Pressure on price compromises standards

As low commodity prices,
the shrinking manufacturing
sector and the global economic
downturn take their toll on
the transport sector, there’s
constant pressure on operators
to reduce costs, says Alan
McAslan, managing director,
4PL Freight.
“In the past the conveyance
of dangerous goods has always
attracted a premium price due
to the high risks and the extra
costs involved in maintaining
high standards.”
But this is fast changing.
“The sector needs to be
better regulated as there are
just too many illegal operators
and consignors who are only
concerned with price and
profit,” says McAslan.
With the pressure to reduce
costs there are invariably
safety issues as standards
drop.
“We are noticing that more
and more companies are
simply appointing operators
without having any protocol
in place. There are simply
no criteria to meet other
than the fact you have an
orange diamond. There is no
auditing process done,” he
says. “Simple things like driver
fatigue management, speeding
policies, WC clearance
certificate, vehicle checks,
to mention but a few are not
done. This is quite frightening
when one takes
into account
that not only
does the Road
Traffic Act
clearly state
there is joint
and several
liability to all
parties involved
in any incident
– including
the consignee,
consignor, operator and
agent – but all insurance
underwriters have an
exclusion clause that states
should the vehicle not comply
with any regulation of the
Road Traffic Act, they reserve
the right to repudiate the
claim.”
Transporting dangerous
and hazardous goods is a
specialist area, but many in
the industry say one only has
to sit outside the entrance to
any port to see the number
of illegal vehicles carrying
dangerous goods in and out of
our ports.
According to McAslan, a
big effort has been made to
try to regulate the market
by suggesting some form of
standard be
met.
“The industry
has chosen the
SQAS auditing
process in an
effort to set
some form of
standard. There
are however
still some
shortcomings
here as it
appears that leniency differs
from auditor to auditor. It is
great to see that there are still
some who are trying to reach
higher standards, however it
is still too small a percentage
of operators as there are only
147 companies in South Africa
that are SQAS accredited – a
tiny number when one sees
how many trucking companies
there are on our roads
operating in the dangerous
goods sector.”
INSERT 
Companies are simply
appointing operators
without having any
protocol in place.
– Alan McAslan