The deadline for submitting Australian Freight Industry Awards (AFIA) nominations is fast approaching.

With less than a week to the 14 August deadline, the Victorian Transport Association (VTA) is encouraging freight industry operators and suppliers to participate.

“Every day, I hear of so many fantastic initiatives of freight operators and suppliers to our industry to improve and enhance productivity, safety, sustainability, and other key indicators of success,” said VTA CEO, Peter Anderson.

“Acknowledge and reward your team for the great work they do in your business and celebrate the success of your company.

“Submitting an entry and being shortlisted for an award is a terrific way to acknowledge your people and their achievements, and to highlight the enormous contribution our industry makes to the broader Australian community.”

Nominations are open for the following award categories:

Female Leadership Award sponsored by Viva Energy Australia
Investment in People Award sponsored by Logical Staffing Solutions
Application of Technology Award sponsored by Transport Certification Australia
Young Achiever Award sponsored by Daimler Truck Australia Pacific
Best Practice Safety Award sponsored by Gallagher
Sustainable Environment Award

Criteria for the Australian Freight Industry Awards can be reviewed here.

In other news, the J4 tipper body design code certification has been extended in the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator’s (NHVR) latest version of the Vehicle Standards Bulletin 6 (VSB6).

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Lucidity’s commitment to setting new standards within safety and innovation was evident in its successful performance at the 2023 Brisbane Truck Show.

With practical applications and remarkable versatility on display and within hands reach of owners and operators, Lucidity made the most out of the opportunity to engage with the industry.

“The stand attracted crowds of enthusiastic visitors eager to explore our captivating display and witness the latest advancements in the industry,” says Lucidity Australia President, Mathew Jenkins. “To us, it was about giving the industry a platform to discover how our ground-breaking products are revolutionising the trucking experience and exceeding client expectations.”

This year the Lucidity team unveiled a highly anticipated product line. The line-up consisted of Lucidity’s LED Lamps from the Link Series, the recently launched LED Progressive Indicators and an interactive OMP wire harness and lighting system display. These options, Mathew says, are perfect examples of Lucidity’s dedication to providing cutting-edge solutions as they “raise the bar for safety and functionality in on-road applications”.

“The products we had on display garnered quite significant interest and sparked engaging discussions among visitors,” he says. “And as a result, the immersive experience allowed corporate representatives and owner-operators alike to envision the customisation potential of our systems to suit their specific needs.”

Lucidity’s battery charging and timer switch products, also on display, captured considerable interest too. Essentially, these innovative solutions prevent battery drainage and utilise intelligent chargers to efficiently charge battery power packs.

In certain situations, it’s very easy to completely flatten batteries which can result in an irreversible shortened lifespan. To combat this problem, the Charge Plus range of timer switches prevents interior lamps from flattening fridge plant batteries. When operating, Mathew says, the switch basically protects the power source.

“The switch can identify a low voltage condition and turn off the interior lamps,” he says. “Once the fridge plant is started again, and it starts recharging the battery, the interior lamps are turned back on.”

Following the 2023 Brisbane Truck Show, Mathew says Lucidity received an overwhelmingly positive response from its customer base – setting the stage for a prosperous year ahead.

“We’re very grateful for everyone that took the time to stop by to see us,” he says. “We want to thank the Heavy Vehicle Industry Australia (HVIA) as well for putting on such a great show. The event had record-breaking numbers of attendees this year, so I think their efforts definitely paid off.”

Furthermore, he recognised all of the hard work put into the event.

“It takes an amazing team to get to Brisbane Truck Show, have a successful show on your feet for four days and then still have the energy to pack up and maintain your sense of humour,” Mathew says. “So, I want to take the opportunity to thank our Lucidity Australia team for their effort to get us to the show and back home, and most importantly, to all of our customers that support and believe in us. I’m very happy with the performance of our brand this year, and I’m looking forward to seeing it make a bigger and better appearance in two years’ time.”

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The J4 tipper body design code certification has been extended in the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator’s (NHVR) latest version of the Vehicle Standards Bulletin 6 (VSB6).

An initial three-month period was provided for tipper bodies to be certified under the new requirements to provide time for modifications which were already underway and allow industry to adjust to the new standards.

Following further review and consultation, the NHVR has extended the transitional arrangements for the implementation of the new design code to 1 February 2024.

NHVR CEO, Sal Petroccitto, said the extension follows discussions with Heavy Vehicle Industry Australia (HVIA) and Approved Vehicle Examiners (AVEs), with the NHVR considering it appropriate to extend the certification period a further four months.

“The extension to February 2024 will provide additional time for AVEs to become accredited by their jurisdiction’s accreditation scheme, familiarise themselves with the updated code, and allow tipper body manufacturers to make the necessary changes to their designs,” he said.

“It will also allow the NHVR to work with industry to address any queries relating to the new code and VSB6 Version 3.2 in general.”

HVIA CEO, Todd Hacking, said he wanted to recognise the NHVR for its willingness to engage with HVIA, its members and other affected parties to recognise the issues that are at play.

“The intention of these Standards is to ensure that Australia’s heavy vehicle fleet is both safe and productive, and we support their ongoing improvement,” he said.

“We will work closely with the NHVR team and other stakeholders towards ensuring there is adequate capacity and resourcing to allow the updates to succeed when the transition period finishes next February.”

Petroccitto said the NHVR understands that some vehicle modifications are complex changes and require extensive design and work to complete.

“We are asking owners and modifiers that require the extension to February 2024, to apply to the NHVR for the extension so that we can monitor how industry is progressing as well as target any future communications,” he said.

To apply for an extension of the J4 tipper body design code, the NHVR is asking requests including a name, business name and estimated number of tipper body certifications over this period to be sent to vehiclestandards@nhvr.gov.au.

In other news, Smedley’s Engineers recently conducted hands-on training for its new certification and compliance team members at MaxiTRANS’ Derrimut facility.

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Smedley’s Engineers recently conducted hands-on training for its new certification and compliance team members at MaxiTRANS’ Derrimut facility.

Smedley’s Engineers’ Performance-Based Standards (PBS) Specialist and Training Facilitator, Jesse Colagiuri, led the training by walking through various MaxiTRANS trailer combinations.

Along with some tips and tricks being shared, the team had the opportunity to test their knowledge application across the different combinations available.

Smedley’s Engineers Operations Manager, Dean Abram, told Trailer this two-day certification training program is crucial for a better understanding of what is involved in the inspection and how to efficiently meet key criteria for approvals.

“This training covers the basis of services offered through certification and compliance,” he said.

“The autonomous nature of the role demands an equal level of ongoing support to ensure we have provided sufficient knowledge and guidelines to assist our employees during the conduct of inspections, and to ensure accuracy through training in different techniques and scenarios.

“We ensure our new employees are confident in their abilities to go out and conduct their own remote inspections. This comes with initial theoretical and practical on-site training, followed by shadowing experienced PBS Certifiers during inspections to cover the standards and safety requirements along with various customer expectations are being satisfied.”

Smedley’s Engineers Managing Director, Robert Smedley, commented on Smedley’s Engineers’ strong emphasis for training and development.

“While the heavy vehicle industry also has an ageing population of drivers and mechanics, this is also apparent in engineering services as well, and bringing fresh talent into the heavy vehicle industry is critical to its ongoing success,” he told Trailer.

“Martin Toomey, my first employer after I graduated university, stated, ‘It is better we train them and they leave, than not train them and they stay’ and that’s stuck with me ever since.”

The training isn’t just limited to PBS certification and inspections, as it also goes through the whole PBS process to ensure consideration is taken from the design approval stage through to access.

“It is necessary to facilitate training with new employees providing them the tools and qualities to ensure they can successfully complete inspections,” Abram said.

“Additionally, Smedley’s Engineers aims to ensure the ongoing consistency in the service we provide our customers in the most effective and efficient manner, to ensure employees perform their tasks to the highest standards and ascertain quality of the output.”

According to positive feedback from participants such as Graduate Engineer, Renee Koh, the training was very successful.

“The training that Dean and Jesse did was useful with regards to consolidating what we knew about PBS certification and introducing us to a bunch of access basics, regulations, requirements, which was quite interesting – access feels like playing a management simulation game where the game’s artificial intelligence is actually real people at the NHVR deciding if your request is valid,” Koh told Trailer.

“With the training at MaxiTRANS, it was useful to see how Jesse did things, especially with some of the vehicles that I hadn’t previously had experience measuring up, such as single dollies and A-doubles.

“The people there were also friendly and allowed us access to all of their vehicles in the yard to train with. All in all, it was an informative three days of training that I enjoyed very much.”

MaxiTRANS has provided continual support to Smedley’s Engineers by regularly giving access to its dealership for the purposes of training.

“MaxiTRANS offers a large range of products, so we can conduct training on various combinations in the one location,” Abram said.

In other news, Smedley’s Engineers is now offering Front Underrun Protection (FUP) and Rear Underrun Protection (RUP) validation services for manufacturers.

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Transport and logistics company, Linfox, recently hosted Senator Glenn Sterle to experience a day in the life of a Linfox truck driver.

As part of his experience, Sterle assisted Linfox driver, Helen Coleman, in completing a series of store deliveries in Melbourne’s western suburbs for Woolworths Group.

“I had the pleasure of being escorted around a couple of sites, from the Linfox site, to a Woolies site and to some stores by Helen,” Sterle told Trailer.

“I wasn’t allowed to touch anything. I had to sit there.”

“The professionalism was absolutely a pleasure to see.

“It brings back my faith in the road transport industry when I have the pleasure of spending time with good operators, good companies, good equipment and also clients who know that if they want the best product, they’ve got to pay for it.”

Sterle was also impressed by his partner for the day, Coleman, who he believes is a role model for women in the industry.

“Helen is from an extensive trucking background through her family and her husband,” he said.

“She entered the industry through the training initiative that Linfox have, and I have to say, she is a poster for young women who want to enter the transport industry.

“She loves her job and you can understand why.”

A licensed truck driver from Western Australia, Sterle has done a fair bit of refrigerated carting in his career.

But he found Victoria’s road network much different through this freight task.

“I don’t drive through Melbourne daily,” he said.

“That, in itself, is an art – navigating Melbourne traffic and Melbourne drivers.”

As part of his experience, Sterle also received a tour of Woolworth’s Melbourne Fresh distribution centre with Linfox CEO, Mark Mazurek, and Linfox President Retail, Simon Livingstone.

“It’s just amazing, it’s like clockwork how our supply chains work,” he said.

“It just highlights that there are trucks coming in in the afternoon, in the evening, during the night to unload, and by the next morning, all of that stuff has gone through.

“It’s been sorted, it’s been packed into trucks, it’s been delivered, it’s been unpacked and then put onto the shelves and onto someone’s table all within a day.

“It’s very professional, and it would just be nice if a lot of other people could get to see how your fruit, vegetables, meat, seafood, milk and dairy actually lands not only on your table but into the store where you walk in and purchase it.”

Sterle and the Linfox team also discussed road safety, attracting female talent, jobs and skills planning and his work in the aftermath of Tropical Cyclone Ilsa in Western Australia.

“The operations I witnessed through Linfox and Woolworths should not be the top of the tree,” Sterle said.

“It should be the everyday normal standard.

“We are professionals, our equipment has to be up to scratch, our drivers have to be up to scratch, and it does just enhance my mind even more that we’ve got to lift the standards in the road transport industry so operations like Linfox are the norm, not the extreme.”

In other news, a leader from the aviation sector has been appointed to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) Commission.

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