Capital Equipment News October 2017

TRANSPORT

In the event that the driver ignores initial warnings, the emergency braking system activates to ensure that the truck is prevented from colliding with another vehicle.

Volvo Trucks has invested R6,5 million in a new calibration facility at its Durban assembly facility.

or partly to human error, Christensson says a lot needs to be done to get rid of the carnage on our roads, and through the introduction of active safety systems, Volvo Trucks is playing its part. This initiative comes on the back of some damning figures which show that 16 000 people die in traffic accidents in South Africa every year. “More than 1,2 million people perish in road accidents per year globally – equating to 10 air crashes per day,” says Christensson. “90% of all accidents are caused by human error, 30% by the environment and 10% by the vehicle. It’s a combination of factors but the majority of accidents are caused by the driver,” says Christensson. The Volvo Active Safety Package is an initiative designed to help drivers avoid accidents. Previous truck designs have had greater focus on passive safety systems such as the three-point safety belt, which was invented by Volvo in 1979, as well as cabs with high-strength steel to absorb much of the crash’s energy to reduce its severity. Volvo also designs cabs in a way that in the event of a crash, the engine and transmission drop down and away from the driver, while the steering column collapses. While these passive safety systems remain the pillars of truck safety, Christensson believes more focus is now on active safety systems that help drivers avoid accidents in the first place. Gush says there has been increased demand for active safety systems locally, and believes that these technologies will become a norm in the near future. “We have a fleet operator who has installed active safety features to his whole fleet. Since then, he has had no accidents,” says Gush. Volvo Trucks SA has sold about 300 trucks installed with active safety systems to date, while some 60 trucks installed with Acloclock are also operational in the

Emergency Braking Assist allows for a warning system first, in the form of a red light on the windscreen that is activated when the system detects a vehicle that the truck may likely collide with at its current speed.

Lane Keeping Support is designed for long haul operations and monitors the truck’s position on the road when exceeding speeds of 60 km/h.

field. Gush says on the back of peaking demand, the company will probably have 500+ trucks with active safety systems

within the next year. “Local fleet owners are starting to see the benefits,” concludes Gush. b

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