Lindsay Transport goes for 21 Super-Liners on eastern refrigerated linehaul
Mack Trucks has used the Brisbane Truck Show to announce a major fleet deal.
Big eastern refrigerated produce specialist Lindsay Transport has chosen the flagship Super-Liner as one of their prime movers of choice for their long-distance interstate linehaul fleet.
Rob Dummer, Lindsay’s general manager operations, says with 11 Super-Liners in operation and 10 more on order, the truck ticks the boxes for most applications.
“We’ve got the Super-Liners on the Bundaberg-Melbourne run, and we’ve been running them hard,” Dummer says.
“The first batch has been in service for almost a year and they’ve already done over half a million kilometres.
“The area we cover is huge, and each truck is booked in for its next load before it has delivered the last.
“The trucks never stop, each one will have six or seven different drivers in it over a week, and we’re covering around 10,000km a week.”
Dummer says the trucks have risen to the challenge of doing more than double the average industry mileage, and their reliability has been excellent.
“They’re good value for money and the driver acceptance has also been very high,” he says.
“With the MP10 and the mDrive automated manual transmission it’s just like driving a big car.
“All the gear changes are very smooth, which means the drivers can concentrate on the road.”
Dummer says fuel efficiency was a major factor in the decision to buy the Super-Liner.
“We spend over $40 million a year on diesel, so the smallest improvement in fuel consumption has a big impact.
“If we can get just one truck up from 1.7km per litre to 1.8, that equates to a $15,000 saving on that truck per year.”
Dummer is bringing in Mack’s trainers to show his own trainers how to minimise fuel consumption.
The Super-Liners are currently running at 600hp (441kW), but Drummer is beginning a trial comparing how they go at 685hp (504kW).
“Mack’s a company that’s been around for a long time and they’re clearly here for the long term,” he says.
“From the perspective of an Australian owned-and-operated company, having a local manufacturing facility is important. Lindsay is growing, and we’ll be expecting Mack to grow with us.”
Photography: Gavin Blue