ComVec hits all the right notes for HVIA

Heavy Vehicle Industry Australia’s biennial engineering conference, ComVec 2018, held in Melbourne last week, has been hailed a success.

HVIA President Nathan Usher says that delegates enjoyed two days of productive and insightful discussion.

“ComVec has always been a unique opportunity for heavy vehicle industry Engineers to get together and look at issues and opportunities that are on the table, on the horizon and even beyond, and this year’s program certainly did all of those things,” Mr Usher said.

“We were delighted and grateful with the many newcomers who joined a host of industry stalwarts in attendance, both as speakers and as delegates, all taking the time away from their busy schedules to participate in ComVec.”

The star of the show was undoubtedly Ian Wight, co-founder of Tesla, and more recently of the groundbreaking Wrightspeed, all the way from San Francisco.

“At a time when our industry is pushing farther, faster towards long-term solutions to our productivity energy needs, Ian is one of the real pioneers,” Mr Usher said.

“Perhaps the most unexpected highlight from a world leader in EV development, was his very pragmatic forecast that the fifteen-litre diesel is set to dominate our highways for the foreseeable future.

“We also heard a distinctly more conservative view on the adoption of fully autonomous vehicles that resonated across many sessions during the conference.

“While there’s no doubt that attendees will continue to talk about Ian’s fabulous presentation, the conference was filled with great content.”

“Without exception our speakers and panelists were respected industry experts in their fields and each presentation and discussion added tremendous value to the event.

“I’d particularly like to acknowledge industry regulatory leaders Paul Retter (NTC), Sal Petroccitto (NHCR) and Alex Foulds (DIRDC) for joining our CEO Todd Hacking to look at the key things on their workplans and their wishlists.

“There are too many contributors to thank individually, however I can’t ignore the invaluable sponsorship we received from MOVE People Driven Banking, which included hosting our other wonderful special guest, CILTA Young Professional of the Year, Urszula Kelly.

“Urszula, as well as current Craig Roseneder Award winner Mark Collins and the ATA’s Bob Woodward all gave us a valuable reality check, by discussing what’s really on the priority list from an operator’s perspective,” Mr Usher added.

“A huge thank you also to our exhibitors Maha, 3M, Tigerspider and Findlay Import & Trade. Your support goes a long way in allowing us to put on a program of this calibre.

“I’d lastly like to pay tribute to our media partners – Bauer Trader Media, for the great marketing support. Bauer produce ATN and Owner-Driver Magazines, the Fully-Loaded website and many more specialist transport online and print publications.”