The SAFED scheme counts toward the DCPC. Problem is, it’s a load of CRAP! “Jump gears in a fully loaded lorry regardless of the gradient,gain 0.2mpg.” What the the university drop outs didn’t think about when they wrote this nonsense is that any savings on fuel is negated by prematurely worn-out clutches, ropey gearchanges and snail-pace acceleration.
i done some dcpc training last week as part of my adr,after sitting there listening to him tell us about the maximum 48 hr working week, someone asked if he had a dcpc and the trainer openly admitted he didnt hold a dcpc and never has, he also said if I wanted I could do the same module over and over and it wouldnt matter as they just upload to dsa or whoever that I attended for x amount of hours.
wood73:
i done some dcpc training last week as part of my adr,after sitting there listening to him tell us about the maximum 48 hr working week, someone asked if he had a dcpc and the trainer openly admitted he didnt hold a dcpc and never has, he also said if I wanted I could do the same module over and over and it wouldnt matter as they just upload to dsa or whoever that I attended for x amount of hours.
I think that’s exactly why people are so scepticle about the dcpc (assuming you were told right) There’s no real structure to it, I’ll use myself as an example;
I started out roughly three years ago on a drop-side transit and a drop-side 7.5tonner delivering steelwork, I had numerous arguments with the management (engineering firm) because they didn’t have a clue about driver’s hours and were pretty careless about weights too which led, eventually, to them losing a semi-skilled welder/fabricator and driver but I got good at strapping alsorts of wierd shapes and I also got the gyst of drivers hours and the wtd better than average too - I regularly get told I got the best marks ever or for a long time on agency “tests”
Since then, the work’s been mostly curtain-siders or fridges and I can’t see there being much more I can learn about them.
The point is though, if I were sent to somewhere that does containers I wouldn’t have a clue - which could be unsafe. If I got
sent with a wide load, I’d be in the same boat really and I’m sure the list goes on.
Boring me silly with driver’s hours, tachographs, fuel efficiency and driver daily checks is very unlikely to make me any better at my job if you think about it;
I already use tacho’s every day so I guess I can do that
I get the odd infringement but don’t we all?
I drive a 2.5ltr car in a recession so getting the most from every drop’s a habit
Daily checks? I’ve done it nearly every day for the last 3yrs, and spent 5yrs at college and an apprenticeship learning to be a mechanic followed by a few years being a mechanic - why would I need to learn that!?
This isn’t aimed at those doing the training, and I’m not saying I wouldn’t learn anything but it’s a lot of money to pick up ■■■-bits of info which makes it feel all the worse when we’ve little choice but to do it. Personally, I think the cpc’s not a bad idea but what’s being offered to experienced drivers isn’t going to improve anything - which defeats the whole point doesn’t it?
here’s a couple of facts that DCPC trainers will give different views on.
to upload each 7 hour session will cost them £25. this is untrue, it actually cost £8.00.
they claim that there is no relation between the DCPC, and the road transport CPC.
this is true in the UK, but not in many other member states. each member state was given the option of exempting road transport CPC holders from the requirement to hold a DCPC.