How Road Transporters Are Taking Steps to Ensure Their Industry Is Competitive
Posted on: 8 March 2017
Margins are so tight in business these days that every opportunity to consolidate or to prove efficiency has to be investigated. This is particularly the case when it comes to transportation, especially given the big distances involved in shipping across the continent.
Organisations have a variety of different choices when it comes to this modality, but there is every reason to focus on road transportation as opposed to others. This is because the industry itself is taking giant steps forward to ensure efficiency, lower cost and be competitive. But what developments have been made that can ultimately be passed along in savings to the consumer?
Hybrid Drivetrains
Many of the potential cost consolidations in the road transport industry relate to the machinery. Transport companies are increasingly looking for cutting-edge solutions. For example, different types of drivetrain are being investigated. These include fully electric or hybrid electric solutions in urban locations, where regenerative braking can take full advantage of the specific type of "stop/start" tasking.
Transmission and Tyres
For longer distances, companies are starting to look at sophisticated automated manual transmissions. They're also looking to fit revolutionary tyres that are designed to reduce rolling resistance, leading to reductions in vehicle emissions and savings with fuel. These long haul tyres are being constantly monitored to ensure that they're correctly inflated. This, in turn, reduces fuel consumption even more and keeps "drag" in check. Rather than having to rely on the driver to constantly monitor the situation, these new tools maintain a better record and a higher degree of accuracy.
Aerodynamics
Big trucks are not exactly Formula One racing cars when it comes to cutting through the air with the greatest of ease. However, the latest innovations in vehicle aerodynamics are being introduced to reduce energy losses, increase fuel consumption and bring down overall costs.
Weight Reductions
While it may be difficult to reduce the overall weight of a typical tractor, this is a different situation when it comes to those bulky trailers. Historically, truck manufacturers would make sure that the towing vehicle was as lightweight as possible for overall efficiency's sake. However, not much attention was paid to the materials used to create the trailers. This is now changing, with a corresponding reduction in operational costs.
Proactive Maintenance
Finally, fleet managers are paying even more attention to maintenance procedures. They are moving from reactive to proactive in terms of trying to prevent "predictable" failures and thus ensuring vehicles are on the road longer and paying for themselves more efficiently.
Investment for the Future
These and many other new practices will help keep road transportation at the forefront of industry and commerce in Australia.
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