ROAD SIGNS
BUSINESS FLEET AFRICA | October 2023
10
WWW.BUSINESSFLEETAFRICA.CO.ZA
Business Fleet Africa (BFA) heard from
Albrich van Niekerk (AVN), CEO of
Trailmax and Truckworld at the annual
Professional Transporters Luncheon held
in Muldersdrift last month.
This luncheon is a day-long event
that is now in its second year. It brings
together the trucking and logistics sector
to network and showcases various prod-
ucts and services. It also provides an
opportunity to listen to an industry-lead
panel discussion hosted by Trailmax,
with support from partners such as
Volvo Trucks and Sandown Commercial
Vehicles, to name a few.
BFA: Albrich, why did you decide to
create this luncheon?
AVN: Personally, I’ve been in the truck-
ing and transport industry since 1993.
Since the outbreak of COVID-19, there
hasn’t been an event that the trucking
community could attend or that could
bring us all together.
Truckers are a unique breed. We
enjoy touching things. We enjoy
experiencing things. We want to engage
in face-to-face conversations and
exchange handshakes. We want to see
what operators are doing. We want to
see what their operations are like.
And that’s what trucking in essence
in South Africa is all about. It is very
personal. And there is no real event
that brings us, as industry partners
and players, together. That’s where
this initiative comes from. We started
this last year and we have more than
doubled the scale this year. Our vision
is to make this the event on the South
African transport calendar.
BFA: Who is the luncheon for?
AVN: It’s a chance to nurture people’s
passion for heavy vehicles among
like-minded people. It’s an event for
those who understand that if your
wheels aren’t turning, you’re losing mon-
ey. And for those who understand what
the costs and risks are in road transport.
It’s for those people who understand
that your truck can be burnt, crashed or
hijacked 10 minutes after it has left your
yard. This is unfortunately the harsh
reality of the transport industry in South
Africa today.
There are many challenges that
have increased. We’ve seen more acts
of violence against our drivers. And we
are seeing more road closures. We see
what we call terrorist factions attacking
our drivers, for no reason. But still,
the industry is vibrant. The industry is
strong. The industry is good.
With the luncheon, we aimed to
establish a platform where transporters
could engage in discussions with the
RFA, learn about RTMS, and gather inno-
vative ideas that could be implemented
in their own transportation enterprises.
This event was created for us as
transport people. We don’t always have
someone to talk to. We don’t know
what’s new in the market. We don’t
have a place to talk, transporter to
transporter. We want to ask each other,
“What is your problem?” What is your
solution? And make it a pleasant event
as well. So that’s the main focus of this
transporter’s lunch.
So we welcome each and every
industry player that attends this event.
Everyone is making a contribution to
the industry. It’s nice to see familiar
faces and to meet new ones, both old
and new.
BFA: Why do you call it a professional
transporters lunch?
AVN: Businesses today have to operate
on the tightest of margins. We are faced
with skyrocketing fuel prices and an
increasing interest rate. We are discuss-
ing external factors that are well beyond
our control. What can we do about this?
INTERVIEW
‘Personally, I’ve been
in the trucking and
transport industry
since 1993. Since the
outbreak of COVID-19,
there hasn’t been an
event that the trucking
community could
attend or that could
bring us all together.’
In conversation with
Albrich van Niekerk
Truckers are a unique breed. We enjoy touching
things. We enjoy experiencing things. We want to
engage in face-to-face conversations and exchange
handshakes. We want to see what operators are doing.
We want to see what their operations are like.