The official launch at the CV Show of the Maintenance Provision Rating Scheme (MPRS) – an industry-led rating scheme for industry – had that exact impact on me and many others, judging by how packed the sessions were.
MPRS is set to transform and elevate workshop maintenance standards, from the international players down to the small one-man workshops, for this critical part of the road transport industry that is unregulated.
Steered and managed by IRTE, a Professional Sector of the Society of Operations Engineers (SOE), MPRS is the result of collaboration across the commercial vehicle sector and government, jointly developed by IRTE, Logistics UK, RHA, CPT, SMMT, BVRLA and NFDA, and is backed by the Office of the Traffic Commissioner, DVSA and DfT.
DAF Trucks and Daimler Truck were part of pilots before the MPRS was officially rolled out and their main dealerships have already secured ratings. Both plan on getting every one of their dealers accredited (see p10).
On a different note, it has been fascinating over the last month to see the upward trajectory taking place in the transition to zero-emission vehicles. There are still numerous challenges ahead, but hearing from industry about the truck charging hubs being built, the development of zero-emission trucks, light commercial vehicles and buses and coaches, and the advancements being made in zero-emission vehicle technology has been inspiring.
In early May, I also had the privilege of attending a press event for the launch of a new battery-electric 7.5-tonne truck manufactured by Chinese manufacturer Yutong, brought to the UK market by Pelican Engineering. This certainly looks a game-changer in the 7.5-tonne segment. The same week, I also had the pleasure of seeing and test driving IVECO’s new S-Way, X-Way and Eurocargo models that look odds on to be positively received by operators in the market.
Pelican and IVECO will showcase the new trucks at the Road Transport Expo (see p25) later in June. Read more about them in future issues of Transport Engineer.
Editor, Justin Burns
