Motor Transport 13 May 2019

Sharp ■ Informed ■ Challenging

13.5.19

QUALITY. COMFORT. PERFORMANCE. Truck manufacturers publish paper making the case for 32m-long HCVs MAKE A SPLASH IN YOUR INDUSTRY

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NEWS INSIDE Expansion plans

Kinaxia buys David Hathaway p4

End local CAZ rules

Wincanton wants consistency p6

Quadracycle partnership

DPD/EAV in eCargo bike deal p8

OPERATORS INSIDE Connect Group............................................... p4 David Hathaway Transport ............................. p4 DPD ............................................................p3,8 GD Harries....................................................p12 H&R Gray ...................................................... p4 Hermes UK...................................................p10 Jempson and Sons .......................................p16 Massey Wilcox Transport..............................p16 Millfield Haulage ........................................... p8 Palletline Logistics.......................................p10 Suttons Tankers ............................................ p6 TEF Transport ................................................ p8 Transervice Group ...................................p14,16 Wincanton .................................................... p6

Allow high-capacity vehicles, urges ACEA

By Carol Millett

HGV manufacturers are calling for an EU-wide introduction of 32m-long high-capacity vehicles (HCVs) to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

In a paper published last week the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) argued that high-capacity vehicles, which are designed to carry twice as much freight as standard trucks, should be allowed on designated parts of the EU road network.

High-capacity vehicles in the form of European Modular System (EMS) combinations are already allowed in Belgium, Denmark, Finland, most German federal states, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Sweden, with a maximum length of 32m.

The introduction of 32m-long HCVs would be a controversial move in the UK. The longest

vehicle currently allowed on UK roads is the drawbar trailer or combination, which measures 18.75m in length.

Calls by Dick Denby, chairman of Lincolnshire haulier Denby Transport, for a trial of his Eco-Link double-trailer combination, a 60-tonne GCW, 25.25m, 8-axle B-Double, have yet to be heeded by the DfT. Instead the government has a long-term trial of longer semitrailers, which measure up to 15.65m in length, still under way.

The ACEA paper claims that research from countries that do allow HCVs on their roads shows their use in place of regular trucks can cut emissions by up to 27%. It could also halve the number of drivers needed.

The paper, entitled ‘High capacity transport: smarter policies for smart transport solutions’, calls on EU policymakers to:

■ abandon what it describes as “the restrictive interpretations” of EU legislation regarding crossborder use of EMS combinations ■ harmonise EU requirements for HCVs ■ base future EU regulations on HCVs on performance-based standards ■ launch pilot programmes trialling the use of HCVs ■ introduce a high-capacity transport system across Europe.

The paper also suggests additional driver training and strict safety criteria to encourage public acceptance of HCVs. ACEA secretary general Erik Jonnaert said: “In order to allow the benefits of high-capacity vehicles to be felt right across the entire European Union, we urge policymakers to enable the introduction of a highcapacity transport system across borders.”

CAN-DO ATTITUDE: Walkers Transport has acquired fellow Palletways member MTH Express Services for an undisclosed sum, giving the newly enlarged group a combined turnover of £48m. Richard Simpson, Walkers Transport CEO, said: “We are looking forward to working with [MTH director] Dez Shirley and the MTH management team to further grow the business and service offering. We expect this acquisition to benefit both MTH’s staff and existing and future customers, as a result of being part of a larger group with greater reach across the Midlands, north of England and nationally.” MTH operates from Fradley, near Lichfield in Staffordshire and covers Staffordshire, Shropshire and Derbyshire on behalf of Palletways. In the year to 31 December 2018, Walkers Transport said MTH had sales of around £9m. In 2017, Total Capital Partners backed the £20m management buyout of Walkers Transport, which was led by Simpson.

Business barometer p18 Focus: apprenticeships p19 Interview: Nadeem Raza p22

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Mercedes-Benz eVito to make its UK debut on London deliveries with DPD DPD is to operate the UK’s first eVitos from Mercedes-Benz Vans, which will be used across its London delivery operation.

The parcels firm has ordered 10 long-bodied 3.2-tonne versions of the mid-sized all-electric van, which will all join the fleet by the end of May or early June. A national roll-out of a further 100 vehicles will start later this year.

DPD opened the first of eight planned micro depots late last year in Westminster, and plans to

service them with a national rollout of electric delivery vehicles.

The site operates three all-electric vans – Mitsubishi Fuso eCanters, Nissan eNV200s and Paxsters.

However at the Westminster hub’s launch, DPD UK CEO Dwain McDonald urged manufacturers to step up to the challenge of providing larger “workhorse” vans with more carrying capacity.

DPD’s 3.2-tonne, long-wheelbase eVito models provide a 6cu m cargo area and a 1,043kg payload.

Zero-emission action needed

By Hayley Pink

The government needs to act swiftly to decide which zeroemission route HGVs must take if the UK is to achieve ambitious greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction targets.

New recommendations from the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) call for the UK to speed up its decarbonisation plans to enable it to achieve net zero GHG emissions by 2050. The UK is aiming for an 80% reduction on 1990 levels by this point.

Decarbonising transport will play a significant part in any reduction. The CCC highlighted that transport is now the largest source of UK GHG emissions (23%), with levels having risen between 2013 and 2017.

It urged the UK to bring forward

its plan for all new cars and vans to be zero-emission by 2035, five years ahead of the current target.

However HGVs are harder to decarbonise, the CCC acknowledged, and it is essential that the government puts in place clear policies, technology trials and infrastructure plans to enable the switch from diesel.

To achieve net zero GHG emissions from road transport by 2050, deployment of zero-emission HGVs must accelerate to nearly 100% of sales by 2040, the CCC added. This places both electrification (particularly for smaller rigid lorries) and hydrogen (more likely for long haul) in the mix.

“The best solution is not yet clear – hydrogen or electrification or a combination of the two,” said the CCC. “Technological progress

is likely to be driven globally and some co-ordination will be required with connected markets in Ireland and mainland Europe.”

The report added: “The government will need to make a decision on the required infrastructure for zero-emission HGVs, with international co-ordination, in the mid2020s ready for deployment in the late 2020s and 2030s.

“To help prepare for that, trials of zero-emission HGVs and associated refuelling infrastructure are now needed.”

It added that vehicle and fuel taxation from the 2020s onward should be designed to incentivise commercial operators to purchase and operate zero-emission HGVs. A hydrogen-based switchover would require 800 refuelling stations to be built by 2050 and

electrification would need 90,000 depot-based chargers for overnight charging.

The capital cost for such infrastructure could be in the region of £3bn to £16bn, depending on which technology is used.

“Initial work to look at the costs of infrastructure, vehicles and fuel costs indicates that hydrogen, electrification (accompanied by on-road overhead wires for HGVs to charge as they drive) and electrification (accompanied by ultrafast chargers) are all likely to be cost-saving by 2050, compared to continued use of diesel,” it stated.

LowCVP MD Andy Eastlake said: “Meeting the targets outlined today calls for an unprecedented coming together and a step change in ambition of all of us in this shared endeavour.”

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Move gives haulier foothold in south-west and follows policy of buying successful family firms

Kinaxia buys David Hathaway

By Hayley Pink

Kinaxia Logistics has snapped up Bristol-based David Hathaway Transport, the 12th haulier in its portfolio.

The purchase gives Kinaxia its first foothold in the south-west, adding to its existing presence through acquisitions made in the north-west, north-east Midlands, south, south-east and East Anglia.

Founded by its namesake in 1976, David Hathaway Transport is a family-run business, in line with Kinaxia’s previous purchases, and operates from two sites in Yate, near Bristol and Royal Wootton Bassett, near Swindon.

It is a general haulage and pallet operation with 130 staff and a fleet of 65 vehicles and 100 trailers, and warehouse capacity of around 190,000sq ft.

In its most-recently published annual accounts, for the year to 31 May 2018, the haulier had a turnover of £14m (2017: £13.6m). It made a pre-tax profit of just more than £451,000, in line with the previous year.

The haulier is also a member of Palletforce, Palletline and PartnerLink.

All company employees will be retained by Kinaxia, including the four-strong management team of MD Matthew Hathaway, fleet and

warehousing director James Hathaway, quality director Christopher Hathaway, and finance director Michelle Crocker.

Matthew Hathaway said that with his father looking to retire, the decision to join Kinaxia group was a “natural decision” for the business.

Kinaxia logistics director Peter Fields said: “As we set out at the start, Kinaxia’s strategy has been

to acquire successful, professionally operated, service-focused, family-owned companies and our purchase of David Hathaway Transport to give us a foothold in the south-west should not really come as a surprise to anyone.

Fields added that Kinaxia’s strategic intent remains for its companies to stay within any networks that the acquired business originally aligned itself to.

He also reiterated that the group’s actions and operations “have demonstrated that we pose no threat to the existing pallet networks” and that the business is keen to work in partnership with those networks that want to retain the members it acquires.

Palletline has previously moved to limit the number of Kinaxiaowned companies within its network of hauliers.

Pay-per-mile scheme mooted

Connect Group makes progress

Pay-per-mile charging to use the capital’s roads could ease congestion and drive efficiency for freight operators, according to a report by think tank Centre for London.

The report, ‘Green light: nextgeneration road-user charging for a healthier, more liveable London’, calls for the mayor to adopt a new road user charger scheme that uses a distance-based approach.

Costs for each mile would vary depending on factors such as vehicle emissions and local levels of congestion and pollution, with all prices set before a journey begins.

The scheme, dubbed City Move, would be integrated with London’s wider transport system via a new app and digital platform, to be run

by TfL.

Connect Group, owner of Tuffnells and Smiths News, saw turnover and profit slide in the six months to 28 February, but said efforts to turn the group around were starting to bear fruit.

Turnover in the period slipped 4.4% year on year to £732m, while pre-tax profit was 65.3% lower than the previous year, at £3.3m.

Despite this, Jos Opdeweegh, chief executive of Connect Group, said: “[The] results confirm the progress we have made, with a good performance in Smiths News and further benefits from central efficiencies and focused capital management.

“Looking ahead, we continue to drive our priorities... including the turnaround of Tuffnells.”

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UNFINISHED BUSINESS: A memorial bike ride around Pitlochry was held on Sunday 5 May in memory of Jayne Gray who died after being hit by a car on a fund-raising bike ride for Transaid in Zambia last year. Gray worked as financial controller at the family haulage business H&R Gray in Stirling, and her family was joined by most of the 40-strong participants on the Zambia event to ride the 71km left unfinished after the incident on the penultimate day of the ride. The intrepid riders are pictured in front of a trailer belonging to Transaid corporate sponsor Malcolm Group in the car park outside the Pitlochry Festival Theatre at the end of the ride.

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09/05/2019 09:09:22

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Operator ‘not opposed’ to emissions policy, but wants government to take tighter control

Wincanton: end local CAZ rules

By Chris Druce

Chris Fenton (right), MD of Wincanton’s Industrial and Transport division, has called for an end to the piecemeal approach to UK clean air zone rules.

Speaking to MT, Fenton, who heads a division with an annual turnover of more than £480m, said that while three-quarters of the group’s 3,400 strong fleet was Euro-6 compliant, it remains “our desire to see consistency”.

“I’m concerned that we end up with different standards in different cities, which means you end up with different bits of kit that can go into some areas and not others.

My job is to react to legislation that gets put in place, however there are times where regulation should step in to create consistency.”

While Wincanton is not opposing the UK’s emissions policy, the problem, according to Fenton, is how that policy is being implemented and the administration and planning difficulties it is creating.

“I would like to see a [single] standard and that standard to be common from one city to another,” he said, suggesting central government needs to take a tighter rein to ensure this happens rather than leaving it to local authorities to interrupt.

Fenton’s concerns came as the

RHA issued another warning about locally created safety standards regulating haulage. The association reiterated its concerns about the increasing trend of local authorities imposing their own regulations on the haulage sector, which it believes is putting many businesses at risk.

On the theme, the RHA turned its fire on London’s Direct Vision Standard (DVS).

Chief executive Richard Burnett said: “We support the drive to improve safety, but we need the right measures delivered in the right way. DVS and other locally devised policies such as clean air zones, are a huge concern for an industry that deserves cohesive regulation.”

ALLIANCE SENTIMENT REPORT A majority of operators would consider leaving a client if the introduction of a clean air or low-emission zone meant that doing business with them would no longer pay, according to the findings of the Asset Alliance Industry Monitor 2019.

The report surveyed the readers of Commercial Motor and MT. It revealed that 57% would move on from customers due to the financial impact of urban environmental legislation, while less than a quarter (23%) would remain loyal irrespective of the cost of clean air compliance to them.

With the London Ultra Low Emission Zone having gone live on 8 April, and Birmingham and Leeds set to follow suit next year, the pressure to comply with a minimum standard of Euro-6 or face fines is ratcheting up.

Some 60% of those surveyed said that the purchase of compliant vehicles was having a detrimental effect on the cost of doing business, while 59% said local authorities had not been effective in communicating their clean air plans. n To download a free copy of the report, go to assetalliancegroup.co.uk/industrymonitor2019.

Paul Smith joins Scania (GB)

NO TIME TO WASTE: Suttons Tankers has extended its contract with waste reclamation and recycling solutions specialist Tradebe UK for five years. The Cheshire operator will transport chemical waste to and from Tradebe sites in Heysham, Gwent and Knottingley. Suttons Tankers MD Michael Cundy said: “We’ve been working with Tradebe since 2015 and this agreement, which includes Syngenta, strengthens our position in the waste sector, which is a core strategy for the company.” Brendan Pope, business services director at Tradebe UK, said: “We know Suttons delivers an excellent service and we’re confident this deal will benefit all parties and provide opportunities of working together in the years ahead.”

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Scania (Great Britain) has appointed Paul Smith as marketing director with a brief to bring on board “fresh thinking and ideas” in the face of “rapid and radical change” in the industry.

His arrival follows a management restructuring late last year which saw the appointment of Martin Hay as MD after 28 years with the company.

In his new role, Smith will be responsible for the centralised marketing of Scania’s products and services and will provide marketing support to the company’s national dealer network.

Smith joins Scania (Great Britain) from creative advertising agency RLA, where he was commercial director.

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09/05/2019 10:26:42

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Electric-assisted urban delivery vehicle to join parcel delivery firm’s city centre fleet in July

DPD joins EAV for eCargo bike

By Hayley Pink

DPD has worked in partnership with a British-based start-up on the “common-sense” design of a new electric-assisted urban delivery vehicle, the first of which will be on the roads this summer.

Electric Assisted Vehicles’ (EAV) approach with the building of its Project 1 (P1) eCargo bike has been to conceptually ‘engineer down’ from current LCVs rather than ‘engineer up’ from bicycles.

In doing so, the manufacturer said that operators of the P1 will still find many of the elements of using a van they’re used to, but with the efficiencies and zero-emission capability of an eCargo bike.

Nigel Gordon-Stewart, MD of EAV, said: “We’ve created a vehicle

with Project 1 that will lead on to an entire range of mobility solution vehicles. All highly functional, exceptionally environmentally aware, easy and great fun to use.”

The result is a quadracycle that is pedalled and steered just like a traditional bike. It has a thumb switch to accelerate up to 6mph, after which simply turning the crank by pedalling provides electric assistance to tackle longer journeys or slopes.

It’s narrow enough to fit down a cycle path and can hold, in short wheelbase form, six cargo containers delivering a 150kg payload.

DPD CEO Dwain McDonald said: “Our aim is to be the most responsible city centre delivery company, which means neutralis-

ing our carbon footprint and developing smarter, cleaner parcel delivery services.

“Not only does the P1 look amaz-

Final consultation into London’s DVS opens A fourth consultation into London’s Direct Vision Standard (DVS) has launched, despite an FTA warning that the mayor’s initiative will not achieve zero vehicular harm.

The consultation follows three previous rounds since 2016 and TfL said the scheme has so far received positive feedback.

HGVs will be categorised depending on the driver’s direct vision from the cab, with a rating between zero and five assigned under the DVS. Only those vehicles rated ‘onestar’ and above, or those that have a safety system, will be able to operate in London from autumn 2020.

“While the updated proposals for DVS are more workable for operators than earlier versions, it remains true that technological development and design standards for new vehicles – which would be best set at an international level – would provide a robust, long-term solution for road safety,” said Natalie Chapman, FTA

head of urban policy.

“FTA is calling on the mayor to realise the value this would provide and commit to focusing on new vehicle technologies to fast-track zero vehicular harm in the capital.

“Sadiq Khan seems determined

to focus on visibility from the cab, which has limited benefits, when it is new technology that will deliver far greater and more ongoing safety improvements.”

The final consultation closes on 23 May and can be found at consultations.tfl.gov.uk

Book your place for Commercial Motor’s golf tournament Commercial Motor’s annual Truck Open golf day returns on 11 July.

Taking place at Lambourne Golf Club in Dropmore, Buckinghamshire, this golf challenge is open to a maximum of 25 teams of four players. The format 8 MotorTransport MTR_130519_008.indd 8

will be a four-ball full handicap Stableford competition. The best three individual Stableford scores per hole per team will count.

Enter a minimum of a four-ball at a cost of £675 (plus VAT) per team, which includes green fees,

golf-related gift, lunch and dinner with inclusive drinks and prizes.

Book your place with Emma Tyrer on 07900 691137 or email emma.tyrer@roadtransport.com or Vic Bunby on 07771 812990 or vic.bunby@roadtransport.com

ing, it is also incredibly smart, flexible and future-proofed. We are really looking forward to adding it to our zero-emission fleet in July.”

NEWS IN BRIEF Millfield Haulage has joined the Palletforce pallet network. The firm, based in York, was bought by longstanding Palletforce member TEF Transport in 2015. Now fully integrated into TEF’s operation, Millfield Haulage continues to retain its own identity within the Scarborough-based business.

Together they provide coverage of the YO postcodes, and the move to Palletforce will create operational efficiencies by enabling them to share trunk vehicles to the network’s main hub in Burton upon Trent, reducing truck movements and cutting emissions.

Connexas Group, previously Isotrak, has bought Nottinghamshire-based Seven Telematics. Jim Sumner, chairman of Connexas Group, said: “Our businesses are a perfect fit for each other, and for our customers who are looking for the best of available technologies on a single platform.” Seven Telematics makes the temperature data logger, Transcan Advance, which Connexas said had helped the acquired company become a technology leader in the cold chain market.

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New MD at Palletline Logistics aims to build on business success as turnover passes £30m

Elson to drive subsidiary

By Chris Druce

Palletline has appointed a new MD to head its directly owned members business, Palletline Logistics, after the combined turnover of the hauliers within it sailed past £30m.

Paul Elson (pictured), who was head of operations at Certas Energy, has taken the reins of a subsidiary comprising hauliers S&S Distribution, Mike Watson Transport, ABE Ledbury and Fast Forward Distribution, as well as Palletline London.

Collectively the companies, purchased for various reasons over the past few years, are authorised to run up to 171 vehicles across multiple O-licences.

In a statement, the pallet network said that as well as ensuring continuity of service across the UK, the appointment of Elson – effective immediately – demonstrated its desire to focus on the continued growth of the businesses

making up Palletline Logistics.

Elson, who has also worked at Veolia UK, said: “I am looking forward to a new set of challenges and firmly believe I will be able to further build on the current success of Palletline Logistics and steer its profitable growth in the coming months and years for the benefit of the wider Palletline community.”

Palletline group MD Graham Leitch said: “We welcome Paul’s knowledge and experience to the board, reaffirming our commitment to developing the business by investing in the talent necessary to deliver results.

“Palletline Logistics has emerged as a major contributor to the UK logistics sector in its own right, and

we are proud of our achievements thus far, however we are looking forward and towards continued growth under Paul’s leadership.

With an annual turnover of more than £30m, Palletline Logistics qualifies financially for inclusion in the Motor Transport Top 100 of the biggest companies in road transport.

Veolia goes all-electric with Electra

FEEL THE NOISE: Construction firm FM Conway has installed technology to ensure its electric vans can be clearly heard when operating on noisy building sites. The company began renting two Nissan e-NV200 plug-in electric vans last November as part of a wider £7m sustainable fleet strategy initiated ahead of the launch of London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone last month. They are being used in the London Boroughs of Croydon, Kensington & Chelsea and Hammersmith & Fulham as part of FM Conway’s highways maintenance contracts with the councils. The vehicles run near-silently, meaning that workers on busy construction sites struggled to hear them approaching, leading to concerns over their safety. To address this, FM Conway has installed the Quiet Vehicle Sounder (QVS), produced by safety equipment manufacturer Brigade Electronics. It produces a distinctive sound that can be heard clearly in danger zones, but less so in other situations. The sound is highly directional, enabling pedestrians to tell where the vehicle is, and it varies in pitch and tone as the vehicle speeds up or slows down.

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Veolia has confirmed that the first electric refuse trucks for its newly won contract with City of London Corporation will join the fleet in July.

Seven zero-emission RCVs will be supplied by Lancashire-based Electra Commercial Vehicles, which specialises in converting truck chassis to fully electric drivelines.

The 26-tonne Electra trucks will be based on the Dennis Eagle Elite chassis, popular for urban waste operations due to its low-entry cab design.

They will feature an all-electric driveline fitted with a 280kW

battery pack enabling a full day’s bin collections on one charge.

All seven trucks will be in place within the first year of what the council termed a “technologydriven” contract servicing London’s Square Mile, awarded last month.

The contract will see the City of London Corporation become the first local authority in the UK to run a fully electric refuse fleet.

The corporation has also adopted a no-diesel strategy for all new fleet vehicles where there is a viable alternative, and to this end three SAIC Maxus electric vans with a 120-mile range will be joining the fleet shortly.

Hermes seeks apprentice drivers Hermes UK has launched an apprenticeship scheme to tackle the driver shortage and ensure a pipeline of talent for the company.

Under the Road to Logistics programme, funded through the company’s apprenticeship levy, Hermes will recruit apprentices with no driving experience and train them to achieve their Category C and C+E licences, as

the latter does not attract funding, Hermes will pay for this part.

The scheme, which is open to applicants of all ages, takes 12 months and includes theory and practical sessions. It will be supported by Seetec, Hermes’ training provider.

All successful participants will be offered roles as drivers at Hermes.

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SigmaRoc promises investment as it makes move on GDH Welsh quarrying and haulage group GD Harries (GDH) is to be sold to construction materials company SigmaRoc. GDH is one the largest independent suppliers of aggregates in Wales, operating out of four depots with an O-licence authorising a total of 75 HGVs and 25 trailers.

SigmaRoc said it had acquired a 40% equity interest in GDH and intends to acquire the remaining 60% by mid-2020.

GDH chairman Ian Harries said the investment would allow GDH to grow and create job opportunities.

“Having been approached by several companies to buy the business, SigmaRoc was the only one we engaged with directly. “[This was] due to their business ethos and commitment to our workforce which has over the years been a key factor in driving the business forward,” he said.

Max Vermorken, CEO of SigmaRoc, added: “With GDH as part of the group, we will operate nearly a dozen quarries, 100 million tonnes of reserves and resources, close to 500 people employed, with skill, drive and enthusiasm within the various management teams.”

Transport boss says new system ‘works better’

No reprieve for Tfl freight team

By Carol Millett

Fancy a long run for Transaid?

Road transport charity Transaid is looking to enter a team in the Royal Parks Half Marathon, which takes place In London on 13 October.

Transaid, which targets transport challenges in sub-Saharan Africa, improving road safety and access to healthcare, is looking for 50 runners to raise awareness and funds.

However, unlike your half marathon time, you will need to be quick as participants needs to be registered within the next few days – applications must be in by 15 May. The race route takes in Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens, Green Park and St James’s Park in the capital.

For more information, and to compete in this sold out event, contact Tony at tony@transaid.org or 020 7387 8136 to register – but do it quickly as the roster is filling up fast.

TfL has “no plans” to reinstate a dedicated freight team for London, according to TfL transport commissioner Mike Brown.

Speaking at a session of the London Assembly’s transport committee, Brown said TfL’s decision to disband the freight team last year and embed its former members across the organisation has led to “significant progress”.

Brown was responding to the transport committee’s concerns that the lack of a dedicated freight team would affect the delivery of London’s Freight Servicing Action Plan, which aims to cut the number of trucks in the city at peak times by 10% by 2026 Brown confirmed there were no plans to restore the team and praised Alex Williams, TFL city planning director, who now oversees freight in London.

“RHA and FTA are particularly positive about our new way of working,” he said, explaining that it allowed former freight team members to apply their skills to

related areas such as road capacity.

“In many ways we are delivering better as a result of having a more matrixed organisation in the way we manage fleets.”

However, FTA head of urban policy Natalie Chapman said disbanding the team had resulted in “a huge amount of experience and expertise being lost”.

“We have a cycling commissioner, a walking commissioner and even a night-time commissioner in London, so why can we not have a freight commissioner, when the delivery of goods and services is so important?” she asked.

RHA policy director Duncan Buchanan told MT: “Freight has been sidelined in terms of expertise and knowledge for the past few years in TfL. “There needs to be a vast improvement in the understanding and respect for freight activity in London by the authorities. At the moment freight is seen by TfL as something to prevent, restrict or tax.”

Challenge Group drives expansion by snapping up TRG Logistics Challenge Group has acquired TRG Logistics for an undisclosed sum, in a move it claims has created one of the largest providers of HGV drivers and warehouse staff in the UK. 12 MotorTransport MTR_130519_012.indd 12

The two companies will now merge to become Challenge TRG Group. The current TRG bosses, CEO Nick Gordon and MD Steve Imber, will continue in their roles as well as becoming shareholders

in the newly formed business.

Challenge TRG Group, which will have a claimed combined turnover of £120m, will employ around 4,000 temporary workers and 150 permanent employees

following completion of the deal.

It will continue to operate from two HQ sites in Wigan, Greater Manchester and Banstead, Surrey alongside its existing regional hub structure.

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08/05/2019 16:08:50

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09/05/2019 09:24:10

News

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MD takes on chairmanship of RHA’s Transport, Warehousing and Pallet Distribution Group

Transervice boss aims to give pallet network hauliers a voice

By Carol Millett

In the same year Transervice Express Transport is celebrating its 40th anniversary, the firm’s MD Paul Johnson has taken on the chairmanship of the RHA’s Transport, Warehousing and Pallet Distribution Group.

Johnson, who was vicechairman, has replaced Barry Jordan, MD of Axle Haulage, who stepped down after being elected to the board of the RHA. Johnson told MT that as chairman he aims to double the group’s membership, currently running at around 250 members, and encourage more pallet network hauliers to join by offering regular events that focus on sector issues such as training, health and safety and pallet weights.

Johnson, whose company is a TPN member, said: “I want to make it my task to increase the membership and make it more relevant to pallet network members.

“I want the group to represent pallet network members in the same way the Association of Pallet Networks represents the interests of the hubs.

“At the end of the day if something goes wrong it is the members who will get dragged through the courts – it’s our licences and our vehicles and drivers at stake here, so we need a voice.”

Asked if pallet networks might

CELEBRATING 40 YEARS MD Paul Johnson said Transervice will celebrate its 40th anniversary with a summer gathering for clients, staff and their families.

Johnson launched West Bromwich-based Transervice Express Transport in 1979 with just one van. The family firm grew steadily over the period, scaling up in 2014 when it took on the customer base and drivers of fellow TPN member MWT and upgraded to a larger 40,000sq ft depot.

A year later the firm expanded into the training sector with the launch of Transervice Training.

The company, which has seen all of Johnson’s three children join the business in recent years, currently runs a fleet of 38 trucks and nine trailers and employs 40 staff.

Johnson said that he believes the business has thrived over the years by following a simple but effective formula.

“We are not driven to be the biggest. My plan has always been to run a sustainable and service-driven business and hopefully we have built a reputation for being a good, solid logistics company that gives a fair price.”

He adds: “You cannot be in transport part-time. You have to be passionate about it. It has to be in your blood.”

feel threatened by this crossnetwork gathering, Johnson said: “The last thing we want to do is upset the networks and so I am glad that Paul Sanders [APN chairman] is a member because it shows we have nothing to hide.

“I want this to be a force for good.

It is not about the commercials.

We won’t be talking about rates.

It’s a place where we can share our experience and best practice. If we can get more than 500 members we will become a force to be reckoned with, one that can lobby government over the issues affecting the sector.” n The HSE is expected to publish its long-awaited best-practice guide to safe tail-lift deliveries within the next few weeks. While it is expected to stop short of setting a weight limit, it is likely to drive policychange among the networks.

‘No new date’ for relaunch of postponed Traton Group IPO There is “no new date” for the relaunch of the postponed IPO of Volkswagen commercial vehicle division Traton Group, which contains the Scania and MAN brands.

Despite Traton Group, formerly Volkswagen Truck & Bus, announcing record results for the first quarter of 2019 last week, a spokesman confirmed that parent company Volkswagen has no immediate plans to relaunch the IPO, which was postponed in March.

The spokesman told MT: “Volkswagen postponed the IPO earlier this year due to market 14 MotorTransport MTR_130519_014.indd 14

conditions and no new date has been set.”

Announcing the group’s firstquarter results for 2019 this week, Christian Schulz, CFO of Traton Group, remained tight-lipped on the subject, telling analysts in a

webinar that the group was not prepared to discuss the IPO. When Volkswagen postponed the IPO, CFO Frank Witter cited “tough global market conditions” as the reason, adding that the company intended to wait until

market conditions improved.

Volkswagen’s move to sell off Traton Group is seen as part of a wider strategy by the manufacturer to offset the impact of falling sales in China and tighter European emission regulations, which have hit sales of diesel cars.

Reporting its results for the first quarter of 2019, Traton Group revealed that operating profit had risen year on year by 21.9% to €470m (£405m).

Sales revenue rose year on year 6% to €6.4bn, with the group selling 57,160 vehicles worldwide, up 7.4% on the year before.

13.5.19

09/05/2019 10:07:55

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09/05/2019 09:25:52

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Should the government provide loans to fund HGV driver training to address the skills shortage?

Lend to solve the driver shortage

By Carol Millett

With HGV driver training courses costing around £3,500 and the absence of a fully fledged HGV driver apprenticeship, the industry’s driver shortage looks set to continue for some time to come.

One solution recently mooted

by Robert Wilcox, MD of haulier Massey Wilcox Transport, could be the introduction of a government-backed loan scheme for trainee HGV drivers, which would operate in the same way as the student loan system.

Under the scheme, applicants accepted on an HGV driver training course would be eligible to apply for a government-backed training loan to cover the cost.

Once employed, newly qualified drivers would repay the loan plus interest, through automatic payments taken from their monthly wages over a period of years to ensure the level of repayments are manageable.

While there are private firms offering loans to help pay for HGV licence training fees, interest on these loans can be as high as 18.5% APR. Compare that to the current interest rates on student loans which are no more than 3% APR.

Shorter training

Wilcox argues that the loan scheme would deliver drivers into the sector much more rapidly than the year-long commercial vehicle driver apprenticeships on offer, since most HGV driver training courses are completed in about six weeks.

“We don’t need apprentices, we need drivers and we need them now,” he told MT. “The government is happy to hand out £9,000 a year for university students and yet it would only take one loan of £3,500 to enable a young person to become an HGV driver in a matter of months, turning them into fully employed drivers earning £650 a week and paying national insurance and tax,” he added.

Jonathan Jempson, MD of John Jempson and Sons, believes a loan system could improve driver retention. “This would avoid the problem of losing drivers you’ve paid to train and address the skills shortage,” he said.

He also believes it would free hauliers from the bureaucracy required to apply for apprenticeship funding, which his family firm found so labyrinthine that it 16 MotorTransport MTR_130519_016.indd 16

good reason, he added. “It’s not just about firing someone through a six-week course and sending them out on the road. This is a professional qualification that aims to raise industry standards and give apprentices not just a licence, but a complete understanding of the business and put them on a proper career path. That is what employers and the economy need.”

Applications fall

no longer seeks to find drivers through this route.

Paul Johnson, MD of Transervice Group, (pictured bottom right) said the transport company, which also runs Transervice Training, is regularly approached by young people keen to train as HGV drivers. “But many of them can’t access that sort of money and that is a tragedy.

Here is an industry crying out for drivers and yet there is this financial barrier to entry.”

RHA policy director Duncan Buchanan is another advocate of a training loan for HGV drivers.

“As a nation, we give very generous loans to university students so why not also provide vocational loans for trainee HGV drivers, the cost of which, in comparison, is a modest amount?,” he asked.

Nor is this a new idea. Five years ago the FTA ran a campaign for a similar scheme, which failed to gain any government support.

But times have changed. With Brexit looming and a weakened pound forcing many eastern European drivers out of the market, could this be something the Treasury would consider?

FTA head of skills Sally Gilson has her doubts. She pointed to research from the Institute for Fiscal Studies that estimates around 70% of university students will never fully pay off their loans.

“The problem is that the current system is costing the government a fortune. Many of the loans will never be repaid. I don’t think the appetite is there to create another group of loans that could result in further losses,” she said.

Certainly the Department of

Education, which oversees vocational training funding, has ruled out any system of loans for HGV trainee drivers.

A spokeswoman told MT: “HGV drivers require a licence to practice, which is a commercial course, and is not a qualification eligible for loans funding.”

Skills for Logistics MD David Coombes, a member of the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education, the body that approves apprenticeships, believes the DoE only has eyes for the Trailblazer apprenticeships.

He said: “It’s the only game in town, the government has put everything behind this.” And for

But is this enough to tackle the driver shortage? Government figures reveal that applications for driving goods vehicles apprenticeships fell by 31% last year and that only 10% of the £130m of levy so far paid by the logistics industry has been claimed back to fund apprenticeships.

Nor is this situation helped by the absence of any training for a C+E licence in the Large Goods Vehicle apprenticeship, although, after concerted industry lobbying, it is expected to be included sometime this year.

Buchanan said: “The levy is taking a lot of money from logistics companies – and a lot of that money is being sucked out of the system into a bureaucracy more interested in driving the educational system than actually training people in the skills this industry needs. Maybe it is time to think more creatively. We would happily support a government-backed loan scheme.”

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09/05/2019 09:28:53

Business barometer

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Better rates but higher costs

Haulage rates

Rates on average were 0.7% higher in the first three months of this year than in the previous quarter.

This increase, reported in the Office for National Statistics’ (ONS) latest Services Producer Price Indices (SPPI), is the secondlargest quarterly hike for eight years. When added to above-average rises in the previous two quarters, haulage rates are 3% higher than a year ago. That is the biggest year-on-year rate rise since 2011.

But it is highly unlikely this translates into better profitability for operators. General inflation has been running at around 2%, and two of the biggest costs, wages and diesel, have each risen by around 4% in the past year, so an annual rate rise of 3% is probably not enough to improve the bottom line. Cost pressures are unlikely to weaken in the foreseeable future, in view of the shortage of HGV drivers and its effect on pay rates.

18 MotorTransport MTR_130519_018_019.indd 18

BRENT CRUDE OIL PRICE 90 80 70 60 40 30 20 10

Apr

Mar

Feb

Jan '19

Dec '18

Nov

Oct

0

HAULAGE RATES 1.4 1.2 1.0 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0.0

Manufacturing confidence

The failure to resolve Brexit one way or another on 29 March is evident in the latest Markit/CIPS UK Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI). This benchmark monthly survey of purchasing managers in the manufacturing sector asks whether their businesses are expanding or contracting.

A PMI score above 50 reflects expansion; 50 denotes stability; scores below 50 indicate contraction. The PMI hit a 13-month high of 55.1 in March as manufacturers stepped up production, building inventories to buffer against postBrexit supply-chain interruptions.

But that expansion petered out in April and so last month’s PMI score was down to 53.1.

Although this is a sharp downturn, at least the figure is still in positive territory and even just above the long-run average, so this index suggests Brexit uncertainty is not as toxic for manufacturers as many feared – yet.

50

Sep

Our politicians spent March squabbling over Brexit but it seems that the rest of the country decided it may as well go shopping. Retail sales (in volume terms, not value, thus removing the effect of price inflation) in March were fully 6.7% higher than in the same month a year earlier.

Statisticians at the ONS point out that some of that huge upsurge was due to shops being quieter than usual in March last year, when we had the ‘beast from the east’.

Nevertheless, increases of 4.0% in both January and February were above average too, so retailing in the first quarter of 2019 looks amazingly strong.

Inevitably, growth of online sales outstripped that of retailing as a whole. Online sales in March were 12.4% up (by value) on the same month a year ago. This meant they accounted for 18.6% of all retail spending in March. The equivalent figure a year ago was 17.3%, so the online trend is gently upwards, boosting parcels carriers, van manufacturers and all the associated delivery support services.

The losers are department stores, the only retail sector where March was quieter than a year ago.

Their business was 0.3% down in volume terms and 0.1% down in value.

$/barrel

Retail sales

% change on previous quarter

The price of Brent crude oil has been rising steadily for the past four months, reaching a monthly average of $71/barrel in April. This trend is attributed to disciplined adherence to production limits among OPEC and non-OPEC members alike, coupled with shrinking oil inventories.

More upwards price pressure came last month when the US announced that its temporary waiver on Iranian oil sanctions for several Asian countries would end on 1 May. The intention is to cut off Iran’s remaining oil exports.

The US believes other oil producers will raise output to compensate for this, thus helping to stabilise supply and hence prices. It remains to be seen if the US gamble will work, allowing Brent to subside once again to $60-$65/barrel, the level most energy analysts expected to see this year.

This strong upward trend in crude oil is mirrored in the diesel price, with most operators likely to have paid an average of 101p105p/litre for full loads of bulk diesel during April, probably their costliest deliveries since last November. The combination of geopolitical frailties in the oil business and the precarious state of the pound-dollar exchange rate amid Brexit chaos leaves the diesel price exposed to even greater risk over the coming months.

Q2 '17 Q3 '17 Q4 '17 Q1 '18 Q2 '18 Q3 '18 Q4 '18 Q1 '19

RETAIL SALES 8% 7% 6% Growth %, 2019 v. 2018

Oil and fuel

5% 4% 3% 2% 1% 0% Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec '18 Jan '19

Feb

Mar

13.5.19

09/05/2019 11:36:23

Focus: apprenticeships We need to improve logistics’ image, says Skills for Logistics MD David Coombes

Supply chain and logistics is a great sector to work in – let’s attract new talent

It’s no secret that the supply chain and logistics industry is suffering a skills shortage and has been for some time. There are numerous factors at play here. Some of the more notable issues include an ageing workforce, a lack of young people entering the industry and what is being described as an image problem. It’s these three intertwining issues I’d like to focus on.

Firstly, the average age of a HGV driver in the UK is 53. This figure not only demonstrates an ageing workforce, but also highlights that the majority of workers in the industry come from one small demographic, fundamentally reducing the skills pool.

It’s this fact that has really pushed the sector to try and attract new young talent with initiatives such as Think Logistics, Women in Logistics and the introduction of the LGV Driver Apprenticeship, along with a variety of other fantastic supply chain and logistics-based apprenticeships. However, this notion is proving very difficult for a number of reasons.

Poor image

The industry’s perception and image has suffered significantly, being viewed as just warehouses and driving trucks. Obviously, it’s much more than that. Supply chain and logistics is an ever-changing, fast-paced environment which, now more than ever, is fully immersed in technological innovations.

Recently the Skills for Logistics (SFL) team interviewed Martin Corner, vice-president of supply chain management for Nissan Europe, and he emphasised how supply chain, was for him, the most exciting part of the business to work in.

“It is a function that concurrently operates on both a short-term delivery and long-term strategic basis, which is immensely satisfying from both an intellectual and motivational perspective,” he said.

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The point being, these positive messages need to be shared and the industry to be seen for the exciting and innovative sector it is.

Although it is fantastic that there is a focus on bringing in a pipeline of fresh new talent to the industry, let’s not forget that upskilling our current workforce (regardless of age) is very beneficial.

Those who already work in the industry have the knowledge and expertise logistics thrives on. This can be shared openly with those younger individuals learning through on the job training.

Furthermore, upskilling the existing workforce enables them to develop their knowledge and skills while ensuring skills gaps are being filled appropriately.

The misconception that apprenticeships are just for school leavers is being highlighted more and more. SFL is due to end-point assess a 74-year-old apprentice HGV driver this year and we couldn’t be more pleased to see an individual upskill themselves, no matter the age.

The fair access to apprenticeships really promotes a diverse workforce and this is something both the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education endorses as well as we, as ambassadors of the supply chain and logistics sector, fully encourage and embrace.

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0845 225 3100 www.triscansystems.com MotorTransport 19

09/05/2019 11:36:56

Viewpoint

motortransport.co.uk

CAT truck cartel review saga L Steve Hobson Editor Motor Transport

ast week saw the next stage in the long-running truck cartel compensation claim, with a case review held by the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT). The claim is attracting enormous interest and not only from the parties involved – especially the truck makers facing compensation claims that could dwarf the €3bn (£2.6bn) in fines already imposed by the European Commission. Compensation could run to £8,000 for every truck over 6 tonnes sold in the EU between 1997 and 2011. No wonder the Traton float is on hold.

The truck cartel case could also be make or break for the CAT, which is under pressure to show it has some teeth. There are three separate claims before the CAT, the UK Truck Cartel led by solicitors Weightmans; the RHA’s claim led by Backhouse Jones; and a collective of operators including Royal Mail, BT and Dawsongroup led by solicitors Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner.

The claim alleges that the European truck makers colluded to keep vehicle prices artificially high, and as a

consequence truck owners and operators suffered a financial loss. This will be hard to prove – even if the claimants can prove to the CAT’s satisfaction that there was indeed a cartel, it doesn’t necessarily follow that operators suffered a loss.

A quick glance at MT’s operating cost tables for 2002 shows that reducing the purchase price of a 44-tonne 6x2 artic by £11,000 (ie to the same price as a 35-tonne 4x2) would have cut the operating cost by 2p/mile to 126p/mile.

A significant saving – but who paid that extra 2p? Many hauliers base their rates on operating costs plus a small profit margin, so if costs were higher due to inflated truck prices would that have been passed on to customers?

Other operators – own account or 3PLs using open book pricing – might argue they had less opportunity to pass on higher truck prices and so suffered a clear and demonstrable loss. But with thousands of operators joining the UKTC and RHA claims, how will the CAT decide on who – if anyone – should be compensated?

If the customer won’t pay, walk away W Andrew Wolrich Commercial director, Halcyon Tankers

ith kit worth £120,000 or more, there is no question that customers should pay hauliers for waiting time – and without argument.

Costs vary depending upon the kit, but standing time will cost £60 per hour.

Driver costs alone are £15 per hour when you factor in NI and pensions.

Free time included in a rate varies between one and three hours depending on whether you are into tippers, tankers or containers etc, but of course, hauliers can never factor into a rate the full risk and cost, or they would not win any work.

So, hauliers are already out of pocket when they hit the chargeable time period, and that is when the problem starts.

Customers come up with many ruses and reasons not to pay – demands to ring before the demurrage period starts; ring every half hour; attempts to limit chargeable time gate-to-gate, but hold you outside the gate in a queue before they are ready to offload; blame other factors and hauliers for problems causing the delay; demand evidence, signatures when nobody on site will sign

20 MotorTransport MTR_130519_020.indd 20

anything; and, of course, the weather.

I see more tender documents stating no demurrage is payable and daring you to put in a non-compliant bid. Getting delayed on a timed delivery is even more infuriating when it’s cost you £100 to run empty, and/or get there early to avoid being late and potentially risk a fine.

And as for demands for a credit if a haulier is late – don’t get me started. With hold-ups at every site, poor weather and horrendous congestion on our roads, unplanned delays will happen and invariably the customer does not incur any cost, let alone pay in full for the free time they already get.

Customers can only get away with not paying if you let them. Of course, it’s difficult when competitors (allegedly) are not claiming demurrage, but you have to take a stand sometime. If a customer refuses to pay, walk away or put the rate up. You have no other choice.

The newspaper for transport operators

To contact us: Tel: 020 8912 +4 digits or email: name.surname@roadtransport.com Editor Steve Hobson 2161 Editor-in-chief Christopher Walton 2163 Head of content Chris Druce 2158 Deputy head of content Hayley Pink 2165 Group production editor Clare Goldie 2174 Deputy production editor Jo Saunders 2173 Key account manager Andrew Smith 07771 885874 Display telesales Barnaby Goodman-Smith 2128 Event sales Richard Bennett 07889 823060 Tim George 0755 7677758 Classified and recruitment advertising rtmclassified@roadtransport.com Head of sales Emma Tyrer 07900 691137 Divisional director Vic Bunby 2121 Head of marketing Jane Casling 2133 Head of events/MT Awards Stephen Pobjoy 2135 Managing director Andy Salter 2171 Editorial office Road Transport Media, Sixth Floor, Chancery House, St Nicholas Way, Sutton, Surrey SM1 1JB 020 8912 2170 Free copies MT is available free to specified licensed operators under the publisher’s terms of control. For details, email mtsccqueries@roadtransport.com, or call 01772 426705 Subscriptions Tel 0330 333 9544 Quadrant Subscription Services, Rockwood House, Perrymount Road, Haywards Heath, West Sussex RH16 3DH Rates UK £135/year. Europe £163/year.

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Got something to say?

If you would like to contribute to MT’s Viewpoint, email steve.hobson@roadtransport.com 13.5.19

09/05/2019 12:08:52

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09/05/2019 09:33:58

Interview: Nadeem Raza

It’s all about the complete picture The acquisition by Microlise of a 20% stake in competitor Trakm8 in December 2018 was the latest step in the telematics market leader’s development. Steve Hobson reports

S

ince its formation in 1988, Microlise has grown to the point where all of the UK’s top 15 retailers now use Microlise systems and its annual turnover exceeds £50m. CEO and former technical director Nadeem Raza has been with the company since 1995 and led the management buyout in 2008.

“Like any business, we are trying to grow and have a number of different strategies,” he says. “One is obviously growing our portfolio of products that we can sell through our customer base. There’s a lot that Trakm8 do very similar to us, but they’re very good in the insurance telematics space and they are active in cars and vans whereas we are predominantly in trucks.

“Secondly, we’re growing internationally and set up our office in France last year. We’ve won some good business there and we’re looking at expanding our European presence even though the UK seems to be intent on getting out of Europe. We think there’s still quite a lot of business to be had there.”

Raza concedes that telematics, or at least the basic vehicle-tracking aspect of telematics, is a crowded marketplace but says Microlise now focuses on using the data generated by technology rather than just selling black boxes.

“When people talk about telematics it conjures up a picture of GPS locations on a map with some information about how the vehicle is performing,” he says. “There are lots of companies doing that and that is a crowded space. That’s actually just a very small part of what we do because we’re all about helping transport operations carry out their day-to-day work with a minimum of hassle, a minimum of paperwork and the maximum utilisation of their assets.

Utilising large fleets

“Most of our customers don’t even look at a map because that’s not what’s important to them. We provide a lot more information about how the vehicle is progressing compared with the work they’re scheduled to do. If it’s going wrong what sort of actions can you take to put it right? Can you add more work into the pipeline if it suddenly appears in the most efficient manner? It’s all about how you utilise a large fleet of vehicles.

“Ultimately what we’re trying to do is help transport operations run their business in the most effective way possible,” says Raza. “That means providing a whole series of tools that allows them to do that, including proof of delivery, which cuts out a lot of the paperwork, gives them more real-time information about what they’ve delivered – or failed to deliver in some cases – and what they can do about it.

“This also includes tools that allow their customer 22 MotorTransport MTR_130519_022-024.indd 22

services team to interact better with customers and record actions they’ve taken when something’s gone wrong.

And we are working on tools to help fleets be compliant with regulations.” (see panel, p24).

Microlise employs a team of more than 160 programmers to write its own software, investing somewhere in the region of £5m annually in research and development.

“Pretty much all of our software is developed in-house,” says Raza. “Obviously, we’re trying to seek partnerships with various companies like Trakm8, and we have worked with others to help us bring in some of those technologies that we can break into faster because they already exist in the market.

“We’re not going to reinvent the wheel, but we have a large group of developers that’s bigger than the total workforce of some telematics companies.”

While MAN and DAF fit Microlise technology on to their new vehicles, the other OEMs use proprietary systems. While these usually provide basic information in a standard format, the more detailed data is brandspecific and often intended to monitor the vehicle not the driver.

“One of the unfortunate failings of some of the OEMs is that the boxes and the tools that they’re providing on their vehicles are very much for their own benefit,” says Raza. “They’re more geared towards engineering data about the vehicle itself, which is great for them but it doesn’t really help customers much because they’re not operationally focused at all.

“We are doing more and more integration with ➜ 24 13.5.19

09/05/2019 11:03:09

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Interview

OEMs’ devices where possible, but at the moment they seem to be very keen on keeping that data to themselves because a lot of it is commercially sensitive about the vehicles they design and manufacture. They’re making it difficult to get some of that data out but we are working with a number of OEMs to use their devices as opposed to using ours.”

This lack of standardisation can be an especial frustration for fleets that run a variety of truck brands but still need a single, integrated view of every vehicle and driver.

“There needs to be a balance between standardisation that makes users’ life easy versus OEMs being competitive and designing new things that differentiate them from everybody else,” concedes Raza. “Unfortunately right now each of the manufacturers is developing its own system. There are standards for FMS [fleet management system, the interface to data carried on the CAN vehicle electrical network] but even those are not standard enough in the sense that there’s a lot of data that is defined, but not all manufacturers provide it on their vehicle, so the information you can get may be quite limited.

Standardising information

“A lot of what we do is trying to take that information for a particular vehicle manufacturer and then standardise it. In this marketplace there are very few operators that use just one vehicle manufacturer, and they need a standard view across all the major marques about how the vehicle is being driven. You can’t do that if you just pull the data directly from each manufacturer.”

That can mean operators having to install extra hardware in their trucks to get a standardised view across all their vehicles in the level of detail they require.

“You’d be surprised how much detail some of our customers want to go into when they are running 1,000 or 2,000 vehicles,” says Raza. “They have some very sophisticated engineering teams and they want a lot of data. At the moment that’s really difficult to get hold of, out of the FMS connections that are being provided by manufacturers.”

That might be partly because the OEMs want to monitor their own vehicles to pick up on faults they wouldn’t necessarily want operators to know about.

“There are a lot of things that happen under the covers they would rather keep to themselves,” says Raza. “Some of that information is of a competitive nature but some of it is purely where something’s not working the way they would expect it to, but they don’t want to tell everybody about it. Therefore it’s easier just to keep that under wraps and have that data themselves and not share it.”

The other reason for not sharing the wealth of vehicle data now generated by telematics is that franchised dealers want to sell operators repair and maintenance contracts and having access to data on how the truck is performing makes this easier.

“Absolutely, they want the aftersales revenue from doing all the servicing,” says Raza. “If they just opened up all the data, that would make life very difficult for them. That’s the other reason they hold on to a lot of it.”

A Microlise telematics system is able to provide much more information about the vehicle than just how it is performing and if there any faults developing.

24 MotorTransport MTR_130519_022-024.indd 24

“Most of the engineering data is available out of our system because we obviously sit on the CAN,” Raza says.

“There are some makes and models of vehicles where that’s quite difficult to get because they don’t make it very easily available and we’ve had to reverse engineer the system to pull out some of that information.

“Generally speaking, our portfolio breaks down into three groups. One area is all about the vehicle or the asset, including trailers, looking at how the asset is being used or driven, where it is, and so on.

“The second part is all about looking at how the operation is using that asset, what journey is it on, is it the right asset for the journey and how heavily loaded is it?

“And the third part is all about the inventory that operators are carrying, what and when they’re delivering, whether it’s been accepted by the customer, backhauling and so on.”

There have been attempts in the past to persuade hauliers to pool this kind of data to improve utilisation and reduce empty running, which remains stubbornly around 27% in the UK. “We’re trying to do it,” says Raza. “There is concern about sharing the right data with the right people. We obviously collect a lot of data from most of the big operators on how they interact and work for each other.

“Not all of that information should be available to everybody. You need to make sure that only the right and relevant information is provided by the subcontractor to the customer for example, and that’s the challenge.

“We’ve developed a number of products that help companies work together better and share workload and get information back about how that work has been done.

We fully intend to grow that, and we expect more news on that throughout 2019, because empty running or the ability to carry more load on journeys is a big problem.

There’s a lot to go at in terms of improving efficiency by sharing data on vehicle use.

“Our job is to provide them with the capability to do that, and I think a number of them will adopt it because it can show huge savings of between 30% and 40% on the loads that are being moved around.

“As a bottom-line figure, you’re talking about 100% improvement in profitability being totally within reach.

Those operators that use it will demonstrate the benefits.

That will then encourage other people to adopt that sharing of data and work.” ■

EARNING COMPLIANCE RECOGNITION Operators wanting to take part in the DVSA’s Earned Recognition scheme need to supply compliance data on vehicle maintenance and drivers’ hours on a fourweekly basis, and while there are only a couple of dozen operators in the scheme so far, Microlise is seeing growing demand for compliant systems.

“We are spending a lot of money this year on increasing the compliance tools that we provide to customers,” says Raza. “We already provide information about drivers’ hours and provide remote tracker download, etc.

“There will be more news coming out on that over the next few months about additional tools and features that we’re providing to help our customers with compliance.”

Raza supports the goal of Earned Recognition, which is to allow compliant operators to demonstrate that compliance to the DVSA in return for reduced roadside enforcement.

“The DVSA needs to be able to easily identify which operators are compliant and which ones aren’t,” he says. “From our perspective, operators need to be as open as possible to demonstrate that they are compliant.

“With our systems, you can provide information to whoever you want to show what you’re doing in terms of drivers’ hours, vehicle checks, etc. All that information is readily available. If third-party companies like ourselves are producing that data, then it’s very difficult for the operator to manipulate it in any way.”

■ Nadeem Raza will be hosting the Microlise Transport Conference again this year. It takes place at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry on 15 May. To register go to microliseconference.com 13.5.19

09/05/2019 11:03:47

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09/05/2019 09:46:33

Promoting the Business of Bulk Haulage 3OTH MAY – 1ST JUNE 2019 Harrogate Convention Centre, Yorkshire Tip-ex Tank-ex is the only national exhibition for the tipper, tanker and bulk haulage sectors in the UK and 2019 is shaping up to be its biggest and best show yet.

On show will be:

PLUS: Don’t miss our

THEY’RE BACK!

· All the latest tippers from every major truck manufacturer;

new seminar series focusing on sector safety and industry innovation. From Earned Recognition to alternatives fuels, we’ve got it covered!

The Tip-ex Tank-ex Awards 2019 will take place on Friday 31 May. Enter or make your nomination today at tipextankex.co.uk

· The best in bodybuilding innovation; · Top tanker technology for wet and dry bulk operators.

Exhibitor enquiries:

@tipextankex

Richard Bennett 07889 823 060 Richard.bennett@roadtransport.com

@tipextankex Tip-Ex Tank-Ex

Register for your FREE tickets at tipextankex.co.uk

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09/05/2019 09:51:23

Seminar Programme Day 1 Thursday 30th May 11:00 - 12:30 Session One : Safety

London’s Direct Visions Standard - will my vehicle comply?, Speaker TBC Vehicle as a weapon attacks: safeguarding your drivers and fleet, Speaker TBC, Counter Terrorism Police Legal: Driver checks and what to do if one of your employees is involved in a fatal collision, Speaker TBC, Backhouse Jones CLOCS: working to improve landfill site conditions for safer vehicles, Speaker TBC Earned Recognition: what’s the benefit and how do I get involved?, Speaker TBC

14:00 - 15:15 Session Two: Innovation, Fuels and Technology

Alternative fuels for tippers and tankers, Speaker TBC

Day 2

DVSA crackdown: enforcement priorities for 2019, Speaker TBC

Friday 31st May

To Tip or Not to Tip Panel, This panel will be debating walking floors, slide-tilting technology and alternatives to traditional tippers, Panellists TBC Innovation Spotlight, These will showcase new innovations such as trailer lightweighting, security devices, weighing technologies and much more in short fiveminute product innovation presentations from exhibitors at the show, Speakers TBC

FORS - do I need it and what are the benefits?, Richard Brundrett, FORS London’s Direct Vision Standard - will my vehicle comply?, Speaker TBC

11:00 - 12:30 Session One: Safety

Clearing the air panel: Clean Air Zones and London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone in the spotlight, Panellists TBC

14:00 - 15:15 Session Two: Innovation, Fuels and Technology

Alternative fuels for tippers and tankers, Speaker TBC

Day 3

London’s Direct Visions Standard - will my vehicle comply?, Speaker TBC

Saturday 1st June 11:00 - 12:30 Safety Sessions

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Urban Materials Handling technology, Speaker TBC To Tip or Not to Tip Panel, This panel will be debating walking floors, slide-tilting technology and alternatives to traditional tippers, Panellists TBC

To Tip or Not to Tip Panel, This panel will be debating walking floors, slide-tilting technology and alternatives to traditional tippers, Panellists TBC Urban Materials Handling Technology, Speaker TBC Alternative fuels for tippers and tankers, Speaker TBC

09/05/2019 09:51:40

Tip-ex/Tank-ex preview

Bulk haulage in the spotlight The UK’s only dedicated event for the tipper, bulk transport and tanker sectors is back, with more than 100 exhibitors and 150 trucks on display. Simon Jack previews the show

T

ip-ex and Tank-ex has grown into a mustattend event for those involved in the tipper, bulk transport and tanker sectors – and this year will be no exception.

Running from 30 May-1 June at Harrogate Convention Centre, it will feature a range of innovative ideas from vehicle manufacturers, bodybuilders and trailer manufacturers.

Safety and compliance firms and organisations will also be making their presence felt at the show, which will feature outdoor displays on the lawns of the Majestic Hotel as well as those inside the halls. A huge range of suppliers of other types of equipment and services, from tyres and tachographs to lighting and loading equipment, will also be exhibiting.

Other highlights include a prestigious awards evening, a series of seminars and, for those involved in the drainage and water industry, their own dedicated area called Drain-ex.

THE MAIN EVENT

Thursday 30 May - Saturday 1 June Harrogate International Centre www.tip-ex.co.uk

TotalKare will be displaying T8DC mobile columns at the show’s entrance (left), while Kel-Berg is bringing a Grab Build vehicle fitted to a DAF chassis with a Palfinger crane

Harsh supplies specialist waste-handling bodywork

Truck suppliers

Volvo Trucks, sponsor of the Tipper Haulier of the Year Award at the Tip-ex Tank-ex Awards, will be attending the show with two FH 500 lite 6x2 Euro-6 tractor units on display; a tipper with a sleeper cab and a Globetrotter cab with tipper and a moving-floor capacity.

Renault Trucks will announce the full line-up of its Ready for Business range, including mixers, skip-loaders, 8x4 hook-loaders, sweepers and other models available to order in partnership with leading bodybuilders such as McPhee, Boughton, Johnstons, Thompsons and Wilcox.

Renault’s display will include a Range C430 8x4 muckaway tipper with a Thompsons Loadmaster body and a high steel bumper aimed at maximising obstacle clearance on-site, and a Range C460 insulated aluminium aggregate tipper with a Wilcox body.

Also on show will be a Range T520 High Sport limited edition 6x4 flat floor model, featuring the Sirius yellow paint design used by Renault Sport Racing.

Scania will be showcasing its XT range of trucks for use in arduous conditions, as well as its L- and P- series vehicles for urban areas. Its stand will include a sleepercabbed G 410 B8x4HZ, equipped with an insulated alloy aggregate body from AJ Hayton, and a P 370 B8x4HZ XT model with an Aliweld body.

MAN Truck & Bus will be exhibiting at Harrogate as will IVECO, which is bringing its Stralis X-Way range.

A Daily Tipper model will be on display, along with a gas-powered vehicle.

DAF trucks will be showing examples from its DAF construction range in the Majestic Hotel car park. The latest models offer up to 250kg of additional payload.

Leeds Commercial Vehicle Hire’s stand will feature an 18-tonne DAF tipping hotbox with a Thompsons body and a Penny SwingLift.

Bodies/trailers

Selecting the right trailer or body is essential if operators are to get the most out of their vehicles and there are several being demonstrated at the show.

Thompsons Group will be displaying many of its most popular designs, including the steel Loadmaster and Charlton’s SuperLite. There will also be a high-specification, custom-built aluminium bulker on an MAN chassis.

Meanwhile, Wilcox Commercial Vehicles will be focusing on its designs for bulk-load transport, including steel and aluminium tipping bodies.

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tipping trailer and a Cat 1 low-loader and fixed tipping trailer, while Fitzgeralds Vehicle Works will be showing an 8x4 steel tipper body on a Scania chassis.

Equipment

Safety equipment will be on display, inluding Dawes Highway Safety’s PeoplePanel flat panel sideguards (above) and SM UK’s HALO cycle minder system (left).

Aliweld will be showing its bodies on DAF and Scania chassis, including a semi-bulk/asphalt body on a Scania.

This mix between two body types allows operators to have any size body and carry all types of materials.

Kel-Berg Trailers and Trucks’ indoor stand will feature a Grab Build vehicle fitted to a DAF chassis with a Palfinger crane, along with its popular T100 aluminium tipping trailer. Outside, it will be showing a T109 nontipping belt trailer attached to a DAF tractor.

L Townend will be demonstrating three 32-tonne GVW tipper chassis vehicles on the Majestic lawns. One vehicle will have the Governor Lightweight Body, another the Governor Heavyweight Body and the third will incorporate the Samson Lightweight Steel tipper body.

Boweld will be showing a selection of steel tipping bodies from its Taperlite range, which has a tapered design to aid load discharge and prolong body life.

Other bodybuilders at the show include Marshalls Truck Bodies, which will be demonstrating its steel bodies on various OEM 8x4 chassis, and Muldoon Transport with a rear-steer bulk blowing trailer.

Crick Trailer Sales will be exhibiting a sliding bogie

AWARDS AND SEMINARS The annual Tip-ex Tank-ex Awards are being held in the plush surroundings of the Royal Hall in Harrogate on Friday 31 May. As well as a chance to celebrate the successes of the industry, these are intended to provide an opportunity to network with others in the sector and to forge new business relationships. The evening will include a drinks reception, three-course meal, awards ceremony and entertainment.

There will be nine award categories, including a Show Innovation Award to reward a company that has used creative thinking to solve a problem, a Tipper Haulier of the Year and a Tanker Operator of the year. There will also be an award for Livery of the Year, a Tipper Safety Award and a Tanker Safety Award.

Finally there will be an Image of the Industry award, a Personality of the Year category and an Apprentice of the Year – Steve Gray Memorial Award.

A daily seminar programme will be taking place in a new staged conference area. Safety will be the theme on the mornings of Thursday 30 May, Friday 31 May and Saturday 1 June, while afternoon sessions on 30 May and 31 May will cover innovation, fuels and technology.

London’s Direct Vision Standard, improvements in landfill conditions under the CLOCS initiative and the benefits of joining the FORS scheme will all be under discussion. There will also be advice on preventing vehicles being used as terrorist attack weapons and what to do if an employee is involved in a fatal collision. Alternative fuels, moving floors, slide-tilting technology and alternatives to traditional tippers will also come under the spotlight.

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A range of equipment for use on tippers and tankers will be demonstrated on various stands. Harsh, which supplies tipping equipment, sheeting systems and specialist waste-handling bodywork, will be showcasing front end ram and tank combined tipping gear, underfloor tipping gear, an electric sheeting system and a skip-loader.

Harsh is also teaming up with heavy-duty lifting equipment provider TotalKare to create a joint display at the show’s entrance, where eight T8DC mobile columns will be lifting a skip-loader.

Hyva (UK) comes to Tip-ex with two key products: ultra-lightweight 32-tonne tipping gear intended for the aggregates industry and the new range of Hyva cranes.

Good loading and unloading equipment is vital for efficient operations. Keith Walking Floor will demonstrate its upgraded V-Floor range with increased floor movement, meaning that unloading is now faster, while the bearing design has also been improved.

Meanwhile, Transport Conveyor Systems will show a series of trailers designed to safely haul a variety of bulk products such as asphalt, aggregates, mining materials, agricultural products and salt.

Barry Napper & Co will be exhibiting its range of on-board weighing apparatus, including in-cab and external display instruments that are intended to be easy to read and operate, along with a hand-held Bluetooth mobile system.

Safety and compliance

Safety is paramount in the construction and bulk movement industries and many of the stands at Tip-ex and Tank-ex will reflect this.

The Fleet Operator Recognition Scheme (FORS) – the voluntary accreditation scheme intended to raise standards within the road transport industry – will be explaining its best-practice principles for transport operators.

Some of the exhibitors will be demonstrating FORSrelated products, including Cycle Safe 360, which will showcase camera systems, audible left-turn systems, fleet tracking and telematics.

Dawes Highway Safety will exhibit its PeoplePanel flat panel sideguards, as well as samples of its BlindSpotSign, used to warn vulnerable road users, and FORS signage.

Transport Support will also be at the show, with vehicle stability inclinometers, overhead high-voltage cable detection, reversing cameras/mobile CCTV, in-vehicle recorders and a range of devices to alert road users to danger.

SM UK will be demonstrating several types of safety equipment installed on a Scania skip lorry. The auto electrical installation company will also bring a VW Transporter van fitted with a Sortimo SR5 internal racking solution, an external storage and safety solution from Rhino Products, Brigade camera systems and ECCO safety lighting and beacons. n

Barry Napper will be exhibiting on-board weighing apparatus MotorTransport 29

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Alternative fuels

motortransport.co.uk

Fuel’s gold

I

n previous articles, we’ve looked at emissions and the alternative technologies that are available to help reduce them. In this article we look at the experiences of operators that are running alternative vehicles.

John Lewis Partnership (JLP) was an obvious operator to start with. As has been widely reported, it recently announced that it is committed to a diesel-free heavy fleet by 2028 and a zero-emission fleet by 2045, including vans and trucks.

Justin Laney, general manager, central transport, is the man tasked with achieving this. The JLP journey started in 2008, when vehicles in the fleet were converted to run on pure plant oil (PPO). They were set up to start and finish on mineral diesel and switch over to PPO while running.

Although the technology worked at the time and the CO2 benefits were good, the public debate in the late 2000s over the use of land and crops for food or fuel, together with the Treasury removing the fuel duty differential, killed off the benefits of this approach.

Not deterred, JLP commissioned a study by Imperial College to look at possible alternative fuels and their sustainability and CO2 reduction potential. The conclusions were that biomethane from waste streams and biodiesel from waste were the two best options.

The JLP fleet is split into 37% trucks and 63% vans but the CO2 footprint is 70% from the heavy vehicles, so the focus was initially on the truck fleet.

Game changer

With no OEM gas artics available at the time, JLP ran dual-fuel diesel-gas vehicles for some while. On the whole these worked well, says Laney, but work conducted on behalf of the Df T showed unacceptably high levels of methane slip – the release of unburnt methane to the atmosphere. JLP worked with Cambridge University to review methane slip catalysts, but concluded that there wasn’t a technology available that would meet the requirements. Fortunately, this coincided with the introduction of Euro-6, where dual fuel was always going to be difficult, and the availability of OEM dedicated gas engine artics from Scania and IVECO. Laney is pragmatic about the dual-fuel era, in that although the results were not all that had been hoped for, the stepping stone that the technology provided gave operators the opportunity to experience an alternative to diesel and resulted in the creation of the refuelling infrastructure that is still in use today.

The game changer for JLP was the building of the CNG Fuels gas station at Leyland just 700m from the Waitrose RDC. Starting with Scania and then IVECO units, the depot is on course to have 100% gas vehicles.

This is not without risks, says Laney, as he has to be sure that the station will be available all the time. Unlike with diesel trucks, you can’t just nip down the road to find another filling station.

Working with CNG Fuels, the station has been provided with back-up systems that should ensure 100% uptime, but Laney believes that the gas suppliers need to have back-up refuelling capability to ensure deliveries are not missed due to fuelling station issues.

The JLP commitment to gas vehicles will see stations being built to serve the RDCs in Bracknell, Milton Keynes 30 MotorTransport MTR_130519_030-032.indd 30

In the third of a series of articles Martin Flach looks at the experiences of operators that are running very different types of alternative vehicles

and Aylesford by the end of 2020. All will use compressed biomethane natural gas, as Laney believes that the simplicity of refuelling with CNG compared with liquefied natural gas at -160C is better for drivers and, as most vehicles operated are 4x2s running on out-and-back operations, the range is well within the limits of CNG. The big challenge will be to find a way to introduce gas to the few 6x2 vehicles that JLP runs, as they tend to haul double-deck trailers on longer runs to areas such as Cornwall. Although LNG may be a solution, Laney would prefer to find a CNG solution even if it means needing to refuel en route. More infrastructure will be the key, he believes.

Reliability of the units has been good, but oil change intervals have been too short for his liking. New oils are set to improve the situation and he is confident that in the long term the higher costs of routine maintenance will balance out with some of the high costs he is starting to see on Euro-6 diesel vehicles, where fuel system and particulate filter repairs and replacements are starting to crop up on early units.

Second life

JLP typically keeps its vehicles for seven years and Laney believes that by the time they come up for disposal, the resale value should be similar to a diesel vehicle of the same age. He is open, though, to other potential solutions, such as a second life for the gas tanks if that proves to be cost effective.

While progress on the heavy fleet has been very good, the van fleet will be more challenging, says Laney. JLP runs 1,500 vans from 200 locations, making a single solution virtually impossible.

Electric technology is the obvious choice, starting from small vehicles in the urban environment and progressively moving up the range. The longer-distance heavier vehicles will prove the most difficult to provide a solution for, and it may be that natural gas could be the answer for some of these applications.

The recently announced derogation for B licence holders to drive alternative fuel vehicles up to 4.25 tonnes GVW will be a big help, says Laney, as it can improve ➜ 32

13.5.19

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Alternative fuels

motortransport.co.uk

the efficiency of the vehicle operation and reduce overall vehicle numbers, therefore making the economic business case viable. Care will be needed when specifying the vehicles to ensure that batteries, which are the costly and heavy part of the vehicle, are not over-specified in order to avoid any range anxiety. Charging and availability of power to sites will also need extensive preparatory work to ensure that vehicle availability is not limited by charging. All this is likely to lead to different battery setups for different stores and even different routes from one store. Laney is clear: the days of one-size-fits-all are over and we all need to be smarter in our choice of vehicle and its utilisation.

At the other end of the scale is Gnewt Cargo, founded

by Sam Clarke in 2008, and now part of Menzies Distribution. Gnewt was born following experience in China in the early 2000s where Clarke was impressed by the rapid transition to electric bicycles and scooters particularly, and on returning to the UK saw an opportunity to use electric bikes for last-mile delivery.

Electric vans

It was rapidly found that bikes suffered from a lack of capacity and that trikes and quadracycles gave more capacity but lost manoeuvrability in traffic. So, within a short time, the business moved to electric vans â&#x20AC;&#x201C; initially with the Renault Kangoo, but more recently with the Nissan e-NV200 as well.

Subsequently there has been an explosion in numbers of bike couriers, both pedal and electric, but Clarke is concerned about the lack of regulation in the sector, which is notorious for overloaded bikes being ridden dangerously. The risks of accidents is high, and regulation could help to create stability in the sector, says Clarke.

The Gnewt fleet of more than 70 vehicles is now split equally between Renault and Nissan, with a few BD Auto 3.5-tonne GVW vehicles. Some of the Renaults are now approaching five years old and Clarke is pleased with how they have performed with no major problems. The minor problems have tended to centre on areas of the vehicle designed for a car duty cycle, such as door locks, which, when used in high-intensity urban deliveries, show the limitations of the parts. Battery degradation has not been a problem so far, but a move of the depot increased the stem mileage and range is now more of a focus than it was. The winter months are particularly challenging, with the temperature effects on the battery charge capacity and the use of the heater by the driver reducing range significantly. These are both areas where Clarke feels that the OEMs could focus work to make simple improvements, like heating the vehicle while connected to the grid.

The 4.25-tonne driving licence derogation is a useful step for Clarke and he looks forward to new products arriving on the market from new companies such as 32 MotorTransport MTR_130519_030-032.indd 32

Arrival, which will be free from the constraints often experienced by OEMs producing electric versions of a diesel product.

When asked where the future lies for distribution, Clarke is clear that multi-model is the key. Using the right method for each step of the delivery process will lead to the best combination for the environment, while at the same time being economically sustainable. As part of this philosophy, Gnewt, in partnership with Ford, is trialling a return to portering, where a person with a trolley does the last part of the delivery. In dense traffic, walking is frequently faster than any form of wheeled transport. The key is being able to have mobile warehouses that can supply the porter with their next load when they need it.

Investment is key

Gnewtâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ethos is to find practical solutions and not photoshoots for politicians and media. Having developed the business in London, the future will be to roll out with Menzies in other cities and other parts of the Menzies Distribution operations.

When asked what advice he would give to other companies, Clarke is clear. You need to invest plenty of time in doing your research into available products, charging, infrastructure, telematics and even buildings to understand the implications, then seek advice and talk to others in the industry who are already on the journey.

The need for advice is a common theme that will be explored further in a future article. â&#x2013; 13.5.19

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CV Show 2019 review The CV Show 2019 took place from 30 April-2 May at the NEC and we were there to bring you the latest news and innovation from the show floor, including a raft of new electric models such as MAN’s CitE 15-tonne urban delivery truck and DAF’s CF 4x2 tractor unit

30 APRIL - 2 MAY

2019

NEC • BIRMINGHAM

LDV’s EV30 makes debut With a decent range, competitive travelling speed and quick battery recharge, the latest electricpowered addition to the LDV UK and Ireland product range – which was officially launched at the CV Show – provides operators with a viable zero-emission van. The EV30 complements the EV80 3.5-tonne van launched last year.

General manager Mark Barrett said the EV30 is the first product in the LDV range that is only available as a zero-emission fully electric vehicle.

The EV30, designed with an aluminium monocoque frame to reduce weight and provide up to

1-tonne payload, is available in two wheelbases, and with two battery capacities; the 35kW with a 280km range or the 53kW with a 400km

range. It has a top speed of 79mph.

According to LDV, recharging from 5% to 80% takes 45 minutes using the DC (one direction direct

current charge), with the remaining 20% taking up to five hours charging on AC (alternating current that changes direction) adaptor.

Barrett said: “The EV30, as a small commercial vehicle, is the answer to business owners looking for an economical van that is respectful to the environment and nippy enough for the long city commute.”

It will be available from January 2020.

“We are trying to help small-tomedium-sized-enterprises make that switch to electric vehicles, and the EV30 is the perfect solution,” he added.

DAF plans UK electric 18-tonne LF trial by end of this year DAF Trucks plans to have a fullelectric 18-tonne LF on trial in the UK by the end of this year, product marketing manager James Turner told MT at the show.

Turner was discussing the future of electric vehicles with Sir Mike Penning MP, chairman of the allparty parliamentary group for freight and logistics, on the DAF stand in front of the electric CF tractor on loan from Dutch operator Simon Loos.

On the continent DAF is trialling

10 electric CFs, which have been developed with Belgian bus maker VDL, but it is working with its driveline partner Cummins on the UK LF, which will weigh approximately 1,500kg more than its diesel equivalent.

Simon Loos’ electric CF works on store deliveries for supermarket Albert Heijn and has a 60-mile range. Its 170kWh battery can be recharged in 30 minutes using a 300kW charger installed at the regional DC while being loaded,

enabling it to run all day on store deliveries.

DAF’s stand also featured a Euro-6 XF artic that can run on 100% renewable HVO fuel, and Penning wants the government to understand that internal combustion engines as well as electric vehicles can be low emission. At present there are no fuel duty incentives for operators switching to renewable fuels while natural gas enjoys a substantial duty discount over diesel.

MAN ABOUT TOWN: MAN’s CitE electric truck for urban distribution was revealed for the first time to a UK audience.

MAN UK MD Thomas Hemmerich said that with sufficient customer support, operator trials of RHD trucks could be running by the end of 2020, but added that the current fragmented and localised approach to emissions reduction is not helping UK operators commit.

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Hireco has high hopes Hireco expects to have 2,000 trucks on its contract hire fleet within three years, according to MD James Smith (pictured).

Standing alongside his specially chrome-wrapped 500hp MAN TGX XXL, Smith said the firm is growing its truck fleet rapidly as more of its trailer hire customers come to it wanting the full package.

“We took an initial batch of 150 MAN Euro-6c tractors and they went straight away,” Smith said.

“So we have ordered a second batch of 150 Euro-6d units, and have also taken some 18-tonne and 26-tonne MAN rigids.

“We will have 370 trucks by the end of this year and are taking 500 more next year.”

Hireco has taken on former Dawsongroup CEO Mike Williams

to spearhead its push into truck rental and he has been instrumental in the company’s adoption of MAN as its main, but not exclusive, truck brand. Hireco is also taking on some Mercedes-Benz Actros tractors and has supplied 30 IVECO 7.2-tonne Dailies to Hovis.

Customers can take trucks on terms of 12 to 36 months and Hireco will wrap the vehicles in customers’ livery on request.

Smith said the firm was planning to convert the former Canute depot on the A13 nine miles away from the City of London into a zero-emissions last-mile crossdock facility. It has acquired 20 electric LDV vans and is in talks with other OEMs including coach builder Wrightbus about electric and hybrid vehicles.

Hankook reveals face of future design in smart tyre collaboration The future of tyre design could be seen on the Hankook stand.

Working with students at London’s Royal College of Art, Hankook has developed the Hexonic smart tyre that uses sensors and electro-active polymer technology to ‘self-diagnose’ road conditions.

The tyre can make itself wider when extra grip is needed and deepen its tread on wet roads. This prototype is still decades from the road, but Hankook is also showing

its first tyre developed for electric buses, the SmartCity AU04 (below).

Chris Baxter, technical services manager at Hankook, said the 275/70 tyre has been designed to cope with the extra weight of electric vehicles and has a stronger sidewall and lower profile to make the bus easier to board.

Some of these features will likely appear on tyres developed for electric trucks when they start appearing on our roads.

Neil Koston of Eminox (left) and Martin Sangster, commercial manager CV Logix

Eminox and CV Logix in deal to deliver aftermarket Euro-6 DPFs Eminox, the emissions reduction company, has struck a deal with parts distributor CV Logix to deliver a range of aftermarket diesel particulate filters (DPFs) certified for Euro-6 drivelines.

Eminox will have eight DPFs available covering six European heavy truck manufacturers (with the exception of IVECO), covering more than 70% of the market.

Each DPF comes with a twoyear/200,000km warranty. The DPFs from Eminox will go to the 140-plus CV Logix outlets and be available through the UAN Truck and G-TRUCK networks.

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Neil Koston, aftermarket manager for Eminox, said the DPFs are significantly cheaper than the ones from the OEMs, and that the new partnership enables faster supply to end users. “They will benefit from same-day and nextday delivery to keep their businesses moving,” he said.

At the DPFs, Eminox introduced two PDFs, one for 11- and 13-litre engines in DAF trucks, and the other for Volvo Group (including Renault Trucks).

Two for Mercedes-Benz trucks will be launched shortly, along with four more later in the year.

MotorTransport 35

08/05/2019 15:00:00

CV Show 2019 review

motortransport.co.uk

Solar panels can cut costs Fancy saving 5% on fuel consumption on a rigid vehicle and 2% to 2.5% on an artic from a fit-andforget device with a payback of less than two years and a guaranteed life of at least five years?

At the show Trailar demonstrated its photo-voltaic strips that are applied to the roofs of trucks and trailers and reduce the electrical load on the vehicle’s alternator.

Ryder is so convinced that it is fitting the system to all its rigid fleet and offering it as an option on trailers.

Trailar started three years ago as a management development project at DHL Supply Chain, where managers including Aaron Thomas (pictured) and Denny Hulme were tasked with developing game-changing innovations for road transport.

They looked at the solar panels being used on domestic homes’ roofs and researched whether something similar could be fitted to trucks.

Their work led them to California and the manufacturer of an ultra-thin, flexible solar film that could be applied to the roofs of trucks and trailers and remain maintenance-free – apart from the occasional wash – for the life of the vehicle. They became the co-founders of Trailar, a business set up

within DHL to market the system.

Trailar MD Thomas said: “We fitted it to six rigid trucks and six trailers to test the product. At

Millbrook we found it could cut fuel consumption by 5% on the rigids and up to 2.5% on an artic.

DHL put us into its incubator start-

up programme and we started as a business in September last year, with three employees. We now have 20 staff in the UK and DHL is starting to roll it out in Germany.

“We have already sold 500 units and want to sell 2,000 this year and maybe 5,000 next year.”

The system uses a charge controller to monitor the power produced by the solar panels and reduce the electrical drain and the drag on the truck engine from the alternator.

With so many systems on Euro-6 trucks – such as water and power steering pumps –driven electrically rather than by belts, this power saving is significant. For artics, two batteries are installed on the trailer and charged by the solar panels, making the trailer self-sufficient in electrical power so it does not need connecting to the tractor unit – even if a tail-lift is fitted.

At the show, Trailar had a 3.5-tonne refrigerated van with the roof covered in solar panels to show how the system can reduce the electrical demand of the fridge motor on the vehicle engine, making large fuel and CO2 savings.

With so many battery and hybrid electric vehicles on show at the NEC, the potential for Trailar to extend the range of these vehicles is clear.

Show engagement demonstrates industry confidence and buoyancy CV Show organisers said they were “thrilled” with the level of industry engagement for this year’s event.

The UK’s largest commercial vehicle show saw a packed agenda, with a flurry of vehicle launches and announcements demonstrating confidence and buoyancy in the sector.

These included the unveiling of the new British-built Vauxhall Vivaro, which has secured 1,250 jobs at the brand’s Luton plant; two new variants of the award-winning Isuzu D-Max pick-up; the highperformance Ford Ranger Raptor; and a raft of new electric models such as MAN’s CitE 15-tonne urban delivery truck and vans like the LDV EV30, Peugeot Boxer and Citroën Relay.

Rob Skelton, CV Show director, said: “We’re absolutely thrilled with the industry’s response to this 36 MotorTransport MTR_130519_034-036.indd 36

year’s CV Show and to have achieved a fifth successive year sold out. There’s lots of talk of uncertainty in the market, but that’s not been evident in commercial vehicle sales or the enthusiasm and excitement of the industry for the CV Show.”

■ MT’s own Youtube channel has

all the highlights from the CV Show – so if you missed anything, don’t worry – we’ve got it covered!

First up, why not check out our special with Brigade? We discover how its revolutionary electric vehicle noise generator will save lives.

And why not discover how Vision Track’s innovative anti-distraction system makes roads safer? We’ve also got all the highlights from the MAN CV Show 2019 stand.

Go to Youtube.com/roadtransport to watch.

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MT Awards 2019 shortlists Sponsored by

Training Award MT profiles the shortlists for this year’s awards ArrowXL

ArrowXL’s training programme has risen like a phoenix from the ashes in the form of a new £50,000 Development Academy, which the company opened after a fire destroyed many of its training records in 2017. Launched in May 2018, the facility has allowed ArrowXL to centralise its training programme and deliver more than 1,200 training sessions in courses such as Driver CPC, materials handling equipment, health and safety and management training. The academy houses a purpose-built apartment where specialist delivery crews can practice skills such as installing and plumbing white goods and assembling furniture. It also contains an HGV body and a tail-lift for front-line staff to practice skills such as loading and unloading and product restraint.

The results have been far reaching, the company reports, with significant improvements in service levels, employee engagement and staff retention levels.

Judges praised ArrowXL’s ability to significantly improve its training programme after such a traumatic event and were impressed by the practical training provided at the academy.

Knights of Old Group

Knights of Old is battling the escalating driver shortage using the magic of its training facility Merlin Supply Chain Solutions to deliver some outstanding results. Last year the programme saw 219 candidates successfully complete categories C and C+E training, with another 277 candidates completing Driver CPC training modules. Driver training has also delivered some significant results, with fuel economy improved by 18%, vehicle idling reduced by more than 20%, accidents down by almost 9% and CO2 emissions cut by more than 18% between 2014 and 2016.

Judges praised Knights of Old’s commitment to providing a solution that benefits not only the company but also the wider logistics industry.

Genesee & Wyoming UK

G&W is boosting driver recruitment by attracting candidates from outside the logistics industry to its training academy in Cannock.

Launched in 2018, the academy is giving candidates who have never driven commercially the opportunity to train for an HGV licence, as well as training commercial drivers from a category C licence to a C+E. Since its launch, the academy has trained 42 candidates to become HGV drivers.

The company’s strategy of recruiting from a wider talent pool is also

38 MotorTransport MTR_130519_038.indd 38

reflected in its commitment to train female drivers by providing them with child care support.

The judges commended G&W’s efforts to provide a clear HGV driver training path for category B licence holders and praised the company’s strategy to encourage women drivers into the sector.

Gerrard’s of Swinton

Gerrard’s of Swinton is helping ex-services personnel find a career in logistics by offering them free HGV driver training, worth more than £1,800, and prioritising them for job vacancies at the company. The course, launched in 2015, has a 100% success rate with trainees becoming valued members of Gerrard’s workforce and part of the management team.

Last year Gerrard’s also launched a training academy for civilians and ex-forces personnel that offers a range of accredited courses including first aid, fire safety, Driver CPC, and ADR courses.

The academy has seen 300 trainees graduate over the past year and plans to deliver another 1,000 qualified drivers by 2021.

Judges praised the training initiative for making a “significant difference” to ex-service personnel’s lives while tackling the national driver shortage.

O’Donovan Waste Disposal

Government data shows that 1,400 construction workers contemplated suicide between 2011 and 2015. These statistics prompted waste haulier O’Donovan, which operates 95 HGVs in the construction sector, to launch a mental health and well-being training programme for all staff and management, supported by trained mental health champions to give peer-to-peer support. Staff are taught how to control their reactions, take a step back, assess their interactions and improve their communication and listening skills in stressful situations. Results show sharp falls in organisational daily stress levels, from 61% before the training course to just 29% one month later, with a 15% decrease in absenteeism and a fall in traffic incidents resulting in a 22% drop in insurance premiums.

Judges said O’Donovan’s focus on staff’s mental health was “admirable”.

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08/05/2019 10:59:53

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09/05/2019 10:05:28

MT Awards 2019 shortlists Sponsored by

Technical Excellence Award Balfour Beatty

Motorway congestion is a cost and inconvenience for every road user, and Balfour Beatty Plant and Fleet Services has come up with a simple yet effective solution to speed the maintenance and repair of motorway overhead gantries. The Maintenance Assist Vehicle (MAV) has greatly improved the process of replacing signs on gantries, reducing the cost, risk and disruption as a result. The MAV has an access platform attached to a hydraulic scissor lift so it can be raised 8m to reach the gantry with another platform that extends forward. There is also a crane to lift and remove the signs, allowing the operation to be carried out with one vehicle and three operatives, speeding the time taken to replace the defective signs.

Judges were impressed by this clever solution to a problem that met the objectives and clearly demonstrated how costs and disruption could be reduced. One said this was a well-thought-out project but the idea wasn’t entirely new.

Cartwright Group

Cartwright’s low-height refrigerated double-deck trailer has been hailed as a game changer by one of its major customers running into Ireland. A typical double-deck capable of carrying 44 standard 1,830mm tall cages on both decks would be almost 4.9m high – but the height limit in the Dublin port tunnel is 4.65m. Cartwright’s solution was to shave 200mm off the height without compromising on structural integrity or practicality using super-slim panels for the roof, a strong but slim floor made from aircraft-style honeycomb material and insulated wheel pans on the underside of the floor. Not only can this trailer run into Dublin, the reduced frontal area results in a 3% fuel saving over conventional moving deck double-decks.

Judges said this was a clever solution to the problem imposed by Ireland, and that many of these innovations could also be carried over into 4m-high fridge trailers to get the benefits of reduced fuel consumption.

40 MotorTransport MTR_130519_040.indd 40

SDC Trailers

Skeletal trailers to carry containers were once simple affairs – 20ft, 40ft or extendable to carry either of these standard size boxes. But the rise of multimodal transport has led to the development of more creative road trailers, and in 2015 SDC, together with Malcolm Group, won the MT Innovation award for an extendable 15.6m trailer designed to carry 50ft road/rail containers. This year the Northern Ireland trailer builder has been shortlisted for another extendable trailer, a 10.5m tri-axle platform developed for container giant Titan that extends to 15.5m so it can carry any size container from 10ft to 45ft as well as pallets.

Judges praised SDC for understanding its customers’ needs and producing a bespoke product to significantly improve flexibility and efficiency.

Wren Kitchens

You may have seen Wren’s TV adverts where customer Ben ‘roof walks’ on top of a Wren truck that is delivering his new dream kitchen.

Established in 2009, one of Wren’s selling points is that it handles the whole process from design and build to delivery and installation, and last year it sold more than 70,000 kitchens direct to customers. After trials of five truck brands, the own-account operator is switching to the Mercedes-Benz Antos 1824, which it expects to improve fuel economy by 0.5mpg, saving more than £1m a year. Improvements in the efficiency of its trunking and delivery operations are expected to yield further savings of £1.7m a year, while accidents have been cut 40%.

Judges liked Wren’s comprehensive entry that clearly showed its passion and enthusiasm for the job, and also gave a good account of team working to target savings and efficiencies without sacrificing customer service.

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08/05/2019 11:02:39

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MT Awards 2019 shortlists Sponsored by

Haulier of the Year ADD Express

Established in 1991 in Elland, West Yorkshire, ADD remains committed to its goal of being the quality haulier of choice in Yorkshire for anything heavier than a parcel. A founder member of Pall-Ex, ADD was one of the firms invited to help develop MyNexus, Pall-Ex’s real-time customer portal that the entry said had revolutionised freight visibility in the pallet sector. With ADD’s entire customer base now using MyNexus, calls have reduced by 40%. The company puts partnerships and quality of service at the heart of its business ethos and can point to contracts it has won – despite not being the lowest on price – by offering value-added service and IT systems that give customers a market-leading service advantage.

ADD has invested heavily in transport management and driver assessment software to improve fuel efficiency and safety. ADD has always used MAN trucks and the fleet is renewed every four years.

Comments from customers contacted by researchers at Analytiqa included “extremely high percentage fulfilment of deliveries OTIF” and a “passion and knowledge of our business and the needs of our customers”. Judges said a strong commercial focus was evidenced in the submission, driven by some very long-term customer relationships, adding that ADD was a really impressive company that has expanded steadily.

Culina Group

Celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2019, Culina has grown spectacularly to become one the UK’s leading FMCG logistics specialists – and under the heading ‘In it for the long haul’ its bold entry promised no let-up in the next 25 years. Led by CEO Thomas van Mourik, Culina’s stats are impressive: turnover has risen to £650m a year, it employs 6,700 people across 62 sites with 8 million sq ft of warehousing, and the fleet stands at 1,200 trucks and 2,000 trailers.

The strategy is to focus on food and drink logistics within a shared user environment, using critical mass and high volumes to drive efficiency.

Its secrets to success are summed up in four key values: entrepreneurial; creative; inclusive; and versatile.

Customers told Analytiqa “it finds solutions to problems without being asked” and “the dedication of Culina’s staff is second to none”.

Our judges noted that Culina was an early adopter of Earned Recognition and it had managed business processes very well.

They also commended the firm for pioneering use of new technology and innovation, and said that it had managed the integration of a number of acquisitions well.

42 MotorTransport MTR_130519_042.indd 42

DFDS Logistics UK

This entry by the temperature-controlled division of DFDS described an excellent year in 2018 in which turnover rose 18% to £31m on the back of some significant contract wins including Bird’s Eye. The temperature-controlled operation is based at five UK depots, where it employs 300 happy staff – employee satisfaction is an amazing 95%.

This has been achieved by respecting and listening to employees and recruiting the right people to deliver the business plan.

Satisfied staff must equal satisfied customers, as they are at the heart of DFDS’s excellent performance, with its Net Promoter score well above the industry average at 68. Customers called DFDS “trustworthy, honest and approachable” and said “its performance contributed to us winning business”. Operating efficiency has also improved, with the fleet average fuel consumption falling by 1mpg as a result of a policy of replacing the Mercedes-Benz trucks every three years and the use of telematics to target driver training.

The judges know what a tough and challenging market temperaturecontrolled distribution is, making DFDS’s trading even more impressive.

Fagan & Whalley

Established more than 90 years ago and now in its sixth generation of family ownership, Fagan & Whalley is one of East Lancashire’s most recognisable hauliers. It turns over £26m a year and operates 170 vehicles from five sites, including a 93,000sq ft high-bay BRC-accredited warehouse.

The company delivers Driver CPC and fork-lift driver training through its in-house team of three trainers, and new recruits – including driver and workshop technician apprentices – are put through a rigorous pre-employment assessment.

Fagan & Whalley prides itself on building long-term customer relationships, and typical comments from customers included “honesty in terms of which items it can deliver” and “staff at our local depot are extremely helpful”.

The firm replaces trucks every eight years when they have more than 1 million kms on the clock and it has recently moved to Scania as its preferred manufacturer after trialling the latest vehicles from the major manufacturers.

Judges said Fagan & Whalley was a fantastic regional haulier that has gone from strength to strength, commenting that it was an excellent business that does what it says on the tin. One judge said the reputation of the business was legendary and the customer feedback was impressive.

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09/05/2019 15:15:02

POWERING LOGISTICS At Volvo Trucks we believe that behind every great Haulier is a great truck.

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Our passionate people go the extra mile to keep your vehicle on the road, þ¡Á e S / 9 Á e S ƉƋŚƎņ / eÚ eÉ M¡Á Ú_ Ú Á9 É¡ Ú_ Ú þ9 Á9 ¹Á¡æ/ Ú¡ ɹ¡ É¡Á Ú_9 ¡Ú¡Á ÙÁ ɹ¡ÁÚ ^ æ e9Á ¡M Ú_9 ĉ9 Á ƉƇƈƐ þ Á/ʼn zæÉÚ e 9 Ú_9 þe 9Á ¡M Ú_eÉ #¡ü9Ú9/ þ Á/ņ þ9 _ ü9 Á9 ¹ ÉÉe¡ Ú¡ É99 ¡æÁ customers succeed, really putting the power into the logistics industry.

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