Buckle-less load restraint curtains have been regarded as the natural progression of curtain-sided trailer design and Western Australian Company Goldstar Transport is the first Australian operator to integrate the new Freighter Autohold model into their fleet.
Showcased at the recent Perth Truck Show, Autohold has been hailed a major advance in trailer load restraint systems and, with no buckles or gates, Goldstar Transport will be the first WA based operator to trial the trailer with its drivers and customers to experience first hand, just how fast and user-friendly the load restraint curtains perform.
Goldstar Transport Managing Director, Sean Carren is well-known for investing in new transport technology to better serve their customers, but new technology doesn't have to mean "complicated"!
In fact, the biggest advantage of the Autohold design is its simple operation. The vertical locking, unlocking and release of the curtain is completely automatic via a simple push button control and switch. The patented air-operated "swing hook" mechanism does the rest, swinging all the pultrusions at once to unlock and lock them into the coaming rail.
The Autohold curtain has been certified to meet the NTC Load Restraint Guidelines for a unitised load of 1,250kg or more per pallet space. It also uses significantly less moving parts than other models available, reducing the overall cost of maintenance and downtime.
Freighter engineers took their time to ensure every aspect and mechanism of Autohold was carefully considered so that when the model was released, operators could be 100% confident that the trailer would meet their load restraint requirements, reduce the OH&S risks and provide improved productivity.
General Manager for Freighter, Rod Cunningham, has been delighted at how Freighter's suite of load restraint options has evolved, explaining that, "The Freighter EziLiner and Load Hold really paved the way for the improvement we're seeing in curtain-sided trailer technology today."
"It has been echoed by operators everywhere for a long time that trailer manufacturers needed to develop load restraint solutions that eased the physical pressure on drivers and we see through the enquiries we're now getting for Autohold, that considerations such as OH&S and better time management for drivers is a playing a major factor in the equipment purchasing decision of many transport companies."
Being fully Main Roads WA accredited has enabled Goldstar to transport an almost endless variety of items, including any oversize freight that can legally be transported.
Sean believes that the Autohold will give their fleet an advantage over other transport companies vying for business in their region.
"We expect that, with more efficient loading and unloading times, along with the savings in operating costs that Autohold provides, there will be customers out there who will see the benefits that are available," Sean said.
"Most importantly, I have no doubt our drivers will embrace the improved ease of operation of these curtains, especially on multi-drop routes where they will no longer have to constantly use buckles and straps during each drop."
Goldstar Transport is a WA family owned business established in 2001, and is one of the leading integrated logistics providers based in the Kewdale Welshpool area, the hub of WA transport operations.
Providing services to the construction, food and beverage industries as well as associated sectors, Goldstar Transport has maintained a high level of growth due to its focus on safety, a can do attitude and through the adoption of best business practices.
These practices include regular reviews on OH&S policies, ongoing training for staff and, as their trial of the first commercially available Autohold exemplifies, ongoing roll out of their fleet replacement/upgrade plan.
