Jamuan yang berkongsepkan “pot luck” telah diadakan pada 15 Ogos 2015 di rumah salah seorang ahli kelab tersebut di Rawang. Jamuan ini bagi mengeratkan lagi silaturahim diantara ahli-ahli kelab.

Pelbagai jenis juadah Aidilfitri yang terhidang dibawa oleh setiap orang yang hadir. Kelab Malaysia Car Carrier Crew (MCCC) ini telah ditubuhkan pada tahun 2010 dan bertujuan untuk berkongsi informasi, pandangan individu dan perkara-perkara yang berkaitan dengan industri trak.

Majoriti ahli-ahli kelab ini juga adalah ahli kelab kepada Kelab Pemandu Asian Trucker. Asian Trucker telah dijemput ke jamuan Aidilfitri yang diadakan untuk mengenali lebih rapat lagi ahli-ahli dari MCCC. Pada hari tersebut, beberapa ahli baru telah mendaftar untuk menyertai Kelab Pemandu Asian Trucker.

Selasa, 14 April, seperti biasa, saya akan memanaskan enjin kereta sebelum ke tempat kerja. Pada pagi itu, saya perlu menghadiri forum keselamatan yang diadakan oleh Volvo Malaysia di Shah Alam. Dalam perjalanan ke tempat yang dituju, beberapa soalan terlintas difikiran, apakah isu yang ingin dibangkitkan di dalam forum kali ini? Tidakkah semua pemandu trak telah mengetahui akan ciri-ciri keselamatan dan peraturan dalam menjalankan tugas mereka.

Penceramah yang diundang pada hari tersebut ialah Encik Carl Johan Almqvist, Pengarah Trafik dan Keselamatan Produk. Sebelum beliau memulakan forum, secara tidak langsung, beliau telah memberikan jawapan kepada persoalan yang timbul di dalam pemikiran saya, dimana objektif untuk forum tersebut ialah, untuk menyakinkan setiap tetamu yang berada di dalam forum agar lebih peka tentang isu keselamatan lebih dari yang dijangkakan.

Fakta pertama yang dirungkaikan oleh beliau ialah seramai 1.2 juta orang terbunuh di dalam kemalangan lalulintas seluruh dunia pada setiap tahun. Dengan fakta yang diberikan beliau mula menimbukan beberapa persoalan yang membuatkan kita mula berfikir, adakah kita akan terus berdiam diri jika ahli keluarga kita termasuk di dalam statistik tersebut? Atau rakan- rakan? Atau mungkin seseorang yang berasal dari kampung halaman kita sendiri? Tanpa disedari, persoalan yang ditimbulkan oleh Encik Carl, telah merubah expresi muka para tetamu forum.

Faktor-faktor utama kemalangan adalah tidak fokus, alkohol, pemanduan melebihi had laju, dan pengabaian penggunaan tali pinggang. Faktor-faktor yang dianggap remeh inilah yang mampu meragut nyawa seseorang yang kita sayang dan nyawa kita sendiri. Salah seorang tetamu forum, seorang pemandu trak menyuarakan persoalan beliau kepada penceramah, pihak berkuasa atau kerajaan sewajarnya melaksanakan sesuatu yang lebih efektif dan peraturan yang lebih tegas. “kenapa tidak kita sendiri menitikberatkan soal keselamatan dan peraturan demi keselamatan diri dan mereka yang kita sayang? Dan bukannya kerana kita takutkan saman atau kerana ia adalah peraturan yang telah ditetapkan,” jawab Encik Carl. Tepat sekali.

Kita telah sedia maklum bahawa pemandu trak telah diberikan latihan khusus sebelum mereka memulakan tugas, tetapi bagaimana pula dengan pemandu kenderaan biasa yang lain? Bagaimana mereka perlu tahu akan cara-cara pemanduan jika berhadapan dengan trak-trak di jalan raya? Selesai sahaja mendapatkan lesen kereta atau motor, mereka tidak akan diberikan apa-apa latihan lagi. Di sinilah sekolah memandu memainkan peranan yang penting. Pada pandangan Encik Carl, pemandu kenderaan yang lain sewajarnya diberikan pengetahuan atau latihan tentang apa yang perlu mereka lakukan jika berhadapan dengan kenderaan perdagangan berat untuk pemahaman masing-masing dan mengelakkan kemalangan.

Saya agak terkejut apabila tiada kerusi yang kosong di dalam forum kerana dipenuhi dengan pemandu-pemandu trak. Saya membuat andaian kosong, mungkin kerana makan tenghari yang disediakan. Ternyata andaian yang dibuat itu salah! Semasa sesi soal jawab diadakan, persoalan yang tidak henti dari tetamu forum menunjukkan betapa mereka begitu teruja untuk mendapatkan jawapan kepada persoalan masing-masing. Forum sebegini perlu dilakukan dengan lebih kerap lagi.

Fajar adalah penulis untuk majalah Asian Trucker. Beliau menitikberatkan isu keselamatan jalan raya dan kesihatan para pemandu trak.

MAN Truck & Bus is to extend its already comprehensive product range of vehicles with the introduction of a new light commercial van and thus becomes a full range supplier offering commercial vehicles between 3 and 44 tons. Designated as MAN TGE, the new range of MAN light commercial vehicles was developed by Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles and will be built together with its twin Volkswagen Crafter in the newly-built plant in Wrzesnia, Poland. This cooperation is expected by both brands to create strategic benefits in acquiring new groups of customers. The MAN TGE will be presented at IAA 2016 and will be available from 2017.

According to MAN Truck & Bus CEO Joachim Drees, many MAN customers need vehicles of this category: "By launching the MAN light commercial vehicle positioned below our MAN TGL light truck range, we are entering a new business area. Many of our customers with heavy commercial vehicles in their fleets have a requirement for light commercial vehicles as well, so the MAN TGE constitutes a smart enhancement to our already established vehicle range. We know exactly what our customers need and which areas they operate in, and the vehicle solutions and bodies we will offer them will be a perfect fit to their needs and applications. Professional service and also a wide range of solutions from our well established truck business will set standards in this weight range and I'm sure the customers of our light commercial vehicles will be very excited by their introduction as well."

In the near future, it will enable MAN customers to access all our sales, maintenance and repair services from a single source from light commercial vehicles up to heavy trucks. Since, beside classic box trucks, MAN will also offer special vehicle body solutions e.g. for construction or municipal vehicles of fire engines, the company will further extend its long-established and proven business relations with vehicle body builders.

MAN Truck & Bus celebrates 100 years of existence as a globally recognised commercial vehicle manufacturer at the Big 5, the Middle East’s largest building and construction show, which starts today in Dubai. MAN’s anniversary milestone, heritage and expertise in vehicle manufacturing will be the main highlights at the MAN stand.

MAN is taking the opportunity to showcase a truck manufactured in 1961, reflecting its rich history, three of its robust construction vehicles from across its current range and also a vehicle, which will be the truck of the future in the Middle East, the MAN TGX. At the Big 5, MAN will also launch its new telematics system MAN EcoStyle for the Middle East, which has been developed to improve fleet performance. MAN will also showcase the ProfiDrive concept as well as its TopUsed solutions. In addition, a digital walk-around enlightens the visitors about the latest MAN truck safety features.

Franz von Redwitz, Managing Director of MAN Truck & Bus Middle East said, “It is a great honour for us to celebrate our 100 year milestone together with our local Importer United Motors and Heavy Vehicles. The Big 5 exhibition is a perfect opportunity to showcase the many facets of our brand and our significant achievements. From a construction standpoint, what sets us apart is our expertise in meeting the varying transportation needs of the industry including special application vehicles. MAN has a successful track record in this sphere and our engineering team is always ready with innovative solutions. Looking at the needs of our customers, that is why we felt it was the right time to also launch our MAN EcoStyle fleet management solution.”

Mr. von Redwitz added, “We also work extensively with European and local body builders and have a very good reputation among them when it comes to ease of body installation. In construction, this is one of our main USPs together with the robustness and traction capability of our vehicles.”

At Big 5, MAN will display the EURO 5 TGX 6x4 tractor head which is not only greener but also more powerful with up to 540 hp. With a gross vehicle weight of 33 tons and gross combination weight of 180 tons, it is the ideal unit for heavy transport requirements of the construction industry, whilst equally capable catering for the specific demands for long haul operations. The MAN TGX represents the future for the Middle East and has already been fully adapted for the local market. This generation of truck will be more fuel efficient and at the same time reduce exhaust emissions significantly due to the optimized exhaust gas cleaning process. Series delivery of this type will be launched in late 2016.

Among the highlights of the current range, MAN displays its most robust vehicle, the TGS 41.480 8x8 truck which is specially designed for usage in rough off-road conditions such as the desert. The vehicle can be used in various application for example oilfields, maintenance of high voltage cables, construction crane operations and many more special off road tasks. The smaller version of this truck is also exhibited on the stand. The TGM 18.240 4x4 comes with a cargo body and crane for off road works in most difficult off terrains. The third truck of the current range is the TGS 40.360 6x4 mounted with a 9cbm concrete mixer for efficient and reliable concrete transport.

The centre piece of MANs history is the MAN 520 L1 4x2 historical fire fighting vehicle, model year 1961. The truck has been operating in Germany until the late 80s and has been shipped to UAE in 2015. It has been fully refurbished by the service experts of Darwish Bin Ahmed and Sons, MAN´s exclusive Importer in Abu Dhabi. The historical truck has a maximum power of 120 HP and the most fascinating equipment is the extendable ladder which is still operated manually. The cabin inside including the bench is wooden and has space for 6 firefighting crew.

MAN is also launching its new generation telematics solution, MAN EcoStyle with its partner Microlise. The system has been designed to help transport operators to improve driving standards, reduce vehicle wear and tear, enhance safety levels and improve vehicle health, as well as reduce overall operating costs, emissions and fuel usage.

One more highlight at the stand is the digital safety walk-around where the experts from MAN demonstrate the latest safety features which help to prevent accidents such as the lane guard system, adaptive cruise control and ESP which can help to prevent a significant number of accidents.

MAN's ProfiDrive training model will also be showcased at the Big 5. It is a specialized training program, designed to raise the level of knowledge so that drivers can adopt the best driving practices for the prevailing road or traffic conditions. Through a ProfiDrive training seminar, drivers learn predictive driving techniques such as how to recognise dangerous situations, calculate the optimum stopping distance and evade obstacles that suddenly emerge. MAN has been offering the service to its customers in the Middle East for on-road operations since 2009 and is now also offering an off-road training module to cover all aspects of truck operation in the region.

Visitors to the MAN stand will also get to know more about MAN TopUsed service which can provide high quality, used commercial vehicles from MAN for regional customers. Customers who buy TopUsed vehicles get a purchase warranty which gives them top quality vehicles at a fair price while being thoroughly checked and certified from MAN.

Mercedes-Benz Malaysia officially delivered the 25,000th commercial vehicle manufactured in Malaysia to customer, Landbridge Haulage (M) Sdn Bhd, an intermodal logistics solutions and services company.

Part of a five-vehicle fleet deal, the 25,000th truck is a milestone unit for Mercedes-Benz Malaysia. The unit, a MP3 2644LS 6x2 L-Cab, joins Landbridge Haulage’s existing fleet of more than 85 Mercedes-Benz commercial vehicles.

“The delivery of the 25,000th commercial vehicle manufactured in Malaysia is certainly a milestone for us. In October 2015, we celebrated the completion of production of this vehicle, and here we are today, officially delivering it to our long-standing customer, Landbridge Haulage. Mercedes-Benz takes pride in delivering ‘Trucks you can trust’, and we are pleased that Landbridge Haulage benefits from the features our commercial vehicles and service network. When we mark milestones such as this, we reaffirm our commitment to the Malaysian market to continue producing premium quality products that best represents reliability, cost-efficiency and service quality,” said Mercedes-Benz Malaysia, Vice President, Commercial Vehicles, Albert Yee.

Mercedes-Benz Malaysia has supplied commercial vehicles to Landbridge Haulage since 2008. To date, Mercedes-Benz Malaysia has delivered over 80 units to the logistics solutions provider. With a diverse portfolio, the latest fleet of Landbridge Haulage vehicles will be employed for container transport and container shipping and logistics.

“As we expand our transportation services, we look for commercial vehicles that have benefits such as fuel economy, longer service intervals and especially, comfort and safety for our drivers. We believe that Mercedes-Benz commercial vehicles fit these criteria. Upon the completion of delivery, we will add to our fleet of over 85 Mercedes-Benz commercial vehicles. The brand provides us with total solutions for our business, from vehicles to after-sales service, and even financing packages with Mercedes-Benz Services Malaysia. This is why we value the Mercedes-Benz brand greatly,” said Landbridge Haulage (M) Sdn Bhd, Chief Executive Officer, Dato’ Hew Han Seng.

The 25,000th commercial vehicle is part of a RM13 million financing deal between Mercedes-Benz Services Malaysia Sdn Bhd (MBSM) and Landbridge Haulage, signed through authorised dealer Q-Team Sdn Bhd. At present, Landbridge Haulage (M) Sdn Bhd is subscribed under a Hire Purchase Classic financing package.

To date, Landbridge Haulage (M) Sdn Bhd has financed 25 units of Mercedes-Benz Actros with MBSM. Speaking of the services MBSM provides, Managing Director, Ms Hilke Janssen said, “We ensure that our customers get finance solutions based on their specific requirements. Our comprehensive range of automotive financing products is developed based on the needs of the customer. It is important that we deliver flexible financing solutions to continue to delight our discerning customers.”