The CV Operator Show will be the first time in two years that the whole transport industry has come together to showcase the latest innovations in vehicle technology. But it will also be a great networking event, giving operators chance to meet up with suppliers old and new.
To introduce some of the key people who will be running stands at the show, we are asking them to take part in an informal One Minute Interview.
If you would like to take the One Minute Interview challenge please email steve.hobson@rbi.co.uk.
Kevin Harkin
Sales & Marketing Director
Smith Electric Vehicles
What are you most looking forward to seeing at the 2010 Commercial Vehicle Operator Show?
I am delighted that the industry once more has a focal point; we missed our annual gathering last year, so it is great to have it back!
What do you think visitors are going to be looking for at the 2010 Commercial Vehicle Operator Show?
Visitors will be looking for greener, more economic vehicles that not only reduce CO2 emissions, but deliver cost benefits. Reducing the fleet’s CO2 footprint has shot up the corporate agenda in the past few years, to become one of the key factors in purchasing decisions.
Why do think it is important to have a presence at the 2010 Commercial Vehicle Operator Show?
This year, the electric commercial vehicle has truly come of age. Smith Electric Vehicles has a well-established product range and sales are gaining momentum in both the public and private sectors. The CV Operator Show gives us the opportunity to consolidate our position as the world’s leading manufacturer of zero-emission vans and trucks.
What do you hope to gain from the 2010 Commercial Vehicle Operator Show?
The CV Show was by far the best annual event for Smith Electric Vehicles; every year it brought us into contact with new fleet operators who are now customers. We are hoping for more of the same at the Commercial Vehicle Operator Show.
What’s your biggest gripe about the road transport industry at the moment?
Lead times are tough for all manufacturers at the moment – the supply chain took a beating during the recession and it is going to take a while for their capacity to realign with that of the OEMs.
What single piece of legislation would make your life easier and help your company work?
Short-term subsidies for electric commercial vehicles. The UK government is playing around the edges at the moment; what we need to stimulate demand is serious subsidies like those on offer in the USA and most other developed nations. Short-term subsidies will stimulate the market for EVs and help manufacturers reach the volumes they need to lower prices and create a self-sustaining industry. The UK has the best electric commercial vehicle manufacturers in the world at the moment – as a nation, we should do more to nurture and support any sector where we are undisputed world leaders.
What do you think has been the most important development in road transport in the last five years?
Two factors that have grown hugely influential in road transport are emissions and oil pricing. The only academic debate left around peak oil is whether it’s already happening, which is a terrifying prospect for an oil-based industry. But reducing CO2 emissions is undoubtedly the major factor that continues to drive innovation and new product development across our sector. Also, urban congestion leads to concentrated air pollution that kills thousands every year in the UK - and I expect to see growing legislation to further combat urban air pollution over the next five years.
How did you get into the industry?
I’ve been in the transport industry nearly all my working life, in sales and management roles for fleet management companies. I joined Smith Electric Vehicles in 2005.
How do you see the industry in the next five years?
The UK has the most sophisticated motor transport industry in the world, because we are not afraid of progress. In five years’ time our industry will be more environmentally friendly and even more efficient. The one really visible change I predict is the end of HGVs in city centres. I believe that we will see a modal shift where HGVs do most of the intercity work, then low-carbon LCVs are used to deliver goods to the high street or our homes.
What motivates you?
I genuinely love my job! At Smith Electric Vehicles, I’m right at the heart of decarbonising road transport – probably the most radical change in our industry since the combustion engine replaced the horse and cart.
What has been your most rewarding professional achievement to date?
The development of the Smith Edison, a pure electric version of the Ford Transit. Delivering an all-electric LCV under 3.5t was a real milestone for the industry. It made fleet operators sit up and take notice; here at last was a practical, working electric vehicle, based on an instantly recognisable chassis, that could easily slot into their existing fleets.
Pundits say the road transport industry delivers the economy. Do you agree, and why?
Our global economy would collapse without the road transport industry. I think we will see a shift back towards a more localised or regionalised economy over the next decade, as oil prices rocket. But that will be met by a modal shift from within the road transport industry, rather than a shift away from it.
Can you imagine a world without vans, trucks and trailers?
Not a world worth living in! Road transport is the lifeblood of the UK and will remain so for my lifetime and beyond.