Guidance & Support

The first virtual exhibition for the UK transport industry and even the Commercial Motor Show is now going to include talks from various key industry speakers. They are going to focus on topics which include how the industry is recovering from Covid-19. The first day of the conference is going to take place and it's going to cover the theme of the pandemic. It's also going to cover the logistics sector and even how major industries such as infrastructure, retail and even hospitality are going to carry on as the lockdown eases. Of course, the rental and leasing association and the BVRLA are going to explain how the contract hiring companies are going to be able to help renew their fleet. Of course, if you work in X jobs or if you work in an X recruitment agency then you will know what an important deal this is and you will also know how vital it is for people to really harness the help that is available. The afternoon on the first day is going to turn the Road to Zero strategy and even the role of biofuels into an actionable plan and this will really help everyone who is involved. There is going to be a challenge at the end of the day, but if a lot of work can be done now then this will really benefit everyone in the future. Some of the speakers who are going to be at the event include David Cebon who is the professor of mechanical engineering. He works at the Cambridge University and he is going to do everything he can to make sure that enough support is given to those who really need it.

Right now it looks like everything is moving in the right direction.

It's now day two of the Commercial Motor Show of 2020 and it looks like there is going to be a buzzing conference programme which is exploring all sorts of things, which range from skills shortages to Brexit implications and even fleet safety as well. When you look at the Road to Zero session, you will soon find that fleet operators at places such as John Lewis and even Hermes are talking about the steps they are taking to introduce more natural gas vehicles and bio-fuels too. In the afternoon, the Breakout Session 1 is going to focus on staying compliant. This of course, brings together the people at the Transport for London and even the DVSA. If you work at an haulage recruitment agency or if you work in driver jobs then you will know how exciting this can be.

Breakout Session 2 is going to help those who are struggling to recruit skilled employees for their workforce. On top of this, it's going to help those who are having a hard time during the Covid-19 pandemic too. Speakers which come from the RHA, XPO Logistics and even Unite are all going to be keen on hearing how every topic comes together as the session begins to take shape. You will also be able to learn more about the legal implications of transporting goods when the UK happens to leave the EU. The transport company Backhouse Jones are going to be giving some guidance on this so you won't have to worry about anything there. Of course, if you want to find out more about this then make sure that you watch this space for any new updates as this should tell you everything you need to know.

By the looks of things, test dates are going to be allocated from next week for any July MOT tests. The problem is that the only MOT centres that are allowed to open are the ones who are currently able to prove that they meet DVSA standards and the new Covid-19 regulations. The update comes from the main RHA Press Office.

The DVSA

The DVSA are going to start allocating any kind of test date from next week for the month of July. Some believe that the trucks which have been out for the longest should be the ones to be prioritised but nobody knows how it is going to work as of yet. If you know that your truck was out of a test at the end of March then you had until September, to get the new test booked. If you ran out at the end of April however then it is possible for you to get a six-month extension, so again, this is very dependent on when you actually got the test booked in. From May onwards, you have one extension only, which is three months.

Covid-Compliancy

You have to make sure that you are only visiting sites which are known for being Covid-compliant. Of course, if you work an area of driver recruitment Ireland and if you work as part of any driving agency Ireland, you will know what a backlog there is, so it is safe to say that there is going to be a huge demand. If you are looking for driving jobs then you may find that your job search has stalled, due to the pandemic. Some ATFs will require some level of modification so that they can comply with the new Covid-19 standards. This will need to be done before they can allocate any kind of test. Right now, nobody knows what the standards or even modifications are going to be.

The M60 is a rather strange motorway, as you need to leave if you want to stay on it. This is currently the only motorway in the UK where you need to come off in order to continue the journey on the same motorway. The motorway could be about to get its missing link. Of course, anything that might remotely help with congestion might be a good thing. The anomaly was created when the M60 came about, which was over 20 years ago and it connected several motorways with a brand-new stretch of motorway. This then wormed a ring road which goes for 36-miles all around Manchester. The way the road is right now means that anyone who is travelling eastbound on the motorway, at junction 18 finds themselves on the M62 going to Leeds if they do not use the roundabout on the M60- southbound section. This is super annoying if you happen to work in the industry of driver recruitment Ireland or if you're a member of a driving agency Ireland. After all, if you are seeking driving jobs right now then you will also know that time is everything when you are on the road and that if you have to take a turn off then this can make your journey considerably longer.

Hard Shoulder Conversion

There are intentions to convert the hard shoulder lane so that it gives an extra driving lane. This would mean that there is five in each direction. The idea is that this would allow more traffic to pass through while also improving people's journeys and driving experience overall. Of course, only time will tell what the future holds but right now it looks like there are a lot of changes that need to be made and discussed.

In North America, it would appear that Class 8 orders have approached new levels and it looks like they have reached the second-highest volume of the year. This might have looked like a one-off event though, and so far it is not looking like a consistent rebound. Test orders look to have risen by 23.2% and now they are at 16,000. When you compare this to one year ago, you will soon find that this stands at 12,979. ACT research have reported that this is the truck maker's initial data. The increase looks to have been the first since January and it is only the third since October. January saw the most orders this year as well, and that stands at 17,700.

A Long Way from the Normal Market

When you look at driver recruitment Ireland, or if you are seeking driving jobs then you will know how dependent truck drivers are on class 8 orders. With everything slowing down, it's safe to say that the industry has been affected severely. Everyone is a very long way away from the normal market but this looks to be a step in the right direction. When you look at things historically, you will see that this number is pretty boring, and it's a very average number. When you look at how horrible these last few months have been however, you will soon see that this is a signal that there are better things to come. We have busted out of the bottom and now it is time to come out, says Don Ake who is the Vice President of FTR.
Who knows what the future holds, but right now, it looks like more needs to be done to try and bolster other industries, like those who work in a driving agency Ireland.

Amazon's own aviation deal has added to the huge demand for lower-emission alternatives. Amazon.com are going to buy a fuel blend of aviation fuel, which is made from oils, fats and grease. They are going to do this over the next 12 months as they try and deal with the greenhouse emissions that are growing due to cargo emissions. The deal is up for 6 million gallons right now and they have teamed up with Shell, who are an oil giant. The problem is that there are such delays in the supply chain right now and this is going to have a huge impact on the climate equation.

Amazon

The company have counted 5.6 million tons of emissions that come from burning fossil fuels and this comes to around 10% of their total emissions. Of course, they have also stated that they have increased their total emission rate to 15% as well. If you work in the industry of driver recruitment Ireland or if you are searching for work with the help of a driving agency Ireland, you should know that this is very important as it may change how fleet managers try to update their operation. Of course, if you are seeking driving jobs then you should also know that the way that the fleets are operated might change too. Even as they grow their airplane fleet, and as they expand their cargo hubs, Amazon have stated that they expect air transport to be much smaller when you look at their delivery volume overall. Amazon have stated that they plan to deal with their carbon emissions much better and they are also making a big effort to try and give people the support they need while also helping the environment. This deal hopes to change the industry as a whole.

Net Trailer Orders in the US show that there is some degree of caution in regards to fleet equipment and purchasing plans. Orders have sunk to the lowest total over the last 10 years and for those who work in driver recruitment Ireland, this won't come as a surprise. If you are part of a driving agency Ireland or if you are seeking driving jobs Ireland then you should know that orders have dropped to 15,000 and that purchasing plans have been pared back significantly as well. This is especially the case when you look at the current market conditions.

People are more surprised by the bump in cancellations. These totalled 1,800 in January alone. Production rates even fell to 881 a day when compared to 1,000 in December. ACT expects the rates to return to December levels moving through the rest of the quarter. Trailer makers are now trying desperately hard to find the equilibrium between production and orders.

The backlog, when you combine this with the lower build rate, is now reaching well into August. When you look at how things are on a year-by-year basis, you will see that the backlog is now only 54%. Don Ake has stated that they have come to this huge stopping point. The fleets are good with managing whatever they have now and typically the nature of business is going after even more business. Right now they aren't though and this really does need to be addressed. From 2016 to 2019, 1.2 million trailers were ordered and lower orders had to come at the end of the day. Bosses expected this so it's only right that this is happening. Of course, the numbers should pick up soon because if they don't then there could be trouble ahead.

Kenworth Trucking, which is a unit of Paccar Inc have announced that they are going to collaborate with Meritor Inc on electrical powertrain developments. They are going to do this for their T680E models that have an 8-battery electric setup. The electric truck will have a short-hood day cab in a tractor configuration. It's also going to have a 4x2 and a 6x4 axle. This truck is going to offer a range of 100-150 miles but this does depend on the application.

The initial production of the Kenworth is going to begin in the fourth quarter and it's going to ramp up during the year 2021. The general manager for Kenworth has stated in a release that he is going to do everything he can to make sure that the right people get access to the vehicle and all of its capabilities. At the end of the day, he understands the trucking industry more than anyone and he is also very experienced in driver recruitment Ireland as well. Those who work in a driving agency Ireland or those who are seeking driving jobs Ireland will know how important it is to have a truck that can effectively keep up with the demands of a commercial market. This truck is going to do just that. It's also going to be an aftermarket solution for the industrial market. Kenworth have US retail sales of around 51,229 and they produced trucks that go between classes 5 and 8. 82% of these trucks that were produced are in Class 8.

Of course, the company have certainly come far and they are doing everything they can to make sure that they stand out from the rest. They are producing trucks that are of a high-calibre and this is all helping them to be the best that they can be.

Tank-ex and Tip-ex are on their way. When you look at the huge range of tasks they have to handle, you will soon find that choosing the right tipper body really isn't easy. For Thomas Bros. Excavations, their choice came down to Charlton or Thompsons. Each one is able to offer so many benefits and that was when they came to the decision that they really did want both. They bought Thompsons for years, purely because of the bodies and the overall quality they are able to offer. They know that they can put them on absolutely any job. That being said, when you look at the Charlton product, you will soon see that it is super versatile and that you have the bonus of it being well over 200kg lighter as well. As those who work in driver recruitment Ireland or even those who are part of a driving agency Ireland will now, weight is a very important factor.

If you are seeking driving jobs Ireland then you will be interested to know that the Loadmaster has a bit of extra strength in its reserve and that it also has additional capabilities as well. If you were carrying stone or even recycling materials on the other hand then the Supelite has a payload that is well-worth it. For a company who deals in all kinds of tipping, it's safe to say that they were both a fantastic investment.

Thompsons' Loadmaster Lite and Charlton's Superlite Bodies are fitted onto the Scania, Volvo and MAN chassis. They are a single skin design but they are built entirely on steel. The great thing about this is that it gives you the ideal blend of strength and durability, not to mention additional carrying capacity.

There is a ton of talk about trucks and there have also been a ton of electric advancements too. A CF 6x2 rigid is going to service in Holland and it's a bin wagon that comes complete with its very own crane. It has over 286 horsepower and it's able to have 2000nm of torque too. It sounds like this is going to be very much suited to a stop and start environment.

The great thing is that it looks like a normal truck as well. The DAF Trucks have introduced a brand-new truck and it's going to be field-tested later this year. It's going to help out with public waste disposal and it's also going to be useful for refuse collection too. At the end of the day, all of the vehicles are going to be equipped with the VDL-E Power driveline. This is interesting to those who work in the industry of driver recruitment Ireland, or those who are seeking driving jobs Ireland. If you work as part of a driving agency Ireland then this information should also be helpful.

Since the very end of 2018, the very first DAF CF electric vehicles have been operating with a 4 x 2 tractor and with various transporters as well. This includes Simon Loos, Peter Appel and even Tinie Manders. The trucks are going to be part of a very extensive field test and they are also going to have to go from destinations that range from supermarkets to distribution centres.

The truck is low in terms of emissions and noise when in use, but the CF Electric is ideal for everything. The DAF have worked hard to try and design a 3-axle rigid that comes complete with a steering axle and this means that it's going to be able to operate at a very high loading capacity overall. This is great news to say the least and it just goes to show how far the industry has come.