When it comes to technology designed specifically to enhance road and driver safety, we see great strides in both passenger cars and heavy commercial vehicles. For some reason, light commercial vehicles (LCV) have, until recently, only been fitted with the most rudimentary safety features writes
Paul Collings.
Things change though and now airbags, ABS, EBS and reinforced cabs are just some of the technologies finding their way into new vans and pick-ups. This is obviously a good thing. The LCV parc in South Africa runs into many thousands and the safer they are, the safer our streets will be (did I hear someone say 'taxi'?). Driver fitness is an integral part of the overall picture and training lies at the heart of it. Judging by Arrive Alive statistics, safety features mean zip if the driver is incompetent.
All that being said, DaimlerChrysler SA's (DCSA) Mercedes Benz Commercial Vehicle Division (MBCV) has proactively come to the party with what it calls the 'Safety on Tour' programme, which ran locally as a road show during May.
Designed to educate dealers, fleet managers and emergency services personnel as to the workings of new safety features on Mercedes Benz Sprinter and Vito vans, the event - held at Swartkops Raceway outside Pretoria - was a real eye-opener for this scribe. Under the guidance of driver trainer specialist, Victor Hoesch, brought out from Europe by DCSA after years of conducting similar 'tours' in Europe and North Africa, delegates were given the 'full Monty' on cutting edge safety technology, kicking in at speeds in excess of 80kph.
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VICTOR
HOESCH, specialist driver trainer from Germany observes the
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Sticks like glue
The technological innovations fitted to the new Sprinter and Vito LCVs include new braking systems (ABS and EBS), enhanced by electronic stabilisation (Electronic stability programme [ESP] and Electronic Brake Force Distribution [EBD]), brake assist (BAS [found on Merc HCVs]) and acceleration skid control.
This might sound like a case of acronym overkill but these active units effectively ensure a vehicle sticks to the road. In the event of an emergency - like when half the vehicle leaves the road and hits gravel or swerves suddenly or has to brake hard in wet conditions - these systems ensure the vehicle remains upright, slows down safely and does not tail spin.
On the track- where both the Sprinter and Vito models with loads out braked a Merc C55 AMG by several metres - and the skid pan, the test vehicles performed near miracles. Imagine travelling at 100kph and having to yank the steering wheel to avoid an obstacle. Normally, a vehicle would start to fishtail, requiring counter-steering and a whole lot of rally driving experience. With Merc's new safety technology, the active systems do all the thinking, stabilising and slowing the vehicle down safely and rapidly. What's really amazing is the driver doesn't even have to apply the foot brake!
Flying killers
Part of the education programme is proper, safe load securement. As Hoesch says: "If a vehicle brakes hard at speed, a flying object inside the cab can be propelled towards the driver. Even an item as small as a cell phone can be lethal in these instances." Invariably, an LCV will carry some heavy stuff. Imagine a 100kg workbench or 25 litre paint tins shifting around in the back. These will cause the driver to lose control of the vehicle under heavy braking or swerving.
The 'Tour' emphasises two types of load securing techniques for van operators: direct and indirect load restraint. Direct load restraint is placing cargo direct up against the body paneling without any gaps. Stronger items should be placed on the outside of the load with weaker items in the centre.
Indirect load restraint is when tie-downs are used to secure the load to the cargo floor. Always use good quality tie-downs and never overload the vehicle. When necessary, a combination of these two techniques can be used. The new Sprinter and Vito models come equipped with load securing hooks and rails in the load body as well as protective bulkheads between cab and load body. Special high-grip floor lining is another innovation to keep loads firmly in place.
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GERT
GROBLER points out the new load securing and load body
safety features in the new high-roof Vito. |
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Educate down the line
"Getting all personnel in the distribution chain of the vehicles properly trained on the use of the new systems is crucial to the success of the 'Safety on Tour' programme," says Gert Grobler, product manager vans, MBCV. "Dealers can now train customers who can, in turn, train their drivers. So far, it's been a great success and we'll definitely be doing it again next year."
Grobler emphasised that these systems are designed to overcome critical situations but the laws that govern the physics of driving still apply. "If a driver pushes a vehicle to its limits and contact with the road surface is lost, these systems have no information to work with and will not function as intended. For this reason, many companies will only let their drivers behind the wheel of a new Mercedes Benz van if they've been on a driver safety training programme."
And dead right too! After all, new hi tech hardware is always linked to the original computer - the human brain.
