According to Frans Calitz, general manager of parts operations at Nissan Diesel South Africa, the biggest problem at the moment in the trucking industry is the uncontrolled supply and fitment of inferior parts - or else, good quality parts but inferior workmanship. 

“All too often, something as safetycritical as correctly fitted brakes is overlooked and this can lead to devastating consequences,” he says. The South African trucking industry is very competitive and with pure profit in mind, a number of operations have sprung up over the years that are able to provide a ‘cheaper’ service because they are not expected to conform to certain standards. 

“In an effort to save money and stay ahead of competitors, some truck operators are cutting corners while compromising the safety of their vehicles. These operators choose to buy cheap products as genuine parts are perceived to be expensive,” says Calitz, adding that unfortunately, these operators rarely take into consideration the lifecycle costs of pirate parts as opposed to genuine parts. 

“There is also a general perception that genuine parts are more expensive than grey products but on a pure cost per kilometre basis, this myth is quickly dispelled. In the long run, operators will end up paying more for the maintenance of their trucks when inferior quality parts or workmanship have been used,” he says. 

While all too often the finger of blame is pointed at traffic officials, Calitz says the fact is that a traffic officer can’t simply do a roadside check on a truck to see if its brakes are still working properly as they are usually contained in sealed units. 

“The only solution thus lies with the operator in ensuring that only quality parts are used and that these parts are fitted by properly trained technicians.” 

In an attempt to combat the issue of pirate versus genuine parts, Nissan Diesel has gone to great lengths to steer operators in the right direction. For one, the company set out to negotiate the lowest possible prices from suppliers on behalf of its customers and, in the event that these were not obtained, Nissan Diesel has undertaken to subsidise these parts at its network of dealerships across South Africa. 

As part of the process, the company also enlisted the assistance of some of its biggest fleet owners to provide insight from an operator’s perspective. “Fleet owners obviously have unique requirements when it comes to their specific field of operation and by nurturing a longterm relationship with our clients, we are able to address the critical risk areas,” says Calitz.

Furthermore, all bonders affiliated to a Nissan Diesel dealership will now have to adhere to a set of stringent standards as set by Nissan Diesel. This relates to the parts and the workmanship utilised to maintain and repair Nissan Diesel trucks and the trailers used to transport freight. 

Another initiative is the hosting of information days to which customers and industry experts are invited. At these customer days, the emphasis is on spelling out the dangers of using pirate parts and highlighting the benefits of using genuine parts and accredited service centres. 

“We‘ve been hosting these information days for some time now and since inception, they have proven to be very popular and greatly successful,” said Calitz. “One of our primary intentions is to underline Nissan Diesel’s overriding commitment to low lifecycle costs and to remind operators that we are, under no uncertain terms, willing to compromise on safety or quality.” 

Moreover, Nissan Diesel is in the process of developing a top-rated dealer network by setting and implementing world best practices throughout the entire network. In this regard, some Nissan Diesel dealers have already achieved top honours in international competitions. 

According to Calitz, the entire dealer network is focused on providing the lowest possible lifecycle costs and it is for this reason that the dealer network handles all retail work. 

Nissan Diesel’s initiatives all form part of a larger effort by truck manufacturers and the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers (Naamsa) to improve the safety of trucks on South African roads. 

“There are many operations out there that provide service in varying degrees of quality, and through this project, we want to separate the good from the bad,” says Calitz.