R G Willing Transport Service Ltd – Going for Gold

R G Willing Transport Service Ltd is a tipper company, established in 1995 we are based in London.  We supply aggregates and asphalt to London and the surrounding counties. We have grown from having one tipper in 1995 to seven 32 tonne rigid and articulated vehicles. Julie Willing, company secretary explains how R G Willing have achieved reductions in fuel use through FORS’

We came across FORS as a contractual condition while working for Tarmac.  When we looked into joining FORS we saw an opportunity for ways to improve fuel efficiency and our outlook on health and safety. When we looked at the requirements and benefits of joining the scheme we saw that they fitted in perfectly with our ethos of improving safety whilst complementing our drive to improve fuel efficiency and reduce our environmental impact’

We take compliance and safety very seriously so we achieved our Bronze and Silver Accreditation first time. FORS did help us by providing training and tools that improved the policies and procedures’

The performance management toolkit really helped us set our targets for reducing our carbon footprint and improving our MPG. FORS has helped us improve our filing systems and procedures’

‘FORS has helped us achieve compliance and safety’ – Julie Willing – Company Secretary

All our drivers have completed their Safe Urban Driving course which was funded by the Transport for London. We have also invested heavily in vehicle safety systems cameras, nearside proximity sensors and audible alarms for all our vehicles. All our drivers have also completed FORS E-Learning modules.’

‘We have improved our MPG by 63% since our baseline year’ – Julie Willing Company Secretary

• We have managed reduce our parking fines and charges by 63% compared to our baseline year. We achieved this by making sure we always selected the best route possible to all our sites and we plan ahead before leaving the yard.

• We get all my drivers to complete a Medical Declaration on a annually basis even though the FORS Standard states once every 5 years. It’s also mentioned in the drivers handbook that if they at any point in time start suffering from a medical condition they need to notify the company ASAP as well as if they need to start taking medication prescribed by their GP or over the counter drugs. We will then investigate it to see if it’s still safe for the driver to be driving for the company and we may even ask the driver to get a letter from his doctor informing the company if he is still able to drive for the company. We will then start doing more driver assessments on the driver to make sure he isn’t a risk to the company or anyone on the road.
• We have recently adopted a recruitment policy to try and help us recruit young drivers into the Transport industry as we are very short on drivers.
• We work solely for TARMAC and FM Conway, we go to a site pick up the concrete and then go drop it off where the client has specified. All our servicing is done by main dealers at their sites not ours. The only noise generated is when my lorries are idling so we can carry out our defect checks. All my lorries have white noise reversing alarms fitted to them.
• We carry concrete to and from construction sites across the whole country for TARMAC and FM Conways. As we rely on TARMAC and FM Conways telling us to deliver to various construction sites across London, we never know where we are going until they need us. TARMAC already use barge or trains as they get all the concrete and supplies delivered to the plants and then we transport it the final stage of the journey straight to site. So using a Lorry is the most cost effective way of moving TARMAC’s goods to the final destination. We are replacing all our lorries with with Euro 6 engines as and when they are due. We have looked at electric vehicles and because of the weights we carry and the fact that our lorries have specialist equipment fitted no manufacture have produced an alternative fuelled vehicle that can carry the weight we do and go over the same terrain we do.

We will continue using what FORS has taught us to improve our MPG and reduce any wasted idling we might have and keep our accidents to zero’

Gaining FORS Gold Accreditation shows how dedicated we are as a company to improving road safety and the safety of all vulnerable road users in London as well as nationally. We will continuously use what FORS has taught us to help reduce our carbon footprint and make the roads so safer for everyone that uses them. We have also managed to make a significant saving by reducing our fuel usage and improving our MPG. We have also reduced the amount of Parking Fines and Charges in the past 12 months.

Please note: All published FORS Gold case studies have been submitted by the accredited company named above and transcribed verbatim.