Commercial Vehicle Show 2012

2012 is going to be a big year for UK hauliers. You will be the ones who, quite literally, will be delivering the 2012 Olympics. Not just to the nation’s capital, but to all the other venues around the country which will be hosting events.

And if you’re not involved with or affected by the Olympics, life will still go on. Road haulage has always been a very accurate economic barometer for the rest of UK plc because if manufacturers are producing the goods, farmers are growing crops, retailers are selling products, or builders are constructing houses or offices, we are meeting the vast majority of their freight transport needs.

Road transport is always going to be high on everyone’s agenda and top of the list for those involved in road freight transport has to be the Commercial Vehicle Show 2012 and Workshop 2012, which will be held at Birmingham’s National Exhibition Centre from 24 – 26 April 2012.

As chief executive of one of the show’s partners – the others being the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) and the Institute of Road Transport Engineers (IRTE) – I am particularly proud of the Commercial Vehicle Show.

On that basis, I am delighted that bookings for the 2012 show have already surpassed expectation. We now have 260 exhibitors booked: that’s a 48% increase compared with this time last year and equates to 23,000m² of exhibition space booked. Again, that’s up 43% year on last year.

This is great news for us as the only UK trade association focusing solely on road freight transport; and also for the industry on which the rest of UK plc is almost totally reliant.

However, the Road Haulage Association won’t just be at the 2012 CV Show for fun.We have a responsibility to be there, for our members in particular and for the industry as a whole. We shall be fielding a team of experts on every aspect of running a haulage business from training and tachograph analysis to fuel savings and insurance. From employment issues to technical matters, there is no area of the industry that we can’t cover.

In 2011 Transport Minister Mike Penning accepted my invitation to visit the CV Show to meet RHA members and also see the vast range of products and services supplied by the exhibitors. Such was the success of his visit that I have already invited him as my guest to this year’s show and, although I am waiting for official confirmation, I am very hopeful that he will be joining us once again.

The strength of the RHA comes from its staff and its membership. We take great pride in our ability to help and advise members on any issue or aspect of their particular operation. So please, if you come along to the show, make sure you visit us on stand 3A40. Even if it’s just to say hello, it will be great to see you.

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