Aeolus Truck & Driver News

New Zealand’s largest privately-owned logistics provider, Mondiale Freight Services, is to merge with its major Australian equivalent, VISA Global Logistics – creating “a new global freight giant.” 

Mondiale says that the combined Mondiale VISA business will have a turnover of $NZ1.3billion – “propelling it into the top 30 ocean freight forwarders in the world” and making it the largest privately-owned freight forwarder in Oceania. 

“The integrated service offering provided in NZ and Australia will be unrivalled, given the investment in logistics infrastructure that this merger provides to the market,” says Mondiale CEO Ray Meade, who will take the same role in t...

At Truckstops Christchurch, Ben Whalley is a second-year apprentice diesel mechanic, with ambitions to finish his time, doing a job he “loves.”

Away from work, the 18-year-old is something of a sensation in speedway motorcycle racing – this year having become the youngest-ever winner of the New Zealand Solo Motorcycle Speedway Champs. 

That puts him on a Kiwi champions’ roll of honour that includes famous Kiwi speedway names like Len Perry, Ronnie Moore, Barry Briggs, Ivan Mauger and Mitch Shirra. 

And, in the space of just a few months, he’s backed-up that NZ championship victory by coming second in the Burt Munro Challenge’s speedway event, winning the Ro...

The next two-yearly Bombay Truck Show isn’t on until next February – but planning is already well under way to make it “bigger and better – if that is possible.”

The organising committee for the second show, to be held at the Bombay Rugby Club (and adjoining private property) on February 12, says that both of the naming rights sponsors for 2020’s inaugural show – Allied Petroleum and Transfleet Trailers – “have jumped at the chance to come back onboard.”

That first show saw 280 trucks and 37 trade stands – overflowing from the two rugby fields onto more than 20 acres of what is usually market gardens. 

It attracted 8000 showgoers to an event that resulted in $68...

Cummins has landed a huge deal with Daimler to take over the engine supply for all of the global truckmaker’s medium-duty trucks and buses worldwide within the next eight years.

Daimler Truck says it will halt production of medium-duty engines by 2029, with Cummins to establish its own engine production line within the existing Mercedes-Benz engine plant in Mannheim, Germany – using established resources to produce the Euro 7 Cummins powerplants.

Daimler’s own Detroit DD5 and DD8 engines will be phased out, Daimler Trucks boss Martin Daum explaining that the Euro 7 emissions standards would have required the investment of “considerable resources” to further develop its own...

The world’s first electric sideloader has been launched by Hammar – and could be working in New Zealand within a year.

A prototype has been trialled with several customers in Australia over the past seven years – the Swedish company having now decided to put the electric sideloader into production.

It says it’s a milestone in offering green, environmentally-friendly alternatives in the sideloader industry.

And Hammar NZ managing director Fred Sandberg believes NZ operators will be early adopters of the zero-emissions container lifter: “I can confirm we will be offering the electrified sideloader option for the NZ market – and we do have a customer who is very interes...