US dream trip makes winning a Smart move
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WHEN Graham Smart won the Commercial Motor Lorry Driver of the Year title last September, he effectively became the best and most professional goods vehicle driver in the UK. But as he returned to his Tamworth home on the evening of his victory, he felt a little empty rather than triumphant. Admittedly he was proud that he had become LDoY champion 1983 and, obviously, he was delighted that he had won so many trophies, awards and gifts (not to mention a free holiday for him and his wife, and a not inconsiderable sum of money). But, as he rightly says, being LDoY champion initially made little if any difference to his life.
"I still had to get up for work the next day ansl carry on the same as before. OK, so I'd just been named as the Lorry Driver of the Year, but all that really meant at first was that I had to drive more carefully than ever before."
Graham Smart has now sampled some of the delights of being an LDoY champion. Courtesy of Michelin Tyre, which consistently provides one of the best prizes to LDoY winners, Graham (27) has just returned from a study trip to the I. where he has been taking a at some tyre depots and tories, as well as visiting world's largest lorry plant. (I dentally, Americans call t tyres "tires".) He also managed to sper couple of days on the road an American trucker and e managed to squeeze in a bi sightseeing.
A Midlands British Road vices driver, Graham was companied on his trek across States by Midlands BRS trair manager, Dave Tarbuck. present were Michelin's UK lic relations officer Chris Rog and myself.
I must confess that we wen a little disappointed when chelin Tire Corporation dis manager Randolph Howey us at Baltimore Airport ii Volvo car. We were all expec something a little more, v American.
"Yeah, sorry about that," Randolph. "Up until last we had a Buick but I guess sc other guy liked it better than I — I parked the thing the ol ot, went to dinner and when I le out of the restaurant, it n't there."
fe checked into the magnifiE Vista Hotel, Washington, where we were to spend the t two nights. As Graham was vvn to his room he looked -e than happy.
3o you like the hotel, Mr art?" asked one of the charmmembers of staff.
=antastic," he replied before ling to me and saying: "I us truck drivers are really d to staying in places like !"
raham did not get to see the President in Washington al ugh he did rub shoulders President Gnassingbe Eyala of the West African Re lic Togo who, like us, was Dying the comfort of the Vis"executive floors".
on the day that Eyadema met igan, along with officials of World Bank and Interneoat Monetary Fund, we left shington central for nearby timore Commons Industrial k, Harmans, Maryland, which
I sus one of Michelin Tire Cor
ation's distribution centres. :helin has 19 other distribu n centres in the States, ?Aching from Jacksonville, -Ida in the South-east right up 'ortland, Oregon in the North he warehouse I distribution centre at Harns serves tyre dealers and rears, as well as some manut u re rs and large fleet :rators. It mainly caters for customers in Virginia, West Virginia and central Pennsylvania — the American East.
Tyres come into the Harmans distribution centre by road and rail from manufacturing plants throughout the USA, Canada and beyond. They do not stay long.
The distribution/warehouse complex runs five vehicles which deliver tyres direct to customers (mostly tyre dealers), then usually return with a full load from one of Michelin's five US manufacturing facilities. The whole set-up is highly efficient.
A brief tour around the complex showed that Michelin runs a very tight ship. Unloading of incoming lorries and trains can be carried out totally under roof with the warehouse doors closed if necessary. The buildings are immaculately clean and tidy. Only nine "warehousers" are responsible for the whole plant — all of those men or women are offered training as drivers if they are looking for career advancement with Michelin.
In the unlikely event of a fire at the warehouse, doors close automatically and the whole complex can be divided into small sections allowing the fire to be contained within the affected sealed-off area. Any person who is working in the plant and is also sealed off, simply makes his or her exit through the escape tunnels that run underground. An elaborate alarm and warning system can also pinpoint the exact source of the problem.
It was at the Harmans distribution/warehouse complex that we first met Charlie Sigafoose — who was to be our friend, companion and guide for the next couple of days. His official job was to deliver tyres between Baltimore and Norfolk and then to drive down to South Carolina and haul a load of newly manufactured tyres back to his base at Harmans.
His unofficial job was, to take us along for at least part of his week-long round-trip.
Charlie knew that four visitors would be joining him for the trip but initially he was unaware that Graham Smart, the man sitting in the passenger seat of his cab, was the UK's premier driver.
After recovering from the surprise Charlie welcomed Graham and said with obvious sincerity that it was a pleasure to have him along.
Dave Tarbuck, Chris Rogers and I followed Charlie's rig in a hired car that looked better than it drove. A few miles out from Harmans we stopped for breakfast. The rapport between Charlie, Graham and Dave (himself an ex-driver) was very strong; within minutes the three men were swapping opinions, ideas and experiences about their work. It became evident that apart from their different accents and backgrounds these three professionals were really very much alike.
It was not long before we were under way again and travelling along another three/four lane interstate road. There are three main differences between driving on a major US and a major UK road, the most obvious one being that they drive on the right and we — unlike the rest of the world — still drive on the left.
Drive on an American interstate road and you'll also notice that most people stick rigidly to the 55mph speed limit. Also very apparent (and sometimes unnerving) is the American style of driving whereby vehicles overtake one another on the inside and outside.
It is not uncommon to see a fast driver swapping lanes, weaving his way through four rows of traffic. Work on the assumption that the most dangerous part of motorway driving is the actual process of lane changing and the American system seems far for safe. If someone is going to drive at maximum speed surely it is better that they travel in the outside lane and stay there away from slowmoving vehicles that have perhaps just joined the inside lane from a slip road?
Despite the system, Charlie coped admirably. Our car followed closely behind his rig. The speedometer reading barely budged from 57mph. One of the first deliveries of the day was to a massive shopping complex. A motorist who needs a new set of tyres simply has them fitted while buying the week's groceries. Deliveries to such shopping complexes were frequent during our two days with Charlie — evidence that such outlets are a success with the buying public.
Deliveries to more traditional tyre dealers were also frequent. Many of them, though, were tucked away on sites with poor access but Charlie, with a little help from Graham, made light work of moving his 60ft rig with its 45ft trailer.
Unfortunately, because of insurance problems Graham was unable to drive the International Harvester turbocharged vehicle on the road, though he jumped at the opportunity when he was asked to back the giant yellow and blue rig up to an unloading bay. Not content with that, he and Dave Tarbuck helped Charlie unload some tyres from the trailer. Feeling guilty I joined in too. Chris Rogers went and bought the coffees.
By the afternoon even he was helping with the unloading. In fact, with four pairs of hands helping him out Charlie eventually assumed a supervisory role. "I just wish I'd brought my camera with me, that's all," he said as he watched us.
It was during the same, afternoon that I joined Charlie and Graham in the cab and muscled in on their conversation. Really, it was a pleasure to listen to two thorough professionals talking about everything from driving techniques to the standard of accommodation on the road.
Graham admitted that he was not usually a good passenger but that he felt comfortable with Charlie at the wheel. The modest Charlie returned the compliment and rightly said that to be the UK's Lorry Driver of the Year, Graham must be something special.
He also reminded Graham that he himself had recently won the Ryder driver of the month award (Michelin leases vehicles from Ryder) and that he was proud to have done so.
There followed a lull in the conversation which was interrupted only by an emergency stop. Graham and Charlie swore in unison as they looked at the offending motorist who had almost caused an accident.
"It's a good job there were no language tests in that competition Graham, otherwise you wouldn't have stood a chance," said Charlie.
Graham swore again.
After being on the road all day, and only having two short breaks, Charlie pulled over for the night at Hampton, Virginia. No, he did not use a lay-by — he chose the Holiday Inn. Is it usual for truck drivers to use a place like this, I enquired?
"Sure, why not?" was the reply I got.
It is worth mentioning the evening that the five of us spent at Hampton. Charlie proved to be a courteous and witty host, and the locals were equally friendly. The night will be remembered for many things, including the Mexican food which was, remarked Charlie, "hot enough to burn metal".
Charlie led us to Norfolk Airport the following afternoon after we had made yet more tyre deliveries in the morning. At one time we got slightly lost but after contacting a fellow truck driver on his CB radio we were promptly back on the right road.
If, like me, you thought that CBs were a waste of time and money, think again. Charlie reckons that his often bails him or someone else out of trouble, or simply provides some relief from boredom on the road.
Graham, Dave, Chris and I parted company with Charlie at Norfolk Airport, Virginia and flew to Louisville, Kentucky, where Ford boasts that it has the largest truck plant in the Free World. According to Ford, Louis
ville is actually the "truck capital of the world".
It was not until the following day, Wednesday, that we actually got to see the plant which covers a site area of 415 acres. Buildings on the site cover 2.9m sqft (67 acres). The truck plant building is 2,350ft (0.45 miles) long by 1,350ft (0.26 miles) wide. The parking area on the 415 acre site covers 1.4m sqft, which includes space for 3,600 cars.
As we entered the factory. Graham could not help but spot the neon sign "Ford welcome the UK's Lorry Driver of the Year to Louisville". The grin of satisfaction on his face became even greater when we stepped inside and saw three immaculate tractive units that were, we were told, the plant's crème de la crème. Graham said that he very much wanted to get behind the wheel of at least one of them, if only for a few minutes.
Ford's Hatch Houston showed us around the plant which has three final lines. Line one produces Ford's B and F Series units, line two is responsible for the medium range L and C Series while the third line provides the impressive LTLs and CLs.
The total conveyor length covers a staggering 40,000ft (9.5 miles) and there are around 790 production units in the system at any one time. All units are built to customer order ("standard" units are not the norm) and are on the production line for six days.
The plant operates on a oneshift basis. A total of 2,668 employees are currently building 23.5 units per hour (or one every two and half minutes). Last year they produced a total of 45,222 units.
It goes without saying that many of the vehicles produc at Louisville go abroad everywhere from Canada China. Having seen the Jai nese move in on the Americ car market, Ford in America determined not to make 1 same mistakes in other areas. "We were massacred in 1 car market. They're not going do the same on the truck sid one senior Ford executive ti me at Louisville.
The Kentucky truck plant reE has to be seen to be appreciat Despite its vastness, it is rerr kably clean and appears to extremely well structured. W is more, the feeling on the floor is evidently cheerful.
Hatch Houston agreed NA my observations. The plant successful because of a n concept of employee invol ment he says.
Ford sees employee invol ment as a process in which le unions and management w together to create a work clim where employees can achio work satisfaction by direct their ingenuity, imagination C creativity toward improvi their work and the ove
"Employee involvement is a ree-way partnership; a cognition by employees, the lion and management that eir common interests can be rved best when there is cornon effort," says the company.
The arrangement seems to ork well. understand that the
orkers at Louisville receive a ,tal package worth around 10,000 (C20,000) per year.
After lunch with some of the p management at Louisville,
raham was introduced to a .oup of dealers from the Northist of America who were also siting the plant.
"What sort of truck do you drive back home, Graham," yelled out one of the dealers.
"A Ford — on Michelin tyres," replied Graham, who was learning fast.
The afternoon gave him the opportunity to drive some vehicles on Ford's 1.42 mile test track. Not knowing which way to turn when he was asked to choose the truck of his choice, Hatch Houston came to the rescue and threw Graham the keys to the LTL 9000 display model which he had been admiring earlier.
It was about the finest vehicle that the Louisville plant was capable of producing, said Hatch. Graham's boss, Dave Tarbuck, took Hatch up on his offer and, almost spoiled for choice, chose a newly built CLT 9000 with a turbocharged Cummins engine. The Michelin PR man and the journalist chose something a little less grand.
Needless to say, Graham was like a kid with several new toys as he switched from cab to cab out on the test track. The LTL 9000 (with its Caterpillar diesel engine, sleeper cab, dual vertical exhaust and 240 gallon aluminium tanks) lived up to his expectations. He also sat in the passenger seat (with me at the wheel) and passed on some useful driving tips. "I bet you wouldn't have climbed behind that wheel if you knew beforehand that this thing is worth £75,000 dollars," he said with a grin. He was not wrong.
It was at the test track that Wave TV3 interviewed Graham for an evening news programme. He took the whole thing in his stride.
After leaving Ford's Louisville plant with a wealth of rnomentos Graham returned to the hotel to watch himself on TV. This was probably the most enjoyable and exciting day of the whole trip, he confessed. Louisville was nice. As were its people.
We said goodbye to Michelin's Mike Coppersmith and flew from Louisville to Greenville, South Carolina, the following afternoon. Thankfully, we managed to see a few of the local sights during early evening before driving across the state line into Georgia where we enjoyed what Michelin's communications manager, Bob Herndon, referred to as "a good of' redneck supper". It consisted of catfish, rooster and turtle among other things. The sign on the door of the Swamp Guinea Restaurant read "shirts and shoes required". We had arrived in the American South.
It is a genuinely beautiful part of the world. And it is made yet more interesting by the colourful locals who seem determined to give visitors something to remember.
It is, too, the type of place where you can hunt deer, or simply sit on the verandah of your house in your rocking chair drinking iced tea or even moonshine.
After our brief trip onto the boondocks we returned to the civilisation of Greenville and prepared for our visit to the Michelin Truck Tire Manufacturing plant at Spartanburg, east of Greenville. US 3, as the Spartanburg plant is called, covers 150 acres and only started tyre production in August 1978. In fact, Michelin, "the company that put America on radials," only established its first US manufacturing facilities in 1973. Its rise since then has been phenomenal.
The first radial truck tyres manufactured at the Spartanburg plant were shipped in August 1978, signalling the start of production at Michelin's first US truck tire facility. Production line testing had begun in late May. Less than a year later, in April 1979, the plant reached a milestone in the production of the 100,0 00th tyre. Just 30 months earlier the plant had not even existed.
By January 1981 Spartanburg employees cured the 1,000,000th Michelin radial truck tyre produced in the US and the plant continued its important milestones in March with the production of the first radial truck tyre made in the US.
Worldwide, Michelin is notoriously secretive about its methods of tyre production and research. It has a strict policy not to divulge too much information to anyone, its machinery is often self-built (that way no outsiders see what it's building), and even the waste water at some of its US plants is treated so that competitors are unable to analyse it.
To say that Michelin closely guards its operations is something of an understatement. Before I entered the Spartanburg plant I had my camera and tape recorder confiscated (in the nicest possible way, of course).
Once inside the plant we were warmly welcomed but politely informed that our "guided tour" around Spartanburg would not actually allow us to see very much. A visit to the utilities building and the tyre warehouse was all we got, in addition to a slide show and brief lesson in tyre production back at the Spartanburg administration block.
Competing as it does in such a highly competitive market, Michelin should, I think, be congratulated for being almost obsessed with security. I was told that few visitors ever get to see the inside of Michelin's US manufacturing facilities and that even the company's employees are prohibited from seeing certain parts of the plant where they work. Although I did not see very much of Spartanburg, I was told that I was the first journalist ever to visit the plant.
Graham Smart again received the VIP treatment at Spartanburg. He was given a warm welcome from his Michelin hosts, and he left armed with yet more souvenirs and mementos.
On our way to the headquarters of the local highway patrol for another organised visit we pulled into a lay-by and bumped into the awesome figure of George Ames, an owner: operator who operates mainly between Florida and the east coast of America. Graham was fascinated lear,n that George usually dri• 300,000 miles a year. Last y was a particularly good year, said — he covered 370,1 miles.
It is fair to say that George highly successful owner-dri who receives a healthy inco in return for a lot of hard wc He is usually on the road wit maximum weight unit (40 • gross) for seven or eight days a time. He often enjoys just c day's break and is back on • road again.
It would have been quite to leave Graham and Geo' chatting for the rest of the c but we had the highway patro meet and George had a lot miles ahead of him. We said c goodbyes. George, like most the people we met insisted Om send him a copy of Commen Motor.
The visit to Lieutenant De sey's office at the Highv% Patrol was another experier we will never forget. The agei lieutenant told us that he c little trouble from truck drivi — fatigue was the biggest prc lem, with drivers often falli asleep at the wheel.
The following day we I America for England. En route Atlanta Airport we spent a f, hours at a US college foot game. We naively thought ti this would perhaps be an uni citing occasion — the 80,C strong crowd and the incredil match atmosphere proved very, very wrong.
On the return flight to Gatw we did little more than talk abc the wonderful hospitality of c American hosts. Graham SC that on his previous visit America he was a young Ro) Navy serviceman and really nothing of the country. This tir round, it was very different.
Graham Smart, and the thr of us who were fortune enough to accompany him his Michelin study trip, will be no danger of forgetting Ameni and its people.