Trucking Toward A Better Future 2023 on the horizon – ENTRY DETAILS
Trucking Toward a Better Future 2023 kicks off next week! 15th September to 15th November.
The competition provides a forum for truck drivers to share their thoughts on how the world can be made ‘better’, cleaner, and more efficient. Truck drivers want their kids to grow up in the best world possible too, and we want our industry to be seen as part of the solution, not just part of the problem.
No other occupation is able to observe the breadth of commercial and social activity across a larger stage than truck drivers. That’s a fact. Yet rarely do we ever think to ask what it is we have noticed. Who does something better than someone else? Which region does something better than another? What have you seen somewhere that could be rolled out and used to make life easier, more efficient, and maybe give people back some time?
We need great ideas more than ever, and this year we have company.
Co-organisers, New Zealand Trucking Media and Resilienz, approached Charleen Clarke about adding depth and an international dimension to the judging panel. Charleen is an associate member of the International Truck of the Year jury, Truck Innovation Award judge, Truck of the Year Australasia judge, International Intralogistics and Forklift Truck of the Year judge, International Pickup Award judge and owner and editorial director of South African publications FOCUS on Transport & Logistics, and SHEQ MANAGEMENT.
Charleen was instantly across the competition concept and went one step further than accepting the judging post, making an instant decision to co-run the competition in her publications. “This is an awesome concept. Let’s take a dip into the intellectual property pool of the drivers in our country also,” she said.
Welcome then to one and all in both countries, and in the greatest traditions of All Black – Springbok competition, it’s game on.
Calling all truck drivers
“No one is a more passionate advocate of the truck driver than me,” says New Zealand Trucking Media editorial director Dave McCoid. “Almost every life hero and mentor I’ve had, came from behind the wheel. That makes me their biggest fan – and sometimes their biggest pain in the arse,” he laughs.
“I’m always imploring them to come out of the cab and show the world who they are. Truck drivers come from all walks of life, and are more often than not fiercely intelligent, hugely practical, highly imaginative, funny as hell, often a little shy of popping their heads above the parapet, and likely cynical. Why cynical? They are the ones tasked with delivering the insatiable demand for ‘wants’ over needs, to those often preaching austerity and advocating an environment-first agenda.
“I know they see things that could be improved. I know they compare how much better ‘company A’ does something compared to ‘company B’, and I know they talk about it. The two companies they are comparing might be in entirely different industries and will likely miss the opportunity to communicate and share ideas. The one thing they do have in common is the truck drivers visiting them. Potential conduits of a great idea.”
Trucking Toward a Better Future guarantees a safe place for your ideas – we’re into championing your insights, and not putting a single person down.
While trucking and transport might be a driver’s natural frame of reference, there are no limits to what can be suggested – you see it all: warehouses, loading docks, trucks, roads, bridges, intersections, towns and rural communities. What have you observed over the years? What is it that has made you reach for those old chestnuts, ‘Why don’t they do that?’, ‘Why hasn’t anyone done that?’, ‘Why the hell don’t they do it like Joe Bloggs does it?’. The answer is, they haven’t thought of it yet. You just have! So, tell us!
Think about who, what, where, how, why, and even how much it might cost? And make sure you to tell us why it’s new, and what its climate benefits are, which might be anything from making roadworks more efficient, tips how drivers might improve their fuel-efficiency, to a brainwave how to make freight flow more smoothly through the supply and distribution chains.
Sending in ‘Make a law saying all new trucks need to be Euro-6’, will go straight in the bin. We all know that.
No, we want your thoughts. Your innovations. It can be big, but doesn’t have to be. Big is not always beautiful – pennies and pounds, drops make an ocean, never forget that sort of stuff.
Come on!
HOW TO ENTER
This year, we have brought the competition back into the driver’s seat. It is a truck drivers-only competition. That’s who we really want to celebrate, so let’s do that.
There’s a prize pool of NZ$7500 up for grabs, with the winning entry taking a substantial NZ$5000, second NZ$1000, third NZ$500 plus five NZ$200 spot prizes.
Entry is free, and open to the truck driving community. Driving team entries are also welcome although there is only one prize pot.
They will be judged by a panel of local (New Zealand) and at least one international judge.
Competition Opens: 15th September 2023
Competition Closes: 15th November 2023
Entries protocol:
Send to: TTBF23@nztrucking.co.nz
Subject line: TTBF 23 – ENTRY <FOLLOWED BY NAME OR TEAM NAME>
Body of email:
- Your name (names of team members if it is a team entry)
- Who you drive for
Contact details:
- In the case of a team tell us who makes up the team but only one central contact. That’s the only person we will communicate with.
Entry:
- Your entry plus any supporting documentation
The intellectual property of any entry remains that of the entrant, and while the organisers may help with communication channels, progressing the opportunity presented is up to the individual entrant.
Lindsay Wood, Resilienz
Charleen Clarke, Focus and Transport and SHEQ Management
Dave McCoid, New Zealand Trucking Media
