06 – Microlise Transport Conference: The Future of Road Transport
Hey
crew! I hope you all are doing well and welcome back to my blog!
Today
I’d like to give you feedback about my experience at Microlise Transport Conference (just Conference in the
following). It is a conference about road transport organized every year by Microlise Ltd and its sponsors in order to spread knowledge about the issues and
solutions that nowadays affect the industry.
No, I haven't presented any article and I hadn’t any presentation there.
Come on crew, there were people like Her Royal Highness the Princess Royal
presenting at the Conference – and I don’t know what about you but, at least for
me, it was the first time in my life I saw a member of the Royal Family in
person.
Actually,
it was the first time for my Supervisor too. However, the Conference was really
good and it was basically the opportunity for me to deeply understand the issues
nowadays faced by the road transport industry. Personally, I think that the
most impressive thing I got from the conference was to understand the huge
organization existing around road transportation and the effort that is daily
done in order to improve the current situation. It is something that sometimes people
don’t appreciate, because it seems something due and obvious but it is not.
People work every day for improving traffic circulation, road safety,
deliveries efficiency, etc. and we should be aware of this.
So, let me summarize what happened at the Conference.
It
was just few days ago, on Wednesday the 18th May 2016 and the alarm
clock rang at 5:45 a.m. in the morning. Yep crew, it was really early but, you
know, the conference was at the “RICOH” Arena in Coventry (UK) - it is the Coventry City F.C.
stadium - so I had to take the train for going there from Nottingham.
As
usual in England, the Sun rises only once a month and in fact that day was
heavily rainy but, I mean, it’s normal here: I always bring with me an umbrella
(almost useless) and my waterproof jacket and trousers in my backpack. Ready to
go.
The
train left from Nottingham on time at 07:10 a.m. and after changing a couple of
times in the middle of nowhere we arrived at the stadium in Coventry at 08:46
a.m.
We registered for attending the Conference and after having a coffee we visited
the exposition area. It was huge. Hundred of stands organized by many different
companies of truck manufacturers industry were showing their latest
technologies and facilities. 5 trucks were parked at the corners of the area at
dozens meters distance one from each other: can you imagine how extended it
was? I would say around 8’000 m2 but I can easily be wrong.
The first half of the
Conference started at 09:15. Presented
by Quentin Willson, a quite famous English TV presenter, and the meeting
started with the speech of Nadeem Raza, Chief Executive Officer of Microlise
Ltd (organizer of the Conference), who thanked all the participants, the
exhibitors and the sponsors.
People
like Kevin Richardson, Chief Executive of “The Chartered Institute of Logistics
and Transport”, Tim Ward, Freight and Fleet Communications and Engagement
Manager of “Transport for London”, Paul Keasey, Head of “National Roads
Policing Intelligence Forum”, Lesley O’Brien, Partner of Freightlink Europe and
engaged in RHA activitiesand Her Royal Highness the Princess Royal, Patron of
international transport development charity “Transaid”, discussed among main
topics such as:
- improvements of standards in road transport industry;
- safety;
- low road transport industry costs;
- raising awareness of the industry;
- new technologies;
- the future of transport economy;
- (and obviously) Brexit: leave or stay.
Latter
there was an interesting debate during the Conference with Andrew Baxter, Managing
Director of “Europa Worldwide Group” and CR for “Vote to Leave” and the
politician Paul Uppal, member of the Conservative Party and CR for “Britain
Stronger in Europe” which presented their own view about the topic.
No
guys, I will not get you bored talking about why it is (or not) good for
England to remain in Europe but I will tell you something: if you have the
possibility to vote please do that. To vote in a referendum is the highest
expression of democracy, it is the most powerful way that we have in order to
express our ideas. Do not waste your possibility.
According
to an interesting statistic performed during the Conference about Brexit:
40.7%
is for stay;
43.7%
is for leave;
15.6%
don’t know.
After
lunch, the Conference subdivided the topics in four different areas of interest:
- Road Transport 2020 – Truck Manufacturers Talk Industry
Future:
talking about the future of trucks and road transport industry;
- Microlise Workshop: about new technologies and services
offered by the company to its customers;
- RHA Compliance Workshop: talking about road safety and
insurance compliance;
- Motor Transport Workshop: about issues and solutions provided
by different companies involved in road transport industry.
Each
topic was widely discussed in specific areas of the event and people could
decide to participate in those most suited to their own interest areas.
Another
interesting statistic collected during the Conference was that 83% of
participants were male and only 17% was female. Apparently it is a
characteristic of the sector where basically males are the majority as
employees and in manager positions as well (92% males and only 8% females). It
is a lack but, hopefully, this is something that is going to be changed soon.
It is a fact that “more diverse workforce perform better and less diverse
workforce are less productive” (McKinsey&Company).
Finally,
changing the topic of this post, please allow me to use these few lines at the
end of the post to congratulate my compatriot Mr. Ranieri. Yep, crew, I mean
the Leicester City coach Claudio Ranieri. I’d like to thank Claudio because he
taught us that dreams sometimes becomes true if we really believe and we fight
for them. He and his team did something that would be probably unrepeatable.
Yep,
someone said once “impossible is nothing” (Muhammad Ali) but Leicester
demonstrated it. Thank you one more time.
Stay
tuned guys!
Cheers,
P.S.: Ah, one last thing crew. Although surveys rate Italians as some of
Europe's scariest drivers it was actually Mr. Giorgio Lercera (an Italian guy) who
won the award as the best truck driver per performances across all over the
truck fleet controlled by Microlise.
I mean, it is something to mention right? Just joking crew, but I'd like to congratulate Giorgio as well!
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