A Teletrac Navman survey of more than 1,800 global fleet operators has revealed that rising fuel costs (39%), disruption due to the impact of COVID-19 (32%), and supply chain pressure (31%), are the top challenges they currently face. “The last 12 months have created new complexities for fleets, but fuel cost rises are the number one concern for operators globally,” …

Australia’s first electric log truck has arrived in Mount Gambier, as Fennell Forestry cuts a new path towards a carbon-free future for the sector. The truck is just the second electric log truck in the world and has been commissioned by the local harvest and haulage company to provide a realistic carbon reduction solution for the heavy transport industry. Fennell …

This new opportunity comes with a free conference registration – up to about five of them in fact for – for this year’s Wood Transport & Logistics 2023 event running in Rotorua, New Zealand on 24-25 May 2023. The Forest Industry Engineering Association (FIEA) has teamed up with the WIDE Trust, a charitable Trust formed in 2018 that supports the …

Canadian Company takes the transportation industry by storm. Edison Motors is a revolutionary company that specializes in the design, development, and production of electric semi-trucks. Founded by Chace Barber and Eric Little, this privately owned Canadian clean technology company has quickly made a name for itself in the industry, thanks to its innovative approach to manufacturing electric trucks that deliver …

Raptor® is a forestry product line made of steel components, produced by a Brazilian company called Unylaser. Unylaser will be exhibiting this year, along with other key equipment and technology suppliers to the log transport industry as part of the eagerly awaited Wood Transport & Logistics 2023 event running in Rotorua, New Zealand on 24-25 May. Within the Raptor® portfolio …

While Tevva’s laser-guided focus remains trained on building and delivering its battery-electric 7.5-ton vehicle, testing, and development of its hydrogen-electric counterpart continues. Four Tevva engineers: Charlie Cordell, Byron Dolman, Ryan Clark, and Toby Hurst were doing exactly that recently, with a ‘range test’ of Tevva’s dual-energy prototype truck. The exercise saw the foursome accumulate more than 1,000 kilometers (approximately 620 …

As detailed in earlier issues, has been set up for forestry, log transport and wood logistics companies from across Australasia. Wood Transport & Logistics 2023 is being run on 24-25 May 2023 – live in Rotorua with live streaming set up for those outside New Zealand. Registrations to the event continue to roll in. As well as trade exhibitions and …

From logging truck beginnings to battery-electric trucks and fuel cell pilots Kenworth, which began as a maker of logging trucks in 1923, is celebrating its 100th anniversary. Kenworth Truck Co. will spend the next 12 months celebrating its 100th anniversary — from its beginnings as a logging truck company that made diesel engines standard to a line-up that includes battery-powered …

Six international businesses have launched a new consortium to bring zero-emission aviation to life in New Zealand. The Hydrogen Consortium’s vision is to support the country to pioneer the commercial deployment of green hydrogen-powered aircraft. The partners are international aerospace leader Airbus, global green energy company Fortescue Future Industries (FFI), leading world airline Air New Zealand, next generation energy company …

New Zealand company Fabrum, a world leader in zero-emission transition technologies to enable a lower-carbon economy, announced its $23M Series A financing led by London-headquartered AP Ventures with participation from Australia-based Fortescue Future Industries, Japan-based Obayashi Corporation and New Zealand-based K1W1. With the new funding, Fabrum plans to expand its global presence and scale up its manufacturing capacity with a …

The first all-electric Mercedes-Benz trucks bound for Australia and New Zealand have rolled off the production line. Mercedes-Benz Trucks will begin a local validation programme for the zero emission eActros in Australia and New Zealand this year. An all-electric eEconic will also undergo a validation programme in Australia. Four eActros and one eEconic electric trucks will operate with a wide …

JCB will feature its new hydrogen combustion engine—the company’s solution for zero carbon emissions for construction and agricultural equipment on the international stage at North America’s largest construction show, CONEXPO/CON-AGG (CONEXPO) 2023 in mid-March. The hydrogen combustion engine from JCB has been revealed during a media event in England. Initially, the company designed an excavator that used a hydrogen fuel …

New Zealand is currently facing a problem with the de-hiring of empty shipping containers with an estimated 40,000 unused containers awaiting transportation out of the country. The issue is causing frustration among clients in the supply chain as containers sit in warehouses waiting to be collected, while trucking companies in turn wait for empty de-hire slots, according to a recent …

SEA Electric has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with systems integrator MEVCO, which specialises in battery electric light commercial vehicles, to provide electric Toyota Hilux and Land Cruiser models for the mining industry. Under the deal valued at nearly AU$1 billion, MEVCO will commit to order 8500 units during the next five years. More than half of the 2023 …

Global transport is on the cusp of substantial changes driven by constant innovation in technology, the need to deliver more, a powerful surge in customer expectations, and pricing. In New Zealand, the industry has seen a wide range of ups and downs during the past year, all of which influenced the survival of many businesses. As fleet companies prepare for …

Australian freight giant Team Global Express has made the biggest order for electric trucks in Australia after landing an AU$20 million deal with the Australian Renewable Energy Agency to fund the purchase. The deal involves the purchase of 36 medium duty electric trucks from the Swedish based Volvo Trucks and another 24 light rigid e-canter battery electric trucks from Daimler …

A consortium of British engineering and industry bodies is developing a zero-emission hydrogen fuel cell-powered version of the Toyota Hilux Led by Toyota Motor Manufacturing (UK) Ltd (TMUK) and funded by the UK Government through the Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC), the project will develop the technologies to integrate the second-generation fuel cell components from the Toyota Mirai within an electrically-propelled …

In log transport, we continue to ramp up coverage of an array of new innovations in electric, hydrogen and diesel-hybrid powered vehicles, truck automation and platooning. Right now, there’s a huge amount of interest by larger fleet operators. Already, a number of firsts for fuelling log trucks in this part of the world are underway and being planned for early …

NZX-listed Scott Technology has an agreement with construction and mining equipment manufacturer Caterpillar to develop an automated connection system to support stationary charging of electrified machines. Under the collaboration, Scott Technology will apply its Robofuel product technology, which successfully automates the traditional diesel refuelling process of mining vehicles, to enable solutions in electrified applications. Electric mining vehicles will require more …

Tesla has completed an 800-kilometre drive of its soon-to-be-delivered electric Semi with more than 36 tonnes in gross vehicle weight. That’s according to a tweet by chief executive Elon Musk on 27 November. This follows an earlier tweet by Musk in October which said first deliveries of the truck are set for food and beverage corporation PepsiCo on December 1. …

Södra is launching a major initiative to electrify the operation’s transportation. A new project will study the future potential to operate electric-powered trucks, forklifts and loaders that can help further reduce the association’s fossil-fuel emissions. Södra is currently a net producer of electricity and is aiming to reach net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases by 2040. A natural step in this …

Softwood forest growers of Southern NSW and North East Victoria joined forces with one of their major customers, Hyne Timber, to host a driver safety day and start a conversation with the forestry transport industry. All truck drivers leaving the Hyne Timber Tumbarumba mill during the day pulled in for a conversation on driver wellbeing and fatigue, chain of responsibility …

In New Zealand, OneFortyOne’s Kaituna Sawmill and its partners celebrated its first export shipment of woodchip out of Port Marlborough last week, as part of a new export initiative with partner Marusumi Whangarei Co Ltd. Woodchip has been accumulating at Shakespeare Bay over the last three months, in preparation for the loading of the Southern Star Vessel which docked on …

Many commercial fleet operators are thinking about transitioning their vehicles to hydrogen or natural gas engines. These fuels can be great ways to reduce emissions. Both fuel options present similarities and differences across a variety of areas. For example, both hydrogen and natural gas are predominantly used in their gaseous form in vehicle applications. This leads to similarities in some …

Car giant Volvo has shocked the motoring industry, announcing plans to stop selling petrol vehicles in Australia by 2026, with a top executive calling the older technology a “shrinking business”. Volvo’s Australian deadline will come four years before its worldwide target to transition to electric vehicles, and comes one week after it launched its first electric car in Australia. Volvo …

Volvo Group is investing 75 million euro (NZ$126m) to develop battery module production at its truck plant in Ghent, Belgium. It expects to be in production by 2025 and will strengthen the manufacturer’s battery system supply chain which currently relies on partners for the supply of cells and modules. The battery module manufacturing line in Ghent will be able to …

Tesla Semi Hitting the Market. The Tesla Semi Truck is a fully electric vehicle that features an “autopilot” mode to help with semi-autonomous driving. This truck is soon to change the whole trucking experience. Elon Musk twitted that he is very excited to start production of the Tesla Semi Truck with deliveries to Pepsi on 1st December 2022.

Costs for NZ road transport businesses have risen almost four times higher than inflation in the last quarter, according to the latest Grant Thornton Cost Index. The quarterly index shows that there has been an overall quarterly increase to June 2022 of 6.24% to road transport business costs, compared with a 1.66% increase in the CPI inflation for the same …

Lots of excitement and lots of challenges. Talk to manufacturers engaged in the fast-moving electric vehicle industry and both descriptions quickly work their way into the conversation. Such was the case Tuesday afternoon at the 2022 IndustryWeek Manufacturing & Technology Show, where a keynote panel discussion on the future of electric vehicles launched Day 1 of the conference and expo …

Logmeter, is an automatic system that delivers in real-time high-precision volume measurements and estimates biometrics characteristics of wood logs loaded on a truck before entering the mill. Forestry companies are increasing the application of technological tools in their industrial processes. Control, efficiency, and the strengthening of sustainability throughout their value chain are some of the challenges that companies address with …

The Australian Forest Products Association (AFPA) Growers Chamber’s Work, Health and Safety Subcommittee (WHSS) has helped drive two new initiatives to improve safety across forest industries transport. The initiatives, funded under Round 7 of the Federal Government’s Heavy Vehicle Safety Initiative (HVSI), managed under the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NVHR), include: • A ForestWorks project to develop two new projects …

If one guy can call his electric-car company Tesla, why not call theirs Edison, a couple of Merritt entrepreneurs figured. While the real-life Tesla and Edison, ground-breaking inventors, became fierce rivals, Edison Motors has a way to go before catching up with Elon Musk’s car company. But the journey has begun: Chace Barber and Eric Little are building hybrid electric …

Swedish manufacturer Volvo Trucks is beginning series production of its heavy-duty electric models with global deliveries set to ramp up.  And customers in Australia and New Zealand can expect to see the vehicles on local roads in the near future.  Electric versions of the company’s “most important” heavy-duty truck range includes the Volvo FH, FM, and FMX which can operate …

Fennell Forestry, the Mount Gambier based harvest and haulage company has commissioned the world’s second ever electric log truck, in the hope of providing a realistic carbon-zero solution for the industry. Transport is Australia’s second highest contributor to carbon emissions. A single diesel-powered log truck produces in excess of 500 tonnes of carbon every year.  Converting to an electric engine …

Soaring fuel prices and greener policies have given electric vehicles (EVs) a serious boost in recent years. Now the attention is turning to trucks, but manufacturers still face a dilemma over which technology can best do the job. Some companies like Volkswagen are embracing battery-electric trucks because they’re cheaper and the charging infrastructure is more developed. Others such as Hyundai …