Over a century ago, gold fever struck this area, luring prospectors from all over the world to pan its rivers for nuggets. A few men made a fortune but many more ended up penniless. For them, paradise looked more like purgatory. Today, a new commodity holds the promise of riches - 'green gold', more commonly known as timber. 

Green gold MAN
Mpumalanga is South Africa's forestry products epicentre with over half a million hectares under cultivation. Giant organisations like Sappi and Mondi own much of this land as well as many saw log, pulp and paper mills that require millions of tons of timber every year to feed the booming multi-national, multi-billion dollar industries they service. It's a production line that never stops, one that could not compete without the trucks that underpin its logistics chain. 

This customer focused service ethic runs through the organisation. "Our sales personnel are trained transport consultants and are equipped with the latest computers (P4, 1 gig RAM) and software (HTM Simulation) to ensure clients get the best solution for the application. When customers submit tender applications, they come to us to assist them in putting together the necessary documentation," says Olivier. "Apart from having highly experienced truck salesmen on the floor, we also have a steady stream of new blood coming in via MAN head office's Cadet Programme which trains both sales and parts personnel."

The MAN TGA series is now well established as the 'truck to beat' in the highly competitive timber transport industry in the region. "We sold 22 in the first quarter of 2006 and the timber truck drivers are well pleased with the introduction of the electronic gearbox. The older F series 6x4 model did very well despite a few gearbox niggles but now, with the TGA, warranty claims have dropped considerably. The common rail injectors are improving fuel consumption and despite the fact that the TGA is sold with a service and maintenance plan, our clients stringently check fuel to prevent injector damage."

Keeping the workshop manned with skilled technicians is crucial to the facility's success in the future. "We believe that ideally, every technician should have an apprentice," adds Olivier, "and that's why we have taken on four apprentices. This policy of knowledge transfer extends to training our clients' drivers on new vehicles. We have one highly skilled driver whose full time job is to teach drivers how to get the best out of our trucks. He'll be joined shortly by another driver trainer to meet the demand."

The MAN Nelspruit branch is ideally positioned to capitalise on growth in the forestry industry and in other areas too: "Mpumalanga and Mozambique are booming tourism destinations and being situated on the N4-Maputo Corridor means we can service the long-haul truck traffic passing either way," Olivier says.

"We've had good rains here over the last six months and the sugar, banana and avo harvests should boost truck traffic as well. We've just delivered a fire truck to Mondi and if we can reduce the extent of forest fires in the region, we should be selling a lot more timber trucks in the near future." 
 

As a storm hits the Graskop area, a  Bell logger loads timber on a Masakhane MAN TGA.
The workshop at MAN’s Nelspruit HQ is geared up for rapid turn-around time and is well sized to handle a boom in sales and service needs.
This Masakhane Forestry TGA is fitted with a Stako load body, sporting lightweight, strong Domex uprights to weather the blows from timber and logging machines.

Yellow MAN
LT Plant is a dedicated timber transport operation and its owner, Eric Duvenhage, is a true example of a latter-day 'gold' prospector, a real success story in this arduous enterprise. His trucks run short and long haul trips, carrying logs from the off-road plantations to various mills, and wood chips from saw mills to board manufacturing plants. He only runs MAN. 

Rynardt Pietersen started working for Duvenhage in his school holidays more than 15 years ago and is now LT Plant's Group Manager: "Eric swears by MAN and has owned every MAN model since 1978. We've tested other makes of trucks but nothing comes close to the performance and backup of MAN. Their service is tops as is their backup. The workshop in Nelspruit has a real specialist technician in Andre Becker and they're open after hours and on public holidays. Their parts supply is very good as is their overall customer focus." 

LT Plant was the first lowveld operator to buy a MAN TGA in 2004, says Pietersen: "It's done 420 000 km so far with zero wear on the diff. It's also much more economical than the F2000 and our maintenance costs are down 30%. Also, service intervals have doubled!"

The technology in the TGA has all but ruled out driver abuse, adds Pietersen: "The electronic gearbox and the Onboard Computer, which can be diagnosed via infrared on a laptop, have reduced the number of mechanical problems we were facing with the older trucks." 

Of a total fleet of 29 trucks, F2000s number 20 and TGAs 9. "It's just a matter of time before we replace the entire fleet with new technology MANs," says Pietersen. "The TGA comes with an unlimited warranty which is a big advantage over the F2000 with its 3-year/300 000km cover."

LT Plant moves 50 000 tons of timber every month and has its own workshop. "We have five technicians who conduct preventative maintenance work on the trucks and trailers as well as repairs to the out-of-warranty vehicles. We also have a driver trainer who has had his heavy-duty licence for 45 years. He trains our drivers repetitively, keeping them up to speed on correct driving techniques. MAN trains him on the new vehicles and he then trains our drivers. Through his efforts, overall fleet fuel consumption has improved from 1.6km/litre to 1.85km/litre."

The off-road work that lies at the heart of timber transport takes a heavy toll on trucks. The roads are steep and extremely bumpy. They're riddled with potholes and rain can turn them into rivers of mud. The MAN TGAs which are built according to the 'Worldwide Spec' have a higher ground clearance than other models and are fitted with steel bumpers. These design considerations, along with its hub reduction and intarder capabilities, make it one of the more safer vehicles for this kind of application. 

"We enhance the safety of our vehicles by conducting nightly in-field audits by management between 9 and 2pm, checking for roadworthiness and other safety issues," says Pietersen. "We have a zero-tolerance policy on drinking and driving and tachos are checked after every shift. We are LAP (Load Accreditation Programme) accredited and all our vehicles are fitted with load cells. This strong emphasis on safety and compliance lowers operating costs and improves productivity." 
 

Battlefield MAN
Another company operating in the area is Masakhane Forestry which started harvesting pine and blue gum trees in Mpumalanga in the early '90s.

"Four years ago we decided to set up our own transport division because sub-contracted transport was proving to be too unreliable," says the company's MD, John Chandler. "We employ 700 people in our overall operations. Fifty men with chainsaws cut down 10 500 trees every day. Our trucks move 23 000 tons of timber per month to the mill at Ngodwana and to railway stations at Hazyview and Graskop for delivery to mills in Richards Bay."

The company has five MAN trucks, dedicated to furnishing a Sappi contract with saw logs. "We spoke to other operators in the area before we bought vehicles and settled on MAN because of the solid reputation they have for good backup. The maintenance contract was also a consideration which led us to purchase three TGAs, an F2000 and an L Series personnel carrier," explains Chandler. 

His brother, Andrew, is operations manager at Masakhane Forestry, a man who basically lives in among the trees alongside his crew of truckers, timber harvesting machine operators, tree fellers, stackers and debarkers.

"MAN trucks aren't really built for rocks and holes so we've had to fit steel belly plates and other protective devices to help curtail the damage done to the vehicles by the Bell loggers. They've got these great big knobbly tyres that run into the side of the truck as they load the timber. Despite these perils, we do have some peace of mind knowing MAN technicians work around the clock and that their spares supply and backup service is excellent. We're well covered in the event of a major breakdown. They can overhaul a complete engine in three days!"

It is clear to see that MAN Nelspruit has its act together as far as service and support operations are concerned. However, on certain issues, it seems the branch is under the governing hand of MAN head office in Germany, particularly when it comes to financial issues like warranty claims.
 

Handling over TGAs to LT Plant – From left, Martin Ritchie (MAN sales), Dave Croxon (MAN Nelspruit sales Manager), LT Plant’s Eric Duvenhage and Rynardt Pietersen.

Chandler relates an incident where a gearbox failed on one of the MANs which was still under warranty. The 'black box' had to be diagnosed in Germany which, according to Chandler, took several weeks, leaving them hanging as to who was going to foot the bill for the new gearbox.

"This plays havoc with your financial planning. Eventually, we received a short email from MAN Germany denying warranty coverage and stating that the box failed due to 'driver abuse' with no further explanation of what the 'black box' analysis revealed to justify the abuse claim," says Chandler. "We were aware of gearbox failings in the same model in other forestry operations in this area, making us quite sure that the problem was a design fault and not driver related."

Chandler makes a valid point, one that is essentially about time, that all important commodity. What's the point of having an operational structure that is able to 'turn on a dime' and deliver rapid turnaround times when a sluggish 'multinational corporate financial infrastructure' overrides it and undoes the good work being done at local level? MAN Nutzfahrzeuge needs to reasses this approach to decision making on financialy-based issues like warranty claims and devolve power to regional head offices. 

The Masakhane Forestry operation is a seamless mix of harvesting expertise and smart trucking. "You have to be 100% hands-on," explains Andrew, "spending as much time in-field as possible. You've got to lead by example, whether that's operating a mechanical debarking machine properly or driving a fully loaded truck. Once you've demonstrated to your staff what's possible, you have a mutually recognised benchmark. 60% of the work we do is on dirt roads so we don't need load cells. We use two-way radios to communicate with our drivers and a Control Instruments FM200 system is fitted to all our trucks to monitor vehicle position and driver behaviour. In this game, you can't afford not to know where your vehicles are and what they're doing."

Spending an afternoon in-field with the Masakhane team is a bit like being in a World War 1 movie. Chainsaw wielders crying "timber!" clear great tracts of mountainside while platoons of hunched personnel strip the fallen eucalyptus trunks of bark, while others stack the 'bleeding' poles in 3-ton bundles for the 'skidder' to lift and drop at the roadside 'depot' where a Bell logger lifts, 'indexes' and then drop the logs onto a timber trailer made by Stalcor.

To add to the drama, a thunderstorm hits, dropping hail like ack-ack fire in reverse while lightening sets ablaze a section of the plantation to the left of the exit road, which has suddenly turned into a muddy river...

Blue chip MAN
Entrepreneurs who have made their mark specialising in timber transport are a rare breed. A healthy appetite for mud, sweat, gears and sleepless nights out in the plantations does not rise readily in your average transporter it seems. Pretenders do come to take on the challenges set by the lucrative tenders but they soon hit the wall, simply because they haven't the faintest idea of the true nature of the business. 

Corporate giants, however, have the resources to survive the learning curve and transport icons like Unitrans form part of the elite club of which Duvenhage, Pietersen and the Chandlers are members - the 'society of successful timber transporters'. 

Winston Blaine is depot manager at the Unitrans depot situated alongside Sappi's huge Ngodwana mill.

"We run two kinds of timber operations here," he says, "Direct to Mill (DTM), which comprises the running of pulpwood from Sjonajona in the Barberton area over the Celtis Pass to the mill - a distance of some 80 kilometres. For this, we use a fleet of thirteen MAN 33-464 truck tractors made up of eight rigid/drawbar combinations and five rigid/pup combinations. Revenue is governed according to kilometres driven, not per ton. This creates a win-win situation because the more we travel, the lower our rate."

The second 'Express' operation involves felled timber being picked up at roadside depots and transported to the Ngodwana mill.

The trailers used to transport the timber are all built according to 'SAM1' specs (Sappi, Afrit and MAN approved), using lightweight but strong Domex uprights. Blaine points out that unlike the Chandler-Masakhane operation, Unitrans MANs do not go deep in-field: "We use BELL T17Ds to haul timber from in-field to road side in 2.5 m lengths," he says. "The reason the privateers don't use this 'yellow' off-road truck is because it costs double the price of a MAN with trailer." 

All vehicles go through the Ngodwana mill weighbridge. "All our vehicles, except for the Express fleet, are fitted with load cells on truck and trailer. The mass is confirmed over the radio by the weighbridge control room. One Ops person is dedicated to 36 trucks, monitoring vehicles' positions and violations via Digicore's C track system. All vehicles are fitted with tachographs that are examined after each trip," says Blaine.

In a load-hungry business these controls are necessary - as is LAP accreditation. "The Ngodwana mill utilizes 25 -30 000 tonnes of pulp/chips per day and Unitrans supplies a small proportion of that. In total, our operation runs a total of 84 000 tons of timber product per month," says Blaine.

The Unitrans Ngodwana fleet is yet to purchase the TGA. "We demo'd a TGA 33-410 which got 57 litres per 100km compared to 75 litres per 100km in the current MAN fleet. The electronic gearbox gives a much smoother ride but it's not foolproof. However, when our contract comes up for renewal in October, we'll look at replacing the entire MAN fleet in the area with TGAs." With the price of fuel being as it is, and with those type of savings being achieved, replacement would be a wise decision.

Despite the muscle which a large corporate like Unitrans can bring to the bargaining table, Blaine has only the highest praise for the MAN Nelspruit branch. "Routine maintenance is done on site and major services are done every 12 000 km at MAN. Intermediate services done at 6 000 km are conducted in our workshop where we have one qualified mechanic, four RSA1 technicians and six RSA2 trailer mechanics."

Despite the difficult terrain, the operation has an impressive safety record. "We haven't had a serious accident in over three years. This is due to many factors but preventative maintenance and ongoing driver training are the major ones."
 

Risk Manager for Trucksurance, Janine Gillespie, helps a Unitrans driver be safer and more productive by analyzing his tacho charts and giving him regular feedback and corrective training.

Smart MAN
Timber transport is a gruelling, high-risk business and securing contracts with the likes of Sappi and Mondi entails the daily implementation of a host of risk-control procedures to ensure efficiency and profitability. LAP accreditation is a pre-requisite to winning a major tender, as is a modus operandi that manages risk pro-actively, covering all facets of the operation. 

Janine Gillespie is the Mpumalanga representative of Trucksurance, a specialised truck transport insurance brokerage based in Pietermaritzburg. Her clients include the likes of Masakhane Forestry and Unitrans as well as other leading local hauliers. She holds a Code 14 licence and is an expert tacho chart analyser, a service she delivers to her clients to improve safety and efficiency amongst their drivers.

"Timber truck drivers work twelve hour shifts - day and night - and the conditions they operate in are extreme. They spend long hours waiting to load and then have to get the timber to the mill or station quickly and safely. It's a big task indeed," she says. 

Monitoring tachographs (and other truck data generators) on a daily basis helps identify trends and problem areas with drivers and vehicles. Says Gillespie: "Risk factors like speeding, over-revving and harsh braking can be investigated to determine whether they were done negligently or defensively. The engagement of the diff lock in non-appropriate situations is another hot issue that can be sorted through tacho analysis. By comparing speed and rpm, one can determine degrees of driver fatigue and other causes of accidents. Excessive idling, a big fuel waster, can also be picked up."

This information can also act as a basis for driver incentives, adds Gillespie. "Driving hours need to be analysed closely to ensure that maximum productivity is being attained. Trip times and lead distances are closely monitored to make sure drivers are adhering to benchmarks, usually set by driver trainers running set routes and recorded on a master tacho. Ultimately, motivated and skilled drivers in well-maintained vehicles will produce the goods in a more cost effective way, incurring fewer losses. What's more, the risk profile of each driver will improve, resulting in lower insurance premiums." 

Wise MAN
MAN is a world-leader in automotive engineering and timber transporters are embracing new technologies like common rail diesel injectors, electronic gearboxes and intarders that boost vehicle safety and performance. They're also adopting new 'intelligence' devices to enhance driver and vehicle profitability. 

It's all about getting the right machines and the right people together to work as a team. And let's face it; in an environment as unforgiving as the forested mountains of Mpumalanga, you can't afford to take chances, especially when the right way has already been established. In the ancient words of the Chinese sage, Lao Tzu: "Nature is not human-hearted but MAN is nature-suited."
 

	Hard knocks – The rough terrain and daily bump and grind with harvesting and loading equipment causes serious damage to timber transport trucks. Operators need to fit protective bars and plates to fuel tanks, sumps and drive trains. They also have to stomach the need to replace bumpers, mud flaps and other costly items.
	A Masakhane Forestry 4x4 ‘skidder’ lifts a 3-ton stack of logs from an in-field site.

Lesson from the forests

What struck me after reading this story is how a brand - in this case MAN - can build a reputation in an area, or field of operation, in such a way that it rises to a point of dominance in that area or field. It does not come easy for, as Paul Collings states in his article: "Success in this field is dependent on the level of teamwork between the various role players: the transport operation, the truck supplier, the consignor, the harvester and the consignee." In the lowveld forestry operations, all players have come together to work in harmony in servicing an incredibly demanding industry sector in the most professional manner possible. That MAN Truck & Bus South Africa has moulded its operations to fit in ideally as one of those co-operative partners is evident via the high level of praise operators interviewed have for the MAN product as well as back-up services.

On this point, I want to emphasise that this story was not an MAN initiated public relations jaunt. If it was, one could look on the words of praise with a degree of scepticism. No, MAN had nothing to do with this story. It was an entirely independent exercise conducted by FleetWatch after Collings picked up the strong presence of MAN in the area and wanted to find out what they were doing right. None of the operators interviewed needed to earn 'Brownie points' with MAN. Given this, what I read into the comments made by those operators to FleetWatch's Collings is that it revolves around good product and excellent back-up service. Those are the foundations upon which MAN has built its dominance in the area and this proves, once again, what we have always said: "It's all about life-time costs - not upfront discount or price." Herein lies a lesson that not only operators should take note of - but also suppliers of vehicles.

Patrick O'Leary
Managing Editor