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Past Issues

April 2005

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If asked what really impresses about the trucking industry in South Africa, my answer would undoubtedly be the amazing extent some - note some - manufacturers go to in providing their customers with facilities and services that rank second to none in the world. Another of these facilities recently opened in Durban where a former patch of desolate veld now boasts a R55-million Mercedes-Benz commercial vehicle dealership. It looks great but there are problems ahead writes Patrick O'Leary.

If there is one sector which has really gone out of its way to elevate this country onto a world-class platform since 1994, it is the truck manufacturers.

I recall attending the opening of Tyco's Wadeville dealership many years ago and found myself sitting next to the editor of Heavy Duty Trucking, America's leading trucking magazine. I asked him how the new Tyco dealership compared with those in the USA. Fully expecting to be pounded into my little South African nook by the usual story of how everything is bigger and better in Texas, he quietly replied: "We have nothing like this in the States. This leads the world. It's incredible." I hid my surprise with a blatantly false shrug of the shoulders: "Yeah, it's not bad hey?" I felt so proud to be a South African.
 

That same sense of pride came in once again when attending the official opening of the Mercedes-Benz Commercial Vehicles Durban dealership where Dr Klaus Maier, international management board member for Mercedes-Benz Commercial Vehicles, performed the unveiling ceremony. This guy is a 'groot maga' in the DaimlerChrysler world-wide organisation and it was his first visit to South Africa.
 

Situated at Riverhorse Valley Business Estate on a 35 000 square metre sites, the new dealership represents a R55-million investment by NMI-Durban South Motors which is owned jointly by Barloworld Motors and The Akoo Family Trust.

Included in the development are a fully enclosed and air-conditioned new vehicle showroom, a huge pre-owned display area and a state-of-the-art workshop with 38 service bays manned by 19 qualified Mercedes-Benz technicians and 19 trainee technicians. The comprehensive parts inventory is housed in a 3 000 square metre warehouse.

With a total staff complement of 140 - including finance and insurance specialists - the dealership has gone all out to service all their customers needs and see to it that vehicles are sourced, prepared and maintained as efficiently as possible. A Driver Training Academy has also been established to help educate drivers on vehicle safety and responsible driver operations. In an effort to improve customer comfort, there is also a Truckers Lounge and Bistro in the main showroom where customers and operators can relax and enjoy a few refreshments.
 

After having been given a guided tour of the facilities, Maier took the podium, looked around at the audience of customers, staff and suppliers and said: "I wish we had something like this in Germany." It was a simple statement but one which carried a lot of weight for South Africa. Once again, the vision and boldness of South Africans had been recognised by a prominent international visitor - one who is more than qualified to do an accurate comparison.

C'mon. Admit it. All this just has to make you feel proud to be a South African. But, here's the crunch. Go back to the beginning of this article and I said there are problems ahead. While the manufacturers have been doing a great job in either getting into or expanding their presence and operations in this market, the industry as a whole has failed dismally in gearing up to service the expansion and growth by attracting youngsters into the industry. There is a dire skills shortage and it's running across the whole industry.

This was confirmed by Ronald Vinayaka, service manager of the new dealership when he and I broke away form the launch party to view the facilities. After having been guided through what really is a world-class facility, we got onto the point of skills.

"Do you have enough diesel mechanics to provide the service?" I asked.

"At the moment we have 15 but I want 20. The problem we are all facing in this industry is a skills shortage. We certainly feel it and we are always in the market for more diesel mechanics," he replied.

This might sound like an internal problem but not so. The ramifications of the shortage are dire and the effects of the shortage - both in the short and long term - will be serious especially given the more demanding nature of the customers. According to Vinayaka, in the old days a customer would schedule his vehicle for a service and expect it back the next day. If there was a delay of a day or two, it was accepted. This is no longer the case.

"Nowadays, the customer wants his truck to be operating 24/7. When the vehicle comes in for a service, it must be out the same day. That's for scheduled servicing. On top of that, we still have to cater for unexpected breakdowns or problems which are not scheduled but need immediate attention. The transporter is being driven hard by his customers and we, in turn, are being driven hard by the transporter," he says. In all this, the diesel mechanic is a vital link in the chain - and there are not enough of them to go around.
 

Admirable is that the company has started an apprenticeship academy with 19 apprentices on board. Once qualified, some will be no doubt be poached by those who do no training but most will remain to ease the pressure. On this point, attracting and retaining staff is also going to have to receive focused management attention in the future. Hats off though, to Mercedes Benz Commercial Vehicles Durban for at least doing something proactive about skilling up.

The new dealership can stand tall as a beacon of pride for the South African trucking industry. It should, though, also stand as a warning beacon for this industry to catch a serious wake-up call on the skills shortages. If we do not skill up, we are heading for a serious bottleneck where state-of-the art workshops such as this will deteriorate into crisis centers of customer dissatisfaction.