Western exposure at 2015 Perth Truck and Trailer Show

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Owner/Driver / September 9, 2015

As the name suggests, trucks and trailers shared centre stage at this year’s Perth Truck and Trailer Show.

Held over three days in late July at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre, the show attracted local manufacturers, plus local representatives of national companies and eastern states exhibitors keen on promoting their wares in the west.

A welcome addition to the 2015 event was the opening day’s information seminars covering topics such as dangerous goods transportation, fatigue management, chain of responsibility (COR) and trailer brake requirements.

Cat Trucks’ new triple-rated CT630 HD was displayed prominently at the show.

"It’s very comfortable, great visibility, great air-conditioners, and it’s got the yellow engine inside, which is well supported by WesTrac’s footprint up and down the road," business unit manager at WesTrac Kewdale Highway Truck Centre Peter Calligaro says.

He says acceptance of the Cat Trucks brand has the biggest hurdle in the west, although that is steadily changing.

"Kenworth has been big over here, and Volvo are really doing a big push at the moment, but our product is being accepted now," he says.

"It is a good product; I’ve not seen anything that is causing us many headaches, so I believe it’s just to keep pushing, and keep marketing, and we’ll get there in the end."

Skipper Trucks had a presence at the show and opted for an outdoors display instead of shouldering arms with competitors inside.

Skipper Trucks, part of the Automotive Holdings Group (AHG), has long been a familiar name in the Perth truck market, although close on four years ago it was rebranded as WA Iveco.

"Skipper Trucks has been an entity for 30 odd years, and it never actually went away, it just wasn’t a sign on the wall," company representative Mike Rutherford explains.

"The last three years, you talk to anyone and they’ll just say: ‘I’m just going down to Skipper’s’. People didn’t change, we were still called Skipper’s."

The relaunch of Skipper Trucks has coincided with the move to new premises at Welshpool.

Skipper’s showcased two of its premium trucks, an Iveco Powerstar 7800 and an Iveco Stralis 500, at the show to get the Skipper’s name back in the minds of the public.

Meanwhile, trailer makers rightly occupied a fair share of space inside the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre, with local outfits keen to highlight WA’s expertise in that sector.

This included Custom Quip Engineering (CQE), which had aluminium tippers on show.

Not far from the CQE stand, G & A Lombardi general manager Mike Dunbar chatted with prospective customers about the company’s Steelite end tipper range.

Overall, organisers were placed with attending figures with around 8,500 visitors attending over the three days.

Show director Peter Woods says while the number of attendees is lower than in previous years, he believes it is due to the industry going through hard times, both locally and across the country.

"There has been a definite shift in the industry in the past year or so, and we are grateful to all our exhibitors for sticking with the show and extending their support to the industry," he says.

The Perth Truck and Trailer Show is presented by the Commercial Vehicle Industry Association, a division of the Motor Trade Association (MTA).

Plans are already underway for the next show, which will be held on July 28 to 30, 2017.

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