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PASSING ON PASSING

Has anyone else noticed more impatience, risktaking and aggression with overtaking lately? Drivers picking inopportune moments to overtake, inaccurately gauging the amount of space ahead, bombing past two at a time … that sort of stuff?

Maybe it’s more of a Golden Triangle thing – higher traffic volume, higher incidence rate – but I wouldn’t be surprised if the trend is mirrored around the country’s other major centres. I know it happens on the state highway network.

Once again, the Kaimais pokes its ugly head into the conversation. Yes, it’s top of mind for me as I drive the route regularly, but so do some 14,000 other vehicles each day, according to the NZTA. Many of those are heavy vehicles and many others seemingly impatient light-vehicle drivers. Anyway, I’ve decided recently to be ultra-judicious with my decisions to overtake on the Kaimais.

The eastern (Bay of Plenty) side is less problematic. Climbing this side of the hill isn’t much of a problem – the lanes are long, and sightlines mostly fair. Descending can be trickier – vehicles are usually

moving quicker, and the passing opportunities are shorter and less frequent.

The western (Waikato) side is the real issue. It’s tighter, windier, slower, and the traffic is denser. Climbing is made easier due to dual lanes all the way up – but drivers still show no hesitation in ‘racing’ around those bends at 80km/h or more. And that’s a problem when there’s every possiblity you could round a bend to come up against a truck pulling a slow overtake on another – something which, in my opinion, should not happen … but it does.

Descending this end, however, is by far the worst. The passing lanes are short, many drivers who don’t use the route often clearly don’t know how short they are, and drivers will often take a chance and push their way through. I’ve noticed trucks straddle the lanes to prevent cars from passing, and I can completely understand why – no doubt they’d have seen a few near misses.

After witnessing some scary overtaking on this part of the road a few weeks ago, I decided to limit my overtaking unless: it was clear I could safely pass, there was little risk the person behind me wouldn’t be able to

do so as well if they tacked on to my rear bumper, and I was clearly able to see oncoming traffic.

I also decided to do a little exercise to illustrate how long and – more importantly – how much space it takes to pass a truck. I don’t think some motorists clearly understand this. To be honest, there have been occasions where I was caught out, too. So, grab your exercise books and sharpen your pencils.

Take a 23m truck doing a constant 90km/h and a car passing at a constant 100km/h (for the sake of simplicity, we’ll assume the car isn’t accelerating). With some basic maths, the relative speed here is 2.78m/s, meaning it takes 8.27 seconds for the car to pass over 229.8m.

That same calculation for a 19m truck means it takes 6.83 seconds and 189.8m to effect the same manoeuvre.

To be honest, those times are a bit quicker than I expected. But what strikes me is the distance – remember, this is purely to cover the length of the truck – it ignores the time and space covered from the moment the driver decides to pull out and pass to when they’re safely back in the lane ahead of the

truck. Add that in and then consider how often drivers decide to take a last-minute lunge at the 200m sign of the passing lane.

To satisfy my curiosity specific to descending the western Kaimais, I also worked out a 23m truck doing 40km/h being passed by a car doing 70km/h. In this instance, the relative speed is greater at 8.33m/s, meaning it takes 2.76 seconds and 53.7m to pass. Considering the four passing lanes on this side range from roughly 150m to 300m, that doesn’t leave much space or time for many vehicles to effect a safe manoeuvre.

What’s become clear to me since passing on passing is that the time gained is – in most cases – only a couple of minutes. It is, however, so easily lost when encountering other traffic and roadworks. And that makes you think, especially when a misjudged few seconds and couple of hundred meters can make for a very bad day.

Gavin Myers Editor

Volvo Electrics for Fulton Hogan

Fulton Hogan has taken delivery of two new Volvo FM Electric 6x4 trucks with two specially built Transport Trailers two-axle bulk semis.

The Volvos will each transport up to 16,000kg of asphalt from plants in Penrose and Drury to sites around Auckland. Fulton Hogan New Zealand chief executive Ben Hayward said the launch of the Volvo FM trucks was “another learning step on

the path to a low emissions fleet”.

He explained that Fulton Hogan already employed electric excavators, loaders and crushers. “This is the first time that we’ve really been able to address the delivery part of the supply chain.” The trucks will each be double-shifted and are expected to cover 60,000km per year. It is expected they will reduce emissions by a combined

total of approximately 150 tonnes CO2e annually, compared with diesel-powered trucks performing the same task.

The trucks have a battery capacity of 450kWh, and efficiency modelling showed their ‘sweet spot’ was shortduration, cyclic trips in urban/ suburban areas. It indicated a 152km range with a full 16,000kg load, using 2.92kWh/ km at an average speed of

43km/h, including 38kWh of regenerated energy.

General manager for Volvo Trucks New Zealand, Scott Holt, said transitioning to low-carbon fleets required leaders such as Fulton Hogan to deliver data that others can follow.

“Today marks an important junction, the real-world use and testing of these EV technologies in a civil construction application in New Zealand.

For New Zealand to transition to low-carbon fleets, we need leaders like Fulton Hogan to deliver the learnings that others will be able to follow. We’re committed to supporting their journey and I’d like to publicly acknowledge the Fulton Hogan team for the confidence they’ve shown in the technology and in our team at Volvo Trucks.”

In partnership with Fulton Hogan, Transport Trailers designed and manufactured the new trailers to eject their load without the need for tipping. This design significantly improves safety, eliminating tip-over risk and overhead utility strikes. “They’re incredibly impressive,” said Holt.

GCA8

which can only be operated individually, automatic folding rear mudguards and tail-light assemblies, lights to indicate the unit is ready for loading, and a 500mm protrusion on the ejector ram to prevent the bin door from crushing the operator when cleaning.

• Superior sidewall cut resistance.

• Long tread life, exceptional casing durability.

• Enhanced stability and riding comfort.

The vehicles were acquired with support from EECA (Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority)’s Low Emissions Heavy Vehicle Fund. Aden Jones, EECA regional manager, said it was great to have an enthusiastic response from early adopters like Fulton Hogan.

• The extra-deep tread patt designed for loaders.

• Excellent performance on extr rocky surfaces, in open pits, quarries, and underground mines.

GCA2

The trailers run off the truck’s e-PTO and require just 800psi of pressure to do a full stroke at 17 tonnes. They incorporate various clever features designed to eliminate the risk of injury to the operator and damage to the unit. These include in-cab and remote controls,

Stanley Street CVSC opens

The commercial vehicle safety centre in Auckland, off Stanley Street, is now operational, NZTA Waka Kotahi has confirmed.

This CVSC is one of 12 being built as part of the Commercial Vehicle Safety Programme (CVSP), which will monitor heavy vehicles across the country 24/7 and provide data on operator and truck behaviour, such as heavy vehicle weight, load status, and driver fatigue.

GCA8

• Superior sidewall cut resistance.

NZTA commercial vehicle safety programme manager Sean Bridge said technology, including in-road scales and cameras, would be used to identify potentially unsafe vehicles, which would be directed into the centre to be inspected by police. While on-site, police would carry out vehicle inspections and checks for vehicle weight, roaduser charge compliance, certificate of fitness, logbook accuracy, and driver impairment.

• Long tread life, exceptional casing durability.

• Enhanced stability and riding comfort.

• The extra-deep tread pattern is specially designed for loaders.

• Non-directional deep tread pattern designed for muddy and soft surfaces.

• Excellent traction and floatation offer comfortable handling.

• Superior long tread life and excellent punctur resistance.

• Low rolling resistance and fuel economy

“Fulton Hogan is a complex business. There are dozens of plants around the country, quarries, and then an absolutely enormous fleet. The challenges are really there in front of us; there isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach. We’re really excited to see what the transport sector can do over the coming years with new vehicles like this,” he said.

• Excellent performance on extremely rocky surfaces, in open pits, quarries, and underground mines.

GCA2

GCA7

• Unique non-directional traction patterns ensure optimum traction and prolongs tread life.

• Superior sidewall cut resistance.

• Good self-cleaning with groove stone ejector.

• This deep tread is particularly suitable for loaders and dump trucks operating in quarries or mining.

“This technology will allow us to check heavy vehicle non-compliance, such as if vehicles have a certificate of fitness, if they’ve paid the right amount of road user charges, and if they’re over their weight allowance,” said Bridge.

• Non-directional deep tread pattern designed for muddy and soft surfaces.

GCA3

• Applications: Articulated dumper, dozer, loader, and graders.

GCA8

Superior sidewall cut resistance. ceptional casing durability.

GCA8

Enhanced stability and riding comfort.

• Excellent traction and floatation offer comfortable handling.

• Superior long tread life and excellent puncture resistance.

• Low rolling resistance and fuel economy.

“The data we collect will give us really good insights into the behaviour of heavy vehicles on the network. Using this data, we’ll be able to target our education and compliance work toward safety issues in the industry, protect our roads from damage and bring down road maintenance costs.”

• Non-directional traction and standard tread depth pattern design.

•

• Excellent performance supported with heat resistant compounds.

•

• Primarily designed for mining, off the road, and muddy surfaces.

GJS TRADING LTD

GCA7

• Superior sidewall cut resistance.

The extra-deep tread pattern is specially designed for loaders.

• Long tread life, exceptional casing durability.

Excellent performance on extremely rocky surfaces, in open pits, quarries, and underground mines.

• Enhanced stability and riding comfort.

• Unique non-directional traction patterns ensure optimum traction and prolongs tread life.

GCA3

• Superior sidewall cut resistance.

• Good self-cleaning with groove stone ejector.

• Applications: Articulated dumper, dozer, loader, and graders.

• This deep tread is particularly suitable for loaders and dump trucks operating in quarries or mining.

• The extra-deep tread pattern is specially designed for loaders.

Non-directional deep tread pattern designed for muddy and soft surfaces.

Excellent traction and floatation offer comfortable handling.

• Excellent performance on extremely rocky surfaces, in open pits, quarries, and underground mines.

Superior long tread life and excellent puncture resistance.

GCA3

Low rolling resistance and fuel economy.

GCB5

• Articulated dumpers, rigid dumpers, loaders, graders.

• With excellent traction and buoyancy performance.

• Outstanding stability and operating comfort, with large pattern plate and long service life.

• Non-directional traction and standard tread depth pattern design.

• Applications: Articulated dumper, dozer, loader, and graders.

• Excellent performance supported with heat resistant compounds.

• Non-directional traction and standard tread depth pattern design.

• Primarily designed for mining, off the road, and muddy surfaces.

• Excellent performance supported with heat resistant compounds.

• Primarily designed for mining, off the road, and muddy surfaces.

GCA2

• Non-directional deep tread pattern designed for muddy and soft surfaces.

• Excellent traction and floatation offer comfortable handling.

• Superior long tread life and excellent puncture resistance.

• Low rolling resistance and fuel economy.

Second Ashburton Bridge announced

NZTA Waka Kotahi and Ashburton District Council have confirmed a second Ashburton Bridge will be constructed.

Approximately 24,000 vehicles use the Ashburton Bridge each day. It provides a key connection for supply chains and emergency services across the South Island and connects Tinwald with Ashburton.

“This is great news for the people of Mid Canterbury and for the resiliency of State Highway 1. It is so important that we have a resilient roading network to connect our island and ensure the safe and reliable movement of people and goods up and down the island,” said Associate Transport

Minister and Minister for the South Island James Meager.

“Building this bridge was one of our key commitments at the start of this term, and locals will be pleased to see work is moving ahead at pace.”

Meager said a second bridge would reduce congestion, improve road safety, reduce delays, improve reliability in the case of potential closures and help accommodate future growth.

As next steps, NZTA will begin geotechnical investigations following a Registration of Interest for technical and design support. This will be followed by procurement for detailed design and

construction later in the year.

“NZTA will manage the design and build of the bridge and adjoining roads as one project, with [Ashburton District Council] responsible for funding the section of new local road, as outlined in the partner agreement.

“I would like to thank [the council] and Mayor Neil Brown for the progress made on the second Ashburton Bridge so far, which has enabled the acceleration of this key project that will serve many people heading into the future.”

Construction is expected to start in mid2026, pending approvals.

We're

UD Trucks introduces UD Trust

UD Trucks is launching UD Trust in New Zealand, a fixed-price service plan programme consisting of scheduled service, maintenance and repair agreements tailored to each truck in its UD Quon range, delivered from 1 April 2025.

This preventative maintenance programme allows owners to manage costs and maximise uptime easily. The plans are offered for the first five years (60 months) of the life of the truck. There are also two cover options; scheduled servicing or an extensive

Roadside drug testing coming

Roadside drug testing legislation passed its third reading in Parliament last month, enabling police to screen drivers for impairing drugs.

“Drivers who consume impairing drugs are a significant danger on our roads. In recent years, around 30% of road deaths have resulted from crashes involving drivers who had consumed impairing prescription or illicit drugs,” said Transport Minister Chris Bishop.

The oral-fluid testing regime will give police the power to screen drivers for drugs at the roadside

using oral-fluid testing devices without the need to suspect drug use, similar to drink-driving enforcement.

Two positive roadside screening tests will be required before a driver is prohibited from driving for 12 hours to address any immediate road safety risk. They will only be issued with an infringement penalty following a positive result from a laboratory test.

Drivers refusing to undergo a drug-screening test will be issued with an infringement penalty.

maintenance and repair plan that limits the variable cost burden of truck ownership. UD Trust plans are tailored to the specific truck applications and usage.

“This is a huge advantage for customers as service and maintenance costs are shown upfront before purchase, services are booked in advance, incrementally prepaid through

a fixed monthly amount, with discounted genuine parts included, based on where a customer is operating or the application of the truck,” said Colin Muir, general manager of UD Trucks.

“We believe UD Trust programme will provide an immense advantage in dayto-day operations and cost management for fleet owners.”

Renewable diesel for Allied Petroleum

Mobil has delivered its first-ever shipment of Renewable Diesel R20 to long-time customer HW Richardson Group’s Allied Petroleum.

Mobil Ethos+ Renewable Diesel R20 is made with a minimum 20% renewable content – hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) refined from used cooking oil, while delivering great protection and cleaning power for diesel engines with Mobil’s proprietary Synergy additive.

The renewable ingredient in Mobil Ethos+ Renewable Diesel R20 helps deliver an estimated 15.4% lower lifecycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions compared with conventional diesel and can be used in most modern diesel engines with no modifications required.

This batch of renewable diesel blends has been made from the first cargo of International

Sustainability & Carbon Certification (ISCC)-certified HVO to have been delivered to New Zealand.

Allied Petroleum said the move was part of its commitment to supporting lower-emission transport solutions without sacrificing performance.

Mobil Oil New Zealand is certified under the ISCC EU Scheme. ISCC’s mission is to reduce GHG emissions and establish sustainable production with certified, traceable supply chains from the origin to the final.

The launch was marked by a ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrating the first shipment of R20 into the country, attended by HW Richardson Group chief executive Anthony Jones, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts, and Mobil Oil New Zealand chairman Wayne Ellery.

WE ARE

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Coromandel Fuel Stop is GO!

Saturday, 22 March, saw the opening of the new Mobil Coromandel Fuel Stop operated by GOfuel on the corner of Seabrooke Place and Mahi Place on the southern outskirts of Coromandel township. The 24/7 fuel facility is a collaboration between local business couple Ian and Patricia Whimp and GOfuel, a Mobil-branded reseller.

“I pumped my first gallon of Mobil fuel at my parent’s garage in Ruakākā,” said Ian, “and this, in a way, is the culmination of our commercial life’s work.”

Ian and Patricia’s ‘retirement’ to Coromandel was short-lived, with the purchase of Strongman Diesel Distributors in 2020 from Nigel Strongman. Coromandel Diesel, as it is now called, is a business-tobusiness fuel distribution company servicing the aquaculture industry

mainly.

“Nigel was great to us when we moved up, and so I started helping him out,” said Ian. “The opportunity to expand into a Fuel Stop operation post-purchase was obvious and so we began the process with GOfuel.”

The site accepts eftpos, credit cards and all Mobilcards.

Adding increased significance to the occasion, the Coromandel Fuel Stop is the first retail outlet for Mobil branded reseller GOfuel, until now a business-to-business reseller predominantly in the maritime, rural and aviation industries. On hand at the opening was company managing director Rob Bolton.

“It’s very exciting for us,” said Rob. “We’re opening another one in the South Island, but we are very proud to have our first, here in Coromandel.”

Mills-Tui steel tippers are built tough, manufactured from highwear resistant Hardox steel. We’re ready to help build New Zealand’s infrastructure. So give us a call now on 0800 MILLS-TUI.

HWR acquires Christchurch Ready Mix Concrete

HW Richardson Group has acquired Christchurch Ready Mix Concrete. CRMC has been owned and operated by the Grant family for more than 60 years. The company was born out of Transport North Canterbury, which began in the 1930s.

The sale will ensure the continued growth and success of CRMC.

HWR said all aspects of the current business operations would remain in place,

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The Christchurch Ready Mix Concrete trading name and brand also remain in place.

“This acquisition presents a unique opportunity to strengthen customer service across all customer bases and to build on the proud traditions and achievements of CRMC,” HWR said.

The share sale was expected to be finalised on 11 April.

SHOWING THE WORLD

HOW IT’S DONE

Winston Churchill reportedly said, “If you’re going through hell, keep going.” It’s a sentiment resonating with TR Group’s effort to bring hydrogen-powered vehicles to New Zealand. What started as a gargantuan but promising endeavour in 2020 turned into a nightmare by the end of 2024. Yet the solution emerged close to home – proving the truth of the ‘diamonds under your feet’ parable and highlighting the untapped potential of New Zealand’s heavy transport industry. This is a tale about ambition and endeavour, smoke, mirrors and broken promises, and incredible home-grown success. Forget everything you’ve heard in the pub or the smoko room – this is the story from the source of how TR Group placed its faith in but was blindsided by international fuel-cell electric vehicle company Hyzon Motors and how Christchurch-based Global Bus Ventures came to the rescue and proved the might of Kiwi solutions.

Can-do attitude, ingenuity and worldclass solutions: Kiwi industry is familiar with them all, especially in transport. When TR Group launched New Zealand’s first 50-tonne hydrogen-powered prime mover at the end of March at an event at Hampton Downs, it almost came as a surprise. After all, it was just three months after Hyzon Motors – which was supposed to have engineered the vehicles – announced the company would be dissolved.

How did TR Group manage

to pull that off? What happened behind the scenes with Hyzon? And how did the entire debacle end with a silver lining that nobody could’ve foreseen?

From the beginning

“We have many customers that look to us for a bit of understanding and some knowledge around these types of things,” says Brendan King, TR Group general manager, when asked about his company being a key player in New Zealand’s zero-emissions journey.

“One of the fundamental

desires in our business is for it to make a difference in the world around us. That extends to climate change being an issue for the wider world, and we need to be doing something about it.

“We said, based on the vision for our business of making a positive difference, with the reliance that so many customers have on us, we see it as our responsibility to take a few steps in these directions – and so that’s why we committed to spending a fair bit of money and time in the alternative fuel space.”

While never backing a singular

technology, TR Group began investigating adding electric trucks to its rental fleet in 2017. In 2019, three SEA Electric BEVs arrived (New Zealand Trucking, June 2021), which are still in the fleet. “They’ve gone really well. We put a lot of effort into our three before we put them on the road and worked closely with SEA. We found a few kinks and made a few subtle changes that just made them a bit more usable,” Brendan says.

Around that time, TR Group was also involved in getting the first wave of Fuso eCanters into operation with the likes of Genesis (New Zealand Trucking, August 2021) and others willing to dip their toes into the world of electric trucks. “The bulk of our electric trucks would be eCanters, about 40 of them. They have performed well for what they do,” Brendan says.

The big prize, however, was bringing alternative propulsion to the heavy end of the market. In July 2020, TR Group and Taranaki-based Hiringa Energy announced a partnership to do just that using hydrogen. TR Group would supply the vehicles, support and maintenance, and Hiringa would provide the fuel network. It was your classic

On the go line.

“At first, we thought, ‘Hey, we’re pretty early here … There’s no one building these things.’”

chicken-and-egg scenario – you can’t operate the trucks without being able to fuel them, and there’s no point establishing a fuel network without the trucks to use it … Combining ambition and leveraging expertise was a no-brainer.

“Hiringa kicked off conversations; they’d been looking for someone to partner with on this journey. They certainly had a strong desire to build a hydrogen fuel network and needed a partner on the trucks. We felt partnering would be a good thing,” Brendan says.

“At first, we thought, ‘Hey, we’re pretty early here … There’s no one building these things.’”

With customer interest in the project, a vehicle supplier was sought. American company Hyzon Motors entered the picture. Hyzon was founded in 2020 as a spin-off of Singaporebased Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies, founded in 2003. In November 2021, TR Group

announced an order for 20 Hyzon hydrogen fuel-cell trucks. The first units were promised by mid-2022 but, as it would turn out, all was not as it seemed. Despite Hyzon publicising its engineering and manufacturing endeavours overseas, further announcements, and a revised commercial agreement with TR Group in November 2023 – now promising the first two trucks for commercial trial beginning in March 2024 to be assembled at Hyzon’s Melbourne facility – the company wouldn’t see the end of 2024. Notice was issued that it would dissolve in December.

The fight for trucks

With hindsight, the Hyzon relationship was probably doomed from the start. “We’d ordered 20 trucks from them, and there were a lot of issues early on. They didn’t really know anything about us; they didn’t really know much about trucks,” says Brendan.

“They told us that they had gliders ordered direct out of the DAF factory in the Netherlands. It turned out that they were ordering trucks off a dealer in the Netherlands, who was stripping them of their engine and drive train. Of course, that meant the steering wheel was on the wrong side, and the whole spec of the truck was different to what we’d operate in New Zealand.

“That was the first little hiccup, which we managed to get through by sourcing the right spec truck for New Zealand ourselves and having them delivered originally to Hyzon in Europe for them to convert,” says Brendan. The situation behind the scenes turned out to be much worse, though.

“They had supply issues with their fuel cell, the development of which was further behind than what we were led to believe. At the start, we were told the fuel cell was already in production. It turned out it was still a prototype

in testing, and they were quite far off from having production fuel cells.

“They had all sorts of issues with the business in Europe, such that they weren’t even starting our trucks there. We started dealing with the Aussies by then because Hyzon had set up a production facility in Melbourne, and they said they’d get the trucks to Australia and convert them there for us.” At this time, the pandemic was in full swing and shipping costs were at an all-time high – but the 20 trucks arrived at no cost to TR at least.

“The Aussie team eventually got some trucks done for other people, and once they got going with ours, they were pretty much on the home straight. By October 2024, they had built four trucks for us, which were in testing –and that’s when the Americans pulled the pin. The team in Australia were really bloody good people and good to deal with,” says Brendan.

Ultimately, on very short notice and by indirect means, the Australians found out they were without jobs, and TR Group found out it would not receive its 20 hydrogen fuel-cell trucks.

Diamonds under your feet

On the quiet, at the beginning of 2024, TR Group hedged its bets, supplying Christchurch-based Global Bus Ventures with another DAF CF 530 to develop a hydrogen fuel-cell conversion using its own IP. GBV’s entry into the story is a silver lining if ever there were one, and has resulted in the company taking on the remaining 16 trucks

from the Hyzon deal to complete the job for TR Group. That first secret development truck is the one you see on these pages and is currently in the middle of a real-world testing programme with TR Group and GBV, using the company’s proprietary telemetry system. In future, the trucks will be developed based on data and refinements from this testing.

“GBV came with a lot of credentials. The company is a global leader when it comes to fuel-cell integration, and Mike Parker [executive vice president hydrogen and electric vehicles, GBV] is a very, very clever guy,” says Brendan. While Mike would rather point to the history, expertise and culture

within GBV, it doesn’t take long in his company to agree with Brendan’s assessment of him.

That said, who and what is GBV? The company was founded in 1985 as bus manufacturer Designline and today employs over 130 staff, operating from an 8450m2 manufacturing facility in Rolleston. It is the last remaining certified vehicle manufacturer in New Zealand to put its chassis numbers on vehicles and is ADR-approved for Australia. The company produces more than 130 buses annually from the ground up for both markets, and has a history of designing and integrating battery electric and hydrogen powertrains into vehicles for Australasia, the Middle East, Japan, the UK and the US. Most recently, in 2022, it made headlines for engineering the powertrain for Chase Zero, Emirates Team New Zealand’s America’s Cup hydrogen-powered chase boat. In 2023, it won the contract for a further five chase boats.

“We joke now that GBV should stand for good bloody vehicles,” Mike says with a laugh as he recounts the company’s journey from buses to boats and now to trucks.

In 1997, the company developed and manufactured its first hybrid electric bus, followed by various electric and hydrogenpowered models up to 2011 – all of which successfully used some pretty innovative technology, including micro turbine hybrids (which Mike describes as “a little jet engine that functions as a generator”), Zebra batteries (a liquid sodium nickel chloride battery) and hydrogen combustion.

“In the late 1990s, there wasn’t anything you could just buy and install,” says Mike. “We

started with diesel hybrid buses and built our own power electronics, battery management systems and vehicle management systems … it’s very unusual even now for a bus manufacturer to do that.

“It was painful in those days, but it gave us a huge understanding to do what we do now. We developed everything ourselves and, even today, we do all our own electrical design, the whole lot, in house. I do the code writing for our systems,” he says.

In 2008, when the company first dabbled in hydrogen, it was to convert a four-cylinder CNG engine to run on hydrogen for a bus operator in Hong Kong. “Fuel cells then were not yet commercialised. But we learnt a lot about hydrogen, the vavle gear, storage tanks, connecting it, fuelling it, safety…” he says.

With the market for alternative propulsion not yet mature enough for scale, GBV backed off development until Auckland Transport released an international tender for a hydrogen FCEV bus in 2020. GBV won it, built the chassis and body and integrated the individual systems despite Covid lockdown restrictions preventing technicians from ZF and Ballard (Canadan fuel-cell developer) from visiting New Zealand to show the team how it’s done. The bus was delivered on time, and the company then set out to develop a pure electric bus that was 100% within New Zealand VDAM regulations – evidentially, it’s a bit of a problem with EV buses that make their way onto our roads.

From buses to boats … and B-trains

GBV was shoulder-tapped by Emirates Team New Zealand following its success with AT’s

Stacks for the stack? Why not? Steam has to vent somehow… It’s impossible to miss the big box behind the cab housing the hydrogen tanks. The next-gen GBV truck will reduce tank space by up to 400mm but increase capacity.

Awaiting its new heart: internal combustion equipment removed ahead of the fuel cell conversion.

FCEV bus. “They said, ‘We know you know hydrogen. Can you help us with the Chase Zero boat?’ They had some tanks and potentially a Toyota fuel cell because they were sponsored by Toyota. Toyota contacted us, saw what we did with the Ballard fuel cell, audited us and allowed us to be the fuel-cell integrator for this project. That’s how Toyota came into our picture…” Mike explains.

“The Toyota fuel cells are just a gem. Why wouldn’t you leverage Toyota quality? It performs exactly as they say it will; you have their backing. We’re not tied to Toyota, but we have a strong relationship with them,” Mike comments.

A mere eight months later, Chase Zero was in the water, with GBV designing and integrating the entire hydrogen FCEV powertrain and the racing team designing the boat. “I spent three more weeks fine-tuning the software, and it hasn’t been touched since,” says Mike. “We learnt a huge amount.”

And with that, we come full circle to the first truck to get the GBV treatment.

“We looked at trucks, spoke with OEMs and monitored what TR was doing with Hiringa, but we hadn’t otherwise gone to market. I was introduced to TR by Hiringa. Brendan was pretty frustrated with what was going on, and he asked us, in all

seriousness, if we thought we could build them a truck.

“I said we think we can, but we need a couple of months to ensure we can get together everything correctly – make sure the software will work, understand what the energy requirements are, etc. We threw data loggers on some trucks, did the computer modelling and we believed we could do a truck. I gave him the price and the lead time, and 8am the next morning, a DAF CF 530 was delivered for us to start on!” says Mike.

“TR Group was contractually obligated to Hyzon, but Brendan said he’d give us one to work on – if nothing else, we’d get one sale, and it would give Hyzon a hurry-up.”

Mike explains that it is still a DAF truck. “We’ve really just done a re-power,” he says.

“We had good support from Southpac, but we’re taking apart another OEM’s product, so we had to figure out a lot ourselves over three or four months and then three or four months of assembling it. It took us about seven months to get it operational, and it then had to go through brake certification and all that for a few months. There was lots of reverse engineering to keep the truck systems operational and also the integration of the Wabco hybrid drive braking systems.”

“IT WAS PAINFUL IN THOSE DAYS, BUT IT GAVE US A HUGE UNDERSTANDING TO DO WHAT WE DO NOW. WE DEVELOPED EVERYTHING OURSELVES AND, EVEN TODAY, WE DO ALL OUR OWN ELECTRICAL DESIGN, THE WHOLE LOT, IN HOUSE.”

THE TOYOTA FUEL CELL

Toyota New Zealand’s Malcolm Lambert (hydrogen master technician) and Roger Spillane (manager – hydrogen programme) explain that Toyota has been developing fuel cells since the mid-1990s, and the current units are second-generation.

Each GBV truck uses two Toyota hydrogen fuel-cell units, weighing about 250kg a piece. These are the same units used in Toyota’s FCEV passenger cars and the America’s Cup hydrogen chase boat built by GBV for Emirates Team New Zealand. They’re also used globally in bus, train and power-generation applications.

Each fuel-cell unit comprises a fuel-cell stack, inside which are 330 individual cells. Each of these produces one volt by splitting electrons off the hydrogen molecules, which is injected at the anode (+) side of the cell stack. An electric turbo and intercooler pumps in outside air at the cathode (-) side of the cell stack, where it combines with the

leftover hydrogen ions to form water –the only emissions from the system.

The electricity created as all this happens inside the cell stack is stepped up from 330V to 650V and sent to the vehicle’s batteries and drive motor.

“It’s an electrochemical reaction,” says Malcolm. “A very reliable system. The only serviceable items are the air and coolant filters and the coolant, which is a special deionised liquid.”

Auxiliary components like water pipes and the air compressor are packaged at the bottom of the fuel cell.

Tatsuya Ishikawa, CEO, Toyota New Zealand, says: “Toyota’s ongoing work with hydrogen technology in New Zealand aligns with its global commitment to carbon neutrality. From heavy-duty commercial vehicles to hydrogen-powered marine vessels and off-grid generators, Toyota is demonstrating that hydrogen is more than just a fuel – it’s a key part of the clean energy future.”

Mike says GBV consulted NZTA from the beginning, explaining the project and understanding what was required before certification. “There are no standards around hydrogen in New Zealand yet, so we work to European standards, audit ourselves to those standards and then explain to NZTA how we’ve designed it and why. They’ve been so receptive.” The hydrogen tank frames are designed to EC79 standards, meaning they’ll withstand 6g loading force front and back and 5.5g side to side.

Working with Brendan, Scott Donnelly (TR Group energy and emissions reduction lead) and Grant Doull (TR Group hydrogen fuel cell truck project manager), Mike is confident GBV has engineered a truck that will suit New Zealand operators. The 6x4 unit will have the capability for a 28-pallet semi and 34- or 36-pallet B-train. Excitingly, Mike says an 8x4 unit is a real possibility – a combination Kiwi operators might be forced to go without as the global OEMs design their vehicles for their volume markets.

“New Zealand axle loads are really light; we’re a really niche market. To the big OEMs, 50 units a year isn’t worth getting out of bed for … for us, that’s beautiful. We see that as a niche we can fill in this market for quite some time,” Mike says.

The road ahead

As you read this, GBV is re-powering the remaining trucks for progressive delivery. We’ve deliberately kept this article light on detail about the actual vehicles for two reasons. First, given the rapid advancement and GBV’s thoroughness in developing its vehicles, the remaining 15 units will be up-specced from the development truck – plus, there’s a huge amount of technical detail to delve into. Second, we’re sticking true to our policy of only featuring cover trucks that are out there earning a crust – rest assured, as locally developed FCEVs with the credentials we’ve discussed, these trucks are certainly cover-worthy and deserve their own in-depth feature when in full operation.

The purpose of this feature was to do right by TR Group and Hiringa by quelling any banter around the events of the past five years and introducing GBV to the trucking industry. For all parties, the landscape has changed considerably since 2020.

Throughout it all, Brendan adds, the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority has been steadfast in its support. “EECA has been real good. Very practical, helpful and understanding. They can see it’s been challenging, but they’ve been pragmatic as long as what

HYUNDAI AND HWR IN TOO

At its event in March, TR Group also announced it would add four Hyundai Xcient Fuel Cell 6x2 trucks and five dual-fuel truck units utilising HWR’s CH2NGE hydrogen dual-fuel technology to its fleet.

The Xcient Fuel Cell has proved itself in New Zealand in operation with Shea Transport for NZ Post (New Zealand Trucking, October 2024), that unit so far covering 180,000km and has abated 201 tonnes of CO2

The four TR Group Xcients will be largely the same as the NZ Post truck, with a 350kW/2500Nm electric motor driving through an Allison six-speed auto, powered by two Hyundai 90kW fuel cells and a 72kW high-voltage battery.

Curtainside and refrigeration options will be available in 6x2 truck only, or truck and two-, three- or four-axle trailer combinations – offering 42-tonne GCM.

Range is quoted at 400km from 32kg of hydrogen capacity.

“Neil [Dennett, owner of Shea Transport] is a bloody good advocate for the Hyundai. It’s gone so well for him that we’ve got absolute faith our four will all perform very well for our customers,” says Brendan King.

TR Group is aware that a full FCEV won’t suit every operation right now, while some operators might want to dip their toes into the hydrogen pool and learn about it on a smaller scale. In this case, the five dual-fuel trucks are the perfect option. TR Group will supply the trucks for CH2NGE to install the dual fuel kit – two are available already.

“We’ve always sort of said, don’t let perfect get in the way of better,” says Brendan. “You can reduce diesel consumption and emissions by 20–30% on an existing truck at a lower price point, and it takes care of any kind of range anxiety.”

The system (New Zealand Trucking, May 2023) injects hydrogen into the diesel engine intake at a variable rate without impacting performance. It can be turned on and off depending on operational requirements. The truck retains its GCM, and the system can suit 8x4 units at 58 tonnes.

1 2

3 1) Four Hyundai Xcient Fuel Cell rigid trucks will be offered alongside the GBV tractor units. 2 & 3) HWR’s CH2NGE hydrogen dualfuel diesel displacement technology has proved its advantages and will be offered to TR Group customers wanting to learn more about the use of hydrogen without going full hog. 4) Hydrogen could be suited to many trucking applications, big and small. Hyundai New Zealand’s Mighty Fuel Cell evaluation unit was also on hand for

we’ve done helps us achieve what we wanted to achieve at the start. We’re grateful for EECA’s support.”

Now, though, the view out the windscreen is a very different picture. TR Group will lease and fully support the trucks as it does with any other. “We’re working really hard in the background to deliver a good product to customers who will be very satisfied and will want to operate more trucks with us,” says Brendan. “Our driver-training business is involved so that when the trucks get delivered, they can educate operators on the best way to maximise the truck’s capabilities.

“Originally, we had all 20 trucks signed up. Some customers have remained and are waiting for the finished product; some were interested but lost faith; and

Hiringa moves forward

Hiringa Energy updated visitors on its green hydrogen refuelling network, officially launched in April 2024, with stations in Wiri, Te Rapa and Palmerston North. These, plus the final station in Tauriko, set to come online in June, make up phase one of the network.

All stations are self-service with 24/7 operations support. The stations are designed, first and foremost, to refuel trucks, with a throughput capability of 60 trucks per day. TR Group customers will benefit from a capped price of $16.50/kg. “It’s the cheapest green hydrogen available globally. We make it here; we know what our input costs are,” says head of new business, Ryan McDonald. This is comparable to 90c–$1/kWh electric charging and roughly $3.30/L diesel.

Ryan says 24 stations are in planning, with a target date of 2030. Hiringa is currently securing land and getting agreements in place for stations in Whangārei, Blenheim, Christchurch and Taranaki.

“Our next-generation sites will have solar power connected as well, so we’re securing land for that too. The sites will have five times more hydrogen production capability to meet ramping up demand in the future,” he says.

Hiringa’s stations are designed to fuel trucks back to back, meaning no waiting between fills for the system to repressurise. “This is worldleading. We’re not doing a science project; we’re

Hiringa is expanding its hydrogen refuelling station network, co-located with Waitomo.

here because commercial operators want to run hydrogen fuel cell trucks and have to fill them,” Ryan says.

CTO and co-founder Dan Kahn says Hiringa has taken “the Russian tractor approach. They’re not the fanciest stations, actually pretty basic, but they work and are designed to keep working. They’re designed for this industry.”

Hiringa has designed its stations to meet current and future demand. Production engineer Rachel Hopkinson says each of the current site’s 1MW electrolyser can produce up to 440kg of hydrogen per day and stationary storage for 1500kg of hydrogen (or 2.5 days’ supply). Each site has space to double capacity.

“Even though our model is around production on-site, our mobile storage unit creates redundancy in case of maintenance or technical issue,” she says.

“Our production is decoupled from demand,” says Dan. “We have a sophisticated forecasting algorithm to adjust the system as more trucks are added to the network. We’ll always have an overproduction capability.”

Ryan makes the case for hydrogen in heavy transport. “Refuelling with hydrogen transmits electrons as a molecule. A single hydrogen dispenser is the equivalent of a 3500kW electric charger. We never try to discredit other technologies. They all have their places, but hydrogen is best when you need to arrive, fill up and go.”

circumstances have changed for others. But now it’s here, it’s real. People can look at it and take it for a drive, kick the tyres, learn about it.

“That’s reinvigorated a lot of conversation,” says Brendan.

On GBV’s part, other than developing, testing and building the trucks, it’s also been working with TR Group to train a service agent in the North Island.

“We’re here and designing and supporting it for New Zealand conditions, and we’ll be here when the trucks need to be upgraded in the future. We’ve been around for a long time

doing this, 20 years of hard work,” says Mike.

“Nikola was a horror story, Hyzon was a horror story … there are all these horror stories. Now that we’ve done it and people see the trucks out there at work, we’re a success story, and hopefully, operators will want to get on board with us.”

We couldn’t agree more, and we’re excited to see the trucks in operation. The final word, though, has to go to Andrew Carpenter, TR Group managing director, who, in addressing the 250 guests at the event in March, said: “While it was a big

and unhelpful disruption and not what we wanted, we’re actually in a much better place now because of it. What we’re doing here is very important to us; it’s a reflection of our purpose. We look beyond what we do every day to make a difference in people’s lives and make a positive and lasting impression on the world. It’s our intention to provide leadership around this important matter.

“We’re willing to put the time, effort and money into this, and we’re also willing to take the risks to make it easier for operators to put these trucks on

the road. When you’re operating a hydrogen truck, you have our backing to make it successful and turn a lot of the uncertainties into certainties. Putting these trucks on the road symbolises what matters to you and your organisations.

“Once these trucks are built and delivered, there will be 40 hydrogen trucks on the road in New Zealand – that puts us out in front, a leader in what we’re [New Zealand] doing with hydrogen trucks and refuelling.

“Everything important has to start somewhere, with someone taking a step or two.”

2015 THE OF RIGS

Heavy Duty Hino

Hino 700 FY3248 8x4

Every cover truck holds a special place in the history of New Zealand Trucking magazine. We love to see where their road has taken them.

MAY

The Hino remained in the Mangonui Haulage fleet until September 2024. General manager Sean Sparksman says it performed well in its initial run at big weights and in other general logging jobs for the company.

Current work profile: Log transport in Fiji.

Approximate odo reading: 600,000km.

Mechanical work: None.

Basic original spec: Hino E13CVG at 358kW (480hp), Eaton Roadranger 18918B, Hino THD18, 4.555:1.

What we said in 2015: “Assembling a package of practical components to produce a truck like the FY3248 is one of Hino’s strongest points. This is a truck that has many benefits, such as load capacity, fuel economy, Euro5 emission standards, gradability, cruise control, FUP, Bluetooth and driver’s SRS airbag ... at a price that is expected of a truck with far fewer features.”

The Hino offered Euro-5 emissions and a 72-tonne GCM, but only 480hp … it did the job, though.

The FAW looks like it belonged from day dot. Is that the Intertruck influence in the prework?

LOCKED AND LOADED!

Story by Dave McCoid

by Dave McCoid and Tim Giles

Truck of the Year Australasia (ToYA) is on the boil again. A mixed bag of contenders, with a new face joining previous scrappers returning to the ring to duke it out again!

There are three familiar ToYA contending marques this year in the form of Scania, Volvo, and Mercedes-Benz, plus a new face in FAW – the Chinese giant launched in Australia and New Zealand last year (New Zealand Trucking, December 2024/January 2025).

For the first time there’s no American in the race, and the elephant in the room is the absence of Mack’s brutish Super-Liner. It’s really only the Swedish giant Volvo who could put us in this position, releasing a trans-Atlantic platform duo in Australasia around the same time. The Volvo offers a more broad-spectrum deployment model – there’s no question the Mack Super-Liner is a specialist

beast in 2025. It’s likely the inaugural year of the competition (2023) will be the only year ToYA will ever have a line-up without an alternatively propelled entrant. As the renaissance of land-based propulsion unfolds, there is no guessing how many variants in the methodologies to propel our carriages will present themselves over time. It is truly an exciting moment in history. What is impacted by such a revolution, however, is judging criteria. Although we are affiliated to our parent International Truck of the Year (IToY) organisation and adhere to the base precepts of increasing the standards of efficiency, we are afforded some licence also. To that

end, we place high emphasis on availability – meaning the truck’s ability to front the ‘go line’ every day and undertake a full day’s uncompromised work with high levels of operational flexibility. Obviously, we take into consideration its primary application.

We must acknowledge the OEMs who always enthusiastically agree to having machines in the competition. The award would not be possible without their cooperation.

FAW JH6 550 China is no stranger to mountains, river valleys and arid landscapes, and so the FAW marque should find comfort in Australasia. It’s

worth noting the brand has acquitted itself extraordinarily well in South Africa, an equally harsh environment for truck operation with little of the vocational passion seen in the ANZAC nations. In SA, FAW is an incredibly popular choice among operators, making significant incursions into traditional OEM markets.

Maybe it’s for all these reasons we thought the JH6 looked like a truck that had been with us for decades when attending FAW’s launch in Tauranga late last year. There was nothing odd about its physical appearance at all.

The ECE-29-rated cab probably sets the bar for trucks from the ‘middle Kingdom’ with high levels of spec, trim, and appointments – LED lights,

Just the ticket for regional distribution in 2025 if you can line up the external infrastructure to make it work.

infotainment, Bluetooth, cruise control, speed limiter, climate control, heated mirrors … Add to that a raised roof sleeper and near flat floor (1.95m clearance) and it’s more than a capable competitor in its cabin class.

Neither can the sword be waved at a lack of safety kit, with everything operators have come to expect in a modern high-end truck at present –electronic braking, auto brake activation, advanced emergency braking, forward collision warning, collision mitigation, and lane departure warning.

The CA6DM3 13L engine produces 410kW (550hp) and 2600Nm (1917lb/ft) of torque, backed up by a 12-speed ZF AMT with a four-stage intarder and disc brakes. With parabolic leaf springs at the front and eight-bag ECAS at the rear, the truck’s custodian in New Zealand – Intertruck Distributors NZ – knows exactly where to hit the market in order to get runs on the board.

Having the Intertruck network and experience handling its welfare package is an ace in FAW’s hand. There’s no question if Comer and the team weren’t happy, it would never have graced their showrooms.

Its Achilles heel in the competition at close-off date is probably the absence – for now – of an 8x4 in the New Zealand

market, but its price tag of sub$230K plus GST at the time of launch throws any number of cats among the 6x4-market pigeons.

Mercedes-Benz eActros 300/400 tractor

The Mercedes-Benz eActros 300/400 is perfectly pitched where BEVs shine the most, currently. Linehaul might still be fraught with challenges – especially in the big red land to the west – however, anyone undertaking regional distribution out to the 150 -200km mark should have alternative propulsion on their capex inquiry list, no question. We are already at the point where it’s commercially irresponsible not to at least look.

The 300/400 deploys eAxle technology, the three-pointed star leaping headlong into the eAxle world from the get-go on its BEV journey. With 300kW continuous and 400kW peak power from a dual motor, twospeed transmission setup, there is certainly no shortfall in ‘omph’ in the target market. Batteries are lithium-ion with a range of up to 300-330km (eActros 300), and 400km (eActros 400), and available with up to 448kWh capacity depending on model and scope. Charging is easily facilitated via CCS Combo-2 plug.

The looks and cab interior are entirely familiar ensuring comfort – both literally and emotionally, the latter appeasing buyer wariness around new tech. Likewise, a known aftersales network and support in both countries helps immeasureably. Having spent time behind the wheel of the eActros, there’s no denying the smoothness of power delivery. Conversion to the technology purely on the back of the truck’s capability is a rapid process.

Ergonomics are superb, although embracing the tablet dash … ’we’re’ still not there. That said, it is merely a personal aesthetic thing and not considered beyond function for the competition. The truck deploys the latest incarnation of MirrorCam (optional), and from a safety systems perspective, it’s a Mercedes-Benz so there’s no need to interrogate that suite much. Active Sideguard Assist 2 is in there, as is a fire alarm.

From a productivity standpoint, a route planner is part of the overall offering.

Volvo FH16 780

Last year Volvo had the honour of being our first BEV contender with the F Series electric, an absolutely remarkable piece of kit that fell short largely on the availability criteria as defined earlier. This year the Viking

gives us a new ICE monster, its latest chess move in the ongoing power-game with arch rival Scania. The FH16 780 sees Volvo nose ahead and certainly slams a stake in the ground in response to any argument that combustion as a means to propel a vehicle is a spent force. The great irony of sorts is electricity might be looming as land-based propulsion’s conquistador in the new world, but it’s also prolonging the relevance of combustion. Trucks like the FH16 780 simply wouldn’t be feasible in a nonelectronically managed world, where tech keeps ‘man’s’ thirst for prowess over his peers at bay in the interests of more efficient, safe, and effortless motoring.

Sporting the new D17 17.3L Euro-6 engine, the numbers around the power unit’s capability are impressive to say the least – with it delivering 581kW (780hp) and 3800Nm (2803lb/ft). It’s an interesting study in the nature of combustion’s capability, maybe due to the physical size constraint imposed by chassis rails. The flat section of the torque curve is 200rpm in length (1000-1200rpm) and the power curve quickly rises to, and descends from, its 1700rpm peak. The mitigating factor is the curves are a long way from their respective high points

before the output numbers cease to belie comprehension.

This truck is the Full Monty on so many fronts – available in standard sleeper, Globetrotter XL, and Globetrotter XXL, and Aero option. I’m intrigued to know the fuel consumption returns of an Aero variant heading west from Mt Isa with a loaded Double-B-Double in a stiff westerly. The Aero, I-Save package has recorded savings of up to 5% over previous setups in specific applications.

Like the Mercedes-Benz, and the Scania we’re about to discuss for that matter, Volvo vies at the head of the pack in terms of comfort – it really is a personal preference thing. Driver aids abound, and Volvo of course is seen as the cornerstone of automotive safety, something it understandably will always hold dear to its heart. The company’s answer to MirrorCam, the Camera Monitoring System (CMS), is fitted as standard on FH Aero and optional elsewhere. CMS is designed to improve the driver’s field of view all around the truck at any given moment and includes zoom-in functions and night vision.

The FH16 780 – gargantuan loads slowly and productively, or big loads on highway expeditiously and productively (2025 – you probably can’t say ‘quickly and efficiently’, but you all get what we mean).

Scania 500P Super

Direct from the ‘where do possibilities end’ file, comes a truly fascinating little … hang on … comes a truly fascinating truck. A P-cab Scania with the incredible Euro-6 13L Super series engine and drivetrain platform, rated in this installation at a more than useful 368kW (500hp) and 2650Nm (1955lb/ft). Just think about that for a moment … a P Series with almost 2000lb/ft of torque!

We had the Super series of trucks in the hunt last year and this time around we picked one in particular. Initially you might think it’s for the customer with too many last-mile pallet deliveries to get through in a day. In fact, Aussie sales director Benjamin Nye says, “It’s like adding a GTI to our regional and urban delivery truck line-up.”

But give it a little more mulling time,

and you come to the conclusion that trucks like this arise from the fringe opportunities around PBS – those two 20ft containers or 35-tonne load that needs to get from Hamilton to Auckland, or the two 40-footers from the expansive hinterland around Brisbane or Melbourne into the port. And that’s not considering its role as a highly competent ‘rescue’ truck should one of the big-boppers retire injured for the day.

Readers will know our thoughts around the Super engine and driveline – there’s few words left in the vocab armoury to describe a combustion engine that appears to do so little yet achieve so much. It’s like the kid at school who never studied and got A+ every time. It’s won accolades wherever it has been entered. In this setting peak torque runs from 900-1320rpm and power peaks at 1700rpm. Highway cruise is around the 1200rpm mark and believe me from Super experience, the G33 14-speed AMT will shift the instant it needs to in order to keep the fuel where it should be … in the tank.

Obviously, being a 13L-equipped P

With the aid of modern management and safety systems, the Volvo FH16 780 adds another option to the opulent ‘rubbertyred locomotive’ set.

cab there’s a significant engine tunnel by 2025 standards, but that takes nothing from the useability of the vehicle in its intended application. In fact, the two-step access improves injury prevention potential in the course of an in/out day – see I’m even

drinking the H&S Roundup now.

Spectacular visibility and a full suite of safety systems round out a regional vehicle able to operate across the full needs spectrum of a modern business, and potentially come as close as any truck has in the regional

application to finding the hallowed middle ground between driver and accountant.

The 2025 Truck of the Year Australasia will be announced

in May.

‘It’s up and at ‘em, Atom Ant!’ The Scania

Super; no matter what you’re driving keep an eye in the mirror!

Tui Truck Stop Show and Shine

Story and photos by Faye Lougher

Someone asked me if the Tui Truck Stop Show and Shine would get rescheduled in the event of rain and I said I had no idea – a rainy Tui Truck Stop hasn’t happened yet! Sunday 30 March was no exception, with another stunning day and the biggest lineup of trucks in the event’s history.

Atotal of 192 trucks registered for the Tui Truck Stop Show and Shine held at the end of March, a massive increase on last year’s 110 and a testament to how popular this show has become on the trucking calendar. Spectator numbers were also up, and families took advantage of the displays of radio-controlled trucks, face painting, food trucks and entertainment from singer and musician Sonny Tatana.

The Pahiatua Lions Club oversaw directing the trucks as they parked up, and a great job they did, too, with every bit of space utilised to fit them all in.

“It was our biggest-ever in terms of the number of trucks and it was awesome; an absolutely amazing day,” says The Experience Collective operations manager Jesse Robinson.

“There was a great turnout from the trucking community, and we had an incredible display of beautifully presented trucks. We’d like to thank everyone for the amazing effort they put into presenting them. We had so much support from our sponsors, too.”

2025

Prizes included TVs, branded office chairs, speakers, prize packs from Volvo, Hino, Mack and Scania, a brazier and a painting of the Star of the Show truck. The number of prizes each winner received was so large that most of them needed to make two trips to take their haul away.

Half of the registration money will be reinvested into next year’s prize pool to increase the quality and quantity of prizes to attract entrants. About $3000 will also be spent on regular beneficiary, the Mangatainoka Reserve Restoration.

Jesse wanted to thank the sponsors: Total Truck Spray; Newbolds Masterton; Mitre 10 Pahiatua; Jackson Enterprises; Auto Art by Rochelle; Motor Truck Distributors; Keith Andrews Trucks; Penske Palmerston North; Scania Palmerston North; Truck Stops Palmerston North; Robertson Isuzu; Palmerston North Truck Alignment; Mainfreight; TR Group Palmerston North; The White Swan Hotel; CleanCo Truck Wash; Emmetts Service Centre Palmerston North and Southpac Trucks.

Special mention was made of the number of truck fleets represented, with organisers saying it represented a big commitment. AWE McNicol won Best Fleet, judged on uniformity, branding consistency, overall presentation and maintenance.

This year, Murray Sowerby and Brent Cooksley joined the judging panel. Murray was inducted into the New Zealand Road Transport Hall of Fame in 2019. In 1992, he assumed the general manager role for MTD, overseeing the Mack CKD assembly operations in Palmerston North – a position he held until his retirement.

Brent, affectionately known as ‘Cookie’, has dedicated 47 years to working with the Mack brand. Few possess as much knowledge about Mack Trucks in New Zealand as Cookie, making him a true brand legend.

For the second year, the immaculate 2005 Mack SuperLiner driven by Andy Maynard

from Clive Taylor Haulage won the Star of the Show award. This is delivered to the most outstanding truck in the show based on overall presentation, uniqueness and public appeal. Consideration is also given to the level of detail, cleanliness, modifications and general wow factor. The judges say it was hard to look past the truck, and that despite its age, it is in immaculate condition and shows the artistry that goes into keeping it looking that good.

There’s an interesting story behind the 1966 White WC2264 owned by Richard Webb of Levin that won Best Other. The original certificate of registration lists Nihills Transport of Tokoroa as the first owner. Then, it went through various companies in Rotorua, Gisborne and Whangārei before ending up at Stratford.

About 30 years ago, Richard and his friend Johnny Robinson bought the truck to restore it. Once it was transported to Richard’s yard in Levin, it spent some time in the shed before being moved out to make way for other projects. Eventually, the pair decided if they weren’t going to do anything with it, they had to sell it.

Richard says he always regretted selling the White. A few years ago, he was alerted to a Trade Me listing for the truck – which by then had undergone some restoration – and decided to buy it back. It joined a stable of classic trucks – including several Bedfords and Kenworths – he already owned.

SERVICE REALLY COUNTS...

Story and photos by Gavin Myers

Twenty years ago, the founders of Smart Express saw gaps in the logistics industry that needed more focus on customer experience with can-do services. Now, as the company marks two decades in business, it’s proof that the results can be spectacular when likeminded people with a shared vision come together.

It all began with a simple delivery, some wine to No.1 Queen Street, recalls Smart Express director Susan Spelman as she and co-director Devan Devaroyan share the company’s journey.

“I was with DHL on the Global Forwarding side, and I recognised the importance of good communication, faster flexible deliveries, and a reliable service. Devan worked with my husband, Tony, at Roadstar Transport for about seven years. We were chatting one day about

a possible company that was solutions-focused and operated in the fragile and time-definite space. From that the idea of Smart Express was born.”

Having come from a career at NZ Post/Courier Post, Devan also understood this need. So, with a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter and an office in a room at Devan’s home, the business and vision was made a reality.

“From day one, we concentrated on quality of service, good communication, on-time delivery and

damage-free. It was about making our customer’s lives easier and giving a damn,” Susan says.

“Transport models are often based on high volume and a commodity focus – a box is a box. But the way you create value is through relationships, and real value comes from understanding the customer’s needs and providing a service they can trust,” Devan says.

By focusing on the details and prioritising relationships over volume, Smart Express quickly

found its space and rhythm. Within five years, the company expanded to four high-top Sprinters and one truck. Today, it operates with 26 owner-driver vehicles, including 50m3 box body furniture trucks, alongside a fleet of company vehicles.

The company has also expanded, with branches in Hamilton, Tauranga and Wellington, while working with smaller quality-focused operators in the rest of the country who align with its core values.

“We provide the infrastructure, systems and management tools; they add value in the last-mile delivery,” Devan says. “It’s all evolved over the two decades.” Now with 32 employed staff and approximately 100 people

representing the company, it now operates in five business sectors – residential and retirement moves, office relocations, commercial and warehousing. Today, Smart Express operates a 1500m devanning facility in Auckland and has storage facilities across its main centers.

The company’s commercial services are vast, from fragile artwork and kitchen and shop installations to event moves, controlled drugs, and even the transportation of bull semen to the South Island and fertilised chicken eggs from airport to hatchery.

“We initially focused on commercial transport, but as demand grew, customers began asking us to help with their house moves, then their parents’ and even their children’s. We saw a real need for a quality, compassionate service in the retirement sector,” says Susan. “We now offer everything from downsizing and decluttering to full unpacking, setup, and even exit cleaning. It’s truly rewarding

to know we’re making a difference in people’s lives.

“We quickly realised how important it was to offer the best service with that, and we’ve grown our business on our vision: ‘To be the most trusted and respected moving and delivery company in New Zealand by delivering an exceptional service that exceeds all expectations’,” she adds.

If the company’s recent track record is anything to go by, that’s not an unreasonable claim. Smart Express was recognised at the 2019 Westpac Business Awards. In 2020, it won Best of The Best for Excellence in Customer Service Delivery, and in 2024, the team took home People’s Choice in the 2degrees Central Business Awards.

It’s received 2000 Google reviews at 4.8 stars, and has held the No.1 spot in Trade Me’s services category with 100% feedback with over 1700 reviews – the first business to do so.

“To be a smaller logistics company winning awards and being benchmarked with much larger companies has been amazing for us,” Susan says. “And

Trade Me invited us down to Wellington when we surpassed 1000 service reviews to find out how we’ve managed to achieve that, especially when 50% of our business is from the general public, each with unique needs and personalities.”

Devan adds, “If you do the job right, you earn the four Rs: reputation, repeat business, referrals and reviews. It’s our commitment to quality service that keeps customers coming back.”

Responding to market needs is part of the company’s success, explains general manager Hayley Heyes. “Most Saturday mornings, we’ll get calls from people who have been let down by their carrier. So, we now have customer service, sales and dispatch extended to Saturdays, and one of the managers overseeing the operations over the whole weekend.”

Hayley joined the team four years ago, bringing experience from Toll, PBT and Emmerson Transport. Most of the key management team comes from the transport sector.

Operations manager

Kyle Ahmu was a driver for a company Smart Express acquired six years ago. He joined the team and journeyed through sales and customer service then management before his current role.

“Because he was an ownerdriver, he gets it. He has a fair way of dealing with drivers and communicating from their side with us,” Hayley says.

Training manager David Baird owned that same company, and marketing manager Mark De Hoog worked for Mainfreight2Home and OnSend. And, as a feather in its cap, Smart Express employee No.1, Nick Sawers, is still with the company as a business development manager.

New team members are trained across different parts of the business, ensuring they find their ‘place’. There are multiple stories of staff – even those from owner-driver teams – finding new roles within the company and being retained. In recent years, the company has made great investments in health and safety as well as transport management, launching an

all-new, bespoke TMS platform in May.

Smart Express has been a member of NRC since its earliest days and recognises the strength of association and support.

“The advice we get from NRC is great. We know we can ring them, and it’s good to be able to share their updates and benefits with our owner-drivers. As sole traders, they rely on us to keep them updated and supported,” says Hayley.

Adds Susan: “Without our owner-drivers, we wouldn’t have a business; it’s important we look after them. There’s no ‘them and us’. We are all one team.”

In celebrating two decades in business this year, Smart Express has returned to its original purpose statement, ‘When service really counts…’.

“We always say, ‘Make every job count because behind it is a person’,” says Devan. “Whether it’s a commercial customer calling us every day or a private customer calling once a year or decade, that level of service focus will not change.”

MODEL: JH6-T6HR

5th wheel included

3 YEAR, UNLIMITED Km WARRANTY

BRIEF SPECS: JH6 6x4 High Roof, Flat Floor Sleeper Tractor

ENGINE: FAW CA6DM3: 550hp | 1917 ft/lb Peak Torque

TRANSMISSION: ZF AMT 12 Spd | Manual Mode Selection

Intarder with 4 Stage Brake Selection

BRAKE SYSTEM: Disc Brakes, Knorr Bremse | Wabco System

FRONT AXLE: Rated 7.7T, Parabolic 3 Leaf Springs

REAR AXLES: Rated 26T, Diff Locks, Inter-axle Lock

REAR SUSP: ECAS | 8 Bag with Shocks and Stabalisers

SAFETY FEATURES: AEBS, LDW, ESC, FCW, EBS, 360d Camera Display

CAB SPECS: 4 Bag Cab Suspension | 1.95m Ceiling height

760mm Wide Bunk | Fold-away Upper Bunk

ISRI Seats with Fridge Drawer under bunk

10” Display Multiple Function Touch Screen

FRAME RAILS: 700 MPA Tensile Strength | 300 x 80 x 8mm

MODEL RATINGS: GVM 25,500kg | GCM 70,000kg (90T on application)

SOLID BUSINESS REASONS to BUY a FAW:

● Intertruck is an Experienced and Trusted Importer with PARTS Stock in New Zealand

● FAW is backed by 21 Nationwide Dealers and Service Centres in New Zealand.

● Lower Cost of your new Fleet Asset allows Growth in other areas of your Business.

● JH6-T6 leads South Africa in Fuel Economy.

● Over 500kg LIGHTER than Euro Brands.

● FAW is a well known and Respected Brand in 80 Countries Worldwide.

Excluding GST, Includes ORC, no trade: $221,000 8160kg +/- 1% TARE Premium Interior Layout

THE YELLOW WHITE

Story and photos by Dave Ching

We meet a 1977 White 4000 tractor unit, originally owned by the Dynes Brothers of Tapanui, in the keep of Canterbury’s McKay family since 1983.

Those who attended the 2024 Dave Carr Memorial Truck Run would have seen Carl McKay’s impressive, mostly original, 1977 White 4000 tractor unit. This truck has had a proud history, owned by McKay Earthmovers, shifting numerous motor scrapers, graders, excavators and bulldozers up to Komatsu D155A-size around the South Island. It used to tow a single-axle load divider with a five-rows-of-eight transporter behind that.

Rumour has it that Carl had a D155A “fall off the back” of

the transporter one day when he was heading east, up the Waikari Hill. He said it didn’t really fall off, more just rolled off the back, ran over all the wooden blocks that were chained down behind the machine and started heading backwards down the hill until Carl managed to climb aboard the machine (as it was still rolling backwards), dive into the cab from the blade arm and apply the brakes to stop it. The man who loaded it onto the transporter didn’t apply the brakes, just lowered the blade and rippers.

With a rated GCM of 92,500kg, the White could still hold its head high in a transporter application today.

Carl says that from that day on, the team chained every machine or item down on the deck of the transporter and any steel-tracked machines and things like cutting edges on scraper bowls all sat on top of old tyres, and nothing ever moved after that.

Before coming into the McKay fold, this White, which, according to the data plate, is a 4564 model, was owned by the Dynes Brothers of Tapanui. When they went their separate ways, the truck was rehomed in Tauranga and became part of the TD Haulage fleet.

In 1983, when Carl’s father went to Tauranga to look at buying the White, the engine was out of it, having its first rebuild. The deal was subsequently done, and when it came time to move it back to the mainland, it towed a Bailey bridge logging trailer back to Tapanui for Dynes Transport, which paid for the journey south.

After they had got it home, the McKays changed the fifth wheel to the fully oscillating 90mm English-made Davis item that is still fitted today. This fifth wheel was bought from an old, well-known Canterbury heavy haulage operator, Tom Gilroy, who sold it to Carl’s father for $800 cash – about 10% of its true worth at the time. The White also has a drawbeam and Ringfeder coupling fitted to it, plus hydraulics to run either transporter ramps or a tipulator.

There are also quick-release air couplings on the side of the truck, as Carl says they were often used to change flat tyres and repair punctured tyres on the side of the road. The McKays team used to head away on most jobs with up to six spare wheels, a couple of them for the White and four for the load divider and transporter.

A few years ago, the White was re-cabbed with a Western Star cab sourced out of Australia for Carl by Kevin Twiss. This

“They used to head away on most jobs with up to six spare wheels.”

job was brought about by the original cab being infected with the dreaded tin worm, also commonly known as rust. Carl says for many years, they chased the rust in the original cab and, come each CoF, it got harder and harder to pass due to the deteriorating state of the cab.

Neil Paintin, known to many on account of twisting spanners for decades, performed the cab swap after getting a message to the Aussies who supplied the cab, asking them to undo the wires at the various junctions and connectors rather than cutting them. Carl says there

ended up only being one wire that had to be joined. Another Kiwi victory over the Aussies!

The original gauges were refitted, and the odometer today reads a low 764,250km. The cab has no air-conditioning, but Carl says if you wind the windows down and open the vents, you receive a decent amount of coolish air. Evidently, though, the heater works a treat.

Behind the bullbar and under the unique bonnet is a Cummins NTC 350 small cam engine, which had a second rebuild about 20,000km ago. Backing this up is a Roadranger

RTO12515 transmission, which leads onto a Rockwell SSHD bogie with a power divider lock on Hendrickson walking beam suspension. Tyres are 1000-20 with split rims, which begs the question, how many of today’s tyre fitters would know how to work with these safely?

The loading certificate shows an 11,000kg front-axle rating, rear-bogie rating of 28,000kg and gross combination mass of 92,500kg – given these ratings, the White is, in fact, no lightweight. It may not be as heavily rated as the modern prime movers out on transporter duty, but she would

still hold her head high and not give in easily if called back into active duty and coupled back up to a transporter trailer.

Carl is approaching his 73rd lap of the sun and now has a caravan he wants to tow around the country with his Hilux, so there may well be an opportunity for someone looking for a nice original classic truck that is a wee bit different from a lot of other classics out there to buy this gorgeous White. His only stipulation would be that it needs to stay original is because he’d hate to see it with twin 8in chimneys, a drop visor and alloys.

Mike Beesley is a veteran of the trucking industry in the North Island and a well-known truck photographer. He has amassed a collection of thousands of truck photos taken during a career of more than 50 years and is kindly sharing some of his favourites.

Gordon Richard’s K124 Kenworth starting a slow descent down the south side of the Bombay Hills in 1985 with a brand-new Wagner log stacker on board (note the plywood around the cab).

The Hawker Tempest was an iconic World War 2 fighter aircraft that emerged from battle with a reputation as a powerful and extremely capable tool of the trade. Looking over this month’s New Zealand Trucking Top Truck, similar sentiments can be held. The name definitely fits.

Story by Carl Kirkbeck

SPhotos by Andrew Geddes

pecialising in the supply and delivery of bulk aggregates as well as the management and disposal of contaminated materials, McEwan Haulage of Dunedin knows what a productive bulk unit looks like. Fair to say, the latest addition to its fleet and this month’s Top Truck is a case in point. The 2025 T909 Kenworth has been built for bulk, and plenty of it.

The big 9-0 has a unique look, with its flat roof 28in integral sleeper cab. Director Nic McEwan explains how the decision to order this particular variant was all about driver comfort. “The sleeper does not impact the productivity of the truck, but it allows the driver room to move, have a proper rest if

they get stuck in random places, as well as room for extra storage.”

Adding to the dramatic appearance of the rig is the size of the alloy bodies. The truck bin comes in at 5.1m long with 2.1m-high sides, and the trailer 8.5m with 2.3m sides. With this in mind, it is easy to understand that a 35-tonne payload across the combination is handled with ease.

Looking over the build, you will find attention to detail: crisp, clean and well executed is the order of the day. You will also find creative thinking. The likes of a reverse extension ladder to access the truck bin, and double-sealed grain doors to handle those extra juicy loads.

“Yeah, Steve Keast and the team at TES

(Transport Engineering Southland) have done a superb job of the build for us, Steve is bloody good to deal with, he listens to what you are after, adds their ideas into the mix and then builds exactly what you need; we couldn’t be happier with it.” These comments from Nic are backed up by Murray Kilner, who pilots The Tempest.

“I can’t say enough good things about the entire unit, it really is just the unit for the job; it’s just bloody magic to use. Sure it’s a great looking rig, but it’s designed to get its feet dirty, and that’s exactly what it does,” says Murray.

Under the hood of the maroon and black T909 is the big red X-15 Cummins, at 459kW (615hp) and 2779Nm (2050lb/ft). Matched

to this is a manual 20-series 18-speed Roadranger gearbox, something that Murray is more than elated with.

“Yeah for sure, I have come out of an auto – don’t get me wrong, they’re okay, but in something like this going around the likes of roundabouts, and the autos start going up and down through the gears, it just does ya bloody rocks in. Instead, with a manual, you put it in a cog, you know what it’s going to do, you shunt it around, and once clear, gear it up and go, it’s that simple.”

Completing the driveline is a set of Meritor MT21-165GP axles with full cross locks, sitting on Kenworth’s own Airglide 460 air suspension.

When ordering the truck, Nic and Murray sat around the table with Southpac’s Chris Gray to go over the options and extras.

“Chris is fantastic to work with; he knows the product and nothing’s a problem for him,” says Nic.

The truck is in no way overcooked; that old adage of keeping things ‘simple and classy’ has definitely been the mantra of this build, with subtle touches like the fitment of stainless-steel Vortox style air cleaners. Custom stainless steel trim panels fitted to the undersides of the tank steps and sleeper cab are also a feature of the build, fabricated and fitted by the team at Southpac, as well as a sharp looking drop visor.

The approach to the signwriting and pin striping was also ‘simple and classy’. Andrew Geddes from Timaru Signs and Graphix was given a clean slate, and let loose. “Andrew is awesome. We just leave it up to him; he knows what we are looking for, and he always delivers,” says Nic.

Bumper to bumper, the unit is a standout. But don’t let its good looks fool you, The Tempest is definitely battle-ready, with efficient productivity locked in its sights.

JUST TRUCKING AROUND

Saria Hellyer

Ken Bell caught up with Saria Hellyer just as she was about to swap her scuffs for work boots to load out some Angus steers from the annual Southern Man Beef Cattle Sale at Lorneville, near Invercargill. Saria was due to drive the stock to Venlaw Station near Wyndham.

Saria has worked for Titiroa Transport based at Wyndham for just over a year, driving a Freightliner Argosy on stock work. Previously, she drove a small flea at Hokonui Rural Transport on lighter stock duties.

Saria lives near Gore at Maitland and comes from a farming background, brought up at Ermedale in Western Southland. Outside of work, she enjoys horses, rugby and home time.

When asked what her go-to for a quick bite was, she didn’t hesitate: a chicken and bacon pie fills the void nicely.

DEBUNKING MYTHS AROUND APPRENTICESHIPS AND ON-THE-JOB TRAINING

Apprenticeships and on-the-job training are powerful tools for building a skilled, loyal and future-ready workforce, yet persistent myths continue to cloud their reputation. Concerns like ‘If I train an apprentice, will they just leave?’, ‘I don’t have time to train someone’, or ‘It’s just too expensive’ often discourage employers from exploring these valuable opportunities. But how accurate are these assumptions? We talk to some prominent players in the New Zealand transport scene about the realities of training workers and uncover why investing in apprenticeships is not only practical – it’s also smart business.

Myth No.1

If I train an apprentice, will they leave?

Wayne Scott, MinEx, says if we don’t train workers, the industry can’t grow.

“If we don’t train our workers on the basis that they will leave, then we won’t be upskilling our industry, and we won’t have the people needed to progress our sector,” he says.

Adam Devoy from Devoy Panelworks says with the right support, apprentices are more likely to stay.

“If you put the correct schemes in place, and you hold onto them, treat them well, you’ll find you’re able to retain them,” he says.

Myth No.2

I don’t have time to train an apprentice

Graeme Mabey, HW Richardson Group, says training is an

investment, not a cost.

“And certainly with the Health and Safety At Work Act, it’s a business’ responsibility to make sure staff are trained.”

Strat Campbell, Toyota New Zealand, adds, “For me, it’s an enjoyable thing. I like to watch the apprentice’s strengths grow and help them through their tasks.”

Myth No.3 It’s too expensive to train workers

Wayne Scott, MinEx, says workers are a company’s most valuable asset.

“As we all know, an untrained worker can damage equipment and cost us money.

“The small amount we invest in training is a small commitment to ensure we have a competent workforce,” he says.

Graeme Mabey, HW Richardson Group, says it’s too expensive not to train.

“The cost of training might seem initially off-putting, but

the gains achieved through training and development will certainly outweigh any costs associated with bringing them on board,” he says.

Adam Devoy from Devoy Panelworks says there are options available to help with the costs of training staff.

“The fees-free policy that the

government puts in place can take care of the majority of fees for an apprenticeship,” he says. “MITO also offers a number of scholarships.”

For more information on training, contact MITO at www.mito.org.nz

GET YOUR CAREER GOING PLACES.

Take the next step in your career with the New Zealand Certificate in Business (First Line Management) (Level 4).

This programme is tailored for professionals in MITO’s industries—automotive, commercial road transport, extractives, gas, and logistics—who would like to progress their knowledge and skills in team management and development.

Scan the QR code or head to mito.nz/flm to enrol.

FIRST AND LAST – SIDE BY SIDE

Story and

photos by Brian Weatherley

It’s not often you see the beginning and the end of a great British truckmaker all in one place. But that’s exactly what New Zealand Trucking ’s former European correspondent Brian Weatherley snapped back in 2009 at the UK’s Retro Truck Show. He recalls the history of this famous marque and these significant trucks.

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then the story this one tells is both uplifting and sad. Sitting beside ‘ERF 1’, the very first truck built by the legendary British manufacturer, is 0008 ERF, an ECT tractor and the very last one built bearing the ERF badge.

The inscription on the front –‘Capax Infiniti’ –means ‘Capable of infinity.’ If so, it suggests the name of ERF will live on in trucking history.

But how did a proud brand come to such a sad end? Enough has been written about the demise of great British trucks to keep you busy for at least a fortnight. Most people know the story about the falling out at

Foden in the early 1930s, but to recap: Edwin Richard Foden, the son of the founder Edwin Foden, saw the future lying not with steam but with diesel power.

The Foden board disagreed and Edwin Richard, with his son Dennis, upped sticks and went their own way. With former colleague Ernest Sherratt, who became the company’s chief engineer, they set out to build a range of diesel-engine lorries.

In 1933, ERF No.1, a six/seventonner bearing the chassis No.63 (apparently Edwin’s age at the time) and powered by a Gardner 4LW diesel with a David Brown gearbox and Kirkstall back axle, broke cover. The rest is history.

While ERF never challenged

the likes of Ford, Bedford or Leyland on overall sales, along with Foden and Seddon Atkinson, during the last half of the 20th century, it was a popular choice with British buyers based on a proprietary component drivetrain – with engines supplied by either Gardner, Cummins, Rolls-Royce (nee Perkins) and later even Caterpillar and Detroit Diesel, while Eaton Fuller transmissions and Rockwell axles completed the package.

But what made ERF stand out from the crowd, especially the Continental invaders, was its ‘plastic fantastic’ cab, based on glass fibre panels built onto a tough steel frame. Unlike local

rival Foden, whose fibreglass cab panels were laid down in open moulds, from the mid-1970s, ERF began using sheet-moulded compound (SMC), a mixture of chopped GRP strands together with polyester resin and a hightemperature catalyst, moulded between two heated metal dies held under pressure to produce a finished panel.

SMC had two things going for it: First, both sides of the panel had a smooth finish, and second, curing time was only three to four minutes. SMC panels would be used on ERF cabs up to the very last plastic-cabbed ECX model, before it was replaced in April 2002 by the all-steel ECT cab based on the MAN TGA. (I neglected to say that by then ERF had passed through the ownership of first Western Star, before ultimately ending up in MAN’s hands.)

With the arrival of ECT, ERF production was transferred

1) The ERF B-Series was the first to feature SMC external panels over a steel cab frame. 2) The ECX was the last ‘plastic fantastic’ ERF to sport a SMC cab. It was designed to take a Cummins Signature underneath, but that never happened. 3) In 2007, MAN ERF and Newport-based MDW conceived this patriotic ECT Olympic to celebrate the announcement of the London 2012 games. 4) The last ERF ECT was basically a rebadged MAN TGA from the cab right down to the wheels.

to Germany and Austria from its relatively new Middlewich assembly plant in Cheshire, which had closed down the previous month.

Under the great ‘economies of scale’ philosophy, what British operators got for their money was an ERF with MAN cab, chassis and axles. But there was one important exception. ERF buyers could still order their ECT with a Cummins engine, and for them, that was a real differentiator, not least because the ISMe11 – and previous M11 and L10 – had blazed an impressive trail with their fuel economy.

Yet, despite enjoying a long history in the UK with British manufacturers since the late 1950s, by the early 2000s, Cummins’ sales of its big displacement diesels were seriously reduced, thanks to the ever-increasing penetration of the Continental manufacturers with their own ‘integrated drivelines’.

The hammer blow fell in November 2004 when trade magazines reported that expected engine upgrades to take ISMe11 to Euro-4 wouldn’t take place. The stories were true; Cummins was getting out of the European heavy-truck market.

The loss of that all-important differentiator meant that what made an ERF an ERF was now gone. Yes, you could still buy an ERF ECT, but with either MAN’s 10.5L D20 engine or the larger 12.4L D26. End of. However, if an ERF were simply a rebadged MAN, why not buy a MAN and be done with it? Or even buy another brand altogether? Sadly, too many buyers did.

Finally, in August 2007, MAN ERF UK declared: “Following the decision by Cummins not to provide a Euro-4 engine suitable for the ERF range of trucks, MAN

has been equipping ERF models with its well-proven MAN D20 engine. This specification has been readily accepted by many ERF/Cummins customers. However, this change to MAN’s Euro-4 engine has resulted in a significant reduction in demand for ERF-badged trucks.”

And it went on: “MAN ERF UK pledged that, while significant demand for the ERF brand remained, the company would respond and keep the brand alive in the UK. Unfortunately, this reduction in demand means the company has decided to cease production of ERFbranded trucks.”

The last ERF to come off the assembly line in Germany went to Bedfordshire-based B. Dancer Haulage, which registered the high-roof ECT three-axle tractor 0008 ERF in March 2008. It remained working with the company until June 2020, when it dropped off the Driver Vehicle Licensing Authorities’ registration data radar shortly after changing ownership. Whether it’s still actively employed or is destined to be preserved as the last in line is unknown. It would be nice to think it would be kept alive, just like ERF No.1, which was restored to its current pristine condition by ERF apprentices and now resides in the British Commercial Vehicle Museum in Leyland, Lancashire.

The historic pairing of the first and the last took place at the Retro Truck Show in Gaydon in 2009, with both vehicles on the REVS stand. (Formed in 1988, REVS is a unique society dedicated to promoting and preserving the legacy of Edwin Richard Foden and ERF products. Its website, erfhistoricvehicles. co.uk , is well worth a visit, especially if you like photos of old ERFs!)

FURY ROAD

OPERATOR: AWE McNicol, Dannevirke

ENGINE: Scania DC16 16L Euro-6 574kW (770hp) 3700Nm (2729lb/ft)

TRANSMISSION: Scania

Opticruise GRSO926R 12-speed

AMT with 4100D retarder

NUMBER 101

Volvo

REAR AXLES: Scania RB735 hub reduction

REAR SUSPENSION: Scania air suspension with scales

BRAKES: Disc. ABS, EBS

SAFETY: ACC, AEB

BODY/TRAILER: Curtainsided truck body and matching five-

FH700 8x4 rigid – sleeper cab

OPERATOR: Regal Haulage, Hamilton

ENGINE: Volvo D16G 16L Euro-5 522kW (700hp) 3150Nm (2323lb/ft)

TRANSMISSION: Volvo I-Shift 12-speed

REAR AXLES: Volvo RTS2370B

REAR SUSPENSION: Volvo eight-bag air suspension

BRAKES: Disc. ABS, EBS

SAFETY: ESP, DAS, ACC, AEB, LCS, LKA, AB

BODY/TRAILER: Built by the in-house Regal Haulage workshops

FEATURES/EXTRAS: Factory aero kit, stoneguard

PAINT: Factory

OPERATION: Bulk commodities throughout the country from its Hamilton base

DRIVER: Tui Roxburgh

SALES: Mark Ellerington

Scania 770S 8x4 rigid – sleeper cab

axle trailer by Jackson Enterprises

FEATURES/EXTRAS: V8 leather trim, cab fridge, microwave, coffee machine, Alcoa DuraBright alloy rims, drop visor, custom tool lockers, LED roofmounted light bar

PAINT: Factory

SIGNAGE: Caulfield Signs and Graphics, Rotorua

OPERATION: Wool bale cartage throughout the North Island

DRIVER: Brett Ingham

COAST ROAD CRUISER

OPERATOR: Sea Products, Drury

ENGINE: Scania DC16 16L Euro-6

485kW (660hp) 3300Nm (2434lb/ft)

TRANSMISSION: Scania

Opticruise G33CM 14-speed AMT with 4700D retarder

REAR AXLES: RB662

REAR SUSPENSION: Scania air suspension with scales

BRAKES: Disc. ABS, EBS

SAFETY: ACC, AEB

BODY/TRAILER: New curtain sided chiller body by Domett with existing trailer

FEATURES/EXTRAS: Alcoa

RIGHT METTLE

UD CW25-360 6x4 rigid – day cab

OPERATOR: Steel & Tube, Auckland

ENGINE: UD GH8F 8L 263kW (360hp) 1428Nm (1050lb/ft)

TRANSMISSION: ESCOT-VI 12-speed AMT

REAR AXLES: UD hypoid with cross locks

REAR SUSPENSION: UD eight-bag ECAS air suspension

BRAKES: Disc. ABS, EBS

SAFETY: UD safety suite, TEBS, TECC, ESC, LCS, HSA, SGA

BODY/TRAILER: Deck and crane fitment built by Manukau Truck Bodies

FEATURES/EXTRAS: Stoneguard, sun visor Palfinger

PK12501 crane

PAINT: Factory

OPERATION: Company product and material deliveries to clients throughout the Auckland metro area

Scania R660 8x4 rigid –sleeper cab

Dura-Bright alloy rims, cab fridge, TV, passenger air ride seat, Broshmik LED lighting and custom stainless steel tool lockers and trims, stoneguard

PAINT: Factory

SIGNAGE: Truck Signs, Mt Maunganui

OPERATION: Supporting the company’s transport requirements and distribution

DRIVER: Pin Te Huia

SALES: Damon Smith

NEW RIGS

DUTCH DISTINCTION

OPERATOR: Andy Smith

Livestock, Morrinsville

ENGINE: Paccar MX-13 13L Euro-6 390kW (530hp) 2600Nm

with full locks

REAR SUSPENSION: Paccar eight-bag air suspension

BRAKES: Disc. ABS, EBS

DAF CF530 8x4 rigid – sleeper cab

refurbished Nationwide stock crates and Jackson Enterprises trailer

FEATURES/EXTRAS: LED roof-

Morrinsville

SIGNAGE: BDS Tinting and Graphics, Te Awamutu

OPERATION: Livestock

ROCK LOBSTER

OPERATOR: Fiordland Lobster Company, Te Anau

ENGINE: Mercedes-Benz OM471 13L 395kW (530hp) 2600Nm (1917lb/ft)

TRANSMISSION: Mercedes-Benz PowerShift

3 G330 12-speed AMT

REAR AXLES: Mercedes-Benz hypoid with

full diff locks

Mercedes-Benz Arocs 3253 8x4 rigid – sleeper cab

REAR SUSPENSION: Mercedes-Benz eightbag air suspension

BRAKES: Disc. ABS, EBS

SAFETY: ABS, EBS

BODY/TRAILER: Existing body from previous Mercedes-Benz

FEATURES/EXTRAS: Roof-mounted LED light bar, stone guard

PAINT: Factory

OPERATION: Transportation and distribution of the company’s own products

SALES: Tristan Duffell

K220 FOR KINTAIL

OPERATOR: Kintail Transport, Tauhei

ENGINE: Cummins X-15 15L 458kW (615hp) 2779Nm (2050lb/ft)

TRANSMISSION: Roadranger

RTLO20918B 18-speed manual

REAR AXLES: Meritor MT21-

165GP with full cross locks

REAR SUSPENSION: Hendrickson PRIMAAX PAX462

BRAKES: Disc. ABS, EBS

SAFETY: ABS, EBS

BODY/TRAILER: Livestock deck by Kraft Engineering, with crate by Total Stock Crates

SOUTHERN CHIPPIES

Freightliner Cascadia 126 6x4 tractor –day cab

OPERATOR: Kings Log Transport, Invercargill

ENGINE: Detroit DD16 447kW (600hp) 2779Nm (2050lb/ft)

TRANSMISSION: Detroit DT12 12-speed AMT

REAR AXLES: Meritor RT46-160GP with full cross locks

REAR SUSPENSION: Airliner air suspension

BRAKES: Drums. ABS, EBS

SAFETY: ABS, EBS

BODY/TRAILER: Existing B-train chip liner

FEATURES/EXTRAS: Full roof-mounted aero kit

PAINT: Royans, Invercargill

SIGNAGE: Sign Solutions, Invercargill

OPERATION: Transporting wood chip product to South Port, Bluff

DRIVER: Tosh

SALES: Tristan Duffell

Kenworth K220 8x4 rigid – 2.3m Aero Roof

FEATURES/EXTRAS: Full factory

aero kit and side fairings, stone guard, custom tool lockers, additional LED marker lights, 24in smart TV, cab fridge

PAINT: Factory

SIGNAGE: Caulfield Signs and Graphics, Rotorua

OPERATION: Livestock movements throughout the North Island

DRIVER: Tony Rhind

SALES: Adam McIntosh

ON THE ROAD NEW RIGS

WANT YOUR NEW RIG IMMORTALISED?

Have you recently registered a new rig on the road? Would you like it immortalised within the pages of New Zealand Trucking magazine? Then feel free to send a photograph and specification information to carl@nztrucking.co.nz and we will make that happen for you.

SAFETY KEY – ACRONYM BY ALPHA

AB – Air Bag

ABS – Antilock Braking System

ACC – Adaptive Cruise Control

ABA – Active Brake Assist

AEB – Autonomous/Active Emergency Braking

AEBS – Advanced Emergency Braking System

ALA – Active Lane Assist

ASR – Anti Slip Regulation / Auto Slip Regulation

ATC – Automatic Traction Control

BAS – Brake Assistant System

BB – Brake Blending CAB – Curtain Air Bag DA – Driver Alert DAS – Driver Assistant Support DM – Driver Monitoring DS – Driver Support DTC – Drag Torque Control EBA - Emergency Brake Assist EBS – Electronic Braking System EBSS – Electronic Braking

System

– Forward Collision Avoidance FCW – Forward Collision

RM – Rocking Mode

RW – Reverse Warning

– Front Under-run

SAB – Side Air Bag SC – Speed Control SD – Side Detection SGA – Side Guard Assist TEBS – Traffic Eye Braking System TECC – Traffic Eye Cruise

VSC – Vehicle Stability Control

New Bodies & Trailers

New Zealand has a rich heritage of body and trailer building, and we’re proud to showcase recent examples of Kiwi craftsmanship every month. To feature on these pages, send a photo, features and the manufacturer’s name to carl@nztrucking.co.nz.

Blitzing

boundaries

Fresh out of the Putāruru workshops of Lilley HT & Hogan Contracting is this crisp build for BCB Contracting from Dunedin.

The B-train set is from the drawing board of Transtech Dynamics and pushes boundaries, grabbing all that the VDAM parameters will allow. With the front unit offering 11.35m and the rear 7.35m, 36 pallet spaces fit with ease.

The build includes four large tool lockers and a heavy-duty dunnage box with divider for corner boards. The striking curtains by Tauranga Canvas complete the look.

FEATURES: SAF air-suspended axle sets, Wabco EBS, chrome rims with Kiwi tyres, mezzanine floors with ladders, tare of 11,140kg.

Lilley HT & Hogan Contracting, Putaruru

Build and refurb

When it came to setting up and prepping their new Scania S770 for logging duties, Cam and Emelia of Coastline Loghaul from Thames enlisted the team’s assistance at Kraft Engineering.

First task was the new build and setup of the logging gear on the Scania; the fitment of Bigfoot CTI was a must as well. Next, was the full refurbishment of the existing five-axle multi-bunk Kraft trailer, including the fitment of new ExTe winches.

FEATURES: ExTe winches, Bigfoot CTI, Hella LED lighting package throughout.

Kraft Engineering, Rotorua

Since 1953

Keep it on the down-low

Laying low is the go when it comes to stock units, and this sharp new bumperto-bumper build by the Kraft Engineering team for Kempthorne Transport of Te Kowhai is a case in point.

Starting with a 25ft deck on the truck and matching this to a Kraft Optimax five-axle trailer with 36ft deck on 17.5in Hendrickson air-suspended axle sets lays the groundwork for a set of highcube Total stock crates.

Ease of operating the combination was top of mind also, with the fitment of Bigfoot CTI, handrails to the top of both crates, and twin drain trays with high-capacity storage tanks.

FEATURES: Hendrickson 17.5in air-suspended discbraked axle sets with TIREMAAX, Bigfoot CTI. Kraft Engineering, Rotorua

FEATURES: SAF 19.5in Intradisc air-suspended axle sets with TIRE PILOT, Wabco EBS, Ringfeder trailer coupling, Rothe Erde turntable, Alcoa alloy rims. Jackson Enterprises, Pahiatua

Reliability meets innovation

A touch of innovative thinking is behind this recent build for JD Hickman of New Plymouth by the team at Jackson Enterprises.

Starting at the front, the curtainsider body on the truck features a retractable roof to allow ease of loading access for its application. Moving to the matching five-axle trailer, you will find it features split curtains to again simplify loading and unloading.

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THE GOOD LIFE

This month’s inductee into the New Zealand Trucking Million Mile Club is a good Scania, literally. New to Warren Good of Dunedin, the 2014 V8 R730 Streamline was big gear, and still is even by today’s standards. The rig started its working life pulling a five-axle curtain-sided trailer, on linehaul duties servicing a contract with New Zealand Couriers.

Now in the care of CBL Contracting of Christchurch as a crane truck, owner Cam Lill couldn’t be happier with the big Swede. “It is an absolute pleasure to drive, just effortless; you sit up in the leather seat, fold down the arm rest, put it into gear and away you go,” he says. “I purchased it off Scania New Zealand, they had traded it in from Warren and used it themselves for a period of time moving equipment and items down to the new Scania service centre in Invercargill. It had been extremely well looked after by

Warren; there are 120 or so pages of ScanPlan service history, right down to every last nut and bolt. Mechanically it is in great condition.”

It had an engine rebuild at around 1,900,000km, and there is record of some gearbox and diff work as well, which you’d expect. But, by all accounts, the R730 has been a solid and stable performer throughout its working career. One thing it has had its fair share of according to the records is windscreens, around a dozen or so, probably due to the roads it was on and no stone guard, so Cam was adamant that he will be fitting one of those soon.

“For me it was the right wheelbase for a crane truck conversion; being just over the 6m mark meant I didn’t have to stretch it out. I put the feelers out around the traps and came across a Hiab 477 for sale in Tauranga, so that was purchased and shipped home here to Christchurch. It was then off to the

Each month, New Zealand Trucking Media recognises the trucks that have achieved this milestone in the act of carrying the nation on their backs. We'd like to recognise yours too!

Basic spec (model, engine, trans, rear end)

team at C&C Engineering to have it all put together. First the body was removed and a new deck built, then they put the subframe together for the Hiab and plumbed up the hydraulics. That was a learning curve, fitting hydraulics to a Scania, not like simply bolting a PTO pump up to an old Roadranger,” says Cam with a laugh.

Cam is the first to admit that the Scania is big spec for the task at hand now, but also mentioned that it is an extremely relaxed drive because of this. And with a touch over 2,000,000km on the clock, it would be fair to say that it has earned the right to a more sheltered and privileged life now. We say, well done and welcome to the club.

The Team at Roadmaster would like to Congratulate GSR transport Limited On their recent build

Roadmaster Where Quality Meets The Road

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PAYNES FIND TO NEWMAN LONG-DISTANCE DIARY

Story by Will Shiers

Photos by Gavin Blue

PART 2

In part 1, UK correspondent Will Shiers was introduced to Outback trucking, meeting his Cropline Haulage Volvo FH16 780 chariot and its driver Brinley Lewis, learning about WA’s driving time rules, roadtrain combinations and Outback camaraderie – all while battling high temperatures and an empty stomach … We pick up the story at breakfast.

Our stop is the Paynes Find Roadhouse and Tavern, where we eagerly tuck into a muchneeded bacon and egg sandwich, washing it down with a strong black coffee. Brinley, on the other hand, takes a far healthier approach, opting for a handful of nuts and a piece of fruit. He explains that he tries to eat well on the road. His truck is equipped with a fridge, freezer, air fryer, and microwave, allowing him to cook his meals most nights. “If you eat in roadhouses all the time, you’ll blow out,” he says, as I wipe egg yolk and ketchup from the corner of my mouth. “The only exercise we get is walking around the truck, which is why truckies are all big jiggers,” he adds with a chuckle. Though he admits to enjoying a beer or two on some evenings, this trip is strictly

dry, as alcohol is forbidden in trucks carrying dangerous goods. The mines also enforce a zero-tolerance alcohol policy, with every delivering driver breathalysed before entry.

Lewis takes the opportunity to check his tyres, all 58 of them. He hits them with his tyre iron, paying special attention to the inside wheels. He knows exactly what they should sound like, giving off a dull thud if losing pressure. But everything is fine. Then he checks the hub temperatures, pointing a Braketek infrared temperature gun at them.

Then we’re back on the road and heading to Cue, which, refreshingly, is only 200km away, where we will replenish the diesel tanks.

The scenery has changed now, with arable land switching to shrub. “This is the start of the cattle-grazing country,” Brinley says. “They’re allowed to roam free, and

when it gets dark, I’ll be relying on my cow cam to see them,” he says pointing to an infrared screen on the dashboard in front of him. This aftermarket system, which includes a camera mounted on the truck’s roof, costs $10,000. “They’re expensive, but they’re a lot cheaper than the damage caused when you hit a cow. My friend hit one the other day and did $80,000 worth of damage to the truck, and it had bullbars.”

As we roll into Cue Roadhouse, we’ve covered nearly 600km and consumed close to 600L of diesel. The truck has averaged just over 1km per litre, which Brinley deems respectable. He expects this figure to improve further as the truck’s mileage increases and the engine beds in. Given the fuel consumption, we ask him if he believes electric trucks could

ever replace combustion engines for this type of work. His laugh says it all!

According to Brinley, Cue Roadhouse is one of the better stops on the Great Northern Highway, partly because drivers receive $18 in food vouchers with a purchase of more than 300L of fuel. He opts for a sandwich and a Diet Coke. “The showers and toilets are pretty good here, too,” he adds. “Some places are so disgusting you wouldn’t wash your dog in them, and they still want to charge us $5, even if we’ve just bought 1000L of fuel.” He shares a story about one outside truckstop dunny he’s too scared to use because there are often frogs lurking under the seat!

We still have 538km to go to our destination, with no more planned stops for the day. However, within minutes of mentioning this, Brinley is forced to make an unplanned stop. The two-way radio crackles to life as the driver of an approaching escort van informs us of an 8.5m-wide load heading our way. Brinley finds a safe spot and pulls onto the gravel hard shoulder, as the approaching truck is occupying almost the entire two-lane road. “Some days you can have a bad run and pull over every 10 minutes,” Brinley says as he slowly merges back onto the highway. “It not only slows the journey, but you burn a lot of fuel getting back up to speed.”

About an hour later, we’re back on the radio again, this time to arrange an overtake of a truck carrying the biggest tyres we’ve ever seen, each weighing six tonnes. The driver gives us the signal when it’s safe to pass, then eases off the gas to allow us to do so safely. “We all get on very well up here,” Brinley says, giving a courteous wave to every vehicle that passes us.

The traffic density has thinned even further now, and nearly every vehicle we pass is a truck, including a number of impressive quads, some of which are pulled by blue Volvo FH16 700 10x6 tractors. Brinley explains that these trucks are permanently on the move, shared by two drivers. One drives for a 12-hour shift while the other rests, and then they swap.

I ask Brinley whether he’s a fan of the TV show Outback Truckers or if it feels too much like a busman’s holiday. “I can’t watch it,” he says. “It’s too much like cowboy trucking for my liking. It’s all ‘my Pete is bigger than yours’ nonsense. They turn a job that’s really not that hard into a big drama.”

On the subject of Peterbilts, we’ve only spotted a handful. Far more common are Kenworths and Freightliners. We’re seeing quite a few Macks, too, which are now offered with the same 581kW (780hp) D17 engine that’s powering our truck. But one vehicle that’s completely absent is

“They’re expensive, but they’re a lot cheaper than the damage caused when you hit a cow. My friend hit one the other day and did $80,000 worth of damage, and it had bullbars.”

the FH16 Aero. I get on the two-way and ask Volvo Truck Australia’s public relations and media manager, Matt Wood, who’s following us in the photo car, why this is. “You need bullbars in this part of the world, which defeats the purpose of buying an aerodynamic Aero cab,” he explains.

Brinley tells us that European trucks like the FH16 are helping to address Australia’s major driver shortage, thanks to their ease of driving, which makes them ideal for new drivers. He explains that most trucking firms offer their drivers a choice of European or American

trucks. “Some boys still prefer an 18-speed manual box, but not me,” he says. “The I-Shift is the best transmission I’ve experienced.”

Australia’s driver shortage, which was exacerbated by Covid, has resulted in significant pay rises. Brinley reflects on how things have changed: “When I started, it was rubbish money, but now we’re on great coin. Although you do have to put the hours in to earn it. But you’re not out here for a social life. When you leave home, you might as well get the hours in. So, you just drive for your maximum hours, go to

bed, and do the same thing the next day.”

By now, it’s late afternoon, and the January temperature is a blistering 46°C, though you’d never guess it from the cool, air-conditioned comfort of the cab. Brinley explains that the mercury can soar into the mid-50s at times, when the heat is so intense that the soles of your boots can melt onto the tarmac. In these searing conditions, he tends to ease off the accelerator, cautious of the potential for a blowout. His eyes occasionally glance at the truck’s temperature gauge, but so far, the FH16 has handled the summer heat without any trouble.

The truck is fitted with an Ice Pack cab cooler, running off the truck’s diesel reserves. It is essential for surviving nights in these scorching temperatures. Most nights are spent parked up in a solitary layby, and Brinley is unfazed by the isolation. He’s never had to deal with crime or diesel theft, and he’s taken aback when we share stories from back home.

“The only crime we see is kids throwing stones at trucks,” he says. “It usually happens in Meekatharra, the next town we’ll pass through. They throw big arse stones, and the police just turn a blind eye. But if they’re at it today, we’ll hear about it from the truckies heading south.”

Luckily, the stone-throwers are nowhere to be seen today, and we breeze through Meekatharra without a hitch.

As we continue, the landscape unfolds before us in a near-endless parade of wideopen spaces, dotted with the occasional kangaroo, cow, goat or eagle carcass along the roadside. Every so often, a giant lizard crosses our path, sensing the rumble of the truck and darting out of the way at the last possible second. But for the most part, it’s a continuous stretch of red dirt and sparse shrubbery. It’s a scene that is stunning in its own way – vast, rugged, and beautiful – but after miles upon miles of the same, it does begin to take on a rhythmic, repetitive quality.

I ask Brinley if the unchanging scenery ever bores him. He’s genuinely startled by the question.

“No!” he responds, almost indignantly. “I love it out here. And I love the lifestyle, too.”

And it’s clear he means it. The vast, unbroken expanse of the Outback isn’t just a backdrop to his work; it’s a source of deep satisfaction, a landscape that never loses its appeal.

“Swerving isn’t an option. any sudden movement is amplified along the length of the trailers, making a bad situation even worse.”

We’re on the final stretch now, 260km to Newman, with no services along the way. The sun is sinking towards the horizon, casting long shadows across the red earth. As the sky darkens, Brinley switches on his infrared screen. A small Hyundai car overtakes us, prompting a shake of his head. “I wouldn’t want to be tackling this road at night in something like that,” he says. “It’s bad enough hitting a cow in a truck, let alone in that.”

Right on cue, a calf ambles onto the road ahead. By the time we reach it, it has wandered onto the opposite carriageway, but Brinley slows the truck to a near-stop anyway, knowing how unpredictable they can be. Swerving isn’t an option, as any sudden movement in the tractor is amplified along the length of the trailers, making a bad situation even worse. Slowing down is the only choice.

It’s fully dark when a passing truckie crackles over the radio with a warning – a dead cow is on the road, 2km ahead. Brinley thanks him and soon picks it up on his infrared camera. It must have been hit recently, still warm enough to glow on the screen. Out here, ranchers have clearly done the maths and concluded that the cost of losing cattle on the road is still cheaper than fencing off hundreds of miles of land.

Brinley drops us off in Newman, where we’ll spend the night in a mining camp before flying back to Perth. He had originally planned to push on to the mine in Christmas Creek, another 150km away, but word has come through that three trucks are already queued up waiting to tip. Instead, he opts to park up

in a layby for the night. In just 10 hours, he’ll be back on the road, though, unloading at first light, then covering most of the long, unforgiving miles back to Perth before the day is out. And the next day, he’ll do it all again.

“It’s a way of life,” he says. “And I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

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Will sets out on one of his famous Renault motorway test drives.

Story by Will Shiers Photos by Tom Cunningham

YESTERDAY’S TRACK, TODAY’S TRUCK

Will Shiers reckons the UK’s M4 motorway rivals Route 66. But can he do the whole length of this motorway in a Renault E-Tech T on a single charge?

I’ve developed a bit of a reputation for embarking on unconventional motorway adventures in Renault trucks.

In 2008, I spent a dizzying 24 hours continuously circling the M25 – London’s orbital motorway – in a Renault Magnum. Then, in 2020, I completed a full lap of the M25 in an E-Tech D on a single charge.

So, when I asked Renault to loan me its new E-Tech T electric 4x2 tractor for a drive along the M4 – the motorway connecting southern England to South Wales – they weren’t exactly surprised. What did raise a few eyebrows, though, was whether the truck could cover the entire distance on one charge.

With six 90kWh lithium-ion batteries for an installed battery capacity of 540kWh, the E-Tech T offers a range of about 300km, but the M4 is 5km longer. I shared their concern. To improve my odds, I decided to run the truck with a half-payload, hauling 11 tonnes in a curtainsided trailer (the unit’s GVM is 42 tonnes). Even so, with unpredictable traffic and the possibility of bad weather, it would be a close call. Before I hit the road, let me set the scene. While the US has its legendary Route 66, celebrated in song and folklore, I’d argue that the M4 offers its own brand of excitement. It might not pass through iconic towns like Amarillo or Gallup, but its 305km is packed with history and character. This motorway links two capital cities, skirts one of the world’s busiest airports, passes near a royal residence, intersects ancient Roman roads, spans Britain’s longest cable-stayed bridge, and even brushes by the hidden ruins of a long-lost town buried beneath the sands of time. I settle into the cab early one Thursday morning in late August, select ‘drive’, and soon I’m heading west with the E-Tech T’s 490kW (666hp) reaching the road through its 12-speed transmission. Fortunately, the weather couldn’t be better – the sun is shining and expected to stay that way for most of the day. With the low sun at my back, there’s no need to use the electronic windscreen blind.

The journey kicks off on London’s Chiswick Flyover, the very first section of the M4 to be built. This elevated roadway, which cost £6 million ($12 million) to construct, opened in 1959 with a ceremony featuring Hollywood star Jayne Mansfield. Interestingly, the flyover was initially equipped with an under-road heating system to prevent ice and snow build-up, but the technology was never used and eventually fell into disrepair. From this point, I soon find myself driving beneath the flight path of Heathrow Airport, Europe’s busiest and the seventh busiest globally in terms of passenger traffic. The truck glides almost noiselessly, but the constant roar of planes overhead paints a different picture. The air is thick with the scent of aviation fuel, a stark reminder that trucks aren’t the sole

“the flyover was initially equipped with an underroad heating system to prevent ice and snow build-up, but the technology was never used and eventually fell into disrepair.”

contributors to CO₂ emissions. While heavy trucks are responsible for about 6% of the EU’s total CO₂ emissions, the aviation sector accounts for 3.8%. It’s interesting to consider that there are about million heavy trucks on European roads compared to just 7000 to 8000 commercial aircraft in the skies.

Despite driving against the flow of rush-hour traffic, the westbound carriageway is still quite busy. As I pass a truck, the driver flashes to let me in, and I give a quick burst of the left-right turn signals to acknowledge the gesture. However, things go awry, and I can’t seem to switch them off. That’s when I’m reminded of the latest T’s innovative indicator system: a light press activates a three-flash sequence, while a firmer push causes them to stay on continuously until manually deactivated or the steering wheel returns to its normal position. On dual carriageways or highways, the indicators will automatically cancel once you’ve fully changed lanes, thanks to the lane departure system. It’s impressive tech, but from here on out, I’ll stick with the hazard lights for situations like this.

As I pass Junction 5, the Langley exit, I’m just 2.5km from a significant piece of commercial vehicle history: the former Ford Langley factory. It was here that the original Transit was born, and later, the Cargo was produced. After closing in 1999, the factory was taken over by Iveco and has since been transformed into an industrial estate.

To my left, I catch a glimpse of Windsor Castle, the oldest and largest inhabited castle in the world and the final resting place of Queen Elizabeth II. With traffic easing, the adaptive cruise control takes over, maintaining a steady 87km/h.

by horse-drawn carts, only for the advent of the combustion engine in the early 20th century to change everything. Today, we’re on the cusp of another shift as we move toward alternative fuels.

However, the change isn’t instant.

The E-Tech T is the only electric truck I’ve seen so far today, and none of the motorway service areas offer truckcharging stations. Still, I won’t need them. By the time I reach Membury Services for a coffee, I’m already a third of the way through the journey, with 70% of the battery charge still intact. Interestingly, this service area sits on the site of the former RAF Membury airfield, used by the RAF and US Army Air Forces during World War II. There are displays and photographs commemorating the personnel who served here, though most drivers are too focused on restrooms and their next coffee to notice.

As I drive through the rolling hills of Gloucestershire, it’s not just the view outside that stands out. The T’s sleeper cab interior impresses me as well.

The new 30.5cm digital instrument cluster sits directly in front of the driver, and the 23cm multifunction touchscreen is seamlessly integrated into the dashboard. I also appreciate the multifunction leather steering wheel, with the cruise control buttons now conveniently placed on the front, making it far easier to use, even for those unfamiliar with the vehicle.

The M4 intersects two ancient Roman roads near Swindon: the Fosse Way and Ermin Street. Interestingly, much of the M4 between London and the English city of Bath follows the A4, a route originally laid down by the Romans. For centuries, goods moved west along this same path

A warning sign informs me of severe delays on the Prince of Wales Bridge, which spans the River Severn, linking England and Wales. Opened in 1996, this cable-stayed bridge accommodates a widened M4 across the vast Severn Estuary. I decide to take a slight detour, briefly switching to the M48 to cross the original Severn Bridge instead. Opened in 1966, this bridge once held the title of the world’s longest suspension bridge span and remains an impressive sight to this day.

“If someone had told me I’d be back 30 years later in an electric truck, I would have found it hard to believe.”

CROESO I GYMRU

(Welcome to Wales)

The M4 passes near Newport’s Celtic Manor Resort, which has hosted two US presidents: George W Bush and Barack Obama. However, my attention is drawn to the Newport Transporter Bridge, visible from the left. Built in 1906, this unique bridge once ferried vehicles across the River Usk. Now a preserved structure, it’s one of the few remaining transporter bridges in the world, though it no longer serves its original purpose.

Between junctions 24 and 28, a strict 80km/h speed limit is enforced. Despite some steep gradients, the E-Tech T handles them effortlessly, with regenerative braking helping to recharge the batteries.

Linking London and Cardiff, the M4 is one of the few roads in the world to connect two capital cities. With a population of over 375,000, the Welsh capital is significant enough to have four dedicated junctions.

As I near junction 35, close to Bridgend, I drive over a stretch of porous asphalt. I remember seeing a TV programme about this innovative surface in the early 1990s. While I assume it’s still in use, the dry weather today doesn’t give me a chance to verify it.

The M4 section passing Pyle and Porthcawl opened in about 1980, and I clearly remember its construction in the late 1970s. With family nearby, I spent much of one holiday watching the work from a spoil heap by an abandoned colliery. I was captivated by the fleet of tippers hauling slag for the new road. I even took some photos, which I still have.

As the motorway stretches on, it passes the Kenfig National Nature Reserve, which holds an intriguing secret. Once a thriving

medieval town established in the 12th century, Kenfig was eventually consumed by shifting dunes. By the 15th century, little remained, with only part of its castle still visible today.

Driving past Neath, I’m reminded that I took my truckdriving test here back in 1994. I recall navigating the area in an old Ford Cargo, perfecting the art of double-de-clutching to pass the test. I can still smell the diesel fumes from those early mornings. If someone had told me I’d be back 30 years later in an electric truck, I would have found it hard to believe.

The journey wraps up at Pont Abraham services, the M4’s final stop. The E-Tech T has completed the 305km trip with 15% battery remaining, which the display suggests gives another 60km range. By 2026, Renault plans to release a long-haul version of this truck with a 600km range, meaning I could have turned around and headed back to London. But for now, it’s time for the train home while the Renault Trucks team detaches the trailer and attempts to plug the truck into a car charger.

From a driver’s perspective, the E-Tech T has been a pleasure to drive, but I’m not expecting to convince everyone that electric trucks are the ultimate solution we’ve all been waiting for. Frankly, I don’t fully believe it myself. However, I do hope I’ve managed to inspire those planning a trip to the UK to consider travelling a uniquely British road through a landscape steeped in history.

So, if you ever plan to motor west, travel my way, take the highway that is best. Get your thrills on the M4!

Right: The E-Tech T covered the 305km journey with range to spare and Will in comfort.

DEFINITELY WORTH THE WAIT

Story by Carl Kirkbeck

Photos: Wayne Haynes collection

Our feature model this month has been a labour of love for its builder on and off for the past 35 years or so. The attention to detail is absolutely spectacular. However, it is when you learn that the combination is 99% scratch built from various metals, that absolutely spectacular goes to a whole other level.

Abuilder by trade, Wayne Haynes has chalked up a vast career of building quality homes. Alongside this he has a passion for all things road transport and heavy machinery. So it is no surprise that with the arrival of kitset model trucks in the early 1980s, Wayne’s interest would be stirred. “I first started building the kit sets straight out of the box stock standard, I then progressed to mild modifications, later moving

to scratch building from sheet plastic,” Wayne said.

As a youngster Wayne grew up on a farm, and it is here where his fascination for Caterpillar machinery was ignited. “The neighbouring farmer had a D2 Caterpillar, and I’d watch him drive it up the road past our place, that’s where it all began. But it was the arrival of the D10 that made me think ‘I want a model of one of those’.

I had seen a guy in Australia who had built a Caterpillar D10

out of plastic, and I thought, ‘if I am going to build one, I would build it out of metal, as that would not deteriorate over the years like plastic can’. I had also been lucky enough to acquire a lathe and a milling machine for my workshop, so I had the tools for the task, I just needed to start.”

The first step towards the build was research, and it was through a good friend, Bryce Mounsey, where Wayne was able to gain access to the

D10 of Doug Hood that was operating within the Huntly coal mine. “Over four weekends we documented it from top to bottom; Bryce sketched it, and I did the measuring. It was then back to the desk to scale it all down to 1:25th. I remember thinking at the time when I started the project that if I got sick of it, I could have a break and build a model truck. But once I got started, I was hooked. I would make a piece and it was straight on to the next.”

In the end Wayne produced nearly 2650 individually handcrafted pieces to form the big Cat, and spent the best part of 30 months of spare time building it. The project was completed just in time for the 1991 national model truck show

in Whangārei, where it was an immediate showstopper and prize winner.

Not long after finishing the Cat dozer, a visit to AF Porter Heavy Haulage of Hamilton made Wayne aware that the company had a new trailer and dolly being built, along with the imminent arrival of a new T950 Kenworth to pull the combination. This was all the encouragement Wayne needed to decide that he had to build this as well to complement the dozer.

“I headed around to Modern Transport Engineers in Te Rapa to get the measurements and information I required. I got talking to managing director

Robin Ratcliffe, and he very kindly let me into the factory to see it being built. I was able to get the photos I needed, but also Robin provided me with a complete set of design blueprints for the combination. This was a massive help, as again I was able to accurately scale down all the measurements to 1:25th scale. It removed all guess work for me.”

First step for the trailer build was cutting the structural components out of sheet tin plate; plastic was never going to cut it in this instance with the D10 Cat coming in at a solid 6.5kg. From here the assembly process began, with all the individual components being soldered together. For the trailer suspension Wayne went back to the lathe to spin up replicas of the hydraulic rams, and cleverly hid support springs inside them to maintain the correct ride height when the D10 is sitting on the deck.

All chassis painted, final assembly of the combination begins. Note the widened float.

Moving on to the tractor unit, the structure of the chassis is also from folded and soldered tin plate, again to support the weight of the load. Staying with the ‘build it from metal’ mantra, the wheels on the tractor unit, and the diesel tanks, were spun on the lathe from solid aluminium – a painstaking process, however the visual realism is off the scale.

For the T950 cab and bonnet,

The T950 conversion kit from Auslowe is immaculately presented, and taken to the next level with genuine spun aluminium rims and diesel tanks, turned by Wayne on his lathe.

Wayne sourced these from the team at Auslowe in Australia, including the Caterpillar 3406 power plant. Painting the combination has also received Wayne’s attention to detail, with the correct colour formulas being acquired from Porters, and then mixed by Linkup Paints

It’s hard to fathom you are looking at 1:25th scale of the real truck. Note the fuel line fittings, and yes, the brass padlock does open!

of Tauranga. Application of the enamel paints was by airbrush, with a satin lacquer being applied to the trailer and dolly once dry, just to soften it a touch and add to the sense of realism.

Wayne’s completed 1:25th scale replica of AF Porter Heavy Haulage’s Kausin Kaos combination and its fully rigged Caterpillar D10 load truly is a sight to behold. The attention to detail is in a class of its own. His perseverance to stick at it for just on 35 years, seeing it through to completion, is also next level.

Wayne explains, “I started my own building company not long after beginning the Kausin Kaos build. And unfortunately self-employed work commitments meant the project got packed away for quite some years. But, with the time at home during the pandemic, and now retirement, it was time to break out the boxes and finally finish it.”

The mental approach required to tackle a build like this really is best summed up by this comment from Wayne during our chat: “There were a few trials and tribulations along the way, but you’ve just got to stick at it, and not let it beat you.”

From us all here at New Zealand Trucking, well done Wayne, the build is a credit to your abilities and mettle, and a beacon for others to follow.

The D10 Caterpillar makes for an impressive load sitting on the widened float, complete with ratchets and chains locking it in place on the deck.

The travel case Wayne whipped up to transport the transporter doubles as a display case as well.

A man of many talents, Wayne Haynes and his spectacular creation that was definitely worth the wait.

Show organisers

WHAT’S ON

Please send your event details, at least eight weeks in advance, to: editor@nztrucking.co.nz for a free listing on this page.

Brisbane Truck Show

15 to 18 May 2025

Brisbane Convention Centre Contact: brisbanetruckshow.com.au

McDonough Contracting Gore Truck Show

31 May 2025

Transport Repairs Yard, Falconer Road, Gore

Contact: 027 257 8895, goretruckshow@gmail.com

All scheduled events may be subject to change, depending on weather conditions, etc. Please check websites for updates before setting out.

Transporting New Zealand 2025 South Island Road Freight Seminar

28 June 2025

Chateau on the Park, Christchurch

Contact: transporting.nz/2025-south-island-road-freightseminar

EROAD Fleet Day

30 July 2025

Mystery Creek, Hamilton Contact: eroad.co.nz/fleet-managers-day

2018 KENWORTH K200 8X4 AERODYNE SLEEPER

is your next truck here?

MOVING METRICS

THE SALES NUMBERS

New Zealand Trucking reveals how the economy is travelling via key metrics from the road transport industry.

Summary

of

heavy

trucks and trailers first registered in March 2025

This information is compiled by Russell Walsh from information provided by the NZ Transport Agency statistical analysis team and through the Open Data Portal.

The data used in this information reflects any amendments to the data previously reported.

Vehicle type

This summary includes data from two heavy-truck classes and one heavy-trailer class.

A goods vehicle is a motor vehicle that:

(a) is constructed primarily for the carriage of goods; and (b) either:

(i) has at least four wheels; or (ii) has three wheels and a gross vehicle mass exceeding one tonne.

Note: Vehicle classes are not the same as RUC vehicle types or driver licence classes.

A table of all vehicle classes is in Table A of the Land Transport Rule Vehicle Dimensions and Mass 2016 Rule 41001/2016 https://www.nzta.govt.nz/assets/ resources/rules/docs/vehicledimensions-and-mass-2016-asat-1-November-2019.pdf

Vehicle class Description

NB (medium-goods vehicle)

NC (heavy-goods vehicle)

TD (heavy trailer)

A goods vehicle that has a gross vehicle mass exceeding 3.5 tonnes but not exceeding 12 tonnes.

A goods vehicle that has a gross vehicle mass exceeding 12 tonnes.

A trailer that has a gross vehicle mass exceeding 10 tonnes.

First registration of TD class heavy trailers for March, year on year by major manufacturer

First registration of NB and NC class vehicles for March, by major manufacturer

First registration of NB, NC and TD class vehicles for March, year on year

First registration of NC class vehicles year to date 2020 –2025 by major manufacturer

First registration of TD class heavy trailers year to date 2020 – 2025 by major manufacturer

Due to a change in process, the presentation of RUC data will now lag by two months. It is compiled from information provided by the NZ Transport Agency via an Official Information Request.

New Zealand Trucking magazine acknowledges the assistance of the media team at NZTA for providing this information.

ROAD USER CHARGES

Total value and distance of road user charges purchased per year

Summary of RUC transactions for February 2025

Number of individual RUC licences issued for year 322,997

Total kilometre RUC distance purchased (all types) 1,455,710,547

Total value of all RUC purchases (all types) $193,455,003

1

1

The top nine RUC type purchases, other than type 1, in descending order RUC distance purchased for RUC type 1 vehicles

RUC type 1 vehicles are powered vehicles with two axles (except type 2 or type 299 vehicles. Type 299 are mobile cranes). Cars, vans and light trucks that use fuel not taxed at source (i.e. diesel fuel) are generally in this RUC type.

$1,797,425,014

$1,859,093,183

RUC type Description

2 Powered vehicles with one single-tyred spaced axle and one twin-tyred spaced axle

6 Powered vehicles with three axles, (except type 308, 309, 311, 399 or 413 vehicles)

43 Unpowered vehicles with four axles

14 Powered vehicles with four axles (except type 408, 414 or type 499 vehicles)

33 Unpowered vehicles with three twin-tyred, or single largetyred, close axles (except vehicle type 939)

408 Towing vehicles with four axles that are part of a combination vehicle with a total of at least 8 axles

951 Unpowered vehicles with five or more axles

H94 Towing vehicle that is part of an overweight combination vehicle consisting of a type 14 RUC vehicle towing a type 951 RUC vehicle with a permit weight of not more than 50,000kg.

H95 Towing vehicle that is part of an overweight combination vehicle consisting of a type 14 RUC vehicle towing a type 951 RUC vehicle with a permit weight of 50,001kg - 54,000kg

RUC distance purchased year-to-date for selected RUC types

A description of RUC vehicle types is available at https://www.nzta.govt.nz/vehicles/licensingrego/road-user-charges/ruc-rates-and-transaction-fees/ Please note data may differ slightly from that reported for the same period previously due to adjustments being made to the base data.

RUC purchases (all RUC types)

Average monthly RUC purchases for year (all RUC types)

RUC purchases for February for selected types

Total licences issued for rolling year to date – 4,226,377

Total number RUC licences issued for month (all RUC types)

NPD is 100% New Zealand-owned and operates a fleet of modern, efficient Scanias, which serve more than 100 of its sites nationwide..

NPD: Fuelling New Zealand

In a country where the heavy transport industry is essential to keeping goods and services moving, a reliable fuel supply is more than a convenience – it’s a necessity.

From long-haul trucking to regional deliveries, the sector relies on consistent access to high-quality fuel and responsive customer support to stay on the road and on schedule. Companies like NPD, with its trusted reputation and customer-first approach, are driving the industry forward – offering not just fuel, but peace of mind for fleet operators across New Zealand.

NPD has built a strong reputation as a trusted fuel supplier, delivering high-quality fuel throughout New Zealand with an extensive retail network of sites.

With more than 50 years in business, NPD has deep roots in Nelson and the South Island.

As a 100% New Zealand-owned family business, NPD operates more than 100 sites nationwide – with a rapidly growing presence in the North Island, now at 16 sites.

The company’s retail network includes a mix of high-traffic refuelling locations, strategically positioned to support the needs of everyday drivers and commercial fleets, including those requiring higher volume refuelling solutions. Whether located along major transport routes or in regional areas,

NPD’s network is expanding to meet New Zealand’s increasing demand for reliable fuelling solutions.

“With the addition of commercial tanks on site, many of our customers are equipped to handle high-volume refuelling for transport companies and heavy vehicles,” says Barry Sheridan, CEO of NPD.

Reliable and efficient fleet

At the core of NPD’s supply chain is its efficient delivery fleet, which features highperformance Scania trucks.

“We own a large fleet of modern Scania truck and trailer units, ensuring a consistent and reliable fuel supply for our customers,” says Barry.

“These state-of-the-art vehicles are known for their reliability, fuel efficiency and advanced technology – helping to maintain a smooth, uninterrupted supply of fuel across the country.

“Highly skilled and professional drivers ensure deliveries are made safely and on time, keeping our customers moving without delay.”

Wholesale lubricants, additives and fleet management solutions

Beyond fuel, NPD is a wholesale lubricant supplier for Castrol, offering high-quality lubricants to the transport, agriculture and industrial sectors.

“Our partnership with Castrol gives customers access to premium engine oils and maintenance products that enhance vehicle performance and longevity,” says Barry.

To support the needs of the transport industry, NPD offers AdBlue diesel exhaust fluid at selected locations, helping reduce emissions in modern diesel engines and promoting cleaner, more efficient fleet operations.

A future built on reliability and growth

As NPD continues to expand rapidly in the North Island, Barry affirms that its commitment to reliable service remains unwavering.

“With a growing network, highly skilled professional drivers, premium fuel and lubricant supply, NPDcard and fleet management solutions, NPD is dedicated to fuelling the success of New Zealand’s motorists, transport and commercial sectors,” says Barry.

“Whether you’re managing a national fleet or driving long-haul routes, you can count on NPD to keep you moving.”

Lorryland reloaded

Tucked into the rolling heart of Taranaki, Lorryland is one of New Zealand’s largest stockists of second-hand and new aftermarket truck and tractor parts. Located 15 minutes south of New Plymouth, the company has built a solid reputation over 35 years for providing high-quality components to the trucking industry.

Specialising in the dismantling of trucks and tractors and the sale of new aftermarket parts, Lorryland offers an extensive inventory that caters to a wide range of customer needs. The company’s product lineup includes truck cabs, engines, gearboxes, differentials, panels, lights and more.

Under the new ownership of Zac and Kaitlyn Bingham, Lorryland is gearing up for its next chapter – with the same hard-working ethos and a few new tricks under the bonnet.

“Our stock levels are massive – we have parts from thousands of dismantled trucks and tractors, as well as a wide selection of new aftermarket parts, available for collection or shipping daily,” says Zac.

“That means we’ve got a part for just about any job, from late-model gear to hardto-find legacy components.”

The business dismantles and stocks parts for all the big Japanese, European and American names: Isuzu, Hino, Mitsubishi Fuso, Nissan UD, Volvo, Scania, International and more. From cabs, chassis, engines and gearboxes to aftermarket lights and panels, Lorryland’s offering is comprehensive and accessible.

“We cover pretty much everything –Japanese, Euro and USA. We also supply new aftermarket parts, and run a tractor

parts business too – Tractorville – offering dismantling and new parts,” Zac says.

Dismantling, recycling, and rebuilding

As a licensed truck and tractor dismantler, Lorryland plays a critical role in keeping trucks on the road and reducing waste. Trucks and tractors that reach the end of their service life are stripped down and evaluated for usable parts, many of which are refurbished for resale.

“There’s a lot of life left in the vehicles that we bring in,” Zac explains. “Our job is to make sure those parts get back into circulation, saving customers time and money and keeping the industry sustainable. What we can’t salvage goes to the scrap yard and gets recycled that way.”

New leadership, same reliable service

Zac and Kaitlyn took over the Lorryland

business in March this year. With a background in business and a deep respect for the transport industry, they are focused on building strong relationships with customers and suppliers alike.

“This is a business built on trust and customer service,” Zac says. “We’re still the same dependable team, just with a fresh drive to grow. Lorryland’s been a lifeline for a lot of operators, and we’re proud to keep it that way.”

Lorryland is set to expand its online presence, improve parts logistics, and continue investing in stock diversity. Currently, aftermarket parts can be purchased online, with a revamp of the online experience in the pipeline.

“After they’ve been photographed, all our products are packaged, ready for dispatch — so we’ll have your replacement part to you very quickly. Time is literally money for our customers,” Zac says.

Lightening the load on SAFETY

Hammar New Zealand has launched an AI-powered pedestrian-detection safety system developed in Aotearoa to ensure safety around Hammar sideloaders in operation.

Sideloader manufacturer Hammar needs no introduction to Kiwi operators, having established itself here 27 years ago with manufacturing and service operations. The company has now partnered with Christchurch-based safety and security supplier Viewtech to integrate the

ViewtechAi safety system and maximise safety when working with sideloaders.

The system has been integrated for Hammar sideloaders and uses AI cameras to detect pedestrians entering the operational zone in 0.01 seconds – unlike other systems, which can only detect safety vests or RFID

devices. The system alerts the operator and pedestrian with a programmable audio message and warning lights and immediately shuts down the operation to prevent crushing or injury. It has been tested to 99% accuracy – even detecting partially obscured pedestrians.

“The zone is a live fence,” explains Ulf Johansson, sales and marketing director, Hammar New Zealand. “You want the operator and anyone else around out of the hazard zone. It’s about safety, safety, safety.”

Hammar has trialled several systems and solutions over the years, utilising multiple sensor technologies, each with its own challenges. The AI solution system has been in action and development with Hammar since 2023.

“This system, being AI-based, only detects the human form – not movement, sound, heat, etc. That’s the game-changer,” says Ulf.

The system also combines GPS with a connected digital video recorder, which saves footage upon sensor activation, and can upload snippets to the Viewtech Fleetview cloud system for managers to view. It can also send notification alerts and users can live-view cameras.

“If you have the data, you can change behaviours,” comments Ulf.

The detection area, utilising five cameras, can be digitally defined and adjusted based on customer requirements. The AI on the cameras will only activate when weight is on the lifting chains or during operation,

meaning the operator can attach or detach hooks without the alarm sounding. Optionally, the rear camera can also be used as a reversing camera, highlighting pedestrians on an in-cab monitor.

“We needed a system that works well and for all operators. We’ve had a really good cooperation with Viewtech,” says Ulf.

Darren Jenkinson, Viewtech CEO, says the company began developing the ViewtechAi system for sideloaders about three years ago. “Our product was designed to be adaptable; we made it with the idea it can be used anywhere there are people moving around,” he says.

“Hammar has done a good job integrating it with their own controller logic; they’ve taken the logic from our camera to detect if there’s a person there and combined that with their sideloader logic to detect a load on the crane.”

With industrial vibration and ingress protection ratings, the system components are designed to last in tough environments.

The Hammar AI sideloader safety system is available now and can be retrofitted to certain Hammar products.

BAPTISM BY FIRE

Transcon’s Blake Noble reflects on his first decade as a road transport operator.

The 1st of April 2025 saw me reach my first decade as a road transport operator – the satisfaction of a longheld dream and culmination of a great deal of time and input from incumbent operators keen to help guide my path, shape my entry point, and highlighting to me some of those initial pitfalls and obstacles to look out for (that I naively thought I’d be able to navigate my way around).

But truth be told, even with some heavyweights in my corner, little could’ve prepared me for the baptism of fire that I went though, and that I suspect most new business owners, irrespective of industry or background, typically experience. I recall clearly those early days and feeling as though I’d just bought a new house and moved in, but a residence where the previous tenants were still living there too, as curious about who I was and what was up to as I was equally curious about them!

Taking a step back in time, Transcon, the operation I ended up purchasing from its founding husband-and-wife owners, and an immense 45 years of diligent service, was actually the first road transport business operation I’d seriously looked at purchasing. If I’m totally honest, I’d been a little scared of my initial observations of the business, and it was only after casting my eye over the financials and physical operations of a few others of varying shapes and sizes on the market that I subsequently realised the potential that lay within the business and honed my ambitions of acquiring it accordingly.

In those first two years, I simply couldn’t run fast enough to learn, grow, build and keep everything running as I wanted it to; the reality of having a transport business running seven days a week and the need to always keep those wheels turning was definitely a shock to the system for someone who had emerged from a ‘civilised’ five-daya-week business in a completely different sector. That seven-day-a-week aspect is something I’d not truly appreciated, and

although not unique to transport, is certainly a component that adds some complexity to the business and the need for the plates to always be kept spinning.

The real step change for me came about following a marital separation and a reassessment that I needed to run the business, not the other way round! Structural change quickly ensued and I became laserfocused on the need to try and keep myself as much ‘above’ the business as possible; something that the use of external advisors aided immensely. As much as business ownership is typically about leading a team, it remains one of the loneliest and isolated roles at times to assume – it’s ultimately your two shoulders that take the weight of certain aspects of the business and will always be beyond delegation. I’m not talking about the operational weight, but more so the underlying momentum, culture, direction, and general wellbeing of the organisation and its team. When any of those elements are out of balance, it’s in the operators’ hands to get things back in equilibrium – and fast – all the while keeping the team engaged and aligned.

Another element I think provides an added quirk to the leadership of a transport business, and some more than others, is the mobile nature of the business and, at times, physical dispersal of the team. Not being able to (easily) get an entire team together in a single place, or better yet, stop the wheel turning for half a day as a team off-site, is a challenge that many of us face and that, as a service provider to our customers, is something we must simply work around. In my case that’s been by leveraging technology and utilising weekly 10-minute

videos for our entire team to convey the lie of the land: the good, bad, and indifferent of the week behind us and the week ahead of us, but ultimately maintaining a connection with every team member.

As I reflect on the 10 years that have, in some ways, flown by, I’ve found myself having arrived in a place where I truly feel fortunate to have the things to worry about that I do. Where I was once pained by the need to do an insurance claim (don’t get me wrong, I’m never excited by them), I now get that sometimes shit happens. That concern and anxiety of how we’d resource certain pieces of work we were fighting to win has now been replaced by a feeling that necessity truly is the mother of invention and that we’ll always find a way. And when a mechanical issue might emerge with a truck, thinking how lucky am I to even have that fleet of trucks to be worried about in the first instance.

I know that at a mere 10 years in the saddle, I remain in my industry infancy in comparison with many of the trucking industry’s tallest timbers, but the decade milestone has afforded me the opportunity to look back and see just how far the journey has brought me. I can promise you that on 1 April 2015, I never thought I’d operate through the modern world’s first pandemic, nor navigate the depths of the likes of the current economic climate, but here I am to tell the tale, as are a myriad of operators –business owners and their teams – who, day in, day out, keep finding a way to find a way. Make sure you take the time to celebrate the milestones; you’ll never know how far you’ve come until you look at where you began.

Cognitive dissonance

We’re trying to go backwards and forwards simultaneously – and it is futile.

I’m old enough to remember the Goon Show, and in the celebrated episode where they robbed the Bank of England, the getaway car had a radiator painted on the back “so everyone will think we are going the other way”.

We have many such tricks in climate policy, things that appear to mean one thing but actually mean another. Last month, we touched on the seriously flawed, innocuoussounding “no additional warming” policy on methane emissions.

Another classic is “justifying” expanding urban arterials to ease congestion. Screeds have been written on “induced demand” and how expanded highways attract more cars until they too clog up, but on a grander scale (generally within four years of a road’s opening). A notorious classic is Houston’s Katy Freeway, peaking at 26 lanes but still snarling up.

And it’s not just this government. Labour’s energy minister Megan Woods waxed lyrical about how well we could decarbonise electricity because it was already largely renewable. It’s like telling someone living on bean sprouts and walnuts they could easily lose weight by changing their diet.

But back to now.

is anything but free. Plus, “not cost-effective” statements rarely mention the time frame being considered, inviting an assumed default of a year or three.

What’s needed is seriously long-term thinking, and then the payback looks very different. Experts consistently advise just 2% of GDP invested well could avert climate catastrophe. By comparison, Cyclone Gabrielle alone cost almost 4% of GDP (US$9.2 billion of US$252 billion).

I could go on, but the real question is: What lesson might we draw?

“An old chestnut is that climate initiatives aren’t cost-effective. While some strategies are certainly dearer than others per tonne of carbon saved, by far the greatest cost is the cost of inaction. Business-as-usual is anything but free.”

By slamming banks for restricting lending to fossil fuel industries, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and colleagues fly in the face of international thinking. In the Net-Zero Banking Alliance, 140 banks with US$49 trillion in assets (200 x New Zealand’s GDP, folks) committed to “transition the operational and attributable greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from their lending and investment portfolios…” and 2030 targets “focus on priority sectors where the bank can have the most significant impact, ie, the most GHG-intensive sectors …”

Add in actuaries (professional risk managers) cautioning on “planetary insolvency” due to climate impacts, and we have to wonder why political leaders who claim to champion freedom are intent on disempowering banking, increasing its risks and worsening the climate emergency in the process.

An old chestnut is that climate initiatives aren’t cost-effective. While some strategies are certainly dearer than others per tonne of carbon saved, by far the greatest cost is the cost of inaction. Business-as-usual

Of the above examples (methane, transport, energy, banking and costeffectiveness), officialdom misrepresented well-known facts on the first three to suit ideology. Banking offers more excuse for ministerial ignorance, but when collective badmouthing by Messrs Luxon, Peters, Seymour and Jones contradicts international wisdom, it’s a stretch to grant them collective lenience. And while the costs of climate actions are less clear cut, there are wellfounded reports from financial experts like the giant Boston Consulting Group that show climate investments pay well.

When ignorance of the facts seems the kindest thing we can say about ministers of all colours, it looks like our whole political system badly needs a shake-up. Meanwhile, let’s get painting those radiators on the backs of ministerial limos.

Lindsay Wood, MNZM, runs climate strategy company Resilienz Ltd. He is active in policy, and on IT tools for decarbonisation, and speaks, writes and broadcasts widely on climate issues. In 2024 he was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to climate awareness and environmental sustainability.

Back to basics

Let’s break through the noise and provide some clarity around what you should be focusing on and what is important when it comes to looking after yourself.

In this day and age, we are absolutely saturated with information around our health and fitness. Especially thanks to the endless source of knowledge at the tip of our fingertips at any given moment. Although this is a powerful and helpful tool in many ways, it can also be overwhelming, misleading and darn right confusing when it comes to sourcing knowledge around our health and wellness. Let this article give you some clear and simple advice on how to improve your wellbeing today.

Get in your 10k

This is by far the simplest thing you can do to improve your cardiovascular (heart) health. Most people generally aim to hit 10,000 steps per day. If you don’t have a smartwatch or pedometer, they are a great investment in your health and give you a really good guide around how active you are (or aren’t). There are so many cheap options now when it comes to fitness watches.

Of course, getting your steps in means you are being active, but it also usually means you have clocked up some steps outside (hopefully). Getting fresh air and some vitamin D is so good for your mental health and giving yourself a break from the stresses of work and family life. If you currently aren’t getting many steps in or not having much time outside your truck or office, make the

effort to get outside for at least 30 minutes a day. This can be in small increments of five to 10 minutes several times a day if you struggle to find 30 minutes in one block.

Eat that protein

The basic guideline is that you need 0.8g of protein per kilogram of body weight. For example, if you weigh 85kg, you would be recommended to eat 68g of protein per day. So how does this equate to staple foods that we eat every day? Here are some basic foods to give you an idea: one egg has six grams of protein, a cup of milk has eight grams of protein and 100g of chicken has 25g of protein. If this is all sounding a bit much, there are apps that will calculate everything for you. You can even scan in barcodes if you’re eating packaged food – a very handy cheat! Getting enough protein in will ensure that you are fuller for longer and it also helps in muscle recovery and building lean muscle.

Lift some tin

Feeling strong and capable translates to all facets of life and it also helps with bone density as you get older. There are endless benefits to lifting weights. Whether your goal is to lose weight or build muscle, lifting weights will tick both those boxes for you and more! If you’re not a gym goer, that’s totally fine. The only thing I would be wary of if setting up a home gym is ensuring that the equipment is well maintained and safe, as well as being confident that your form and technique are correct. Too often, people new to weightlifting attempt risky movements with too much weight and end up hurting themselves. The benefit to working out at a gym is that you are given a programme and go through a thorough demonstration with a trained professional. Regardless of which option you choose, please make sure that the movements you are doing

“Getting fresh air and some vitamin D is so good for your mental health and giving yourself a break from the stresses of work and family life… make the effort to get outside for at least 30 minutes a day.”

are safe, correct and suitable for your body and background – because everyone is so different!

Stack some Zs

Sometimes, our sleep routine is slightly out of our hands but, to the best of your ability, you need to ensure you are getting adequate rest and sleep. If you are sleep-deprived and your body has no chance to rest and repair, every element of your life will be affected – your work, relationships, friendships, health and fitness. You know the difference between waking up after a good night’s sleep versus waking up after a few hours of tossing and turning. It also affects our moods and the decisions we make towards our nutrition.

Your schedule may be unpredictable, which is tricky, but if you know ahead of time roughly when you’ll be finishing work one day and starting work the next, try to map out your schedule and time so you know that you will get a good amount of sleep in before you’re behind the wheel the next day. Focusing on these four things over the coming months and years will have a dramatic change in your health and fitness. I know that is a dramatic claim, but I stand behind that 100%. If you’re not feeling or looking any different after implementing change in those four areas after six months, I will eat my hat.

Laura Hulley Personal trainer

WINTER DRIVING

– are you prepared?

Safewise consultant Kaye Byrne shares some important tips on staying safe on the road this winter.

As winter approaches, trucking professionals face a unique set of challenges on the road. Your safety will be compromised with icy roads, snow for some, and reduced visibility that requires careful preparation and heightened awareness to ensure safety. Trucking organisations need to prepare for this unpredictable season. Here are some tips to ensure that truck drivers’ safety is not unnecessarily challenged.

1. Pre-trip vehicle inspections

Before hitting the road, ensure your vehicle is winter-ready. Check tyre pressure and tread, as well as battery, fluids and brakes. Don’t forget to test the heater and demister systems to ensure they’re working properly. Keep snow chains on hand in case road conditions demand them.

2. Adjust your driving techniques

In winter, slower speeds and longer stopping distances are essential. Always maintain extra space between you and other vehicles,

and drive smoothly to avoid skidding. Use engine braking on icy roads to help control your speed.

3. Plan your route and monitor weather

Stay updated on weather forecasts and road conditions. If bad weather is expected, consider rerouting or delaying the trip. Know the locations of rest areas in case you need to wait out a storm safely.

4. Driver training and emergency preparedness

Training is crucial for winter driving. Ensure drivers are familiar with winter-specific techniques, such as handling skids and using tyre chains. Every truck should be equipped with an emergency kit containing blankets, food and water.

5. Be flexible with schedules

Winter weather can cause delays. Trucking companies should plan for flexibility in delivery times to prioritise safety over tight deadlines. Encourage drivers to take regular breaks to avoid fatigue.

Winter driving requires proper preparation, care and attention. By maintaining vehicles, adjusting driving habits and staying updated on weather conditions, truckers can navigate winter’s challenges safely and efficiently. Also, by staying prepared with proper vehicle maintenance, adhering to safety protocols and equipping themselves with

the knowledge of winter-specific driving techniques, drivers can help mitigate risks. As winter weather starts to affect roads, it is essential for drivers to prioritise safety, stay informed and adjust their driving habits to keep both themselves and others safe. The responsibility lies not only with truck drivers but also with the industry as a whole to provide the necessary tools and support for safe winter travel.

Kaye Byrne is a health and safety consultant who works for Safewise, a health and safety consultancy organisation. Kaye has been in the health and safety field in one way or another for the past 10 years, most recently as a consultant. Kaye has experience working with many different industries and people. She holds a New Zealand Diploma in Workplace Health and Safety Management (level 6) and is a member of the New Zealand Institute of Safety Management.

Voted no. 1 in Safety.

We’re incredibly proud to be voted #1 in safety in NZ Trucking magazine 2023 national trucking survey. From stronger cabs, to smart emergency brakes, to side-detection alerts, our focus is always on the best possible protection for our drivers and fellow road users.

Transporting New Zealand can be contacted on (04) 472 3877 or info@transporting.nz

Dom Kalasih chief executive

Making sure all the bits click together

As part of our industry advocacy, Transporting New Zealand is working on two key issues with NZTA.

Both are big issues, and both will affect a lot of the industry.

One is getting clarity on changes to NZTA’s regulatory compliance strategy as it takes over more of the compliance roles formerly done by police.

The other is encouraging NZTA to get on with enabling increased productivity through changes to land transport rules and any other way that works.

As NZTA moves into taking more direct actions against driver behaviour, particularly those coming to light via social media, it’s important we understand how that will be different from the police’s approach. And we’ve sought clarity to sort that out.

Related to those planned changes is a big strategic shift in NZTA’s approach to compliance. Over the past few years, NZTA has been requiring new conditions for transport operators in order for them to get access to concessions such as over-mass and oversize permits, flexible work hours, and reduced vehicle inspection frequency.

Another way of looking at this is that NZTA is rewarding operators who have better management systems to control the risks, and also rewarding those operators who share their compliance data. This could be the biggest change seen in the industry for some decades.

The basic concept of this has been around for decades although very few countries appear to successfully use it. Australia is one of those with its national regulator, the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR). Many people in New Zealand will be familiar with the likes of ISO9001, ISO58001 and ISO39001 accreditation.

In anticipation of these changes, there is a growing cottage industry of third-party providers offering alternative audit and accreditation services and the wide variety

and associated costs is intriguing.

In the absence of NZTA formally providing a clear view of its intent, there are lots of different conversations occurring between various parties with little if any cohesion, and that’s leading to uncertainty and risk of future investment.

Transporting New Zealand’s view continues to be that we follow international good practice and learn from the past. We have had NZTA commit to providing much greater clarity in this space shortly.

Survey shows positive attitudes towards truck drivers

Public polling done for us by independent survey firm Research New Zealand shows that more than seven times as many people surveyed have a positive perception of road freight drivers compared with those having a negative view.

More than 1000 New Zealanders were surveyed and the survey found 52% of respondents had a positive perception of truck drivers, 35% were neutral, 7% held a negative perception, and 5% did not respond.

People remarked upon truck drivers’ professionalism and skills, being an essential service and their economic contribution, plus their hard work and long hours, as the three main reasons for the results.

Support for truck drivers was consistent, regardless of what form of private transport the survey respondents used (car, public transport, walking, bike or motorcycle, or other).

Transporting New Zealand policy and advocacy lead Billy Clemens has led the development of the survey and says the results are a great recognition of the incredible work New Zealand’s 33,000 professional truck drivers do, moving nearly 93% of the country’s freight tasks.

We consistently say our people are the industry’s most valuable asset, and that’s reinforced by these results.

For me, the survey findings aren’t a surprise, but it is good to have solid data to back up my opinion! Plus, without good data there’s the risk that we presume too many things about the sector.

The results also showed a minority of respondents had some concerns about truck drivers, mainly based around road safety and driving behaviour. Social media coverage of questionable behaviour on the roads is growing rapidly, and things can get out of hand pretty quickly.

The vast majority of the members I talk to are acutely aware of the value of reputation and brand – in many cases, it’s their family name on the door of their vehicle.

Because of that, they spend a considerable amount of time and effort setting clear expectations for their drivers regarding good driving. They want their people to come home safely at night and they don’t want their trucks hurting others on the road. That said, it’s something our whole industry needs to keep working on, and we can never slack off in this area.

In the meantime, we’ll also keep advocating for investment in overtaking lanes, road widening and other infrastructure that improves safety and productivity outcomes for all road users.

International Road Union catch-up

The key finding from our regular catch-up with the International Road Union is that what we’re seeing here, particularly in terms of the impacts of a weak economy and soft demand, is part of a global trend.

There also appears to be a weakening focus on decarbonisation in Europe, and slow demand for trucks.

The recent Freight Perspectives newsletter on the state of the sector in the UK showed the UK registered 37,920 new heavy trucks in 2024 for an 8.7% decrease compared with 2023, a notably lower number than the 12% average decrease in Europe.

Road freight survey: your concerns

The results of the 2025 National Road Freight Survey reveal the industry’s leading concerns and priorities – offering sobering insights into business conditions, the deteriorating road network and challenges concerning driver safety and wellbeing.

The survey, conducted by Research NZ on behalf of Transporting New Zealand, was also supported by the New Zealand Heavy Haulage Association and Groundspread NZ. With nearly 200 participating road freight businesses, it represents the most extensive industry snapshot in over a decade.

Ahead of the full report release, Billy Clemens, head of policy and advocacy, Transporting New Zealand, says the preliminary findings paint a stark picture.

Unsustainable operating margins

The findings echo the concerns Transporting New Zealand has heard from members and align with wider economic indicators. Reflecting mounting pressure from high operating costs, only one in four respondents reported having sustainable operating margins. Just 34% expected their financial situation to improve over the next 12 months.

When asked how best to address the issue of rising costs and economic pressure – one of the top three concerns – 25% of respondents called for fairer industry-wide pricing and a

reduction in undercutting. Many voiced frustration with the current climate.

“These insights support our advocacy for policies that reduce cost pressures on transport businesses. Our sector groups are also working with supply chain partners and government officials to curb uncompetitive behaviour,” said Clemens.

Roading network

Concerns about the state of New Zealand’s roads were nearly universal among respondents. The vast majority agreed that poor road maintenance was putting truck drivers and other road users at risk. A significant number also believed that regional roads and bridges were neglected (84%), and that delays in replacing the Cook Strait ferries posed a major risk (79%).

Among those who listed the roading network as a top concern, 39% identified greater accountability as the most effective solution. Many

expressed a desire to move away from lowest-price contract models in favour of a focus on quality and accountability.

“These results validate our ongoing push for improved road maintenance and increased funding for state highways and local roads. We’ve recently written to every regional council in New Zealand, identifying priority freight routes and infrastructure to be addressed in the next 10-year National Land Transport Programme.”

Public opinion

Many in the industry believe public sentiment toward professional road freight drivers is negative. However, this perception isn’t supported by representative polling of 1000 New Zealanders by Research NZ.

Of the nine key issues presented in the survey, public perception and industry reputation were ranked among the top three concerns by only 9% of respondents. Still, 50% of those surveyed said their drivers

regularly experience abuse from the public, and 67% disagreed with the statement that public opinion of the industry had improved in recent years.

As a result, 49% believe the public holds a negative view of professional drivers. Only 20% believe the public viewed them positively.

In contrast, the general public painted a more favourable picture: 52% said they viewed professional road freight drivers positively, and only 7% expressed a negative view.

“These results suggest that a vocal minority may be giving operators a misleading impression of broader public sentiment. It’s encouraging to see such widespread public support for truck drivers, and Transporting New Zealand will be highlighting this in our advocacy – especially as we push for better public facilities for drivers and policies that support the longterm sustainability of freight businesses,” Clemens said.

National Road Carriers Association can be contacted on 0800 686 777 or enquiries@natroad.co.nz

Justin Tighe‑Umbers CEO

CREATING A VIRTUOUS CYCLE

Aligning regulations and investment for better roads

Better roads are essential for economic growth, freight productivity and connectivity. However, achieving this requires more than short-term fixes – it demands a long-term strategy that aligns investment, regulation and network management.

NRC is calling for reform in how we fund and manage roads, encouraging innovation, and removing regulatory barriers. We can improve freight efficiency, reduce congestion and boost economic resilience.

Funding reform: smarter ways to pay for roads

New Zealand’s road funding model is struggling to meet demand. Inappropriate investment leads to congestion, poor road conditions and delays that harm the economy. To address this, we need smarter funding mechanisms, such as value capture, time-of-use charging, tolls and an all-vehicle RUC. These systems ensure that those who benefit from roads contribute fairly. There will continue to be a need to fund the ‘greater good’ from general taxation.

There also needs to be greater accountability that the funds are being spent wisely. Members would react strongly if funding increases were spent on road cones, consultation and speed bumps. Every dollar spent needs to result in a better network for all users. There must be a stronger focus on best value over total life of every project.

Public-private partnerships (PPPs) should play a greater role in infrastructure development. By leveraging private sector expertise and funding, projects can be delivered more efficiently. Examples of successful PPPs in New Zealand include the Pūhoi to Warkworth Motorway, and Transmission Gully.

Why PPPs work

PPPs offer several benefits: faster delivery due to private sector investment; better

risk allocation between public and private sectors; performance-based outcomes tied to service quality; and cost efficiency, as long-term financing aligns with project benefits.

To attract investment, New Zealand must maintain a pipeline of at least five major infrastructure projects, ensuring continuity beyond political cycles. A 30-year strategic roading infrastructure model will prevent costly delays and uncertainty.

A pipeline of work is needed if we want to keep our workers in New Zealand.

Regulatory reform: unlocking freight productivity

Regulations should support, not hinder, transport efficiency. Currently, slow adoption of proven technologies, such as longer trailers and low regulatory capability, is delaying progress.

NRC’s focus is to encourage regulators to shift to performance-based regulations rather than rigid technical rules to encourage innovation. Adopting global standards instead of restrictive local requirements will also improve efficiency. Key steps include reviewing outdated transport rules to remove unnecessary red tape, and simplifying vehicle dimension and mass rules to unlock increased productivity.

Better network management: prioritising freight efficiency

Many key freight corridors are congested due to a lack of prioritisation for freight. To improve efficiency, NRC is advocating for increased use of data-driven approaches, such as: time-of-use charging to reduce peak-time congestion; better road space allocation, such as allowing freight vehicles access to bus lanes; and ensuring new projects prioritise freight productivity.

Currently, 93% of the freight task is by

road and failing to prioritise it leads to higher costs for businesses and consumers.

Streamlining compliance and permitting

New Zealand’s current compliance system adds unnecessary costs. The one-truck, onepermit model requires operators to obtain approvals for every potential combination over the different mass limits. A fleet-wide permitting system, like Australia’s, would reduce bureaucracy and improve efficiency.

Encouraging innovation in freight transport

While New Zealand’s freight sector is innovative, restrictive regulations often hinder progress. Bespoke trailer designs that improve efficiency face regulatory barriers. A freight innovation taskforce would accelerate the adoption of new technologies, ensuring regulations evolve to support, rather than restrict, innovation.

Creating a self-sustaining cycle of growth

Aligning funding, regulation and network management creates a virtuous cycle where better roads improve freight efficiency; increased productivity reduces costs and drives economic growth; and higher economic output generates more funding for future investment.

To achieve this, NRC is calling for smarter funding mechanisms and PPPs; a 30-yearplus infrastructure pipeline; performancebased regulations that enhance efficiency; smarter network management that prioritises freight; and digital compliance systems that reduce barriers and improve safety.

With these elements in place, New Zealand can build a transport network that drives economic growth, improves efficiency and secures the country’s infrastructure future.

James Smith GM Policy and Advocacy, NRC

How freight metrics can boost New Zealand’s productivity

New Zealand’s productivity lags behind other developed nations due to our small taxpayer base, geographic challenges and dispersed infrastructure. While New Zealand will never have the capacity of highway networks seen in Europe or North America, we can maximise efficiency within our constraints. But for this to happen, we need to focus on freight productivity metrics. It’s the old saying: if you are not measuring it, you’re not improving it.

At NRC, we are committed to improving freight task productivity by ensuring it remains a priority in discussions with key decision-makers. Whenever we meet with the NZTA, Auckland Transport, or the Ministry of Transport, we ask how they are measuring and reporting on freight productivity. We continually ask how new investments are assessed in terms of their contribution to improving freight efficiency.

We are having continuing conversations with officials and ministers about how we can move the dial on freight productivity. Our focus is on ensuring that transport agencies establish clear targets, measure progress transparently and align investments with efficiency gains. Right now, these are missing, and the result is freight task efficiency is declining. Without these steps, achieving long-term productivity improvements will remain a challenge.

The importance of measurement

A key factor in declining productivity is the lack of clear freight efficiency targets. Despite 93% of goods moving by road and transport being critical to the economy, freight productivity is not a priority for transport agencies.

Tracking freight performance supports economic growth, congestion management, and infrastructure planning. Many countries use freight data to allocate funding, identify bottlenecks, and align investments.

Transparent performance measures ensure projects deliver returns.

When the government set a 30% transport productivity goal via HPMVs, the industry met it in 18 months – proving clear targets drive results. Without them, decisions lack direction, making progress difficult to track.

Breaking down infrastructure silos

New Zealand’s fragmented planning hinders freight productivity. Major projects like the City Rail Link and Cook Strait crossings are developed in isolation, often overlooking freight needs. SH1 closures, for example, may not consider freight impacts.

A cross-modal strategy is needed to coordinate road, rail, maritime and air freight. Instead of shifting priorities between rail and roads, long-term planning should optimise the whole network. NRC continues to advocate for integrated planning that prioritises freight productivity.

The economic impact of freight productivity

Improving freight efficiency delivers significant economic gains. Road freight contributes $6 billion annually, and an 18% increase in freight volumes from 2012 to 2017 boosted GDP by $3.15 billion. Freight costs make up 12% of consumer prices, with a 10% rise in transport costs reducing trade volumes by 20%.

Since most goods move by road, optimising road networks offers the greatest efficiency gains. Investment in coastal shipping and rail can also ease congestion and lower road maintenance costs, strengthening overall resilience.

Leveraging data for smarter decision-making

At NRC, we advocate for robust freight data measurement to improve productivity. Currently, transport data is poorly integrated, making efficiency assessments

difficult. Key areas for data collection include:

• Transport movement – tracking travel times and congestion.

• Freight composition – monitoring transported goods to optimise supply chains.

• Economic impact – measuring how productivity gains boost GDP. By integrating these data points, regulators and industry leaders can make informed decisions that enhance efficiency.

Streamlining regulation and permitting

New Zealand’s freight regulations are inefficient, requiring a one-truck, onepermit system. Australia’s fleet-wide permitting model reduces bureaucracy and improves turnaround times.

A digital gateway system would speed up approvals, cutting delays and administrative burdens. These reforms would boost productivity while enhancing compliance and safety through real-time freight monitoring.

The way forward

To improve New Zealand’s productivity, we must set clear freight efficiency targets, integrate transport planning, use datadriven decision-making and streamline regulations.

NRC will continue pushing for structured freight productivity strategies, ensuring transport agencies prioritise measurement, reporting and investment alignment. The freight industry has shown it can meet ambitious targets when given direction. By aligning infrastructure investments with economic goals, New Zealand can unlock billions in gains and build a more efficient transport network.

The question is not whether we can improve productivity, but whether we are willing to measure, plan and act.

NZ Trucking Association can be contacted on 0800 338 338 or info@nztruckingassn.co.nz

TruckSafe NZ: Setting the standard for the entire transport industry

The transport industry in New Zealand now has a new benchmark for safety and operational excellence with the launch of TruckSafe NZ. This comprehensive, industry-led, independently audited safety management system (SMS) is designed to help heavy-vehicle operators improve their safety culture, improve compliance and reduce risk on the road. With seven core components and 49 elements, TruckSafe NZ sets a high standard for fleet management, ensuring that operators not only meet but also exceed their safety obligations.

For owner-drivers, a streamlined version with four components and 24 elements ensures that they, too, can benefit from the system’s robust safety protocols. Many transport businesses already have some safety processes in place, but TruckSafe NZ provides a structured, independently verified framework to help them go further in protecting their people, vehicles and the public.

TruckSafe NZ is modelled on the highly successful TruckSafe programme in Australia, which has been operating for over 27 years. Studies have shown the programme’s effectiveness in improving road safety, with TruckSafe-accredited vehicles experiencing significantly fewer crashes than non-accredited ones. Research by Austroads (2008) found that these vehicles had between half and three-quarters fewer crashes, demonstrating the direct benefits of structured safety management. Additionally, insurance data analysis revealed that claim rates dropped by 57% within two years of TruckSafe accreditation, reinforcing the financial and safety advantages of the programme.

Why join TruckSafe?

TruckSafe provides a structured SMS that assists operators in meeting and exceeding their obligations under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 and the Land Transport

Act 1998. By implementing the programme, businesses can identify, minimise and eliminate risks, ensuring they fulfil their duty of care as a PCBU (person conducting a business or undertaking).

Beyond safety, TruckSafe delivers a competitive edge. Certified operators demonstrate a commitment to high operational standards, making them more attractive to customers, clients and procurement contracts. The Australian experience has shown that TruckSafecertified operators not only enjoy lower crash rates, but also reduced insurance costs, making the programme a smart business decision.

Navigating transport regulations can be complex. TruckSafe simplifies compliance by providing practical tools and templates to help operators implement best practices efficiently. By offering a clear, structured framework, the programme removes uncertainty and sets out the steps needed to maintain compliance.

Supporting a safer road freight sector

The statistics surrounding truck-related crashes in New Zealand highlight the need for action. Trucks are involved in 19% of all fatal crashes on New Zealand roads, with the social cost of truck-related crashes between 2018 and 2022 estimated at $2.26 billion (Ministry of Transport, 2024). Furthermore, truck drivers were responsible for approximately 32% of the fatal crashes they were involved in. By adopting TruckSafe, operators can actively contribute to reducing

these figures and creating a safer road transport environment.

TruckSafe NZ has been specifically tailored to New Zealand’s unique road freight sector. Developed with input from industry leaders and incorporating te ao Māori perspectives, the programme reflects the needs of local operators. It also leverages digital tools to streamline audits, making compliance more accessible and manageable. Rather than relying solely on enforcement and penalties, TruckSafe promotes a collaborative approach to industry safety, helping operators stay ahead of regulatory requirements.

TruckSafe NZ operates under the Transport Well New Zealand | Kawe Pai Aotearoa Charitable Trust (Transport Well), and aligns with the trust’s future-focused, wholesystems approach. With a strong foundation in evidence-based safety improvements and industry collaboration, TruckSafe NZ is set to become the elite standard for transport safety management. Whether you are an owner-driver or managing a large fleet, the benefits of certification are clear: fewer crashes, better compliance, lower costs and a stronger business reputation. By joining TruckSafe, operators are not just improving their own businesses – they are making a meaningful contribution to the safety and sustainability of New Zealand’s transport sector.

Find out more today: www.trucksafe.net.nz, John Sansom, programme manager 027 244 5221, info@trucksafe.net.nz

TruckSafe NZ is an industry-led, independently audited Safety Management System (SMS) designed to improve safety culture, compliance, and operational excellence in the transport industry. Operating under the Transport Well Charitable Trust, TruckSafe NZ aligns with the trust’s future-focused, whole-systems approach, ensuring industrydriven solutions that prioritise safety, efficiency, and sustainability. TruckSafe NZ provides a structured framework to help operators meet and exceed regulatory requirements while improving road safety outcomes.

The sword is swinging

TRANSPORTtalk of 28 February reported that KiwiRail experienced a 2% to 3% drop in freight volume for the six months ending 31 March 2024. Whether this volume was moved onto road or just disappeared is unclear. However, the summary of the six-monthly reports in the same publication from the Port of Tauranga, Port of Auckland and South Port all indicate increasing freight volume – perhaps the freight moved by road has increased after all.

‘Improving productivity’ has certainly become one of the oftenmentioned objectives across the country; from the halls of power down, these are the catchwords of many conversations and presentations. I do not have a problem with the principle of this, the country needs to do better if we are to remain competitive with the rest of the world. The problem I have regarding our industry is what do we mean and how will we measure it?

As with key performance indicators, if you cannot measure them, they are merely nice-to-haves and virtually meaningless in the real world. I have read comments by some industry stalwarts that increasing vehicle weights and length would be a step in the right direction. They could be right, but those around in the early 2010s may recall that the idea of increasing productivity and fewer trucks on the road reducing congestion arose when we introduced highproductivity motor vehicles (HPMVs), or lower-bound vehicles as they were known back then.

Certainly, the proliferation of HPMVs is visible for all to see, but did they improve industry productivity while reducing congestion as envisaged? Where is the data to support this? I suggest that it would be hard to convince the governing powers that the industry should be allowed to go down this track again when there is no hard data to prove it worked the first time. Australia is grappling with similar issues, too. On 25 February, ATN (Australasian Transport News) reported that by 2040, road freight demand in the major eastern cities would jump by 40%, outstripping population growth, which is expected to be 28%.

IT WON’T BE a nice feeling if you are a top manager in the public service right now. Recent events demonstrate the sword is swinging at the top level and if you are in one of these positions, you must be wondering if you are next. The unanswered question is whether these top people who have now vacated their positions resigned, as in ‘I have had enough and am out of here’ or were resigned, as in ‘Your position is no longer tenable, I think you should look for employment elsewhere.’

The sword is swinging. Let’s hope it is not a sign that politics now outweigh competency when selecting top government officials.

The Accidental Trucker

Bums on seats

In the March 2025 issue, I mentioned a proposal sent out for ‘consultation’ by NZTA to provide a class exemption for drivers holding a full class 1 driver licence to drive electric trucks with a GLW of up to 7500kg. This proposal went ahead with the only significant change being to increase the exemption period from two years to three. The exemption notice can be found on the NZTA website.

The benefits claimed by this move include increased efficiency and flexibility in operations, cost savings due to staff not needing to obtain a class 2 licence, and the benefits of having a low-emissions fleet. It will be interesting to see if these benefits materialise as intended.

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Well NZ

Vision & Purpose

Our vision is to reduce harm, injuries, and fatalities within New Zealand’s transport and logistics sector, including the wider supply chain, by adopting a holistic, system-wide, and future-focused approach.

We deliver industry-led initiatives that improve outcomes in workplace health, safety, and well-being within the transport and logistics sector, and by extension, the public. We promote fair work practices, foster the development of good employers, and support the sustainability, growth, and development of our workforce.

We are a not-for-profit charitable trust and are currently accepting applications and expressions of interest to join our Governance Board.

If you are passionate about improving outcomes for Aotearoa New Zealand’s transport and logistics sector, please get in touch. www.transportwell.nz Join Transport

TruckSafe New Zealand is a not-for-profit industry-led safety management system (SMS) that is aimed at improving the safety and professionalism of trucking operators across New Zealand.

WELCOME TO LITTLE TRUCKER MAY 2025

Hey, Little Truckers! Welcome to another jampacked issue of Little Trucker Down Under! We have an exciting month ahead, and you’re invited along for the ride. This time, we’re hitting the road with our mate Orlando in a Peterbilt. He’s off to pick up a big load of bricks, and you’ll be right there in the passenger seat with him. Orlando got to learn all the tricks of the trade, and you can, too. We also have a super-cool colouring-in competition just for you. Grab your crayons, pencils, or markers and bring your trucking imagination to life. The winner will score an awesome prize, so don’t forget to send in your entry!

Grab a warm drink, find a cosy spot and settle in for another adventurefilled issue. Whether you love big rigs, dream of driving one someday, or just enjoy learning about the world of trucks, Little Trucker Down Under has something just for you. Keep on truckin’!

Shannon

Congratulations

Harry is having a serious read through his grandad’s New Zealand Trucking

PIC OF THE MONTH

Have you got a cool photo to share? Send it to us at shannon@nztrucking.co.nz and you could be selected as our photo of the month and maybe even receive a prize!

BRICK BY BRICK

By Orlando Scott

Iwas lucky enough to go for a ride with my dad in his friend Greg Mitchell’s Peterbilt 378. This was cool because it was my first time in a Peterbilt, which is quite different to what I’m used to.

We picked up the truck from Greg’s yard and took it to load bricks. I enjoyed this as Dad showed me how to put the corner boards on and how to throw a strap – something we don’t do a lot of with our trucks.

While we were loading, a train came past, so I gave the train driver the ‘honk’ signal, and he gave me a big toot –man, it was loud!

We travelled to the delivery point

in Dunsandel, south of Christchurch. When we arrived, I helped Dad roll up the straps and pack the corner boards away. Greg’s truck carries its own forklift, so Dad took it off and unloaded the bricks. Dad placed them around the house for the bricklayers to hopefully minimise the manual labour, shifting them by hand.

Once this was done, we packed up the truck, tied the forklift on and called into the bakery for a pie before heading back to the yard.

This was a really cool morning!

See you next time, Little Truckers! Orlando

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