CV Driver Magazine 0008

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4 News - New Volvo FH Spotted

8 Scania Black Amber

10 Truckpol Crime Update

12 MotoGP Special

22 Letters

24 Legal Issues

34 Ade’s Gallery

39 Spot The Difference

Contents

EditorialManaging Editor: Matthew EiseneggerAdditional reporting: Barrie Tozer, Ian Norwell, StevenHinchliffe, TIMBO, Agent ‘C’, John Henderson, Ade Portlock

Editorial Address: Commercial Vehicle Media &Publishing Ltd, 4th Floor 19 Capesthorne Drive, Eaves Green,Chorley, Lancashire. PR7 3QQTelephone: 01257 231521. email: [email protected]

AdvertisingAdvertising Sales: David JohnsTelephone: 01388 517906 / Mobile: 07590 547343Email: [email protected]

DesignDesign Manager: Matthew EiseneggerDesigner: David JohnsTelephone: 01388 517906 / Mobile: 07590 547343Email: [email protected]

PublisherCommercial Vehicle Media &Publishing Ltd, 4th Floor, 19 Capesthorne Drive, Eaves Green, Chorley, Lancashire. PR7 3QQTelephone: 01257 231521

PrintingPrecision Colour Printing LtdHaldane, Halesfield 1, Telford, Shropshire. TF7 4QQTelephone: 01952 287014Web: www.pcpltd.net

NoteThe publisher makes every effort to ensure the magazinescontents are correct. All material published in CV DriverMagazine is copyright and unauthorised reproduction ifforbiden. The Editors and publisher of this magazine give nowarrantees, guarantees or assurances and make norepresentations regarding any goods or services advertised inthis edition.

CV Driver Magazine is published under a licence fromCommercial Vehicle Media & Publishing Ltd. All rights in the licenced material belong to Matthew Eisenegger or CommercialVehicle Media and Publishing Ltd and may not be reproducedwhether in whole or in part, without their prior written consent.CV Driver Magazine is a registered trademark.

If you are not going to keep this magazine for futurereference please pass it on or recycle it.

WELCOMEBACK, WITH 48 PAGES!!

Well, here we are back from the summerbreak. As we had a combined July andAugust issue, we thought it only right andproper to come back with a bang – amassive 48-page special issue forSeptember.

We have listened to what you want and alarge proportion want to see a trucks inservice feature so, with the assistance ofsuper truck snapper Ade Portlock, we haveintroduced a photo gallery, with a bit of atwist.

Rather than just random shots of trucksbatting up and down the motorway, we havetried to introduce some logic. We want you tochoose the subject, either by haulier, past orpresent, or by make. Ade has a photo archiveof some 20,000 images dating back to the1980s so we are pretty confident we will beable to come up with something interesting.A big thankyou to all the Ice Road Truckerscompetition entrants. The whole idea ofasking the questions as we did was so wecould get a greater understanding of you andensure we keep the content fresh andinteresting. Once we have finished compilingall this information, we will let you know ourfindings about you, the great British truckdriving fraternity.

Please keep that all-important feedbackcoming. Also, by the way, a new addition tothe CV Driver office is a CB radio. I'm tellingeverybody it's for research and keeping me intune with issues on the road. The real truth isthat I just wanted one, so good buddies goingup the M6 super slab near Charnock RichardServices, keep your ears on for Magman.

As always, keep the feedback coming.Read on, enjoy and please stay safe.

[email protected]

Information

12

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20 DAF XF 105 Drawbar Test

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4. CVD September 2011

News

Seen on the A50 – what appears tobe the replacement for the currentVolvo FH. Although heavily

masked to hide its true identity, theclassic Volvo xenon headlamps can beclearly seen.

Further confirmation that the vehiclecan’t be too far away from launch is thatit's configured as a right hand drivevehicle and carries a full UK registrationnumber, rather than a visiting left handdrive, early development vehicle runningon trade plates.

Closer scrutiny of the image showsthat the ‘A’ pillars are at a lesser angle,removing the classic FH screen rakethat did come under criticism by somedrivers for restricting movement insidethe cab.

The centre of the roof shows a steepangle but with what could be additionalcamouflage in the form of eitherscrewed or riveted panels to furtherdisguise the cab's shape. Aspokesperson for Volvo Trucks told CV

Driver Magazine that they do notcomment on future products.

It is believed that the vehicle isundergoing field trials with aWellingborough-based operator andmaking regular runs to Newent inGloucestershire. The fact that thisvehicle is in the latter stages of testing

would indicate that Volvo are ready withEuro 6.

With Renault Trucks forming part ofthe Volvo Truck family, the big-cabbedVolvo must also toll the death knell forthe Magnum, whose iconic design brokethe mould when launched in 1990.

2011 see’s Volvo Trucks celebratingthe 10th anniversary of the I-Shifttransmission. No fewer than 80 per

cent of Volvo’s FH trucks are equippedwith the system, making I-Shift virtuallya standard feature. In 2002, and justone year after the system’s launch, 14per cent of all Volvo trucks sold wereequipped with I-Shift and compared withits predecessor, Geartronic, VolvoTrucks’ first AMT, was only fitted to oneper cent of all trucks sold.

Then 2005 saw the introductionsecond generation I-Shift, withredesigned components including a newclutch system and range change unit.The upgrade allowed the transmission

being introduced to the 16-litre engine. Athird generation was introduced in 2009designed specifically for the introductionof Euro 5 power plants and featured anumber of hardware improvements,together with new software which madethe transmission suitable for moredemanding applications.

New Volvo FH Spotted

ALL SYSTEMS GOFOR TRUCKFESTORIGINAL

HAPPY 10TH BIRTHDAY

Adate for the diary is the 10thand 11th September and thevenue is the Newark and

Notts Showground at Newark andthe event is Truckfest Original. As the world-famous Truckfestapproaches its 30th year the showcomes back to where it all began.Event organiser Bob Limming toldCV Driver Magazine: "It’s great tobring the show back to where it allbegan all those years ago and weare totally overwhelmed by thesupport for the show with many ofthe original exhibitors making a verywelcome return."

In typical Truckfest style there willplenty to see and do, includingextreme rides and all-day arenaentertainment. Visitors will also getthe chance to wander through thegiant vintage truck area and evenmeet celebrity guests including bothAlex and Lisa from Ice RoadTruckers.

Hauliers Renown is Corgi’s highly collectable range of 1:50 scale die-castmodel trucks. Each model comes with a range of accessories and ispresented in a gift box with an individually numbered Limited Edition

Certificate. The latest range from Corgi sees the introduction of a new piece oftooling in the Walking Floor Trailer, which is becoming an ever more popular vehicleon today’s roads. Accompanying this is a good selection of models from Hauliersacross the whole of the UK and Ireland utilising a host of different tractor and trailercastings spanning forty years of haulage.

Image supplied by: Ade Portlock

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News

Adisgruntled driver who wants tobe known only as Mark is warningother truck drivers of the covert

clampers at work in West Thurrock.Whilst taking his regular break at6.50am in West Thurrock Place andparked well away from any doubleyellow lines, Mark left his vehicle foronly a matter of seconds to check if hisfavourite snack bar was open forbusiness. Turning to climb back in hiscab, he was aghast to see his unit andtrailer hemmed in by a red TransitRecovery Truck.

It was only when he took a few morepaces he could see he was in the

process of getting clamped. He askedthe clampers why, to which theyinformed him he was parked on aprivate road and brought his attention toa small sign fastened to a tree warningof clampers in operation.

Mark was given a ticket and told toring with a credit card payment. Hecalled and was informed the removal feecould be a whopping £1,250, which wasmade up of £700 removal, £400 for theuse of the tow truck, a 5% credit cardcharge and, if the clampers feel thatthey have been subject to verbal abuse,another £50.To top it off, an additionaldelay charge of £100 per half hour could

be slapped on for what the clampingfirm believe to be for arguing against thecase.

Mark told CV Driver Magazine hemay have to foot the bill for this out ofhis wages and is in the process ofappealing against what he sees as anextortionate removal charge. He warnsother drivers to be aware and look outfor a lurking red recovery vehicle layingin wait in West Thurrock and Tilburyarea.

If you think you have been the victimof what you see as unfair clamping letus know [email protected]

Carry on Clamping at West Thurrock

Tarmac franchise operator, NRParsons Transport Ltd, has takendelivery of its first four Renault

Premium 460 6x2s with Optidriverautomated gearbox and Privilege cab,supplied by Renault Trucks Cardiff. Afurther two Renault Premiums are onorder for delivery in October. ThePremiums replace Volvos and are thefirst Renaults to join NR Parson’s 11-strong fleet.

NR Parsons’ decision to purchaseRenault trucks follows Tarmac’s recentmove to add the marque onto itsapproved supplier list for franchiseoperators. A ‘Volvo man through andthrough’, Neil Parsons, owner, NR

Parsons Transport, first considered theRenault Premium on recommendationfrom fellow operators.

He comments: “Value for money andfuel economy were the two big factors inour purchase decision. Although it’searly days, the new Premiums arealready returning 7.2mpg and we expectthis to increase as the demonstrator wasachieving 7.6mpg, a good result for thistype of operation and a considerableimprovement on the existing vehicles onthe fleet.”

To ensure maximum fuel efficiency,NR Parsons’ drivers will attend anOptifuel Driver Training Course throughRenault Trucks Cardiff.

FIRST RENAULT PREMIUMSFOR NR PARSONS

Pallet specialist, McMurrays Haulage inAccrington, has added five new MANTGX 26.440 6x2 tractors to its growing

fleet of 35 maximum-weight tractors.Impressive fuel economy from an MAN rentalvehicle prompted the MAN acquisition, alongwith the “added bonus” of AdBlue-freeoperation. The company this year celebratesits 40th anniversary.

Finance was organised through MANFinancial Services on a five-year contract hireagreement. McMurrays will perform its ownrepair and maintenance at its on-siteworkshop.

“Our MAN long-term rental MAN reallyimpressed,” says managing director, DavidMc Murray. “It regularly returned fuel figuresof over 9.0mpg – outstanding for this type ofoperation. Already, the new TGXs look to bevery good on fuel, and they’re not yet beddedin.

“It’s all about running costs and anypotential savings must be considered. That’swhy MAN’s no-AdBlue engine is such anadded bonus for us – there’s no on-cost,” hesaid, “and there’s no operational hassleeither.”

With locations in Accrington, Blackburn andBolton, McMurrays core business concernsthe movement of palletised goods. As amember of The Pallet Network, the companyhandles over 5,000 pallets every week.McMurrays also has successful distributioncontracts with a major supplier to the NHSand a well-known Homeware company.

BUNCH OF FIVESFOR MCMURRAYS


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News

Jim Prentice, owner of Lanarkbased JHP Transport has been aScania fan for decades. On thestrength of the ongoingperformance of several R Seriesmodels in his fleet, he was naturallykeen to try Scania’s 730hpdemonstrator. Once in his hands,the relevant range topper wasclosely evaluated on refrigeratedtraction work to the south ofEngland and duly returned 9.6mpgon a regular basis. The results morethan convinced Jim that an R730would be an attractive propositionand since it was available, he’d alsospecify the new Black Amber limitededition. After a trip to Sweden inmid June for the officialpresentation of Jim’s Black Ambernumber 002 (the first example hasbeen kept by the factory) the truckentered service in late July.

Kristofer Hansén, head of Stylingat Scania commented, ‘Scania fansnow have the chance to buysomething very special, based onthe new V8 truck range. With theSvempas customising team, wehave produced a design that stands

CUSTOM IMPORTWords and images: John Henderson

Lanark based, JHP Transporthave taken delivery of thefirst customer delivered, V8

Series Scania R730 Black Amberby Svempas. JHP Transportowner, Jim Prentice was handedthe new super Swede by BrianShute, Scania’s regional salesdirector back in late July and thestunning new prime mover willjoin the firm’s five tractor units,on dedicated traction work forFowler Welch across the UK. Alimited edition of just 100 units,the Black Amber edition isdesigned to appeal to operatorslooking for a true ‘king of theroad.’

Jim Prentice left, owner of JHP Transport takes delivery of the first customer R730 Black Amber from Brian Shute Scania’s regional sales director.

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CVD September 2011 .9

out in any crowd. Whether looking at theoutside or inside, there is no doubt aboutthe levels of special care and attentionthat have gone into this limited series oftrucks.’ After rolling off the production linein Sweden, JHP Transport’s R730 6x2right hand drive chassis spent around fourweeks in the care of factory approvedcustomising maestro, Sven-ErikBergendahl, AKA ‘Svempa.’

The Black Amber paintwork, in darkbrown metallic, features chrome detailingand badges, together with matt or highgloss graphic accents visible from everyangle. Special high quality materialsabound inside the cab, includingadditional components that enhancecomfort and a range of thoughtful touches.Numerous V8 and Griffin symbols willplease the driver who is also a Scaniaenthusiast. Nick Lawrence at AST Signsexpertly applied a clear vinyl wrap toprotect the cab’s custom paint job, whilstLanark’s Danny Murray & Sons appliedsome extra finishing touches to the uniquecolour scheme. Ricky Sims and StevieThomson are the two lucky JHP Transportdrivers who will pilot the new Black Amber,which will work seven days a week to earnits keep.

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12. CVD May 2011

Truckfest Peterborough 2011

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CVD September

The 25.25 had to be moved ona STGO movement order

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Special Featrure

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CVD September 2011.13

SILVERSTONETO HARWICH WITH

PART ONE

YAMAHA AND IVECOWords and images: Matthew Eisenegger

In this two-part feature, we get an all-access pass to every nook and cranny ofthe MotoGP world. We start our adventure at Silverstone – we get involved inthe pre-race banter, the serious practice and the all-important race, we sit

behind the scenes with team riders world champ Jorge Lorenzo and team riderBen Spies and we chat to the Yamaha engineering team. Then we pack it allaway and head down the A14 to Harwich and on to the ferry, where the nextround of the travelling circus heads to Assen in the north of the Netherlands,where everything needs to be unpacked and cranked up again.

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Special Featrure

We arrive at Silverstone early on theSaturday, ready to re-acquaint ourselveswith CV Driver Magazine friend and aYamaha Factory Racing truck driver JohnNorda. Pre-season, we met John at theYamaha race HQ just outside Milan andspoke exclusively to him about the teamand life on the road, but this time we arehere to experience a race weekendthrough the eyes of team members andget a real-life look into their lives.

All the teams have been at Silverstonesince Tuesday afternoon and as John is incharge of the communications trailer, heneeds the unit to be set up and fullyfunctioning by Wednesday lunchtimewhen the Japanese engineers arrive. Thetrailer is full of banks of computers, ameeting room and side offices and formsjust one part of the eight or so team truckson site, performing many differentfunctions including the very impressiveteam hospitality unit catering for theriders, the team and important guests.

John takes a few minutes to explainwhat he has to do so far. As one of thefirst vehicles to arrive, his first job is getthe trailer level, assemble the steps in andout of the rear of the unit and then pull outthe sides, before getting hooked to theground power.

John has also got to lay the cables intothe pit box (pit garage). He needs to setup the office and meeting areas and fullyassemble the steps to the other doors tothe unit. The whole truck and trailer alsoget a complete wash and polish and thetractor unit is uncoupled and moved just afew feet forward.

When his unit is up and running, hethen busies himself with the multitude ofother jobs that need doing around theYamaha garage and vehicles. With such atight knit team spirit, John explains that ifyou need to be told do something, you’renot right for the team!

The RaceWe get unrestricted access to the pit boxfor both the qualifying session and therace. A sunny Saturday qualifying sessionsees both Lorenzo and Spies put in animpressive effort, with Spies getting a frontrow grid position and Lorenzo gaining asecond row start.

The Sunday race sees a completechange in the weather – the heavensopen and both riders become victims ofthe treacherous conditions. Lorenzocrashes out on lap 12 and Spies, havingdropped to fifth position, falls going intoturn 9, sliding over the gravel and hittingthe wall.

Thankfully both Yamaha riders escapeserious injury. As you would expect, themood of the team is pretty low but theprofessionalism unbelievable. The teammanagement and engineers alike poreover computer screens, gleaning every bitof information they can about the bikes'race performances and the build-up toboth incidents.

My personal instinct would have been

to say: "That’s it – let's pack up and gohome." But a succession of meetingsneeds to take place. As well as dealingwith the media and a debrief with theriders, the engineers need to download allthe information from the bikes so this canbe analysed back at HQ.

As John looks after the communicationtrailer, this is the last of the Yamaha raceunits to be turned off and knocked down –even well after the whole event is finished,the Japanese engineers are still hard atwork and are in and out of meetings wellinto the evening.

Packing up and the drive to HarwichWhen all the race fans have gone homeor are trying to leave the Silverstonefacility and the team is no longer in thepublic eye, everybody seems a little morerelaxed and piece by piece and case bycase, the pit box, bikes and equipment areall put away. Admittedly it is verydisheartening to watch the two wreckedbikes loaded, a mangled frame andsmashed fairings in cardboard boxes.

Team Driver: John Norda

Jorge Lorenzo, ready for the off

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John can only start to put away thebasics of the trailer as the engineers arestill in meetings, so assisted by fellowteam member Naohiro Negishi they startby taking off the steps that provide accessto the front offices and lock the doors sonobody can fall out. It's not too much laterthat he gets the thumbs-up from the lastengineers to leave and he can shut thetrailer down.

Not rushed but quickly, John andNaohiro play out a well-practised routine,stowing every bolt-on component of thetrailer in its proper place. John is keen topoint out that with the wet weather, it'simperative that everything is dried beforebeing put into the trailer, as damp woulddamage the horrendously expensivecomputers on board. Gradually, thecommunication unit starts to look like a13.6-metre trailer again – the side podsare slid back into place, the additionalhydraulic legs are lifted and the groundpower provided by Silverstone isuncoupled and we are just about finished.Last job is to couple back up to the trailer.

With the unit packed and ready to go,there is no mad dash for the gates. Manyof the drivers decide to take a rest andshower before heading to the Yamahahospitality unit for a well-earned meal. Sowe sit down with team drivers and sharein the banter in a mixture of Italian,Japanese, Dutch and English and allenjoy an amazing meal in one of the mostamazing settings. Over the dinner tables, the drivers discusswhich is the best way to Harwich, where

they will overnight and catch the 9.00amferry to the Hook of Holland before theironward journey to Assen for the nextround. Some drivers think that headingdown the M1, round the M25 and pickingup the A12 would be the best route. Johnuses his experience and in no uncertainterms corrects them in the error of theirways and explains that A14 is by far thebetter route.

As we are getting ready to leave, weare approached by another team driverasking the self-same questions about theroute. John is well known by all the teamsfor his knowledge. A road atlas swiftlyappears and the best route is pointed out.In fact John just tell them to “follow us”.Earlier in the day John has also given thesame invitation to another team, so as weleave the Silverstone pits we are the headof 13-vehicle convoy.

Once away from the track, we chatabout life on the road, the fact that 43-year-old John misses his young familyback home in Norway, how he worked forthe family haulage company in his nativeNetherlands and his progression intodriving for a racing team. As we are thelead vehicle, John feels obliged to givedirections to the following convoy andinterrupts the constant Italian ‘chatter’over the two-way radio.

As we approach Harwich it’s time forme to leave and head for my hotel room,while the team head into the port for thenight. I bid John and the team farewelland look forward to seeing them at thenext round in Assen.

In the next feature, we catch up withYamaha Factory Racing at Assen at theIveco-sponsored MotoGP Grand Prix ofthe Netherlands. We will also have a lookround the pit at the other teams that usesIveco to transport its priceless cargo.

But what about the Iveco Stralis?

John Norda rates the Stralis. He isvery complimentary about the 450engine and he personally prefers the16-speed manual gearbox. His biggestpraise is that at 6ft 4in, he is a tall blokeand has struggled in the past to getcomfortable in other makes of trucks.

But he says that Iveco has respondedwell to the needs of tall drivers and hecan get the seat position spot-on for histall frame. He also rates the in-cabstorage. As he can be away months,good storage is critical.

On average, the vehicles coverbetween 25,000 and 30,000 kms peryear, including the out-of- seasontesting, but as John explains they try tokeep all unnecessary use to the bareminimum.

John shows the other teams to Harwich

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So what can you look forward to in the nextfew years then? Remember, today’s new truckis a used one in just a couple of years or so. Ifyou haven’t driven a truck with an automatedgearbox yet, it’s only a question of time. Theystarted as optional spec on the flagship dog’sdoo-dah spec a few years ago and swiftly trick-led down into even the fleet motors. Bosses likethem because they protect clutches and nowthey are even OK on fuel. You’ll have seen the‘concept vehicles’ that turn up at truck showsand most are built by pie-in-the-sky.com. How-ever, some good ideas do pop up now andagain though. Iveco’s ‘Glider‘ concept truckfrom last year’s Hanover truck show had a lot ofwhizzo ideas for the engineers and a few for thedriver too.

In Glider-ville, the driver’s living and workingspace has been stripped back to the bone andfitted out afresh. Instead of just shouting at theirown truck designers, Iveco did some lateralthinking by joining an ‘international engineeringcollaboration group’ where ideas are exchangedand areas of expertise shared. Kitchen design-ers Indesit, paint makers Bayer and specialistcamera company Orlaco were just three ofdozens who contributed. “We worked on thebasis that experts in their field would be able togive us the benefit of their specialised knowl-edge. There’s little point in trying to re-invent itall,” says Giandomenico Fioretti, Innovation andAlternative Traction Manager for Iveco. Seats,bunks and kitchen modules are all reconfig-urable to give each driver the space he or sheneeds and a customised feel. A fixed-hub steer-ing wheel is said to offer improved ergonomics,although we’d need to drive one to be con-vinced. But the instrument cluster that could beconfigured to give the driver only the informa-tion they chose looked like a very good idea.Fioretti explained, “It has to be a blend of the fa-miliar and the new. If we provided an environ-ment that was bizarre and totally alien, driverswould not thank us.” He cited two examples toillustrate his point. “The screens with the im-ages from the ‘mirror cameras’ are not inte-grated into the dashboard. We’ve put them inthe top left and right of the windscreen wherethe driver is already used to looking for them.And yes, we did consider a joystick instead of asteering wheel, but it would have been only forthe novelty and such a change has safety impli-cations in fleets where it would mix with con-ventional trucks.” So keep your eyes peeled,


The Future

THINGS CAN ONLY GET BETTER

With a period of the deep blues slipping behind us, Ian Norwell looks ahead to see what drivers have got to lookforward to. And yes, there is light at the end of the tunnel. Apart from the plonkers in the traffic office, or the bosson a bad day, the next biggest influence on your working life is probably the truck you drive. We all know they’ve

got steadily better as the traffic has got steadily worse, so at least you’ve had something more comfortable to sit in whileyou’re stuck in the jams.

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variants with five of them having thatlonged-for flat floor. As ever, it’s alongclimb up, 1.7 metres and four steps, but,like scaling Everest, it’s well worth it whenyou get there. They’ve had the Mega-Space cab for some time, but owner-dri-vers with deep pockets can treatthemselves to the new ‘GigaSpace‘ cabthat even tops Renault’s Magnum forroominess. I guess it’s the ‘TeraSpace‘ ina few years time then. Oh, and you canforget the stick-stirring of manual gear-boxes, this truck has binned them forgood.

With all the truck makers battling tomeet to Euro 6 emission regulations,they’re needing to empty their exhaustafter treatment cupboards and chuck it allin. That’s what we thought until Ivecocrept up on all the competition and an-nounced their Euro 6 engines with ‘SCROnly’ (Selective Catalytic Reduction). It’s amove that leaves them room for manoeu-vre and keeps the complexity down. Sca-nia have their Euro 6 on the road and allthe other big makers are poised to hit their‘Go‘ buttons.

As the next few years slip by, driverslives should get better, in theory anyway.As the recession eases we may see drivershortages again so bosses will be keen toattract good drivers with top trucks. Therewill also be a slice of the driver pool whoare near or near-ish to retirement and whojust can’t be arsed with the driver CPC -we can’t blame them - and they’ll call it aday. That should mean it’s more of a sell-ers market as far as driver go, we hope.


there might be some of that stuff croppingup in the years ahead. From the futureback to reality, and only just out of thecrate is the new Actros from Mercedes. Itwon’t start appearing over here for a whileyet, but it does look the business in a‘Judge Dredd’ sort of way. The new angu-lar face sits in front of a new cab interiorthat says goodbye to that old black plasticfeel and lifts the bar again on driving com-fort. Not just driving either, the restingspaces have been given relaxing almondtones (beige to you and me) to separate

them from the anthracite (er, that’ll beblack then) surroundings of the driver’sseat. While we’re there, Merc have de-signed and made their own seat instead ofbuying in the standard chairs from Isring-hausen or whoever, so that should be veryinteresting. CV Driver will be having a testdrive in September, so we’ll let you know ifwe end up with a spring in our step, or adead butt after a few hours on the road.Other touches are adjustable bunks forsitting up to read at night and more interiorspace than ever. There are seven cab

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* If the vehicle fuel consumption does not match or exceed the fuel guarantee then Iveco will pay the cost (excluding VAT) of the additional fuel used.

ECOSTRALIS tractor unit available as 4x2 and 6x2

460hp EEV Cursor engine

3 year warranty

3 year repair and maintenance contract

You don’t have to be Einstein to work out that’s a great deal.For the full details and to see if your company is eligible for the money back fuel guarantee* visit iveco.co.uk or call 0800 915 0040. Offer available on ECOSTRALIS models, while stocks last.

www.iveco.co.uk

CVD09_Layout 1 06/09/2011 23:43 Page 19


DRAWBAR combinations have alwaysmaintained a robust popularity in mainlandEurope and Scandinavia, but they’venever had quite the same presence herein Britain for almost five decades. Adouble hammer blow, consisting of the1964 legislation permitting 32 ton articsand higher wages for the legally requiredsecond man (a rule which lasted until1970) put paid to a vast percentage ofthese flexible vehicles. The timely arrivalof DAF’s XF105 Super Space Cab forappraisal in September 2011, comes at aperiod when drawbar numbers appear tobe on the increase. The well known EddieStobart operation has surely been one ofthe biggest advocates of drawbaroperations in the last half century, and thefirm have deployed these types for movinghigh volumes of empty food or drinkscans, since its fledging days in the early1980s. Farmers with own accountoperations and specialist firms providingbulk straw bale movements, have alsobeen amongst the stalwarts of these‘wagon and drags,’ whilst general haulagefirm using drawbars almost exclusively area rare species indeed.

CV Driver had the chance to take the

wheel of the left hand drive 510hp,drawbar for half a day and itsperformance and handling were apositive revelation. The 5050mmwheelbase, 6x2 rear steer rigid pulled aclose coupled tandem axle trailer andboth were loaded with concrete ballast togive a maximum gross vehicle weight of40 tons. EDF of Eindhoven built the twoidentically sized box bodies, each ofwhich had a length of 7825mm andcontributed to the overall maximumvehicle length of 18750mm. At the start ofour appraisal run I was fortunate enoughto have an empty car park to executesome manoeuvring experiments and thisproved ideal for experiencing andgauging the 16.57 metre turning circlebetween kerbs. The XF105’s rear steeraxle and its attendant 2355mm overhangbrought the VBG coupled truck aroundvery quickly, but despite some practice Istill tended to oversteer slightly on thefirst few roundabouts. This situation wassoon rectified when I brought insomewhat lazier, but deliberate turningmovements. Care and concentration isrequired in abundance whenreacquainting yourself with a left hand

DAF XF 105 Drawbar Test

DRAG ARTISTOn a short visit to Britain, DAF’s XF105.510 drawbar unit raises

the question of why this this type of combination is still arelatively rarity on our shores.

Words and images: John Henderson

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CVD September 2011. 21

drive truck, but after a few miles with the Lane DepartureWarning System (LDWS) switched on, I settled downquickly with the XF105. The LDWS works from a radar unitmounted dead centre within the front grille and gives offwarning blasts through either the left or right radio speaker,depending on the side of activation.

The Super Space cab should need little or nointroduction to our readers and after regular revisions, thisrange topper is still amongst one of the best places to liveand work today. The layout of driving controls is first class,and onboard visibility levels are excellent. The 510HPMX375 engine is a six in line, Euro 5 EEV power plantwhich has SCR emission control. The unit was way on topof the job at 40 tonnes and matched beautifully to the ASTronic 12 speed gearbox behind. With a 1:1 direct top gearand a 2.69:1 rear axle ratio, the XF105 was perhapsdesigned with motorway cruising in mind, but it performedcapably with the A Roads on our short test. Braking andhandling also came in for top marks firstly with the all rounddiscs, which are complemented by a meaty DAF Intarderand blended engine brake. These components take thebrunt of routine stopping and leave the service units freshfor more planned slowing. A front / steel, rear / airsuspension was fitted and this set up produced stable roadhandling with no apparent over or understeer experiencedduring the run. Fuel measurement was not possible on theday, but with DAF’s slippery Super Space Cab, two closecoupled smooth sided bodies and a full set of side skirts,I’d bet that this combination could return some interestingmpg figures.

I suspect the number of drawbars on Britain’s road willsteadily increase over the coming years and food suppliersrequiring multi temperature compartment loads wouldseem a natural customer source. Members of the mainpallet networks could also utilise the flexibility offer by thesetypes, in addition to a multitude of other truck users.

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Your Letters

TOP LETTER

Dear Sir.

During a conversation with my son yesterday I was given a link to your website – and how gladI was that I clicked on to it.

Firstly how easy it was to read the mag online and secondly how varied and interesting thecontent was. Not only is it a good magazine for drivers, but also for ex-drivers like myselfand future drivers as well.

This is a fantastic magazine which is open to all sorts of input. Maybe the odd page could beused to print letters from some of the old guys who drove when they were truly Knights of theRoad, no sleepers, radios or heaters in those days.

Keep up the excellent work and all the best for the future.

All the bestBob by email

..............................................................................................Dear Editor

I read with great interest your comments regarding the article by a Government ministerpublished by the RHA regarding the planned STS (super truck stops) on motorways. My firstthoughts were "what a super idea", but what would these STSs comprise of – safe parking,showers, toilets etc etc? Don’t the MSA (motorway service areas) provide these facilitiesalready?

These STSs would have to be privately funded. Anyone investing in such a site on a motorwaywould have to put in millions of pounds and would be looking for a large return on theirinvestment. The parking charges would be the same, if not higher, than the MSA’s charge whichis now £25 plus.

Many independent truckstops at present are running under capacity, while laybys and industrialestates near to truckstops have more HGVs parked on them than the truckstops themselves. Dueto astronomical UBR (uniformed business rates), many independent TSO (truck stop operators)make very little or no profit at all.

Many HGV drivers or their companies refuse to pay for ONP (overnight parking) for whateverreason but these charges are tax deductible.

In my opinion the RHA and the FTA should lobby Government to reduce UBR for independent TSO soONP charges can be reduced and passed on to HGV drivers who deserve to be protected by parkingin a safe secure park. This also would reduce HGV crime and in theory cut insurance premiums.

The RHA and FTA should also lobby the Highways Agency to allow TSO to have secure truck stopsigns erected on motorways.

So come on RHA and FTA start supporting the existing facilities which are already insitu.

Name and address withheld

Have your say by email:[email protected] or post to: The Editor, 4th Floor, 19 Capesthorne Drive, Eaves Green,Chorley, Lancashire. PR7 3QQ In Association With

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Legal Issues

The

CASE HISTORY

Steven HinchliffeCompensation Adviser

In this series of articles written by solicitor Steven Hinchliffe (owner of the specialist Personal Injury firm HINCHLIFFESSOLICITORS) he highlights the types of accidents suffered by professional drivers, where his firm has been successful insecuring compensation for the injured victim.His firm has many years of experience in handling accident claims, particularly following accidents at work and while on

the road - and has recovered millions of pounds in compensation.


How the Accident HappenedIn May 1998, in the course of his

employment, a driver was required tocollect a very large, heavy andirregularly shaped item and transportthis on a curtain sided trailer. Whilethe item was being loaded onto thetrailer by a forklift truck, he wasrequired to be on the trailer bed so hecould assist in securing it to the floorwith webbing. However, during theprocess the item moved unexpectedlyand, fearing for his safety, the driverinstinctively leapt out of the way. Indoing so he unfortunately fell from thetrailer to the ground below.

The InjuriesBroken wrist; cracked/bruised ribs;

slight concussion.

His wrist was put in plaster and hewas unable to work for a period of 4weeks.

How the Claim ProgressedIn September 2000 full details of the

claim were sent to the partyresponsible for loading the item. Theyinvestigated the circumstances of theaccident and just under 5 months lateraccepted that the task had been carriedout in a dangerous way and there wasa foreseeable risk of someone beinginjured. They were therefore willing toconsider settling the claim, once amedical report and details of thedriver’s financial losses were available.

A detailed report was obtained froman Orthopaedic Consultant, and aschedule of the financial issues was

prepared. Both documents were sentto the other party and within 4 weeksan initial settlement offer was made. Itwas then possible to negotiate anincreased offer, which the driver washappy to accept.

The Compensation RecoveredHe recovered £5,250 in total, as

compensation for the pain andsuffering caused by his injuries,together with his financial losses.These included lost earnings duringthe period he was away from work,travel expenses and the cost of painkillers. The full sum was paid to him ashis legal costs were negotiated andpaid separately.

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CVD September 2011 .19

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There may be those reading this whothink I believe I'm something special. Welllet me tell you now – I'm not. I'm a driverwho isn't from the old school. I stillconsider myself a rookie at times and mybeginnings in the industry were long afterthe days of 'make do and mend'.Consequently I've discovered I was in thewrong job.

The story began several weeks before itended when my motor developed aleaking radiator. Despite a spare beingavailable, it was decided that it wouldn'tbe replaced and I was instructed to keeptopping it up.

I wasn't happy about it but I justfollowed the instructions. A few weeksafter the initial fault appeared, the motortook it upon itself to dump all its water onthe road near Rouen in France. Ringing inabout it I was asked to tilt the cab andhave a look to see if I could spot theproblem.

I soon spotted a short hose that hadsplit. I managed to bodge it and havingjust passed a dealer, I managed to nurseit back there. The next morning the faultwas rectified. At this time it was pointedout to me that the truck had a majorradiator leak. I acknowledged this andpassed the information back to base,knowing what the answer would be. I wastold that the repair would "cost more thanthe truck is worth". I was to carry on andkeep topping it up.

Fast forward a couple of days when thesaga really started to come to life. After aparticularly long climb, the temperaturegauge was very high so I pulled over to letit cool down and top it up yet again. Thisproved to be the order of the day fromnow on and as the outside temperaturewas well into the 30s celsius it certainlydidn't help matters.

I managed to get to my drop at Cadiz inSpain and get tipped but shortly afterleaving and setting off for my collectionpoint, the gauge rocketed again. Havingstopped and once again let it cool beforetopping it up, I was then able to go andget loaded near Algeciras. With my reloadon I stayed where I was for the night, witha great view of Gibraltar. The funny thing

is, the next day – having once more fillingup the water – the truck managed to gofor a full six hours without any problems.However, I soon realised that the outsidetemperature had dropped by a full 10degrees from a couple of days earlier andthis seemed to help.

The next day was spent parked up andon Monday I set off once again headingfor home. It proved to be a long timebefore I got there. The problem soonstarted again only now it was exacerbatedby the motor using a lot of oil.

Having exhausted the supply of oil Ihad with me, it now started costing a lot tokeep buying more. On one of the stops totop up, I saw that the oil was now getting


Immortal words which will be remembered by all Monty Python fans. This story may seem Pythonesque at times but let'sjust say it's a word of warning as to what can happen if a truck isn't maintained properly.

Driving Diaries

THROUGH WINDSCREEN WITH TIMBO

THE

Feature supplied courtesy of Truckersworld

It Is Deceased ................................ it has expired,it has gone to meet its maker".

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into the coolant and passing this on, Iheaded for a service point. Here the gafferof the place took one look and assumedwe would have the job done and startedby draining the coolant/oil mixture. I had tostop him as I knew what the answer wasgoing to be again.

The decision was made that I wouldhead to Santander in Spain rather thanCalais and the truck would be recoveredfrom Poole. This would save 700 roadmiles. The hills in Spain proved to be thefinal nail in the coffin. With the motorrunning so hot, so often, it proved toomuch for the turbo, which finally gave upthe ghost on Tuesday evening.

Wednesday morning, with thecontinued instructions to "get to the port" Icarried on. The stops for water – and nowoil – were becoming more and morefrequent until eventually the head gasketgave out. With smoke billowing out Imanaged to get to a safe place to stopwhere I wasn't blocking anything. Imanaged to find a Spanish fella whospoke good English. It turned out he hadsome good friends in England and havingbeen shown nothing but courtesy andhospitality in the UK, he was more thanhappy to help me. I'd rung in and said thetruck wasn't going any further. Nacho, theSpanish guy, had rung the police for me,as a courtesy, who told him if I put a notein the windscreen reading 'Desglosada' Iwould be OK providing I wasn't blockingthe road. They said they would drive pastto check.

Two hours later, while chatting toNacho, I got a call and was asked why thetruck hadn't moved for two hours. Itresulted in me being told to get going as Iwas only eight miles from the port. I didand 200 yards up the road the truck finallygave up the ghost, leaving me in such aposition as to be blocking one side of theroad.

Shortly after, the Guardia Civil Traficoarrived and the fun really started. Thisresulted in me being told "I'm not payingfor a tow" and when I passed on amessage that it was the company'sresponsibility to sort it out, to "Get in thecab and go to bed". Well, like I was goingto be that contemptuous in front of twoSpanish coppers with guns!

Eventually the police called a tow truckand just on a solid bar he towed me about500 yards up the road to where I wasn'tblocking anything. Once here I washanded a fine of 80 Euros, reduced to 40with a prompt payment, for obstructing thehighway. One of the cops managed to sayto me now "Your chief is crazy". I wasn'tgoing to argue that point.

The one consolation to being towedhere was the bar just 50 yards away andonce the police had departed I retired

there with my new best mate, Nacho, for acouple of beers.

Thursday morning arrived and after thecalls back and forth, he was still adamantthat I try and drive the eight miles to theport. By this time, after many attempts atstarting the engine, the battery wascompletely dead and a tow was finallyarranged.

The problem now was that the boatwent at 15:15 and there wouldn't beanother till the same time on Sunday. Thetow duly arrived but due to his insistencethat he do the job properly the boat wasmissed. I was towed on to the port where Isoon found out I wasn't allowed to stay inthe motor overnight. Other arrangementshad to be made. It just happened to be aholiday in Spain that day so the BrittanyFerries office was closed. I managed tofind a room, their last one, in a Hostal forthe night.

Friday I was at the Brittany office forwhen they opened to find I was definitelyon the Sunday boat. He then advised methat they don't have a towing service.They would put the trailer on but not theunit. With the same tow arranged to getme on the boat, I could now think aboutthe weekend. Fortunately I have a goodfriend who lives near Bilbao just 70 or 80miles down the coast and as he is atransport manager he arranged for one ofhis drivers to pick me up. They say everycloud has a silver lining and I have toadmit to enjoying a fantastic weekend.Paul, known to some readers on internetforums as 'Vascoingles', you are a starmate.

Paul got me back to Santander in timefor the ferry on Sunday, where my towwas waiting for me. We managed to getthe unit out from under the trailer and Iwas one of the early ones on to the boat.It was to be about 08:30 Tuesday before Ifinally got home.

I've now left the company and gone to aplace where they have full repair andmaintenance contracts in place so thisshouldn't happen again. Fingers crossed.

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Drivers Advice

SPECIAL AGENT ‘C’A rather unfaircase of doublestandards.

If you are not aware of it, you really,really should be, because for us agencypilots, it’s gonna cost us, lose us work inthe process and be of a questionableamount of use in the long run. It’s also, ofcourse, gonna be law…

But stories of what the individual day’scourses are going to be about had me hotunder the collar late this week. I hadheard that a “Cyclist awareness” coursewas going to be included, although thismay once again have fallen by thewayside. But, should it be there, I’d beextremely curious as to know whatcourses the cyclists are going to have totake. Let me explain.

Recently I have re-taken to the road ona push-bike. I’m not proud of it, or an eco-warrior. It’s down to poverty andconvenience. A job was close enough tobe cycled to, the bike was in the garage, itjust remained to see if I could actually stillride a bike. Hell, it had only been 20-oddyears and you never forget, right?

Well, I did the run on Sunday to ensurethat I wouldn’t actually kark it in theattempt, and at pretty AM Mondaymorning, managed it with the bag on myback pretty much okay. Sadly, my ass hadsure forgotten! For three days afterward Iwas like the newest and prettiest inmate inan extremely tough prison…

As a mode of transport, therefore, I’dput it only one small notch above a horse.Still pretty impractical, though definitelycheaper. I am prepared to say that were Ito do it regularly, I’d probably re-acclimatise and even get to like it – well,during the summer months anyway.

But it’s no good for an agency boy. Wehave to carry everything we need with us,from hard-hats to sat-nav to waterproofsto supplies.

And the ride home, Monday night, wasa thing of quite quiet terror… as far as Icould see, all cycle lanes are good for isto lull you into a false sense of security for

when you have to re-join traffic flow!It got me thinking about the “Cyclist

Awareness” course. In an extreme case, ifyou refused to do it, you’d lose yourlicence. Where’s the opposite law-enforcement for the two-wheelers though?

I followed two cyclists up a shallowincline later that same week. As I gotclose, the one at the back made anapproach for a right turn. This seemed touse the method of “wobble, manoeuvre,shaky signal, glance briefly backward tosee if she’d been hit…” I was alreadyclearing plenty of room for them andcovered the brakes as soon as I saw her

glance across the road at her junction, butI wondered then, as now, where was herawareness of me..?

And then, just the day after, I’mapproaching an admittedly rather odd setof lights in the suburbs of Stockport. It hada right filter lane and the left lane was forstraight-on and left turning traffic. I washeading left.

The rather more sporty cyclist ahead ofme (water-bottle, garish lycra, iPod) waspresumably turning right. And being thesuburbs, there’d obviously be no LGVsout here to spoil his day.

He shot across in front of me, stoppedin the middle of the road as the right filterwas red and proceeded to lean far to hisleft to adjust some part of his cool outfit.This placed his head and shoulders intothe path of my off-side front grille… As Iwas turning left, speed was well down andthough my rather pathetic horn barelyregistered above his Celine Dion, applyingthe handbrake with my truck less than afoot from his head seemed to get through.

This brought forth a string of expletivesfrom the affronted cyclist, who pointedangrily at the traffic lights - which showed Iwas allowed to move and he was not onlystraddling my lane, but effectively blockingit for an LGV. He took off annoyed throughhis red light, shaking his head at MYstupidity…

If you look at the small number ofcyclists on the road (as opposed to onpavements, through red lights andanywhere else they can cut corners) andthe vastly larger number of trucks on theroad, I’d say we’re WELL aware of themalready…

Cos otherwise, there’d be none left,would there?

Safe Lanes, Amigos…

As the DCPC looms ever closer, rumours of its contents and requirements gave me pause for thought…Now I’m hardlygoing to sit here ranting about the pros and cons of the upcoming exercise. As professionals, all drivers, I imagine,are in favour of further training or even refresher courses. Of course, we already have to do these anyway so we’re

used to it.

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With what can only be described as phe-nomenal camera work, Lisa Kelly, RickYemm and Alex Debogorski pitch theirwits and driving experience against whatmust be the most hazardous road in theworld. They carefully pick their waythrough from Delhi and into the Himalayasin trucks that you wouldn’t drive to get tothe end of the street, let alone across oneof the highest and most treacherous roads

on earth.We think the ideal way to enjoy the IRTDeadliest Roads is to sit back with a cou-ple of ‘cold ones’ after a week behind thewheel and just remind yourself that lifecould be a whole lot worse.The DVD is damned good and entertain-ing to watch and it's good to see the IRTcrew in another part of the world and alsodriving a right hand drive truck.


DVD Review

IRT DEADLIEST ROADS

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Hollies Cottage was originally built in1894. Its location on the A5 Watling Streetheading West from Wales and East fromthe Midlands and beyond is pretty muchthe crossroads of Britain. It first opened itsdoors to the passing motorists in the1930s as a tea room and as time movedon, the site became busier. A largeglasshouse was built on the side of Holliesand through the 40s and 50s it becameknown as the ‘Glasshouse’.

It was about this time that the Holliesopened a number of rooms and ran asmall B+B, which in itself became popularwith passing lorry drivers for overnight ac-commodation, with 16 beds in a shareddormitory and bedrooms for the wearydrivers to rest. At this time they were of-fered one course of traditional homecooked food.

In 1959, local haulier Derrick Curtis sawthe potential of the Hollies and bought thesite and the business with the land provid-ing him ample parking for his own fleet oftrucks but, by the fact that the M6 had re-cently opened only a matter of a few milesfrom the Hollies, Derrick knew its locationwas perfect to capture all the additionalpassing trade. But he did have a problem– he needed someone to run the transportcafe business while he looked after hishaulage business.

CV Driver Magazine speaks exclusivelyto Margret Halliday, one of the originalowners of the Hollies, and she tells of herinvolvement since 1960 until she sold thebusiness in 2007. She also recalls someof the famous faces and the experiencesin nearly 50 years behind the counter.

In 1960 through a friend, Derrick askedhairdresser Margret if she would be inter-ested in an opportunity to manage thetransport café as well as adding a touch ofglamour.

She called in, had a look round and ten-tatively agreed. In the early days the Hol-lies was a popular haunt of the AA patrolswho were constantly up and down the A5and M6. As the business grew, Derrickand Margret had now become a coupleand decided to open 24/7, which not onlyattracted more HGV business but alsopassing celebrities on their way from per-

forming in the Birmingham clubs. Margret speaks with passion about the

young up-and-coming Tony Christie whohad just had a hit with “Is this the way toAmarillo?”, entertaining Margret’s youngdaughters Dawn and Debbie by singing tothem. Another frequent late night visitorwas Bernard Manning in his Rolls-Royce.

One memorable event was when TomJones called in for a late snack. Margrethad just had news that Derrick had beeninvolved in a head-on crash in his van.Tom picked up on the conversation and of-fered the services of his car and his driverto take her to the hospital to be with Der-rick. Thankfully he made a full recovery. It

Steeped in history of the great British road industry and known by every driver from all points of the compass, Holliestruck stop has seen it all in its history that spans back over 50 years.

TRUCKSTOP NOSTALGIAAT THE HOLLIES

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also wasn’t unusual to have a jazz bandon their way to a competition striking up inthe car park.

Another group on non-truck related visi-tors were football coaches and in particu-lar Liverpool Football Club. A coach-loadof supporters would swarm into the Holliesand order their favourite mixed grill. At fullspeed, the kitchens could deliver one grillper minute and a plate of the regular foodevery 30 seconds. Even when opposingteam supporters frequented the Hollies,there was rarely any bother.

During the 70s and 80s, The Hollieswas nicknamed Greasy Lill's. The namederives from a very attractive young ladywho worked at the cafe on nights called

Lilly, who started working at the Hollies inabout 1967. Apparently, she liked to weara lot of make-up and, with the hard workand heat, this appeared greasy by thetime the late night pubs and clubs werekicking out. This, of course, prompted theintoxicated folk to christen Lilly greasy,thus customers at the time calling the cafe“Greasy Lill's”. Even today some still referto the cafe by this name.

Margret explains that when the driverscame in and didn’t have a lot of time, thestaff used to pride themselves on the factthat they could take the order and havethe finished meal ready for collection bythe driver before he got to the end of thecounter.

The Hollies also became known for itsselection of pickles on the counter, bothbeetroot and onion and cucumber, whichwere loaded by the forkful as an accom-paniment to the breakfast staple ofcheese on toast – and woe betide if thepickles ever ran out! Other popular mealswere, of course, the ‘Full English’ andeven today the classic braised steak goesdown very well. Margret recalls how sheused to have to stand hour after hourhand-cutting chips.

Margret also used to see both herselfand the staff operating a public service todrivers. For example, if there had been abad crash on the M6, she would get onthe CB under the handle of ‘The GreenGoddess’, making them aware of the acci-dent and on many occasions talking themin.Sadly, Derrick passed away in 1999 andMargret, her daughters and the staff car-ried on very much business as usual. Butby 2007, Margret thought the time wasright to hang up her pinny and retire. Shesold the business on, only for it to pass onagain in 2010.

So in late 2010 and under the manage-ment of Nick Whatmore and with a much-needed injection of cash, The Holliesstarted an overdue refurbishment. Alreadycompleted are brand new shower facilitieswith a duty attendant, a state-of-the-artCCTV system and there are also plans foran exclusive lounge for drivers overnight-ing. Planning consent has already beengranted to virtually double the parkingarea.

It’s good to see that part of the historyand lifeblood of the industry has survivedand is in fact growing.

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THEBREAKFAST

CLUB

Achange of scenery for the September Breakfast Club – a layby in the Ox-fordshire countryside. We are here to meet self-confessed truck industrytheorist and Marketing Director for DAF in the UK Tony Pain. Who else is

better qualified to give CV Driver Magazine the heads-up on the future land-scape of the UK truck industry? He also lets us in on a few secrets behind thefuture plans of the market leader's truck range – and even more importantlyhow drivers need to be recognised for their efforts.

Joining Leyland Trucks in 1968 as astudent apprentice and working for manyyears on product planning and thereforedeciding what products were right for whichmarket, then being actively involved withthe successful merger of both Leyland andDAF, and having held the MarketingDirector’s role for the last 13 or so years, itwould be fair to say that Tony has seen itall before and his judgements are never faroff the mark.

We start by talking about a subject thatis very close to Tony’s heart – properrecognition for drivers – and he warns:“Ignore your drivers at your peril.” Tonyopenly admits that a lot is expected fromdrivers to operate very complex pieces ofmachinery and he believes they should beproperly rewarded for it.

Truck drivers are a class above, he says,and in too many cases they don’t get therecognition of their status within their owncompanies. Tony makes it clear this has toimprove and adds: “Whether the boss likesit or not, drivers are the biggest influenceon the operating costs.”

Tony explains with the complexity oftoday’s trucks, the DCPC should be usedas a tool to assist making the driver's lifeeasier. Under the banner of DAF EcoDrivers, DAF operates 16 courses rangingfrom driving economically, right through tocustomer care, designed specifically fordrivers who are customer-facing. DAF can also tailor a course for a specificclient’s requirements under JAUPT. Tonysays: “The courses help you to enjoydriving and show you how to get the verybest out of the truck.”

Where possible, customers' vehicles areused. Tony also insists that the drivershould be key in the decision on whichcourses they should attend and that anoted improvement in efficiency should berewarded with an incentive such as fuelbonus. Finishing of the whole DCPC issue,

Tony sees a potential shortage of driverscome 2014 as drivers retire early,possibly as the DCPC isn’t for them.The conversation moves on to howvehicles are changing and what we canexpect from a whole new generation ofvehicles from all manufacturers.

Tony says: “The new generation willsee improved communication, not bigbrother, but to improve the driver's life”and gives a very interesting projection ofthe future when the vehicle manufacturerwill actually be able to talk to the driver,something along these lines: “Bing bong,good morning Paul (name taken fromDriver Card). Your trailer light is about blow.We have booked you in to the localdealership en route, a guarantee ofpayment has been given and the parts arein stock. We have monitored your drivingaverage speed and you will need to take abreak at 10.15am.”

As Tony explains, all the technology todo this is already available but as yet itneeds to be linked together to get muchbetter use.

Night time deliveries are high up onTony’s agenda as more and more citydeliveries need to take place after dark andTony foresees a massive improvement invehicle lighting, including better headlampsand ambient cab lighting when the vehicleis at work and much improved highintensity interior lighting.

To coincide with city deliveries, Tony alsosees the need for diesel/electric hybridtechnology, primarily to reduce noisepollution but with the added benefit of zeroexhaust emissions. The truck would usefull diesel power on the motorway and ‘A’road and then switch to electric power forcity use, as the battery range of the vehiclemay only need to be 30 kms.

Also Euro 6 is on the tips of everybody’stongues and as much as Tony explainsthese new generation vehicles are going to

cost more, he sees it as an opportunity forthe manufacturer to give something back interms of increased driver comforts – extrastorage, a bigger single piece bed, thelatest and best entertainment andcommunication with Bluetooth connectivityand further reduced in-cab noise. He seesall manufacturers looking at all theseissues in their new range of products.

So we ask: “What does DAF have instore for Euro 6 and productimprovements?” As much as Tony won’t bedrawn too much, he does say: “For Euro 6it is by far the biggest engineeringprogramme DAF has seen in the last 10years and much of it is chassisrepackaging of the Euro 6 drive line andthe insulation needed to integrate SCR andEGR technology.” But he also pointed outthat, he would be very surprised if theydon’t look different.

We can't leave the truck industry punditwithout asking what state the overallindustry is in. He says: “It’s going through aslow and very fragile recovery” but as Tonyagrees, it is going in the right direction but,he is concerned about consumerconfidence and finishes with a true theoriststatement. “A healthy economy requirestrucks and trucks require a healthyeconomy”

Tony Pain, DAF Trucks Marketing Director

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CVD Launch Issue 2011 .5

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When Mr. Eddie Stobart first went intobusiness in the 1960s as an agriculturalcontractor in the small Lake Districtvillage of Hesket Newmarket nearCaldbeck, and on 23rd November 1970the business was registered as EddieStobart Limited. During the 1970s,Eddie’s eldest son, Edward, joined thebusiness and drove its transition fromagricultural contracting into a morecomprehensive offering of road transportand warehousing, and in doing so builtan excellent reputation for customerservice across North West England. In1979, Edward’s younger brother, William,joined the business and the scene wasset for the thriving family firm to embarkon a period of significant growth andexpansion throughout the UK during the1980s, making Eddie Stobart one of thecountry’s best known, brands.

Stobart Group operates from 40 sites in the UK and Europe.

Eddie Stobart is the iconic name behind a huge road haulage fleet totalling over2,250 tractor units.

Eddie Stobart Limited was incorporated in 1970 and celebrated its Rubyanniversary last year.

Each Eddie Stobart vehicle is identified by a unique girl's name.

The first Eddie Stobart truck was named 'Twiggy' by Edward Stobart, after the1960s supermodel.

An Eddie Stobart vehicle makes a delivery somewhere in the UK every 5.5minutes.

Eddie Stobart has a dedicated training facility in Cheshire.

The distance travelled by the Eddie Stobart fleet each day is the equivalent to 24laps of the Earth.

The Group has 37,000 tyres in use at any one time.

An Eddie Stobart vehicle is passed, on average, every 4.5 minutes when driving onthe UK's major roads.

Stobart Group owns two airports, London Southend and Carlisle Lake District.

London Southend is the closest airport in the UK to mainland Europe

It will take around 40 minutes from Southend Airport train station to the LondonOlympic 2012 venue.

It will take around 50 minutes to get from Southend Airport train station into centralLondon.

Stobart Group has over six million square feet of warehousing space.

Stobart Ports handles 150,000 containers every year.

Stobart Ports brings goods into the UK from more than 100 countries around theworld.

Annual container movements per annum are in excess of 36,000 – 16,000 morethan the largest container ship can move in one journey.

There are 25,000 members of the Stobart Members Club

The Stobart brand is among the most recognized in the UK, and has been named a British Superbrand for the past six years running

Operator Profile Sponsored by

STOBARTGROUP STOBART GROUP FACTSThis month we take a look at

possibly one of the most‘prolific’ logistic organisations

of all time, the Stobart Group.


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plan, and tailor the training to addresssome of your largest costs and threats.The benefits are considerable. Driverawareness training will lead to less wearand tear on vehicles and fewer accidents.You can tailor training courses to reducethe chance of collisions or loads fallingfrom trucks, or look at driving techniquesto reduce fuel consumption, which couldhave significant paybacks to business.Visit:www.businesslink.gov.uk/drivercpc forfurther information or to start planningyour Driver CPC training today.

BOTTLENECK FOR DRIVER CPCTRAINING DEADLINE?

The commercial vehicle industry should not leave the mandatory Driver CPC (Certificate of Professional Competence)training too late, for they may run the risk of having to park-up their vehicles if drivers have not carried out theirtraining in time.

Since Driver CPC was introduced in2008/09, over 420,000 bus, coach andlorry drivers have started their training.But time is running out for those whohaven’t.

Driver CPC is not going away. Allprofessional bus, coach and lorry driversmust complete 35 hours’ training everyfive years to get qualified and stayqualified. The deadline for the bus andcoach drivers to complete their first 35hours of training is September 2013.Haulage drivers have until September2014.

Waiting until the deadline is nearer

brings no advantage – drivers will becovered by their training for five yearsfrom the deadline date, not the trainingdate. By waiting until the deadline isnearer, drivers are in fact putting theirqualification at risk – a bottleneck ofthousands of drivers needing training inthe space of a year will result if thedemand for training outstrips the supply.

Operators should focus on the benefitsof what Driver CPC can do for theirbusiness and set up a training plan now toavoid having to remove drivers from theroad if the deadline isn't met.

Act now to set up a Driver CPC training


Staying Within The Law

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16. CVD March 2011

The Campaigner

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CVD September 2011

R

In a time where image is everything !!!Official supplier

email: [email protected] or Tel: 01773 862762

R

Suppliers of Quality Clothing to professional companies who take image & safety serious.

Ultimate ID are proud to supply garments to a standard not just a price, We believe in value

for money that’s why we only supply clothing that performs & are sure won’t let you down.

We are official suppliers of Tranemo Workwear & Lyngsoe Rainwear within these ranges you’ll

find superior garments that perform to highest level in the of hardest Industries.

Our in-house Embroidery & Print service ensures quality results every time,

We are a family run company, no middle-man you’re dealing direct.

Owner drivers to national companies, one driver pack to 5000 garments.

RECOVERY PACK2 X HI-VIS TROUSERS NAVY / ORANGE4 X PREMIUM POLO’S WITH POCKET2 X LONG SLEEVED VESTS CLASS 31 X Lr32 WINTER RAIN COAT NAVY / ORANGE

Top Quality Garments, designed to perform & last. Don't confuse these items with cheap substitutes!

Main Garments by TRANEMO & LYNGSOEPack price includes decoration with your company name or logo.Price includes mainland UK delivery.

Quality

for

£225+VAT

Call or e-mail to Order

Night Out Pack5 x Premium Polo’s2 x Heavy Sweatshirts1 x Full zip fleece2 x Driver HI-VIZ vests1 x 45 L Holdall (Black)1 x 30x50 Hand Towel (Black)

All colours AvailableSizes Small to XXLIncludes left chest Embroidered company name / LogoIncludes mainland UK delivery

£115+VATOnly

Pack examples Click & Buy On-line

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Documents

CV Driver Magazine 0008