Truck Industry Council warns of ‘very dangerous situation’ unless supply of aftermarket parts is regulated.
The body representing Australia’s truck manufacturers wants tighter controls on the supply of aftermarket parts to the trucking industry.
The Truck Industry Council (TIC) says an international regulation governing standards for truck replacement brake parts in Europe should be adopted in Australia.
TIC chief technical officer Mark Hammond says the use of unregulated aftermarket parts is rife throughout the trucking industry in Australia, raising the concerns about the roadworthiness of vehicles.
“Currently no federal or state regulations or laws exist for the supply to market of aftermarket spare parts. The use of unregulated spare parts, particularly safety-critical brake, steering and suspension parts is widespread in the heavy vehicle industry,” Hammond says.
“Quite simply without controls on the parts used to repair and maintain heavy vehicle vehicles, roadworthiness cannot be assured.
“In fact, the performance level of these unregulated parts means that the level of roadworthiness of a heavy vehicle is unknown. This is a potentially very dangerous situation.”
The regulation the TIC wants introduced in Australia is known as UN-ECE Regulation 90, which sets out provisions that must be met when using replacement brake pads and linings.
The regulation also stipulates the performance of the replacement part must be within 15 per cent of the original part.
“The Truck Industry Council requests that safety-critical heavy vehicle aftermarket spare parts are subject to the same requirements as those in Europe and that UN-ECE Regulation 90 for brake components, or similar, is adopted in Australia,” Hammond says.
He made the comments in a written response to the National Transport Commission’s (NTC) review of heavy vehicle roadworthiness standards.
The review, which is currently receiving submissions, proposes a number of options to improve heavy vehicle roadworthiness in Australia, including a national system and a risk-based approach.
Hammond says the TIC has always supported mandatory annual inspections and that they should be part of any national scheme until it can be proven that risk-based inspections can deliver the safety outcomes required.