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CONTENTS

36

Men Are from Marsh – Jumping Paddocks

42

Midget On a Mission – Kenworth Double-take

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WATCH T HE V IDEO IN T HE DIG ITAL EDIT ION

INTERNATIONAL TRUCK OF THE YEAR

Associate Member

EDITOR

Dave McCoid

ASSISTANT EDITOR

Gavin Myers

Ph: 027 492 5601 Email: editor@nztrucking.co.nz Ph: 027 660 6608 Email: gavin@nztrucking.com

For all advertising enquiries for New Zealand Trucking magazine and Truck Trader contact: Matt Smith

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Pav Warren

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SUB EDITOR

OFFICE ADMINISTRATION

Tracey Strange

Georgi George PUBLISHER

CONTRIBUTORS

Craig Andrews Carl Kirkbeck Faye Lougher Craig McCauley Jacqui Madelin Niels Jansen (Europe) Howard Shanks (Australia) Will Shiers (UK) Paul O’Callaghan

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6 Editorial

80 Moving Metrics

8 Road Noise – Industry news

84 Hiringa Energy – NZ’s hydrogen future

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46 Top Truck – X-WAY in the bush

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52 Gallery – Carl Kirkbeck

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50 Just Truckin’ Around

54 Aussie Angles – Double-reduction C509 62 New Rigs 66 New Bodies and Trailers

90 Vipal Know Your Tyres 92 Tech Topics – Batteries 94 NZ Trucking Association Summit – Level crossings 96 Truckers’ Health 98 Health and Safety 100 Legal Lines 102 NZ Trucking Association

68 Rhino Photo Comp

104 Road Transport Forum

70 Mini Big Rigs

106 The Last Mile

74 Little Truckers’ Club 76 What’s On/ Cartoon

ABC Audited circulation 7092 as at September 2017 Nielsen audited readership 95,000 as at 01–2016

88 Product Update – StrapnGo

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EDITORIAL

DRESSED REHEARSALS

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he best resolutions happen when both parties understand each other’s needs.

Reaching a point of mutual satisfaction means you are not always going to leave the negotiation table elated by the outcome; that’s just the nature of respecting and accommodating opposing views. If you weren’t opposed in some way, you wouldn’t be negotiating to start with.

As sad as it may be, negotiation is most effective when both parties clearly understand the size of the Rottweiler tied to each other’s clothesline. It’s how we’ve maintained relative world peace for 75 years.

Hard on the heels of the recent infrastructure cutbacks, the government’s response to an illegal protest took the form of a new, billion-dollar bike bridge for Auckland. In the wake of that, I fielded several calls from irate truck operators and drivers wanting to reinvigorate the idea of blockades. I’m acutely aware I’ve been vocal about political abuse levelled at the roadtransport industry from a contemptuous administration, resulting in a less-thanappropriate response from a muddled representation. But the calls I fielded baying for action shouldn’t have come to me. They should have gone to whatever club the caller belonged to (and in the event they were not aligned to one, they should probably join one). Representation is key to countering or responding to the Beehive’s belligerence.

We have representative

mechanisms galore, so going off half-cocked on some leftfield crusade just adds to the industry’s internal noise. If the membership of an association is dissatisfied, they should signal the need for change and effect it appropriately.

It’s the reason places like Gettysburg were strewn with bodies – the preservation of democratic choice and process.

And, yes, this contemptuous administration is long overdue for a wakeup call. The fact a bunch of cyclists outmuscled the trucking industry’s representation in one act, resulting in a billion-dollar windfall, says far more about us than them.

I listened to Transport Minister Michael Wood speak at the NRC AGM on 18 June.

It was a polished monologue that had some saying, “He comes across well.” I wasn’t so convinced.

His pattern was to raise a contentious issue and follow it with a patronising platitude on our perceived accomplishments and value.

Then, there were comments such as, “Your work is enormously important.”

He also referred to us as a “sector”. I found that interesting also. When your “sector” moves 93% of the freight, you’re not “enormously important”; you’re mission-critical.

Likewise, we’re not a sector. Retail is a sector; housing is a sector. We are all sectors. Without us, all sectors stop. Every one of them. Not one survives

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beyond subsistent hippies living in the Coromandel or Golden Bay. Yes, Wood wants to fluff around “improving freight connections” and “giving people better transport options”, but that’s being seen to do the right thing, just like importing foreign coal for Huntly so you can say we don’t mine coal for generation purposes.

Rail and coastal shipping are, in all reality, incapable of anything beyond support for road.

In the unlikely event that we do stop talking and ‘buy whiskey’, so to speak, my preference would be to simply cease operations for a time. Such an act would pose no immediate threat to the safety of families and people. It would not be illegal.

There’d be no nose-to-tail accidents because someone didn’t see the cars stopped for the blockade. There’d be no roadside scuffles filmed for TV. And when the phones started ringing, we could simply direct the caller to Minister Wood’s office, wish them a lovely day, and hang up. If Wood wants a clear demonstration of how important we are, simply stopping and remaining polite and non-confrontational would be it. We don’t need to shout and bellow like stuck pigs.

It would be interesting to see how long it took for calls to come back the other way.

“Minister, we’re only a sector? But while you’re there, how about that billiondollar bike bridge? Let’s talk

about the Napier-Taupo Road, Takaka Hill and that Mill Road cancellation. Oh, and this might be an opportunity to cover off work-time hours, the ferry terminals, and engineering certification consistency? Let’s make a plan, sir.”

The risk is the realisation of our sway and any resulting future abuse of that influence.

It’s after the event that real leadership would need to kick in on our side. This is not a tactic you deploy every second month because you can’t get your way. This is a strategy you turn to when a government chases ideological votes while key project infrastructure is binned, and the country’s largest workplace and asset is falling into ruin in front of Worksafe and Waka Kotahi’s eyes.

But again, we need our organisational and leadership ducks in order before anything happens.

If we did get a cohesive action sorted, it would have immeasurable benefits down the track in terms of convincing the Beehive to deal with us appropriately, with ears ‘on’. As an industry, we need to be in a position of real strength when labourmarket reform really kicks into gear. With Minister Wood also being the minister for workplace relations and having a historical union bent, we want him sitting respectfully, fully attentive, and open-minded when that all starts.

Dave McCoid Editor

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ROAD NOISE NEWS Dave and Lindsay discus the competition and the winning entry in more detail.

AND THE WINNER IS…

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he inaugural Resilienz New Zealand Trucking Media Trucking Toward a Better Future competition concluded at the end of April.

The competition sought to tap into the vast reservoir of intellectual property residing in the cabs of trucks – drivers, after all, have unparalleled access to every workplace in the country. The organisers believed this data ‘truck-anet’ would harbour a wide range of ideas for improving environmental outcomes and general efficiency in the supply chain at a macro and micro level.

“The timing of the competition proved spot on,” said co-organiser and Resilienz director Lindsay Wood. “The results were decided just as the Climate Change Commission’s first formal advice goes to the government, as the MoT consults on ‘Pathways to Net Zero by 2050’, and shortly after the sustainable transport sector announced its ‘lowcarbon freight pathway’ strategy.

“A key theme is the need to start decarbonising in ways that can be implemented while initiatives such as largescale hydrogen and biofuels are brought online. The two winning entries each fit with this approach.”

Although tomorrow’s world

and the environment were underlying themes, entrants were encouraged not to restrict their thinking as any increase in efficiency should have pay-offs at many levels.

“From our perspective, it was also a great opportunity to promote truck drivers in the wider community,” said New Zealand Trucking magazine editor Dave McCoid. “Truck drivers are as invested in their grandchildren’s world as any of us, and we wanted to show that.”

The winner of the competition was Aucklandbased owner-operator Alan Critchley. He based his submission on his frustration with the Oteha Valley Road junction on Auckland’s Northern Motorway. His entry highlighted the fuel inefficiencies of downhill offramps/uphill onramps on motorways. It also illustrated the potential for co-benefits from good climate solutions, including improved safety, lower driver stress, reduced wear on components such as tyres and brakes, and corresponding savings on operating costs.

Second-place-getter Frederico Bono, also from Auckland, reinforced the case for subsidies to help transition to lower-emission vehicles.

The entry chimed with the Climate Change Commission,

stressing “Aotearoa has one of the oldest heavytransport fleets in the OECD”.

With upfront capital cost a barrier to vehicle upgrades, especially to electric, any system that eased that path (subsidy or otherwise) would pay great climate dividends.

The organisers recruited the help of Carr & Haslam managing director Chris Carr and well-known business commentator Rod Oram in judging the entries.

“We want to extend a huge thank-you to both Chris and Rod for their support of the concept and competition right the way through,” said Wood.

As the overall winner, and winner of the ‘Big Picture’ category, Alan receives $1250, and for second place, also in the ‘Big Picture’ category, Frederico wins $500.

Although the organisers received a modest level of entries for the inaugural competition, they were not deterred in any way.

“I was clear from the outset this would likely be a slowgrind,” said McCoid. “I know the potential information that resides in-cab, and I also know extracting it can be like getting blood from a stone.

They need to be a highly savvy but also reclusive lot.

We’re invested in this. It’s great for the industry. My goal

Alan Critchley’s winning entry used the Oteha Valley Road motorway junction as the case study for exemplifying its point. Vehicles exiting or joining fight gravity every way, trying to slow on descent and accelerate while climbing, with more than 500m of sustained gradients trying to gain on motorway inclines in all directions.

The northbound offramp ramp (blue dashed line) epitomises the problem (note approximate height difference arrows at each end of the red line).

is always to show our people in the best light.”

“There are no bad ideas,” reinforced Wood. “No submission will ever be received with anything but the utmost respect.”

w w w. f r u e h a u f . c o . n z

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ROAD NOISE NEWS

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CDS opens Rotorua doors

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entral Diesel Services has been appointed as the authorised Mercedes-Benz, Freightliner and Fuso truck service and parts dealer for the Rotorua region.

The announcement comes off the back of the opening of a new branch in the city in May 2021.

The dealerships are extensions of existing dealerships CDS holds for the Tauranga region.

The company has been servicing the heavy-transport industry in the Bay of Plenty for more than 25 years. In addition to these truck franchises, CDS is also the authorised dealer for Cummins and Detroit engines, and BPW and Jost transport parts for the Bay of Plenty.

“We have established long-standing relationships with many of the heavytransport operators in Rotorua, that we

have been servicing from our head office and main branch in Tauranga for many years,” said CDS managing director Bert Hayden.

“It will be great to now strengthen this even more with local representation and, in conjunction with the Mercedes-Benz, Freightliner and Fuso Truck sales teams, look to increase penetration of these major brands in the Rotorua region.”

The new Rotorua branch is located on the corner of Tallyho and Riri streets and was built specifically to service the needs of the heavy-transport industry. The branch offers four drive-through bays, including a full-length pit, truck wash area, parts warehouse and offices.

A team of specialist employees have been appointed to cover the key roles, with more staff to be added over the coming months.

New tyres complete the Kiwi Tyres range

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iwi Truck Tyres has added three new tyres to its product range, making it a one-stop shop for tyres from steerers to trailer.

Kiwi Truck Tyres general manager Hayden Jones said the new tyres were a response to market demand.

Two of the new tyres are additions to the KIWI20 pattern, in 385/55 R22.5 and 385/65 R22.5 super-single size for steerers.

The addition makes Kiwi Truck Tyres the only truck tyre supplier to offer mixed service (on-/off-road for bulk tippers such as trucks going into quarries for gravel or earthworks) patterns of this type in the 385 size.

The KIWI20 is an all-purpose tyre with varied lengths within the block build-up on the shoulders, which gives it better

handling in both wet and dry conditions.

The third new tyre is a KIWI17 pattern in 235/75 R17.5 size. These are specifically designed and engineered for heavy equipment low-loaders, and complements the existing KIWI17 in 215/75 R17.5 also for low loaders.

The KIWI17 trailer tyre is designed to not hold stones and is best rated for cents per kilometre.

Jones adds that the robustness of the KIWI17 tyre in 215/75 R17.5 added to the demand from its customers for the tyre in 235 size.

“We have a whole range for every fleet.

We’re not restricted to who we can sell,” said Jones. “All the tyres are available immediately, there’s plenty of stock in the country.”

B g ty s

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T0521-01

he Climate Change Commission’s final report to the government is still too reliant on the uptake of electric vehicles, says the Motor Industry Association.

MIA chief executive David Crawford said that while the association “cautiously welcomed” the report, some of the recommendations were overly ambitious.

Released in early June, the Inaia tonu nei: a low emissions future for Aotearoa report lays out the roadmap for the country to slash emissions and become carbon neutral by 2050.

Crawford said the report made some good suggestions on a package of regulatory tools aimed at accelerating the uptake of lowemissions vehicles, including a clean car standard, incentives and various tax/accounting measures, and developing low-carbon fuel markets.

“The new vehicle sector would love to sell as many electric vehicles as they want us to,” he said. “But this side of 2030, it is highly unlikely we will be able to get enough electric vehicles to reach half of light vehicle imports by 2029.”

Crawford said the bulk procurement of electric vehicles was a welcomed recommendation.

“However, as the world scrambles to buy electric vehicles, the Government’s ability to buy in bulk is likely to remain constrained for some years to come,” he said.

Crawford said the commission’s proposal to ban internal combustion engines as soon as 2030 and no later than 2035 was also overly ambitious.

“The MIA supports their recommendation to develop a low carbon fuel market such as hydrogen, synthetic fuels and biofuels,” he said. “This will be more effective in quickly reducing the transport sector’s CO2 emissions.”

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Waitomo fuel stop for Ruakura Superhub

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new flagship Waitomo service centre has been announced for the Ruakura Superhub.

Ruakura developers Tainui Group Holdings signed an agreement with the Waikatobased fuel distributor to develop a full-service site accessible off the Waikato Expressway via the Ruakura interchange.

The superhub is currently under development on the eastern boundary of Hamilton.

The 1.6ha site would incorporate a Waitomo Fuel Stop with alternative energy options, including hydrogen refuelling and EV charging stations as well as commercial truck refuelling lanes. A touch-free carwash, two quick-service restaurants,

a café and a convenience store would round out the offerings.

TGH chief executive Chris Joblin said confirmation of the new service centre added to the momentum around Ruakura Superhub. Extensive earthworks, the construction of local connecting roads and leasing negotiations were now in progress right across the first 92ha first stage of the 480ha site.

“We’re proud, and honoured, to work with our partners at TGH to help bring the vision of the Ruakura Superhub to reality. The service centre development will reflect the scale and quality expected from a project of national significance,” said Waitomo

Group managing director Jimmy Ormsby.

Ruakura will be anchored by a 30ha inland port, with the first 17ha stage now in development by TGH and Port of Tauranga, in a 50/50 joint venture announced earlier this year.

The inland port will be serviced by high-capacity rail and roading infrastructure, with the East Coast main trunk rail line running along the port’s northern boundary and the new Waikato Expressway on the eastern

boundary. Initially, rail services would be provided by the existing MetroPort trains running between Auckland and Tauranga.

The Ruakura precinct is estimated to accommodate 6000-12,000 jobs once it’s fully developed and would have significant social and economic benefits for Waikato iwi, Hamilton, the region and New Zealand as a whole.

The Ruakura Superhub inland port and adjoining logistics hub are expected to open early/mid 2022.

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T0521-01

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ROAD NOISE NEWS

PAUL BRISTOL JOINS PATCHELL TRAILERS

South Island’s flooding nightmare

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he Patchell Group of Companies has welcomed Paul Bristol as a sales and customer support consultant.

Bristol joined the Patchell Group in September 2020 after two and a half years forging relationships and gaining a strong background in the trucksales industry.

Patchells has strategically positioned Bristol in his hometown of Palmerston North to cover the lower North Island, from Wellington to New Plymouth on the west coast and across the island covering as far up as Gisborne on the east coast. He is responsible for sales for the Patchell Group over all divisions, including logging trucks and trailers, skeletals and associated road transport equipment, Stainless tankers and trailers and Swinglift container side loaders.

Bristol is appreciating the more direct responsibility of being part of a small sales team while working for New Zealand’s leading trailer manufacturer. With his truck driving background and wealth of transport industry knowledge and a customer-focused outlook, Patchells is excited to have him on board.

Outside of work, he enjoys a varied and busy life in the fitness and athlete recovery industry following on from 10 years as a professional basketball player with the Manawatu Jets.

n early June, transport links on SH1 in the South Island were severely affected after extreme flooding in Canterbury resulted in the closure of the Ashburton River/Hakatere Bridge.

The bridge across the Ashburton River on SH1 – the South Island’s main link road – was closed on 1 June after drivers reported slumping on the deck at the Ashburton end.

The damage was caused by a build-up of debris in the river around the piers immediately to the north. As flow dropped from 1500 cumecs to about 400 cumecs of water, debris got caught up in adjacent piers, and the water was directed to the pier that sustained the damage.

The NZ Transport Agency load-tested the bridge that evening using a crane and 14-tonne weights. NZTA system manager Pete Connors said based on monitoring data received, the damaged pier, which sunk about 15cm during the recent one-in-100-year floods, was stable, and the bridge was reopened to light traffic.

Load-testing for heavier traffic (trucks) was carried out on the evening of 2 June, with the NZTA taking heavy trucks across the bridge carrying up to 40 tonnes of load to measure deflections. On 3 June, the bridge was opened to more vehicles, including

50MAX and HPMV. The heavier vehicles were given bridge access for the first week from 7am to 7pm – daytime hours – but any trucks with an overweight permit had to take the alternate routes on local roads to get south of Ashburton.

Connors said the pier testing, using heavily laden trucks, showed negligible movement, indicating that the pier had stabilised, and the structure was robust.

Monitoring and data analysis of the bridge during the following week showed it was safe to take trucks (up to 50MAX and HPMV). As from 10 June, it was reopened around the clock to all traffic, other than overweight permitted vehicles, with speed limit of 30kph in place.

More monitoring and data analysis were carried out on 16 and 17 June, during which time electronic monitoring equipment was installed to allow remote monitoring of the structure.

The initial closure of the bridge created huge disruption to supply chains, with lengthy detours in place for trucks.

Heavy vehicles were directed via SH77 to Methven and onto the Inland Scenic Route 72 to get through the district.

Connors said many roads needed patching and repairs after being under water and damaged by debris for 48

hours, and there would be temporary speed limits in several places around the Canterbury region while crews undertook that work.

“There’s been some damage because the roads got quite soft with all-day torrential rain sitting on both sides of the road. And now, with the number one state highway going through Mayfield, they’re getting wrecked pretty quick.

The roads in our county are shocking to start with, and like a lot of other people, we’ve got an issue with our roaduser charges not being spent in the right places. It’s a bit frustrating when you see all the projects going on – if we could spend our road-user charges where we actually earned them, I think we’d all be better off,” said Mayfield Transport dispatch manager Mike Farnell.

The NZTA is still working through its detailed repair methodologies for this bridge pier. The fix will likely involve scour-protection works, re-levelling and underpinning the pier. Connors estimated repairs could be completed in six to eight weeks. (Around the time you read this – Ed.) “If we have more high river events, that could affect that timeline, but we are working as fast as we can to expedite this repair.”

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Mills-Tu

NPD makes North Island debut

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PD has launched in the North Island with the opening of new sites at Te Rapa, Hamilton, Westown in New Plymouth, and Wiri, Auckland.

These are the first sites to open in the North Island for the family-owned fuel retailer, with Palmerston North set to open on 8 June 2021.

NPD’s expansion plans include the establishment of

32 sites throughout the North Island. It currently has further sites in the design and consent process and is actively seeking additional high-profile sites for development.

In the South Island, NPD has more than 80 sites with more scheduled to open during the year.

NPD chief executive Barry Sheridan said NPD “is proud to have brought genuine

competition to the North Island market”.

“Genuine competition can only be a win for all motorists,” he said.

“Since we announced our launch into the North Island, we have seen a progressive reduction in the North Island pump prices, reducing the gap between higher prices in the North Island and lower prices in the South Island.”

Sheridan said this was a similar trend it experienced as it developed its retail network throughout the South Island.

“Whenever we’ve opened a new site, pump prices have dropped across that region,” he said.

The new sites will all be selfservice and open 24/7, offering 91, 95, Diesel and 100Plus – NPD’s premium 100 octane performance petrol.

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ROAD NOISE NEWS

All-in-one premises for Steelbro

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est known for its sidelifter trailers, Steelbro is a New Zealand company with a 142-year history and a global presence in 120 countries.

It recently moved to new head office premises at 20 Dakota Crescent, Wigram, Christchurch.

“Steelbro’s strategy is to support New Zealand customers by working directly with them, and we have committed to this strategy by purchasing a larger workshop,” said general manager Peter Dobbs.

All functions are located at one site: service and repairs; research and development; sales, assembly and fabrication; technical support; spare parts; and

administration.

“The main advantage to customers is they have access to the best product and expert technical support at one location,” added Dobbs. The facility is staffed by a team of 15, headed by Dobbs and supported by research and development manager Richard Brown, workshop manager Paul McKenzie, and business development manager Greg Bailey.

The new premises enable Steelbro to offer a wide range of services to customers: •N ew product sales •C omprehensive supply of genuine spare parts •S ervicing (A and B service or customised packages, COF pre-inspection and

service) • Trade-in •R epair and refurbishment •T echnical support and training •L oan or hire services “We are developing a nationwide network of service agents to support customers from outside the Canterbury region, who are in turn supported and trained by the technical experts from the Christchurch facility.

“Recently, we have added a parts shop to our website to streamline the parts ordering process for customers, who can use the shop to identify parts and receive a quote,” said Dobbs.

“Steelbro provides a comprehensive range of

40T - 50T WEIGHBRIDGES.

sidelifters, from four-tonne to 45-tonne lifting capacity.

Steelbro staff work closely with customers to develop products that best meet the New Zealand customer requirements.”

Dobbs said that Steelbro’s newest and most popular model was the SB363, a light tare 36-tonne capacity sidelifter featuring Steelbro’s new HYDRAlift hydraulic system.

“This fundamental rethink of Sidelifter control combines the latest in hydraulic piston pump technology and a new advanced proportional control valve. The result is a 30% increase in crane deployment and folding-away speed.”

Proudly New Zealand designed and made Neville Marsh Weighbridges Ltd are Certified Portable Weighbridges.

40 Tonne weighing platforms are four metres long and 3.1M includes lifting hooks per platform and each platform weighs approximately 2000kgs.

50 Tonne weighing platforms are six metres long and 3.1M includes lifting hooks per platform and each platform weighs approximately 3000kgs.

Neville Marsh 0274970315 or WE HIRE Email marshweighbridges@gmail.com 40T AND 50T www.marshweighbridges.co.nz WEIGHBRIDGES

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Steelbro offer a comprehensive series of NZ designed and built Sidelifters with a range of lifting capacities. The latest design, SB363 36Tonne features Steelbro’s new HYDRAlift hydraulic system, resulting in a simpler system with faster deployment and more sensitive control.

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ROAD NOISE NEWS

New tool to decarbonise heavy road fleet

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new tool has been launched by Ara Ake, formerly known as the National New Energy Development Centre, in a bid to help long-distance heavy freight companies better understand the options for decarbonising their road fleet.

The free tool takes a total cost of ownership approach to calculating the cost of road freight movements. “This means rather than just looking at the upfront cost of buying different types of vehicles, it estimates the relative costs of using different vehicles powered by different fuels for a given freight trip, taking

into account other costs such as labour, carbon dioxide emissions and road user charge costs,” said Ara Ake chief executive, Cristiano Marantes.

New Zealand’s heavy truck fleet contributes 27% of all transport emissions but accounts for only 7% of total annual travel.

Marantes said this concentration of emissions into a relatively small amount of total travel highlighted a “critical need” to find ways to decarbonise heavy-freight movements.

“The TCO comparison tool looks at trips carried out by

vehicles powered by green and blue hydrogen, battery electric vehicles, drop-in and conventional biodiesels, and standard diesel internal combustion engine vehicles,” he said.

“The tool comes with a set of inbuilt assumptions about various factors, such as the cost of electricity, vehicle capital costs, the cost of various fuels, and road user charges,” he said.

“It also incorporates typical data on average daily heavyfreight trips provided by EROAD, including information on average daily kilometres travelled, average number and

length of stops, and average speed.”

In addition, it allows users to run their own scenarios and input their own data, enabling it to incorporate commercially sensitive data not yet in the public domain.

“By making their scenarios fully customisable, users can also make decisions based on what they know and expect to be true, such as price paths for carbon over time.”

The tool is available for anyone to download and use free of charge and is accompanied by a user guide.

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ROAD NOISE NEWS

Wheels at Wanaka doubles charity donations

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he Wheels at Wanaka Charitable Trust has announced $53,140 in donations following a successful event that saw 25,000 visitors attend the 2021 show over Easter Weekend.

The amount raised was more than double that of the inaugural 2019 event.

Numbers through the gate were also double the 12,000

that came through in 2019.

Of the donations this year, $20,000 will go to the Heartland Tractor Trek. The trek, led by Pace Engineering chief executive Steve Day, a group of nine Chamberlain tractors trekked from Taranaki via Christchurch to Wanaka and back. The group has now raised more than $115,000 for Heart Kids NZ.

The trust has also donated a total of $12,640 to Warbirds Over Wanaka Flying Scholarships, Aspiring Gymsports, Wanaka Swim Club, Wanaka Yacht Club, and Rotary Wanaka.

The Wheels at Wanaka event also provided free market space to Upper Clutha Plunket, Wanaka Lions and Wanaka Rowing Club. The

Wanaka Lions had the busiest weekend in many years at the event, donating $2000 directly to Heart Kids.

The trust was to donate $5000 to West Otago Vintage Club and $1500 each to the Southland Steam and Traction Engine Club, South Canterbury Traction Engine and Transport Museum, Binders Down Under, NZ Vintage Machinery

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NZT 21

Volvo moves ahead on autonomous transport

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Club, and Central Otago branch of the Vintage Car Club of New Zealand.

Other organisations that raised funds via Wheels at Wanaka included the Oxford Land Rover Owners National Rally, who donated $4500 to LANDSAR Wanaka, and Wanaka Powersports who donated $1500 to Rural Support Otago through Greg Murphy’s Polaris RZR demonstrations.

olvo Autonomous Solutions is moving ahead with a commercial pilot project in the port area of Gothenburg, Sweden, as it looks to make advancements in autonomous transport solutions within the port and logistics centre segment.

The project involved collecting data with a sensorequipped truck in the Arendal area in Gothenburg, as a first phase towards creating an automated and connected system for a continuous flow of goods. The truck, operated by a human driver, was driven on confined port areas and public roads and collected data to develop the artificial

intelligence to design a safe autonomous solution.

The data collection vehicle would be used to learn about complex everyday traffic situations, using sensors to log the surroundings of the vehicles, as well as the driver’s interaction with the vehicle. The truck was equipped with 21 sensors in the shape of radars, lidars and cameras, making it possible for the system to detect small things far away on the road surface, as well as objects that are close to the vehicle.

“This pilot is a step towards deploying similar projects in other ports in the world, on the journey towards

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the industrialisation of autonomous solutions,” said Volvo Autonomous Solutions president Nils Jaeger.

“Volvo Autonomous Solutions is in an expansive phase with many ongoing projects where we see exciting developments throughout.”

The project was a collaboration between Volvo Autonomous Solutions and shipping and logistics company DFDS, port operators APM Terminals, the Port of Gothenburg and property company Platzer Fastigheter, with development work done by AI and AV computing platforms partner NVIDIA.

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20/01/21 4:04 PM

ROAD NOISE NEWS

Alcohol detection technology for trucks

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ew technology that could reduce drink driving is coming to commercial vehicles in 2021, with a new product equipped with alcohol detection technology under development by the Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety Program in the United States.

The Automotive Coalition for Traffic Safety, a Virginia non-profit, announced the technology will be available for open-source licensing in commercial vehicles in late 2021.

The technology, which measures a driver’s breath alcohol concentration, will be made available to any product

integrator for preparation into fleet vehicles, including government vehicles, rental cars, transportation vehicles, and trucking companies.

It is the first time a product equipped with DADSS technology will come out of the lab and into commercial vehicles.

The new technology is the result of extensive research, development and testing by the DADSS Program, a public–private partnership between ACTS and the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The development of the technology was a major step

M N in the initative’s quest to create a fully passive, non-invasive alcohol detection system.

Unlike existing breathalysers or interlocks, the DADSS technology can be integrated into vehicles, so there is no physical hardware in the vehicle cabin.

ACTS will begin licensing the DADSS technology to product integrators now, and a device equipped with the breath technology will be made available in late 2021.

Drivers provide a puff of breath directed towards a small sensor, which can be outfitted in the steering column or side door trim. Because it is designed for fleet operators implementing a zero-tolerance alcohol policy for their drivers, staff or employees, the system will give a ‘pass/fail’ reading of the driver’s breath alcohol concentration.

A consumer version is still under development and is expected by 2024.

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COVER FEATURE

Story by Dave McCoid Photos and video by Gavin Myers and Dave McCoid

MEN ARE FROM MARSH If there were one assignment in trucking capable of testing the operational envelope of any OEM’s machine, it would be agricultural contracting. It’s a relentless seasonal cycle of hard work, with capability and versatility key attributes of both machines and operators. When Ben Brownless decided to add more trucking firepower to the Bay of Plenty operation of Marsh Contracting, his choice resulted in a truck with something XTra.

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olling grassland at the base of the Kaimai ranges in the small urban-rural area of Oropi, barely a stone’s throw from Tauranga – what a perfect location to rendezvous in the pre-dawn with an agricultural contracting operation. There’s a busyness to the scene as Marsh Contracting’s G500 XT Scania and Davis & Hay Contracting Ltd (Engineers) five-axle trailer pull in the gate. A tractor is poised at the head of two rows of baleage (baled and plastic wrapped grass), and the lights on the rig draw an arc in the darkness as it executes a big circle, eventually taking position between the neat lines of paddock ‘marshmallows’.

It was now ready for loading.

For starters, and let’s be honest, agricultural contracting hasn’t always lent itself to the glamour side of the roadtransport industry. It was, therefore, a mild relief to behold the snazzy white and green Scania complete with the Griffin logo on the cab extenders as the

first rays lit the sky.

“Phew! It really is the Bay of Plenty,” we thought.

In today’s era of truck and trailer configurations, the sixwheeler and five-axle combo has a certain chutzpah; a cool factor.

The fact the XT had the five-axle trolly on-hook was certainly a ‘money and the bag’ situation; in other words, too good (‘Toogood?’ ... never mind).

“G’day,” says part-owner of the rig and Marsh Contractors operations manager Ben Brownless as he appears from the shadows. “There are two loads of these to go to Galatea today. Should be good; it’s a transport job for another contractor. The rest of our truck crew are on kiwifruit, but these need to get down there today.”

The evening before, Ben had relocated one of the company’s immaculate Valtra tractors to the Oropi site from Marsh’s HQ on Old Coach Road in Pongakawa. Among the myriad things attacking the senses at the time is obvious pride in the

gear and the brand, with both truck and tractor not just clean, but sporting the same smart company logo. If you were the farmer-customer, you’d quickly conclude this was the kind of outfit that wouldn’t leave you worrying if gates had been shut on the way out or not.

Ben was studious in the loading of the bales. For the uninitiated, wrapped baleage is notorious, with each bale roughly the same, yet individual – like people, really. Ben checked each one for water ingress, something that makes the baleage inside go gooey, and then carefully placed them on the deck, pushing each one tight against its mate.

Although the plastic gives the impression of being quite ‘frictiony’, like a British airman in Colditz, the bales will look for any opportunity to bugger off, given the hint of a chance.

The loading complete, loose plastic ponytails whipped off with a knife, and all strapped down, we headed for the gate in just over an hour.

The Scania climbs away from the Matahina Dam.

New Zealand Trucking

July 2021 23

Time for an upgrade The Scania’s just on 18 months old with 60,000km on the clock, so there’s been plenty of time to ascertain whether the purchase decision was the right one.

“Yep, no complaints at all so far. It’s night and day from the other trucks,” Ben says.

“We looked around before we bought, though. We had a MAN here for a drive, and DAF and Mercedes-Benz were also on the short list.

Being an XT, the Scania has

that bit extra in terms of clearance underneath and durability. Some of the places we take the trucks are pretty severe. The Scania’s had a couple of experiences of being towed in and out of places by tractors, but she’s up to it so far.”

Underlying the decision to invest in a front-to-back new truck was a desire to up the ante on the trucking side of the business. Marsh runs four trucks, an older MercedesBenz, a Mitsubishi, a DAF CF and now the Scania. Until the

Loading as dawn breaks over the Bay of Plenty:

24 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

arrival of the XT, the trucks’ core role was to support the harvest and field operations rather than out and out trucking services.

“The trucks are all quite old, and we wanted to take the trucking to a new level.

We couldn’t do that with what we had. So we sat down and made a plan, and I voiced an interest in having a share in the new truck if possible.

Neville [Marsh – owner of Marsh Contracting] was happy with that and left me to get what I thought we

needed. Aside from its spec, availability was one of the big things. They’d brought some in as stock items, and Andrew Lane at Scania here in the Mount said it was pretty much available immediately. I do have to say he was great to work with. He puts no pressure on you, letting us make decisions the whole way.

“Now we can actively target transport work with good gear. What we’re doing is looking to add value to our existing customers. For

Left to right: Ben pulls out on to Oropi Road and heads away with the first load.

example, I can now whip to the Mount and grab some palm kernel for someone we service in other areas of the business. We can also be more effective when it’s time to help in the agricultural contractors’ pool. No one really has enough gear to cope when the heat’s on in the peak of the season, and the ag contracting guys all help each other, moving around as each needs a hand to get whatever done, on time.”

Atom Ant This subhead is possibly a little disrespectful; this is a 500-horsepower truck, after all. As we so often say, it wasn’t that many new moons ago that such power was at the top of any trucker’s Santa

list. A recent conversation with a senior salesperson from a leading OEM ended with us wholeheartedly agreeing that 600 is the new 400 in terms of truck power. In the mid- to late1980s, a 400hp Cummins, Caterpillar or Detroit was the big, capable motor that was a benchmark in terms of productivity. In 2021, that’s gone up at least 50%, more if it’s torque you’re considering. An old 400 motor was probably about 1695Nm (1250lb/ft); now 2779Nm (2050lb/ft) is the line ball for a 600hp engine.

The DC13 in the G500 is outputting 373kW (500hp) and 2550Nm (1881lb/ft) of torque.

Let’s line that up with the big boppers of another time. It’s a hearty 652Nm (481lb/ft),

more ‘twisty’ than the Detroit 60 Series in Ulhenberg’s 1989 Kenworth T600A test, and wait for it, 523Nm (386lb/ft) more than Crooks and de Lautour’s V8 Mack Ultra Liners in 1986. (I know, that one makes you smart.) Then, of course, we had a trawl through the Griffin archive in the magazine. Tom Preston’s magnificent 1990 Highline 143m Scania falls short of the Marsh truck by 520Nm (385lb/ft). Yikes! And let’s not even go near the impact of the electronics and shift speed of modern Euro AMTs. When the first electronic motors appeared, they were in many ways a pain in the arse to drive. But nowadays with smart engines and cogswappers? Gosh, would the old girls even see where the

new trucks went?

Yes, it might therefore be a mild kick in the groin calling the G500 ‘Atom Ant’, but in other ways not. When we first thought up the subheading, standing in the paddock watching the bales being loaded, it was more about the truck’s capability against its modest physical presentation.

In this era of Aerodynes, Stream-Spaces, Globe Trotters, and Top Lines, Ben’s G500 is akin to the halfback among the props. Until that is, you have a glance at the GCM on the load certificate – 100 tonnes. Say what?

Yes, it’s a nuggety XT; suffice to say, you’re not going to bend it in a rush.

Let’s keep on going with the spec from front to back.

Behind the Euro-5 13-litre

New Zealand Trucking

July 2021 25

Crossing the Matahina Dam.

power unit is Scania’s nearubiquitous – in terms of the marque – Opticruise GRS905R 14-speed AMT. You’ll go a long way to find a gear lever in a newgeneration Scania. In fact, Jackson Roadhaul ownerdriver Gavin ‘Bock’ Mical was the only NTG we could recall encountering with ‘oar’ on the driver’s left. Of course, Bock’s reasoning is impeccable: “I like changing gears.” There’s no disputing the meaning of life stuff, and after all, what’s the use of going to work if you’re not going to enjoy it?

At the rear of the transmission are proprietary 21-tonne rated RPB735 hub reduction screws with diff-lock at a 3.65:1 ratio.

They’re mounted on heavyduty parabolic leaf springs, with shock absorbers and stabilisers, as is the 7.5-tonne-rated AMT600 front axle.

Front shoes are big and chunky 385/65 R22.5 and

holding up the tail end are 295/80 R22.5, with all rubber mounted on polished Alcoa alloy wheels. And the whole thing is packed into a compact 4640mm wheelbase.

There is a weight price for all this robustness, though.

Tare on the Scania’s load certificate is 11,420kg.

When you consider Skip’s Super Liner last month was 12,000kg with a house attached, and the McNicol ProStars in 8x4 trim and packing an X-15 tipped the scales at 10,900kg, you do have to take a wee gulp.

But the XT is all about longevity and survivability in industries such as construction and forestry; in fact, any place low on allure factor for the humble lorry.

You’re being followed The shortness of the truck is nicely compensated aesthetically by the 8.5m, five-axle Davis & Hay

A famous corner in Bay of Plenty trucking, turning off SH2 onto SH34 towards Kawerau.

26 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

Contracting Ltd (Engineers) trailer. Yes, there’s that name again, and we know you’ll likely be scratching your head.

“We built the truck deck in our workshops, and Davis built the trailer,” says Ben. “They’re based in Timaru and are a supplier of ours, and they do heavy transport repairs and the like. I asked Todd [Davis, Davis & Hay Contracting Ltd (Engineers)] if they wanted to build a whole trailer from scratch. He said it had been something he’d wanted to do, so they did. We’re really happy with the result.

“We went five-axle for a bit of future-proofing. It made sense, and I wanted max stability for this line of work also – obviously, dump the airbags when tipping, twin under-body rams and a set of scissors to help with stability.

She’s pretty mint, I have to say.”

The design for the trailer came from TransTech Consulting and Design

Engineering in Dunedin. The trailer features high tensile construction, SAF Intradisc disc brake axles and air suspension, WABCO EBS braking, and is shod with 265/70 R19.5 rubber around Alcoa alloy rims.

If you do a bit of toing and froing between the islands, the combing rails and drawbar give away its construction origins being south of the drain. It’s a lovely looking piece of kit, tipping the scales at 6220kg with a fixed headboard minus sides and tailgate.

“Having worked with Marshes previously, we were happy to build the trailer; they are good people to deal with,” says Todd Davis. “I’d like to thank NJ & DM Repairs, too, for their help in the project.”

And now for something completely different The famous Monty Python line

typifies a day in the Scania’s life so well. While there’s generally a seasonal feel to what’s on the back, there’s never a dull moment and whatever needs doing, needs doing, if you get our drift.

“The peak of the season runs from August to May – that’s when it’s busiest. It starts with grass silage, and that runs into maize silage which runs into maize grain,” says Ben. ”Then there’s orchard manure, the kiwifruit season and in amongst it, stock feed. There’s no end to it, really. In terms of the harvesters, they’re all down now for winter maintenance, so the workshops are full bore.”

The previous day, having a walk around the yard, we see the Scania’s sides and bins in their racks, ready to go at a moment’s notice. The bins have power tarps fitted for speed and ease of operation.

“Yep, they’re a good system. Like anything, you must treat them right and keep them clean, maintained, and running free all the time. A little bit of regular housekeeping pays off hugely when the heat’s on.”

Ben’s in control of the machinery side of the business and at times that means stepping out of the truck and into a tractor. “No,

A

With four steps into the low cab, even if you were too short to reach the pedals once in position, at least you’d have no trouble getting there.

rch homeland rival Volvo has the FMX and Scania the XT; trucks designed to ease the operator’s mind in applications less than ideal.

You’ll buy an XT when you don’t want to bring a front bumper, brake pot, cross-member, or axle home in the smoko bag with your clickclack. They can be towed, pushed and pulled, and when under their own steam, it takes a good-sized ground haemorrhoid to foul the underside. The Marsh machine had a groundto-bumper and front-axle clearance of 590mm to 390mm and 390mm respectively.

Obviously, some things make an XT an XT, but there’s still a plethora of driveline specification options that are pretty much shared across the Scania portfolio. Take the Opticruise AMT. There are off-road modes available to facilitate better traction and altered shift parameters when in the ‘goo’, but that feature was specified in the Sea Products highway truck for its life in the Coromandel hills (New Zealand Trucking magazine, June 2021).

It’s an endless bevvy of options, including allwheel-drive variants for when life gets seriously ‘real’.

Key visual point cues with an XT are a higher front bumper made of steel, the underside of which is smooth and rakes down and back – “approach angle” is the term, evidently. The bumper houses a 40-tonne tow pin, and there’s a fold-down access step on top. The headlights are also protected in a steel cage.

There’s the option of an inspection step built into the cab flanks, accompanied by a grab handle on the roof. It allows the driver to inspect the load in big-bodied trucks. Ben’s truck doesn’t have this less-than-elegant, workman-like addition thankfully; not that it’s any use in New Zealand because the step is clearly located at a height no human can manage, i.e. more than a metre from the ground. They’d need to provide a harness attachment.

XT mirrors are of a more robust construction, so flicking the odd macrocarpa or willow branch aside isn’t as big a deal, and the air intake for the motor is also set higher.

If old age or inactivity has erased the range of motion in your hip flexors, you can also get a swingy step that dangles off the last fixed rung and swings out of the way if clunked by something horrible.

XTs come in all cab styles from P through to S. Fill your boots.

New Zealand Trucking

July 2021 27

The Scania has no trouble negotiating farm gateways.

I don’t mind it at all. I like the tractor work. Up until now, I’m the only one who’s really driven the Scania, but that’ll likely change, and I need to think about manning it as the transport work grows.

It’s a hard one because you can’t just put anyone in either the trucks or the machines.

They have to be agricultural people who know the ins and outs of the rural scene. If a chopper [maize harvester] driver or truck driver doesn’t understand how to load trucks on the side of a hill for instance, then it’s likely not going to end that well.

Luckily, I have someone in mind for the truck, so I think

28 New Zealand Trucking

we’re all good.”

In terms of operational boundaries, the Marsh truck will spend most of its life ranging from the far-eastern Bay of Plenty in an arc down and around Galatea, Artiamuri, and Te Awamutu.

“Contractors like Pearce Ag Contractors in Gelatea, AT Cook from Artiamuri, and Whakatane’s PJ Brogden and AB Contracting are good examples of contractors in our business community – people we help and who help us,” says Ben. “Where the grain silos are is the biggest determiner of where the truck goes in the grain season obviously.

July 2021

Because they can’t be moved the product must go to them.

That’s probably the time of year the trucks do the most kilometres. We don’t do huge kilometres as a rule, nothing like a linehaul truck, but in saying that, many of our kilometres are difficult ones.”

Time to bail The baleage job to Galatea is a Pearce Ag Contractors’ job, and the 150km run from Oropi to Galatea will be a good outing in terms of ‘sussing’ the combination. We skirt the edge of Tauranga up through Malfunction Junction, across the causeway, then a right at Bay Park onto the Te Puke

expressway. Once off that, it’s an easy run out around the coast to Matata and then onto Te Teko and Te Mahoe at the base of the Matahina Dam. From there, a decent patch of work commences up and beyond the dam through the rolling hill country alongside Lake Matahina, eventually down the Rangitaiki River Valley, through Kopuriki, and out onto the beautiful Galatea Plains flanking Te Urewera.

A truly stunning part of New Zealand all-round really.

It’s fair to say I held minor trepidations about the ride the XT might offer, considering its all-steel undercarriage and short wheelbase. Ben

must have a sixth sense because without prompting, he says, “You’ll be surprised at the ride. I was.” He was not wrong. When we jumped in mid-trip, the XT rode way better than we expected, with barely an occasional hint this is a truck that means business. There was the mild left-right cab thing that all Scanias have, but in terms of fore/aft, it was pleasant indeed. The fully air-suspended cab does a remarkable job of baring the flag for the brand’s ride reputation. Obviously, being a G cab rather than an R helps with centre of gravity. It would be interesting to have a crack at a day cab R and just see if those occasional hints of a more serious side turned into something more ‘agricultural’ in terms of in-flight comfort.

“Mate, I used to get out of the old Mitsi and I was broken. It’s rough-as, and changing gears all day, I was buggered. In this, it’s like you’ve done nothing.”

At just 20m overall length and with a tare of 18,040kg, the combination is good for 27 tonnes on the deck. The first load had us at about 42 tonnes, and on the second, Ben chucked a few more

bales on to leave a neat truck load remaining.

The complete unit is decked out with scales in one form or another. The truck has a full SI-Lodec cell system, and the trailer has SI-Lodec air-bag sensors. As it turns out, Marsh Contractors is big on the weight of things, with a portable weigh platform business operating out of the engineering workshops. (See sidebar.)

“You wouldn’t be without them,” said Ben. “There can be a lot of variances in the weights of the loads we cart.

So much affects the end product – rain or lack of it, soil, you have to know what’s on the deck. I don’t do the overweight thing. I mean, we live only a few kilometres from the Pongakawa checkpoint.

We pass it every day. You’d be bloody mad to put a kilogram too much on.”

Ten or so kilometres from Matata, we make the switch from SH2 to SH30 via SH34, and then it’s a right just east of Te Teko. Before you know it, the XT is climbing the Matahina Dam wall.

The Scania operates all the time with a useful margin north of that magic 10hp/ tonne. Regular readers will

know what my opinion on that subject is; those who don’t believe it should be a base requirement for HPMV have probably never carted so much as a feather to a mattress factory.

It’s a short climb up onto the dam, after which the road again climbs sharply.

The Scania had little trouble on both ascents, and at the weights it runs, sixth appears to be the highway hero in terms of ‘dig in’ and hang on.

The big climb on the far side of the dam was despatched at 26kph and 1650rpm. It’s a 13-litre so there’s not quite a handshake and exchange of peak numbers at a specific rpm value, but when torque tails off at 1300rpm, the power is still well into the mid 300kW area.

Ben’s in the ‘A’ for easy and ‘M’ for hard club when it comes to the operation of the transmission, and that’s a common finding in trucks not in the super-power club or that cart high-volume, low-weight cargos. It is worth clarifying though that Ben’s idea of hard going is not necessarily aligned with the average black-top bandit’s.

Nothing needs to be said about Scania’s 4100D

retarder. It’s without doubt one of the industry’s barsetters, and along with others of its ilk, has created a clear two-layer environment in terms of options for ‘whoaing’ up the payload. As good as modern engine brakes are, they’re no match for today’s downhill at V1 and no brakes, brigade. Not that Ben’s in that club in any way, shape or form.

He’s set up the Scania so all the descending is managed off manipulation of the brake pedal, a system Andrew Lane recommended to him and one he said is a no-brainer. “Yeah, it’s easy. I just use the brake. I set it all off the descending speed and she does the rest.”

Ben was a volunteer fire brigade member for several years, and it shows in his approach to most things; loading, driving, general ‘truckmanship’… now there’s a word. He’s immensely capable, cautious, with no hint of cavalier, which was reassuring as we approached the hideously shadowed and greasy descent from the Rewewhakaaitu turn-off, down and over the Rangitikei River on Galatea Road. It had Scania and driver in

Ben went for twin rams, and a scissor to help optimise stability.

New Zealand Trucking

July 21 29

full caution mode. There are spots in the narrow box cutting the sun doesn’t find in winter, so it’s a case of tread warily.

Next was a lovely meander down the Galatea Plains. The Marsh truck is not fitted with Adaptive Cruise or Emergency Braking to Stop, and you could argue in the workplaces many XTs are likely to end up, it’s no big thing. Maybe the real trap in this era of some do and some don’t is ensuring that when you swap, you’re fully aware of what you’re climbing into. We have no doubts the time is fast approaching where there’ll be no option.

We arrive at the farm of Mike and Ann Rolfe and motor quietly up the drive and onto the farm race. The Rolfes’ is a classic husband and wife operation that looks extremely well-run if the stewardship around general tidiness and access are anything to go by. Mike’s a big, effervescent character, larger-than-life, and he was having one of ‘those’ days with the yearlings having been naughty while he was trying to get maintenance work done on the cowshed before leaving for a short holiday, the first in two years.

“Bloody hell, she’s all on. Now the air-con on the tractor’s just shit itself,” he says as he alights from the near-new CASE.

30 New Zealand Trucking

1 2

3 1) NTG cockpit is now a familiar place and one we always find appealing in both aesthetics and use. 2) G XT cab is low so there’s an engine tunnel, but it is still ‘crossable’, with useful daily storage. Super easy to clean, too. 3) A void behind the seat that would be enhanced immeasurably with a locker or two, accessible from the outside would be even better.

The bales were to come off by the heard homes, and as you’d expect, with locks in, the XT had no issues at all winding its way around the cow, calf, and implement sheds, through a gate, down the dip in the race past the effluent ponds and up onto a pad in front of Daisy and friends’ winter resorts. Being a short wheelbase 6x4, the turning circle is not far off big ute territory, and it would be interesting to go back at the end of the truck’s life with Marsh and find out the gnarly

July 2021

places Ben’s been able to get the combination. In fact, we just might do that.

“It’s been really good on traction so far. Yes, it’s been towed in and out of jobs, but only places no truck would go, places you wouldn’t even try. It’s certainly got into places the others haven’t managed, that’s for sure.”

We quizzed Ben about central tyre inflation, and he said it was something they didn’t really consider.

“I guess you have to stop somewhere.”

The first straps came off as Mike put the soft hands on the tractor, and before you knew it, Ben was heading back for the second load.

In terms of service life, he thinks he’ll have a look at around the 500,000km mark.

It’ll take a lot longer to amass that tally than, say, a pure highway haulier bought at the same time. If the trucking work grows as is hoped, and the Scania is manned full-time resulting in the kilometres coming quicker, that targeted timeframe for assessment will

likely be adjusted accordingly.

“It was a bit of a dip your toe in and see. If we bought a good machine and offered the service, would the customers respond? At the moment, you’d have to say yes. I get torn two ways more and more now. Whereas early on, I could just park the truck and jump on a machine.”

To date, the fuel consumption is sitting at 2.45kpl (6.91mpg). There’ll be a lot contributing to that number for sure, including load factor, average speed, and the fact the guy paying the bills is driving it. But neither is it all pros. The rigours of the work profile would certainly contribute to plenty of fuel-consuming moments, so it’s still a testament to the engineering harmony in the drive train and the operator.

The Griffin’s workingman’s club Being a G cab and an XT to boot, there’s generally more black finish around the grille, bumper, steps, guards, and lower extremities. But the truck’s work environment, along with the tasteful and not overdone presentation of the rest of the rig, means it all comes together visually.

Having sampled three different R-series cabs in the past three years, the impact of this G XT’s more utilitarian ambience is certainly felt as

you make the effortless threestep ground-to-floor entry.

As Ben said, the Marsh truck was ex-stock, and he says he would have made a couple of minor changes had he been able to spec it up himself. Being a G, it’s lower than an R, with three grille bars as opposed to the R’s four, and that does mean an engine tunnel on the inside.

It’s a small price to pay when you consider the lower cab is handy for things such as access to fert hoppers, clearing trees, etc. Although, Ben did add the roof spoiler to enhance the overall look.

“It had the cab extenders, which was great. I wanted somewhere to put a Griffin logo,” he laughs. “I added the roof spoiler, though. It just needed it.”

Even with the engine tunnel and day-cab roof, there’s plenty of ‘human’ room for driving, and ignoring the hoist control and scale read-out to the driver’s immediate left, there’s also plenty of space to clamber cross-cab if needed.

A day-cab it might be, but in 2021, that doesn’t mean the rear wall is an inch from Ben’s seatback à la FR Mack vibes. Ben says there’s even a flip-down rest bed available if wanted.

Because there are no external access lockers, coats, overalls and the necessities of trucking life end up in the voids behind

The Scania with bins on in the maize field.

Power Tarps make covering easy.

Photo: Brownless collection.

PARABLE LANDS

D

o you know the old fields of diamonds parable? The one that says you don’t have to go looking for ‘diamond’ mines, everything you’ll ever need is under your feet, and it’s you that makes the difference. If you ever wished for a real-life example, look no further than Marsh Contracting in Pongakawa. There is a dozen other ‘chestnuts’ you could hang on them too, aligned to the themes of Kiwi ingenuity, give it a go, all that stuff.

In the two days we spent with Ben, the depth of endeavour behind Neville and Jill Marsh’s 40 years in business became ever more apparent. There’s the contracting and trucking business, grazing blocks, orchards, and even quarrying in the portfolio – nothing surprising there. But then there’s a couple of fascinating gems lurking in the wings, too.

Agriculture and horticulture are seasonal escapades, and options to fill the gaps must never be overlooked.

The engineering workshop that services the fleet of Valtra, JCB tractors, and their implements also manufactures portable platform weighbridges under the name Neville Marsh Weighbridges. Fully portable, the platforms have found homes all over the country, anywhere there’s a need to weigh something for reasons of compliance or compensation. Talking to Ben, we find they’re well entrenched in the transport game, so next time you’re carting off a boat or on a tip job that entails crossing a portable bridge, take a look, it might be a Neville Marsh special.

The engineering bay also makes Marshn Rings.

(No, not landing pads for aliens.) As an agricultural contractor, Neville knows better than anyone the constant risk to machinery a rural environment poses.

It was damage to the tines on the company’s swathers – a mechanical grass rake towed behind a tractor – that spawned the Marshn Ring (the man has a sense of humour, obviously). The ring is essentially a steel band that bolts to arms attached to the core device protecting the tines from anything not wanting to be fluffed up. They fit most common brands, and Ben says they’re often fitted by many OEMs pre-sale.

You just have to love New Zealanders willing to give things a go and get shit done!

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July 2021 31

Mike whipping off the first load in the morning and second at day’s end (facing page). the seats. We thought at least one little locker accessed from outside would be a good idea. Other storage?

There’s a small overhead locker front and centre, a big catch-all between the driver and passenger and a pull-out drawer in the centre console

with the Scania oddments, tray and cup holders on top.

The finish is all about business, with rugged plastic, vinyl and rubber the only show in town. It’s perfect for this truck. Carpet would just make you scream, and whoever’s on cleaning duty

could literally get this thing looking like a new pin with a mop, bucket, a can of Mr Muscle, and a cloth.

Driving-wise, it’s pure Scania; there’s nothing unfamiliar at all. If you drove Owen’s S730 at Talley’s or Bomb TeHuia’s R620 at Sea

Products, you could jump in Ben’s lorry and shoot off for a load of grain.

All the advantages of the NTG’s big screen and driver possie are here. It is a superb set-up.

There’s no snazzy red framing on the binnacle, but the gauges are superbly clear. Trip, telematics, driver coach etc. are in the central data screen mid-binnacle, and infotainment, switches, climate, tractive effort, and brake levers are on the wrap.

Steel springs mean the only airbag the driver can adjust is the seat. Scania does a busy tiller – again, you know where we stand there, too.

(For those who don’t, we say it’s less than ideal in New Zealand and especially so in this sort of application.)

The left spoke is landlord to music and phone, the right,

A WINDOW TO THE WORLD

I

f Kiwis knew the mix, breadth, and in some cases, depth of knowledge staring back at them from the windscreens of the trucks they pass, I’m sure they’d be flabbergasted. In our travels, we’ve met all manner of folk from a zillion different backgrounds, and Ben Brownless adds abundance to the rich fabric of characters who make up the wheelmen of this land.

If you see the Marsh Scania coming towards you and you’re willing to take a punt, say to whoever is with you, “I bet you a ‘hundy’ that the guy driving this truck has been a roadie, tour manager, and sound engineer for some of the country’s best-known bands.” If your travelling companion agrees, and Ben’s at the wheel (and there’s a better than odds-on chance

Ben Brownless has seen and done a lot in his 43 years.

A man of machines and music, he’s chosen Scania to get Marsh Contracting’s transport arm humming.

32 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

he will be), then you’ll be one red note closer to your dreams.

Raised in the Awakaponga rural area between Matata and Edgecombe, 43-yearold Ben and his family are long-standing and respected dairy farmers in the area.

From school, he went into the family business and stayed there for the thick end of 20 years, progressing from worker cadet into management, and eventually, 50/50 sharemilking with his own heard of cows.

“I just got to the point where I’d had enough.

Farming’s a great industry, and I’ve never been shy of work. I just needed to explore other things that interested me.”

Ben’s passion in life, outside of all things work, is music, and mates from school

vehicle data. The toggles at the bottom of the hub accommodate cruise and descending. The left wand is where you go if you want to wipe the screen, indicate or dip, and the right wand when you shift or retard. (There’s descending there too, FYI.) Scania does the busiest driver’s door sill in the game, too. It creates a nice wrap and cockpit feel to the driving experience. But we’re still not sure about the headlight switch being there. Yeah... na.

Individual quirks aside, few would argue, the NTG has one of the best sheds in the business.

Our next rendezvous with the XT was carting pumice for race rock from the Marsh’s Marball Orchard Pumice

Quarry just down the road from headquarters. There were five loads to a farm in Maketu, a mere 30km roundtrip. It typifies the endless variation in the Scania’s life.

With a bit of the wet stuff around in days leading up, and early morning dew, Ben

had the rear end locked up motoring around the quarry on the first load. By the time we got back for the second she was all good – no locks, happy days.

The Marsh family has owned the quarry about three years. The Chinese Lovol

digger passes three tonne at a time, so that’s nine visits from the bucket, and we’re off at 45 tonne.

“I was contemplating an automatic ring-feeder, but the pumice gets stuck in them and causes problems.”

Yesterday it was long leads,

in Whakatane had gone on to form the well-known band, Kora. Post the farm, in about 2008, he took on a job as roadie for the group.

Concurrent with the roadie work, he qualified in audio engineering, and it wasn’t long before his studies and the practical, organisational and management skillsets he’d built up while farming paid dividends. Ben took on roles with increased responsibility, including tour manager and production manager. By the time he ended his band touring adventures in early 2015, he’d travelled the world with names that included not only Kora, but Shapeshifter, Shihad, and Katchafire.

“It was a fantastic time, but that life is really hard. People don’t realise. It’s pack-up, setup, hotels, moving, constantly moving. Touring is hard, hard work.”

A quick spell at home farming and working in his brother’s contracting business, and it was time to

tick off another bucket-list item, one that had him back on the land, this time in the USA – Fargo, North Dakota, to be exact.

“I’d always wanted to do a grain season over there, so I signed up with a firm in Christchurch that sources labour from around the world and off I went. It was just amazing. I loved it. That’s where I was introduced to trucks – big old Kenworths and Internationals. The operation I was with was one of the smaller ones, so it was good. We all got on and did everything from harvesting to carting the grain, to moving the harvesters. Huge distances from job to job – the scale over there is impossible to convey to someone who hasn’t been. Truck stops with literally hundreds of trucks parked up.”

Home from the grain season in late 2015, Ben went back to the family farm before helping bandmates on the summer domestic tour season.

Once he did that, he

answered an advertisement for work at… you guessed it, Marsh Contracting, as a machinery operator.

“I didn’t want to do the trucks, particularly. I’d felt I’d done that, but there were trucks here, and it seemed a waste not to have those skills on tap if they were needed.

Trouble was, I did things the opposite way around. I got all my heavy licences in the States and needed to convert them to New Zealand. I was just in time before the laws changed, so the US licences were recognised here when I did it. Personally, I think that’s ridiculous because their system is way better, much more thorough than ours; and they’re quicker to progress you through. You must do tests for loading, restraining, braking – everything, really.

The precheck walk-around and fault identification test is so thorough.

“When I did the changeover, I had to do our driving-hour modules, and while I was at it, I did

wheels, tracks, and rollers.

I’d like to mention Peter Crombie from PJ Licencing in Mount Maunganui. He’s bloody amazing and knows everything there is. He made it all really easy.”

That was six years ago, and Ben’s now happily ensconced at Marsh Contracting. Of course, in typical Ben Brownless style, his attributes have seen him progress, running the operations for the trucking and contracting sides of the business and having a financial interest in the new truck. Ben’s partner, Tammy Marsh, takes care of the commercial side of the operations.

“It’s great. I enjoy it, and there’s lots of variety, and always something on. Rural industries have that inherent trap in that you could work 24 hours a day, seven days a week if you wanted. There is never any end, so you must manage that aspect for sure.

Simply put, it’s a way of life.”

Mission ‘Impumicebale’

New Zealand Trucking

July 2021 33

S P E C I F I C AT I O N S

Scania G500 XT B6x4 HZ Tare: 11,420kg (Load Certificate) GVM: 28,500kg GCM: 100,000kg Wheelbase: 4640mm Engine: Scania DC13 Capacity: 13 litre

Stev Trai

Power: 373kW (500hp) Torque: 2550Nm (1881lb/ft) Emissions: Euro-5 Transmission: Scania Opticruise GRS905R 14-speed Clutch: Scania K432-48 Front axle: Scania AM600T Front-axle rating: 7500kg Front suspension: Parabolic spring with shock absorbers and stabiliser bar Rear axle: Scania RPB735 hub reduction with diff-lock at 3.65:1 Rear-axle rating: 21,000kg Rear suspension: Parabolic spring with shock absorbers and stabiliser bar Brakes: Drum EBS, ABS Auxiliary braking: Scania R4100 retarder Additional safety: Hill Hold today the XT is the village delivery truck, nimble and easy to poke here and there.

Before we knew it we were at our destination, certainly no need for Stag Park or Riverlands today.

“We wanted the length in the trailer and the pay-off was drawbar length so you can’t jack-knife it,” says Ben. It was a dump-and-run scenario, with Dan the weather man predicting shyte in the coming days. Way back when, she’d have been a pressure day in the good Albion Riever to get 130-odd tonne of pumice done in front of the looming weather – but in 2021, with power, gears that change themselves in 0.6 of a second, and under four loads to the 100 tonne, Ben’s only issue is what happens once this job is complete.

Better work stories If trucks had a Cars-style motion picture and there was a scene where the Scania met up with some mates for an ale at a bar, it would have great

34 New Zealand Trucking

work stories, that’s for sure.

Seriously though, how do you buy a truck for this line of work? Agricultural contracting is one of those occupations that pushes the boundaries in terms of defining the word ‘utility’.

For Marshes to get what it wants from a machine, it needs that variant built to take on what may. One that is a bit ‘meatier’, one that has better clearances, is easy to manoeuvre, won’t be hit, or more to the point, damaged, by all and sundry dangling down or sticking out in front of it. One that is easy to clean and keep presentable. It must also be quick to operate – like a big field tractor, no faffing about with changing gears. It must be able to cart off the paddock one day then rack up 600km the next, delivering not just its load of baleage to the customer, but its owner at the end of the day feeling fresh and fantastic.

Are there such trucks? Ben Brownless seems to have found one.

Fuel: 400 DEF tank: 80 Wheels: Alcoa polished alloy Tyres: Front: 385/65 R22.5 Rear: 295/80 R22.5 Electrical: 24V Cab exterior: CG low roof steel, air suspended, exceeds ECE-29 safety, XT high clearance bumper with additional inspection step and 40-tonne tow pin, stone guard and headlight protection, air management kit with roof and side skirts, roof-mounted spot lamps, grille-mounted fog lamps, and day running lights, heated remote mirrors with spotter mirrors, mechanical tilt.

D p o

T L

Cab interior: XT Interior – durable surface treatments, air-suspended driver’s seat in vinyl, and fixed vinyl passenger seat, climate air conditioning, infotainment, remote locking.

Acknowledgements On behalf of New Zealand Trucking magazine and our readers, many thanks to Ben, Tammy, Neville and Jill for your time, and allowing us to feature your new Scania G500 XT and five-axle Davis & Hay Contracting Ltd (Engineers) trailer. It was a fun, and as is so often the case, inspirational couple of days.

Thanks also to Todd Davis, Davis & Hay Contracting Ltd (Engineers), and Deon Stephens and Andrew Lane, Scania New Zealand. Thanks to Mike and Ann Rolfe for farm access.

Mcl Trai Balc

July 2021

NZT 21

Steve Martin Contracting Trailer Manufacturer: HDPS engineering

RFH Trailer Manufacturer: Transfleet

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Tipping Units, Bulk Haulage, Logging and Weighbridges

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AWE McNicol Trailer Manufacturer: Patchell Industries

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Rotorua and Christchurch Phone: 07 349 4700

www.silodec.co.nz NZT 21034 SI Lodec FP NZT.indd 1

17/06/21 9:25 AM

CUSTOM CORNER

MIDGET

ON A MISSION

Early influences on a young truck enthusiast have over time manifested into the passion and desire to build this 5/8th scale mini-Kenworth. The attention to detail would have the R&D team at Renton, Washington State, breaking their necks for a double-take.

Story by Carl Kirkbeck

Photos by Jonathan Locke and as credited

A

few months ago, I received a call out of the blue from a good mate and fellow Kenworth enthusiast. He told me about a project nearing completion that I had to see with my own eyes to believe, as well as capture the backstory behind the man responsible for it. Enter Michael Morey, aka ‘Flea’, owner of EDS Truck Shop in Pukekohe.

Flea’s story begins some years ago as a young fella. He was brought up around all things trucking; his father, Terry Morey, was a driver for local Kenworth icon Ian Spedding during the late 1970s. “I would go with Dad any chance I got, even if it meant I had to be in bed early for an early start,” said Flea. “I would also go help him on Saturdays washing the gear at the yard, and as payment, I’d get a pie and a Fanta.”

It is no surprise that in the presence of Kenworth royalty, passion for the marque would rub off on a young Flea. “I would always ask Ian for any spare Kenworth stickers he might have, then take them to school to trace around onto my drawings.

I was well and truly hooked on Kenworth by then.”

When visiting the Ellerslie Truck Show one year, Flea was really bitten by the bug.

A locally built mini Kenworth etched a lasting impression on the young lad’s grey matter. He made a promise to himself that one day he would build and drive a mini K-Whoppa just like it.

Leaving school at 16, Flea qualified as a trade-certified mechanic. This led to jobs with the likes of Stevensons, Cummins and Detroit. There was also a stint at the wheel of a tipper. However, a return to the trade was the catalyst for change in the late 1990s, with Flea starting his own company. Contracted to a local onion grower, he maintained and rebuilt many of the International and Kenworth trucks in its

Ellerslie Truck Show, a few Fantas ago, and the mini big rig that started it for Flea. Photo: Morey Collection fleet. One project of significance was the right-hand-drive conversion and set-up of an imported American W900L Kenworth.

This impressive truck would later become some of the inspiration for the miniKenworth build.

Time spent working for Southpac Trucks and contracting to Northchill eventually led to the decision to go the next step and set up a workshop, giving EDS a physical address and a roof over its head. During smoko breaks, Flea began a search to see what examples of mini Kenworth rigs already existed. A couple of trips overseas also assisted in the search. Flea met with Stuart Herne in Australia, who himself had recently purchased a T600 Lil Big Rig out of Nashville, Tennessee. The company Lil Big Rig specialises in the production of Peterbilt 359 and Kenworth T600 lookalike mini rigs.

“They build a great product in Tennessee, and Stuart’s workshop finished his to a high standard. But it quickly became obvious it would not fit my

requirements as it would be too difficult to have it comply and gain New Zealand certification. Still, the information Stuart gave me was just awesome,” says Flea.

On returning home, Flea bounced ideas off his good mate Boyd over several months and many cold beers. It led to the decision to do the job right and build a 5/8th scale Kenworth mini big rig from scratch.

The first step was to purchase a donor Chevy pick-up truck, one that drove well and had all its paperwork ready for compliance. Flea then tracked down a handful of old T-series Kenworth cabs that would be the basis of the build. After sitting a T-series cab in place, it was a pleasant surprise to find that with some minor sectioning, it would virtually bolt right up.

Designing the layout of the cab required some accurate measurements to ensure that the driving position and control placement was comfortable and correct. With Flea’s Toyota Hilux and the

The plywood mock-up hood awaiting the application of 12 large pots of bog and hours of sanding. Right: Nearly halfway through the build, and things are beginning to take shape. Photos: Morey Collection.

New Zealand Trucking

July 21 37

2

1 Anti-clockwise from above: 1) Little K-Whoppa a Midget on a Mission; 2-5) The absolute essence of a Kenworth – captured inside and out. 6) Bigblock 454, mild but seriously wild.

Reddington T900, he was able to compare, calculate and obtain the required set-up for the little KW. The next challenge was to handcraft a bonnet, one that paid homage to the W900L as well as the T900 – the two Kenworth models for which Flea has a passion. The bonnet started as a plywood mock-up to give the basic shape; the application of 12 large tins of bog, hours and hours of sanding and a coat of 2K paint achieved the required plug ready for fibreglass.

“It felt like it weighed a tonne, but the result we got from it was a mint one-piece fibreglass hood constructed just like the real one.”

Next, the pedal box assembly needed to be fitted

3

4

5

6

and the right-hand drive conversion completed with allnew factory parts. Alongside these tasks was the in-house design and manufacture of a rear tag axle. There were challenges achieving accurate wheel alignment, so a custom camber adjustment set-up was fabricated in the workshop and now all six wheels are tracking together perfectly.

With the rolling chassis pretty much taken care of, it was onto the fabrication of a 5/8th-scale replica of an authentic Kenworth dome-top 36” sleeper cab.

This started with a steel frame, then hand-made aluminium panels and fibreglass roof pod were fitted using a process identical in Kenworth factories the world

When I grop up I want to be a Kenworth... Hang on!

“As many genuine Kenworth items as possible were used as well as Kenworth build techniques, which truly captured that authentic factory-fresh look.” over – huck-bolts along with body adhesive.

The original factory-fitted 350 Chevy V8 gave way to a fully rebuilt and mildly warm big-block 454. This was then coupled to a rebuilt 4L80E transmission. The transmission is fitted with a CompuShift standalone controller, giving many programmable features.

Flea has cleverly made the little KW look like a 15-speed RoadRanger is fitted. However, the manual-looking gear lever is, in fact, the shift lever for the auto transmission – a very cool touch. From the transmission, it is back to the diff, which is a standard Chevy 10-bolt unit, definitely big enough to take the horsepower sent its way.

To ensure that the package is kept at optimal running

temperatures, it was customfitted with an aluminium radiator and hand-made fan shroud and transmission cooler mounts.

The next challenge was the interior, and it had to have that West Coast deep-buttoned feel. Using parts and cutting panels down to size from three separate genuine Kenworth interiors, the mini cab and sleeper were lined and colourmatched.

Flea then scaled down a full-size T900 dash and made a plug to suit. This was then fibre-glassed and vacuumwrapped, giving a very realistic look and feel.

New gauge and switch panels were fabricated with classic North American woodgrain finish and have

been fitted out with genuine Kenworth instruments and switches. The heater and de-mister are both fully operational. Open the fuse box and, yes, there is a full complement of original Kenworth circuit breakers. This caused the auto electrician some grief as he had to use heavier gauge wiring to fit.

“The auto electrician has done an awesome job of harnessing all the wiring to give it that tidy factory-fitted OEM look, which is exactly what I was looking for.”

The entire cab and sleeper were insulated with Dynamat to maintain an orderly sound level when cruising and the factory foam inserts were also retained. The sound system is Alpine with a blend of

component speakers, and a pair of eight-inch subs are tucked away for that deepdown impact.

Finally, the driver and passenger seats needed addressing. Obviously, a pair of air-ride Eldorado hi-backs was not going to fit this application, so two slender hi-back seats were acquired from an old Japper, reupholstered to match the interior and bolted into place.

What cannot be seen by the naked eye is the work that went on behind the scenes before the interior was fitted to meet compliance and certification requirements.

A full steel roll cage has been fabricated to fit within the cab structure with no visible evidence. Alongside this, solid

New Zealand Trucking

July 21 39

‘Kylie’ and Flea looking forward to the upcoming season of shows and cruising. Photo: Morey collection.

steel frame plates with crush tubes and high tensile bolts have been used to anchor it all to the chassis.

“All this extra work was required to ensure that the seatbelt anchorage points complied, so we overengineered it all to exceed the certification requirements and make sure there was no failure,” explains Flea.

As many genuine Kenworth items as possible were used as well as Kenworth build techniques, which truly captured that authentic factory-fresh look. Where required, parts were handcrafted to scale to replicate the real item while maintaining correct proportions – for example, the fuel tanks and tank-mounted entry steps.

The eye-catching metallic blue paint was done in a bake oven by the team at Counties

Auto Painters. Then it was off to John at Sign Shed, near Tuakau, to apply the stripes and signage.

“The paint and artwork really has captured all that I was looking for,” says Flea.

“It is the little details like the KW bug laid out with my EDS company logo in the centre of it and the scrolls on the fuel tanks replicating the ones Ian Spedding has on his trucks.”

The tare of the donor Chev pick-up was just over two tonnes when purchased, and now at the completion of the build, the little KW tips the scales at just under 2.5 tonnes, not too shabby considering the amount of fabrication that has been applied to the rig.

The fifth wheel is not just for decoration. It is certified and has the capability of being used to pull a caravan or the like, but as Flea says, “the little

KW is a street rod with lots of shiny stuff and is purely built for cruising and shows”.

Flea says the rig has taken three years and more than 7000 man-hours to build. He is quick to add he has no idea of what it cost to build but feels he probably could have purchased several new T909s for the same level of investment. But it was never about the dollars; it was about a lifelong dream to build, own and drive a little K-Whoppa.

What Flea has captured in his mini-Kenworth build is remarkable. It is not just a mild lookalike. Instead, it’s the very essence of what makes a Kenworth a K-Whoppa.

Every 5/8th scale detail can be recognised immediately, from the handcrafted dash panels to the alloy tank steps. The level of finish and attention to detail is phenomenal.

As you look through the split

THANKS FROM FLEA First, I would like to thank my wife Belinda (‘Kylie’), for fully backing me throughout this project – support that I could not be without. Also, a big thanks to my righthand man and EDS workshop foreman Jarrad, aka ‘Scooter’, for his massive efforts.

And a huge thanks to all those who have also had a hand in one way shape or form. In no particular order: Boyd, Terrance, Weston, Mouldie, Ray, Marcus, Alex, Perrett, Jason, Chris, Johno, Mark, Paddy, Stuart Herne, Dobbsy, Stevo, Russ, Noel, Jonny, Northchill Ltd, Brett, Wayne, Simon, Louie, Jamie, Phil, Hodgey and Marko.

windscreen across the hood, all your senses tell you that you are sitting in a Kenworth, yet deep inside your subconscious bells are ringing, alerting you to the fact that something is different. Riding in the ‘Flea Liner’ is a surreal and disorientating experience for the consummate Kenworth enthusiast.

But far out. It is so damn cool!

BOY Happy 80th birthday, Dad. Thanks for being a part of the ‘Flea-Liner’ project … you’re a top man.

Photo: Morey Collection.

40 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

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GORE TRUCK SHOW 2021

ALWAYS A GOOD ONE AT GORE Precisely 111 trucks presented themselves for the 2021 Gore Truck Show parade, a great number for a truck show at this time of year.

The Dynes Transport turnout attracted a good crowd – helped by a mild day, weatherwise.

T

he T410 SAR Kenworth from Invercargill’s Eden Haulage took away the King Rig award at the 2021 Gore Truck Show held on Queen’s Birthday weekend.

Aaron Callender, its operator, had it looking well on top of its game.

The competition must have been hot, with Dynes Transport presenting two incredible new T909 Kenworths to coincide with its 50 years of business. And the

Story and photos by Craig Andrews

company stole the show overall: 51 trucks in blue graced the main street of Gore, and while not taking away the top award, the team won 11 others, including Best Kenworth, Best DAF, Best Logger, Best Tanker, and Best Timber Cartage Vehicle.

Best Fleet eluded Dynes, with Freight Haulage from Invercargill taking that award with a trio of impeccable FM12 Volvos.

A very hard-working committee

would like to acknowledge sponsors from all over the country. A special thanks to Jason and the team at Transport Repairs, and Bruce at McDonough Contracting.

Again, a huge round of applause to the companies and operators who took the time to enter and clean their machinery. Your ongoing support is immensely appreciated.

Mark Eales and his new mount taking out Best Logger for Dynes Transport.

Local company K2 Contracting had a big presence at the show.

Plenty of variety on show.

The TK Bedford belonging to Brett Hamilton, Catpowered with a matching trailer.

Taking a day off from carting cows were these three K200s from the Road Transport Logistics stables.

Marhall’s Excavating Trident, Mrs Boss.

New Zealand Trucking

July 21 43

The beautifully restored F10 Volvo in Pavroc livery earned plenty of attention.

There’s always an impressive spreader or two at the Gore Show. Jamie Ferris took the prize back to the Switzers Valley Transport office.

Change of marque for Jolly Earthworks with a new Isuzu joining the fleet: Nathan Brenssell taking away Best Isuzu on the day.

GORE TRUCK SHOW 2021 RESULTS New – 40,000km | Sam Gare, Dynes Transport | Kenworth T909 40,000 – 100,000km | Lawrence Eltringham, Freight Haulage | Volvo FM12 100,000 – 400,000km | Cheese, Switzers Valley Transport | Mack Super Liner 400,000 – 700,000km | Lilly Anderton, Dynes Transport | DAF 700,000 – 1,000,000km | Lou Barclay, Dynes Transport | Kenworth T408 Over 1,000,000km | Josh Lankshear, N.P Stewart | Seddon Atkinson Seddon Atkinson from Nigel Stewart took away three categories with Josh Lankshear at the helm.

How it was and how it is: contrasts were aplenty with several vintage vehicles at the show.

Part of the Best Fleet: Freight Haulage’s FM Volvo.

Best Best Best Best Best Best Best Best Best Best Best Best

DAF | Lilly Anderton, Dynes Transport Freightliner | Jade Muirhead, Andrews Transport Hino | Carl Rutherford, Northside Sand and Gravel Isuzu | Nathan Brenssell, Jolly Earthworks Iveco | Richard Gutschlag, Fire and Emergency NZ Kenworth | Sam Gare, Dynes Transport Mercedes-Benz | James Peters, Healy Transport Mitsubishi | Renee Brown, Fulton Hogan Nissan-UD | Andy Brockbank, McEwan Haulage Scania | Brendon Lloyd, BLH Holdings Volvo | Lawrence Eltringham, Freight Haulage of other | Josh Lankshear, N.P Stewart (Seddon Atkinson)

Best Best Best Best Best Best Best Best Best Best Best Best Best Best

Lights | Sam Gare, Dynes Transport | Kenworth T909 Linehaul | Greg Anderson, RTL Logger | Mark Eales, Dynes Transport | T909 Kenworth Tip Truck | Cheese, Switzers Valley Transport | Mack Super Liner Timber Cartage | Pumba McColl, Dynes Transport | Kenworth K200 Curtainsider | Brendon Lloyd, BLH Holdings | Scania Bulk Sower | Jamie Ferris, Switzers Valley Transport | Scania G450 XT Stock Truck | Neil Renowden, N.J Renowden Transport | Kenworth K200 Tractor Unit | Brendon Lloyd, BLH Holdings | Scania Tanker | Gurdeep Singh, Dynes Transport | T610 Kenworth Passenger Vehicle | Doug Evans, Ritchies Coachlines Light Vehicles | Carl Rutherford, Northside Sand and Gravel | Hino HW Richardson Group | Lawrence Eltringham, Freight Haulage | Volvo FM12 Paint Job | Eden Haulage | Kenworth T410 SAR

Furthest Travelled | Paul (Skippy) Thompson, Dynes Transport | Kenworth K200 Tidiest Oldest Working Truck | Reuben Bruce, RTL | Kenworth K200 Best Refurbished Truck | Josh Lankshear, N.P. Stewart | Seddon Atkinson Best Vintage | Mark Chalmers, Dynes Transport | LW Kenworth Best Fleet | Freight Haulage Best Female Driver | Lilly Anderton, Dynes Transport | DAF Best Crane Truck | Cameron Ramsey, Hokonui Haulage | Iveco People’s Choice | Sam Gare, Dynes Transport | Kenworth T909 KING RIG 2021 | Aaron Callender, Eden Haulage | Kenworth T410 SAR

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TOP TRUCK

X-WAY

IS THE RIGHT WAY IN THE BUSH Log truck driver Graeme Dempsey is no stranger to New Zealand Trucking magazine nor the yearly Top Truck award. This month, our Top Truck is his latest machine, a new Iveco X-WAY 570.

T

he year was 1991 and at the movies everyone was wowed by the special effects in the year’s top movie Terminator 2 – Judgement Day. Young lovers were looking into each other’s eyes while listening to Bryan Adams’ hit Everything I Do (I Do it for you) on CD. And the New

Story by Mark Amer

Zealand Trucking magazine team was up in Ashley Forest in North Canterbury photographing a stunning silver 3235 MercedesBenz log truck owned by McCarthy and Wilshire Transport (MWT) of Rangiora for the monthly Top Truck award.

The Mercedes-Benz was driven

by Graeme Dempsey, who at the

Photos by Craig McCauly

time already had a formidable career in the logging Industry in North Canterbury.

Fast-forward 30 years to 2021 and the movie special effects are better, the music is worse, and the New Zealand Trucking magazine team is back in the Ashley Forest photographing another stunning log truck driven by Graeme

“the New Zealand Trucking magazine team is once again back in the Ashley Forest photographing another stunning log truck driven

by Graeme Dempsey.”

The 8x4 Isuzu SHH self-loader that Graeme drove for TNC in Rangiora. Photo: Chris Hoult.

Dempsey, again for the monthly Top Truck slot. This time it’s an Iveco X-Way in the well-known livery of Steve Murphy Ltd (SML).

After leaving school, Graeme started his career at Transport North Canterbury (TNC) as an offsider. He worked on general freight and furniture trucks, such as TK Bedfords, and drove lime sowers for the Rangiorabased company. Eventually he got into the logging arm of the business, driving a flat-deck six-wheeler Isuzu fitted with a front-mounted crane mainly delivering posts, progressing to an 8x4 unit with a rear-mounted selfloader set-up.

Graeme has pretty much had one job his whole life.

From when he started at TNC, he has carried on his employment with various owners as the companies

he worked for have been bought. TNC was taken over

by Transpac and eventually the log division of that illfated company was taken over by newly formed company, MWT in 1988.

At the time that happened, Graeme was driving an International T-Line, before climbing into the MercedesBenz 3235 that not only won the monthly Top Truck but also went on to win him the Top Truck of the Year title in 1991.

Graeme continued driving the Mercedes until about 1993 when he switched from driving to the role of dispatcher, a job he held until 2008 when MWT was bought

by SML. All MWT staff were offered jobs with SML, at which time Graeme came back to driving a log truck.

SML has a long history in the Canterbury logging

scene, starting with owner Steve Murphy driving for various companies before branching out on his own in 1980 as an owner-driver in an FR Mack contracted to Odlins. Today owners Steve and Chris Murphy run an immaculate operation based in Kaiapoi.

The company runs more than 45 trucks of various makes servicing the forestry industry throughout Canterbury. SML trucks are no strangers to the Top Truck pages, having three previous winners, including the prestigious Top Truck of the Year title.

The new Iveco X-WAY, selected as this month’s Top Truck is the latest addition in the SML fleet. It is powered by a Cursor 13 Euro-6 engine, which produces 419kW (570hp) at 1900rpm and maximum torque of

New Zealand Trucking

July 21 47

The Iveco cuts beautiful lines and proportions in the Ashley Forest, and at 425kW (570hp), it’s a serious trucking proposition.

2500Nm (1844lb/ft), which runs through a 12-speed Iveco Hi-Tronix 12TX2420 two-pedal automated transmission. Under the rear end are Meritor MT23150/D diffs fitted with drivercontrolled diff locks riding on Iveco 8-bag air suspension.

The new X-WAY is fitted with Patchell lay-over

bolsters and was set up by the team in SML’s own workshop. It tows a Patchell five-axle drop-chassis multibolster trailer, which runs on Hendrickson drum brake axles and air suspension.

The Iveco is fitted with Alcoa Dura-Bright alloys rims, and extras include an Ali-Arc front bumper, TractionAir

C.T.I, SI-Lodec scales, leather seats, and plenty of extra lights to help Graeme on those early morning starts. It was sold by Dale Greaves at Star Trucks in Nelson, which continues a relationship with SML that started more than 25 years ago.

Graeme and his X-WAY

can be seen anywhere in the Canterbury region, carting from any number of forests or farm blocks into the local mills or the wharf at Lyttelton. We’re sure they will both be a familiar sight on Canterbury’s roads and forest tracks for many more years to come.

Photo: Mark Amer

(Left) Graeme in 2021 at 59 years ‘young’ with his new Iveco X-WAY. (Right) There have been a few sticks hauled in the Canterbury region since this photo was taken. At the time – April 1991 – Graeme Dempsey’s MWT Mercedes-Benz 3235 had been selected for the New Zealand Trucking magazine Top Truck. He also went on to take the Top Truck of the Year title for that year.

48 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

The new Actros.

A truck ahead of its time.

Setting the standard in long-distance and heavy-distribution haulage, the ground-breaking new Actros is more comfortable, economical and reliable than ever before1. Featuring innovations like the Multimedia Cockpit, MirrorCam, Active Brake Assist 5 and Predictive Powertrain Control – it’s designed to reduce fuel consumption, boost vehicle use and offer the driver all the support they need.

To see the new Actros for yourself please contact your local dealer.

1

Compared to the previous model.

Please note: changes may have been made to the product since this publication went to press (July 2021). The manufacturer reserves the right to make changes to the design, form, colour, and specification of the product. The images shown are to be considered examples only and do not necessarily reflect the actual state of the original vehicles. Please consult your authorised Mercedes-Benz Truck Dealer for further details. © Daimler Truck and Bus Australia Pacific Pty Ltd (ACN 618 413 282). Printed in New Zealand.

Authorised North Island Dealers Keith Andrews Trucks Ltd Ph: 0800 487 825 www.keithandrews.co.nz

Authorised South Island Dealers CablePrice Ltd Ph: 0800 555 456 www.cableprice.co.nz

Just Truckin’

Around

www.trt.co.nz

Joel Collins and Phil Schischka A side trip to Whangamata for the Beach Hop meant Faye Lougher was in the right place for a Just Truckin’ Around with Joel Collins and Phil Schischka.

Joel had been doing building removals for some time when 18 months ago his boss asked if he wanted to buy the company, and he and Phil now own House Transporters together.

The impressive 2009 Sterling LTR with an automatic gearbox and 550hp Detroit Diesel was being loaded with a house to be transported to Taumarunui.

Joel has been in the house moving industry for about eight years and says it’s all he wants to do. “I started off driving the little crane truck and worked my way up. I like carting houses but not driving empty.”

Joel’s greatest wish is for the public to be better educated about pilot vehicles and wide loads and what to do when you meet them on the road.

His vexing question was America’s Cup or Round the World Yacht Race – well, he wouldn’t be much of a Kiwi if

he went for anything other than the America’s Cup, would he?

Phil’s been driving for about 24 years in total and has done a stint as an owner-driver. Despite being Joel’s business partner, he says he’s the backup driver and has to fight to get in the driver’s seat.

He thinks the greatest issue in the industry today is that it’s too cutthroat, and there’s not enough money for living the Kiwi dream.

His vexing question was pyjamas or the full monty. He just smiled and said, “not PJs!”

Tracy Mahy On a recent holiday, Craig Andrews caught up with Wanaka-based Tracy Mahy, who does the hard yards collecting glass recycling from the streets of Hawea.

Tracy drives a specialist bit of kit in the form of a 2019 Mercedes-Benz Econic 2630 L, dedicated to collecting recyclables and waste. The glass collected was destined for Wanaka’s Waste Management depot to be sorted.

She enjoys this work and appreciates a nice comfortable truck with airconditioning on hot Central Otago days.

The local scenery is also a highlight for her in this role. It is something that she never gets tired of.

The poor driving habits of road users around the region do, however, frustrate her. But that is about the only brickbat.

Tracy’s backstory involves farming for most of her life, and her driving history is relatively young at only four years. She does recall a Volvo G88 being the first truck she drove while on the farm.

50 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

Before getting onboard with Waste Management, she drove buses for Ritchies for two and half years, mainly running between Queenstown and Dunedin.

The Merc is one of six Econics collecting recyclables and rubbish from around the Queenstown Lakes District

region, three each in Wanaka and Queenstown. A smaller truck is used for town bins and areas where the bigger Mercs cannot access.

The waste management role is Tracy’s first foray into driving big gear and one she is quite happy doing.

Just Truckin’

Around

www.trt.co.nz

Connell Duffy Connell Duffy had travelled from Invercargill to Taupo when Alison Verran saw him refuelling at the Wairakei BP Truckstop.

Connell was behind the wheel of a Freightliner Argosy powered by a Detroit Diesel DD15 engine. He drives for Southland’s Titiroa Transport, located just a stone’s throw from Invercargill. His usual rig is another Argosy with a 600hp Cummins engine.

Connell usually runs locally around Southland carting livestock, but jumped at the one-off opportunity for a trip to the North Island.

He used to enjoy dairy farming but always hankered to cart livestock. He’s been driving for two and a half years now and loves sightseeing around the country, as well as meeting new people every day.

In terms of any downside, he feels the rules and regulations in the livestock cartage industry are probably it.

When presented with the important question – Holden or Ford? – Connell had no hesitation at all with his preference… Holden!

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BACK DOWN THE ROAD A BIT

1

2

NORTH ISLAND LINE-HAULIN’ This month, the gallery slot goes to our very own Carl Kirkbeck, a.k.a. ‘Capt K’. A young transport industry enthusiast growing up in Thames during those exceptional years from the mid-1970s to mid-1990s, Carl looked for every reason to get out and capture linehaul action.

A

s with many of us growing up in that era, television shows and movies such as Movin’ On, BJ & the Bear, Smokey & the Bandit, and Convoy were huge influences on Carl.

School holidays found him in the passenger’s seat of Neville ‘Yogi’ Chambers’ W-model Kenworth, a local contractor to Thames Sawmilling Co. Yogi gave Carl his first taste of ‘over the road’ Kiwi styles – taking a load of kiln-dried timber through to Otaki in his brand new

3 5

Kenworth T600A, with an overnight stop in Taupo involving a good session with a couple of lads from Mogul Road. “That was a damn long day, that one,” says Carl.

“This experience ignited the desire to see more of the industry at work, and through my late teens, the camera was never far from hand, and I was always at the ready to snap a Polaroid or two of typical Kiwi rigs carrying the country.

“Here are a handful in my collection that might stir a few memories.”

4 6

1) As Carl mentioned above the trip to Otaki with Neville ‘Yogi’ Chambers in his brand new Kenworth T600A ignited a desire to see more of the linehaul industry at work. 2) R&L Main was one of the real grafters on the North Island linehaul routes when general freight was carted under covers... many covers.

Here Peter Hollis’ Scammell S26-40 is loaded with hay just North of Marton, ready for a night run through to Matamata. 3) Still warm following a run North to Whangarei from Auckland, Tony Stratton’s stunning Western Star. An early example of Dynaflex pipes in New Zealand. 4) Glorious names of linehaul’s past don’t come any more nostalgia-filled than the Hawkes Bay’s Produce Freighters. Here an FR Mack 8x4 sleeper with a 3-axle trailer gathers strength prior to a blast Eastward, ex Dominion Breweries, Otahuhu. 5) What study of New Zealand linehaul would be complete without Murray Yeoman’s legendary K-model Kenworth Aerodyne. Carl happened upon Murray loading at Pukekohe one Sunday afternoon ready for another run South. 6) A classic early 80s C Series ERF, ‘Midnight Magic,’ having a breather at Stag Park. The truck shines in one of our famous New Zealand transport liveries.

52 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

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AUSSIE ANGLES

DOUBLE REDUCTION IN THE

DUST

The Goldfields region of Western Australia is one of the most inhospitable and hottest places in the country. In fact, since the late 1800s, it is often referred to as one of the loneliest of “God’s acres”. And that makes it one of the best places to investigate how Sisu hub-reduction rear axles survive in the arduous heat (and dust).

Story and photos by Howard Shanks

T

he Sisu axles in this Kenworth C509 originated half a world away in the cool climate of Southern Finland, a far cry from where they operate today. My Western Australian journey begins at Leahy Haulage’s West Kalgoorlie depot. I’d arranged to catch up with owner Murray Leahy to discuss the advantages of specifying the Sisu hubreduction final drive axle for his operation.

Out in the heart of the Goldfields, one of Murray’s C509s is toiling hard in the intense summer heat. If you can find a bit of shade anywhere to stand under, you’ll quickly discover it is a tad over 45°C. However,

out on the side of the road, it’s even hotter. So much so, I needed gloves to prevent burning my hands on the hot metal arms of the camera tripod. It’s undoubtedly a good testament to the durability of components in this road-train combination hauling such enormous loads in this intense heat.

An hour or so later, the familiar deep reverberation of a Cummins engine brake signalled the arrival of Greg Loughlin. He was taking me for a run to collect a load of gold ore and see how the Sisu rear axles performed firsthand.

Greg was heading for the Fairylands ore pit, part of the Lawlers mine project, which also comprises the sites of Great Eastern, Hidden Secret,

Tri-drive, doublereduction, singularly cool.

54 New Zealand Trucking

Golden Swan and New Holland. The Lawlers mine is an underground mining operation located on the Norseman/Wiluna Greenstone Belt, approximately 900km northeast of Perth. Today, Lawlers is a ghost town with little left to mark its existence.

It got its name from Patrick Lawler, who first discovered gold there in 1892. At one stage, the town’s population was more than 8000, and it was the third-largest in the state. But more on that another time.

In more recent history, the Lawlers mine operation has made the most of its abundant mineral reserves, with an annual average production of 234,000 ounces of gold. To put that into a dollar value, at the time of writing, the price of gold was about AU$2300 (about $2500) per ounce, which loosely translates to an annual average turnover of AU$538 million (about $581 million).

Greg swung the C509 around in a wide arc to get

his three trailers arranged in a straight line, ready to load at the mine site. A sudden gust of wind swirled a thick blanket of dust over the truck. “Those wind gusts are common out here,” he pointed out.

Dust is arguably the worst enemy of internal combustion engines and truck drivers alike.

The fine dust particles quickly find their way into air cleaners, and in these conditions over a short period, drastically reduce the efficiency and economy of the engines.

When these big 625hp engines work hard, they can gobble up more than 45,000 litres of air per minute. That’s as much air as a human breathes in four days.

Dust suppression around the mine site and on haul roads is vital for the health and safety of the workers and equipment. However, sourcing the crucial water required for dust suppression can often be as hard as extracting the precious gold ore.

The Lawlers mine, like many Western Australian mining operations, is located in an arid area where the water is limited, and the local supply may be of poor quality.

Consequently, the mining companies build storage and treatment plants to conserve local water supplies.

In addition, at most sites, approximately 17% of the water is recycled. However, Greg explained that they

C509 – a brutish machine.

July 2021

recycle as much as 70% of the water at some mine sites.

Nevertheless, my assignment was to investigate the rear axles on this C509.

As stated, they are heavyduty Sisu FR3P-48 hubreduction tridem. The main advantage of this type of planetary drive axle in heavyhaulage operations is its ability to reduce the burden on driveshafts under extreme loads. Sometimes, this style

of rear axle is referred to as a double-reduction final drive because it has one reduction in the differential centre and a second reduction out on the wheel hub; consequently, they’re also known as hubreduction axles.

Double-reduction axles certainly have superior strength and durability because the gear down occurs in two stages, a tremendous asset when loads are 200

tonnes or more. Consequently, with extreme loads, during lift-off, as the truck works up through the gear changes, there is a wide fluctuation in torque through the driveline as the engine revs rise and fall. Torque is spread across a greater gear area in double-reduction rear axles, significantly reducing the risk of sudden axle failure due to massive reverse torque.

There are three separate

oil reservoirs, one around the crown and pinion and one in each wheel-hub end.

Accordingly, this means that on steep gradients, especially if the vehicle is facing the slope, the oil level remains at a level where it will continue to cool and lubricate bearings and meshing gears.

If there is a downside to hub reduction rear axles, they are not as fuel-friendly as singlereduction rear axles.

115 tonnes of gold ore takes some moving.

New Zealand Trucking

July 2021 55

Inside the Sisu hub-reduction axles.

The Neway AD369/10 Tridem rear suspension is a good marriage with the Sisu FR3P-48 rear axles and incorporates a nontorque reactive parallelogram suspension geometry.

The design of the Neway AD359/10 reduces driveline noise and vibration by maintaining a more constant driveline working angle during axle articulation and high torque input.

Furthermore, it minimises the effects of pinion angle change caused by high torque input that can exceed the maximum recommended driveline working angles, including acceleration with heavy loads and climbing steep grades.

Likewise, the parallelogram geometry reduces chassis frame rise due to suspension wind-up. The suspension

assists the driveline in maintaining proper cancellation angles, which promotes extended universal joint life. It is crucial with short inter-axle shafts, such as with tandem and tridem drive-axle configurations.

With the C509 now loaded, Greg climbed back into the air-conditioned cabin, turned off the fast idle and began to fill out his paperwork. Then it was down to the business side of the job. With a 155.2tonne payload, the 625hp Cummins under the hood was undoubtedly going to get a workout as it sent its tenacious torque down the driveline to the Sisu hub reduction axles.

The cabin shuddered as the road train lifted off, and 155 tonnes of gold ore rolled out of the mine site.

S P E C I F I C AT I O N S

KENWORTH C509 Engine: Cummins Signature Power: 462kW (625hp) @ 1600rpm Torque: 2779Nm (2050lb/ft) @ 1100rpm Gearbox: Eaton RTLO22918B 18-speed Clutch: 2250ft/lb Ezy Pedal Advantage Front axle: Meritor FL941 Front suspension: 8.2T slipper Rear axles: SISU FR3P-48 Rear-axle ratio: 4.89:1 Rear suspension: Neway AD369/10 Tridem Main driveline: Meritor RPL25 Inter-axle driveline: Meritor RPL20 Electrics: Power distribution box under sleeper Brakes: WABCO antilock braking system with traction control Fuel: Alloy 4 x 450-litre Wheels: 10-stud polished alloy Bumper: Alloy bullbar Extras: Twin CR turbo 2000 air dryer with heater, chassis checker-plate, dolly pull to rear of chassis, freshwater tank

Driver Greg Loughlin.

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INTERNATIONAL TRUCK STOP

Jan’s favourite truck is this DAF 2300.

A CROWN WITH MANY

JEWELS Take a tour with us through this impressive collection of rare European trucks (plus three Macks) spanning the second half of the 20th century.

Story and photos by Paul O’Callaghan

I

t’s almost hard to know where to begin describing Jan Lewiszong’s spectacular collection of classic trucks, which numbered 40 when I called to see him in March 2019.

Although not from a transport background, Jan developed an interest in trucks from an early age, a passion that hasn’t faded over the years. The young Dutchman began by driving trucks offroad on weekends before he even had a licence. He even bought his first truck, a Reo

58 New Zealand Trucking

tipper, while still at school, which he used off-road on building projects in his native town of Druten in the east of Holland.

Although the Reo was his first truck, his first “official truck”, as he describes it, was a Fiat 690, bought because it was cheap and used on international work. Another Fiat followed as a replacement before Jan switched to DAF trucks, running three 2600s and a 2800. He continued as an owner-operator up until 1988 when he began to expand the July 2021

business.

In partnership with his son Joep, 38, Jan runs a fleet of 20 DAF XF and two Scanias on mainly domestic work, providing cartage for companies such as Curries of Dumfries. The DAFs range in horsepower from 440hp to 480hp – perfect for the flat terrain of the Netherlands.

However, the Lewiszongs prefer the highest-powered motors from their respective generations when it comes to the classic collection.

Joep has inherited his

father’s passion and is currently restoring a tag-axle Streamline 143 Scania, which is being fitted with a Netherlands-made Esteppe high-roof conversion.

An R-cabbed 144 530 is also at the paint shop, while a second 530, this time a 4x2, sits outside.

Scanias feature quite prominently in the collection, with the oldest being an LB 76 from 1963. However, one of the most impressive Scanias is a 1973 140 4x2 model with an interesting history. As Jan explains: “The 140 was sold

The DAF 2000 DO sleeper cab was Jan’s dream truck. here in the Netherlands before it was exported to Italy, where a tag axle was added for special transport. It then returned here through the dealership of Companijen, which sold it to a truck driver who ran out of money before he began the restoration.”

The engine had been replaced with a 141 engine, something Jan rectified by fitting the correct 140 engine.

The restoration, handled by a specialist, took two years to complete and was only finished in 2018. Other Scanias in the collection include a tag axle 141 and two 142s; one a pre-intercooled tag version,

the other a rare intercooled model converted to twin steer configuration by Beers, the Scania importer at the time.

Of particular interest to those fond of 1990s trucks is a T-cabbed 143 with a custom interior, which the Lewiszongs have owned for 19 years, and which was once an integral part of their haulage business.

Jan explains that his driver at the time was hellbent on altering the inside. “I’m not a fan of those interiors and told him he could pay for it himself if he wanted it. I regret allowing it to happen at all.”

One of the rarest trucks in the collection is a Ford

The Fiat 690 reminds Jan of his first official truck.

Transcontinental, which Jan bought unseen from Norway.

Although the truck looked good in the photographs, the cab was quite rotten, and the whole truck underwent a complete restoration by Visser Truck Restauratie in North Holland, costing somewhere north of €100,000 (about $170,000). The truck, built at the Ford plant in Amsterdam, is powered by a 350 Cummins engine and is the only tag-axle Transcontinental in Holland.

As with some but not all of the fleet, the truck is painted green and white. Although Jan never had this scheme as his fleet colour of choice, it was

adapted from a 111 he bought and perfectly complements his classic collection.

Naturally, DAF trucks are plentiful, with one of Jan’s favourites being a 1964 DAF 2300, although he says his dream is to own a sleepercabbed model. All of his trucks are on the button, starting the first time and bringing a broad grin to his face as he savours the distinctive engine note of each. He confesses to preferring tag axles and says his 2600 is the only singlewheeled tag left in existence, and he’s been swapping parts from his 4x2 model to keep the tag axle in top condition.

Visser Truck Restauratie carried out a nuts and bolts restoration of the Ford.

New Zealand Trucking

July 21 59

In the corner of the shed is a first-generation 2800 DKS, which dates from 1980 and was imported from France. The truck is 100% original, with a 13-speed Fuller gearbox.

Another 2800 of similar vintage, a 2800 6x4 rigid, was built for the South American market, although it never actually made it that far and had spent its life in Holland on a potato farm. Back in the workshop, a second-generation 2800 is undergoing restoration.

Two of the first models of the Super Space Cab – a black DAF-powered 95 360 and a Cummins-500-powered model finished in factory yellow – are also rare items.

It’s perhaps not common knowledge that DAF also built trailers until 1979, and it’s fitting a DAF tilt trailer should feature in the collection.

In terms of Volvo trucks, there is everything from a 1964 495 model, which Jan’s cousin previously owned, to an ex-German F88, a very early ex-Norwegian flat-topped F10 from 1977 with only 85,000km on the clock, an ex-French F16 500 (he’s owned seven F16s in total) and three v1 FH16s. The XL-cabbed model came from Poland, while the two relatively unusual flat-cabbed, tag-axled models are one-owner Dutch trucks, driven by a father and son team who used them to pull flat trailers equipped with steering axles.

Some of the more obscure trucks in the collection include a 1978 Leyland Marathon. The left-hand drive truck was sold in the Netherlands and has a Fuller nine-speed gearbox.

“Joep tells me to sell it, but I like it too much to sell.” That

The interior of the Scania 140.

said, Jan likes to mix “a little bit of business” with his hobby and may part with some of his collection once the price is right.

Similarly, a 1973 Pegaso 2080 holds a special place in the collection as Jan proclaims to love the sound of its engine.

Given that he sold the truck in 2004, only to buy it back again, I certainly cannot doubt his enthusiasm for the Spanishbuilt truck.

Another rarity is the 1980 Magirus model. Given that the V12 model was only sold in Italy, Jan bought his truck from that country and does not know of another V12 tractor unit in existence anywhere else.

It is only natural that the collection should feature a Dutch-built FTF (Floor Truck Fabriek) truck, especially seeing as the former production facility is only 10km from Bergharen.

Jan’s 1988 model, which he bought in 2000 when he also purchased the T143, emits a distinctive note from its V6 Detroit two-stroke engine. But that’s not the only Dutch-built brand here, as there is also a Perkins-powered Hogra. Hogra trucks were built in Ravenstein, just 11km from the Lewiszongs’ base, from 1954 until 1959, and Jan can recall driving one in his childhood.

There are also three Macks in the collection and, of course, a Fiat 690 T2, which was Jan’s first ‘official’ truck. The righthand-drive vehicle, imported from Italy, is in beautiful condition inside and out.

Thanks to Jan and Joep Lewiszong for taking the time to share their amazing collection of trucks.

The big Ford Transcontinental towers over the Scania 140.

Pre-intercooled Scania 142 tagaxle alongside the Volvo 495.

Scania Vabis sic-cylinder engine sounds great, according to Jan.

The Leyland Marathon left hooker is rare indeed.

Twin-bunk Ford Transcontinental was ahead of its time.

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SWEET ON THE ‘PALETTE’ OPERATOR: Tumu Transport, Hastings ENGINE: Volvo D16G 522kW (700hp) TRANSMISSION: Volvo I-Shift 12-speed AMT REAR AXLES: Volvo RTS2370B single reduction – 23 tonne REAR SUSPENSION: Volvo RADD-A8 air suspension

BRAKES: Disc EBS/ABS SAFETY: Full safety suite BODY/TRAILER: Domett body and five-axle trailer FEATURES/EXTRAS: Air management kit, stone guard, stainless-steel toolbox and dunnage rack doors, Alcoa DuraBright alloy wheels

SAVING THE BEST TO ALMOST LAST? WHAT A STUNNER OPERATOR: Murlicht Transport, Waharoa ENGINE: PACCAR MX13 381kW (510hp) TRANSMISSION: Eaton Roadranger RTLO20918B 18-speed manual REAR AXLES: Meritor 46-160 REAR SUSPENSION: AG 400 series

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BRAKES: Disc EBS, ABSS BODY: Custom set-up: Southpac Hamilton / Body: Domett FEATURES/EXTRAS: Side skirts, Alcoa alloy wheels, stainless-steel guards and toolbox doors, DAF door trims, additional lights PAINT/SIGNAGE: Fleet Image

w w w. t r g r o u p. c o . n z 62 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

OPERATION: Timber and packaging SALES: Scott Robinson

OPERATION: Rural and general freight, North Island-wide DRIVER: Taylor ‘Greenie’ Green SALES: Scotty Haberfield

NEW STAR IN THE BAY Western Star 4884 FXC – 8x4 tractor OPERATOR: Toll Logistics/JCM Transport, Napier ENGINE: Detroit Diesel DD15 418kW (560hp) TRANSMISSION: Eaton FO-20E318B-MXP 18-speed AMT REAR AXLES: Meritor RT 46-160GP REAR SUSPENSION: Airliner 46,000lb BRAKES: Drum EBS, ABS BODY/TRAILER: Penske Trucks, Tauranga FEATURES/EXTRAS: Deep stainless V sun visor, LED aerials, extra and lights on rear of cab, smooth alloy chassis covers and full-width tail-light bar, twin stacks, high-rise air snorkels with RAM intakes, polished alloy bumper with stainless-steel stone guard and headlight surrounds, air ride driver and passenger seat PAINT/SIGNAGE: Marty’s Signs, Tauranga OPERATION: Container cartage, Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne DRIVER: Ash Ward SALES: Paul Bristol and Jeff Dacombe

TORR’S HAMMER OPERATOR: C & A Torr Log Transport, Napier ENGINE: Cummins X-15 15-litre 448kW (600hp) TRANSMISSION: Eaton Roadranger RTLO20918B 18-speed manual REAR AXLES: Meritor 46-160 REAR SUSPENSION: Kenworth AG 460

Kenworth K200 8x4 rigid – 2.3m flat roof BRAKES: Drum EBS, ABS BODY/TRAILER: Kraft Engineering – truck and five-axle trailer FEATURES/EXTRAS: Twin stacks and intakes, roof-mounted air-con, painted drop visor, stainless steel fills steps and cab, extra marker lights, wooden steering wheel, fridge

SIGNAGE: Caufield Signs, Rotorua OPERATION: Log cartage, Hawke’s Bay DRIVER: Craig Torr SALES: Mark O’Hara

Free phone: 0800 50 40 50 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021 63

NEW RI GS ON THE R OAD

SEALING THE DEAL! OPERATOR: McEwan Haulage, Dunedin ENGINE: UD GH11TD 11-litre 343kW (460hp) TRANSMISSION: UD ESCOT-VI 12-speed AMT REAR AXLES: UD single-reduction hypoid REAR SUSPENSION: UD 8-bag ECAS

UD QUON GW26-460 6x4 rigid double-acting shock-absorbers BRAKES: Disc EBS SAFETY: Traffic eye cruise and braking, emergency braking system, lane departure, UD Stability Control BODY/TRAILER: Hardox body with swinging tail door, Transport Engineering, Mosgiel

NEW GRIFFINS IN THE ‘SHIER’ OPERATOR: Williams and Wilshier, Rotorua ENGINE: DC16 16-litre V8 463kW (620hp) Euro-6 TRANSMISSION: Scania Opticruise GRSO905 14-speed AMT REAR AXLES: Scania RBP735 hub reduction REAR SUSPENSION: Scania spring suspension BRAKES: Drum EBS, ABS SAFETY: ACC (Adaptive Cruise Control) BODY/TRAILER: Patchell Industries

Scania R620 8x4 rigid (x2) FEATURES/EXTRAS: SI-Lodec scales, Bigfoot CTI PAINT/SIGNAGE: Haddock Spray Painters 2003, Whakatane OPERATION: Log cartage, central North Island SALES: Callan Short

w w w. t r g r o u p. c o . n z 64 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

FEATURES/EXTRAS: Alloy wheels, reversing camera.

PAINT/SIGNAGE: Brownlie and Scoles, Dunedin OPERATION: Carting from diggers and seasonal seal duties in and around Otago DRIVER: Andy Brockbank SALES: Harry Cuttance

RIPE FOR THE TRUCKING OPERATOR: Freshways Transport, Gisborne ENGINE: Cummins X-15 15-litre 459kW (615hp) TRANSMISSION: Eaton UltraShift PLUS MXP 18-speed AMT

International ProStar T8 8x4 tractor

REAR AXLES: Meritor RT46-160 REAR SUSPENSION: IROS BRAKES: Disc EBS, ABS BODY/TRAILER: Intertruck Engineering FEATURES/EXTRAS: Air management kit, Ali Arc bumper, premium trim

OPERATION: Container cartage, nationwide DRIVER: Campbell Anderson SALES: Hugh Green

HERE TO HAUL – BIG TIME! Volvo FH16 700 8x4 rigid OPERATOR: Total Log Haulage, Waverley ENGINE: Volvo D16G 522kW (700hp) TRANSMISSION: Volvo I-Shift 12-speed AMT – off-road software REAR AXLES: Volvo RTS2370B single reduction – 23-tonne REAR SUSPENSION: Volvo RADD-A8 air suspension BRAKES: Disc EBS/ABS SAFETY: Full safety suite BODY/TRAILER: Mills-Tui – log gear and five-axle trailer FEATURES/EXTRAS: Resting package, Volvo roof accessory bar PAINT/SIGNAGE: Display Associates, Whanganui OPERATION: Log cartage, lower North Island DRIVER: Sid Wyatt SALES: Scott Robinson

Free phone: 0800 50 40 50 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021 65

new kiwi bodies & trailers New Zealand Trucking brings you New Kiwi Bodies & Trailers. Bodies and trailers are expected to last twice as long as trucks, and new technology and advanced design features are showing up almost every month.

New Zealand has a rich heritage of body and trailer building, and we’re proud to showcase some recent examples of Kiwi craftsmanship every month. If you want a body or trailer included on these pages, send a photo, features and the manufacturer’s name to trailers@nztrucking.co.nz

Two’s company A mega B-train? No. Two quad-axle semi-trailers stacked and heading for their new home with KiwiRail Holdings. The big semis are from a fleet order of trailers and are kitted out with twist-locks for all occasions. The plethora of ferry hooks will no doubt see plenty of use. Although purposeful in

appearance, the thermoplastic guards and polished alloy wheels give the big boys a professional look.

Features: ROR SL9 disc-brake axles and air suspension.

Patchell Industries

Keep truckin’ logs A slick K200 ‘K-whopper’ heads an equally slick Patchell Industries log set-up for Napier based KTL Transport Ltd. The truck sports a painted steel cab guard, fixed stanchion layover bolsters, alloy tank protectors, and SI-Lodec onboard weigh systems. In tow is a five-axle EVO4 I beam chassis trailer, with stainless-steel slides and flange side protectors – to keep the fixed stanchion central bolsters happily sliding away. In permanent place at either end are two more fixed stanchion bolsters. The overall look of this immaculate gig is polished off with Alcoa Dura-Bright alloy wheels.

Features: (Trailer) Hendrickson INTRAAX disc-brake axles and air suspension.

Patchell Industries

KIWI 16/17

Contact John O’Donnell 027 226 9995, Jim Doidge 021 190 1002 or Hayden Jones 0800 549 489 | sales@kiwityres.co.nz |

0800 KIWI TYRES (0800 549 489) | kiwitrucktyres.nz 66 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

KIWI 175

Multi-tool At the end of the day, a truck is a tool of utility and the more utility you can extract from every dollar invested, the better. Toma Logistics in Tauranga recently commissioned local trailerbuilding wizards, Total Transport Engineers LP, to fit out a pair of Foton Auman EST M4s with 20’ container-compatible twist-locks and detachable rear mini-decks for the cartage of containerised furniture. The black Rhino plastic guards and rear under-run protection bumper make for a professional presentation.

Features: 20’ container subframe, rear mini-deck.

Total Transport Engineers LP

Another logger on the ‘Borl’ Borlase Transport is to logging in Nelson what little silver balls are to the top of a pav. The Tasman stalwart has just commissioned this DAF CF85, resplendent with Patchell Industries log gear, has a galvanised-steel cab guard, tank protectors, muffler and battery protectors, and Bigfoot CTI. Gliding along behind the DAF is a five-axle billet wood low-height EVO4 I beam trailer with nice

shiny JOST alloy wheels and Bridgestone shoes.

Both units are equipped with ExTe air-operated load restraints.

Features: (Trailer) Hendrickson INTRAAX drumbrake axles and air suspension.

Patchell Industries

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New Zealand Trucking

July 2021 67

RHINO PHOTO OF THE MONTH COMPETITION

STARS AND LAKES

T

he Rhino photo competition is really turning into a North/ South ‘anything you can do…’ bonanza, and Justin Remnant from Northern Southland

Transport has fired a doozy!

Justin snapped this gem of him launching one of Real Journeys’ vessels into Lake Manapouri with his Mercedes-Benz AXOR 1833 sewer.

It hits every bullseye we could hope to hit. A photo taken in the act of work that shows variation, scenery, everything that is trucking in New Zealand – as well as an image that few, if any, others

are likely to possess.

Thank you, Justin, for the photo. You are our Rhino Photo of the Month winner for July 21.

GO IN THE DRAW TO WIN $800 TO SPEND AT RHINO NZ

PHOTO OF THE MONTH Each month we will select the best photo from readers and publish it in NZ Trucking magazine plus social media.

The industry leader in mudguards (aluminium, stainless steel, plastic), chassis poles, saddle and clamp mountings, toolboxes and a large range of accessories.

Visit www.rhinogroup.co.nz to see the full range.

Entrants agree to their name and photo being used by NZ Trucking and Rhino for marketing purposes.

Photos must be Hi Res 3MB+ showing Trucks working in our great NZ environment.

Email pics to editor@nztrucking.co.nz

68 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

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MINI BIG RIGS

A Mack Super Liner from the Road Metals fleet complete with new Volvo digger.

JUST ADD DIESEL A passion for trucking and working with timber has resulted in a hobby that has led to a full-time venture for Mosgiel-based Craig Andrews.

J

ust over three years ago, Craig Andrews decided to build an old Marlborough Transport Atkinson pulling A-trains loaded with wood freight. A Refrigerated Freight Lines Kenworth also pulling A-trains was next, and then a Waitaki Transport Volvo G88, once again pulling

A pair of piano cab International Accos. The Longmans truck (right) existed as an A-train, but the McLarens Transport (Ranfurly) livery didn’t. McLarens ran the Acco, but not as a tractor unit pulling two trailers.

70 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

the favoured combination – A-trains.

The first three were sold on Trade Me and made barely any money – building those early examples was slow going. Craig cut most of the components with a jigsaw and a hand saw. Detail was limited as everything was time-consuming, and ways

to do certain things had not been devised yet.

As time progressed, a new scroll saw entered Craig’s workshop, but that was too small and was eventually replaced with a bandsaw.

That and a drop saw were game-changers.

The process was further sped up by Craig deciding

An International 3070 of MG & PW Blackwell from Duvauchelle, near Christchurch. It was built for Wayne Blackwell, who used to own the company.

Is there anything more South Island than a Mack Ultra Liner in the colours of Tuapeka Transport from Lawrence?

to make things to a specific width and scale.

Roll the clock forward to today and his hobby has began demanding more attention. Not long ago, Craig created a Facebook page, and Just Add Diesel! Wooden Replica Trucks was born.

“The Facebook page was created to see just how much interest there was. There has been plenty,” said Craig.

“About 99.9% of the builds are to order – milk tankers, low loaders with dozers and diggers, bulk trucks, curtain-siders, logging trucks, spreaders, and livestock trucks have all been done.”

Craig says the old-school subjects are his favourite.

“A Volvo G88 or 3070 International on livestock is right up there. Especially if the sheep crates have the oldstyle fuel company signs on the front of them – they look great.”

There are many on Craig’s own list of subject matter.

“There are so many cool New Zealand trucks, such as the Lendich sleeper-cabbed W-model Kenworth, Southern Transport’s first Mack Super Liner with A-train trailers on livestock, and the Volvo F10 my dad drove at West Otago Transport. They would be at the top of my ‘want to build’ list.”

But for now, it is all about keeping customers happy.

Everything is hand-painted – the most time-consuming part of a build. No stickers are used. One truck is done at a time unless there is an order for two of the same truck.

“Getting them to look like the real thing is key. For that to happen, you need detail and correct scale. Mirrors,

An International T-Line owned by Ross and Jenny Small from Fielding.

A Ryal Bush DAF and a DT Kings UD Quon.

Both units are spectacular.

New Zealand Trucking

July 21 71

An Aztec Haulage ERF C-Series with a B-train load of mixed freight.

A Mercedes-Benz LPS338 in the colours of Mossburn Transport from Southland.

An iconic RFL Mack R Model with its A-train trailer set-up, built for one of its original drivers.

A big Mitsi from the JD Lyon fleet. It was built for a fan of the company who held fond childhood memories.

roof lights and stone guards are now standard. If the real truck has wide tyres on the steerers, then the replica has wide tyres. If the mud flaps have Bandag logos on them,

retirements or just to go on display in the customer’s company office or man cave.

“A lot of customers have a fond memory of a truck they used to drive, and it’s my job

then the replica gets them.

I’m always trying to find ways to make them better,” he says.

The builds have been popular for birthdays and

WHEELS AT WANAKA MEMORIES

YO HA YO WA

to replicate it as close to the real thing as possible.”

Just Add Diesel! is on Facebook, and there’s a website on the way later this year.

For the next 12 months we will bring a pictorial memory from this year’s phenomenal Wheels at Wanaka event, just to keep the embers well and truly lit!

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HAMMAR HAMMAR HAMMAR 130: 130: 130: HAMMAR 130:HAMMAR HAMMAR HAMMAR 130: + Versatile + Versatile + Versatile – handles –130: handles –130: handles two two 20’ two 20’ containers 20’ containers containers or or one or one one

+ Versatile – handles + Versatile +two Versatile + Versatile 20’ containers – handles – handles –container handles two ortwo one 20’ two 20’ containers 20’ containers or or one or one one HAMMAR HAMMAR HAMMAR 195: 195: 195: 40’ 40’ 40’ container container via via 3via cranes 3 containers cranes 3 cranes HAMMAR 195:HAMMAR HAMMAR HAMMAR 195: 195: 195: 40’ container via 3 40’ cranes 40’ container 40’ container container via via 3 via cranes 3 cranes 3 cranes + Versatile + Versatile + Versatile – PrecissionLeg™ – PrecissionLeg™ – PrecissionLeg™ forfor optimal for optimal optimal stabilising stabilising stabilising + Unique + Unique + Unique – middle – middle – middle crane crane crane folds folds folds into into into chassis chassis chassis to to to

+ Versatile – PrecissionLeg™ + + + –– PrecissionLeg™ ––optimal PrecissionLeg™ –– tare PrecissionLeg™ stabilising forfor optimal for optimal optimal stabilising stabilising stabilising + Unique + Versatile Light + Versatile Light + Versatile Lightfor low low low tare tare + Light – low tare + Light + Light + Light – low – low – tare low tare tare + Strong + Strong + Strong – 36-tonne – 36-tonne – 36-tonne Safe Safe Safe Working Working Working Load Load Load (SWL) (SWL) (SWL) or or or + Strong – 36-tonne + Strong + Strong + Safe Strong Working – 40-tonne 36-tonne – 40-tonne 36-tonne – 40-tonne 36-tonne LoadSafe (SWL) Safe Safe Working Working orWorking Load Load Load (SWL) (SWL) (SWL) or or or option option option 40-tonne 40-tonne 40-tonne 40-tonne option option + Stable + Stable +option Stable– legs – legs – legs extend extend extend foroption for firm for firm firm base base base and and transfer and transfer transfer + Sliding + Stable – legs extend + + + for firm –– legs ––base legs ––each legs extend and extend extend transfer for for for firm firm base base base and and transfer and transfer transfer + Stable Weighing + Stable Weighing + Stable Weighing by by by each each crane crane crane orfirm or total or total total + Light + Weighing – by each + Weighing + crane Weighing + Weighing or – total by – by – each by each each crane crane crane or or total or total total + High + High + High liftliftlift – ideal – ideal – ideal forfor stacking for stacking stacking option option option + Strong + High lift – ideal + for High + stacking High + High lift lift lift – option ideal – ideal – ideal for for stacking for stacking stacking option option option + Reach + Reach + Reach– long – long – long outreach outreach outreach cranes cranes cranes + Stable + Reach – long outreach + Reach + Reach + Reach cranes – long – long – long outreach outreach outreach cranes cranes cranes + Ease + Ease + Ease – crane/stabiliser – crane/stabiliser – crane/stabiliser side-by-side side-by-side side-by-side design design design + Reach + Ease – crane/stabiliser + Ease + Ease + Ease side-by-side – crane/stabiliser – crane/stabiliser – crane/stabiliser design side-by-side side-by-side side-by-side design design design + Safety+™ + Safety+™ + Safety+™ – computer – computer – computer monitored monitored monitored handling handling handling asas std as stdstd + Ease + Safety+™ – computer + Safety+™ + Safety+™ + monitored Safety+™ – computer – computer handling – computer monitored as monitored std monitored handling handling handling as as std as std std + SDS + SDS + SDS – Hammar – Hammar – Hammar Soft-Drive Soft-Drive Soft-Drive System System System + SDS + SDS – Hammar + SDS + SDS Soft-Drive + SDS – Hammar – System Hammar – Hammar Soft-Drive Soft-Drive Soft-Drive System System System + Flex + Flex + Flex – Trailer – Trailer – Trailer or or Truckmounted or Truckmounted Truckmounted + Flex + Flex – Trailer + Flex or + Flex +Truckmounted Flex – Trailer – Trailer – Trailer or or Truckmounted or Truckmounted Truckmounted

– middle + Unique crane + Unique + Unique folds – accommodate middle –into middle – accommodate middle chassis crane crane crane to folds into into chassis chassis chassis to to to accommodate afolds single afolds single ainto single 40’ 40’ 40’ accommodate a single accommodate accommodate accommodate 40’ a single a single a single 40’40’40’ + Joiners – handle two containers simultaneously withwith joiners + Sliding + Sliding + Sliding – for – for –maximum for maximum maximum payload payload payload with with a single a single a single 20’20’20’ – for maximum + Sliding + Sliding + Sliding payload – for – for with – maximum for maximum a maximum single payload 20’ payload payload with with a single a single a single 20’20’20’ – only – only 7.57.5 tonne 7.5 tonne tonne tare tare tare with + Light + Light + Light – only – only 7.5 tonne tare – only – only – only 7.5 7.5 tonne 7.5 tonne tonne tare tare tare + Light + Light + Light + Strong + Strong + Strong – 16-tonne – 16-tonne – 16-tonne Safe Safe Safe Working Working Working Load Load Load (SWL) (SWL) (SWL) – 16-tonne + + Strong + Working 16-tonne 16-tonne 16-tonne Load Safe (SWL) Safe Working Working Working Load Load Load (SWL) (SWL) (SWL) + Strong Stable + Safe Stable + Strong Stable –– legs –– legs –– legs extend extend extend forSafe for firm for firm firm base base base and and transfer and transfer transfer – legs extend + Stable + Stable + Stable for firm – legs – base legs – legs extend and extend extend transfer for for firm for firm firm base base base and and transfer and transfer transfer + Reach + Reach + Reach– long – long – long outreach outreach outreach cranes cranes cranes – long outreach + Reach + Reach + Reach cranes – long – long – long outreach outreach outreach cranes cranes cranes + Ease + Ease + Ease – crane/stabiliser – crane/stabiliser – crane/stabiliser side-by-side side-by-side side-by-side design design design – crane/stabiliser + + + –– crane/stabiliser –– crane/stabiliser –– crane/stabiliser design side-by-side side-by-side side-by-side design design design Hammar Hammar Hammar Soft-Drive Soft-Drive Soft-Drive System System System + Ease SDS + Ease SDS + Ease SDS side-by-side – Hammar Soft-Drive – Hammar – System Hammar – Hammar Soft-Drive Soft-Drive Soft-Drive System System System + SDS + SDS + SDS + Flex + Flex + Flex – Trailer – Trailer – Trailer or or Truckmounted or Truckmounted Truckmounted – Trailer + or Flex + Flex + Truckmounted Flex – Trailer – Trailer – Trailer or or Truckmounted or Truckmounted Truckmounted

HAMMAR 110:

+Fast –new SledgeLeg™ technology, 50% faster +Narrow – SledgeLeg™ use for confined spaces +Light –from 8.4-tonne tare +Safe –optimal crane geometry +Reach – long outreach cranes +Weighing – by each crane or total

Every Every Every freight freight freight delivery delivery delivery is is different, is different, different, soso our so our three our three three high-performance high-performance high-performance HAMMAR HAMMAR HAMMAR models models models are are designed are designed designed forfor your for your your needs. needs. needs.

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NEWNEW ZEALAND NEW ZEALAND ZEALAND MADE MADE INMADE INNew INNew Hammar Hammar Hammar New Zealand Zealand Zealand Ltd, Ltd, 16 Ltd, 16 Marphona 16 Marphona Marphona Cres, Cres, Cres, Takanini, Takanini, Takanini, Auckland.

Auckland.

Auckland.

0800 0800 0800 2 HAMMAR 2 HAMMAR 2 HAMMAR sales.nz@hammarlift.com sales.nz@hammarlift.com sales.nz@hammarlift.com www www www hammarlift.com hammarlift.com hammarlift.com NEWNEW ZEALAND NEW ZEALAND Hammar New Zealand Hammar Hammar Ltd, Hammar 16ZEALAND New Marphona New New Zealand Zealand Zealand Cres, Ltd, Ltd, Takanini, 16 Ltd, 16 Marphona 16 Marphona Marphona Auckland.

Cres, Cres, Cres, 0800 Takanini, Takanini, Takanini, 2 HAMMAR Auckland.

Auckland.

Auckland. sales.nz@hammarlift.com 0800 0800 0800 2 HAMMAR 2 HAMMAR 2 HAMMAR sales.nz@hammarlift.com sales.nz@hammarlift.com sales.nz@hammarlift.com www hammarlift.com www www www hammarlift.com hammarlift.com hammarlift.com 0720-02

MADE IN NEW ZEALAND

LITTLE TRUCKERS’ CLUB

1

HI LITTLE TRUCKERS! This month is jam-packed with FUN! We have an awesome Kenworth prize pack to give away, courtesy of Southpac Trucks. To be to win, colour in the K200 on the opposite page, take a photo of your amazing art and email it to me.

Congratulations to 10-year-old Liam Alcock from Te Kuiti, who found our Little Truckers’ Club logo on page 28 of the June issue. Keep an eye on your mailbox.

Something cool should arrive soon.

Don’t forget if that you would like to see yourself here in Little Truckers’ Club, just email your photos and/ or drawings to me at rochelle@nztrucking.co.nz, along with a wee paragraph telling us about them along with your name and age. It’s easy. I do enjoy seeing them all.

Have a fantastic month, kids!

QUI Z

2

3

Over the past three issues, our fun facts have shared information on some major truck companies, such as where they are located and when they were founded or established (created). Now I am going to test your knowledge. For each brand listed below, tell me the year and country each one was created.

To be in the draw to win a cool prize, send in your answers to me at rochelle@nztrucking.co.nz along with your name, age and address.

1: Scania .......................................................................................

2: Kenworth ...................................................................................

3: Hino ...........................................................................................

4: Volvo ..........................................................................................

5: Mack .........................................................................................

6: Isuzu ..........................................................................................

7: DAF ...........................................................................................

8: MAN ..........................................................................................

9: Freightliner ................................................................................

10: Western Star ...........................................................................

FIND THE LITTLE TRUCKERS’ CLUB LOGO The Little Truckers’ Club logo is hidden somewhere in this issue — find it and let me know where it is, and you may win a prize. You can email me at rochelle@nztrucking.co.nz.

Joke of the month

Wife: “Honey, the neighbour is washing the truck with his son again!”

Husband: “Poor kid! Go over there and tell him to use a sponge instead.”

74 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

SPOT THE DIFFERENCE Guy Knowles Transport in Palmerston North is known for its impressive fleet of Kenworth K200s. At first glance, you would think they are all identical, but in fact, each one is different. Here are three of the trucks – see if you can spot the differences. (Thanks to Aaron Hunt for sharing the pictures.)

I found 25 differences. How many can you see? The answers will be in next month’s Little Truckers’ Club! Here’s one to get you started...

1: Logo on #3 cab roof

COLOURING COMPETITION

KENWORTH PRIZE PACK UP FOR GRABS! Grab your crayons, pencils and felt pens and get creative. Not only can you colour in this K200, but you can design something cool of your own on the curtains.

Get your entries in before 30 July. I am so excited to see them.

Have fun, kids!

TH AN K YOU TO SOUTHPAC TRUC K S FOR SP ON SORIN G THIS MON TH S COLOURIN G COMP ETITION P RIZ ES 96-98 Wiri Station Road PO Box 76463 Manukau City, Auckland, NZ PHONE (09) 262 3181 FAX (09) 278 5643

WHAT’S ON NZ Civil Contractors Conference 29 to 30 July Museum of New Zealand – Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington Website: contractorsconference.nz

Mobil 1 NZ Road Transport Hall of Fame gala dinner 24 September Bill Richardson Transport World, Invercargill Contact: Adam Reinsfield 0800 151 252 (Ext 5) events@twevents.nz

RTF Conference

25 to 26 September Ascot Park Hotel, Invercargill Contact: forum@rtf.nz

Alexandra Blossom Festival ATL Haulage Trucks 39th Annual Truck Parade 25 September Fulton Hogan Yard, Dunstan Road, Alexandra Website: blossom.co.nz

76 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

Gisborne East Coast Truck Show 27 November A&P Showgrounds, Gisborne Contact: Peter de Denne, 027 434 4727

Bombay Truck Show

12 February 2022 Bombay Rugby Club Contact: bombaytruckshow@gmail.com

TMC Trailers Trucking Industry Show

11 to 12 March 2022 Canterbury Agricultural Park Contact: truckingindustryshow.co.nz, or email info@nztruckingassn.co.nz

All scheduled events may be subject to change depending on weather conditions etc. Please check the websites above before setting out.

Show organisers – please send your event details at least eight weeks in advance to editor@nztrucking.co.nz for a free listing on this page.

BARRY PHILLIPS MOTORS Euroricambi World renowned Italian manufacturer of gearing for Manual Truck Transmissions and Differentials. We carry extensive stock for Scania, Mercedes, Volvo, M.A.N., ZF and Fuller. Also a limited range of items for Renault, Iveco, DAF, Mack and Meritor.

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80 Moving Metrics 84 Hiringa Energy – NZ’s hydrogen future 88 Product Update – StrapnGo 90 Vipal Know Your Tyres 92 Tech Topics – Batteries 94 NZ Trucking Association Summit – Level crossings 96 Truckers’ Health 98 Health and Safety 100 Legal Lines 102 NZ Trucking Association 104 Road Transport Forum 106 The Last Mile B R OUG HT T O YO U B Y

MOVING METRICS

THE SALES

NUMBERS New Zealand Trucking reveals how the economy is travelling via key metrics from the road transport industry. From time to time, we’ll be asking experts their opinion on what the numbers mean.

First registration of NB, NC and TD class vehicles for May year on year

Summary of heavy trucks and trailers first registered in May 2021 This information is compiled from information provided by the NZ Transport Agency statistical analysis team and through the Open Data Portal.

The data used in this information reflects any amendments to the data previously reported.

Vehicle type This summary includes data from two heavytruck classes and one heavy-trailer class.

A goods vehicle is a motor vehicle that: (a) i s constructed primarily for the carriage of goods; and (b) either: (i) has at least four wheels; or (ii) has three wheels and a gross vehicle mass exceeding one tonne.

Vehicle class

Description

NB

A goods vehicle that has a gross vehicle mass exceeding 3.5 tonnes but not exceeding 12 tonnes.

(mediumgoods vehicle)

NC (heavy-goods vehicle)

TD (heavy trailer)

A goods vehicle that has a gross vehicle mass exceeding 12 tonnes.

A trailer that has a gross vehicle mass exceeding 10 tonnes.

A table of all vehicle classes can be found in Table A of the Land Transport Rule Vehicle Dimensions and Mass 2016 Rule 41001/2016 https://www. nzta.govt.nz/assets/resources/rules/docs/vehicledimensions-and-mass-2016-as-at-1-june-2019.pdf Note: vehicle classes are not the same as RUC vehicle types or driver licence classes.

80 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

First registration of NB and NC class vehicles for May by major manufacturer

First registration of TD class heavy trailers for May year on year by major manufacturer

First registration of NB, NC and TD class vehicles year on year to date

First registration of NC class vehicles year to date 2018 – 2021 by major manufacturer

First registration of TD class heavy trailers year to date 2018 – 2021 by major manufacturer

New Zealand Trucking

July 2021 81

This information is put together from information provided by the NZ Transport Agency. New Zealand Trucking acknowledges the assistance of the media team at NZTA for providing this information to us.

ROAD USER CHARGES

RUC purchase for May 2021, all RUC types

Total value and distance of road user charges purchased between 1 January 2018 and 31 May 2021 by purchase year

Purchase period

Distance purchased (km)

Value of purchases

In May 2021 there were 47 different types of RUC purchased for a total distance of 1,394,524,950km at a value of $194,268,302.

1 Jan 2018 – 31 Dec 2018

15,736,558,458

$1,875,364,397

1 Jan 2019 – 31 Dec 2019

16,166,434,103

$2,041,939,272

1 Jan 2020 – 31 Dec 2020

15,421,400,378

$2,069,615,049

1 Jan 2021 – 31 May 2021

6,869,755,300

$775,598,758

A description of RUC vehicle types is available at https://www.nzta. govt.nz/vehicles/licensing-rego/ road-user-charges/ruc-rates-andtransaction-fees/

RUC distance purchased for RUC type 1 vehicles

Please note data may differ slightly from that reported for the same period previously due to adjustments being made to the base data.

Purchase period

Distance purchased (km)

Average monthly distance (km)

1 Jan 2019 – 31 Dec 2019

11,502,905,782

958,575,482

1 Jan 2020 – 31 Dec 2020

10,952,303,565

912,691,964

1 Jan 2021 – 31 May 2021

4,905,678,007

981,135,601

RUC type 1 vehicles are powered vehicles with two axles (except type 2 or type 299 vehicles. Type 299 are mobile cranes). Cars, vans and light trucks that use fuel not taxed at source (i.e. diesel fuel) are generally in this RUC type.

RUC purchases all RUC types

The increase in March 2021 followed by a drop in April and then a rise in May suggests some forward buying at the end of the financial year.

82 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

The top eight RUC type purchases, other than type 1 in descending order RUC Type Description 2

Powered vehicles with one single-tyred spaced axle and one twin-tyred spaced axle

6

Powered vehicles with three axles, (except type 308, 309, 311, 399 or 413 vehicles)

43

Unpowered vehicles with four axles

14

Powered vehicles with four axles (except type 408, 414 or type 499 vehicles)

951

Unpowered vehicles with five or more axles

H94

Towing vehicle that is part of an overweight combination vehicle consisting of a type 14 RUC vehicle towing a type 951 RUC vehicle with a permit weight of not more than 50,000kg

33

Unpowered vehicles with three twin-tyred, or single large-tyred, close axles (except vehicle type 939)

408

Towing vehicles with four axles that are part of a combination vehicle with a total of at least eight axles

Average monthly RUC purchases by year (all RUC types)

RUC distance purchased year to date for selected RUC types

RUC purchases May 2021 for selected types

The red dots represent the cost of RUC purchased for that RUC type for the year to date May 2021 only, thus for RUC type 6 vehicles, powered vehicles with three axles, (except type 308, 309, 311, 399 or 413 vehicles), the higher value results from the high cost of RUC for these type vehicles above 12 tonne.

New Zealand Trucking

July 2021 83

INCOMING CARGO

DISCUSSING A HYDROGEN FUTURE Story by Dion Cowley With the Climate Change Commission’s advice to the government putting the spotlight on transportation emissions, it is the perfect time to look deeper into how green hydrogen for transport – heavy vehicles in particular – will play an important role in New Zealand’s energy puzzle. The first of a three-part series by Hiringa Energy.

84 New Zealand Trucking

Images supplied by Hiringa Energy

H

ydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) use the same electric drive train as battery electric vehicles (BEVs), and when using green hydrogen, are also powered by renewable electricity. We are encouraged to see that the Climate Change Commission (CCC) now includes both in its overarching definition of an electric vehicle. This is helpful, given electrification is understood as a critical aspect of Aotearoa’s path to decarbonisation.

Hiringa Energy is especially pleased to see its recommendation that the government should encourage the production and use of low-emission fuels such as hydrogen to build the foundation for the ramp-up of zero-emission

July 2021

freight in the medium term. We commend the CCC on its work to date and acknowledge its open engagement throughout the development of its advice to the government.

For those new to hydrogen fuel-cell electric trucks, they are a lighter zero-emission option that refuel in a similar amount of time as a diesel equivalent and have a range of up to 650km. Hiringa CTO Dan Kahn explains it well in a recent article ‘What the RUC’ in Pure Advantage (https://pureadvantage.org/ what-the-ruc/).

A critical decarbonisation tool, ready now Today’s green hydrogen technology changes heavy freight from a ‘hard-to-treat’ sector to a ‘low hanging

fruit’ for New Zealand.

Hiringa has been working with the government and industry to establish the production of green hydrogen at scale to create a nationwide hydrogen refuelling network aligned with the structured rollout of commercial and heavy zeroemission hydrogen FCEVs. This initiative will kickstart the decarbonisation of the country’s heavy-vehicle fleet, beginning in 2022.

Every linehaul diesel truck the industry replaces with zero-emission technology can remove the equivalent of approximately 150 cars’ worth of CO2 emissions.

With heavy freight contributing 25% of our transportation emissions, this is a win for New Zealand that is already in train.

350 300

Replacing the heaviest, highestkilometre vehicles emitting the most CO2 has the highest impact Modelling is a very useful tool when trying to understand how best to tackle heavy-transport emissions. However, we need to be careful if we base assumptions on applying averages. For example, an ‘average truck’ based on the 2010 Ministry of Transport dataset and often used in analysis travels approximately 27,000km per year, with a GVM of 19.5t.

However, this approach fails to account for the actual emissions of the different truck sub-classes and the actual lifecycle of a truck.

A new truck typically enters the fleet at the high

250

t-CO2 / year

Figure 1 highlights the opportunity to abate transportation emissions in the heavy-vehicle sector using today’s hydrogen technology.

200 150 100 50 0 Line Haul Long Distance

Average Heavy Fleet

Average Light Commercial

FCEV

Average Passenger

BEV

Figure 1 end of kilometre service and/ or payload where it can be commercially justified. It then generally goes through three ‘lives’ with disproportionately high kilometres and emissions in its first ‘life’, as depicted in Figure 2.

When emissions are accounted for, a very different pattern emerges, as

depicted in Figure 3.

More than 80% of heavytrucking transport emissions originate from trucks that are heavier and drive further than the ‘average truck’.

Converting an ‘average’ heavy truck to zero-emission technology would only address less than 20% of a truck’s lifetime emissions.

A heavy-trucking decarbonisation strategy should introduce new zeroemission vehicles in the first life and leverage the ‘trickledown’ effect.

With the bulk of a truck’s emissions being produced in its first and second life, this is the place to focus our energy and replacing our

Figure 2 New Zealand Trucking

July 21 85

Figure 3 heaviest fleet with hydrogen FCEV, will provide the best ‘bang for buck’.

Food for thought in relation to the government feebate scheme The government’s feebate scheme will have a positive impact on increasing the uptake of zero-emission passenger vehicles, assuming New Zealand can access enough of the vehicles in an already constrained international market.

It is worth noting that, if a feebate system were applied to heavy trucks calculated on the actual reduction in carbon emissions, a typical linehaul truck should be eligible to receive CAPEX support of well over $800,000. This amount is beyond what the sector will need, however – even 30% of this would make a material difference to accelerating the introduction of these vehicles.

National lowemissions freight strategy During the consultation phase, the CCC heard about the great work already underway within the freight

sector to reduce emissions, such as efficiency gains and greater use of technology such as biofuels and green hydrogen. As a result, the CCC recommends developing a national low-emissions freight strategy that establishes the investment settings and infrastructure required to deliver a low-emissions freight system. We think this is a great idea and builds nicely on the Ministry of Transport’s Green Freight Project, kicked off in 2019, and we encourage all stakeholders to get involved and add value.

Developing lowcarbon fuel markets In addition to a national lowemissions freight strategy, there were some other key recommendations of note within the CCC advice, being: • A low-carbon fuel standard or mandate to increase demand for low-carbon fuels; • Supporting demonstration and pilot projects for lowcarbon heavy vehicles; and • Offering targeted support for the uptake of lowcarbon heavy vehicles, e.g. broadening the RUC

exemption of BEVs to include other low-carbon technologies.

The decade to invest in green hydrogen When considering the options for decarbonising heavy freight, we need to deploy all practicable technologies. We find that some people are expecting one technology to be the answer – the silver bullet for all freight tasks across the transport network. The reality is that there are three technologies in line to decarbonise heavy transport in New Zealand: hydrogen, battery-electric and biofuels.

All of these fuels have shortcomings compared with the status quo of diesel, which is an incredibly versatile fuel, so they will need to be deployed where they work best.

For batteries, it’s the metro and return-to-base tasks, where the weight, range and charge times aren’t going to encumber productivity.

For biofuels, which can only ever be produced in limited quantities in New Zealand, it’s the existing legacy fleet of trucks – those that are being roadregistered today and will still

be on the road (albeit in a reduced capacity) in 2040.

For hydrogen, it’s linehaul and HPMV operations, where uptime and payload are critical in keeping the economy moving.

We see all these technologies working in synergy. However, because hydrogen is replacing the highest emitting portion of the heavy fleet, it is important that deployment begins in earnest now and is fully ramped up by 2025.

Heavy hydrogen FCEV truck commercial pilots will begin in early 2022 in New Zealand. The capital cost reduction of FCEV trucks is following a typical technology commercialisation pathway. To help manage the introduction of the technology, Hiringa has partnered with TR Group to introduce fuel-inclusive FCEV truck leases in rated combinations between 38t and 58t, providing ranges from 400km to 650km, with comparable payloads and refuelling times to diesel equivalents.

Multiple other local industry stakeholders are also making progress in this space, collectively helping to lay the foundation for the

N

A visual comparison between diesel, hydrogen and current battery electric trucks.

ramp-up of zero-emission freight in the medium term.

Heavy-fleet turnover will take several decades, with New Zealand only purchasing around 6500 heavy vehicles each year.

Even if we purchased

zero-emission trucks from now on, it would take more than 20 years to transition the heavy fleet. Encouraging a rapid increase in zeroemission heavy-vehicle uptake is critical and needs to start now if we are to

meet our net-zero target.

We look forward to working with heavy transport industry stakeholders and the government to decarbonise this ‘low hanging fruit’ sector and get some

early ‘runs on the board’ regarding emissions reductions.

Dion Cowley is project development and public sector lead at Hiringa Energy.

In association with

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PRODUCT PROFILE

SIMPLY STRAPPED The StrapnGo System eases a driver’s job, makes securing loads safer, saves time and reduces the chance of injury.

S

ometimes a system comes along that is so simple it’s genius.

So simple, that you might not have known you needed it until you experience it.

Anything that makes a truckie’s job easier, quicker – more straightforward and safer – is sure to catch on.

That’s exactly what StrapnGo New Zealand director Mike Cleaver is experiencing now, with the system catching the attention of big names in the New Zealand transport industry, such as Mainfreight.

StrapnGo is the brainchild of two Australian transport industry figures, Ray Charmand and Moe Eter, who about seven years ago started thinking of a quicker, safer way to restrain loads.

Cleaver, who has been the New Zealand distributor for the past two years, first saw the

system at the Brisbane Truck Show and was immediately taken by the concept.

A 30-year veteran of the local transport industry, he decided now was the right time to move away from his Mount Maunganui-based business, Trident Equipment, and focus on StrapnGo. “It’s a new product that’s innovative, works well and delivers on restraining loads easier, quicker and in a safer manner. Many drivers have either buggered their shoulders from throwing straps and chains or sustained an injury from climbing on loads while restraining them; this system means no more of that,” he says.

“The StrapnGo system allows for a quicker turnaround and reduces the labour input and chance of injury in the restraint of freight.”

The StrapnGo systems are

A simple system that makes the truckie’s job easier. mounted into two aluminium tracks fitted along the internal edges of the unit roof support area. From the ground, the driver simply walks along the length of the unit with the straps and positions the StrapnGo systems wherever it’s needed above the load.

The driver can then grab the hook and keeper with the extendable pole, pull it down and lock it in place, and then ratchet it down.

When offloading, the ratchet is released, and the strap retracts back into the roof and can be rolled out of the way.

The StrapnGo system can be used with twitch chains, 50mm or 75mm load binders.

Scan here to see the StrapnGo system in action.

88 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

The system can be fitted during the build of a new unit or retrofitted. A typical truck and trailer unit requires about 19 systems in total, eight systems on a 16-pallet truck and 11 on a 22-pallet trailer.

Single or double ratchet and hook-and-keeper strap options are available.

The StrapnGo system is available for standard 50mm/2500kg load binders for general freight and very high loads where straps cannot be thrown through small gaps, and 75mm/5000kg heavy-duty binders for big machinery and large loads needing a higher level of restraint. There is also a twitch chain system designed to secure timber in curtainsiders. No chain throwing, no shoulder injuries or time off.

“The swiftness of the system means drivers are getting time back in their hectic day and less chance of going home with an injury. There’s no need to spend time rolling straps; this system just pulls them up and out of the way. The simplicity of it is awesome,” says Cleaver.

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New Zealand Trucking

July 21 89

VIPAL’S KNOWING YOUR RETREADS

The Vipal Rubber production facility in Nova Prata, Brazil.

A LEADER IN TYRE

RETREADING Vipal retreads is a household name in New Zealand trucking circles. In this first of a technical series by Vipal Rubber, we find out more about the company, a global force in tyre tread products for the transport industry.

V

ipal Rubber products are known worldwide. Treads, repairs, products for tyre retreading and machinery (and even motorcycle tyres) are familiar to those in the transport segment. Still, not everyone knows the size and structure of the company.

What started in a small tyre patch factory in the city of Nova Prata, southern Brazil, has become, over the years, one of the most important manufacturers of products for tyre retreading and repairs and a world reference in

90 New Zealand Trucking

technology and innovation in the segment.

After 47 years, Vipal is the absolute leader in Brazil and Latin America, exporting to about 90 countries on four continents.

The numbers represent this magnitude. With its main markets – the United States, Europe and South America – the brand has 11% of the world commercial tyre market, 35% of the retreading market in Latin America and 40% in Brazil.

It achieved this position with serious and continuous work,

which prioritises technology, innovation and quality above all else. With more than 300 authorised retreaders, Vipal is the only company globally with a complete product line for retreading and repairing all tyre types.

It offers solutions developed with its own technology, based on constant investment in research. To supply the world market, Vipal has four manufacturing units, representing a production area of more than 183,000m2, an installed capacity of more than 19,000 tonnes per month and a workforce of 3000 employees.

It also has 13 central distribution centres (CDCs) strategically distributed worldwide, enabling it to serve all continents.

The CDCs are in: Sydney (Australia), Valencia (Spain), Nova Gorica (Slovenia), Felixstowe (England), Los Angeles, Norfolk, Miami, Tlalnepantla (Mexico), Funza (Colombia), Santiago (Chile), Perez (Argentina), Feira de Santana and Nova Prata (Brazil). In addition, Vipal has a local commercial and technical team, offering total support and the best solutions in each region where it is represented.

In New Zealand, Vipal is supported by three manufacturing plants in Auckland, Hastings and Christchurch.

A proof of Vipal’s constant investment in improvement and expansion was realised in 2020 when the company started production in its newest manufacturing facility, located in Perez, Argentina.

The modern factory, which has the latest technology used by Vipal in all its manufacturing units, had an investment of US$20 million (about $28 million). Vipal’s first

July 2021

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plant outside Brazil, the Perez unit, produces pre-moulded strips for retreading tyres, and supplies the Argentine and export markets. It also has a distribution centre with a total space of 15,000m2, supporting the storage of 1000 tonnes of products.

Vipal’s technical structure also enables it to invest in developing specific products for better performance in the different regions in which it operates. This is because, among other factors, it includes the Research and Technology Centre in one of its factories, where new technologies applied to products are developed. With a research centre made up of 13 laboratories and a highly qualified technical staff, the centre combines knowledge with practice, carrying out

more than 50 different types of tests and generating more than 28,000 annually.

Vipal’s innovation and knowledge differential also condition it to produce its own machinery. Vipal Machinery was created in 2015, and it was a New Zealand company that acquired its first international unit, a machine for retreading commercial and agricultural tyres. The unit was 100% developed by Vipal whose main objective is to bring state-of-the-art technology to its partners, offering them optimisation of energy resources, labour and use of physical space. Currently, Vipal Machinery is also part of dozens of partner renovators in North America, Central America, South America and Europe.

The Vipal Rubber production facility in Feira de Santana, Brazil.

Combining experience with technical knowledge, Vipal has always invested in the dissemination of knowledge, which it does through its corporate university. Univipal aims to technically train clients and partners and offers distance-learning courses for technical and commercial

teams and onsite training, onsite business management courses and practical classes, which mobilise professionals from the most diverse locations on the planet. This entire structure is reflected in excellent products, which are a quality reference in Oceania and worldwide.

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TECH TOPIC

UNDERSTANDING YOUR BATTERY Batteries are not simply a storage container for electrical energy by way of a simple chemical reaction – there’s much more to know about them. We spoke to the team at TWL, New Zealand’s leading supplier of transport after-market parts and accessories and suppliers of Exide Batteries, to learn more.

A

n automotive battery has two main functions: to provide starting power for the engine and to run accessories such as lights, fans and radio when the engine is not running.

They’re not a component you generally think of until they fail, but there is plenty you can do to look after them and prolong their useable life.

A battery’s life depends on many things. A truck battery can last up to four years or 100,000km if looked after.

Each battery is labelled with a date code for easy reference.

The letter indicates the month of the year, starting with A for January, and the number

92 New Zealand Trucking

indicates the year. So B1 would mean the battery was sold to the reseller in February 2021.

“This date is usually the date the battery was put on the shelf, and the teams at Exide and TWL use this to make sure when you buy an Exide battery from TWL it is fresh and in tip-top condition,” says national sales manager Stephen Sylvester.

“If you check the date sticker on the batteries in your rig and you can see it’s getting old, it’s recommended you replace them before they let you down.”

Truck batteries are exposed to many variables that can impact their life. As far as July 2021

trucking is concerned, the least likely scenario is taking short trips, which may not give the battery enough time to recharge between starts fully. More likely to shorten a truck battery’s life are: • Vibration is one of the most common contributors to premature battery failure in the heavy-transport sector. Ensure the battery is always secured correctly to the vehicle, and if any modifications are done to the truck, the battery is located close to the chassis rail. Placing a rubber mat under the batteries also helps.

• Alternator over- or under-charging will cause

premature battery failure in any application. If the battery light is displayed on your dash, this means the alternator is not working correctly – have your vehicle checked by an authorised repairer.

• Extreme hot or cold temperatures can shorten a battery’s life. TWL’s Exide batteries are designed for New Zealand conditions, but it pays to be aware of this if you operate in areas affected by extreme weather. If so, consider replacing your batteries a little earlier to avoid a starting issue.

• Terminal corrosion affects the battery’s connection with the charging system and has a similar effect to a faulty alternator. Regularly inspect and brush the terminals clean with a mix of hot water and baking soda to remove corrosion. Then cover with dielectric grease to insulate the terminals.

Always keep the top of the battery clean from oil and grease as this can cause it to self-conduct and reduce

DOS AND DON’TS •D o use correct lifting procedures when moving batteries.

•D o not place metal objects on top of the battery.

its state of charge.

•L eaving any automotive battery in a discharged condition for long periods will cause sulphation, the leading cause of battery failure. Invest in an automotive battery charger that will maintain an optimum charge level when your vehicle is not in use for a week or longer. Always recharge your battery fully as soon as possible.

The most common cause of a good battery selfdischarging overnight is when a light or power accessory is

left on or keys are left in the ignition. Batteries can also drain overnight if there are faulty electrical components or wiring in the vehicle.

According to TWL, you should replace a battery as soon as it shows any signs of reduced cranking performance.

When choosing a new battery, be sure to note the Cold Crank Amps (CCA) rating, which indicates the power a battery produces to start your vehicle’s engine in cold conditions.

The New Zealand standard is SAE, which is rated at -18° C. “Always choose

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a battery that is at least equal to the rating of the original equipment battery fitted to your vehicle when first manufactured,” says Sylvester.

Batteries are also made physically different to fit different vehicles. Therefore, ensure you select a battery with the correct physical dimensions and battery post configuration for your vehicle.

You can return old batteries to TWL for recycling in a safe and environmentally friendly process. Automotive leadacid batteries are up to 98% recyclable.

•D o not allow sparks or naked flames near any battery.

•D o not smoke cigarettes when removing or installing a battery.

•D o wear safety glasses when removing or installing a battery.

•D o remove the negative cable first when removing a battery.

•D o replace the negative cable last when installing a battery.

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NTA INDUSTRY SUMMIT

Chris Ballantyne.

A LEVEL HEAD This article concludes our summary of the 2020 New Zealand Trucking Association Industry Summit, which took place on 21 November 2020.

A

ccording to Chris Ballantyne, NZTA safe rail, levelcrossing incidents between trucks and trains have remained consistent in past years, averaging between three and five a year and totalling 38 since 2010.

“Level crossings are unique on the roading network; it’s the only time a truck driver will come across something bigger than their own vehicle,” commented Ballantyne. “The collisions are infrequent but overwhelmingly serious and fatal because of the great

mass involved.”

A KiwiRail freight train can weigh up to 2000 tonnes and measure more than half a kilometre long. Under emergency braking, they’ll need more than a kilometre to come to a stop. There are approximately 2900 level crossings in New Zealand, half of which are on private roads. Only a quarter have active protection (bells and barriers). The chance of death from a level-crossing collision is about 13 times higher than from a road collision.

Ballantyne explained that a ‘nightmare scenario’ in the land-transport system involved a collision between a train and a heavy vehicle.

Even with a much more fragile commuter train, a collision with a heavy vehicle could result in hundreds or thousands of fatalities.

Defiance, overconfidence and complacency among heavy-vehicle drivers are the most common issues that land them up in a level-crossing collision.

“Level-crossing accidents happen a lot around rural roads and close to people’s homes where people may think they know the area and even the train schedule quite well. A lot of them happen in perfect driving conditions,” said Ballantyne.

What’s increasing the risk?

Ballantyne said accident reports and statistics showed that level crossings were surprising people. “A 2000tonne train can catch you off guard. They are harder to hear than you think because of your vehicle’s road noise.

They can be harder to see than you think because of obstructions; they move faster than you think, and they’re closer than they appear. Sometimes, people think they can get across and miscalculate it; by the time a train driver has a line of sight on you, they’re not going to be at a significantly slower speed before the intersection.”

Ballantyne said some common reports included vehicles grounding out

on raised crossings, glare and sun strike. Others included high-speed exits on highways, poor sightlines and the increased frequency of rail traffic.

Despite receiving $26 million over the next threeyear funding cycle to upgrade these crossings, “level crossings aren’t going to get significantly safer at a great rate”, Ballantyne said.

Early warning solutions are being investigated, but these are still in development and not yet commercial propositions. “Ultimately, the key risk control remains in the driver’s hands,” said Ballantyne.

He suggested three recommendations for drivers: • Stop, look and listen – take it slow and keep looking.

• Focus on the task – avoid distractions, always expect trains, be aware of the elevated risk.

• Do research – take time to plan and know your route and your vehicle.

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TRUCKERS’ HEALTH

Winter motivation

O

n a miserable, cold day, when it’s pouring with rain, the last thing you feel like doing is putting on activewear and going for a stroll. But, never fear, here are some tips to get you through the winter blues and keep that motivation ticking over until those beautiful summer months.

M

eet a friend, workmate or

family member for a workout.

If you have agreed to meet someone, there is more accountability than just letting yourself down by not getting your training session done.

O

what you are doing, day in and day out, so mix it up and shock your body a wee bit.

A

acknowledge your victories.

It’s so easy to get lost in the daily grind and forget how far you’ve come and how hard you’re working. Look back to where you started. How much exercise could you manage then? Are you faster, stronger, fitter and able to exercise for longer and at higher intensities? They’re all markers of progress – other than those darn scales.

rganise your schedule so you

know where you can realistically fit in exercise throughout your week. If you are winging it, you are less likely to get it done. Whereas, if you have mapped out a training schedule, you have an idea in your mind of what you are doing that week.

T

I V

nvest your time, money and energy into exercise that you enjoy. There’s no sense in trying to force yourself to do something you hate – you won’t last. ariety. Speaking of forcing

yourself to do something every day, mix up your training. It is important to have variety for sanity and results. Your body will get used to

96 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

to any goal or training regime is your attitude towards it.

It’s easy to be hard on yourself and be over-critical of your performance. But suppose you remain optimistic and offer yourself plenty of self-praise? In that case, you are more likely to succeed on your health and fitness journeys – rather than belittling yourself for minor errors and setbacks along the way.

N

utritious food. It may seem like

a no-brainer, but it is essential to include plenty of healthy foods in your diet. Sometimes we think, ‘I’ve exercised, so I’ve earned this treat’. Treats are fine in moderation, but you probably haven’t formed the best habit if unhealthy foods become a go-to after exercise. Instead, try to include plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds, legumes and protein in your diet – you’ll feel better for it.

Give these simple tips and tricks a go over the winter months. I’m sure you will find them valuable. 

ime management. Many

people say that they don’t have the time to work out. Although we lead busy lives with often hectic work schedules, there is always time to squeeze in a half-hour walk – half an hour is much better than nothing. Instead of scrolling through your phone or watching nonsense on TV, you could head out for a walk or cycle or even do a workout from home – convenience is key when you lack time.

O

ptimism. A crucial element

T

ry something new. It’s so easy

to write off something and think, ‘I would never like that’. But I encourage you to give something new a try. Never be afraid to suck at something new – everyone has to start somewhere.

I

ncrease your exercise. It’s sensible to keep gradually upping the intensity and/or duration to keep your body challenged. It’s easy to do the same training week in and week out, but it’s vital that we keep inching up our training sensibly so that our bodies are constantly getting stronger, fitter and more able.

Laura Peacock Personal trainer TCA Fitness Club

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HEALTH AND SAFETY

Why culture is vital

T

he culture of an organisation determines many things.

It starts, in my opinion, with how engaged the workforce is. An engaged workforce enables the enterprise to operate effectively, efficiently and happily. But what is culture?

The best and most straightforward definition of culture I’ve heard is “the way things are done when the boss is not looking”. I’m sure that we have all heard of, or worked in, organisations that run well because of the omnipresent boss. They achieve their goals, but what happens when the boss is absent? On the other hand, we have seen organisations where the boss leaves everyone to make their own decisions without adequate guidance. Neither of these allows for growth and personal satisfaction.

An organisation can grow when the boss sets out goals and plans engages with the workers and allows them to participate in the work process. As a result, workers will have a much higher job satisfaction level because they have some autonomy over their own lives.

This autonomy, combined with the knowledge they can speak out, will ensure that accidents, near misses and hazards are well-reported. Workers will report machinery faults rather than working in less-than-safe conditions. They come to the

boss with solutions, not just problems. They support each other and the organisation’s work, taking responsibility for what they do and what the team does.

Culture can be hard to achieve. There have been many changes in the past year at Safewise, and we have worked hard at improving our culture. Some of the things we have done are small, such as providing food so the team can make a sandwich for lunch. Others are bigger, such as taking more time out of work for full-team meetings. We discuss what is happening in the business and ask for input from the team. Of course, the final decision is always mine; as the owner, the buck stops with me. But the team feels part of the organisation. We also celebrate each other’s lives – birthdays, anniversaries, etc.

Culture can be hard to establish. It doesn’t take much work to maintain it, but like trust, it can be easily lost. However, like trust, it is worth so much. 

Culture can be hard to establish. It doesn’t take much work to maintain it, but like trust, it can be easily lost.

How can Safewise help?

Safewise works with organisations that need more health and safety knowledge – or more time – than they have in-house.

For more information, check the website, safewise.co.nz.

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About Tracey Murphy Tracey Murphy is the owner and director of Safewise, a health and safety consultancy. She has more than 12 years experience working with organisations from many different industries. Tracey holds a diploma in health and safety management and a graduate diploma in occupational safety and health. She is a professional member of the New Zealand Institute of Safety Management and is on the HASANZ register.

3:12:58 PM

Danielle L. Beston Barrister At Law Log Book & Driving Hours Transport Specialist Work Licences Nationwide Road User Charges Contributor to New Zealand Trucking ‘Legal Lines’ Column Telephone: 64 9 379 7658 mobile: 021 326 642 danielle.beston@hobsonchambers.co.nz Referral Through Solicitor Required and Arranged

98 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

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LEGAL LINES

Truck Driver Appreciation Week is good news

I

t is about time that New Zealanders recognise trucks as a crucial link in the country’s transport supply chain. Too many motorists take an ‘us and them’ approach when it comes to their behaviour towards truck drivers instead of learning how to share the road safely.

It is estimated that by 2042, trucks will be responsible for more than 90% of all domestic freight. So, I was pleased to discover that from now on, every year there will be a week set aside to celebrate the hard-working truck drivers that deliver goods around New Zealand.

The initiative was launched this year, and National Truck Driver Appreciation Week took place from 22 to 28 February.

A critical role

The road freight industry employs about 2% of the total New Zealand workforce and has a gross annual turnover of $6 billion. Kiwis depend on truck drivers to deliver the essentials so that we can keep living our daily lives, regardless of natural disasters, changing Covid-19 alert levels, lockdowns and all kinds of weather.

Exports and imports drive New Zealand’s economy. Without truck drivers, it would come to a grinding halt. Goods must be transported efficiently and cost-effectively, given that New Zealand is geographically isolated. That is why it seems fitting that Kiwis stop and think about the men and women in the trucking industry, who deserve recognition for the role they play, for at least one week a year.

Challenges of the job

Many New Zealanders probably don’t stop to think about the long hours, extended periods away from home, and the huge responsibilities carried by truck drivers trusted with time-sensitive, critical or dangerous loads. Instead, their focus is more likely to be on statistics about deaths from crashes involving trucks, which currently account for 19% of the road toll, according to roadsafetytruck.co.nz. This statistic doesn’t include near misses or non-fatal accidents involving trucks, which would represent an even higher percentage of the road toll.

Educating non-truck drivers

From where I sit, one of the recurring themes that need attention is educating car drivers about blind spots and what a truck driver can’t see. It is a common misconception that truck drivers can see everything because they tower above the rest of the traffic, but the cab has blind zones in front, behind and along both sides.

Rearview and side mirrors only provide a narrow view for truck drivers, so it is easy for a car or cyclist to end up being completely hidden. Continuous vigilance from truck drivers prevents many accidents, and while close calls are inevitable, it’s generally underestimated how skilled New Zealand’s truck drivers are.

Don’t leave it to truck drivers to keep motorists safe by anticipating the mistakes that they are likely to make. Nontruck drivers also need to be proactive by looking out for potential hazards.

For example, making a wide left-hand turn into a driveway is particularly difficult for truck drivers due to a truck’s length. It requires them to sit out towards the middle of the road or even on the wrong side of the road if the street is narrow before executing the turn.

Motorists need to bear in mind that once the truck turns, the mirrors are no longer showing what is down the trucks’ sides, so vehicles there cannot be seen.

There is a temptation for motorists to zip up the left-hand side to get past the truck before it turns without realising the truck driver will not be able to see them once they start to turn left. Add to this the fact that a 50-tonne truck cannot stop as quickly as a car, and it’s easy to see how collisions happen.

Motorists need to be mindful that they should aim to sit far enough back so that they can see a truck’s mirrors because that means the truck driver can see them and be aware that they’re there.

Truck Driver Appreciation Week seems to be a step in the right direction towards educating people who don’t understand the basics of truck driving. I only wish we had started raising awareness sooner. 

Raising awareness

No one likes getting stuck behind a loaded truck, especially on a long journey with no passing lane in sight. Hopefully, Truck Driver Appreciation Week will acknowledge and educate people about the critical role truck driving professionals play in keeping the New Zealand economy moving and lead to a more sympathetic understanding of how skilled truck drivers must be. An appreciation of just how difficult it is to control a large and heavy vehicle, manoeuvre it through traffic at low or high speeds while operating in a stressful and deadlinedriven occupation is long overdue.

100 New Zealand Trucking

July 2021

Please note that this article is not a substitute for legal advice, and if you have a particular matter that needs to be addressed, you should consult with a lawyer. Danielle Beston is a barrister who specialises in transport law. Contact her on (09) 379 7658 or 021 326 642.

Danielle Beston

ROAD SAFETY TRUCK

The Road Safety Truck received a warm welcome from the Principle of Hokitika Primary School. He even wore his favourite MAN truck t-shirt to show his love of the 640 MAN Road Safety Truck. New Zealand Trucking Association is collaborating with the Wood Is Good initiative to educate kids on how to share the road safely with big trucks but also how important wood is to the country. “Wood is Good” is a forestry and log transport programme developed for primary schools in New Zealand and funded by sector groups and the Ministry for Primary Industries.

The key messages focus on environmental topics, carbon storage, climate change, wood products and how plantation trees are grown and harvested in our country. Trucks are essential to getting the logs from the forest to the mill. Some schools experience a high number of large logging trucks past their school. Thanks to local transport operator, T. Croft Limited, the students got to get inside a real logging truck and talk to the driver (Hutchy).

The Wood is Good team visited each classroom to read them stories about trees. Matiu Wikaira from Ngai Tahu talked to the groups about forestry, how trees grow and explained what a foresters job is. After the students had participated in the NTA Share the Road Safely with Big Trucks road safety programme, some volunteers from the Forestry Council talked about products that are made from wood. Great participation from the students made this an amazing experience for all involved.

“Collaborating to educate kids on how to be safe around logging trucks and environmental topics”

Join us today! 0800 338 338 www.nztruckingassn.co.nz

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NZ TRUCKING ASSOCIATION

The SafeT360 Virtual Reality Road Safety Programme is coming to New Zealand

S

afeT360, developed by the Australian Trucking Association (ATA), was launched in 2019.

The ATA and its member associations collectively represent 50,000 businesses and 200,000 people in the Australian trucking industry.

SafeT360 uses virtual reality and interactive messaging to teach young road users how to share the road safely with trucks via a travelling road-safety exhibition and comprehensive digital campaign.

The SafeT360 methodology and content is supported by ongoing research and evaluation. An international review of road-safety communication research and three rounds of focus-group testing before and after concept development informed the design of the exhibition.

The presenter scripts were tested in presentations delivered to more than 1000 late-secondary school students.

The ATA worked with academic road-safety researchers to design and implement a study that measures the long-term impact of the exhibition on participants’ message recall, on-road behaviour and crash and nearmiss statistics.

The partnership developed between the ATA and NTA has made it possible to bring this world-class programme to New Zealand for the main purpose of saving lives on the road. Big plans are underway to refurbish the NTA Road Safety Truck and install the SafeT360 equipment. Nobody will miss out, as the comprehensive digital campaign will also be available online. With a smartphone and a SafeT360 headset, everyone can experience the virtual reality road-safety experience.

Visitors to the programme will leave understanding a truck’s blind spots, how long it takes a truck to stop and the dangers of distraction, as well as other tips on how to keep themselves and their loved ones safe around trucks. Road safety is everyone’s responsibility, and we

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all have a role to play, whether behind the wheel, on two wheels, or on foot.

Young drivers are over-represented in accidents here and in Australia. While travelling around the country with the NTA Road Safety Truck, we have found that the 16-to-25-year-old age group has virtually no knowledge of a heavy vehicle’s capabilities. Research tells us that young drivers take more risks and are distracted easily.

We believe that SafeT360 is a game-changer, and it will save lives.

Equipping the young drivers with knowledge of a truck’s capabilities will change behaviours because they will have experienced it first-hand, as virtual reality puts them in the truck driver’s seat.

ATA safety, health and wellbeing director Melissa Weller says the partnership with NTA comes after months of collaboration. “The team from the NTA have shown their commitment to the programme, having visited and experienced the SafeT360 exhibition in full swing at the recent Brisbane Truck Show,” she said. “Our one clear goal is to save lives, not just in Australia but globally. We are so excited to see this evidence-based programme expand internationally.

“The support of Volvo, BP, National Transport Insurance and Australia Post have been amazing throughout SafeT360’s journey, and it is testament to their commitment that we can now expand.”

The New Zealand NTA Road Safety truck initiative is only possible because of the generosity of the industry sponsors. While we have no formal funding, we have managed to put 38,000 people through the programmes to date.

So, we take the next step to refurbish the trailer and install the SafeT360 gear.

A huge thank you to NTA members, the executive board and partners who make the programmes possible: Penske, Toll, BP, Teletrac Navman, TR

The NTA’s Rebecca Dinmore experiencing the SafeT360 virtual reality.

Group, NZI, Z Energy, 3M, Carter’s Tyre Service, New Zealand Trucking magazine, Bluebridge, Bridgestone, Spartan Finance, R&B Recruitment, Cortex, 9 Yards Financial Services, Hiringa Energy, EROAD, VTNZ, TSI Logistics, Scania NZ, Safe Business Solutions and ABC Business Sales.

If you would like to support the rollout by becoming a sponsor, please contact Carol McGeady on carol.mcgeady@nztruckingassociation or 021 252 7252. 

NZ Trucking Association can be contacted on 0800 338 338 or info@nztruckingassn.co.nz

By Carol McGeady, executive officer NZ Trucking Association

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ROAD TRANSPORT FORUM

Industry must take a stand on compliance

I

t will come as no surprise that truck drivers work long hours, but news that a driver recently admitted driving for 23 hours in one day and others to working more than 120 hours a week has sheeted home the challenges many drivers in our industry face.

The driver shortage has resulted in many small operators having trouble attracting and keeping staff. Regardless of the size of the company, trucking is a highly competitive industry with low margins. Anything that has an impact on delivery times has a direct effect on profit, and for some, there is the temptation to do what it takes to get the job done, even if that means breaking the law.

The Road Transport Forum promotes an industry of high safety standards. We do not condone operators and drivers who are deliberately, or negligently, non-compliant with transport and safety laws.

We understand the growing concern about the customer and supply chain pressures that drivers face. We believe this is linked to many instances of non-compliance, which is why we have raised the need for an industry accord with the government. We all need to consider the major challenges facing our industry and create a safer operating environment by addressing them.

Because of the chain of responsibility and new health and safety obligations, it’s not just your employer or client who influences you and your safety and how you go about your job, it’s all the other people in the chain. It’s the depots you visit to pick up and drop off, it’s the customers who are buying your service – often at very competitive rates – and it’s the consumer who demands their goods arrive as soon as possible.

An industry accord that takes these factors into account

and meets the government’s requirements can help ensure an industry that is safe, compliant and attractive to young people looking for their next career move.

Many smaller players also need representation. It can’t just be about getting the big guns in the room. We need a platform that looks at skills and labour shortages, rates, and how to remain competitive while also lifting standards.

The transport industry must also take unilateral measures to maximise and improve safety for its workers and for all road users, which is why the RTF strongly supports the staged introduction of electronic logbooks.

We want all drivers to return home safely at the end of their workday, and we believe the introduction of electronic logbooks with GPS will eliminate opportunities for logbook discrepancies and cheating. The technology already exists and is used both voluntarily and mandatorily here and overseas.

We know that drivers working longer than they should compromise their safety and the safety of other road users. Like many other sectors of our economy (think agriculture), road transport operates on a social licence. We need to read the tea leaves and understand that we must show the government, the general public and prospective employees a willingness to do what it takes to drive change.

The RTF has been preparing for the changing landscape and has launched the industry’s training programme, Te ara ki tua Road to success. But we know we need to focus on more than just training. We need a safe and compliant industry focused on the future and invested in solving its issues rather than waiting for the big hand of government to make the rules for us. 

Call for industry award nominations September’s Road Transport Forum Conference will see the return of the New Zealand Road Transport Industry Awards so it’s time to get your nominations in.

The awards were set up several years ago to recognise best practice and achievement. They are a way of honouring individuals, organisations and companies that have gone above and beyond industry requirements in raising skills, safety practices, knowledge, training, industry awareness, innovation and expertise.

As well as the VTNZ Supreme Contribution to the Road Transport Industry Award, there will also be the EROAD Outstanding Contribution to Health and Safety, Teletrac Navman Outstanding Contribution by a Woman in the Road Transport Industry, and the EROAD Young Driver of the Year awards.

We all know someone who goes above and beyond the call of duty – now show them that their efforts are appreciated. Entry guidelines and the

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nomination form are available for download from the RTF website at rtf.co.nz/events.

The Castrol Truck Driver Hero Award will also be presented at a gala awards night after the RTF Conference on 25 and 26 September in Invercargill.

Make your conference booking by 31 July 2021 to take advantage of the early-bird discount. You can register and get more information about the conference programme and accommodation options at rtfconference.co.nz.

Nick Leggett chief executive officer

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LAST MILE

Looking outside the bubble

I

t was interesting to read a report in the Australian Big Rigs newsletter on 2 March regarding kilometre rates. The writer – Glenn Sterle, a former truck driver turned Australian senator – gave the Australian Parliament what he considered a few home truths about that country’s trucking industry. He claimed that most drivers are being shortchanged by the rate/kilometre payments system, saying that “the majority of employers in the road-transport industry, predominantly in the interstate linehaul sector, are absolutely ripping off their drivers”.

He presented a couple of examples: “The employers say it’s 880km between Melbourne and Sydney, so they’ll pay for 880km, not taking into account that drivers have probably spent five or six hours running around Melbourne or Sydney doing the loading.” And, “Someone’s got to actually wash the bucket of nuts and bolts; someone’s got to put the fuel in it.

They don’t pay for that. That’s all part of the kilometre rate.

The drivers just do that for love!”

When reading this article, I kept asking myself who in New Zealand is prepared to stand up in front of Parliament and tell our elected representatives what is really happening in our

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industry? Sending out statements to the press and commenting on government policy might give some the warm fuzzies, but words really don’t cut it – actions make the difference. We need a champion like Sterle for our industry.

Sometimes it is worth looking outside our little playground to see what is going on overseas, especially what overseas regulators are up to. Our regulators tend to look abroad when developing policy, especially to Australia.

In March, I read on the ATN news site that the Australian Logistics Council is continuing to support a National Operating Standard for the road-freight industry. Australia has had a registered industry code of practice supporting its Chain of Responsibility (CoR) legislation since November 2018, but its use has been voluntary. Now the push is on to make it mandatory. Australian CoR rules impact some Kiwi operators because they are part of a trans-Tasman supply chain; they must show by their actions that they operate a safe and compliant business. This does not mean they must comply with Australian legislation, but they must show their business meets the New Zealand rules that apply, such as load security, work time, and vehicle safety.

How do we stack up now? CoR in New Zealand is legislated for in the Land Transport Act, and most Land Transport Rules have requirements that fit within the CoR framework. In 2003, the Road Transport Forum instigated the development of Code of Good Practice standards for the industry. Although these were drafted, that’s about as far as they went. But many of them would still fit today’s environment some 18 years later.

It’s about time we took the lead and they become the standard for how our industry operates today.

Supporting the call for mandatory use of the National Operating Standard, I read that the Australian National Vehicle Regulator had charged a goods consigner for failing to comply with load-restraint rules, failing to inform an overseas supplier about Australian safety regulations, failing to have any load restraint system in place and failing to advise the driver and operator of how the load was packed. These charges stem from an incident where a container carrying 26 tonnes of imported timber and timber products caused a semi-trailer to topple over onto a pedestrian crossing.

Changing subjects, another weird story caught my attention in March. It appears the Wellington Regional Council is considering charging people who use the Park & Ride car parks at railway stations. The reason? People are parking their cars in them. Maybe it’s me, but that’s what I thought they were for. But maybe not? Perhaps they come into the same category as many of our highways, designed more to look nice rather than to provide a safe and efficient surface for paying road users to get from A to B? Maybe it is time I stopped reading?  The Accidental Trucker

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July 2021

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