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Smedley's Engineers

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24.01.2022 Originally from Kirkland, Washington in the US, Noelle Parlier has made quite the impact in Australias truck and trailer scene. When shes not exploring the wilderness or on the ski slopes, she can be found tinkering with Kenworth and DAF equipment. #kenworth Commercial Road Transport News KENWORTH Australia

24.01.2022 How many car drivers know the rules around trucks? Seems most dont... a good read for all drivers to pay more attention when around trucks

23.01.2022 This is a worthwhile read. It pays to have verified Insurance details.

22.01.2022 First two bridge sections for the Flinders Link Project. Getting ready for the new rail line.All up length of each truck and load 55.8m, 4.3m wide and approx 80... tonne. Challenge accepted by drivers Lee Morgan and Todd Ellbourn, with steerers Eugene and Jay Baillie. Special help from Ian D Skewesme in his car with pretty lights on top. See more

22.01.2022 Commercial Road Transport News

21.01.2022 Some practical tips for those doing towing anytime soon

18.01.2022 Frasers Livestock Transport driver Jeff Clegg has been honoured for his quick thinking and selfless response in saving the life of a motorist trapped in an over...turned vehicle. In June 2019, Jeff was conducting a welfare check of his trucks load outside of Woodenbong, NSW, when he saw an unusual glow in the distance. On investigation, Jeff came across a 4x4 in dense vegetation with the driver trapped inside. After alerting emergency services, Jeff remained with the driver and comforted him, before assisting emergency responders once they arrived. Given the remoteness of the incident and condition of the driver, Jeffs intervention is being praised as having saved the motorists life. Jeff has been recognised as a Bridgestone Bandag Highway Guardian, an accolade that honours those in the industry who go above and beyond in times of need. Read the full story: http://www.truck.net.au//media-releases/highway-guardian-e This award is proudly sponsored by Bridgestone Australia

17.01.2022 STORIES FROM THE ROAD By Liz Martin OAM Kurt Johannsen was born at Deep Well near Alice Springs in 1915. Situated 37 miles (60 klms) South East of Alice Spri...ngs Deep Well is just off the Phillipson Stock route between the MacDonnell Ranges and the Simpson Desert. As beautiful as the landscape is, fringed with the Ooraminna Ranges, red sand hills, rocky outcrops and spinifex plains it was harsh and unforgiving and did not yield easily to human habitation. From this the early settlers scratched a living. Kurt's family had initially arrived in South Australia to escape persecution from King Frederick of Prussia. They then travelled north through the sandy desolate heart of Australia eventually settling at Deep Well. Kurt and his sisters were initially taught by their mother however, correspondence schooling was later delivered by camel train from Adelaide about once a month. Kurt did not take well to what he called "book learning". By the time he was 14 he had only attained grade three. However, he made up for it with his natural ability for improvisation and the very real need to learn bush survival skills. It was a hard life at Deep Well with Kurt expected to contribute. He helped his father with the stock and worked in the blacksmiths shop helping repair wagon and buggy wheels. Kurt was small enough to go down the wells and often had to do so for pipe repairs. Most of the wells extended 200 feet and more to water level and sometimes he'd have to shimmy all the way. "The well was dark, wet and slimy and full of unidentifiable living things with eyes and legs, or worse - no legs. The place wasnt called Deep Well for no reason. But it was our lifeblood. Without water we had nothing." When Kurt was just 11 years of age and his father was struck by poliomyllitis. All of a sudden he was the family breadwinner responsible for everything. Fortunately Kurt had learned to drive the family's Dodge Four a few years earlier. Kurt was permitted by the local police to acquire his driving licence at 11 so he could take his mother to Alice Springs for provisions. Most local families went out of their way to help the struggling family. But, it wasn't always easy for the young man. In the era between the two World Wars Kurt was often confused and discriminated against as some people called the family 'the German Huns' or other derogatory names. Although his father recovered he was never the same again. The family was forced to abandon Deep Well and in 1929 moved to Alice Springs. This was the year the railway reached Alice Springs from South Australia and young Kurt was caught in the excitement of the motor trucks that followed it to cart freight from the railhead to all points north alongside the camel teams. By the time he was 15, Kurt was driving his own truck carting night soil. It was the first contracted night soil service in Alice Springs. While some turned up their noses to Kurt it was just a job and one he was glad to have. It was, in his sons words, "A humble start for a great man." Over the next few years Kurt went on to drive, own and even make his own trucks. He called his creations 'Bitzer' because they were made from bitzer this and bitzer that. In 1934 when the legendary AEC 'government roadtrain' arrived in Alice Springs Kurt, a mechanically inquisitive 19 year old, was besotted with its self tracking engineering and inspected it at every opportunity. The roadtrain's eight wheeled Dyson trailers were self-tracking. It was a concept originally used in the horse drawn trailers of the Boar War. The trailers were fitted with two bogies at either end that turned in opposite directions, each bogie fitted with a turntable connected to the other by a spring loaded linkage. This caused the trailers to follow exactly in the tracks of the tractor. Kurt's career went on to span that of labourer, fencing contractor, mailman, aviator and inventor but one of his greatest achievements was his adaptation of the self-tracking trailer and development of the world's first successful commercially operated roadtrain cattle truck. Kurt also "dabbled" in other ventures such as taking tourist and scientific expeditions out into the desert and digging in the 'Black Eagle' shafts at Winnecke with four other men. Their small crushing plant produced one ounce of gold a week worth around nine pounds. Over the years Kurt and his son Lindsay were very much involved in mining the mining industry. At various times they mined mica, silica, copper and gold. Up to and during the war years Kurt took on many outback mail runs and invested in several mining ventures as well as manufacturing tools. During WWII Kurt operated a garage in Tennant Creek where he built a fully functional wood gas producer which, having been refused a patent, used to fuel his own Dodge Coronet for years while travelling around Australia. It used about 1kg of wood per kilometre. But Kurt yearned to build a roadtrain the likes of which had never been seen before. He was in awe of the big military American truck marques that came into Australia during World War ll especially the NR Mack, Federals and Diamond T tank retrieval tractors. They were bigger and more powerful than anything he had dared imagine. At wars end thousands of items of military plant and equipment were put up for sale to the public at various Army disposal sales around the country including Darwin. Kurt, purchased several Diamond T prime movers as well as a couple of Federals and set to work building his road train. Kurt chose a 1942 Diamond T980, an ex US Army tank retrieval tractor truck that he had purchased for 2500 pounds in Darwin at the Military sales. Kurt drew up several plans before he decided how he would modify the unit. First he lengthened the chassis on the truck and fitted it with a crate. The exhaust was made by borecasing and an old WWII gas shell giving out a unique burble that those in the know could recognise from miles away. To give it a bit of extra grunt Kurt took out the original 200hp Hercules engine and repowered it with a GM 6/71 outputting 240 horsepower. Being a Detroit power unit parts and service were also more readily available. Now he needed trailers. With 2000 pounds borrowed from a friend Kurt also bought 23 US Army bren gun carriers from which he used the wheels and stub axles to construct bogies for the trailers. Remembering the self tracking of the AEC Government Roadtrain trailers Kurt adapted the design and built the concept into his trailers. Kurt's self-tracking trailers were 43 feet (13 metres) long and weighed eight tons each. They worked well at speeds up to 25 miles per hour making them perfect for winding outback dirt roads. "They were specifically designed to follow the prime mover tracks perfectly, were ideal for transporting cattle on the narrow, unmade, winding, sandy bush tracks". The prime mover and a string of 3 trailers was almost 55 metres long. The self tracking made it possible to drive at right angles into a standard-width gate without any problem. The roadtrain crept through the unmade tracks of the bush with ease, although, Kurt said, "The main disadvantage was, that if you staked a drive tyre, you were highly likely to stake several others down that side of the roadtrain!" The trailers were to travel an incredible 2,000,000 miles before they finally retired. They were also used as a pattern by Freighter for their self trackers. Kurt went on to operate several Diamond T roadtrains which became legendary all throughout the Territory and beyond; Bertha, Wog, Unbludderwich and Bug among them. Bertha has been restored and is an impressive sight. When Kurt retired from mining and transporting in 1980 he bought a hobby farm in Yankalilla, South Australia. In 1992 Kurt Johannsen recorded his memoirs in his book Son of the Red Centre - collection of stories and anecdotes from a life well lived. Kurt is remembered as a gentle giant who achieved great things; a man who could not only put his hands to anything, but was a great friend and benefactor to many. Kurt Johannsen passed away in 2001 leaving a large extended family in Alice Springs and the legacy of his roadtrains. Vale Kurt Gerhardt Johannsen.

16.01.2022 How it used to happen

16.01.2022 If youre interested in learning more about #PBS then register for this course that our Director, Robert will be running.

16.01.2022 TRUCK STOPS ARE IN THE NEWS AGAIN. It can be very frustrating for long distance truck drivers who must by law stop at regular intervals to rest when they are no...t able to find a place to park their large rigs or find them filled with other road users who often have far more alternative places to park. The different levels of Government and many roadhouses have placed large rest / park bays to accommodate the large B-Doubles who have very limited turning ability and need long bays to accommodate their extra long length. A fully loaded semi-trailer can be up to 19 meters for an average single trailer or up to 26 meters for a B-Double semi-trailer. When you drive out west and in the Northern Territory, you will often come across larger road trains which can be up to 53 meters long which is over 4 times the length of the average car/caravan combo. I think that we will all agree that there needs to be far more rest areas for all vehicle types and I have lobbied for better signage on existing truck stops and general rest areas to help avoid the confusion that currently exists between frustrated truck drivers and the Caravan and RV community. While most signage is general in nature there are many that designate Truck Rest Area and should be respected as ONLY for trucks. Caravanners often stop for the day at midday or in the afternoon and find a rest area that seems relatively empty and assume that they have the right to camp there for the night. The problem however, arises when the long distance truck drivers leave their depot in the afternoon and are due for their legally required rest stop at 1 or 3 am in the morning. They plan their trips around stopping at the rest areas they know are there specifically for them only to find them filled with campers parked all over the place leaving no place for them to park a 26 meter B-Double. They leave no room for it to safety turn in or out of the area without taking out the caravan parked at the entrance or exit. We have all gone past rest areas and seen several caravans, RV's or cars strung out along the whole length of the rest area with space in between but leaving no long areas for trucks to pull in safely. It is just inconsiderate. I do not understand why caravanners and RV drivers want to take up truck stops and risk a very noisy B-Double with a refrigeration motor running 24/7 pulling up beside them at 2 am in the morning. One truck driver reported that he was woken by an angry caravanner in a truck stop at 2 am with a banging on his truck door and asking for him to turn off his refrigeration motor on his load as it was keeping the caravanner awake. As you can expect the conversation went bad pretty quickly and the caravanner threatened to call the police to have the noise stopped. The truck driver begged him to call the police as it would have been the caravanner who would have been told to leave the truck stop. Other truck stops have been cleared by police in the early hours when there was no room left for the trucks. Legally the truck driver must stop and if he cannot pull off the road to rest because of illegally parked caravanners and RV drivers then the police will be on the side of the truck driver every time. Such is the arrogance and lack of respect that some caravanners have for the law and other people. I am very pleased to say that the vast majority of caravanners want to, and do the right thing. The problem is educating the minority that give other caravanners and RV drivers a bad name. We, unfortunately all get tarred with the same brush. Please lobby your politicians and others for more signage on rest stops and roadhouses to help avoid the confusion and frustration that currently exists. There are also few roadhouses that have signed caravan park bays and they leave little options for caravanners to park anywhere else but in the long bays which may or may not be signed for trucks. If there are no other options than to use one of the longer bays then I ask that respect is shown and where practical park at the ends of the bay so another caravan can park behind you instead of taking up two long bays. We need far more separated rest areas but where all road users can share common facilities like toilets, tables, seats and shelters so that all can have a quiet rest and maybe share a cup of coffee, cake and chat with a truck driver who is away from family and friends working. There are many female truck drivers on the roads now and we should show them courtesy by having proper toilet facilities at truck stops instead of expecting them to squat beside the truck. Respect is earned, so if caravanners, RV drivers and truck drivers want to be shown respect then we all also need to start showing some respect for others. It won't happen overnight and we won't educate all, but we can make a big difference to the safety, enjoyment and stress of our trip by showing respect for other road users. Below is a link to the Truck Friendly web site page on truck stops which includes a video link on using truck stops by a truck driver, Rod Hannifey. Well worth a watch. Stay safe everyone and stay truck friendly. Cheers Ken Wilson, Truck Friendly caravan road safety program #truckfriendly https://truckfriendly.com.au/truck-stops

16.01.2022 NEED A PLACE TO PULL OVER TO LET FASTER TRAFFIC PASS? These green reflectors will help you find a safe place. Often we have trucks or other vehicles behind us a...s we tow our van and want them to overtake but there is no safe place for them to do so. You may have noticed some green reflectors on guide posts beside the road on some highways. These indicate that there is a safe place to pull off the road coming up soon so you can indicate your intentions and be prepared. Approximately 500 meters from a safe place to pull over you may see 3 x Green refectors, 250 meters you may see 2 x Green refectors and just at the safe place you may see 1 x Green reflectors. They are not every where as yet, but you may see them on the Burnett Highway in Queensland and some NSW highways. Not all places are maintained and they are NOT for overnight or extended stays, but just to allow others to overtake or stretch your legs and check your rig. So keep an eye out for them and you will now know what they are there fore. More caravan safety tips at www.truckfriendly.com.au Stay safe. Cheers Ken #truckfriendly See more

16.01.2022 Our very own leader at Smedleys also a leader in our industry.

15.01.2022 Our friends at Toll Transport helping out.

13.01.2022 Heres something to brighten your day.

12.01.2022 About 8am on Thursday 7th of November, 2019 Police attached to the Traffic Task Force stopped a truck with NSW registration towing a trailer on the Horsley Driv...e, Horsley Park. Police approached the driver, a 39 year old male from Wetherill Park. The driver was a class HC NSW licence holder. Police conducted checks on the drivers licence which showed it to be suspended due to fine default. Police conducted checks on the registration and saw the prime mover had expired registration. Police suspected the vehicle combination was over its allowed mass, and arranged for RMS heavy vehicle inspectors to attend and weigh the combination. RMS inspectors attended and weighed the combination which showed it to be over its allowed mass. It was discovered the vehicle registration classification only allows it to tow a trailer not greater than 4.5 tonne. The actual trailer weighed 22.20 tonne. A compliance inspection of the vehicle showed it to be defective due to oil leaks and brake issues amongst other issues. The driver was issued with 2 penalty notices for driving a class C unregistered heavy vehicle and not complying with a condition of the vehicles registration. The accused was issued a field Court attendance notice for driving with a suspended licence (fine default). RMS inspectors breached the driver due to the combination being over its allowed mass and the prime mover was defected.

11.01.2022 About 8am on Wednesday 6th of November, 2019 Police attached to the Traffic Task Force were conducting stationary heavy vehicle compliance, logbook and random t...esting on Wonderland Drive, Eastern Creek. Police stopped a Kenworth truck and trailer which was driven by a 33 year old male driver from Narrabundah, ACT. Police attempted to conduct a download of the vehicles Engine Control Module and were unable to, due the plug being removed. Police defected the vehicle as a result and the driver was issued a speed limiter compliance notice to have the vehicles ECM downloaded to check for compliance. Police inspected the drivers work diary, discovering a number of offences, where 2 penalty notices were issued for failing to remove duplicate copies and return them to the record keeper within 21 days and the driver is to be charged in relation to a false and misleading entry. The driver was breath tested and returned a negative result for alcohol. The driver was then tested for illicit substances and returned a positive roadside result for methamphetamine. The driver was arrested and conveyed to Mt Druitt Police station where a secondary test was conducted. The secondary test returned a positive result for methamphetamine. The driver was issued with a 24 hour prohibition from driving. Further action pending, subject to secondary sample result. See more

10.01.2022 More truth about 3.5t towing

10.01.2022 From 2006. Robert was finishing off his university degree while working at Channel Nine (TCN) Studios. At the time he was part of the Electronic News Gathering department operating the news cruisers seen in the background. Before working in the ENG department Robert also worked in the engineering and outside broadcast departments as well since his early teens. Alan, started working in the OB department in the early 80s when the department was still on site at Artarmon Rd. F...rom their he worked in multiple departments, as well as ENG and Engineering. Katie also worked there in the 00s in Wide World of Sports and in the Drama department. All in all making it a family affair.

07.01.2022 The 2nd span of Kings Bridge nearing completion in the yard of Salisburys Foundry, Launceston in 1903. William Arthur Smedley, who was the supervisor of the project, can be seen standing in front of the span 3rd from the left.

07.01.2022 Thanks to all our customers for making 2019 our most successful year yet. The year we became the only "end to end" PBS solutions provider. See article below for more detail on what we have been up to. All the best for the Christmas period, and looking forward to making 2020 an even bigger and better year! Regards... Robert JG Smedley and the team at Smedleys Engineers Pty. Ltd. #roadtransport #freight #trucking #fleet #pbs #engineered #theteam #customers

06.01.2022 At 11am today I spoke with a young lady in Port Macquarie NSW Australia with Cystic Fibrosis, she said her breathing is so shit due to the bushfires n could she... get an air purifier delivered somehow before the likely Highway Closures again tonight with horrendous conditions predicted for tomorrow? It is with massive thanks to Jim Pearsons Transport of Port Macquarie (Russell - he sorted pickup within 8 minutes, no joke!) that an Air Purifier will be (update- has been made available - yesssss) delivered to her courtesy of Pearsons Transport at 4.30pm this afternoon!!!! Thats a five and a half hour turn around, thats Aussie community right there... WOW!!! #Pearsonstransport #fucf See more

06.01.2022 Great initiative for the ATAs Technical Council. Thanks to the Australian Trucking Association for including us in this process.

04.01.2022 A true inspiration. Join Janis McDavid on a tour through his very specially converted Sprinter. via Mercedes-Benz Vans

03.01.2022 This is what truck drivers are dealing with on a daily basis, says Ross Transport manager True Ross after viewing the dashcam footage below. This car driver bl...amed our driver for causation of the accident and we received a phone call from their insurance company within one hour of the accident requesting a hire car and admitting our driver at fault, writes True on the company Facebook page. Thank goodness for our cameras for evidence and proof for our drivers. What this car driver doesnt realise, is how lucky she is to be alive, making a silly decision like this. She was lucky there was no other cars on the right hand side and she did not end up between the dog trailer and the truck.

02.01.2022 Some great tips and advice for those travelling on our roads.

02.01.2022 Delays expected on M1 following heavy vehicle crash - Central Coast Wednesday, 30 October 2019 03:19:35 AM Emergency services are currently at the scene of a tr...uck crash on the M1 on the Central Coast this morning. About 2.10am (Wednesday 30 October 2019), a B-Double was travelling through a roadworks zone heading north on the M1 at Halloran, just past the Sparks Road overpass, when it crashed into three work trucks that were stopped at the location. The B-double has caught alight, the fire quickly spreading to the three heavy vehicles involved in the crash. Fortunately, there are no reports of injuries. The northbound lanes of the M1 at Halloran will remain closed for some time as the fire is extinguished and inquiries into the cause of the crash continue. Motorists are advised to visit www.livetraffic.com for the latest traffic information.

02.01.2022 Dont park any vehicles in long grass.

01.01.2022 You dont "have" to strap the boat down, but it helps

01.01.2022 EXCLUSIVE: The trucking industry says young drivers are being put at risk by not being taught how to behave around heavy vehicles.