Capital Equipment News July 2022

Ipelegeng Transport Trust operates Gauteng’s Sedibeng District and transports more than 10 000 people each day.

Mphahlele cites Ipelegeng company data that shows an influx of people travelling on their buses every Monday and only returning again on a Friday

Kabelo Mphahlele, COO of Ipelegeng Transport Trust.

ciency solutions,” says Mphahlele. Using the monthly telematic vehicle reports issued by the Scania team, Mphahlele has been able to pinpoint the drivers whose driving styles need attention. “The reports allow us to keep drivers updated on their performance so they can correct any issues,” says Mphahlele. Drivers who need support to drive more efficiently are offered training which Mphahlele values highly: “The key to fuel efficiency is driver behaviour. One of the first costs operators cut is driver training. Training is very import ant. Over the long-term, there is a significant increase in fuel efficiency.” Additionally, Ipelegeng has extended its travel times to facilitate a more relaxed driving environment. “We are rearranging our shifts,” says Mphahlele, “With road conditions as they are, there is always a new pothole or speed hump to navigate. We want our drivers to slow down before the potholes and continue to drive slowly without accelerating so that fuel is saved. To support our drivers, we are extending our travel times by 20 minutes so drivers aren’t under pressure and can drive at speeds that support maximum fuel efficiencies.” Ipelegeng also employs mapping on their gearboxes. “The Scania vehicles are so smart. By setting the Scania Opticruise gear box to Economy Mode, the vehicle optimises fuel efficiencies, regardless of how the driver performs,” says Mphahlele. Service and maintenance plan Maintenance is another key focus area. Ipelegeng has had its own onsite workshop since 1998. “We maintained our first Scania vehi cles,” says Mphahlele. “Our technicians were trained by Scania and had Scania

“Scania can take on all terrains. The buses aren’t shy to go on the back roads. Since we started running Scania, we have only had to replace one engine due to damage. We’ve never replaced a gearbox.”

The recent addition of 24 new Scania buses with automatic transmissions has taken the operation to new levels of cost efficiencies with fuel savings.

Since partnering with Scania, the company has recorded an improvement in uptime: “Our business relies on our ability to run efficiently.”

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translated into less wastage and increased cost efficiencies. “With the rough roads and array of potholes along many of our routes, vehicles with too much tech tend to have a lot of issues, including burnt-out fuses and other problems.” The Scania vehicles still deliver a CPK of under R2, nearly a decade after they first started running. Fuel efficiency and cost saving The recent addition of 24 new Scania buses with automatic transmissions has taken the operation to new levels of cost efficiencies with fuel savings being the main driver of increased profitability.

“The older vehicles we had before the Scanias were highly inefficient. At some stages, we were recording 56 litres per 100 km. With the Scanias, we are realising 40/38 litres per 100 km.” It is a significant cost saving that Mphahlele says will improve thanks to the support he is receiving from the Scania team. “Labour costs have been the biggest cost driver in our business. But increased fuel prices will soon make diesel our primary business expense.” Working together with Scania, Mphahlele anticipates Ipelegeng will soon see further fuel savings. “Scania is assisting us to find fuel effi

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CAPITAL EQUIPMENT NEWS JULY 2022