Road Transport Management System

Forestry South Africa, the Chamber of Mines, South African Bitumen Association (SABITA), South African Canegrowers Association (SACGA), Aggregate and Sand Producers Association of Southern Africa (ASPASA), South African Ready Mix Association (SARMA), the Road Freight Association (RFA) and the African Trucking Association (ATA) wish to express gratitude to the following institutions for having spared no effort in assisting them in the development of this ground-breaking initiative:

• CSIR
• Crickmay and Associates
• National Productivity Institute

We also wish to acknowledge the leading role played by the forestry industry in conducting a successful pilot into the efficacy of self-regulation on loading.

This project would not have been successful without the collaboration and support that it has received from Government through the Department of Transport, the Department of Trade and Industry, SANRAL and the Provincial Road Authorities in particular the Departments of Transport of KwaZulu-Natal, Western Cape and Mpumalanga.

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What Is RTMS
RTMS is an industry-led, voluntary self-regulation scheme that encourages consignees, consignors and transport operators engaged in the road logistics value chain to implement a vehicle management system that preserves road infrastructure, improves road safety and increases the productivity of the logistics value chain. This scheme also supports the Department of Transport’s National Freight Logistics Strategy.

All stakeholders in the road logistics value chain are aware of the problems concerning road logistics that affect their industries. The road infrastructure is deteriorating rapidly due to overloading and poor maintenance. Furthermore, the large number of accidents attributed to heavy trucks is unacceptable. Both road safety and road infrastructure are public concerns subject to strict regulation by governments, particularly when abused. Overregulation, road deterioration and high accident rates pose a significant threat to the long term sustainability and global competitiveness of the road logistics value chain.

This has prompted users of road haulage (consignors and consignees) and providers of road haulage (hauliers) to jointly develop strategies aimed at protecting the road network, improving road safety and transport productivity for the benefit of the country’s citizens and the industry itself.

The industry also recognises that poor compliance to transport regulations creates an unfair competitive environment. It is therefore felt that a self-regulation scheme is required to create standard rules for the industry, and that these rules should become the “business norm” – supporting principles of good corporate governance. It is for this reason that industry is leading this initiative, to ensure its quick adoption by all businesses participating in the road logistics value chain.

Furthermore, industry recognises its critical role in the economy’s growth. Efficient movement of goods between a country’s centres of production and its shipping ports boosts competitiveness in international markets. RTMS is one of the innovative and pro-active initiatives that will make this possible.

It is envisaged that the National Heavy Vehicle Management System will have standards on:

• Loading
• Weight assessment systems
• Load optimisation and monitoring at consignee, consignor and transport operators
• Load securement
• Driver Wellness
• Working conditions
• Social Health issues (especially HIV and Aids)
• Vehicle Operations
• Vehicle maintenance
• Training standards for operators (NQF)
• Advanced continuing training in: Driving, Vehicle operations and safety, Fleet management, Specialised vehicles
• Productivity
• Data confidential to participants unless otherwise agreed (without prejudice)
• Encourage broader participation at an industry level – measurement allows industry to put pressure on non-complaint transport operators;
• Direction may be determined by National Standard requirements
• Use the data for value addition and research

It is envisaged that RTMS will offer support for implementation of the following components:

• National Standards
• Reviewed regularly and in line with latest technology and legislation
• Auditors
• Accredited by SANAS
• Tools
• Manuals
• Templates
• Implementation guidelines
• Information portals
• Website for information dissemination
• Data sharing among participants
• E-reporting facility
• Recognition and Concessions
• Recognition for participants
• Agreements with various partners on concessions for RTMS certified companies
• Promotion
• Brand promotion to create meaningful recognition among public and industry stakeholders – branding allows certified operators to be recognised by road authorities, customers and the public.
• Special projects
• Co-ordination of projects that are selected by the RTMS stakeholders and are aligned to RTMS objectives
• Research and technology
• A new programme aimed at research and technology innovation.

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RTMS will be a nationally recognised self-regulating scheme for heavy vehicle road transport, resulting in a safe, equitable and competitive heavy vehicle logistics value chain.

By 2012, RTMS will be a national standard implemented for the road logistics industry that will be used by consignors and consignees to assess tenders for transport operators. RTMS certification will apply to consignors, consignees and transport operators (each with their own requirements). Those who are RTMS certified will benefit from concessions. It will be a self-administered scheme, implemented by participating companies who hire independent consultants as and when necessary. There will be at least one nationally accredited body to conduct audits and issue certification. A voluntary body, the National Steering Committee of RTMS, will convene annually to review the standards and agree on projects that can be funded and conducted jointly. The aim of the joint projects will be to support improved productivity of the road logistics value chain and implementation of the RTMS standard. The RTMS standard will be applied throughout the Southern African region.

Mission

To provide a national certification scheme (standards, auditors, manuals) and implementation support (information portals, recognition, technology transfer) for heavy vehicle road transport to consignees, consignors and transport operators, focusing on:

• Load optimisation,
• Driver wellness,
• Vehicle maintenance, and
• Productivity.

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Values And Principles
RTMS will be governed by the following values and principles:

• RTMS is an industry-led scheme, owned and driven by consignors, consignees and transport operators;
• Good corporate governance;
• The entire value chain is responsible for good vehicle management, not only the transport operators – “chain of responsibility”;
• Users require systems that are easy to implement; and can be incorporated into existing certification processes;
• Unbiased and consistent administration of the scheme leads to integrity of the system;
• Information sharing will be encouraged in a manner that does not prejudice participants;
• A successful scheme delivering tangible benefits to participants;
• Ongoing research and technology innovation leading to industry-wide applications of technology improvement projects;
• Improve the productivity of the entire logistics value-chain.

Value-chain

• Consignees, consignors and transport operators;
• Organised business and industry associations
• Organised labour

Other Stakeholders

• Government (Department of Transport, the dti, Department of Science and Technology, Provincial and Local Government, SANRAL, law enforcement agencies, etc)
• Public Sector Institutions (standards generating bodies, productivity institutions, research institutions)

• Research bodies, academia
• Auditors and
• Consultants

The long term business goals of RTMS are to strive for good corporate governance in the road logistics chain through:

• Developing a nationally recognised self-regulation scheme, associated with significant improvements in road safety and productivity, equitable competition for transport operators and preservation of road infrastructure.
• Expanding the market penetration and thereby ensuring that the majority of road tonnage is sent, carried and received by RTMS certified consignors, transport operators and consignees.
• Becoming a financially self-sustainable scheme

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This strategic plan addresses the following strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities that face the National Steering Committee as it pursues RTMS’s objectives:

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Principles Underpinning the Strategy Development

• RTMS will be an evolutionary process (a step by step development approach), evolving from a private process through becoming a national standard to an ISO standard for the total value chain (consignee, consignor and transport operator).
• Standards will have a progressive modular structure that allows broad participation and progressive recognition and certification.
• RTMS branding is important to promote self-regulation.
• Must cater for broad participation within East and Southern African countries i.e. trucks entering SA from other Southern African countries should also participate in the RTMS process, other countries are also encouraged to develop their own RTMS system.

• SABS is the only institution that can publish a South African National Standard. This is a requirement for broad participation within the SADC countries. SADC harmonisation of the standard will ensure that trucks coming through the borders also use the standards in line with SADC protocol.
• SADC harmonization will be the first step towards full harmonization among all Southern African countries

The proposed evolutionary process means participants will not be constrained in achieving RTMS certification (as it currently exists) by the time taken to achieve an ISO standard.

The principle of a progressive modular structure is that the certification body would partially certify an applicant per module completed or fully if all parts have been implemented. For example:

• Part A of SANS xxx would cover the minimum basic requirements accessible to owner drivers or small companies (e.g. no overloading, roadworthy truck, appropriately licensed driver, etc)
• Part B of SANS xxx would cover moderately advanced issues (e.g. driver wellness, vehicle maintenance, etc)
• Part C of SANS xxx would cover issues relating to a complete heavy vehicle management system (e.g. corrective action, ongoing improvement, etc)

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Marketing Strategy

• Establish RTMS as the business standard by creating early adopters among major consignors, consignees and transport operators, on the basis of a new national standard for good corporate governance in the road logistics value chain, measurable productivity improvement and government endorsement
• Engage leadership of major consignors, consignees and transport operators to become founder members and corporate sponsors – create a platform for the Minister and founder members to advocate for RTMS
• Partner with large consignor/consignees on basis of good corporate governance to make RTMS a criterion for haulier contract evaluation
• Market the programme to large groups such as major corporations and sector associations/federations that contribute the most to road tonnage
• Develop and quantify the concessions program and ensure access for all certified users of RTMS
• Appoint at least one national certification body accredited by SANAS to audit and assist in marketing the programme
• Conduct a brand building campaign including presentation of case studies at conferences, etc
• Appoint independent assessor to evaluate impact and benefits to participants

• • Evolve the existing private scheme into three versions:
  • a South African National Standard
  • a SADC Standard
  • a new ISO standard for the road logistics value chain

  that are supported by concessions and a research and technology innovation programme

  • Expedite the development of a national standard for transport operators and a national standard for consignor and consignees. Ensure that the national standard is harmonised through the Southern African countries. The standards must be capable of stand-alone implementation as well as part of the progressive development into the ISO certification process
  • Conduct specialised research and technology innovation projects
  • Improve productivity and competitiveness of the value chain
  • Develop and quantify the concessions programme and ensure access for all certified users of RTMS
  • Appoint independent assessor to evaluate impact and benefits to participants

• Establish a self-administering certification scheme under the direction of an industry steering committee and manage implementation through existing organisations in the certification industry (e.g. SANAS, accredited certification bodies, service providers); using fixed term project managers for projects implemented by the steering committee
• Establish a representative National Steering Committee of consignors, consignees, transport operators, labour, government and other interest groups with clear terms of reference to drive the strategy forward
• Expedite the development of a national standard for transport operators and a national standard for consignor and consignees. The standards must be capable of stand-alone implementation as well as part of the progressive development into the ISO certification process. The implementation processes must be SMME friendly. Appendices on each standard will be used to capture sector specifications
• Engage leadership of consignors, consignees and transport operators to become champions and corporate sponsors – create a platform for the Minister and industry members to advocate for RTMS
• Appoint a project manager to execute projects that are mandated by the steering committee to:
• Assist in creating credibility amongst industry participants
• Monitor compliance
• Coordinate activities through industry sector steering committees
• Administer “sticks and carrots” (e.g. weighless, PBS, etc)
• Coordinate research and technology innovation
• Coordinate all projects initiated by the steering committee e.g. PBS, research, promotion, published statistics, etc
• Motivate for funding for implementation and research projects from DoT, the dti, Science and Technology, etc.
• Appoint at least one national certification body accredited by SANAS to assist in marketing the programme
• Develop and quantify the concessions and ensure access to all certified users of RTMS
• Coordinate sector specific RTMS implementation projects when requested by a sector
• Appoint independent assessor to evaluate impact and benefits to participants

• Use private sector sponsorship and government seed funding to establish a self-funding certification scheme, and coordinate specialised funding on a project basis Core principles:
• Engage leadership of major consignors, consignees and transport operators to become founder members and corporate sponsors – create a platform for the Minister and founder members to advocate for RTMS
• Establish funding mechanisms and protocols to allow industry players to jointly fund projects on an ongoing basis. Mandate specific role players to seek funding for special projects
• Motivate for Government seed funding and corporate sponsorship to complete the start-up phase
• Ensure at least one national certification body accredited by SANAS to audit and market the program
• Mandate specific role players to seek funding

• Develop and coordinate a research and technology innovation programme, implemented as special projects of the National Steering Committee
• Conduct specialised research and innovation projects aimed at improve productivity and competitiveness of the value chain
• Assist in the development of strategic human capital (build capacity of people in research)
• Develop low cost technology innovations to increase affordability

• Strategy to promote access to certification for BEE and small operators through a modular certification process and preferential procurement in supplier selection
• Develop a modular certification process and the application of preferential procurement criteria in supplier selection
• Develop database of small operators
• Commercialise technology innovations for broad use by small operators

• Consignors and consignees will enforce compliance among the transport operators that do work for them
• Develop clear incentives for consignors and consignees to implement the national standards
• Promote equitable competition for transport operators among different consignees and consignors

• Strategy Coordinate programmes aimed at improving value chain productivity and competitiveness through loading, vehicle maintenance and driver wellness
• Implement projects and innovative processes aimed at improve productivity and competitiveness of the value chain (e.g. broad implementation of PBS, real-time tracking of vehicles and data, load optimisation, etc)
• Roll-out productivity improvements to other industries

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Key Objectives
The following key objectives address the targets that need to be achieved over the next five years:

1. Financial self-sustainability within 3 years of start-up
2. Significant market penetration within 5 years:
• 50% of road tonnage will be carried by RTMS certified transport operators;
• At least 50% market share by tonnage in the top 5 industries in terms of impact on road condition;
3. Overloading reduced by 40% in 5 participating industries with high impact on road conditions by the end of the first five years
4. 95% compliance to road traffic regulations among certified transport operators
5. RTMS is recognised by stakeholders as the national standard
6. RTMS is recognised by the public for safety and environmental hygiene
7. Achieve SADC harmonisation of the proposed national standard within 4 years

• Implement at least 4 productivity improvement projects (e.g. PBS pilot projects)
• Develop a research and technology innovation programme resulting in at least 4 completed projects

• The following is the synopsis of the Strategic Actions for the programme:

  1. Establishment of structures and protocols (leadership, steering committee and project management)
  2. Completion and publication of the RTMS national standard
  3. Fundraising for the start-up phase
  4. Brand building and marketing programme
  5. Finalisation of supportive RTMS elements including concessions, website, etc.
  6. Establish a programme for research and development.

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Recommended RTMS Structure

The following roles are required but may be combined and executed by more than one person:

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RULES OF COMPLIANCE

A number of rules of compliance have been identified to assist users ensure that vehicles are not over or under-loaded, that vehicles are properly maintained and that drivers are healthy and properly trained. The following is an example, developed specifically for transport operators

HAULIER RULES OF COMPLIANCE

Rule 1: Maintain an Inventory of Nominated Vehicles
All certified or pre-certified vehicles must be operated in accordance with the HVMS. Certain details need to be kept to establish the identity, configuration and load limitations of each vehicle.

Rule 2: Assess the Vehicle Mass before Each Laden Trip
To ensure that the masses (gross and axle) of participating vehicles are within the relevant limits before a trip is undertaken.

Rule 3: Verify the Mass Determination Method
To ensure adequate accuracy of the method/s used to determine the mass of the laden vehicle.

Rule 4: Vehicle and load safety
To ensure that participating vehicles are checked at least daily for basic roadworthiness and load safety and that all accidents are documented.

Rule 5: Vehicle maintenance
To ensure that vehicles participating in the RTMS are maintained and kept in a roadworthy condition at all times.

Rule 6: Driver Wellness
This is to ensure that drivers have the necessary documentation, that they are healthy and that their hours are scheduled properly to eliminate fatigue and tiredness.

Rule 7: Provide Training and Education
To ensure that all persons to whom responsibility were assigned in the HVMS have received the necessary training to execute their tasks. Driver training is especially important since the drivers are responsible for the correct loading, safe driving and reporting of faults on their vehicles.

Rule 8: Assign Tasks and Responsibilities
To ensure that all persons that have responsibilities assigned to them in the HVMS know what is expected of them.

Rule 9: Keep Records and Documentation
Ensure that the necessary documentation is kept in order to demonstrate compliance with the rules of RTMS. Also ensure that all persons with a responsibility to implement the system always have the latest documentation available.

Rule 10: Perform an Internal Review (Self-audit)
To ensure that the HVMS continues to comply with the rules of RTMS and that all non-conformances brought to light are corrected. During the pre-certification phase, a self-audit will be necessary to determine whether the applicant is ready for an external audit in order to gain full certification.

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