L.I.T. JUNIOR STAFF TEST ASSISTANCE SYSTEM
IN THE APPRENTICE TRUCK
Daria Ruginis, an intern at the Nordwest-Zeitung, and Marvin Möhlmann, an apprentice at the L.I.T. Gruppe, stand in the blind spot of our truck.
Modern technology is capable of much and can become a helpful tool in everyday life. For example, the turn assist system for trucks, which is currently the talk of the town. It is intended to prevent serious accidents between heavy vehicles and cyclists or pedestrians. Accidents that often end fatally and occur when the more vulnerable road user is in the truck's blind spot and is overlooked during the turning maneuver. The Nordwest-Zeitung visited us to have the technology explained.
Alexander Thon, who was in his second year of training as a professional truck driver at the time of the visit, is frequently on the road with our apprentice truck. The vehicle – the ultra-modern Actros Edition 1 from Mercedes Benz – is spacious and equipped with state-of-the-art technology. What is immediately noticeable: The truck no longer has large exterior mirrors. Instead, it has cameras that show the side of the vehicle and the road area on a screen in the cab. "The advantage is that the blind spot is almost eliminated," explains Thon. "The camera detects cyclists and pedestrians. A warning triangle appears on the screen if someone is there." If things get tight, an acoustic signal sounds that cannot be ignored. Trailer tracking is also important. "The camera shows me the end of the trailer in a curve, so I always have an overview," he says.
However, our apprentice also knows: Technology does not replace an attentive driver. As a driver, one cannot unconditionally rely on a warning signal from the turn assist system. Robert Hennemann, who is responsible for the operational business of L.I.T. Cargo, also points out: "A turn assist system is not a guarantee." Drivers and all other road users must keep this in mind; therefore, caution is always important in traffic. Camera-based turn assist systems have been available for trucks as a retrofit package for some time. Systems that are installed as standard have only been available recently. "These are newer versions that can also intervene in the braking system and not just emit a warning signal. The system then brakes as well. You have to imagine it like a lane-keeping assistant in a passenger car," reports Hennemann.
From 2020, all new registrations at our company will be equipped with such a system, says Hennemann. From 2022, the turn assist system will be mandatory EU-wide for buses and trucks for new vehicle types. From 2024, all new vehicles must be equipped with it. We do not want to retrofit older vehicles, as Hennemann explains: "We looked into it, but the technology was not yet convincing, and our share of motorway kilometers driven is very high at 97/98 percent. The cases in which a turn assist system is sensibly used are therefore currently still very few for us." Currently, only the apprentice truck is so extensively equipped. Our prospective professional truck driver is happy to learn with such a modern truck. The most visually striking feature of the ultra-modern equipment is certainly that the apprentice truck no longer has large exterior mirrors, but instead cameras that show the side of the vehicle and the road area on a screen in the cab. Alexander Thon's enthusiasm was further increased by the fact that we called upon our apprentices to choose their favorite design for the vehicle and contribute their ideas. Thanks to their creative input, the apprentice truck is a real eye-catcher: It features not only our tile pattern in the typical L.I.T. colors, but also our training motto: "Bist du lit?"
Alexander Thon,
Apprentice professional truck driver
Six of our junior staff finally picked up the new apprentice truck personally at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Wörth and received comprehensive training on the technology there. They are now fully responsible for the vehicle, the transports carried out with it, and the scheduling. The fact that he bears direct responsibility as a result is a big plus for Thon during his training. For him, being a professional truck driver is a dream job. "I applied, looked at everything, there are ultra-modern vehicles here," he says. "The work at L.I.T. is varied. I compared which freight forwarding companies exist, and this is the best training company for me."