There?s no doubt that quarry work is tough on trucks, but these days there?s no need for it to be tough on drivers as well.
A good modern truck has to combine high productivity with driver comfort and safety.
Take a look at Kevin Froeschle. A truck driver since his mid-teens, Kevin moved to Far North Queensland in 1984 to drive for a contractor working the Mount Isa mines.
Now well settled in Townsville, Kevin has carved out a good living in quarry work, carting on- and off-highway in the busy northeast as a sub-contractor.
But back then, like a lot of subbies, he was driving an older truck, a semi-tipper that had been built when the word ?ergonomics? was only used in universities. He was earning a living but it was doing him in physically.
It wasn?t until he was forced to start looking for a new machine that he realised his working life could be easier – and longer.
?The bloody trailer fell over one day working on the Barkley Highway upgrade from Mount Isa to Darwin for the Buckley River Alliance. The truck had been round the clock twice and I thought I?d better trade it in,? he said.
And trade it in he did – for a new Freightliner Columbia CL112.
?Buying this truck has definitely lengthened my career,? he said. ?My back isn?t as sore as it used to be, the air conditioning is the best I?ve ever had and the driving position is superb.
?Am I enjoying work more now? Absolutely. It?s just so much easier now to go out and make a dollar. I used to be stuffed after a day in my previous truck. Now I can get out and mow lawns after I?ve finished work, something I never would have done in a million years in the old truck.?
Kevin has been behind the wheel for his entire working life. His dad had trucks and Kevin was driving interstate by himself when he was 16.
That was allowed because, under the laws at the time, Kevin had applied to the commissioner of police for a special dispensation to get his licence when his dad got sick.
With a family of his own to support now, Kevin knows that a truck?s performance and reliability are also vital factors.
?There were a couple of things that made me look at the Columbia. The cab chassis is 600kg lighter than everything else on the market which is great for productivity and the engine is just something else.?
Kevin?s CL112 runs Detroit?s MBE diesel engine that pushes out 450 horsepower and 1550 pound per foot of torque at 1100rpm. Kevin was initially sceptical when it was first discussed but he?s a convert now.
?The engine is just so good to drive. You can let it drop down to a thousand revs and just put your foot down and away she goes. It?s fantastic, awesome torque. I very rarely take it above 1500rpm. I normally just sit between 1000 and 1500rpm.
?The economy is excellent. I have a run that takes me 42km full and the return trip empty, and I am averaging 2.3 to 2.45km per litre which is brilliant.
?It?s been great on tyres as well. It?s got 99,000km on highway-spec tyres and I?m only just considering replacing the steer tyres. That?s brilliant for tipper work which is pretty hard on tyres. And the airbag suspension is brilliant. When I have to go off-road I just flick the diff locks and maybe throw the cross locks and there are never any dramas, it just goes anywhere.?
Originally from Victoria, Kevin met a nice Queensland girl and tried to take her down south but her love of the warmer climate led them back up north.
Now they?re the proud parents of a son and daughter – both teenagers – and Kevin is happily living the trucking life.
With his back feeling good there?s no thought of retirement, for him at least.
After receiving years of faithful service, he?s now looking to trade in the Columbia – for another Columbia.
Source: Daimler Trucks
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