With the launch of the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA) long-awaited Earned Recognition pilot scheme, the Freight Transport Association (FTA) has created a joined-up solution to help operators complete all the necessary steps to demonstrate they have achieved the required standard.

FTA is liaising with DVSA about using its core Truck Excellence audit and standards modules to help with the initial on-site audit required by Earned Recognition. These standards have been recognised DVSA as being closely aligned to those required by Earned Recognition and recognise the operators’ ability to achieve consistently high levels of safety and legal compliance across their fleet.

“With its history of compliance excellence, FTA is ideally placed to support the introduction of Earned Recognition across the sector,” says FTA Deputy Chief Executive James Hookham, “and using already-recognised markers of achievement such as Truck Excellence, combined with our leading compliance platform Vision, we will help ensure that the new process continues to drive up standards across the industry.  We are looking forward to being at the heart of these changes.”

The co-ordination of systems and reporting processes for drivers’ hours and maintenance could prove daunting for operators at first glance, so FTA has partnered R2C to provide an integrated Earned Recognition compliance solution for both vehicles and drivers. Customers of R2C and FTA already enjoy access to market-leading platforms spanning all aspects of commercial vehicle compliance, and can access a dashboard for Earned Recognition for maintenance or drivers’ hours. Joint clients can now use a unique integrated dashboard to provide the vehicle and driver information required by the Earned Recognition scheme. The integration of this dashboard into FTA’s and R2C’s market-leading platforms means that operators can measure all their KPIs in one place, with the ability to drill down to the supporting data.

To complete the picture and fulfil a key industry need, FTA is currently talking to manufacturers and systems providers about creating an industry data hub to bring together all the data needed for Earned Recognition.

Mr Hookham continues: “A big challenge for the industry is to pull together all the maintenance data required from disparate sources to participate in Earned Recognition. This could create fragmentation, multiple standards and a great deal of cost. We’ve been approached by numerous organisations to provide an independent, industry-wide solution to this data challenge, and we believe we have the expertise, insight and systems to make this happen.”

FTA will be on stand 4F20 the CV Show where experts will be on hand to talk about the one-stop shop solution for Earned Recognition. It’s an ideal opportunity for operators considering joining the pilot to identify opportunities and overcome any potential barriers.

Freight Transport Association

About the Author: John Loughran