Not another motor show. It's the Brisbane Truck Show.

Yesterday I visited the Brisbane Truck Show 2013 at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre. I have visited several trade fairs in the past, starting from my early childhood when the yearly visit to Thessaloniki International Trade Fair was something I was looking forward to. I remember vividly the big foreign national pavilions with all the exhibitors and equipment.

As a kid I had a big interest in all shorts of vehicles and especially fast cars. A few years ago I had the chance to visit the Paris motor show which is probably one of the three largest car shows in Europe along Geneva and Frankfurt. Very impressive show with some car manufacturers showing prototypes and racing models.

 

But Brisbane Truck Show was something quite different. Being my first truck show and not having too much detail on what to expect I entered the show from the Grey Street entrance. I browsed through the stands of truck accessories and I thought that this would be a boring afternoon and a total waste of time. At least the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator seminar that I had registered to attend, would make up for that. 

And then while I continued browsing through the halls and corridors I ended up at the main hall and had my first glimpse of the huge prime movers. "All right, here we are..." I thought and decided this time to find the correct first point of entrance to the main hall so I could see the exhibition without missing anything.

First stand was Australian made Kenworth trucks with the flagship T909 that is often used as a prime mover for road trains in Australia. Kenworth was one of the companies that allowed truck enthusiasts and of course potential buyers to climb inside and sit behind the steering wheel of their trucks. Once again that reminded me of my childhood when I wanted to become a truck driver.

 

 

And then it was all the other big players in the truck industry. DAF and MAN and Mercedes and Freightliner with the Coronado.

Of course Volvo could not be missing from such an event, as they are probably the best manufacturer of heavy vehicles in the world. As always the emphasis was on road safety for the driver.

 

Volvo also presented very useful and well designed software for the transport operators.

Western Star's 4900 FXC, Aussie 1, was named truck of the show. 

 

 Mack's stand was also very interesting with a touch of history added to the usual impressive trucks. From the 1980 the R797RS named Penny Ann probably reminded a lot of people of their past. 

Three hours later I left the exhibition center enthusiastic with a feeling of certainty. Similar to the car industry, that pushes the limit for road safety but also amenity for drivers, truck and heavy vehicle industry does the same but at the same time enhancing productivity and saving cost for an industry where energy consumption is so critical.