An experienced truck driver has been appointed as Scania’s driver trainer for Western Australia, Northern Territory and South Australia, as well as the company’s Mining and Resources Division.
Karlie Shire first appeared on Scania’s radar with her strong performance in the final of the 2016 Driver Competition. Most recently she has been driving a Scania G 500 for VISY.
“I am very excited to take on this new role. For a while now I have been chatting to fellow Scania drivers at truck stops about their trucks, and introducing many of them to features they did not know were hiding on the dash, especially with regard to monitoring their own performance,” Shire said.
“I have been very focussed on my driving all of my working life and the Scania onboard driver scoring systems really helps you get along in the safest and most efficient way.
“Over more than a year while driving for VISY I was running at 97 per cent or above with 30-tonne boxes on average, and was among the top three or four drivers in the group of 120, in hilly and challenging terrain around Perth,” she added.
Prior to working for VISY, Shire worked in general freight, with a short stint in mining sales and some road-train work on the wharf for Stevenson Logistics, she honed her skills driving and reversing road-trains.
Shire will offer Scania’s driver training services to operators and drivers of new trucks as part of Scania’s strategy to ensure they benefit from the highest uptime and most efficient total operating economy.
“We don’t try to teach drivers how to drive, they already know that and many of them are extremely experienced, safe drivers,” said Shire.
“The aim of our training is to help them understand how the technology included in all Scania trucks can help them get the best performance, economy and durability from their workhorses, and to reduce fatigue as much as possible. This naturally leads to improved fuel efficiency and a reduced environmental impact.”
Scania ecolution manager Hamed Shoghi added, “We are very pleased to have Karlie join the Scania Ecolution team.
“Karlie is very passionate about Scania, has a lot of real-world heavy combination driving experience and is a natural people-person. She’s able to clearly explain our technology and illustrate the benefits to drivers, which in turn will benefit both the driver and the operator. Getting the best out of the truck in a safe and efficient manner is what drives Scania Driver Training.”
Shire joins Scania’s national driver training, working alongside Peter Verbrugge and Peter Clarkson (both Melbourne based), and Peter Koutelis (NSW based).
“We also have driver training contractors in other states, all of whom are available to all Scania drivers when required, not just when a new truck is purchased,” Shoghi added.
Regional executive manager for Scania WA, Michael Berti, said, “Scania in Western Australia is very pleased to have a dedicated driver training resource based in Kewdale.
“We have had a gap due to Covid for the past two years in our training activities so there are many new Scania drivers we need to catch up with. Also, Scania in WA is very active in the mining industry and operators there are very focussed on uptime and ensuring their drivers get the best out of their vehicles, particularly when downtime has such huge associated costs.
“A driver trainer will provide benefits which can have a multiplier effect for any business operating a fleet of trucks whatever its size.”