyse and manage their own driver and vehicle data.
And, the rest as they say, is history.
Today, Aquarius, with its roots still firmly focussed on ‘embracing people’ has grown into a million-pound software development company. Of significance, while the company has constantly evolved its software solutions over the last two decades in line with developments in technology and their customer needs, the underlying core technical functionality of the original ClockWatcher tachograph analysis system remains the same, which is a testament to the system’s original design back in 2005/06.
Guy continues: “Three decades on since first working together at the dairy company, you could say it has taken a ‘lotta bottle’ for us to get where we are today; we have taken risks, and faced twists and turns at every corner. But there have been opportunities too where “the stars have aligned”.”
Dave adds: “Fundamentally, it’s also been about partnership working. As the co-founders we have worked hard every step of the way, and used our complementary skill sets, to not only build a successful company that we are very proud of, but to also create real-life digital solutions that every day, help make people’s compliance-related jobs easier to manage.”
Dave Bailey
Guy Reynolds
LOOKING AHEAD WITH A NEW SENIOR MANAGEMENT TEAM
In 2015 Guy and Dave became ‘three’ when they appointed a third Director - Mark Johnston - to work alongside them and drive the future focus of the company.
Guy said: “As the founding directors, it was a huge leap for us, especially after two decades of being just the two of us making company decisions, to bring in a third director, but we both had every confidence in Mark.
“And we were right. Over the last nine years, Mark has been instrumental in driving the company forward with new products and digital innovations – and we knew that when the time came for us to hand over the reins, Aquarius would be in safe hands with Mark at the helm. It’s a move that we have been succession planning for with Mark to ensure a smooth and efficient handover, and we are looking forward to seeing what the future holds with Mark as the new Managing Director.”
Dave also has every confidence in the new structure: “Handing over to Mark is a moment of great pride for Guy and I. We both have an inordinate amount of confidence in Mark, who we have worked with for several years in preparation for this move. Importantly for us, he understands the company and our customer ethos, and he has the vision, and skills to steer the company to new heights.”
“Mark has the support, and trust, of the whole Aquarius team, and this transition will ensure continuity in our company’s values and ambitions, and paves the way for even more new opportunities and innovations which will benefit our customers,” added Guy.
“We are equally proud to see Neil Chetwynd being promoted to Director of Development, who will oversee the technical development and delivery of the company’s software solutions; and
Liz Haselden, taking on the new role of Marketing and Operations Director. Like Mark, both Neil and Liz have decades of experience in the road transport industry between them, and as a senior management team, we know they will work together to maintain Aquarius’s growth trajectory – and as board members, we will both be there to support them,” confirmed Guy and Dave.
”
Mark has the support, and trust, of the whole Aquarius team, and this transition will ensure continuity in our company’s values and ambitions,
THAT’S A WRAP
We are half way through the year, and two of the biggest commercial road transport shows of 2024 – Commercial Vehicle Show and RT Expo – have already taken place, and the Aquarius team were out in force.
Starting with the Commercial Show, held in April, the team wholly agreed it was our best one yet in terms of the quantity and quality of the leads, with Asset Maintenance and the Aquarius App being the main topic of conversation. The three-day show also kicked off our 20th anniversary celebrations and it was great to reminisce with customers who’ve been with us since the start of digital tachographs – poignantly it was the CV Show where it all began for Aquarius back in 2005. The event, being held in Birmingham, also gave the new members of our development and technical team (pictured top right) the chance to see what’s new in the world of road transport.
Then onto RT Expo, a very different, more laid-back ‘community’ show where the focus most definitely is on the trucks. With Asset Maintenance the main star of our show, we had our usual spot in the green hall this year, alongside all the other net zero related suppliers and services.
Watch our little video montage from the team.
NEW MANAGEMENT TEAM REFLECTS OUR AMBITIOUS GROWTH PLANS
As part of our exciting plans to restructure the company, Aquarius has also further strengthened the management team, with Subir Gupta accepting the role of Sales Manager, Marc Caplin the position of Compliance Manager and Ian Hudson becoming our new Support Manager.
Mark Johnston, said: “These are three well-deserved promotions, and their leadership and expertise will significantly enhance our team and contribute to our continued success.”
FIRST TIME AT APSE’S TRANSPORT & VEHICLE MAINTENANCE SEMINAR
As we go live with this issue, we will have attended the APSE Transport & Fleet Seminar in Cheshire where the key focus will be to show how our Tacho Analysis system integrates with Asset Maintenance, and defect and eSIGN technologies; and how this connected approach is helping local authority transport managers derive wider economies of scale for front line council services.
Local authorities have successfully been using our tacho analysis system for many years, and now with the focus on integration to create even greater back-office efficiencies, Asset Maintenance has completed the loop for those with vehicles and assets requiring periodic maintenance or inspection.
For the first time at this event, we were demonstrating how authorities can derive maximum benefit from our integrated approach, including reduced VOR, significant cost and time savings, and increased safety and compliance standards.
FUN TIMES WITH CUSTOMERS ON BOTH SIDES OF THE WATER
For Guy Reynolds and Marc Caplin, it really was a case of “planes, trains and automobiles” during the first week of June. After a fantastic first day at RT Expo, they then flew out to Northern Ireland for Export & Freight Magazine’s Golf Masters at Loch Earne on the 6th of June – an event we proudly sponsor each year.
GUY JOINS ESTEEMED JUDGING PANEL
The Motor Transport Awards are seen as a benchmark for excellence among UK road transport fleet operators, vehicle manufacturers, and other innovators, and we are very proud that our Director, Guy Reynolds, has once again been invited back to be one of the esteemed judges for this year’s awards. On announcing the 2024 judges, Motor Transport Awards said: “Judged by more than 50 senior industry figures, award decisions are made by knowledgeable industry peers rather than anonymous panels of unknown judges; this makes them so valuable to the winners.”
Meet the judges.
BOYS AND GIRLS ON TOUR
Back in May, we supported the Ashby Rugby Football Club U7s - U12s boys and girls who took part in the club’s ‘tour’ over the bank holiday weekend by sponsoring their shirts – as you can see from the photos, they all had such a great time, and looked so smart in their kits.
SUPPORTING WICKES DISTRIBUTION COLLEAGUE OF THE YEAR
For the last few years, we have proudly sponsored the Wickes Distribution Colleague of the Year Awards, and this year Subir Gupta went along to the event held at Alton Towers. He said: “I had a great time with the Wickes team last night. Getting to see people like Peter Harrod and Alex H and hear all the positive experiences the drivers and transport managers alike have with our software, with comments such as “software of the future” is amazing. Thanks also to Mark Wheeler, I thoroughly enjoyed being part of celebrating everyone’s achievements.
WORKING TOGETHER
By Chris Cuffe, Aquarius IT Consultant
FLEET EXCELLENCE
ENABLED – OUR NEW FLEET AVAILABILITY FUNCTION
In recent years the uptake of Aquarius’s Asset Maintenance module has been unprecedented. From talking to customers, we put this down to the flexibility of the system and the constant investment to improve its versatility yet further. Not only can you manage your fleet assets, but you can pretty much manage any type of plant or machinery. In addition, all of this data can be integrated and cross-referenced with compliance, defect reporting, document management and time and attendance.
With all this data stored in one place it makes it easier to cross check the availability of personnel and assets. To take further advantage of this we have recently introduced the Fleet Avaiilability option within Asset Maintenance to a number of customers during the onboarding process.
ASSET INCIDENTS –RECORDED AND MANAGED
So, the worst happens, an incident occurs which causes damage to an asset or a third-party asset. In this particular case let’s focus on a collision between one vehicle and another, or a vehicle and another object, for example a construction or piece of road furniture. When such a collision occurs many drivers will panic and the opportunity to gather key information that could help in a subsequent insurance claim is lost.
To help with this, users of the Aquarius App have automatic access to an Incident Module. The user can setup an incident template for each type of asset and assign it to an asset. These templates can contain a range of questions that the driver has to answer, and can also prescribe a set of photos the driver needs to take at the scene.
So, what does the Fleet Availability tool do?
In essence it allows the user to work with an interactive table that is representative of an ISO week. The vertical axis contains a filtered list of vehicles and the horizontal axis the seven working days of the week. The user can assign a driver to a vehicle, a vehicle and trailer combination or assign multiple drivers for each day. If a vehicle is planned to be off the road, has a PMI or service booking then this is highlighted, thus avoiding the planned use of a vehicle that is unavailable.
The planner can also see whether there are enough vehicles available to meet the current delivery or work demands. The maintenance team can then be encouraged to stagger vehicle service bookings, and planners have time to spothire vehicles if necessary. When combined with the Time and Attendance module, users can also see what drivers are available for a specific shift.
To make life easier for planners one ISO week can be copied forward to another, which saves a lot of keying work. The user can also export the fleet availability plan to Excel for further manipulation if required, or to share data.
The Fleet Availability tool is yet another example of how Aquarius are trying to help customers maximise the effectiveness and productivity of their people and assets.
HOW IT WORKS
When an incident occurs, the driver can use the Aquarius App to select the Incident Icon and then in turn the particular asset. The driver is led through a precise process ensuring that all key data is captured and photo evidence taken. Once the incident has been recorded key users of the core system are alerted on screen and by email.
Using the defect web application in the software, an incident report can be created for the insurer, which contains information from the scene, photos and an exact GPS location. At this point a relevant system user can start a collision investigation that is monitored via the defect web application until its conclusion.
Incidents can be extremely costly and at their worst can be very damaging to organisations. By ensuring that information is correctly recorded at the scene, Aquarius is endeavouring to alleviate some of the pressures of incidents and help improve outcomes for customers - turning the ‘unpleasant’ into the more manageable.
Aquarius has known and worked with Chris for more than 16 years; since his early days at Tachosys when he was the Sales and Marketing Director. Today, using his vast experience of tachographs and software, he works as a freelance consultant alongside the management team at Aquarius.
CUSTOMER SPOTLIGHT
GOING DIGITAL FORMED THE
‘LYNCH-PIN’ FOR EARNED RECOGNITION SUCCESS
For the last few years, Stephen Bremner, the Fleet & Health and Safety Director at L Lynch Plant Hire & Haulage Limited has been working on a five-year plan, based around the company’s four pillars – Safety, Net Zero, Digital and Wow. Included within this plan was the goal of gaining Earned Recognition (ER) status, which they successfully achieved in April, ahead of schedule.
To mark this achievement Subir Gupta sat down with Stephen and Gabrielle Lawrence, the company’s Transport Compliance Manager who alongside Stephen has helped deliver the strategic plan, to discuss how Aquarius’ integrated software solutions, including ClockWatcher Elite, Document Manager and Asset Maintenance, played a central role in helping them to achieve ER status, and meet the transport and compliance team’s ‘Net Zero’, ‘Safety’ and ‘Digital’ pillars.
First, Subir asks for a brief background on L Lynch Plant Hire & Haulage Limited Liam Lynch founded L Lynch Plant Hire & Haulage over 40 years ago with just one machine, and today, from our head office in Hemel Hempstead, we are proud to be an awardwinning family business and a leading provider of Operated and Self-Drive Plant Hire, Haulage and Transport Services to the UK construction industry. The Company operates a fleet of over 160 HGV in addition to the cars, vans and plant, and manages the accompanying number of drivers.
Stephen Bremner Gabrielle Lawrence
Let’s go back to 2018 / 2019 when you both first joined the company, because this was a significant period of change and growth for Lynch.
Your state-of-the-art head office in Hertfordshire had just opened, you built a brand-new Rushden office, servicing the Midlands and North, and innovatively the company created its very own Eco Operator training programme and introduced the first fully electric machine to the fleet. In April 2019, you also implemented ClockWatcher Elite - can you take us back to that time?
Lynch has always been an ambitious company, and with all the innovations that were happening in every corner of the business at that time, alongside our corporate commitment to sustainability, it was a natural step for the compliance team to want to go paperless and operate a centralised digital system across our new offices, for managing all aspects of tachograph compliance.
Why did you choose ClockWatcher Elite?
As a growing business, we selected ClockWatcher Elite because of the ‘scalability’ of the software and its ease of use in providing a central system that speeds up processes and makes our national administration, across multiple offices, more efficient and traceable. Plus, going from a paper-based system to digital was a key part of our ‘Net Zero’ and ‘Digital’ aims – and looking back it represented the first major phase of our Earned Recognition journey, which the DVSA had just launched in 2018.
Gabrielle, as the Compliance Manager, what were the immediate benefits?
With our compliance team based centrally at our head office, and drivers and staff working from various locations across the country, ClockWatcher Elite gave us a fast, reliable and secure compliance management solution – one specific example is that the tachograph analysis system enabled us to action infringements much more quickly, including remote sign-off. The team are also able to work more efficiently
and productively, and during COVID with remote working, which we couldn’t have predicted a year earlier when we embedded the system, it turned out to be a total game changer.
At the same time as embedding
ClockWatcher Elite, you also become one of the first FORS members to implement the software’s Document Management system – can you explain the reasons for this decision and give examples of how you use it? Like with tachograph compliance, we also wanted to have a paperless and centralised system for managing our health and safety compliance responsibilities – we wanted to ensure employees based all around the country had access to documentation as soon as they are issued, no matter where they are located.
It has literally transformed the way we communicate and share important company information with not just our drivers, but all our staff. We send documents such as employee handbooks, health and safety policies, company memos, videos and training materials en masse, or as a tailored circulation - and can electronically track delivery.
As a specific example, we use it to manage safety and training within the company. As a national company, our drivers can be in various locations and a safety alert or video can be distributed to all at the click of a button. The system gives managers a recorded and signed digital trail of interaction so that reports can be compiled.
What continues to be the main benefits?
Principally, Document Manager allows us to work efficiently, more diligently and economically, as part of our objective of ensuring all employees are working in line with our company policies.
We’ve also reaped costs savings; in addition to the obvious reduction in printed consumables, the associated delivery costs and storage, our main cost saving has been time.
Moving on to the final piece of the ER software jigsaw … Asset Maintenace then came in 2021, and again you were one of the first adopters of the system and contributed to its early development, with Gabrielle putting forward great ideas for new reporting features and workshop tools.
So why Asset Maintenance?
It was the next planned progression and it was a great fit having everything on one easy to use integrated platform alongside the tacho analysis system. It makes the management of driver and vehicle data so much easier and quicker – and visual. It has closed the loop. And just like ClockWatcher Elite, it is an ER-approved system. Being one of the companies who worked with Aquarius IT on the development of Asset Maintenance, meant that we could see how thorough it is as a compliance tool – ensuring all vehicles are always safe and roadworthy. Documentation is easily accessible which is also paramount.
Can you provide some real-life examples of how you use Asset Maintenance on an every-day basis?
In very basic terms there are two or three parts to this answer - from a vehicle compliance side with the
Driver Defect App, for scheduling and planning maintenance events and how it links, and is used by our workshop team. Then of course, there are all the tangible management benefits of being able to drill down, evaluate, and crossreference all of this information, and link with the tacho data, for increased efficiencies across the whole of the different teams. From reduced VOR and significant cost and time savings, and increased safety and compliance standards.
Gabrielle, let’s discuss the Driver Defect App …
The drivers like the simplicity of the Aquarius App, and when they have completed the daily checks, it automatically links with the workshop and an alert is triggered and a fitter allocated for the job. The triggered alert on the App - which was one of our development ideas - may sound simple, but its significant when you consider our mechanics are not sitting next to a computer screen all day. With emergency defects highlighted on the system, by the time a vehicle has returned to depot, the filter and be primed and ready to repair the vehicle minimising downtime, and ensuring a full record of all repairs to all vehicles.
Plus, drivers have the ability to take and send photos via the App, which enables the fitters to easily diagnose the issue and order parts in quicker, which equals less vehicle down time. We can monitor everything minute-by-minute, and
action defects so much more efficiently and quickly by linking the App with Asset Maintenance.
Plus, when you consider our ‘Net Zero’ pillar, this seamless digital process has removed the need for huge volumes of paper and job cards.
How is Asset Maintenance used in the workshop?
In addition to being an effective planning and job assignment tool, one of the biggest benefits of Asset Maintenance, is that it allows templates and schedules to be tailored to any asset type and to each parts specification, in turn increasing the visibility, reporting capability and auditability of our vehicles – we use for it everything from tyre retorques to brake pads and ramp inspectionsliterally every part of an asset on our system can be managed and evaluated.
With PMIs too we have a digital audit trail, no more misplaced pieces of paper in the workshop, which has quickened the whole process.
What do you have planned next with the system?
The next most logical step would be to continue to roll out the Asset Finance module, which will work in tandem with Asset Maintenance to enable the workshop to track, monitor and analyse the true costs of maintenance and parts with our suppliers.
Coming back to ER, congratulations on receiving accreditation … how did our software play its part in helping you achieve ER?
Stephen: First, as part our 5-year strategy we needed a DVSA-approved vehicle maintenance software solution that would enable us to easily move, and centrally analyse, our driver and vehicle data online. Aquarius ticked that box – and more.
Gabrielle: Going digital with Aquarius has completed transformed the way we work. It has made monitoring and maintaining our driver and vehicle compliance responsibilities a much easier task for our teams. Importantly, it helped us identify, and action, areas for improvement ready for ER.
And now for ER specifically, having all of our driver and vehicle data elements on one platform is proving invaluable in relation to DVSA’s reporting requirements. The process is simple and submissions are automated.
Stephen, in this digital journey to ER, what do you think has made the biggest difference?
It’s not just ‘one thing’ that has made the difference, but it’s the whole integrated approach that helped us to not only be ready for ER, but to also manage and sustain the accreditation.
Gabrielle, would you like to add anything further?
Yes, in addition to the ‘software’ itself, it has also been Aquarius’s unwavering support over the last few years that has got us to where we are today. The team are also always open to our development ideas and quick to respond, and I’m delighted to say that we have a great working relationship and strong partnership.
Thanks Stephen and Gabrielle.
ER AUDIT TIPS
If like L Lynch Plant Hire & Haulage Limited your aim is to gain Earned Recognition (ER) status, Jo Elms, a Director at Operator and Driver Support Services (ODSS) who are an authorised audit provider for ER, has provided her 10 top tips to help transport operators and compliance managers get ready for DVSA’s audit processes.
1. Ensure systems and processes are robust, can you prove it? –you don’t need necessarily to have written policies
2. Promote a culture for compliance from the top all the way though the business
3. Understand the audit questions, make sure a current copy is available before the audit
4. Carry out a mini-internal audits on each section of the audit periodically
5. Check out the audit company and auditor standard, do they carry out internal quality checks (ISO9001)
6. Don’t ignore any alerts when a KPI exceeds the tolerance
7. Watch the 3-month period for an audit before/after a new application is made
8. Understand what is reportable that may affect the scheme
9. Attend your meetings with the DVSA ER team member
10. Book your periodic Audits well in advance and respond to any findings quickly - 28 days will go fast!
The final tip from Jo - “Don’t panic if the standard isn’t met; the DVSA’s ER team are there to assist and communicate, and if you have any doubts, contact them as they are there to help.”
For further advice from our partners at ODSS, please email Jo.elms@ODSS.co.uk or go to their website
EFFECTIVE CLANDESTINE PREVENTATIVE SYSTEMS
...THERE’S AN AQUARIUS CHECKING APP FOR THAT
By Marc Caplin, Compliance Manager at Aquarius
Operators and drivers face substantial fines under the government’s clandestine entrant civil scheme; a scheme that also requires operators to have effective preventative clandestine systems in place. But what does this mean and what is an ‘effective’ preventative system?
Since the 13th of February 2023, fines for carrying clandestine entrants into the UK have risen significantly. Under the scheme if a vehicle is found to be carrying clandestine entrants, both the driver AND operator could each be fined up to £10,000 per entrant (i.e. £20,000 per entrant). Equally, and as important if the vehicle is not carrying clandestine entrants but has not been adequately secured, there is the potential for the driver AND operator to be fined a maximum penalty of £6000 each (i.e. a total of £12,000).
We understand that this isn’t just a threat, we’ve seen in the press over the last 12 months many drivers and operators fined thousands and thousands of pounds – we’ve also seen firsthand how serious the problem is, when customers facing fines have reached out to us for advice and support.
“Ignorance is no defence” in a court of law - so what can drivers and operators do to protect themselves and minimise the risk of a penalty?
The clandestine entrant civil scheme requires operators to have effective preventative systems in place. Central to these systems, are the driver being responsible for securing the vehicle and checking for signs of unauthorised access –importantly here this checking process must be done at the point of departure AND after each stop enroute back to base.
This record-keeping and being able to show an audit trail to Border Force, along with evidencing driver training, are imperative.
This is where Aquarius can help
Border Force has recently released an updated downloadable checklist, which provides a great starting template for drivers to work from when recording checks. For coaches, for example it includes checking overhead luggage racks and under the seats.
For 2024, we have digitised the Border Force’s check list and created a dedicated new Clandestine Check on the Aquarius App.
The Clandestine Check has been specifically designed to assist drivers in effectively checking the security of their vehicle and trailer whilst travelling/transporting goods across borders; alongside the pre-programmed Border Force checklist, operators also have the option to fully customise the clandestine check list to suit the individual needs of their operation, and by vehicle / trailer type.
This Clandestine Check not only provides a lessadministrative and a simpler way for drivers to record vehicle checks on their phone at each stopping point, while they are on enroute back to base; the driver can also log photographic evidence against each check, with a date/ time stamp and GPS location being recorded by the system. Once completed the details of the checks can be transmitted back to base where the data can be logged and investigated if needed.
An added safety feature is a SOS Button, which if the driver is in trouble will immediately connect them to the nearest emergency business contact - and the message will also be immediately relayed back to head office who can visually track the driver’s journey in real time.
Think of it like a Driver Defect Check on your Aquarius App – it uses the same principle, with the functionality providing a digital way to record vehicle security and create an audit trail if evidence of clandestine activity or vehicle security was questioned by Border Force.
This record of evidence, as previously mentioned is vital. When Border Force are considering the level of penalty to be imposed, consideration will be given to the records a driver is able to produce of their checks – other considerations include if this is an operator’s first incident, the financial circumstances of the driver and company, and whether the operator is a member of the Civil Penalty Accreditation Scheme.
The Border Force Civil Penalty Accreditation Scheme
To apply to be a member, which is free, an operator must demonstrate they have a system in place that enables drivers to record the vehicle security checks they complete – they also ask how many documents are provided to drivers and how long the completed records are stored.
The Aquarius App’s Clandestine Check provides an ‘effective monitoring system’ that could assist an operator in gaining accreditation. As a digital function too, the question of how many documents have been provided and how long they are stored is an easy one to answer, as its all electronically logged and stored.
Another question on the application, is ‘how do you keep drivers up to date with any changes made to the instructions?’. On the same Aquarius App, sitting alongside the Clandestine Check is a function called Document Manager, which provides a two-way electronic communication between the operator and the driver for such items as policy updates and training materials, which enable driver signatures and declarations to be captured and date stamped digitally.
In summary, after seeing waves of clandestine-related fines being issued over the last 12 months, drivers and operators must start putting robust preventative systems in place, if only for self-financial reasons. This is because, if you can show you have an ‘effective’ preventative system in place, in the event that a clandestine entrant is found on a vehicle, drivers, and operators who are also members of the Civil Penalty Accreditation Scheme, may just be able to reduce or avoid these huge fines.
For further details on the Aquarius App and its Clandestine Check functionality, please contact the team on 0330 333 8789 or email sales@aquariusit.com
With reports of coaches currently queueing for as long as 5 hours in Calais, all coach operators are urged to make their drivers remain vigilant to the risk of clandestine entrants gaining access to their vehicles when travelling to, and waiting at, the Port.
Make sure your drivers are recording their checks of the vehicle - using the Border Force specific checklist via the clandestine entrant check functionality on the Aquarius App.
BE EXTRA VIGILANT THIS SUMMER – Free Webinar –
With the summer upon us, which means longer queues and waiting times at the docks, and the the Paris Olympics predicted to increase traffic levels further, operators are being urged to make their drivers be vigilant to the risk of clandestine entrants when travelling to, and waiting at, the Port.
To help, Laura Hadzik (Partner and Head of Commercial Road Transport at JMW Solicitors LLP) and Marc Caplin (Compliance Advisor at Aquarius) recently recorded a free webinar which went through:
• What an effective preventative clandestine system looks like,
• Aquarius’ new ‘Clandestine Entrants Checks’ app,
• What you should do if you do get a penalty, and
• Membership of the Clandestine Entrant Civil Penalty Accreditation Scheme
Watch back here
Laura Hadzik, Partner and Head of Commercial Road Transport at JMW Solicitors LLP (Linked In – June 2024)
VIEWPOINT
By Subir Gupta, Aquarius’ National Accounts Manager
DRIVERS’ HOURS MEETS PAYROLL – THE TIME HAS COME
Recently we held a webinar on the amendments that were made to ‘roadside record-keeping’ in August 2020, and on this same subject and the fact that these rules are now being enforced, we have seen a noticeable increase in requests for our Time & Attendance portal. But why?
To calculate a driver’s pay, many operators have long held the opinion that the way forward is to use the tachograph data recorded on a driver’s card, such as start and end of shift. In a digital world, this would alleviate their reliance on paper, and the hierarchical, tedious administrative process of reviewing and approving recorded drivers’ hours, prior to payroll.
Fast forward with the aforementioned record keeping rules (Mobility Package) being enforced, using the tachograph to calculate driver’s pay has become more prevalent (among other stuff).
However, whilst drivers’ hours are recorded on the tachograph there are other records to be considered for payroll purposes, including Lieu days, sick days, annual leave, maternity and paternity leave, expenses to name a few.
With all these various elements in mind Aquarius created the Time
& Attendance portal – being very mindful of the fact that annual leave and sick days for example, are reported significantly differently in the tachograph analysis and legislative world in comparison to payroll requirements. It was a challenge we hit head on!
Our development team worked diligently to offer a solution that not only caters for the payroll requirement, but that also pushes back relevant data to our tachograph analysis portal to reduce administration. Time & Attendance has eased the whole administration process, without the sacrifice of compliance, and presents all relevant data sets on one screen.
With further recent enhancements as well now including automatic accrual analysis based on start date and bonus holiday awards based on length of service, our Time & Attendance solution continues to increase in popularity.
Time & Attendance fits the purpose of both the compliance and payroll teams. The former is able to easily view data sets, and the software allows for a customised export facility to be built by our developers ready for the payroll process - by segregating hours into over-time as required in each individual customer instance.
For all its benefits, Time and Attendance is also such a simple system to set-up, via the Aquarius App (which drivers using the App for Defect Reporting, Document Manager or Infringements will already be familiar with) and no additional investment in hardware required as it is compatible with a variety of smart devices and mobiles.
And don’t just take our word for it; in a recent interview with Nigel Thornton, Compliance Director at Collett & Sons Ltd in a previous issue of CONNECTED, he told us that the connection between Time & Attendance and the digital tachograph data is one of the biggest benefits of the system, operationally and administratively. He confirmed that this was an important time-saving and cost factor for them in terms of being able to easily map and overlay both sets of data to assess drivers’ hours being claimed and actual hours worked. He also referenced the holiday request functionality, saying it was a “massive boost”, as they can now quickly reply to drivers, and also add to the tachograph data, saving both time and paperwork.
For further information, or to request a free demo of Time & Attendance, please get in touch www.aquariusit.com/contact
CUSTOMER NEWS
LINEAGE NAMED TO CNBC DISRUPTOR 50 LIST
We are proud to work with Lineage, the world’s largest global temperature-controlled warehouse REIT and integrated solutions provider, and who for a fourth consecutive year were recently named a CNBC Disruptor 50 company.
In its 12th year, CNBC Disruptor 50 is an annual list that recognises the most innovative venture-backed companies that use breakthrough technology to meet increasing economic and consumer challenges across sectors, from health care to energy, the supply chain and finance.
ROYAL SWEEP
After sweeping up after the 2024 London Marathon for a 12th year in a row, JM Clark’s trusted fleet were back on the capital’s streets in June, and this time for a historic royal occasion – they were on site to sweep up on King Charles III’s official Trooping the Colour Birthday Parade.
ELECTRIFYING SUCCESS FOR DARCIA LOGISTICS
Fantastic to see Darcia Logistics, one of our newest customers, being featured in Motor Transport magazine. As a key member of the Palletways network and an Amazon DSP, their story is an outstanding example of what can be achieved in the transport industry with ambition and hard work. With sustainability at the core of their business, the article is well worth a read.
NEW MD AT WELCH GROUP
Congratulations to Chris Welch who since the last issue of CONNECTED has been promoted to Managing Director of the Welch Group and their other trading business units. Speaking on Linked In, Chris said; “After 10 years working across the business, I will become the fourth generation of the Welch family taking the reins, and I am incredibly proud to be given this opportunity and the faith which has been put in me.”
MOTOR TRANSPORT ANNOUNCES
THIS YEAR’S AWARDS FINALISTS
Congratulations to all the 2024 finalists, including our customers: Campeys of Selby Ltd, Collett & Sons Ltd and Welch Group.
We look forward to celebrating everyone’s achievements on the 4th September at the awards ceremony in London, and as sponsors, presenting the Service to Industry Award.
LONDONENERGY’S NEW ELECTRIC HGV HELPS TURN WASTE INTO RENEWABLE POWER
Waste and resource management experts’ LondonEnergy were back in the news in June, after taking delivery of a Volvo FM Electric 6×2 tractor unit to maximise the decarbonisation potential of its operations. This pioneering development, will see the new all-electric vehicle being tasked with collecting unrecyclable waste from their business’ transfer station in Islington. A portion will then be delivered to its energy centre, in Edmonton, where it will be turned into renewable electricity to power 80,000 homes every year, while any dry mixed recycling will be transported to a local Material Recycling Facility for processing.
Speaking in UK Haulier, Gareth Stephens, Transport and Logistics Manager, LondonEnergy, said: “With the growing concern around climate change it is vital that as an industry we continue to consider how alternatively fuelled HGVs could help us to decarbonise. With the growing concern around climate change it is vital that as an industry we continue to consider how alternatively fuelled HGVs could help us to decarbonise.”
MONTGOMERY PLEDGES SUPPORT TO ARMED FORCES
Montgomery Distribution has become one of the first cohort of Palletways members to sign up to support the Armed Forces Covenant. By signing up to the Covenant, the Northern Ireland haulier is proudly pledging to assist veterans (those who have served or continue to serve their country), reservists, and their families in their search for meaningful employment opportunities.
COMPLIANCE
Updates from Marc Caplin, Aquarius’s Compliance Manager
REMINDER ON TACHOGRAPH RETROFIT DATES FOR INTERNATIONAL JOURNEYS
If you are engaged in cross-border operations, you may already be aware that there is a requirement to retrofit certain vehicle with new tachographs - upgrading them to the new Generation 2 smart tachograph (Gen2 v2 for short). Here is a breakdown of the dates and which vehicles are affected.
DECEMBER 31ST 2024
By this date, all vehicles over 3.5t still fitted with an old analogue tachograph (e.g. 1324, 1318 tachographs) MUST be fitted with a new Gen2 v2 tachograph if they are involved in any sort of cross-border operation.
Similarly, any vehicle fitted with an older-style pre-2019 digital tachograph (or Gen 1 for short) MUST also be fitted with a new Gen2 v2 tachograph if operating internationally.
In summary, if it is a UK-based vehicle registered before August 2019, the tachograph will most likely need to be changed. If in doubt, please feel free to call us on 0330 333 8789 and we can help with identification.
AUGUST 19TH 2025
By this date, all vehicles over 3.5t fitted with a first-generation smart tacho (installed in new vehicles from August 2019 to August 2023) MUST be fitted with a new Gen2 v2 tachograph if they undertake international journeys.
Again, if any guidance is needed in identifying what type of tachograph is installed, please call us on 0330 333 8789.
JULY 1ST 2026
By this date, any light vehicle or van with a gross weight of more than 2.5te must also be retrofitted with a new Gen2 v2 tachograph if operating across international borders.
The temptation with any deadline is to put off the task in hand, but certainly the first date is now looming large on the horizon and, inevitably, if too many operators leave it to the last minute, there will be bottle-necks at tachograph centres at the back end of the year along with potential supply issues. Couple this with concerns around the number of adequately trained technicians available to carry out these installations and a challenging picture emerges.
In short, if your fleet contains any of these affected vehicles, it would be worth grasping the nettle early!
EXTENSION TO 56 DAYS FOR ROADSIDE RECORD KEEPING FROM 1st JANUARY 2025
The effect of the 2020 Mobility Package continues to be felt as the Department for Transport is considering aligning with the EU in their plan to extend the period of drivers’ roadside record retention from 28 to 56 days.
The EU deadline for the scrapping of the 28-day period is 31st December 2024, meaning that all drivers from 1st January 2025 will need to present 56 days’ worth of data during a roadside stop.
The DfT have yet to make a firm decision on what path the UK takes on this post-Brexit and, since all decision-making has been put on hold during the run up to the General Election, it may be a while before a conclusion is reached. It is our opinion they will most likely decide to adopt the change in order to maintain a level playing field for UK drivers operating in Europe and vice versa.
The challenges faced by operators in light of the previous changes to record keeping introduced by the Mobility Package are well documented (see CONNECTED - Issue 5 and our webinar from the 18th April 2024) so the implications of extending this period are clear!
There is also the question of what approach drivers should take towards the end of 2024, as they will technically need to start keeping additional records throughout November and December to ensure they have the requisite level of data from 1st January.
We have received questions regarding whether this will mean enforcement authorities will have scope to apply additional penalties proportionate to the extended period and it would seem the answer to this is “no”. There are no planned alterations to the current Graduated Fixed Penalty system in that no more than five Drivers’ Hours infringements can be addressed during a single roadside check, but it does provide an enforcement officer with a longer period of historical data to work through.
If more than five offences are detected during a roadside stop, the potential next step has always been prosecution so the net effect of the change could be an uptick in the number of cases going to court.
Although this change is not yet confirmed, there is no harm in being ahead of the curve, especially since many operators are still grappling with how to manage roadside record keeping under the current system.
We understand the Department for Transport is due to arrive at a decision on this once the results of the Election are known, and we will issue an update as soon as confirmation comes through.
