The Weekly Wrap - Friday, March 12, 2021

News

12 Mar

NEVER TOO LATE TO COMMEMORATE

It may be a year later than intended, but Crawlin the Hume is on schedule to run Melbourne to Albury over March 27 and 28.

Last year’s cancelled event was intended to commemorate Roger ‘Slasha’ Marchetti. Along with Rob French, Slasha was instrumental in getting Crawlin’ off the ground. Whilst the stickers may have the wrong year on them, we promise to celebrate your life and contribution to the Run in the best way that 250 gathered truckies can, Slasha.

DESC FOR DANDY

Got a Daimler product?

If so you’ve now got another place to go if you only want the best in sales and service. Whitehorse Truck Centre is the 10th Daimler Trucks dealership to achieve Elite Support Certification.

Because my voice to text program has carked it and (Daimler) Elite Support Certification takes so long to type out and, let’s call it DESC.

I wandered along to the launch of this product 2-3 years back. The spiel at the time told us that DESC was extremely hard to achieve. Given we only have 10 in the country to date, I’d have to believe that Daimler are practising what they preach.

“Elite Support is a joint initiative by the Daimler Truck and Bus and the Daimler Truck dealer network that delivers a new level of service for Mercedes-Benz, Freightliner and Fuso customers.

“A key feature of the Elite Support is Express Assessment. This service ensures that within two hours of a service write-up, the dealer will communicate primary diagnosis, check parts availability, and provide an estimate of cost and repair time.

“In order to gain ESC, dealerships must satisfy 129 criteria, including everything from customer amenities to workplace storage, all with the aim of boosting the experience of the customer.”

Whitehorse Truck Centre’s Aleisha Malcom and Mark Marshall were central to the Elite Support certification process as Continuous Improvement Coordinators and were extremely pleased to hear the dealership has been successful.

Whitehorse Truck Centre has been serving commercial vehicle customers in Dandenong and surrounding areas for more than 60 years and supports the local community, charities and sporting clubs.

CRUISIN’ FOR A ($194) BRUISIN’

Well you will be bruised if you cruise up Pennant Hills Road in a truck from April 1st. That’s when the amnesty ends for trucks travelling along this stretch of road, rather than using the NorthConnex tunnel.

I well remember heading up the Hume, around the M7, onto the M2 and up Pennant Hills Rd to get onto the M3. And there’s no doubt that it was (is) a nightmarish stretch of road.

One year another couple followed us through there with caravans in tow, on our way to holiday at Kingscliff Beach. They were so traumatised by the Pennant Hills stretch that they swore not to go home that way – instead choosing inland and the Newell.

So they avoided Pennant Hills Road, but failed to avoid the kangaroo that connected with their car, which goes to prove the uselessness of those little plastic ‘whistle’ things you put on your bumper to scare the roos away…. I digress.

Using the tunnel should be optional but hey, those big scary things that deliver everything you use in life should not be treated as equal citizens – or so we’re told.

NHVR CONTRIBUTES $150,000 TO HEALTHY HEADS TRUCKS AND SHEDS

“This is in addition to the work the NHVR does in promoting mental and physical health through our existing channels,” said NHVR CEO, Sal Petroccitto. “The HHTS project is one of the first mental health initiatives that is directly co-driven with industry, customers and others across the complete supply chain at all levels.”

HHTS is a registered not-for-profit charitable foundation that exists for the benefit of the broader supply chain and is open to all operators regardless of size or scale. CEO Naomi Frauenfelder said that support from road transport operators and customers was vital to tackling issues relating to driver psychological safety and physical health.

“HHTS is working to build a healthier and more thriving industry, by promoting prevention and understanding of mental health issues in truck drivers and logistics workers,” she said. “This includes equipping them with the skills and confidence to support their colleagues through life’s ups and downs, as well as monitoring their own mental health and seeking help when needed.

“We look forward to working with the NHVR to ensure that mental and physical health are a key component of their safety agenda moving forward.”

According to Superfriend, the transport, logistics and postal sector is currently ranked as the worst sector nationally for mental health.

FROM THE ATA

· Transport for NSW, the Hume police district and the ATA took time out this week to share free coffee with truck drivers at the northbound Mundoonan rest area on the Hume Highway. The initiative is an opportunity for truck drivers to clarify issues, ask questions and raise concerns directly with police officers in an informal and positive way.

· The industry, truckies and freight and logistics workers rose to the challenge of COVID-19, the Assistant Minister for Road Safety and Freight Transport, Scott Buchholz, told the Refrigerated Warehouse and Transport Association (RWTA) conference this week. Find out more

· Victoria University has launched a Diploma of Logistics course that will run via Zoom over 12 months. The course will start on 21 April, with a whole day of videoconferencing every four weeks and separate workplace assignments. Terms and conditions apply; enrolments must be completed by 9 April. Learn more

· Find out about emerging transport and logistics industry trends, cross-sector issues, and proposed qualification changes in Australian Industry Standards’ Industry Skills 360 webinar on 29 March. Register now

· TruckSafe is calling for expressions of interest to join its board of directors. A progressive and motivated group of industry professionals, the TruckSafe board is made up of people who are passionate about seeing tangible safety outcomes for industry through comprehensive industry accreditation. For more information or to express your interest, contact Melissa Weller on 02 6253 6900 or melissa.weller@truck.net.au

FACEBOOK RIG OF THE WEEK

New to The Weekly Wrap is the Facebook Rig of the Week. The best photo on FB is independently judged by 3 people - me, myself and I.

This weeks winner of nothing but the kudos is Debbie Parr with a neat shot of her Mack loaded to the gunnels with logs. Congratulations Debbie. If you’d like to message my alter-ego, Graham Harsant on FB, he’ll send you a Truckin With Kermie sticker.