Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue 360 i Australasian Transport News (ATN)

“The near-$10 billion the state gains for the 50-year lease is a huge amount” Australia’s second-biggest economy is about to become flush with government cash – where it will be flushed to and how wisely are questions only time will answer. But it doesn’t take a pessimist to believe that the detail will abound with devils. The expected long-term injection of costs into the New South Wales economy of its port privatisation approach gives rise to such suspicion. The NSW government will expect savings through infrastructure investment to ameliorate this but there is likely to be an uneven spread. On the plus side for Victoria, the near-$10 billion the state gains for the 50-year lease is a huge amount; twice as much as Port Botany and others three years ago.…

INDUSTRY GROUPS including the Australian Trucking Association (ATA) and NatRoad see merit in the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman (ASBFEO) findings on the effects of the Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal, while the Transport Workers Union (TWU) criticises it for misrepresenting industry issues. The Ombudsman recommends developing an industry code of conduct for the road freight industry under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 – a recommendation the ATA and NatRoad back. “A mandatory code under the Act would address the payment terms issues facing small trucking businesses,” ATA CEO Christopher Melham says. “The code would need to cover payment times, a prohibition on set offs and pay-when-paid arrangements, and alternative dispute resolution. The ACCC would be a highly credible regulator for the code.” NatRoad chief executive Warren Clarke…

McGrathNicol administrator Keith Crawford is searching for a new date for the McAleese extraordinary general meeting (EGM) as the atmosphere surrounding the downed firm got increasingly fractious. Having lost directors Wayne Kent and Kerry Gleeson on the appointment of McGrathNicol as voluntary administrators, Crawford chaired the meeting to consider a shareholder pitch to spill the board. This had been proposed by the Gilberto Maggiololed Havenfresh shareholder entity and would see Harold Price and Maurice Smith join Maggiolo on the board. In the event, the meeting was adjourned, as Crawford “considered that the appointment of administrators was material information for members and members would not have had sufficient information to determine how to vote at the meeting”, McAleese told the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX). The administrators intend to hold the meeting…

South Australia-based transport company BT Transport and Logistics has received a $170,000 grant under the state government’s job accelerator scheme. Headquartered in Adelaide, the company offers transport services to many industries, including defence, mining and civil. Having recently won a few new contracts, the company found the need to hire up to 17 new drivers, and that’s where the job accelerator scheme came in handy, the company states. “The logistics industry operates with tight margins, and initiatives like the Job Accelerator Grant lower the financial risk associated with taking on new staff,” BT Transport and Logistics CEO Philip Mills says. “The grants will be invested throughout the business, creating sustainable growth that is driven by well-trained employees and state-of-the-art and well-maintained fleet and equipment.” Treasurer Tom Koutsantonis says the scheme…

“Chain of responsibility parties must ensure that their conduct does not cause or encourage drivers, or another person, to contravene the national law” QUEENSLAND PARLIAMENT’S Transportation and Utilities Committee is seeking submissions on amendments to national heavy vehicle and rail safety laws. While part of the Heavy Vehicle National Law and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2016 relates to the taxi industry, the heavy vehicle aspect focuses on chain of responsibility (COR). Queensland is the host jurisdiction for this national law. The amendment aims to “implement reforms for the national heavy vehicle industry to better align the align the obligations of chain of responsibility parties and executive officers with national safety laws, improve compliance and simplify enforcements as well as making a number of minor amendments to improve administration of the…

The owner of South Australian transport company Colbert Transport has been found guilty of manslaughter for the second time. According to media reports, a jury took under an hour to unanimously find Peter Colbert guilty of gross negligence over the death of driver Robert Brimson in 2014. The 45-year-old driver lost his life when his truck veered off the road and crashed into a pole in Happy Valley, a suburb in Adelaide south. Colbert was found guilty of endangering Brimson, who had warned Colbert about the faulty brakes in the truck two days before the fatal crash, the ABC reports. It says Colbert denied having prior knowledge of the issue during the trial despite witnesses telling the court he was repeatedly warned about it. Colbert was also found guilty of…

Wagga Wagga is a little closer to getting a new freight and logistics hub, with construction works expected to begin soon. The Riverina Intermodal Freight and Logistics (RiFL) Hub project aims to provide rail transport services for businesses throughout New South Wales’ Riverina and Murray regions. It is also expected to improve road safety in the area, address existing productivity constraints, and better link the industrial precinct with the Olympic and Sturt highways. Upon completion of the project, the region will have: • A 900m long rail loading area with room to store over 1000 containers • A 5.8km new rail track, which will run parallel to the main track line, to allow trains to quickly exit and enter the main line with minimal interruptions • Improved road connectivity between…

Powertrain supplier Penske Power Systems has announced Sean McLean as its new on-highway director. Replacing Kevin Dennis (now Penske Commercial Vehicles MD) McLean will focus on the Detroit and Allison brands across Australia and New Zealand, including overseeing on-highway sales and aftersales, product and technical support, and dealer development. He will also maintain the relationships with Western Star, Freightliner and Allison. McLean worked with Cummins South Pacific for 22 years – most recently as marketing and on-highway products GM.…

“If we want a safer industry and safer roads, focus CoR prosecutions on the buyers, not transport operators” Unless buyers of transport services are the focus of Chain of Responsibility (COR) prosecutions, the legislation will become worthless as a safety measure. Basically, the current prosecution regime relies on transport companies to push the COR laws along the supply chain – i.e. sell the benefits of compliance to buyers. That is a model doomed to fail. Because, for every prosecuted transport company, there will be several other transport operators that will provide the buyer with the low transport cost they want. SCENARIO AS EXAMPLE A buyer (say the purchasing officer) receives two quotes from two different transport companies to take a load from Perth to Port Hedland. Transport Company A puts…

Redstar Transport is a national operation which has more than 200 prime movers. Its operation is focused on long-haul freight, enabling customers to move time-sensitive goods between capital cities. It provides a centralised overnight tracking department, which includes 24-hour on-road vehicle monitoring, with driver fatigue monitored through the transport management system (TMS) and the event management system (EMS) sending automated system alerts from operational activities. Its incident management system (IMS) ensures that every incident is properly recorded and resolved, providing transparency and effectiveness of transactional processes. It owns and operates heavy equipment workshops in three centres; Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth.…

With Basic Fatigue Management (BFM) allowing up to 84 hours a week legally, fatigue expert Professor Ann Williamson makes the following points: • 84 hours with only seven hours’ continuous break is not enough to Above allow a decent family life and enough sleep – most awards elsewhere in the economy stipulate a 38-hour week • Being allowed to drive for six hours straight without a rest break under BFM is too much • It’s no wonder that half the drivers in a recent study reported that at some stage in their career they have drifted across lanes; nearly half have had a near miss caused by fatigue; and more than a third have nodded off behind the wheel at some time • What’s needed is a more sustainable payment system which would enable…

Organic growth is a key factor behind Silk Contract Logistics’ (SCL) strong performance, with its revenue up from $85 million to $120 million despite a challenging start. SCL managing director Brendan Boyd and business development director John Sood, along with risk and governance director George Lerias, say the growth is underpinned by several new clients. The trio, along with former Wharf Cartage director David Anderson and Gandel Invest, took over the company upon the sale of Silk Contract Logistics’ component formally known as Kagan Logistics and Hoffmann Transport in February 2014. They now have new challenges ahead as their fourth partner, Anderson, has retired, buying his share in the business – including fifth equity partner’s Tony Gandel’s shares, who initially helped them to acquire the business. They are looking to…

One of the highlights of our trip to Sweden with Volvo Trucks was a visit to the Volvo Museum, near the Gothenburg HQ. There are heaps of fascinating old cars and working vehicles, including the very first Volvo truck – this 1928 model with a two-litre engine putting out a whopping 28hp (20kW). At the other end of the size scale is a mammoth prime mover built in America in 2005 – a VN 780, this one with a lounge/kitchen/office/bedroom which is two metres tall and 77 inches (195cm) long. Under the bonnet of this model you could have an engine as big as a Cummins rated to 565hp (415kW), or a Volvo D12 as low as a modest 365hp (270kW). That’s a lot less than the grunt put out…

NATROAD SAYS it will continue to back its exemption application to have its members officially excluded from existing and subsequent changes to the provisions of the NSW General Carriers Contract Determination (GCCD) despite industry criticism. The Australian Road Transport Industrial Organisation (ARTIO) NSW branch has been repeatedly arguing against the validity of NatRoad’s application, which has seen opposition from various corners of the industry. Having submitted evidence to the NSW Industrial Relations Commission (IRC) to back its claim against NatRoad’s approach, ARTIO NSW went on to raise doubts whether “unregistered” organisations such as NatRoad have the right to be heard by the Commission in the first place. “ARTIO NSW said the Act [Fair Work Act 2009] confers no such right on NatRoad because an unregistered organisation has no standing in…

Recruitment specialist Manpower has predicted the strongest labour market in the coming quarter since the second quarter of 2012 for its ‘Transport & Utilities’ sector measure. The latest Manpower Employment Outlook Survey shows that of the 1500 public and private employers surveyed, 20 per cent of Transport & Utilities employers indicated they intend to increase their headcount over the October-December, while 76 per cent said they would not make any change to their current workforce. And the expected performance takes into account the traditionally strong quarter in the lead-up to Christmas. The resulting seasonally adjusted ‘Net Employment Outlook’ (NEO) of +17 per cent is up four percentage points from last quarter and 10 percentage points at the same time last year. ManpowerGroup Australasia MD Richard Fischer says the surge in…

 THE WESTERN Australian Road Transport Association (WARTA) says the state has been short-changed by the federal government in terms of infrastructure funding. “We need the money to upgrade our ... infrastructure” It warns that unless WA receives its “fair share”, local transport operators will be forced to bear higher costs. WARTA says it is unfair that the funds from the scrapped Road Safety Remuneration Tribunal (RSRT) were directed to the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR), of which neither WA or the Northern Territory are members. The state body says WA deserved a part of these funds. Its freight and logistics division manager, Cam Dumesny,tells ATN thatthe association will work with other state bodies to ensure that WA receives its “correct share of road funding” from the national total. WARTA is…

The new medical standards developed by the National Transport Commission (NTC) and Austroads will improve safety and reduce costs, Australian Trucking Association CEO Christopher Melham says. The new standards will give medical professionals the best available information to help them assess the driving ability of their patients. The new version, Assessing Fitness to Drive for commercial and private vehicle drivers, comes into force on October 1. “The ATA has argued for many years that the approach to sleep apnoea in the medical standards is flawed,” Melham says. “As a result of work by the ATA, the new standards include a clear warning to doctors that they should not rely solely on subjective questionnaires to rule out sleep apnoea. They need to make a clinical judgement.” The new standards also include…

Hanjin Shipping’s woes will be far from over despite a 100 billion won (A$119 million) injection courtesy of its parent company, although it will bring some short-term relief to the company that filed for bankruptcy last month. Parent firm Hanjin Group has promised to contribute 60 billion won, while Hanjin Group chairman Cho Yang-ho will contribute 40 billion to help unload millions of dollars of cargo that has been trapped on-board many Hanjin-owned or operated vessels across the globe. South Korean government officials had earlier announced that government-backed creditors were willing to pay close to 100 billion won in low-interest, long-term loans to help ease the situation on the condition that the collapsed containership was able to provide collateral. Both relief packages, in case they go ahead, will not be…

SPECIFICATIONS TRADETRUCKS.COM.AU TradeTrucks.com.au is your one-stop truck site to buy and sell new and used equipment including new and used trucks, such as trailers, parts and accessories. Browse nearly 20,000 used stock items and 1200 new truck makes and models Visit TradeTrucks.com.au’s Specifications page to examine the details of your favourite vehicle. Those wishing to compare the features of multiple new trucks can see them side-by-side before they hit the ‘enquire’ button for relevant dealers Visit Australia’s leading specialist transport and logistics industry job site Transjobs.com.au to check out all the latest vacancies, from drivers to senior executive positions On the web this month! Video: Mack Super-Liner 685 with 60-inch sleeper review Sitting behind a 685hp Mack Super-Liner hauling roadtrain double in western Queensland, Steve Brooks puts it, and its…

Handling equipment specialist Kalmar has appointed Peter McLean (below) as its new head of Asia-Pacific, succeeding the outgoing Ken Loh. While Loh has chosen to leave the company to pursue external interests, Kalmar says he will remain as an advisor to McLean until mid-2017 to ensure a smooth transition. With a history in the Asia-Pacific region, having previously served as Kalmar’s Australia and New Zealand vice president, Kalmar president Antti Kaunonen says McLean is the perfect replacement for Loh. McLean has more than 20 years of experience in the mining, heavy construction, power systems and container handling industries.…

The issue of operator licensing arose during a session on heavy vehicles at the recent Australasian Road Safety Conference in Canberra. The NHVR’s executive director for productivity and safety, Geoff Casey, was one of the keynote speakers on stage. “We’ve actually thrown the concept out to some of the peak bodies around [an] operator licensing system,” Casey said. “If you read the strategies document that we’ve put out, we refer to setting standards for entry and moving people out of the industry. That is the discussion we will be having. “You would know that that is a complex discussion, going through a RIS [regulatory impact statement] probably, and the NTC and everything that goes with that. But fundamentally I agree [with the need for an operator licensing system]. “We don’t…

It’s been more than three years since Redstar Transport was formed by John Dixon and Sean Williams, following a management buyout of a long-established linehaul business, with the company now proving to be a growing success. The key to this success has been a focus on safety and compliance, cultural change, excellent customer service and staff engagement. “Being a safe and compliant national operator is paramount,” Williams says. “We recognise that we need to continually lift the bar to ensure we constantly challenge ourselves and our people to improve in this aspect of the business.” While the business has seen a marked improvement in its safety and compliance key performance indicators over its few years, the owners are not satisfied. “There is no room for complacency,” Dixon says. “As owners,…

 The heavy vehicle chain of responsibility (COR) laws are centred around compliance with legal obligations to help ensure the safety of people in the supply chain and public road users. ‘Compliance with legal obligations’ is usually translated into business speak as “For the cost of getting your business up to speed, you will likely also realise cost savings” ‘lawyers, red tape, cost and fines’. However, if you take the same view, there is a good chance that potential business benefits might be getting lost in translation. As the transport and logistics sector moves into a more mature adoption of the COR laws, more and more businesses are seeing the potential competitive benefits that can spin out of COR ‘compliance’, including the opportunity to distinguish service offerings and secure more valuable…

Boyd, Sood and Lerias are the oldest within the executive team, with the rest (five) under the age of 40. They’ve recruited people who can carry on the legacy: “Smart, young people are the future of our business.” What they’ve learnt in the past two years is that open, candid discussions are a must in a business. “They can be tough too but we always come to an agreement at the end of the day and once we’ve agreed on something we stick to that path,” Sood says. With no plans to expand into line haul, Boyd, Sood and Lerias aspire to build a business with a turnover of $500 million in five years. They’ll be looking to grow its revenue with the left and right of warehouse operations by…

“These changes will ... help some of Australia’s safest and most experienced drivers stay on the road” The National Transport Commission and Austroads have published the latest version of the medical standards for private and commercial drivers, Assessing Fitness to Drive, used by doctors conducting medicals for driver licensing and under accreditation schemes such as the ATA’s TruckSafe program. The new standards came into effect on October 1. The ATA was closely involved in developing the new standards. From our point of view, they include three important changes, starting with the standards relating to sleep apnoea, a breathing disorder that occurs when people are asleep; it involves repeated disruptions in breathing. Because sleep apnoea leads to broken sleep, it can cause excessive sleepiness during the day. Road users with sleep…

Volkswagen and Navistar International have come to terms on a ‘strategic alliance’ which will see Volkswagen Truck & Bus take a 16.6 per cent stake in the truck maker. According to the German automotive giant, the new deal will see it work with the US-based truck maker on “strategic technology and supply cooperation and establish a procurement joint venture”. The 16.6 per cent stake will be bought through a primary share issuance at US$15.76 (A$20.54) per share, equalling an aggregate purchase price of close to US$256 million (A$333.69 million). According to Volkswagen Truck & Bus CFO Matthias Gründler, the immediate part of the deal surrounds the supply of powertrain systems. “Our collaboration, especially with regard to the powertrain, will considerably increase our synergy potential,” he says. “Navistar will be able…

“Professor Williamson has contributed enormously to excellence in road safety research” WELL-KNOWN truck industry researcher Professor Ann Williamson has taken out Australia’s top gong for road safety professionals. Williamson is director of the Transport and Road Safety Research Centre at the University of New South Wales, and amongst other areas has been researching truck driver fatigue for decades. She was awarded the prestigious 2016 Australasian College of Road Safety Fellowship during an awards ceremony in front of more than 500 people at Parliament House in Canberra last month. The awards were part of the annual Australasian Road Safety Conference. The Australasian College of Road Safety includes academics, researchers, government officials, community organisations and private companies. Its president is former long-time executive director of the Australian Automobile Association, Lauchlan McIntosh AM.…

Australia’s heavy vehicle camera monitoring network is set for an expansion, with the federal government promising a $2.24 million package as part of TruckWeek 2016. The funds, which will head to the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR), will see the installation of five new automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras on the country’s heavy vehicle routes. Infrastructure and transport minister Darren Chester says the additional sites will reduce pressure on freight operators to meet unrealistic time constraints. “Each camera site costs between $250,000 and $500,000 to establish, depending on what infrastructure, power, communications and security facilities are already in place,” Chester says. “This is money well spent in terms of detecting risky behaviour and unsafe practice on the roads, and helps narrow our targets for compliance and enforcement efforts.” NHVR…

The Queensland government has signalled the start of the heavy vehicle exemption notice initiative following an 18-month trial. Developed in association with the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR), state police and the transport industry, the project aims to deliver productivity gains by ensuring safe movement of oversized agricultural vehicles on regional roads. The measure will make it easier for large vehicles that are up to four metres in width to move on roads in the coastal areas north of Gympie, Queensland transport minister Stirling Hinchliffe says. “As always, safety is our number one priority, so these vehicles will be restricted to daytime travel only and need to meet new conditions, including the use of a pilot vehicle and portable signs to warn other road users in advance if they travel…

LESS THAN two months after a major management shake-up that saw senior management roles cut or merge, Aurizon has announced the impending departure of MD and CEO Lance Hockridge (right) and the appointment of Andrew Harding as his successor. Harding, who worked with the Rio Tinto Group for more than 24 years holding various executive management and operating roles both domestically and globally, was until June this year the chief executive of Rio’s iron ore division. Hockridge will continue in his current position until December 1, when Harding starts the new role. Aurizon chairman Tim Poole says planning the succession of the CEO has been on the top of the company’s priority list this year.…

Automotive technology company Intelematics Australia has appointed Rod Chapman as its new CEO and managing director. Moving from his position as non-executive director, a role he has held since 2009, Chapman is taking over from inaugural CEO Adam Game, who led the company from its start-up 17 years ago. Game will not be leaving the company, Intelematics Australia says; rather he will moving into a director of strategy role “allowing him to focus on the innovative development of Intelematics’ products and services”.…

“Never failed me, always on time,” is how a Redstar customer has described drivers Bob Henderson and barney Rainbow. They have only had one accident each during their careers, and have transported everything from concert equipment for Whitney Houston to Grand Prix cars and a 20-foot Matilda the Kangaroo mascot. Redstar people development manager Tiffany Braidwood says the company has increased its investment in its drivers following driver survey feedback. “More than 50 per cent of our workforce is over 55, so how do we encourage drivers into the industry and keep them?” Braidwood says. “One of the biggest projects I’ve worked on is the values; there’s no point having values unless everybody knows what they are, or that they are fully embedded into the organisation.” The five values she’s…

Electronic work diaries (EWDs) are “doomed to fail” without also reforming the trucking industry, one of Australia’s top transport fatigue researchers says. EWDs are a “side issue” to the main cause of fatigue, which is commercial pressures in transport, according to Professor Ann Williamson from the University of New South Wales. “There’s nothing wrong with electronic work diaries in themselves, but I don’t think they are going to solve any problems when the problems are about the way work is done in the industry,” Williamson says. “There’s no point in putting electronic diaries in trucks where the truck drivers are being motivated to push the envelope. It won’t work, it puts extra pressure on, and is just doomed to fail. “The worry is they will become the main focus of…

It’s easy to get a sense of economic doom and gloom if you watch, read and listen to mainstream media too much. But here are some of the latest business facts in Australia at the time of writing. Gross domestic product is growing at a healthy clip of more than three per cent a year, and we haven’t had a recession in Australia for more than a quarter of a century. The latest company profit results are regarded as good on the whole, while interest rates and inflation are still incredibly low. And, of course, the forecasts for bumper growth in the freight task keep on coming. The latest is for a 26 per cent increase over the next decade, from no less a body than the National Transport Commission.…

It doesn’t matter what industry you belong to, reducing cost is a key driver for any business manager. This is a challenge faced daily by transport companies, as costs associated with running the business can quickly add up and cause significant damage to the bottom line. Given the increased competition in the marketplace, they face a range of unpredictable challenges. Transport companies are often exposed to issues that can be prevented through effective management and the right technology services. Here are some tips to help transport businesses increase their bottom line, reduce unnecessary costs, and save money. STOP PAYING FOR HOURS NOT WORKED A common issue faced by transport companies is truck drivers puffing out the hours in the day, taking longer routes (or the scenic route) and subsequently adding…