Capital Equipment News December 2017

TRANSPORT

telematics platform, helps customers track their vehicles and is also crucial when it comes to identifying driver training needs. “FleetBoard Professional Driver Training yields highly-competent drivers that have been trained, tested and trusted,” says Hafkamp. In today’s operating environment, customers are more concerned about aftermarket support to keep their vehicles on the road with minimal downtime. Mercedes-Benz Bus & Coach Southern Africa benefits from its wide dealer and parts network, with a greater parts availability across the country. In fact, Hafkamp says, in its quest to become the number one bus supplier in the country, Mercedes-Benz Bus & Coach Southern Africa has established a dedicated bus division specifically focused on this market segment. “The bus market is changing, and we have also changed. We have established a dedicated sales and support team with lots of competence in the bus segment,” says Hafkamp. The new structure was implemented at the start of this year. Henry says the people aspect has been the major focus, and new skills dedicated to the bus market have been injected into the system. “We have adapted our business to suit our customers’ needs. As part of our new bus model, we have split the country into five regions,” says Henry. The new regions comprise the Cape Region, made up of Eastern Cape and Northern Cape; two Gauteng regions, one goes with Free State and the other with North West; Mpumalanga; as well as KwaZulu-Natal. “The new structure allows us to give a bus-specific service. We are in a transitional period, getting the business used to the new structure,” adds Henry. Tough market conditions Speaking of market conditions, Hafkamp says the overall bus market, comprising the three segments – city buses, commuter buses and coaches – has been in a decline this year. However, Hafkamp says commuters and coaches were fairly stable in 2017, compared with 2016. There has been a reverse in fortunes this year, as the city bus market enjoyed a good run in 2016. “There has been no investment into city buses this year, resulting in almost a 20% decline. However, we expect the bus market to return to a growth cycle in 2018. We have started to see a lot of enquiries again,” says Hafkamp. He reasons that many municipalities will likely be returning to market to meet their replacement cycles. “As a result, we expect the bus market to rebound in 2018,” concludes Hafkamp. b

It is driven by the trusted Mercedes-Benz OM 906LA engine delivering 175 kW (235 hp) of power and engine torque of 850 Nm at 1 200 to 1 600 rpm.

With a completely new design, the RS4 rear axle is said to aid highway driving and improve fuel efficiency.

that a comfortable driver is a safe one, the OF-1723 chassis considers the ergonomics of the driver and comes standard with a power- assisted, tiltable and telescopic steering that enables easy manoeuvring. Driver fatigue is significantly reduced as the chassis offers a shorter turning circle and a comfortable driving position. One-stop shop Mercedes-Benz Bus & Coach Southern Africa provides a range of complementary services in its quest to offer a one-stop shop for its bus customers. For example, TruckStore, its used bus and truck facility, caters for both used bus needs and trade-ins when purchasing new units. Mercedes-Benz Financial Services, which offers an in-house financial solution for

Mercedes-Benz customers, is another very crucial arm of the business, especially at a time when conventional financing institutions are shying away from financing commercial vehicles on the back of a constrained economy. This is complemented by Mercedes- Benz Service Contracts, said to be getting more popular with local customers. Henry says customers are fast understanding the importance of professional service for their commercial vehicles to ensure maximum uptime, especially at a time when any standing time is out of question. “With Mercedes-Benz Service Contracts, customers have a peace of mind as this allows them to focus on their core business than servicing vehicles,” says Henry. Meanwhile, FleetBoard, a Mercedes-Benz

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