Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 354 i Australasian Transport News (ATN)

“The idea that mid-size firms on razor-thin margins can and will pass on to customers a hefty immediate hike in contractor costs swiftly enough to avoid ruin is fantasy.” If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Sage words that should be taught at school. The lesson has never really been lost at the smaller levels of the trucking industry, where little that’s good comes for free. That is why what was effectively the Transport Workers Union’s (TWU’s) offer of free money through a Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal (RSRT) was greeted with suspicion at the start, at least amongst those with enough time or interest to look hard at it. That’s not to say many individual owner-drivers weren’t tempted by the flash of cash. After all, this…

McAleese Group is staring into the abyss, admitting there are “material uncertainties that give rise to significant doubt about the ability of the group to continue”. McAleese and its financiers are battling for a compromise debt and refinancing deal with unnamed firms, the company says as it releases its first-half results. Difficult market conditions led non-cash property, plant and equipment impairments, adding $50 million to its $97.4 million first-half loss. The net first half net result was down 285 per cent on the previous first half’s $52.5 million profit, and came on the back of a 20 per cent fall in revenues to $285 million, compared with $357 million previously. The diversified haulage company has offered a debt-for-equity swap amongst options to solidify its financial position as it goes about…

The Australian Logistics Council (ALC) welcomes the Queensland Government’s State Infrastructure Plan, which recognises the needs for investment in transport infrastructure to boost freight growth and improve efficiency. With freight transport expected to grow over the next 15 years, the plan outlines the government’s aim to improve safety, increase capacity and transport efficiency, and boost flood immunity and reliability on key freight routes. “The Plan recognises that freight movement across the state is forecast to increase from 871 million tonnes in 2010-11 to between 1,643 and 1,741 million tonnes by 2026,” ALC MD Michael Kilgariff says. “If we can squeeze just a one per cent improvement in our national supply chains, the economic benefits are significant, with research showing it would boost national GDP by $2 billion.” The State Infrastructure…

The federal government is inviting project submissions from relevant jurisdictions following the conclusion of its stakeholder consultation phase that discussed specific upgrades on key roads used for transporting cattle in northern Australia. Speaking at the last consultation forum in Darwin, infrastructure and transport minister Darren Chester says the findings of the meetings will be presented in the coming months. “I look forward to the presentation of findings from the CSIRO’s TRaNSIT modelling of stakeholder priorities, which has analysed the benefits to the movement of cattle of potential projects,” Chester says. “This consultation process is a valuable opportunity for the government to draw on local and on-the-ground expertise in identifying priority projects.” The roundtable “will provide the chance to discuss the prioritisation of proposed projects, ranging from the sealing of unsealed…

Paccar Australia has announced the promotion of long-serving Andrew Hadjikakou to managing director in the wake of Mike Dozier’s upcoming move back to the US. According to the company, Dozier will finish his role as Paccar Australia managing director in March and assume the position of vice president and general manager at the Kenworth Truck Company – a role based in the US. Filling the void will be Hadjikakou, an eight-year servant in the director of sales and marketing position. “Well known and respected across the industry, Andrew understands the needs of Australian operators and the arduous conditions and applications in which they do business,” the company says in a statement. “He will lead Paccar Australia’s ongoing development of new products and services that will exceed the expectations of its…

Bird scarer, screamin’ demon, Jimmy, window rattler, mobile oil leak and even ‘Driptroit Diesel’. The old two-stroke GM Detroit diesel can be called a lot of names, not all of them complimentary. An engine famed as much for its aural drama as its ability to drink copious amounts of fuel and leave an oily smudge of nostalgia floating in a highway sky – it’s not until you drive one that you realise just how far heavy duty diesel engine technology has come. The Detroit brand revived and prospered as a leader in truck engine technology with the computerised Series 60 back in the 1990s. Yet for a whole generation of steerers, the sound of an old GM engine converting fuel into heavy metal fury brings about a misty eyed affection.…

There was a major announcement at the new F series launch about one of the big brothers in the family. The FYJ 8x4 short wheelbase agitator chassis, at 30-tonnes GVM, is well and truly in the heavy duty category and remains unchanged – except for one significant thing. The 8x4 now comes with electronic stability control, an important safety item for notoriously top-heavy concrete agitators. Isuzu says these agitators have been selling like hot cakes but not into the fleets of some of the major construction companies such as Boral and Holcim, which are specifying stability control. This was putting Isuzu at a disadvantage to its main cab-over competitor in the segment, the Iveco ACCO, which introduced stability control last year. Isuzu Australia had to twist some arms at headquarters…

A huge fire at a vehicle holding yard in Adelaide destroyed 23 B-double trailers belonging to the Australian Linehaul Interstate Transport on March 2. A spokesperson for the Adelaide-based trucking company informs ATN that the trailers were parked at the Penner Avenue site for an auction scheduled to be held the same week. With each trailer valued at $80,000, the company is looking at damage of over $2.30 million. The trailers were parked at the Burton site to give prospective buyers better access to all vehicles and equipment during the planned auction, the company states. The relocation of the trailers to the site began the previous week, with a majority moved two days prior to the incident. The fire started around 12.30pm in a paddock near the site and spread…

FA Cootes Transport driver found guilty of negligent driving in a fatal crash in 2013 has been given a 12-month suspended sentence and a $1000 fine. Judge Flannery told the court that while the consequences of the crash were serious, driver Shane Day’s culpability was low. Day “should not have been put in a truck” in which 10 of the brake pads were worn through, Flannery says. Day’s licence has been suspended for two years, and he has been ordered to enter a good behaviour bond. Day was driving a Cootes-owned tanker when it rolled at Mona Vale on Sydney’s northern beaches and burst into flames, killing Peter Wern and Graham Holfreter, and injuring five others. Earlier in March, the New South Wales District Court found him guilty of exceeding…

Heavy Vehicle Industry Australia (HVIA) has announced the opening of new offices in Melbourne and Perth and the appointment of four new employees. The Melbourne office will cover membership and communications, and the Perth office will look after the national VET and career promotions. Located in the Melbourne office will be the newly appointed communications and membership manager Savio D’sa, In charge of growing the membership base and member engagement, and Greg Forbes, who is the national manager, policy and government relations and southern region manager. Paul Caus is the chief technical officer. Based in Brisbane, Caus will offer both technical and governmental experience, the body says, on the back of working for Toyota, Hino, UD Trucks, and both state and federal governments. Mark Tucek, who will work out of…

The one respite for transport companies came with a decline in fuel prices, which led to cost savings for most. With price of diesel declining 18 per cent from $1.24 to $1.02 per litre, Aurizon was able to save up to $30 million on fuel costs in 2015 compared to the previous year. Qube reported a combined fuel, oil and electricity costs saving of $15.5 million from last year’s $59.1. With no major spending hike in power costs, the saving was mostly in its fuel expense. Asciano operating expenses for fuel, oil and electricity combined went down from $185 million to $133 million. Lindsay saw fuel and oil expenses drop to $17.3 million, a saving of $4.1 million. McAleese Group, although reeling under a massive second half loss, reported a…

It is often said that a picture tells a thousand words. Nowhere is this more evident than in recently released Australian Infrastructure Plan, which includes a page showing two maps: one of East Melbourne today, and one from 50 years ago. The map from 1966 shows Melbourne’s suburban sprawl slowly edging eastwards and taking in the now suburbs of Rowville, Ringwood and Dandenong. Today, it is one of the most densely populated parts of Australia. To their credit, planners nearly half a century ago preserved a corridor through the Melbourne’s eastern paddocks to protect a north-south route to link the city’s growing east with the city. As the Infrastructure Plan says, the land on which the EastLink motorway was eventually built was also suitable for housing and commercial development. If…

Truck manufacturing in Australia is a success story, but cooperation within the wider automotive industry is needed for this to continue, Iveco says. In the glory days of International in the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s, the Dandenong factory churned out trucks like sausages. It was the same for the iconic car makers Ford, Holden, Chrysler and later Toyota (we’re not really including Leyland in the list of icons – anyone remember the P76?). But the tariff wall protecting locally-built vehicles couldn’t last. In more recent times, massive government subsidies propped up the local car industry. Not so for local truck builders Iveco and Paccar (Kenworth) based in Melbourne, and Volvo Group (Volvo and Mack) based in Brisbane – they stand on their own two feet, and have evolved to specialise…

The Australian Trucking Association (ATA) is a dynamic institution, with a massive responsibility in representing the interests of our members. With the ATA’s member associations and organisations covering operators and drivers right across Australia, our first step to strongly represent these members is to determine their highest priorities and biggest issues at any one point. How does the ATA address this responsibility? The three year rolling ATA strategic plan is a living document that outlines the ATA’s priorities each year. It undergoes yearly updates to bring in new issues as they come up, and let go of old issues as they are addressed. This ensures the ATA remains relevant to the issues confronting our members, industry, governments and the community at large. Trucking Australia 2016 is the ATA’s key consultation…

Truck drivers took to the streets south of Brisbane to protest the introduction of minimum pay rates for owner-drivers. Close to 100 people rallied at Berrinba and then took part in a convoy to publicise their concerns about the impending scheme, which will require owner-drivers to be paid set hourly and kilometre rates from April 4. The measure, from the Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal (RSRT), is designed to ensure owner-drivers receive a viable rate to do their job safely and make a living. However, critics are concerned the scheme will lead to owner-drivers losing their livelihood instead. Trucks taking part in the convoy were decked out with banners proclaiming minimum rates would spell the end of owner-drivers. The rally attracted political support, with Queensland senator Glenn Lazarus speaking at the…

Kings Transport and Logistics says Express Division GM Tony Mellick is its new Group CEO. “Tony in his capacity as CEO will also continue to lead the Express Division, until a replacement is secured,” Kings Group director Mike Shannon says. “Tony’s appointment was made after an extensive review of suitable candidates, many of whom hail from established and well-known brands in the freight and logistics industry. I was encouraged by the interest these candidates showed in our company and am confident that Tony is the best candidate for the role. “His extensive career and successful track record with Toll Holdings for 17 years and most recently as executive general manager of our Express Division with us over the last two years, will be invaluable to us in setting and delivering…

Truck driver “John” credits senior constable Ian Musgrove with saving his life. He says he knows several other drivers who would say the same. It was back in the early 90s, and John’s was an extreme example of the all-too-common horror stories of the day on the highways of eastern Australia and across ‘the paddock’ to Western Australia. Three logbooks; sometimes driving constantly for days at a time, full of drugs; speeds of up to a hundred miles an hour in the old measurement; and even running a 140-tonne double road train on the back roads as close in to Melbourne as Seymour. John says most regulators at a meeting one day organised by the Transport Workers Union in Port Melbourne didn’t believe him when he said he was doing…

“Industry is still coming to grips with the effect of the 2016 Order” The government regulation of road transport took a significant step in the week before Christmas when, on December 18, the Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal (RSRT) published the Road Transport and Distribution and Long Distance Operations Road Safety Remuneration Order 2016 (2016 Order). By way of recap, the RSRT is an independent tribunal established under the Road Safety Remuneration Act 2012. The objects of the Act are to promote safety and fairness in the road transport industry by doing the following: (a) Ensuring that road transport drivers do not have remuneration-related incentives to work in an unsafe manner (b) Removing remuneration-related incentives, pressures and practices that contribute to unsafe work practices (c) Ensuring that road transport drivers are…

Lively Aramex CEO Hussein Hachem is a big fan of ‘disruption’, a function he sees as a natural outcome of the speed of global technological change and the logic of competition. Driverless vehicles, tracking, 3D printing, you name it. “We believe transformation has to happen,” Hachem says. ATN caught up with him on one of his periodic Australian tours. He is no stranger to the country, having overseen the takeover of Mail Call Couriers nearly two years ago, and Fastway is the firm’s biggest acquisition to date. He readily admits wanting to bring Fastway’s franchise model to other markets as the way of the future but, like others, is examining the ‘uberisation’ of parcel delivery, with contractors using private vehicles to deliver items. To that end, two new apps are…