Industry-led initiatives for log transport operators

Warwick Wilshier, chairperson for the Log Transport Safety Council, gave an update on industry-led initiatives for log transport operators, trailer manufacturers and forest companies.

The LTSC was established in 1996 to coordinate different sector group views and address issues in a structured and unified manner. Its main areas of industry development include education, vehicle dimensions, logistics and operations. To date, the group has a membership base of nearly 450 operators.

A big focus for the LTSC has been sound driver wellbeing, with Sleep Apnoea, Get Real Behind the Wheel and #BELTUP examples of initiatives the council has put its weight behind.

Following an unfortunate incident several years ago when a log truck driver ended up in a school playground, the LTSC looked into how it could help drivers with sleeping challenges. LTSC now provides members subsidised access to sleep apnoea testing and ongoing help from sleep experts if required.

“It’s been life-changing. Drivers are staunch, you know. They think that they don’t have problems with sleep. You’d be amazed at how many people go on these sleep apnoea machines and it’s life- changing for them,” said Wilshier.

“The inspiring thing for me is seeing an old guy stand up in the room and say, ‘I’ve been on one of those for 20 years,’ and, all of a sudden, they feel that it’s okay to speak out and talk about it. So, we are continually working on that, and it’s really rewarding.”

The Get Real Behind the Wheel campaign was run to encourage drivers to speak up and normalise talking about personal issues. LTSC developed a toolbox of videos around sleep, nutrition and exercise.

“Mental health is a real issue. We’ve been through a lot of stress the last four years with Covid and all sorts of other things, and again, we need to look after our people,” said Wilshier.

“The Get Real Behind the Wheel campaign is a collaboration right across the industry and we got behind it.

“We ran these in-cab confessionals and learned about the truck driver’s life, got them to speak out. We produced a whole series of videos, and it was a lot of fun. But it was about getting people to speak out – if you speak out and share a problem, it tends to go away.

“Again, we are all staunch truck drivers, so this campaign helped us break that barrier and we are getting some great results.”

The #BELTUP campaign was a big promotional push for drivers to wear their seatbelts, using seat belt covers, rego holders and stickers.

“We all think we’re pretty good, that we have a good level of compliance. We agreed to run a trial, and using an AutoSense camera already in a truck, we were able to see if the driver had his seatbelt on whenever something triggered the camera,” Wilshier said.

“We found that across the board, we had probably about an average of 30% noncompliance. We were able to use one piece of technology that we generally used for other things, like managing driver fatigue, to give us the ability to monitor and actually fix another problem.”

East Coast log-haulage case study

Campbell Gilmour, general manager, Pacific Haulage, discussed the lessons learned in running a fleet of 10 8×6 Scania trucks to assist in harvest planning, roading and log transport in challenging environments – directly to port.

The Gisborne region has a strong export-oriented forestry industry, which contributes significantly to employment and infrastructure in the area. A key economic asset for the region is the port – one of the three largest log-exporting ports in New Zealand. About 2.5 million tonnes a year are currently being exported through the port.

Pacific Haulage typically moves about 72,000 tonnes of logs a month with its Kenworth-dominated fleet, mostly for export.

The East Coast saw a large planting boom in the 1990s. Plantations were on steep, highly erodible areas. Harvest commenced from 2016 onwards.

“There was little roading infrastructure, and roading operations became year-round,” said Gilmour.

“The East Coast consists of a steep forest road network, with high-cost earthworks through steep and erodible terrain. There was limited supply of quality aggregate, and high metal haulage and supply rates. Lower quality aggregate was used for forest roading networks,” he said.

In 2019, Pacific Haulage looked at cartage alternatives.

“We looked at what we could do to assist customers while also assisting ourselves,” Gilmour said.

“The Scania 8x6s enabled us to have a specialised unit, but still operate within the fleet undertaking cartage duties as normal. The idea was promoted to customers via site visits. Scania engineers visited regions to conduct field testing to confirm the correct specifications prior to ordering, and customers were involved in the planning of the project.”

The first truck entered the fleet in 2022. The 8×6 front steer axle can be engaged as a drive axle. Gilmour said the truck was on the verge of an off-highway truck with on-highway characters.

The tasks for the 8x6s included being used on green roads and some steeper roads that were limited to small volumes. They would be used for the initial load from some sites to gauge cartage limitations moving forward.

“If the site presents challenges, we would put this truck there,” Gilmour said.

According to Gilmore, the benefits of the Scania 8x6s included:

•  reduced start-up roading costs
• lessened the need for continuous maintenance and metaling
• roading maintenance costs are limited when harvest is near completion
• roads built to suit 8x6s in some cases
• improved machine productivity time – less time assisting trucks; and
•  steady trucking, which allows for better distribution flows.

In summary, Gilmore said that while he wouldn’t convert the entire fleet, a percentage was a good fit for Pacific Haulage.

“They’re a good tool to help with a difficult operating environment,” he said. “They enable forest companies to plan ahead for difficult blocks.”

Future fuels

Dual fuel
Gareth Wishart, GM technology and innovation at HW Richardson Group, said a dual-fuel approach would allow the entire heavy transport industry to transition to hydrogen as an alternative fuel in a way that is accessible, fair and equitable.

Last year, HW Richardson Group launched Australasia’s first dual-fuel truck, powered by hydrogen gas and diesel. Wishart said the trial had shown a statistical significance with fuel usage, and the team was very pleased with how well the technology has performed.

The company’s 1400 trucks emitted a lot of emissions and the dual-fuel trucks were a step in reducing that.

When in dual-fuel mode, about 40% of the truck’s energy is generated by hydrogen gas in five tanks behind the cab, and 60% from diesel. It can also run on diesel only.

The company’s total programme costs were $15 million to put the initial 10 dual-fuel trucks on the road and install a hydrogen fuel station.

From on-road trials with dual fuel, Wishart said 1kg of hydrogen replaced 3.32L of diesel. When loaded, the new hydrogen-diesel trucks covered 678km with dual-fuel driving.

“We have five further conversions currently in process. We are looking at putting a smaller tank pack together, and over the next month, we will put that on a Mack with a 9.7L Cummins,” Wishart said.

“We’ve got the commitment from our group to move ahead with these conversions, so you will see a significant number of these trucks coming onto the road,” he said.

Wishart said the trucks could be ready to go before fuel stations are ready.

“They can still do their jobs; they are not impacted at all, and then when the fuel is there, we’ll use it. We are so confident in this that we have started a new business to convert these trucks for industry, so we are not just going ahead and doing it for ourselves, we can do this for others.”

New Zealand’s first hydrogen-powered truck

Grant Doull, national manager hydrogen and eco commercial vehicles, Hyundai Motors New Zealand, gave an update on Hyundai’s zero emissions fuel-cell XcientTruck since starting its onroad trials with NZ Post.

New Zealand was just the second country in the world to adopt this technology commercially, he said. Since it was launched in July last year, it has completed an initial evaluation period before moving into full commercial operations with parcel freight between Auckland and Hamilton to assess its performance on New Zealand roads and conditions.

Doull said Hyundai was thrilled with the truck’s performance in open road and urban routes and hopes it will pave the way for uptake of this new technology in the sector.

“We’ve got this wonderful network emerging in New Zealand. There’s a number of scenarios where we want to deploy electric vehicles, and we’ve now got some projects where we are working on hydrogen power generation for recharging electric vehicles.”

He said a hydrogen roadmap was overdue and was needed for a solid future direction.

“I think we’re getting quite close to the stage now where we’ve got fast followers who can start to jump on board shortly, and the national network will start to expand.”

Neil Dennett, contracted to NZ Post, and the driver for the trial, talked about how the truck won him over.

“I’ve been in the transport industry most of my life. I started off as an apprentice mechanic and the day I finished, I went out and bought a truck,” he said.

“In those days, it was the D Series Ford. Through the decades, we’ve obviously progressed with technology. We’ve got lane departure, adaptive cruise control, scales on board, bunks, freezers. It’s a long way from our D Series Ford.

“But the one thing that hasn’t really changed is the engine inside the truck. So, taking this hydrogen truck on board was a huge step,” Dennett said.

“I didn’t take it lightly. For the first couple of weeks, I drove it myself because I wanted to evaluate it and see what it was like, how it reacted, how you had to drive it, how you shouldn’t drive it.”

The truck replaced a Volvo truck and trailer and Dennett said it ran like the Volvo.

“I noticed no decrease in the performance. There were no negatives when I compared it with the Volvo. In 12 months and 85,000km later, it’s not spent one minute in the workshop. We are really impressed with it.”

Hydrogen with Hiringa
Hiringa is building green hydrogen production and refuelling infrastructure across New Zealand and Australia. The refuelling stations provide coverage for the key heavy freight routes and are powered by renewable electricity.

The hydrogen is made onsite by using electricity to split water into hydrogen and oxygen through electrolysis. The hydrogen is then compressed and stored onsite before being dispensed into heavy vehicles.

Ryan McDonald, head of new business, Hiringa Energy, said there were many options in Aotearoa in decarbonisation.

“We don’t pretend to think that hydrogen’s going to solve all of them, but we know it’s got a really important part to play here in New Zealand to decarbonise road freight,” he said.

Hiringa has four hydrogen refuelling stations operational in the North Island, covering 95% of North Island freight routes. Over the next four years, the plan is to provide full national network coverage with 24 hydrogen refuelling stations across the North and South Islands with a capacity to provide hydrogen fuel to 2000-plus heavy and medium commercial vehicles.

McDonald said Hiringa had completely mapped out the network across New Zealand.

“New Zealand is unique compared with, say, the United States, where the road transport network is very distributed. In the US, trying to figure out where you put your stations is a little more tricky,” he said.

“You’ve just got a whole matrix of different hubs, whereas in New Zealand, it’s kind of long and skinny. So, whilst it is not simple, it is a great place to start to decarbonise the country’s freight.

“And because of this network, New Zealand is actually one of the first places in the world to really be able to do this, to get these products into the country. So, we are really privileged in that way.”

Hiringa also displayed a relocatable hydrogen dispensing unit that can now be transported on swing lift trailers. This reduces the barrier to fleet trials and both leverages and supports Hiringa network growth.

Electrification the focus for Scania

Deon Stephens, sales director, Scania New Zealand, provided an update on Scania’s vision to revolutionise transport operations through connectivity advances.

Stephens said Scania was focused on renewable fuels and electrification.

He said the Scania brand would release a new electrification product every 12 months from now and into the future.

“And as we get on with the technology, the batteries are getting better, getting longer and smaller,” he said.

“Our fast, continuous evolution and ongoing progress means we can offer more variations and configurations, more cab options, multiple machine choices, new batteries and updated management systems and software.

“The end goal that we see from our brand is around electrification of vehicles, but also more importantly for us, it is around maintenance, smart and safe transport.

“When you drive the shift to sustainable solutions, it’s all about partnerships. We need to make sure that we are close to government, close to our customers, but also our customers’ customers.

“We need to make sure that the vehicle is fit for purpose, and we’ll do the job for you as you intend. But a key element is making sure that we’re all like-minded and that we’re all focused on the same outcomes,” he said.

While electrification was the main focus for Scania, Stephens said autonomous vehicles were definitely part of the scene, especially in Europe, and Scania was also testing vehicles in Australian mines.

“It’s very much in its infancy and it won’t be coming to market for quite some time,” Stephens says. “At least 2030, if not 2035.

“It’s coming, but there’s a lot of complexities around private roads and how the vehicles are driven, and the public probably aren’t ready to see trucks driving down the road with no drivers.

Australasia’s first electric log truck

As part of its commitment to the NetZero initiative, Fennell Forestry commissioned Australia’s first electric log truck in 2023.

The transport industry is Australia’s second highest contributor to carbon emissions, with a single diesel-powered log truck producing more than 500 tonnes of carbon a year.

Wendy Fennell, managing director, says the trial aimed to provide a smarter, safer, zero-emissions solution to road transport, along with potentially reducing operating costs and offering an alternative to fluctuating diesel prices.

In an update, Fennell said early signs were promising, with the new electric- powered test model saving 100 tonnes of carbon from entering the atmosphere while on the road in the Green Triangle.

“The battery-powered electric heavy vehicle delivers logs from the forest to the sawmill and is suitable for our forest haulage application. The truck delivers on average four B-double loads of logs to local sawmills per shift,” she said.

“Performance off-road is comparable, if not superior, to conventional diesel trucks.”

Fennell said the distance achieved per battery was marginally less than what was expected with the average distance achieved per battery at 250km to 300km.

“Battery range has been a large part of the trial and is closely monitored. Multiple battery changes (back to base) per shift impacts productivity and increase operating costs.

“Upgrades to battery technology are continuous, and we have had six different sets of batteries in operation; there have been no incidents with any of the batteries, nor have we had any heat or temperature concerns while in operations.”

For the first year of the trial, the truck operated at reduced weights and reduced payload.

After lengthy consultation with regulators and government departments, a PBS assessment was conducted and a permit was eventually issued for an increased total mass weight of 70.5 tonnes in February this year.

“The truck hauls the extra weight without difficulty and, to date, has had limited effect on battery range,” Fennell said.

Driver training and acceptance
Fennell said driver acceptance had been varied due to the skills required and also the stigma of driving an electric truck among other all diesel fleets.

“To date, we have observed drivers with an interest in electronics and who are also mechanically minded have been best suited to driving this truck,” she said.

“In-depth drive training is required, with both theory and practical components. Drivers must be multi- skilled – battery changing requires forklift training, and drivers must also have good communication skills for regular liaison with the Janus Electric technical support team while in operation.”

Stage two: the next 12 months
Fennell said the company would be looking to collaborate more with industry and government.

“We’ll use our evidence- based data to further understand the benefits of green energy technology and to demonstrate the need for electric heavy vehicles in Australia,” she said.

Other focuses for the next phase include:

• develop economic viability and cost structures to provide customers and government with information on how to reach environment targets while maintaining financial sustainability
• further analysis of operating costs and reductions
• negotiate with customers on how electric heavy vehicles will be remunerated through the supply chain
• battery technology upgrades and potential increase in battery range; and
• continued driver training and support.

Creating value across the forestry supply chain with automation

Keith Raymond, harvesting and logistics team leader, Forest Growers Research, gave an update on the progress and plans with FGR’s automation and robotics programme.

Raymond said the programme, and developing and deploying automation, would make jobs easier and safer.

“And the potential is in the data – these systems can provide management information to improve supply- chain efficiency and that’s dependent on data connectivity and the integration of these systems together,” he said.

“And the other factor is around the human factors. We want to be able to make sure that the work is easier and better for the operators.

“And the only way to do that really is to measure these performance improvements for our workforce so that’s gonna be a big focus of the work for the next couple of years as these automated systems are coming in.”

Human factor in automation

Raymond said automation wasn’t about replacing people. Rather, it was about:

• Augmenting human capabilities and performance while reducing workload and minimising fatigue.
• Using state-of-the-art technologies and innovation training approaches.
• Supporting worker health and wellbeing through smart system design.

“When we talk about automation, it can be a bit scary to a lot of people,” he says.

“They think we are actually taking jobs away but, obviously, in this industry, we haven’t got enough people. We want to do more, and we want to make jobs easier with the people that we’ve got.”