Freight has been identified as an impending threat to the progress of the mining industry in Perth due to the shortage of skilled truck drivers.  In addition transport operators say they are finding it difficult to get their hands on the equipment needed for the job. Contractors are feeling the increase in demand for equipment to transport mining goods which is impacting on their costs which turn are impacting on the mining industry’s costs. The skills shortage would have a significant impact on the growth of the mining sector. It would limit operations substantially. One possible solution that has been suggested may be to bring in drivers from New Zealand or other parts of the country.  A report by Perthnow.com.au provides further detail on the situation: FREIGHT is looming as the next stumbling block to the mining boom, coming on top of skilled-labor shortages. Transport companies connected to the growing resource sector say they are struggling to find the equipment needed to transport everything from accommodation materials to piping. As new projects move into construction phase such as Gina Rinehart’s $9.5 billion Roy Hill project BGC Contracting chief executive Greg Heylen warned there could come a point when the viability of projects was affected as contractors were forced to pass on added costs. In a sign of the growing demand, The Sunday Times understands local transport specialist Centurion has won a freight contract worth hundreds of millions of dollars for four or five years with the Chevron-led Wheatstone project. But the company could be faced with long lead times on new equipment or even be forced to rent equipment at a higher price as manufacturers struggle to keep up with the demand.  A South Australian manufacturer said there had been a “significant increase” in demand for resource-sector equipment, including extendable trailers to carry goods. Anyone associated with the resources upswing was feeling the pressure as they tried to grow the size of their fleet, he said. Paul Warner, partner at Warners Transport, said the demand on the local freight industry was the busiest he’d seen in his 22 years of business. He said the shortage of equipment was strangling his business growth as he struggled to get the trailers and trucks needed to bid for more work. “The demand for equipment is that high that producers can’t produce it quick enough,” he said, adding that lead times for new heavy-haulage vehicles and trailers had doubled. While there wasn’t enough equipment to go around, those with the right gear were able to drive prices up, he said. Another massive strain on growth was finding the drivers with the necessary experience and skills to drive the vehicles. Toll People WA state manager Tony O’Donnell said the biggest issue facing the industry was the lack of skilled drivers. “You have to look at other options, whether that be drivers from New Zealand or drivers from interstate, to come to Perth on a fly-in, fly-out option. There is no real silver bullet for the driver shortage at the moment,” he said. Mr Heylen said rising freight and labour costs, coupled with the shortage in yellow equipment such as dump trucks and excavators, meant it was no surprise companies such as BHP Billiton were seeing increased costs in the Australian market. He said there had been about a 20-30 per cent increase in the price of big earthmoving equipment in the past two years. Commonwealth Bank WA general manager Greg Caust said there was also a spike in the second-hand market for dump trucks, bulldozers and excavators because it was hard to find new equipment. Source: https://www.perthnow.com.au/news/wa/now-its-a-freight-wait-ng-205cd12bcf3b3ac198061285aeeb8af9. This skills shortage is another reason for young workers to enter the freight industry. The government’s planned training sponsorship has come just in time to reduce the deficit of skilled drivers. With Australia’s freight industry growing exponentially by the year 2020, the skills shortage has prompted government to act. The Transport Department is to sponsor a $1 million skills package to help train more heavy vehicle drivers.  The government in partnership with Skills Queensland plan to facilitate the training which will be carried out by 5 registered training organisations that will provide nationally recognised and industry endorsed courses to the trainee drivers. The good news is that COR training is available cheaply and conveniently online. With the skills shortage in the industry the opportunity for progress and promotion are great. For more information or to register for Chain of Responsibility (COR) Training visit: http://www.chainofresponsibilityonline.com.au/courses/.