Bulldog Summer 2010

BULLDOGTHE MACK MAGAZINE SUMMER 2010

TITANTOUGH

CAMSONS MOVE MOUNTAINS

MACA TRIDENT KEEPS THE MINES

OF WA WORKING

WORKING THE BLACK SEAM WITH

COLLINS TRANSPORT

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AUSTRALIA’S FAVOURITE

AGITATOR

PREMIUM MODERN CLASSICS

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4 BULLDOG MAGAZINE SUMMER 2010 54 BULLDOG MAGAZINE

welcomecontentsSUMMER 2010

Dean BestwickGeneral ManagerMack Trucks Australia

Bulldog – A magazine from Mack Trucks Australia

Bulldog is a magazine for Mack customers, drivers and

enthusiasts. Opinions expressed in articles may not necessarily

be those of Mack Trucks. Neither the publication nor the company

can be held responsible for factual errors within the magazine.

Reproduction in whole or in part is prohibited without prior

permission from Mack Trucks Australia. Mack Trucks is a trading

division of Volvo Group Australia.

CONTENTS WELCOME

06 Feature Story Weapons of Mass Construction

Mack recently showcased its latest New Breed models to the construction industry. Entitled ‘Weapons of Mass Construction’, the event at Sydney’s Olympic Park gave customers a chance to put the Macks through their paces in a realistic environment.

09 Cover Story Doin’ it Titan Tough in the Territory

The Northern Territory is home to some of the biggest cattle stations in the world, and at 1,960 square kilometres, Waterloo Station is no exception. Out here in the wilds, Dougal Brett relies on his Mack Titan to get him across some of the roughest country in the world to deliver his cattle to the docks.

16 Feature Story Camsons Move Mountains

Camsons is not your average family business. Every year they carry 1.2 million tonnes of sand, gravel and huge rocks through Sydney traffi c, and they’ve been doing it since the 1950s. Here we fi nd out what makes Camsons one of the prime movers of the Sydney construction industry.

18 Feature Story Orionstone

19 Peak Performance with Paul Munro

20 Rig of the Month

21 Dog Bites

send the

dog a boneBulldog magazine keeps you up to date with information from Australia and overseas – but, we also want to hear from you. Please write in with your feedback and stories. If you have pictures, please email high-resolution images, or post copies (no originals).

All correspondence should be addressed to:addressed to:

The EditorBulldog MagazineMack TrucksPO Box 1047Sumner ParkQLD 4074Australia

telephone 07 3718 3423

or email [email protected]

A WORD FROM AUSTRALIA’S TOP DOG

Happy New Year to you, from the team at Mack Trucks.

In 2010, I encourage you to take up a very important New Year’s Resolution, which is to engage your area representative in what you are doing in your business.

Ask your dealer which products and services will best suit your operational needs and remember, you don’t need to have a solution in mind. That’s our job – we have a team that can help you work out the best truck and confi guration for whatever task you have to do.

Mack dealers have access to the engineering and product design experts at the Mack factory in Queensland. All you have to do is explain what it is you want to do and we’ll get to work on fi nding the best way to do it. We have sophisticated computer modelling tools, developed locally to suit Australian products, legal requirements and conditions. With these we can create any number of hypothetical truck combinations.

For example, do you want better fuel economy without sacrifi cing power? We can pick the right engine size for the loads you carry and the roads you travel. Want to get a couple more tonnes onto the truck? It could be as simple as moving an axle a few centimetres. You can experiment with all types of body builder dimensional drawings, simulate real road conditions and see how the slightest confi guration changes affect the performance of the truck.

In short, we can take out the guess work so you can fi nd out what works and what won’t – before spending a cent.

At the Weapons of Mass Construction event we held in Sydney in November (page 6), we took some of our customers through these programs to show them how we can tailor a truck to suit their specifi c application. Many were unaware we had this kind of capability and immediately recognised the potential to optimise their fl eets.

The construction event was a personal highlight for me, as it was my fi rst offi cial event as the General Manager of Mack Trucks. It’s a title I have aspired to and I now wear with pride. It makes me equally proud when I’m in the Outback seeing a Mack pulling a triple road train loaded with cattle across red dirt roads, like the Titan at Waterloo Station (page 9). The point is that whether you work in a quarry, in a metropolitan construction site, or out on the highway, Mack can engineer and build the right truck for you, right here in Australia.


THE NEW BREED METRO-LINER, Granite,

Trident and Super-Liner were displayed in a

variety of construction confi gurations including

agitator, tilt tray and tipper and dog. In three

competing groups, guests were invited to drive

the trucks themselves on three courses that

demonstrated the different applications

required in construction: a simulated indoor

‘quarry’, a tight urban obstacle course and

out on the road.

By contrasting the environments in which

these trucks have to operate, the test-drive

demonstrated to the participants the

increased payload, manoeuvrability, vision,

cab comfort and reduced interior noise of

the New Breed Macks. The drive also showed

just how competitive the construction industry

can be, with the three groups of customers

thoroughly enjoying a square off against each

other and pushing the Macks to their limits.

A feature of the showcase was Mack’s long association with the construction industry and their experience of the demands it placed on trucks and drivers. By building customised versions in their manufacturing plant in Queensland, Mack has coupled its long American heritage with local expertise.

As the only manufacturer offering four models for this industry, Mack is always able to provide the right application for the job. The extraordinary gas-powered Granite concrete agitator, locally developed and engineered for Boral, was a good example of Mack’s fl exibility in application excellence.

The showcase also provided information on Mack’s total service offering to the construction industry. The support of the national Mack dealer network, maintenance contracts and warranties all demonstrate how operators become ‘part of the Mack family’ when they buy a Mack. >

FEATURE STORY WEAPONS OF MASS CONSTRUCTION

Mack Trucks showcased its New Breed models to the construction industry at Sydney Olympic Park on November 26. Entitled ‘Weapons of Mass Construction’, the event gave some of Mack Trucks’ largest construction customers the opportunity to try out the new models for themselves in simulated construction environments.


SUMMER 2010 7

WEAPONS OF MASS CONSTRUCTION

1 From left – David Moore, General Manager Product Engineering, Dean Bestwick, General Manager Mack Trucks, and Mal Brown, Product Planning Manager. 2 The Super-Liner hauls a drop-deck with a wheel loader. 3 The Granite takes another tonne. 4 The Trident Axle Forward expertly manoeuvres a three-axle dog. 5 Live entertainment at the event.

The Olympic Park Dome was the scene of November’s ‘Weapons of Mass Construction’ event. Customers from the construction industry competed to put the New Breed Macks through their paces.

This page – The front end wheel loader tips a load of river sand into the Mack Granite.

metro-linergranitetridentsuper-liner

6 BULLDOG MAGAZINE

STORY WILL BELFORD

PHOTOGRAPHY GAVIN BLUE

1 2

4

5

3


8 BULLDOG MAGAZINE

Dougal Brett and his family run Waterloo Station in the far north-west of the Northern Territory. With a Mack Titan to carry the load, Dougal crosses some of the roughest terrain in the world to deliver 5,500 head of cattle to the docks at Darwin and Wyndham every year.

Dean Bestwick, General Manager of Mack Trucks, said, ‘No-one knows and supports the construction industry like Mack. ‘Mack’s New Breed models have had great success in the construction industry, and while they are true to their American heritage, they are designed and engineered in Australia, for Australian conditions.’

‘This enables us to produce trucks that are a perfect fi t for the construction industry with unmatched reliability, durability and application excellence.’

The extraordinary gas-powered Granite concrete agitator, locally developed and engineered for Boral, was a good example of Mack’s fl exibility in application excellence.


TITAN TOUGHdoin’ it

SUMMER 2010 9

The world’s cleanest concrete mixer: Boral’s Granite agitator, installed with a Cummins Westport ISL-G gas engine, is the world’s cleanest because it is the only concrete agitator that reduces particulate matter (soot) by 92% and nitrous oxides by 90%, compared with current Australian legislative requirements (US04).

COVER STORY WATERLOO STATION


10 BULLDOG MAGAZINE SUMMER 2010 11

COVER STORY WATERLOO STATION COVER STORY WATERLOO STATION

THE VICTORIA RIVER DISTRICT of the

Northern Territory is basalt country. Black

soil, big rivers and big skies. Five years ago,

Dougal Brett and his family moved out here

from Queensland in search of better grazing,

and settled at Waterloo Station.

As farms go, this one is big by anyone’s

standards: 1,960 square kilometres, running

20,000 head of cattle. The Brett family live

here with a cook, a grader driver, a handyman

and four station hands.

‘We’re not isolated by Territory standards,’

says Dougal, ‘we’re only 145 km from

Kununurra and 850 km from Darwin;

during the dry season we can be just

about anywhere in a day.’

The seasons are all-important out here,

because when it starts raining in November,

the roads run under water and sometimes

don’t dry out until April. This means that all

the work has to be done in the six or seven months of the dry season – fl at out until it rains, then you can take a few months off.

With this much territory to cover, Dougal and his station hands have to muster by helicopter, but on a typical day, he’s in his Mack Titan.

‘On a mustering day I get in the truck at about 4 am,’ says Dougal, ‘drive two hours out to the mustering yards to load, cart the cattle back to the station yards and go back for another load. We do that all day until dark and get home about 8 o’clock.’

The job varies depending on the time of year.

‘A lot of the time we’re bringing in young cattle, who are basically wild, for what we call ‘educating’, says Dougal. ‘We keep them in the yards for a few weeks, feed, drench and inoculate them and get them used to being around humans, horses and motorbikes. Then we take them back out again.’

When the dry season starts in April, Dougal

musters the cattle that are ready for sale

and trucks them to Darwin or Wyndham

to be loaded onto ships headed mainly

for Indonesia. Pulling a triple roadtrain

confi guration he can transport around

864 head of weaner cattle per day.

‘Loaded to the bitumen is only 80 kilometres,’

says Dougal, ‘but it can take me two and a half

hours if the weather’s bad.’

Speaking of weather, what are the conditions

like out there?

‘Well, last week the outside temperature

showing on the dash was 48 degrees Celsius,

and I was hauling 125 tonne,’ says Dougal.

‘It’s not just the temperature though, it’s the

roads. Until you hit a major highway it’s dirt

roads all the way; and not your average gravel

track, we’ve got to negotiate lots of gullies and

jump-ups – you have to get a run-up to get

over the top of those. Then there are river

systems and long fl ats, altogether very harsh

conditions, and you know what? The Titan

loves it.’

So why the Titan?

‘I purchased a good Trident when I was

younger and I’ve stuck with Mack ever since,’

he replies. ‘I’ve had a few now, an R-Model,

a Value Liner, a Trident and another Titan.

They’ve all been reliable and tough enough

for the job. When I had to replace the old Titan

I knew I needed a truck that could manage

a high GCM; I looked at the competition, but

the Titan was still the best option. I had it

spec’d with 2700 litres of fuel, so I can go

from Waterloo to Hughenden in Queensland

without refuelling; that’s about 2000 km.

‘The new Titan is a 1000% improvement on

the last model,’ he adds. ‘The people who

worked on this truck need to be congratulated

on the design. The comfort and handling are

superb and on the kind of roads I drive that’s

important. I’ve got two fridges, a microwave,

a double bunk, TV and DVD player fi tted, and

when you’re driving all the way to Roma or

Charters Towers to get farm supplies they

make all the difference. I can take the whole

family in the Titan.’

As well as comfort, in this kind of country,

you’d expect service to be important.

‘Absolutely. Serviceability up here is everything.

We’re carrying live cargo across very isolated

country in heat you can’t really imagine –

breaking down is not something you want

to think about. The Mack team in Darwin are

absolutely brilliant, they’ll do anything for us.

‘Just a few months ago I was in the helicopter

mustering and I got a call from the Mack

dealer saying ‘We hear you need a new fan

hub, can we send a bloke out to fi t it for you?’

We’re not isolated by Territory standards, we’re only 145 km from Kununurra and 850 km from Darwin; during the dry season we can be just about anywhere in a day.

Dougal Brett (above) says serviceability is everything. ‘We’re carrying live cargo across very isolated country in heat you can’t really imagine – breaking down is not something you want to think about.’

>


SUMMER 2010 1312 BULLDOG MAGAZINE

COVER STORY WATERLOO STATION FEATURE STORY MACA’S METRO-LINERS

THE WATERLOO STATION MACK TITAN FEATURES ON THE COVER OF THE 2010 MACK TRUCKS CALENDAR.

GET YOUR COPY FROM YOUR LOCAL DEALERSHIP – BUT BE QUICK, THEY SELL OUT FAST!

‘Now that’s an 850 km service call each way. They know how tough it is out here and they respect that. Nothing’s ever a drama, they’ve more than delivered on the warranty.

‘I remember another time I blew a cab airbag south of Darwin around 11 at night. I called the Mack help line to see if someone could bring a replacement by 7 am and the bloke who answered had a Pommy accent. It turns out the help line is based in London. You know what he said? ‘No problem, we’ll email them, they’ll be there.’ Sure enough, 7 o’clock in the morning, there they were with a new cab airbag. Out here, that kind of reliability is priceless.

‘It all comes down to the truck in the end and the thing about the Macks is that they’re built for this environment. Our environment is hot, harsh and heavy and the Titan handles everything we throw at it. I can’t fault the Titan, it’s a brilliant truck for the job.’

The dry season lasts for six or seven months and that’s when all the action happens at Waterloo Station.

MINING AND CIVIL AUSTRALIA (MACA)

is a contracting company servicing the mines

of Western Australia. With a team of over

380 industry-experienced personnel, the

company offers contract mining, civil

earthworks, crushing and screening

and material haulage solutions.

‘We operate everything on the site, from

excavators, dump trucks, dozers, graders,

drills, loaders, and crushing plants,’ says

Operations Director Geoff Baker.

‘A mine site is an enormous operation with

24-hour requirements for fuel, oil and grease.

To keep it all running our service trucks run

double 6-to-6 shifts, 365 days a year.’

To meet the demands for fuel and servicing,

Geoff needed a truck that could carry

a 7,500 litre fuel tank, plus compressors,

pumps, hoses and assorted servicing gear,

and deliver it through extremely rugged terrain

to the operation site.

‘The service equipment on the back’s worth more than the truck,’ he says, ‘but the point is you need something reliable to carry all that equipment around, a truck that tradesmen and service people can drive.’

When Geoff was looking for two new service trucks to handle this, he looked no further than Mack.

‘I’ve been using Macks for 35 years,’ says Geoff. ‘I worked on them myself when I was younger and I’ve always found Mack to be a good, solid, reliable truck. Sure, the Bulldog on the front’s a big part of it, but you know when you get a Mack, IT’S A TRUCK.’

So why the Metro-Liner?

Geoff says the reason for purchasing the Metro-Liner is that the spec’ of the truck is ideal. ‘It’s the best fi t for the job. We select automatic transmissions with retarders and that makes it a lot easier for people to drive – and we get a longer life out of them too.’

Another factor Geoff took into consideration when making the decision to buy the Metro-Liner is the famous Mack durability.

‘Durability is essential,’ says Geoff, ‘we work these trucks 24 hours a day and we’d expect at least ten years’ life out of them. We service the trucks ourselves and we use all-Mack parts. I’ve used Metro-Liners for many years and I know they’ve got reliable components built into them. Once you fi nd a product that works you stick with it.’

For Geoff, effective business relationships are another critical factor in the decision.

‘I’ve been buying Macks from Truck Centre WA since the late 1970s,’ says Geoff. ‘There are lots of good trucks out there, but for me it’s all about relationships.

‘Some of the staff there have been in this business as long as I have and they really understand our business requirements,’ he concluded.

The MACA Metro-Liner service truck confi guration – the machine that keeps the mines running.


SUMMER 2010 15

‘WE’VE BEEN FLAT-OUT for the last

eighteen months,’ says owner Mick Collins.

‘Economic downturn? You’d never know, things

haven’t quietened down at all out here. We’ve

got tippers, low loaders, fl at tops and tilt trays,

we do a bit of everything and we’re busy

all the time.’

Mick’s been in business for about 45 years,

starting out in partnership with his father

and he now works with his son-in-law,

so he knows his trucks. When he had an

opportunity to expand his fl eet he knew

where he wanted to go.

‘Macks are my preferred truck, no question.

I’ve got 25 of them’, says Mick, ‘from an old

1975 model through to a 2007 Trident, but

I’m really happy with my 2009-model Granite.’

What is it about the Granite that Mick enjoys?

‘Well we’ve only done 8,000 kilometres in it,

a couple of trips to Brisbane and Newcastle,

carting the lighter mining gear we don’t need

to put on low-loaders. It’s been really good,’

says Mick. ‘Like my 2004-model Trident, it’s

proving to be a really solid truck. But I’ve never

had any problems with any of them, that’s why

I lean towards Mack.’

So reliability is important? ‘Absolutely, I buy

genuine parts and try to keep my Macks

all-Mack, and that’s paid off. They don’t let me

down. We work the western coal fi elds and if

you’re carrying a power transformer that needs

to be fi xed, you don’t want to fi nd yourself

stuck down in Wollongong. None of that’s

ever happened with the Macks. There’s more

to it than that though, I just love the name.’

The Bulldog on the front really means

something then? ‘Absolutely, but the most

important thing for me is the durability. I’ve

had such a good run out of my Macks, you

just never wear them out. I’ve been slowly

upgrading the fl eet and when I go looking

for a new truck I’m looking for a Mack. I can

get 13 tonne legal on this Granite and for

what we do, that’s ideal.’

Michael Inzitari, sales representative at Mack

Trucks Sydney said he recognised that the

Granite 8 x 4 was the perfect model for this

tilt tray application. ‘This is where Mack’s

application excellence comes to the fore. We’ve

been able to provide a conventional truck with

exceptional weight distribution, strength and

durability for Mick Collins’ tough application

– working in and out of mining sites. This

was the fi rst Granite 8 x 4 New Breed model

delivered in New South Wales – and it’s

getting plenty of attention on the road.’

Based in Lithgow, NSW, Collins Transport is a preferred carrier for the local coal mines from the Blue Mountains out to Mudgee. Long-hauling mining equipment off for repair, and handling local work for the council and the Roads and Traffi c Authority keeps the fl eet busy year-round.

14 BULLDOG MAGAZINE

FEATURE STORY COLLINS TRANSPORT

WORKING THE BLACK SEAMWITH COLLINS TRANSPORT AND THE MACK GRANITE

FEATURE STORY COLLINS TRANSPORT

Mick Collins (right) with Michael Inzitari from Mack Trucks Sydney.


SUMMER 2010 1716 BULLDOG MAGAZINE

FEATURE STORY CAMSONS TRIDENT FEATURE STORY CAMSONS TRIDENT

camsonsmove mountainswith the trident

We always look at tare weight to ensure we get maximum payload and fuel effi ciency, and the Tridents hit all the right numbers. Plus, with the forward-axle, we have the wheel spacing to get up to maximum weights using 4-axle dogs.

Camsons bulk tipper fl eet transports approximately 1.2 million tonnes of sand, gravel, contaminated soils, coal, grain and landscape products through Sydney and rural traffi c every year.

IT ISN’T A JOB FOR THE FAINT-HEARTED. It also needs a particular type of truck.

Camsons is a family business that has been carting raw materials for the construction industry right across the Sydney region and into rural NSW since the 1950s. Founded by Chris and Mary Sultana, the business is currently under the direction of General Manager Frank Sultana, who is supported by his brothers Peter and Paul.

‘We’ve bought three Trident 6x4s since June 2009 and we’ve worked them pretty hard,’ says Paul. ‘We’ve already driven the fi rst one 100,000 kilometres. The trucks mostly pull 3-axle dogs carrying 48.5 tonne.’

Was weight an important factor in the decision? ‘We always look at tare weight to ensure we get maximum payload and fuel effi ciency,’ says Paul, ‘and the Tridents hit all the right numbers. Plus, with the forward-axle, we have the wheel spacing to get up to maximum weights using 4-axle dogs. The engine brake is also a lot more effi cient than we expected, which is important when you’re coming down mountains fully-loaded.’

In a typical day, the Camsons’ Tridents have to negotiate dense urban traffi c environments, quarry and construction sites and freeways. Paul says a lot of the work is excavation and their customers are located all over the place. ‘Sometimes we have to go right into the middle of the city, so handling and manoeuvrability are important and the Tridents do a fi ne job. The drivers also love the look of it; it’s a big, beefy truck.’

Another aspect that’s popular with the Camsons drivers is the height of the truck. ‘The Trident has particularly good ground clearance levels, which minimises damage

to the under carriage and gives us good vision in traffi c,’ says Paul. ‘We also got ours spec’d with cross-locks on all four wheels to give us maximum traction with the dogs.’

Camsons have a full maintenance contract with Mack, and use all-Mack parts. ‘We chose contract maintenance for three reasons,’ says Paul. ‘First, it locks in the service costs so we know our expenses in advance. It costs a bit more upfront, but in the long run it all pans out and there are no surprises. Second, we like our Mack trucks to have a strong Mack pedigree. That way we have a one-stop shop and we know all the parts will work. This saves downtime and improves productivity. Third, we’ve got a good relationship with our Mack dealer, Manuel Vella from Mack Trucks Sydney. He started as a mechanic and he’s been in the truck game for a long time – he’s got trucks in his blood. We know he understands our business and will get us a truck that suits our requirements.

The Trident does just that.’

The Camsons Tridents in their striking blue and white livery are a familiar sight to Sydney’s motorists.

Paul Sultana (right) with Manuel Vella from Mack Trucks Sydney.

Wwerwm


Orionstone rents heavy earthmoving equipment to the mining industry in Western Australia and Queensland. A constant problem in open-cut mines is wind-blown dust, so Orionstone provides the solution: a solid and reliable dust-suppression tanker in the form of a New Breed Metro-Liner.

Director Richard Harding has been using Macks for over 12 years, so when he needed to choose a truck for this application, his fi rst thought was ‘Mack’. ‘We got the fi rst of these new Metro-Liners in 2006,’ says Richard. ‘Now we’ve got six of them, with six more on the way in WA. After that we’ll probably look to get some in Queensland.’

What was it about the Metro-Liner that made it Richard’s choice of truck? ‘It’s reliable, fairly simple and it does a good job. That’s what we like about it,’ he replies. ‘Put simply, we chose the Metro-Liner because it had the confi guration we wanted and it could do what we wanted.’

With some of their clients’ sites in remote and rugged country, far from civilization, it’s crucial to be able to provide a truck that’s reliable and easy to maintain. ‘These trucks operate for about 240 hours a month and our clients do most of the servicing on site,’ says Richard, ‘so we can’t send them something that’s fragile or diffi cult to maintain. The Metro-Liner is a strong truck and it doesn’t have overly complex electronics, so this is a real asset for

us; we can send one out to a remote mine site and they won’t have a problem with it.’

Mines are notoriously dangerous places, so Richard took no chances on the safety features of his tankers.

‘We deliberately chose an automatic gearbox with a retarder and disc brakes all around,’ he says. ‘When you don’t know who’s going to be driving the truck you can’t take any chances. This confi guration costs a bit more but gives much better safety.’

Another factor in the decision was Orionstone’s long-term relationship with Mack. ‘We’ve been using Macks for some time, going back to some 240 tonne GCM low-loaders we used to run, so we’ve built up a pretty good relationship with them. They understand what we need and how to deliver it.’

‘When we started looking for a water tanker, we couldn’t see much point in starting up with something completely different. We looked at some other trucks, but the Metro-Liner was clearly the one, it was quite simply the best truck for our application.’

FEATURE STORY ORIONSTONE

SUMMER 2010 19

They say time is money, but in the transport business, fuel is money. Fuel can be anywhere from 25% to 50% of your operating costs, so an improvement in fuel effi ciency of just 5% across a fl eet could save you hundreds of thousands of dollars every year and signifi cantly reduce your greenhouse gas emissions.

Mack’s Driver Trainer, Paul Munro, has ten tips to help you become a fuel-effi cient driver. In this edition we look at the fi rst fi ve.

1 GO A BIT SLOWER (REALLY!)

Speed has the greatest effect on fuel effi ciency, because the faster you go the greater the air resistance. As a rough rule of thumb, for each 10 km/h increase in road speed, fuel effi ciency decreases by 5–10%.

to improve your

performance

and save fuel

5 tips

On a 1,000 kilometre journey, a truck averaging 100 km/h and getting 1.6 km/litre will use about 625 litres of fuel. A truck averaging 90 km/h, might get 1.74 km/litre, using 574 litres, a difference of 51 litres. At $1.00 a litre, that’s $51 a trip and if you do 300 trips a year, that’s nearly $15,300 saved on just one truck.

2 DON’T OVERLOAD

It seems to make economic sense to carry as much as possible all the time. If you’re carrying diamonds this would probably always be true, but with bulk cargoes you might be paying more in fuel than you receive in payment. This is because for every ton of extra weight that you overload your truck, you increase your fuel consumption by 1–2%.

2% might not sound like much, but if you burn 2% more fuel on every trip for a year, you’re paying out thousands of dollars that could be in your pocket.

3 PLAN YOUR ROUTE

The shortest route using roads with the highest speed limits is not always the most fuel-effi cient way to go. If you have to brake a lot, change gears frequently and use maximum engine performance to get up hills, you’re burning fuel faster than usual.

To avoid this, choose a route with the fewest possible hills. This will reduce the need for braking and situations of low-gear high-revving. A longer but less undulating route can help save fuel and save you money.

4 TRY NOT TO STOP

The factor most in your favour when you’re driving a truck is your own momentum. A 56-tonne B-double takes a long time to stop because it has a huge amount of kinetic energy stored up. Once you stop though, you have to get moving again and just getting out of fi rst gear can burn a litre of fuel.

While driving, watch the road ahead for traffi c, roundabouts and traffi c lights and plan your driving so you can avoid coming to a complete stop. Every time you avoid stopping the truck completely you save fuel.

5 SKIP GEARS

Modern engines produce high torque at low revs, which means that you can skip gears and get into top gear faster, using less fuel in the process. There’s no need to use all the gears just because the transmission has them.

By skipping gears you can get from 0 to 65 km/h 9 seconds faster and use 0.03 litres less fuel. You can get from 0 to 80 km/h 15 seconds faster and use 0.08 litres less fuel. Everyone’s happy!

AND SO?

You can clearly see that a few small changes to the way you drive can make a big difference to the amount of fuel you consume. Don’t miss the other fi ve tips in the next edition of Bulldog.

Paul Munro, Mack Trucks’ Driver Trainer.

peak

performance with paul munro

PEAK PERFORMANCE WITH PAUL MUNRO

damping down the dust – the metro-liner in action with orionstone

We looked at some other trucks, but the Metro-Liner was clearly the one, it was quite simply the best truck for our application.

RICHARD HARDING– DIRECTOR

18 BULLDOG MAGAZINE


20 BULLDOG MAGAZINE

RIG OF THE MONTH www.macktrucks.com.au MACK DOG BITES

Each month, Mack enthusiasts vote for their favourite trucks in the Rig of the Month competition on the Mack website.

And the winners are…

rig of the

month

RIG OF THE MONTH – November 2009

Carl Zmyslowski of Dubbo sent us this shot of a 1969 R600 prime mover. Great-looking truck eh?

‘I joined a historic commercial vehicle club, with the intention of getting my semi-trailer licence and to muck about with old trucks and what-not. Returning from a vintage vehicle show at Tamworth in 2007, our club president said that we need to fi nd a vehicle to restore.

‘He showed me his large collection of vehicles that are awaiting some lovin’, but couldn’t get me interested – I needed something that looked like a truck. A local haulage contractor had a truck for sale, it was unusual as it had a plastic bonnet with a Flintstone cab, the deal was done. Within three years the back has been rebuilt, sandblasted and repainted with the original Caltex paint, so I am a third of the way there!’

RIG OF THE MONTH – September 2009

This classic 1983 Mack Superliner submitted by Cherie and Denis Mills of Corowa came back from the dead to win rig of the month for September.

‘We found this truck sitting in a paddock at Bacchus Marsh about eight years ago. We only bought it to do a transfer of the running gear into another truck. After it sat in the weather for a further 12 months at home, I decided to rebuild it. Royan’s at Wagga accepted this challenge and after four years of painstaking work this is what they produced. This truck now runs local with my husband.’

RIG OF THE MONTH – October 2009

What a beauty! Matthew McCracken of Albury/Wodonga submitted this magnifi cently restored 1963 Mack B61 to win rig of the month for October.

‘This is my father’s (RICHARD McCracken) B61 that he and I restored over a six-year period before he passed away in 2007. Originally it was my grandfather’s truck and my dad spent many years trying to track it down before restoring it. This B Model is very well known Australia-wide and has won many shows. It’s a symbol of the dedication my father had to the transport industry.’

YOUR RIG IN NEXT EDITION? www.macktrucks.com.au

Like to see your rig in all its glory in the next edition of Bulldog? You can. All you need to do is enter the Rig of the Month competition on our website. You can also vote for your favourite truck.

Simply go to www.macktrucks.com.au and click on the Rig of the Month link. You’ll help decide who we feature in the next issue of Bulldog.

dog bitesTHE LATEST:

At top: Dealer Principal, Jason Mann. Above: A classic Mack on display at the dealership opening. Right: The Mack Trucks Rockhampton team.

SUMMER 2010 21

NEW: MACK DEALERSHIP AT ROCKYVolvo Group Australia has opened a brand new Mack dealership on the Bruce Highway, on the north side of Rockhampton in Queensland.

Modelled on the Group’s new dealership designs, the new site provides state-of-the-art service facilities, a comprehensive range of genuine parts and the full range of Mack trucks. The dealership also offers the all-makes parts range and has second-hand vehicles for sale.

Dealer Principal, Jason Mann, said ‘This is a new beginning for Mack Trucks in this part of the country. This dealership is a world-class facility that provides a complete, professional service in a new and modern environment.’

The dealership services the central Queensland area, from Gympie in the south to Station Creek in the north and west to the Northern Territory border. Trucks up to B-double confi gurations can be driven directly off the highway and into the service bays, which provide straight-through processing – in one side of the building and out the other.

Cutting the ribbon at the launch, Arne Knaben, CEO of Volvo Group Australia said ‘Our customers tell me all the time how important our dealership network is to keeping their businesses running smoothly. It gives me great pleasure to be able to open this superb site, which is ideally suited to the demands of this region of Australia. With these new facilities, our experienced Rockhampton team can deliver a quantum improvement in their service to our customers.’

The dealership has 35 staff, 20 of whom work in the service department.


SUMMER 2010 23

MACK AROUND THE COUNTRYMACK DOG BITES

Cairns

Townsville

Mt Isa

Alice Springs

Darwin

Katherine

Kununurra

Broome

Port HedlandKarratha

Carnarvon

Geraldton

Dalwallinu

MerredinKalgoorlie

SpearwoodKewdale

Albany

BunburyEsperance

South Guildford

Mackay

Bundaberg

GympieCaloundra

BrisbaneCaboolture

RockhamptonEmerald

Warwick Gold CoastAlstonville

Coffs Harbour

Tamworth

Dubbo

Wagga Wagga

Mt Gambier

Adelaide

Port Augusta

AlburyMildura

HorshamShepparton

Traralgon

Hobart

LauncestonBurnie

Devonport

SaleSpringvale

Geelong

Ballarat DandenongLaverton North

Queanbeyan

Wollongong

NewcastleGosford

SydneyPenrith

LismoreGoondiwindi

Toowoomba

mack trucks australia national dealer network

Dealers – Sales, Service and Parts

Dealers – Service and Parts

Customer Service Centres

Brisbane Factory

All Mack Trucks are built in Australia for Australian conditions.

Established in 1972, the Wacol truck factory in Queensland is the largest assembly plant for heavy duty trucks in Australia. Highly-skilled employees work in cohesive teams to produce custom-built, world-class trucks.

The New Breed from Mack Trucks.Premium, Modern Classics, forged in steel.

the brisbane factorybuilding an icon, bolt by bolt

dog bitesTHE LATEST:

THE MACKIE KELLY TRUCKGeoff Butler from Barry Stoodley Pty Ltd and Mack Australia recently surprised a six year old boy from Eatons Hill in Brisbane with the gift of a lifetime. Mackie Kelly, who has autism, loves what he calls a ‘Mackie Kelly Truck’.

Mackie’s fascination with the big rigs began when he was given a ‘Lightning McQueen Mack’ truck by the Tooth Fairy. Opening the box he cried, ‘Look! It’s mine! See? It’s got my name on the front’.

Geoff heard the story and generously organised a Mack gift bag and a ride in one of the company’s Super-Liners. Mackie was overwhelmed to receive the Mack merchandise, including a shirt and cap with ‘his’ name on them. The ride was the greatest joy as well as getting to sit behind the big wheel.

He waved as Geoff drove away, looked up at his Mum and said ‘Where’s my truck going?’. His parents are still trying to explain that ‘you can’t keep the big one, they belong on the road.’

ROLL UP FOR THE MAGICAL FACTORY TOURIn November, John Saint of JT Fossey in Tamworth brought some of his clients from North West NSW to an organised tour of the Mack Trucks factory in Wacol QLD.

‘Bringing our clients up to Brisbane provided a great opportunity to spend quality time with our clients and to fi nd out what they were really looking for from Mack,’ said John.

On arrival at the factory, the group was welcomed by Ron Huibers, Senior Vice President of Mack International Operations, who happened to be visiting from the USA.

They then witnessed the entire production process, from the fi rst chassis bolt to the fi nished truck. Along the way they met the people in the business who put the trucks together, all the way from the welder to Dean Bestwick, General Manager of Mack Trucks and Mona Edstrom Frohm, General Manager of the factory.

‘Seeing how a Mack is actually built was a real eye-opener for our clients,’ said John, ‘They got a clear picture of how Mack can customise a rig and really understood the benefi ts of having your truck built locally. At the end of the tour, Mack took us to lunch at the Breakfast Creek Hotel and back to the airport. We were home in Tamworth by 7 pm, which was great.’

And their impression of the tour?

‘My clients thought it was brilliant. These blokes have been in the business for over thirty years and they said it was by far the best tour they’d ever been on – well organised and very informative. It was a fantastic couple of days and our clients really appreciated it. I’ve since had a couple of requests from other clients to go on the tour.’

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1 A personal welcome from the Senior VP of Mack International Operations, Ron Huibers. 2 And meeting Mona Edstrom Frohm, General Manager of the factory. 3 Walking the line...


macktrucks.com.au nationwide free call: 1800 803 427

AVAILABLE FROM OUR NATIONWIDE DEALER NETWORK

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Bulldog Summer 2010

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