NZ

TRUCKING
Pai ge Robson
Li ve Studi o
Proj ect Document
The Brief
For the brief this semester we have been asked to work along side Inhouse Design and John Murphy the editor of NZ Trucking to re- design certain
sections of the New Zealand Trucking magazine.
These sections including:
Mast Head
Cover
Editorial Page
Contents Page
Feature Article
Subscription Page
Ad for Magazine
Before re-designing we are to do an in-depth analysis of the magazine fnding what works and wasnt doesnt. From this we are to take these and
create a new design. Along the way through each stage we are to meet with Inhouse design and John Murphy to get in-put and critiques on our design.
Research and Analysis
Past Covers
Here are some of the past covers from trucking magazine over the past year. What
I have noticed about these covers is that they are all similar, they all use a full
bleed image and use contrasting colours for the masthead. The colours used on
the masthead are mainly primary colours.
I fnd these covers too busy as there are many sub-headings and by having these
on top of the image it makes the text hard to read. The colours contrasting with
the image makes the cover stand out but not for good reasons.
Competition
There is a lot of competition for NZ trucking in the editorial market , the main competitor
in New Zealand is Truck and Driver. The two magazines are very similar in the way there
covers have been designed. The both use a full bleed image with a large bold masthead
placed at the top of the cover.
Truck and Driver is designed in a better way because of the colours they have used, the
colour of the text matches the colour of the truck images they have used making for
a cleaner look. Also making for a cleaner look is the image they have used has a clear
space for the text to be placed on top so the reader is still able to read the headings.
Typography
Main Articles
Typography
Typography
Typography is a main design issue in the magazine. The typography needs a
lot of work, so is something I will focus on when re -designing. When analysing
the type a common problem was the hyphenations throughout all the body text.
Another common problem is that the body copy throughout the entire magazine
is aligned to the right hand side. The heading font is inconsistent and all headings
for each article need to be the same. Also limiting the text over image will help with
legibility. There is too much text on each page which makes it hard for the reader
to focus and breathe.
New Ideas for the
magazine
Trucks in their environment
The Journey They Take
With the magazine focusing on New Zealand trucking, I feel a good path to take
would be one that not only focuses on the trucks but also show the journey and the
scenery the truckers themselves experience on their long trips through the country.
Classic Trucking
The idea for this look came to me from one of the advertisements that was
in this issue of the magazine, as seen above. Classic Trucking is a section
which is used every month so I feel giving it its own visual for the magazine
would work really well. Here I have looked at some classic style posters. It is
still a simple classic look but its just another way of presenting this without
using the black and white images.
International
By putting International Trucking as the heading I am not saying it should be changed
from New Zealand Trucking to International, what I am trying to present is the idea of the
magazine also focusing or having a section that looks at international Trucking not just one
article.
When I think of trucking I think of this style which is very American and vintage. Visually this
could work well and stand out. I feel many will connect well with this style of trucking.
This could also be a new visual re-design for the Truck Stop Section of the magazine.
Look and Feel
The design I have chosen for the magazine is very graphic, using a
limited colour palette, black and white image and line throughout. This
design style is something new for this genre of magazine and I feel it will
work well and show another side of NZ Trucking
Cover Covers
First Research
Contents
Article
Typography
Design
I feel the journey is a big part of a truckers job, this being the reason I have used a lot
of sharp diagonal lines and arrows throughout my design. I see trucking as very manly
and strong, using large bold fonts portray this while contrasting with the thing lines.
I began my design using coloured images, but after looking at all the images together
for the feature article I found there wasnt one continuous colour that worked well
throughout so I decided to colour pick the main colour of the truck used and use that
along side black and white images, eventually creating a two toned magazine which is
something you never see.
I have not used full images on the contents page as I want the viewer to want more and
be eager to read on, so by giving them a taste of the images it makes them want more.
To show that this can continue through to the next issues of the magazine I have
created a Next Issue page at the end of the magazine where I have used the same
layout as the previous issue. Instead I have used the Image from the may issue and
colour picked blue from the image to create a new design to show what the next issue
is about. I feel it is important to grasp the viewer, making them want to buy the next
months issue sooner rather than later.
I have chosen a simplistic design for the subscription page as I do not want the viewer
to be overwhelmed by the design and put subscribing in the too hard basket as it looks
too difcult.
Early Phase Design
Contents Page
Feature Arti cl e
Concepts
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MACKsimum
BULLDOG
Trucking in France
Cruisier Colorado
WIN V8 Tickets
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Trucking in France
Cruisier Colorado
Win v8 Tickets
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BULLDOG
6 Trucking
24 THE Expo Review
31 Murray Jensen
36 Mahalo Contracting
38 Looking Back
40 Truck Stops Invercargill
48 Top Truck
50 Classic Trucking
58 Aussie Angles
62 International Trucking
66 Light Coomercials
74 T-Rex
76 Truck Torque
78 Road Transport Forum
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80 Political Point
82 RTA NZ
84 Legal Lines
86 NZ Trucking Association
88 National Road Carriers
89 New Rigs
92 Pin Up Board
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MACKsimum Loyalty
Kiwi Trucker Leads the V8 Supercars
Mainfreight Show
Classic Trucking
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When Macks current line of trucks first poked their snouts out the kennel,
those that had a soft spot for the brand gave a sigh of relief. Mack was back.
The French influence had been culled out of the breed, and now
Macks Trident looks as staunch as. However, an automated
transmission, AdBlue tank and other features show that Macks
pooches havent been killing time by sleeping on the porch...
Feature Article 8
By Bryce Baird
Feature Article 8
MACK
simum
loyalty
When Macks current line of trucks first poked their snouts out the kennel,
those that had a soft spot for the brand gave a sigh of relief. Mack was back.
TheFrench influencehadbeen culledout of thebreed, andnow Macks Trident looks
as staunch as. However, an automatedtransmission, AdBlue tank andother features
show that Macks pooches havent been killing time by sleeping on the porch...
By Bryce Baird
W
W W W W
T
he word loyal has never
been quite the same since
the ocean yacht racing
crowd hogtied it to their advertising campaign during the
glory days of the Americas Cup. However, down in the
lower half of the South Island it still means something
other than the contrived manipulation the word has been
degraded to. Down south loyalty is earned, not created
during a brain-storming session in an ad agency.
In the lower half of the South Island there are plenty of
companies that are either brand heavy or brand absolute,
thanks to loyalty. Those salesmen that had the energy
to throw on a thick coat, chuck the snow-chains in the
boot of the HQ Holden and head south to cold-call and
hard-sell products that were at the time unknown, found
fertile ground in the south, where once a product proved
itself, and they got to trust the salesman, loyalty was
an unspoken part of the deal. Mack was one of those
unknown brands once upon a time believe it or not.
Apart from the recollections of war veterans whod seen
the Yanks use them in military applications around the
globe during both World Wars, they were once as rare as a
Ferrari seven-tonne side-tipper on our shores.
The small number of Macks that ended up here after the war
were used mainly in heavy haul or house-shifting, but apart from
those old war horses, the brand was just a big question mark
for those first few intrepid buyers. However, there were plenty of
operators in the South Island that could see the potential in the
brand, and the lower half of the island became a bit of a Mack
Mecca by the time legendary truck salesman Ron Carpenter
had finished with it. Stan Francis of North Otago Road Metals
could see that these big burly Yank rigs were just the ticket for
the work his companies were engaged in, and that they were a
huge improvement over the British gear hed started with back in
1955. The N.O.R.M. R-series Macks eventually became legendary
down south, and together with the other brand they took a shine
to, Volvo, the die was set. The company has since changed its
name to Road Metals, however their loyalty to the brand has
never wavered. In a great example of synchronicity, their two
brands of choice eventually became entwined, as Volvo now
owns Mack, which is reaping the benefits by having an increased
amount of Volvo technology built into its trucks. Current Road
Metals managing director, Murray Francis, (Stans son) knows the
strengths of both brands and their place in his fleet, but you dont
have to scratch him very hard to find that his favourite brand has a
pup bolted to the bonnet.
Feature Article 8
Mack have increased the rating of
their MP8 power-plant to 535hp and
have gone to SCR to meet Euro 5.
The cockpit is classic Americana with lots
of woodgrain, buttoned lining and silver
bezels giving the cab a plush feel. The lack
of a gearstick on the floor opens up the cab
as well giving more room for the operator.
Having said that, he still gets misty-eyed when talking about the
Leyland Octopus he spent three and a half years driving for his
dad, when he was barely out of his teens and working on some of
the think-big projects of the day at Twizel and Manapouri in the
seventies and eighties. The Road Metal boys take great pride in that
pup on the bonnet so it was almost inevitable that a Trident was going
to appear in the colours after a long run of R-series, CHs, Visions
and then a Granite. Road Metals went all out with this Trident, blitzing
it with chrome and accessories and making the Christchurch based
truck a standout rig in a city that probably has one of the highest
densities of bulk truck and trailer rigs working in the world at present.
Road Metals runs 23 mainly truck and trailer Mack combinations in
the operation that includes four Volvo FM series and a couple of Mack
eight-wheeler MC models converted to water trucks, and a crane
truck. They have 68 employees spread between their Christchurch
and Oamaru bases, and have three quarries in Christchurch, one a
joint venture with Isaac Construction, and another 214 hectare (500
acre) quarry about to open at Rolleston, making four in the area
that should provide 100 years of resource Murray says. Its been
an expensive process that has taken three and a half years in the
environment court and $1.5 million in costs that Murray says, aged
me ten years I reckon! I wont see much benefit from this, but the next
generation and the one after that will thank me for it! he predicts.
Murray has a great sense of history and brand loyalty, and Road
Metals long term plans for the future will probably mean good things
for Motor Truck Distributors.
Road Metals went all
out to make their latest
Trident standout and
Leader of the Pack has
had plenty of bling added
to give it visual punch,
including dual fuel tanks,
and sharp eyes will spot
the AdBlue rear tank on
this side of the rig.
Feature Article 8
But he had ambitions to drive bigger gear and
hopped over the ditch to Perth where he attended a
driving school attaining the credentials to drive road
trains. He achieved a 99 percent pass rate which gave
him his MC (multi-combination) rating, and then start-
ed working for West Australia Freightliners in a K104
Aerodyne B-double doing a Perth-Brisbane-Sydney
run two-up. Eventually the work overwhelmed him,
with the distances and time on the road burning him
out and he returned to New Zealand and started driv-
ing for Neta New Zealand on a 450hp Nissan Diesel
which he specd with extra lights, air-horn and other
items. He was hunted down by Steve Laing in Oz who
convinced him to come back and drive again and he
stepped into pocket-sized road trains of 90-tonne
all up carting from Iron Knob for BHP Steelworks.
After a spell in a C-15 powered Sterling B-double in
Wollongong, he eventually found himself running a
crushing plant in Queensland. Hed rented a place
for two and a half years that came with a German
Shepherd dog, Heidi, as part of the deal. He moved
on and to cut a long story short, he found out a few
months later that Heidi was in a terrible state with
the new tenants not looking after her. He phoned the
owner, who was overseas, and said he was taking
the dog. He brought her back home to New Zealand,
where she regained her health and blossomed. He
still hankered for Australia and made his way back
there, with Heidi of course, but neither were happy,
so he came back again which was when Murray
came into the picture. Heidi was the only reason I
came back to New Zealand, Quenton mused, and
he effectively gave up his road train dreams to care
for the dog. Murray Francis heard the story and even
though he didnt have a position at the time, took him
on because, anyone who would do that for a dog
has got to be a good person in my book, and being
a dog lover himself, he helped house Quenton, and
Heidi who lasted another five years. Quenton still had
the itch to drive road trains and had one last spin of
the dice to get it out of his system, however the job
didnt meet expectations. He was driving a Mack Titan
with a Cummins 620 doing the sweating. With gross
weights of 171.5 tonne, four trailers and an overall
length of 57.5 metres, that Cummins probably didnt
do much grinning, as Quenton says, the work was
tough on the trucks. It was preferred that you didnt
use your engine brake with these combinations, you
ease up and roll for a couple of kilometres before inter-
sections, he remembers. But the real crunch for him,
besides the terrible living conditions (the accommoda-
tion was right beside the workshop) was that animal
strikes were an inevitable part of the job. If we hit a
horse or a cow we had to finish the job with what we
had on the truck, usually a hammer. Being animal mad,
I couldnt physically do it, and was lucky that I never
had to, Quenton says. Murray had held his job and
his old truck open for him, and even paid for his flight
back gambling that road train work isnt always what
it is cracked up to be and picking that Quenton would
be back.
T
The ride and
traction capabilities
from Macks AP460
Air Suspension
is impressive
compared to
the other Macks
hes driven says
Quenton Cattle, the
Tridents driver.
The company have had most of the range of Mack
conventionals over the years as well as COE Qantum
and MC versions under their colours. Murray admits
that hes been very happy with the Granite, but he
thinks the Trident has more to offer his operation.
Weve got three now, and we like the better cooling
and think they are a stronger truck for the job and we
probably now prefer the Trident over the Granite to be
honest. Compared to the Granite, you get a bigger,
harder, more capable tool for the job with the Trident,
it can be specd with a GCM of 131 tonne whereas
the Granite only gets 106 tonne. The Trident gets a
power boost and a stronger spec if you need it too.
That suits Road Metals as they are air-horn deep in
the Christchurch deconstruction and rebuild work
and know there is plenty of work for the rig over the
next few decades. Murrays son Dan Francis, the third
generation in the company, was happy to throw a bit of
bling at the truck when he specified what they wanted,
as its going to be around for a long time and much
is going to be asked of it over the next few decades.
The attention to detail on this rig is impressive, such as
the Ali Arc bumper, stainless air-intake caps, and even
white aerials to better match the company colours!
Quenton Cattle, who at 39 has ticked off a lot of boxes
on his driving wish list, is plenty thrilled to be entrusted
with Road Metals new flagship. We caught up with
Quenton at dawn on a typical day at the coal face
that would see him scooting around the city carting
aggregate from quarry to wherever it was needed,
but the main focus at the moment for the Mack is a
massive new subdivision on Prestons Road north
of Christchurch, that is being readied for a couple of
thousand new houses. It has to be said that Quenton
didnt want to be put on the truck in all honesty,
Murray claims, he liked the CH he was on and it
was hard to get him out of it. Quenton had a couple
of reservations, the prime one being that he didnt
really want to be put into a truck with an automated
transmission, but he had grown fond of the old Mack.
He says that when he drives manual transmissions, I
dont use a clutch, and Murray said, well you wont
mind the auto then! Damn hes got me I thought!
His dedication to the job and his attention to detail
and how thoroughly he prepares for and carries out his
tasks is quite something to behold and it didnt take
us long to see why Murray wanted Quenton on the
Trident, as he treats this rig like it was his first born.
Quenton considers that hes found a good workplace,
he says, thats what I love about this company, they
have a real passion for trucking. Road Metals drivers
have long been regarded as amongst the best on the
road down south and their level of professionalism
and how well they present their gear is bordering on
legendary. Its probably unfair to single anyone out
from the old brigade, Road Metals still have five of
the original dozen drivers they had in the Twizel days
on the payroll, but Billy Sergeant is probably the best
known of that team down south and itd be fair to say
that Quenton is carrying the torch that Billy lit when he
jumped into his R-series Mack back in the seventies.
In fact, Quenton said that the only drivers hed like
to see in this truck if he took a break would be either
Billy or Murray. And we suspect Murray would only be
allowed a drive because he owns it! Quentons passion
for trucking was ignited when he worked at a local
garage at Washdyke, where some of the customers
were truckies. His first experience behind the wheel
was in a TK Bedford artic which he used to cart urea
between Ravensdown and Timaru Port when he was
working for Bob Merhtens. He progressed to driving
Hino FS and Nissan CW330s for City Care on landfill
cartage in Christchurch, shuttling between the refuse
facilities at Bromley, Styx and Parkhouse and the
Burwood landfill carting rubbish and green-waste.
Flash forward a few years, and Quenton is wrestling
with what to name the Trident. It was his partner
Cyndi Friend, that came up with Leader of the Pack,
which struck a chord with Murray as well. The Mack
is undoubtedly the Alpha in the fleet and Quenton
is meticulous in his attention to detail and how he
drives it. Hell drive it in manual until its warmed up
as he explained that when in auto mode, it uses the
engine brake to slow the revs between changes, and I
dont like that happening when its cold. I dont use the
engine brake until it is up to temperature. A trucks life
starts from day one, he emphasises and hes particular
about giving this truck a good start in life, you are
representing the company when you are driving it and
you should treat it as if it is your own. Despite coming
from the Volvo parts bin there is little resemblance to
what you will find in a Volvo with how the transmission
is controlled. Its a true two-pedal operation, however
the auto on the Trident is controlled by a panel on the
console, with plus or minus buttons instead of the more
usual lever or control stalk to walk up or down the gears.
The transmission controller is simplicity personified.
Youve got a R, D and M button, for Reverse, Drive and
Manual, and large plus and minus buttons for when you
are in manual. It cant get any simpler, and Quenton
said he finds it easy to use in the real world of quarry
trucking despite his initial reluctance to an electronically
controlled transmission. He has turned into a believer
already. I dont think you can find harder driving than in
Christchurch at the moment, he reflects, and reckons
the auto helps negotiate the endless obstacles that
rebuilding a city throws up in the way of roadworks,
traffic jams and inconsiderate drivers. Having the auto
has made the day easier Quenton reckons. I think
Volvo have done their research and, as for fatigue at
the end of the day, I dont go home tired. I would be
at home with either [manual or auto] but for the nature
of this job I dont think you can fault it. You do feel you
have a lot more control. His last truck was a Vision,
and as youd expect, this truck eats the Vision for
dinner. Its performance is impressive, especially when
pulling away at the traffic lights. The auto gives a nice
flow of power, but its the sheer horsepower that makes
the difference. The Vision was slow off the mark and
wouldnt start pulling until it was in the high box, he
says. Quenton used to drive CX Appeal and Just Magic
II, a CH, but the Trident has won him over. However, he
still reckons that its too early to tell if this will be one
of the great models. After all, he drove a CH so hes
got high expectations! On paper however, theres not
much to prove and plenty to like. This latest evolution
of the new Mack range has become even better than
its predecessor with a power upgrade to 535 horses
from the 12.8 litre MP8 engine, which now features
SCR to meet Euro5 (ADR80/03). It achieves 1920lb/ft of
torque (2603Nm), which is a nice improvement over the
1770lb/ft (2400Nm) in the last Granite we looked at in
late 2010. While it has slightly less horsepower than the
14.8 litre 560 horse DD15, it has more torque than the
Detroits 1850lb/ft (2508Nm) and the 15 litre 550 horse
(410kW) ISX EGR Cummins. It can be ordered with the
500 horse setting, but we doubt many will.Even though
we never got to experience any real hill work with this
Trident, wed expect to feel an improvement in pulling
power over the 500 horse version of the MP8 and for
the type of work this truck undertakes torque is king. Its
also equipped with performance mode, Quenton says
that will make the transmission change at 1850rpm,
instead of the usual 1400, and use every gear instead
of jumping over a few at the low end of the box. Hes
used it a few times and it does make the truck strain on
the leash a bit more, but hes happy with what hes got
under the foot without engaging that mode.
Feature Article 8
T
The other major improvement is that this pup has
Macks keenly awaited mDRIVE transmission. Its taken
a while for Volvo to slide this technology over to the
Mack desk, but it was worth the wait as it fills a gap in
the Mack option sheet which didnt have Eatons Ultra
Shift lurking there like many of its competitors. Its not
hard to understand why Mack has waited for the Volvo
automated box of cogs when Volvo arguably leads the
herd with automated transmission technology. Theres
still a lot of engineering time and money that has to be
spent to integrate an Eaton Ultra Shift and that money
was better spent implementing in-house products.
The 12-speed, Tm D12AD (direct) transmission is one
choice in a five option list, with Macks highly regarded
T31821 18-speeder still on offer for true traditionalists,
and the three remaining options being increasingly
beefy Eaton 18-speeders. The rear axle options are
equally comprehensive with Mack, Meritor and Dana
options from 44,000lb to 50,000lbs (18 to 22.7 tonne).
This particular truck has Meritors well proven RT46-
160GP diff-locked axles riding on Mack AP460 Air
Suspension, and the combination of the MP8, mDRIVE
transmission and Meritor axles has to make for a robust
toolset. The extra torque of the 535-horse version of the
MP8 lends itself well to having fewer cogs and follows
the path that most European manufacturers have been
on for a few years now more torque means fewer
cogs are needed. One thing that Quenton would like is
a few more notches on the engine brake as even though
the Powerleash unit offers 315kW (495hp) of engine
retarding at 2100rpm, which is effective, it is either on
or off and doesnt offer fine control. Add to the mix
that this Mack has disc-brakes all around, ABS, front
under-run protection, alloys all around, polished alloy
fuel tanks both sides combining to give 610 litres of
fuel, 240 litres of hydraulic fluid and 125 litres of AdBlue,
this truck has plenty of range and is right up there with
modern safety equipment initiatives. At the moment the
truck will probably be sticking around Christchurch for
the time being, however the Road Metal boys often get
to roam over much of the South Island including the
West Coast and Fiordland, so that extra fuel capacity
may well come in useful sooner or later when the big
pup points the snout south. Macks new Trident has
an overwhelming sense of bulk when you take a walk
around it. Quenton says Its a lot of truck to drive, it
feels much bigger than the other Macks, but the view
out of this thing is remarkable for the height of it. The
extra bulk probably means extra weight, however its
hard to judge against the Granite as this truck has
AdBlue, more fuel tanks and plenty of extras. Road
Metals Granite is carting around 500kg more than the
Trident. He does miss the mirrors on the Vision which
could toggle up and down, and reckons the Tridents
mirrors, look dated as if they should be on a 95 CH.
As far as the drive goes, Quenton says, for traction
this would be the best of the three [Macks] Ive driven,
and its far better than the Vision. The front wheel is so
far forward that the weight is over the axles. The only
time Ill dump the airbags is to be a little lower if Im
under a little digger to give him more room to work
with. The Vision gave quite a rough ride, I dont miss
the Vision at all. The 6x4 has a 5445mm wheelbase
and an axle spread of 1370mm. With 16,500km on the
clock, Quenton says he can start to feel the engine
loosen up, at the moment hes averaging 1.8 km/litre,
but the Vision managed 2km/litre and he reckons the
Trident will improve over time. Inside the cab the feeling
is luxury with deep burgundy buttoned linings, walnut
dash, the optional Elite leather grip steering wheel and
sheepskin covers on the ISRI Big Boy driver seat. We
couldnt think of many better places to spend a day.
Its great that Volvo has recognised that the classic
American cab has plenty of appeal and shouldnt be
homogenized with their European designs. Perhaps the
only thing that jars is a couple of blanks above the radio
that ideally would have been filled with coms devices,
however the MCX780 Road Metals use wouldnt fit
in the dash. Quenton points out that the lack of a
gearstick means he can have the hand-pieces down
low and handy. He doesnt like having them above
the windscreen. Road Metals have even ordered the
full windscreen over the two-piece, an option more
commonly ticked by the fuel cartage industry. Together
with the stainless steel intakes, exhausts, the big grille
and other touches, this truck has plenty of presence.
Adding to the presentation are the Transport Trailers
four-axle trailer and the bin they created for this
combination. Theres some real pretty engineering on
show here, and Quenton has added extra mud-flaps in
strategic locations to further protect the underpinnings.
There is little doubt that the CH Mack provided the
benchmark that all future Macks will have to meet. With
an axle forward distance of 737mm against 1297mm
on the Granite, an adequate turning circle, as well
as extra grunt under the pedal and good cooling on
paper the Trident looks to be an even better tool for this
application than the Granite. Quenton summed it up
by saying, Its quieter and smoother and I think this is
a much, much better truck than the Granite. Despite
his reluctance to get into the Tridents saddle due to
losing the gearstick, Quenton is impressed by his new
mount. Hes not the type to make rushed decisions, but
we reckon that the combination of the mDRIVE, more
horsepower and great ergonomics of this big pup may
yet unseat the CH someday.
The Road Metals boys
are known for keeping
their gear looking
stand-out, and this
rigs Transport
Trailers bin and
four-axle trailer are
equally as impressive
as is the Mack.
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April 2013
Developments
TRUCKING
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66 L|ght Coomerc|a|s
74 T-Rex
76 Truck Torque
78 Road Transport Forum
80 Po||t|ca| Po|nt
82 RTA NZ
84 Lega| L|nes
86 NZ Truck|ng Assoc|at|on
88 Nat|ona| Road Carr|ers
89 New R|gs
14
32
44
50
MACKs|mum Loya|ty
K|w| Trucker Leads the V8 Supercars
Ma|nfre|ght Show
C|ass|c Truck|ng
6 Truck|ng
24 THE Expo Rev|ew
31 Murray Jensen
36 Maha|o Contract|ng
38 Look|ng Back
40 Truck Stops Invercarg|||
48 Top Truck
50 C|ass|c Truck|ng
58 Auss|e Ang|es
62 Internat|ona| Truck|ng
Feature Article 8
MACK
simum
loyalty
When Macks current line of trucks first poked their
snouts out the kennel, those that had a soft spot
for the brand gave a sigh of relief. Mack was back.
The French influence had been culled out of the
breed, and now Macks Trident looks as staunch
as. However, an automated transmission, AdBlue
tank and other features show that Macks pooches
havent been killing time by sleeping on the porch...
)`)Y`JL )HPYK
W
W W W W
T
he word loyal has never
been quite the same since
the ocean yacht racing crowd
hogtied it to their advertising campaign during the glory
days of the Americas Cup. However, down in the lower
half of the South Island it still means something other than
the contrived manipulation the word has been degraded to.
Down south loyalty is earned, not created during a brain-
storming session in an ad agency. In the lower half of the
South Island there are plenty of companies that are either
brand heavy or brand absolute, thanks to loyalty. Those
salesmen that had the energy to throw on a thick coat, chuck
the snow-chains in the boot of the HQ Holden and head
south to cold-call and hard-sell products that were at the time
unknown, found fertile ground in the south, where once a
product proved itself, and they got to trust the salesman, loy-
alty was an unspoken part of the deal. Mack was one of those
unknown brands once upon a time believe it or not. Apart
from the recollections of war veterans whod seen the Yanks
use them in military applications around the globe during both
World Wars, they were once as rare as a Ferrari seven-tonne
side-tipper on our shores.
The small number of Macks that ended up here after the war were
used mainly in heavy haul or house-shifting, but apart from those old
war horses, the brand was just a big question mark for those first few
intrepid buyers. However, there were plenty of operators in the South
Island that could see the potential in the brand, and the lower half of
the island became a bit of a Mack Mecca by the time legendary truck
salesman Ron Carpenter had finished with it. Stan Francis of North
Otago Road Metals could see that these big burly Yank rigs were just
the ticket for the work his companies were engaged in, and that they
were a huge improvement over the British gear hed started with back
in 1955. The N.O.R.M. R-series Macks eventually became legendary
down south, and together with the other brand they took a shine to,
Volvo, the die was set. The company has since changed its name to
Road Metals, however their loyalty to the brand has never wavered. In
a great example of synchronicity, their two brands of choice eventually
became entwined, as Volvo now owns Mack, which is reaping the
benefits by having an increased amount of Volvo technology built into
its trucks. Current Road Metals managing director, Murray Francis,
(Stans son) knows the strengths of both brands and their place in
his fleet, but you dont have to scratch him very hard to find that his
favourite brand has a pup bolted to the bonnet.
Feature Article 8
Mack have |ncreased the rat|ng of
the|r MP8 power-p|ant to 535hp and
have gone to SCR to meet Euro 5.
The cockp|t |s c|ass|c Amer|cana
w|th |ots of woodgra|n, buttoned
||n|ng and s||ver beze|s g|v|ng the
cab a p|ush fee|. The |ack of a
gearst|ck on the f|oor opens up the
cab as we|| g|v|ng more room for
the operator.
Road Meta|s went a|| out
to make the|r |atest Tr|dent
standout and 'Leader of
the Pack' has had p|enty of
b||ng added to g|ve |t v|sua|
punch, |nc|ud|ng dua| fue|
tanks, and sharp eyes w|||
spot the AdB|ue rear tank on
th|s s|de of the r|g.
Feature Article 8
The r|de and tract|on
capab|||t|es from
Mack's AP460
A|r Suspens|on |s
|mpress|ve compared
to the other Macks
he's dr|ven says
Quenton Catt|e, the
Tr|dent's dr|ver.
Quenton considers that hes found a good workplace, he
says, thats what I love about this company, they have a real
passion for trucking. Road Metals drivers have long been
regarded as amongst the best on the road down south and
their level of professionalism and how well they present their
gear is bordering on legendary. Its probably unfair to single
anyone out from the old brigade, Road Metals still have five
of the original dozen drivers they had in the Twizel days on
the payroll, but Billy Sergeant is probably the best known of
that team down south and itd be fair to say that Quenton is
carrying the torch that Billy lit when he jumped into his R-series
Mack back in the seventies. In fact, Quenton said that the only
drivers hed like to see in this truck if he took a break would
be either Billy or Murray. And we suspect Murray would only
be allowed a drive because he owns it! Quentons passion
for trucking was ignited when he worked at a local garage at
Washdyke, where some of the customers were truckies. His
first experience behind the wheel was in a TK Bedford artic
which he used to cart urea between Ravensdown and Timaru
Port when he was working for Bob Merhtens. He progressed
to driving Hino FS and Nissan CW330s for City Care on landfill.
thrilled to be entrusted with Road Metals new flagship.
We caught up with Quenton at dawn on a typical day at
the coal face that would see him scooting around the city
carting aggregate from quarry to wherever it was needed,
but the main focus at the moment for the Mack is a massive
new subdivision on Prestons Road north of Christchurch,
that is being readied for a couple of thousand new houses.
It has to be said that Quenton didnt want to be put on
the truck in all honesty, Murray claims, he liked the CH
he was on and it was hard to get him out of it. Quenton
had a couple of reservations, the prime one being that he
didnt really want to be put into a truck with an automated
transmission, but he had grown fond of the old Mack. He
says that when he drives manual transmissions, I dont
use a clutch, and Murray said, well you wont mind the
auto then! Damn hes got me I thought! His dedication
to the job and his attention to detail and how thoroughly he
prepares for and carries out his tasks is quite something to
behold and it didnt take us long to see why Murray wanted
Quenton on the Trident, as he treats this rig like it was his
first born.cartage in Christchurch, shuttling between the
refuse facilities at Bromley, Styx and Parkhouse and the
The company have had most of the range of Mack
conventionals over the years as well as COE Qantum and MC
versions under their colours. Murray admits that hes been very
happy with the Granite, but he thinks the Trident has more to
offer his operation. Weve got three now, and we like the better
cooling and think they are a stronger truck for the job and we
probably now prefer the Trident over the Granite to be honest.
Compared to the Granite, you get a bigger, harder, more capable
tool for the job with the Trident, it can be specd with a GCM of
131 tonne whereas the Granite only gets 106 tonne. The Trident
gets a power boost and a stronger spec if you need it too. That
suits Road Metals as they are air-horn deep in the Christchurch
deconstruction and rebuild work and know there is plenty of
work for the rig over the next few decades. Murrays son Dan
Francis, the third generation in the company, was happy to
throw a bit of bling at the truck when he specified what they
wanted, as its going to be around for a long time and much is
going to be asked of it over the next few decades.The attention
to detail on this rig is impressive, such as the Ali Arc bumper,
stainless air-intake caps, and even white aerials to better match
the company colours! Quenton Cattle, who at 39 has ticked off
a lot of boxes on his driving wish list, is plenty
8
T
The Road Meta|s boys
are known for keep|ng
the|r gear |ook|ng
stand-out, and th|s r|g's
Transport Tra||er's b|n
and four-ax|e tra||er are
equa||y as |mpress|ve as
|s the Mack.
Flash forward a few years, and Quenton is wrestling
with what to name the Trident. It was his partner
Cyndi Friend, that came up with Leader of the Pack,
which struck a chord with Murray as well. The Mack
is undoubtedly the Alpha in the fleet and Quenton
is meticulous in his attention to detail and how he
drives it. Hell drive it in manual until its warmed up
as he explained that when in auto mode, it uses the
engine brake to slow the revs between changes, and I
dont like that happening when its cold. I dont use the
engine brake until it is up to temperature. A trucks life
starts from day one, he emphasises and hes particular
about giving this truck a good start in life, you are
representing the company when you are driving it and
you should treat it as if it is your own. Despite coming
from the Volvo parts bin there is little resemblance to
what you will find in a Volvo with how the transmission
is controlled. Its a true two-pedal operation, however
the auto on the Trident is controlled by a panel on the
console, with plus or minus buttons instead of the more
usual lever or control stalk to walk up or down the gears.
The transmission controller is simplicity personified.
Youve got a R, D and M button, for Reverse, Drive and
Manual, and large plus and minus buttons for when you
are in manual. It cant get any simpler, and Quenton
said he finds it easy to use in the real world of quarry
trucking despite his initial reluctance to an electronically
controlled transmission. He has turned into a believer
already. I dont think you can find harder driving than in
Christchurch at the moment, he reflects, and reckons
the auto helps negotiate the endless obstacles that
rebuilding a city throws up in the way of roadworks,
traffic jams and inconsiderate drivers. Having the auto
has made the day easier Quenton reckons. I think
Volvo have done their research and, as for fatigue at
the end of the day, I dont go home tired. I would be
at home with either [manual or auto] but for the nature
of this job I dont think you can fault it. You do feel you
have a lot more control. His last truck was a Vision,
and as youd expect, this truck eats the Vision for
dinner. Its performance is impressive, especially when
pulling away at the traffic lights. The auto gives a nice
flow of power, but its the sheer horsepower that makes
the difference. The Vision was slow off the mark and
wouldnt start pulling until it was in the high box, he
says. Quenton used to drive CX Appeal and Just Magic
II, a CH, but the Trident has won him over. However, he
still reckons that its too early to tell if this will be one
of the great models. After all, he drove a CH so hes
got high expectations! On paper however, theres not
much to prove and plenty to like. This latest evolution
of the new Mack range has become even better than
its predecessor with a power upgrade to 535 horses
from the 12.8 litre MP8 engine, which now features
SCR to meet Euro5 (ADR80/03). It achieves 1920lb/ft of
torque (2603Nm), which is a nice improvement over the
1770lb/ft (2400Nm) in the last Granite we looked at in
late 2010. While it has slightly less horsepower than the
14.8 litre 560 horse DD15, it has more torque than the
Detroits 1850lb/ft (2508Nm) and the 15 litre 550 horse
(410kW) ISX EGR Cummins. It can be ordered with the
500 horse setting, but we doubt many will.Even though
we never got to experience any real hill work with this
Trident, wed expect to feel an improvement in pulling
power over the 500 horse version of the MP8 and for
the type of work this truck undertakes torque is king. Its
also equipped with performance mode, Quenton says
that will make the transmission change at 1850rpm,
instead of the usual 1400, and use every gear instead
of jumping over a few at the low end of the box. Hes
used it a few times and it does make the truck strain on
the leash a bit more, but hes happy with what hes got
under the foot without engaging that mode.
Feature Article
Utility
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Helvetica Neue
Regular
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Bo|d
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
a b c d e f g h | j k | m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Body Text and Annotaions
Titles
Feature Article
8
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April 2013
TRUCKING
Apr|| 2013
NZ
Refnements
NZ
TRUCKING
April 2013
Macksimum Loyalty
V8 Super Cars
Classic Trucking
Truck Trader
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TRUCKING
Apr|| 2013
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Fa|rfax Med|a
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3
66 L|ght Coomerc|a|s
74 T-Rex
76 Truck Torque
78 Road Transport Forum
80 Po||t|ca| Po|nt
82 RTA NZ
84 Lega| L|nes
86 NZ Truck|ng Assoc|at|on
88 Nat|ona| Road Carr|ers
89 New R|gs
14
32
44
50
MACKs|mum Loya|ty
K|w| Trucker Leads the V8 Supercars
Ma|nfre|ght Show
C|ass|c Truck|ng
6 Truck|ng
24 THE Expo Rev|ew
31 Murray Jensen
36 Maha|o Contract|ng
38 Look|ng Back
40 Truck Stops Invercarg|||
48 Top Truck
50 C|ass|c Truck|ng
58 Auss|e Ang|es
62 Internat|ona| Truck|ng
MACK
simum
loyalty
When Macks current line of trucks first poked their snouts
out thekennel, thosethat hadasoft spot for thebrandgave
a sigh of relief. Mack was back.. The French influence had
beenculledout of thebreed, andnowMacks Trident looks
asstaunchas. However, anautomatedtransmission, AdBlue
tank and other features showthat Macks pooches havent
beenkillingtimebysleepingontheporch...
)`)Y`JL )HPYK
W
Feature Article
T
he word loyal has never
been quite the same since
the ocean yacht racing crowd
hogtied it to their advertising campaign during the glory
days of the Americas Cup. However, down in the lower
half of the South Island it still means something other than
the contrived manipulation the word has been degraded to.
Down south loyalty is earned, not created during a brain-
storming session in an ad agency. In the lower half of the
South Island there are plenty of companies that are either
brand heavy or brand absolute, thanks to loyalty. Those
salesmen that had the energy to throw on a thick coat, chuck
the snow-chains in the boot of the HQ Holden and head
south to cold-call and hard-sell products that were at the
time unknown, found fertile ground in the south, where once
a product proved itself, and they got to trust the salesman,
loyalty was an unspoken part of the deal. Mack was one of
those unknown brands once upon a time believe it or not.
Apart from the recollections of war veterans whod seen the
Yanks use them in military applications around the globe
during both World Wars, they were once as rare as a Ferrari
seven-tonne side-tipper on our shores.
The small number of Macks that ended up here after the war were
used mainly in heavy haul or house-shifting, but apart from those old
war horses, the brand was just a big question mark for those first few
intrepid buyers. However, there were plenty of operators in the South
Island that could see the potential in the brand, and the lower half of
the island became a bit of a Mack Mecca by the time legendary truck
salesman Ron Carpenter had finished with it. Stan Francis of North
Otago Road Metals could see that these big burly Yank rigs were just
the ticket for the work his companies were engaged in, and that they
were a huge improvement over the British gear hed started with back
in 1955. The N.O.R.M. R-series Macks eventually became legendary
down south, and together with the other brand they took a shine to,
Volvo, the die was set. The company has since changed its name to
Road Metals, however their loyalty to the brand has never wavered. In
a great example of synchronicity, their two brands of choice eventually
became entwined, as Volvo now owns Mack, which is reaping the
benefits by having an increased amount of Volvo technology built into
its trucks. Current Road Metals managing director, Murray Francis,
(Stans son) knows the strengths of both brands and their place in
his fleet, but you dont have to scratch him very hard to find that his
favourite brand has a pup bolted to the bonnet.
Mack have |ncreased the rat|ng of
the|r MP8 power-p|ant to 535hp and
have gone to SCR to meet Euro 5.
The cockp|t |s c|ass|c Amer|cana
w|th |ots of woodgra|n, buttoned
||n|ng and s||ver beze|s g|v|ng the
cab a p|ush fee|. The |ack of a
gearst|ck on the f|oor opens up the
cab as we|| g|v|ng more room for
the operator.
Mack was one of those unknown brands
once upon a t|me - be||eve |t or not.
Feature Article
W W
Road Meta|s went a|| out
to make the|r |atest Tr|dent
standout and 'Leader of
the Pack' has had p|enty of
b||ng added to g|ve |t v|sua|
punch, |nc|ud|ng dua| fue|
tanks, and sharp eyes w|||
spot the AdB|ue rear tank on
th|s s|de of the r|g.
The company have had most of the range of Mack
conventionals over the years as well as COE Qantum and MC
versions under their colours. Murray admits that hes been very
happy with the Granite, but he thinks the Trident has more to
offer his operation. Weve got three now, and we like the better
cooling and think they are a stronger truck for the job and we
probably now prefer the Trident over the Granite to be honest.
Compared to the Granite, you get a bigger, harder, more capable
tool for the job with the Trident, it can be specd with a GCM of
131 tonne whereas the Granite only gets 106 tonne. The Trident
gets a power boost and a stronger spec if you need it too. That
suits Road Metals as they are air-horn deep in the Christchurch
deconstruction and rebuild work and know there is plenty of
work for the rig over the next few decades. Murrays son Dan
Francis, the third generation in the company, was happy to
throw a bit of bling at the truck when he specified what they
wanted, as its going to be around for a long time and much is
going to be asked of it over the next few decades.The attention
to detail on this rig is impressive, such as the Ali Arc bumper,
stainless air-intake caps, and even white aerials to better match
the company colours! Quenton Cattle, who at 39 has ticked off
a lot of boxes on his driving wish list, is plenty
The r|de and tract|on
capab|||t|es from
Mack's AP460
A|r Suspens|on |s
|mpress|ve compared
to the other Macks
he's dr|ven says
Quenton Catt|e, the
Tr|dent's dr|ver.
Quenton considers that hes found a good workplace, he
says, thats what I love about this company, they have a real
passion for trucking. Road Metals drivers have long been
regarded as amongst the best on the road down south and
their level of professionalism and how well they present their
gear is bordering on legendary. Its probably unfair to single
anyone out from the old brigade, Road Metals still have five
of the original dozen drivers they had in the Twizel days on
the payroll, but Billy Sergeant is probably the best known of
that team down south and itd be fair to say that Quenton is
carrying the torch that Billy lit when he jumped into his R-series
Mack back in the seventies. In fact, Quenton said that the only
drivers hed like to see in this truck if he took a break would
be either Billy or Murray. And we suspect Murray would only
be allowed a drive because he owns it! Quentons passion
for trucking was ignited when he worked at a local garage at
Washdyke, where some of the customers were truckies. His
first experience behind the wheel was in a TK Bedford artic
which he used to cart urea between Ravensdown and Timaru
Port when he was working for Bob Merhtens. He progressed
to driving Hino FS and Nissan CW330s for City Care on landfill.
thrilled to be entrusted with Road Metals new flagship.
We caught up with Quenton at dawn on a typical day at
the coal face that would see him scooting around the city
carting aggregate from quarry to wherever it was needed,
but the main focus at the moment for the Mack is a massive
new subdivision on Prestons Road north of Christchurch,
that is being readied for a couple of thousand new houses.
It has to be said that Quenton didnt want to be put on
the truck in all honesty, Murray claims, he liked the CH
he was on and it was hard to get him out of it. Quenton
had a couple of reservations, the prime one being that he
didnt really want to be put into a truck with an automated
transmission, but he had grown fond of the old Mack. He
says that when he drives manual transmissions, I dont
use a clutch, and Murray said, well you wont mind the
auto then! Damn hes got me I thought! His dedication
to the job and his attention to detail and how thoroughly he
prepares for and carries out his tasks is quite something to
behold and it didnt take us long to see why Murray wanted
Quenton on the Trident, as he treats this rig like it was his
first born.cartage in Christchurch, shuttling between the
refuse facilities at Bromley, Styx and Parkhouse and the
Feature Article
Feature Article
The Road Meta|s boys
are known for keep|ng
the|r gear |ook|ng
stand-out, and th|s r|g's
Transport Tra||er's b|n
and four-ax|e tra||er are
equa||y as |mpress|ve
as |s the Mack.
Flash forward a few years, and Quenton is wrestling
with what to name the Trident. It was his partner
Cyndi Friend, that came up with Leader of the Pack,
which struck a chord with Murray as well. The Mack
is undoubtedly the Alpha in the fleet and Quenton
is meticulous in his attention to detail and how he
drives it. Hell drive it in manual until its warmed up
as he explained that when in auto mode, it uses the
engine brake to slow the revs between changes, and I
dont like that happening when its cold. I dont use the
engine brake until it is up to temperature. A trucks life
starts from day one, he emphasises and hes particular
about giving this truck a good start in life, you are
representing the company when you are driving it and
you should treat it as if it is your own. Despite coming
from the Volvo parts bin there is little resemblance to
what you will find in a Volvo with how the transmission
is controlled. Its a true two-pedal operation, however
the auto on the Trident is controlled by a panel on the
console, with plus or minus buttons instead of the more
usual lever or control stalk to walk up or down the gears.
The transmission controller is simplicity personified.
Youve got a R, D and M button, for Reverse, Drive and
Manual, and large plus and minus buttons for when you
are in manual. It cant get any simpler, and Quenton
said he finds it easy to use in the real world of quarry
trucking despite his initial reluctance to an electronically
controlled transmission. He has turned into a believer
already. I dont think you can find harder driving than in
Christchurch at the moment, he reflects, and reckons
the auto helps negotiate the endless obstacles that
rebuilding a city throws up in the way of roadworks,
traffic jams and inconsiderate drivers. Having the auto
has made the day easier Quenton reckons. I think
Volvo have done their research and, as for fatigue at
the end of the day, I dont go home tired. I would be
at home with either [manual or auto] but for the nature
of this job I dont think you can fault it. You do feel you
have a lot more control. His last truck was a Vision,
and as youd expect, this truck eats the Vision for
dinner. Its performance is impressive, especially when
pulling away at the traffic lights. The auto gives a nice
flow of power, but its the sheer horsepower that makes
the difference. The Vision was slow off the mark and
wouldnt start pulling until it was in the high box, he
says. Quenton used to drive CX Appeal and Just Magic
II, a CH, but the Trident has won him over. However, he
still reckons that its too early to tell if this will be one
of the great models. After all, he drove a CH so hes
got high expectations! On paper however, theres not
much to prove and plenty to like. This latest evolution
of the new Mack range has become even better than
its predecessor with a power upgrade to 535 horses
from the 12.8 litre MP8 engine, which now features
SCR to meet Euro5 (ADR80/03). It achieves 1920lb/ft of
torque (2603Nm), which is a nice improvement over the
1770lb/ft (2400Nm) in the last Granite we looked at in
late 2010. While it has slightly less horsepower than the
14.8 litre 560 horse DD15, it has more torque than the
Detroits 1850lb/ft (2508Nm) and the 15 litre 550 horse
(410kW) ISX EGR Cummins. It can be ordered with the
500 horse setting, but we doubt many will.Even though
we never got to experience any real hill work with this
Trident, wed expect to feel an improvement in pulling
power over the 500 horse version of the MP8 and for
the type of work this truck undertakes torque is king. Its
also equipped with performance mode, Quenton says
that will make the transmission change at 1850rpm,
instead of the usual 1400, and use every gear instead
of jumping over a few at the low end of the box. Hes
used it a few times and it does make the truck strain on
the leash a bit more, but hes happy with what hes got
under the foot without engaging that mode.
I think Volvo have done their research and,
as for fatigue at the end of the day, I dont go
hom
e tired. I w
ould be at hom
e w
ith either
[m
anual or auto] but for the nature of this job
I dont think you can fault it. You do feel you
have a lot m
ore control.
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Editiorial
I
n mid-February I spent a couple of days
at the New Zealand Transport Summit. It
was a high level summit mostly discussing
the roles of aviation, shipping and rail in
transport; a significant factor was the almost
complete omission of road freight. There
was no obvious reason why road transport
was not represented at the summit, but
there were some good insights that we can
learn from when planning for the future.
International Transport Forum Secretary-
General, Jos Viegas gave a standout address
explaining many of the issues that European
ports had faced over the last decade or
so. As ships have got bigger the number
of ports has reduced and individual ports
have specialised in a narrow band of freight.
Many of the European ports have massive
cities around them, and in some cases the
cities have rejected the ports, perhaps this
is what Auckland is doing now. Growing
ports typically could not increase their land
area and had to handle the increased freight
volumes more effectively. Improvement in
the transport of freight to and from the port
has been a key part of the answer. In some
instances dedicated underground roads or rail
tracks have been installed to get the freight
moved without the added problem of inner
city traffic congestion. It was made clear that
we have too many competing ports in New
Zealand. The Managing Director of Maersk
New Zealand, Julian Bevis spoke of the
consequences of upsizing ships and ranked
the Port of Tauranga well ahead of Auckland
in effectiveness. Questioning the value of our
ports drew some interesting responses. Two
I recall clearly were; the number of ports is
necessary because if one was inoperable,
for example due to an earthquake or strike
action, the others were needed to take up
the slack. The second response was that the
road and rail infrastructure was inadequate for
transporting freight to ports if they were fewer
and further apart. Both naive arguments for
such a high level group of delegates. Coastal
shipping is obviously suffering significantly.
There were a number of reasons mooted
for their problems the government is not
supporting them (they wanted an exemption
from ETS charges and didnt get it), road and
rail are getting government supplied tracks
and roads to move freight, and international
vessels (that do not pay ETS levies) are free
to take freight between New Zealand ports.
Its unlikely that any government would take
a retrospect step and intervene to make
this commercial sector more profitable.
International shipping isnt profitable either,
returning a mere one percent profit per annum
on average over the past decade. Excess
capacity and high fuel prices, combined with
low freight volumes have forced ships to call
at fewer ports where possible and steam
at slower speeds to reduce fuel costs. This
means long freight delays and disgruntled
customers, especially in New Zealand where
we are so far from the markets.Interestingly
there appeared to be a reluctance to form
alliances, both within a mode and at an
inter-modal level. The road transport industry
has already gone through some significant
changes and is probably ahead of other
transport sectors when it comes to improved
service. We are comfortable using rail, air
and coastal shipping when they are practical
options. There are obviously synergies
available and these need to be explored.
All that aside, the general outlook of the
conference was one of optimism for New
Zealand, our position and products combined
with our relationship with Australia and our
ever increasing trade in Asia are signs that we
will do well in the future.
New Zea|and Truck|ng magazine is published by Fairfax Magazines, a division of Fairfax New Zealand Limited. 2003 Fairfax New Zealand Limited. Fairfax Magazines, 317 New North
Rd, Eden Terrace, PO Box 6341, Wellesley St, Auckland. Fairfax New Zealand Limited, Level 8, Majestic Centre, 100 Willis St, Wellington. All material in New Zealand Trucking magazine is
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Nielsen CMI audited readership: 103,000 Q411 Q312
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Mack was one of those unknown brands
once upon a time - believe it or not.
T
he word loyal has never been quite the
same since the ocean yacht racing crowd
hogtied it to their advertising campaign
during the glory days of the Americas Cup. However,
down in the lower half of the South Island it still means
something other than the contrived manipulation the
word has been degraded to. Down south loyalty is
earned, not created during a brain-storming session in an
ad agency. In the lower half of the South Island there are
plenty of companies that are either brand heavy or brand
absolute, thanks to loyalty. Those salesmen that had the
energy to throw on a thick coat, chuck the snow-chains in
the boot of the HQ Holden and head south to cold-call and
hard-sell products that were at the time unknown, found
fertile ground in the south, where once a product proved
itself, and they got to trust the salesman, loyalty was an
unspoken part of the deal. Mack was one of those unknown
brands once upon a time believe it or not. Apart from the
recollections of war veterans whod seen the Yanks use
them in military applications around the globe during both
World Wars, they were once as rare as a Ferrari seven-
tonne side-tipper on our shores.
The small number of Macks that endeduphere after the war were
used mainly in heavy haul or house-shifting, but apart fromthose old
war horses, the brandwas just a bigquestionmark for those first few
intrepidbuyers. However, there were plenty of operators in the South
Island that could see the potential in the brand, and the lower half
of the island became a bit of a Mack Mecca by the time legendary
truck salesman Ron Carpenter had finished with it. Stan Francis of
North Otago Road Metals could see that these big burly Yank rigs
were just the ticket for the work his companies were engaged in,
and that they were a huge improvement over the British gear hed
started with back in 1955. The N.O.R.M. R-series Macks eventually
became legendary down south, and together with the other brand
they took a shine to, Volvo, the die was set. The company has since
changed its name to Road Metals, however their loyalty to the
brand has never wavered. In a great example of synchronicity, their
two brands of choice eventually became entwined, as Volvo now
owns Mack, which is reaping the benefits by having an increased
amount of Volvo technology built into its trucks. Current Road
Metals managing director, Murray Francis, (Stans son) knows the
strengths of both brands and their place in his fleet, but you dont
have to scratch him very hard to find that his favourite brand has a
pup bolted to the bonnet.
Feature Article
Mack have |ncreased the rat|ng of
the|r MP8 power-p|ant to 535hp and
have gone to SCR to meet Euro 5.
The cockp|t |s c|ass|c Amer|cana w|th
|ots of woodgra|n, buttoned ||n|ng and
s||ver beze|s g|v|ng the cab a p|ush
fee|. The |ack of a gearst|ck on the
f|oor opens up the cab as we|| g|v|ng
more room for the operator.
7 NZ Trucking April 2013 April 2013 NZ Trucking 8
MACK
simum
loyalty
When Macks current line of trucks first poked
their snouts out the kennel, those that had a
soft spot for the brand gave a sigh of relief.
Mack was back.. The French influence had been
culled out of the breed, and now Macks Trident
looks as staunch as. However, an automated
transmission, AdBlue tank and other features
show that Macks pooches havent been killing
time by sleeping on the porch...
)`)Y`JL )HPYK
W
Feature Article
April 2013 NZ Trucking
Road Meta|s went a|| out to make
the| r | atest Tr| dent standout and
'Leader of the Pack' has had p|enty
of b||ng added to g|ve |t v|sua| punch,
|nc|ud|ng dua| fue| tanks, and sharp
eyes w||| spot the AdB|ue rear tank
on th|s s|de of the r|g.
The company have had most of the range of Mack
conventionals over the years as well as COE Qantum and
MC versions under their colours. Murray admits that hes
been very happy with the Granite, but he thinks the Trident
has more to offer his operation. Weve got three now, and
we like the better cooling and think they are a stronger truck
for the job and we probably now prefer the Trident over
the Granite to be honest. Compared to the Granite, you
get a bigger, harder, more capable tool for the job with the
Trident, it can be specd with a GCM of 131 tonne whereas
the Granite only gets 106 tonne. The Trident gets a power
boost and a stronger spec if you need it too. That suits
Road Metals as they are air-horn deep in the Christchurch
deconstruction and rebuild work and know there is plenty
of work for the rig over the next few decades. Murrays
son Dan Francis, the third generation in the company, was
happy to throw a bit of bling at the truck when he specified
what they wanted, as its going to be around for a long
time and much is going to be asked of it over the next few
decades.The attention to detail on this rig is impressive,
such as the Ali Arc bumper, stainless air-intake caps, and
even white aerials to better match the company colours!
Quenton Cattle, who at 39 has ticked off a lot of boxes on
his driving wish list, is plenty
Feature Article
The r|de and tract|on capab|||t|es
from Mack's AP460 A|r Suspens|on
|s |mpress|ve compared to the
other Macks he's dr|ven says
Quenton Catt|e, the Tr|dent's dr|ver.
Quenton considers that hes found a good workplace, he
says, thats what I love about this company, they have a
real passion for trucking. Road Metals drivers have long
been regarded as amongst the best on the road down south
and their level of professionalism and how well they present
their gear is bordering on legendary. Its probably unfair
to single anyone out from the old brigade, Road Metals
still have five of the original dozen drivers they had in the
Twizel days on the payroll, but Billy Sergeant is probably
the best known of that team down south and itd be fair to
say that Quenton is carrying the torch that Billy lit when he
jumped into his R-series Mack back in the seventies. In fact,
Quenton said that the only drivers hed like to see in this
truck if he took a break would be either Billy or Murray. And
we suspect Murray would only be allowed a drive because
he owns it! Quentons passion for trucking was ignited when
he worked at a local garage at Washdyke, where some of
the customers were truckies. His first experience behind
the wheel was in a TK Bedford artic which he used to cart
urea between Ravensdown and Timaru Port when he was
working for Bob Merhtens. He progressed to driving Hino
FS and Nissan CW330s for City Care on landfill.
thrilled to be entrusted with Road Metals new flagship.
We caught up with Quenton at dawn on a typical day at
the coal face that would see him scooting around the city
carting aggregate from quarry to wherever it was needed,
but the main focus at the moment for the Mack is a massive
new subdivision on Prestons Road north of Christchurch,
that is being readied for a couple of thousand new houses.
It has to be said that Quenton didnt want to be put on
the truck in all honesty, Murray claims, he liked the CH
he was on and it was hard to get him out of it. Quenton
had a couple of reservations, the prime one being that he
didnt really want to be put into a truck with an automated
transmission, but he had grown fond of the old Mack. He
says that when he drives manual transmissions, I dont
use a clutch, and Murray said, well you wont mind the
auto then! Damn hes got me I thought! His dedication
to the job and his attention to detail and how thoroughly he
prepares for and carries out his tasks is quite something to
behold and it didnt take us long to see why Murray wanted
Quenton on the Trident, as he treats this rig like it was his
first born.cartage in Christchurch, shuttling between the
refuse facilities at Bromley, Styx and Parkhouse.
Thats what I love about this company, they have a
real passion for trucking.
April 2013 NZ Trucking 10
Feature Article
I thi nk Vol vo have done thei r research and, as f or
f ati gue at the end of the day, I dont go home ti red. I
woul d be at home wi th ei ther [ manual or auto] but f or
the nature of thi s j ob I dont thi nk you can f aul t i t. You
do f eel you have a l ot more control .
The Road Meta|s boys are known for
keep|ng the|r gear |ook|ng stand-out,
and th|s r|g's Transport Tra||er's b|n
and four-ax|e tra||er are equa||y as
|mpress|ve as |s the Mack.
Flash forward a few years, and Quenton is wrestling
with what to name the Trident. It was his partner
Cyndi Friend, that came up with Leader of the Pack,
which struck a chord with Murray as well. The Mack
is undoubtedly the Alpha in the fleet and Quenton
is meticulous in his attention to detail and how he
drives it. Hell drive it in manual until its warmed up
as he explained that when in auto mode, it uses the
engine brake to slow the revs between changes, and I
dont like that happening when its cold. I dont use the
engine brake until it is up to temperature. A trucks life
starts from day one, he emphasises and hes particular
about giving this truck a good start in life, you are
representing the company when you are driving it and
you should treat it as if it is your own. Despite coming
from the Volvo parts bin there is little resemblance to
what you will find in a Volvo with how the transmission
is controlled. Its a true two-pedal operation, however
the auto on the Trident is controlled by a panel on the
console, with plus or minus buttons instead of the more
usual lever or control stalk to walk up or down the gears.
The transmission controller is simplicity personified.
Youve got a R, D and M button, for Reverse, Drive and
Manual, and large plus and minus buttons for when you
are in manual. It cant get any simpler, and Quenton
said he finds it easy to use in the real world of quarry
trucking despite his initial reluctance to an electronically
controlled transmission. He has turned into a believer
already. I dont think you can find harder driving than in
Christchurch at the moment, he reflects, and reckons
the auto helps negotiate the endless obstacles that
rebuilding a city throws up in the way of roadworks,
traffic jams and inconsiderate drivers. Having the auto
has made the day easier Quenton reckons. I think
Volvo have done their research and, as for fatigue at
the end of the day, I dont go home tired. I would be
at home with either [manual or auto] but for the nature
of this job I dont think you can fault it. You do feel you
have a lot more control. His last truck was a Vision,
and as youd expect, this truck eats the Vision for
dinner. Its performance is impressive, especially when
pulling away at the traffic lights. The auto gives a nice
flow of power, but its the sheer horsepower that makes
the difference. The Vision was slow off the mark and
wouldnt start pulling until it was in the high box, he
says. Quenton used to drive CX Appeal and Just Magic
II, a CH, but the Trident has won him over. However, he
still reckons that its too early to tell if this will be one
of the great models. After all, he drove a CH so hes
got high expectations! On paper however, theres not
much to prove and plenty to like. This latest evolution
of the new Mack range has become even better than
its predecessor with a power upgrade to 535 horses
from the 12.8 litre MP8 engine, which now features
SCR to meet Euro5 (ADR80/03). It achieves 1920lb/ft of
torque (2603Nm), which is a nice improvement over the
1770lb/ft (2400Nm) in the last Granite we looked at in
late 2010. While it has slightly less horsepower than the
14.8 litre 560 horse DD15, it has more torque than the
Detroits 1850lb/ft (2508Nm) and the 15 litre 550 horse
(410kW) ISX EGR Cummins. It can be ordered with the
500 horse setting, but we doubt many will.Even though
we never got to experience any real hill work with this
Trident, wed expect to feel an improvement in pulling
power over the 500 horse version of the MP8 and for
the type of work this truck undertakes torque is king. Its
also equipped with performance mode, Quenton says
that will make the transmission change at 1850rpm,
instead of the usual 1400, and use every gear instead
of jumping over a few at the low end of the box. Hes
used it a few times and it does make the truck strain on
the leash a bit more, but hes happy with what hes got
under the foot without engaging that mode.
April 2013 NZ Trucking 12
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