The message to operators from the Pro Tect Solutions conference was ‘make sure you know your business’ and put in ‘systems that work’, reports Kevin Swallow, from brake testing to best practice, to avoiding bridge strikes.
BRAKE testing, admitted Kevin Rooney in front of more than 70 delegates at the second annual Pro Tect Solutions Conference, is a particular area of interest.
As Traffic Commissioner (TC) for the West of England speaking to hauliers from across the UK, he revealed that revisions to what hauliers should do regarding brake testing had paid dividends.
‘In 2014, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) publication Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness was updated because operators simply were not doing brake tests. We put in some wording to strongly advise that you do a rolling brake test during a Preventative Maintenance Inspection (PMI), and to do ‘four a year’ as a minimum,’ he recalled.
‘Four years later that was updated to include laden road testing and temperature measurement, and we also put in electronic brake performance monitoring for trailers because it can be difficult to organise a fully loaded triaxle trailer for a brake test.’
