So after passing my class 2 about 2 years ago i have done a few different bits of driving work, From driving horse boxes to a car transporter and a couple of one off trips Scotland - London, In total i probably only have about 5-6 months experience and its patchy as none of it was everyday steady work.
On Monday i applied to a large sottish transport firms advert for a forklift driver and thought maybe its a way in to getting some class 2 work at some point. I only have 3 years experience driving forklifts and about 6 in distribution. Since getting my class 2 i have applied to this firm a fair amount of times and not once heard a thing back but on Tuesday afternoon i get a call to ask if i was still looking and that they actually have a class 2 position with some forklift at a small depot working with palletways and pallex networks, do i want it?..eh hell yeah i do!
So i went for an hours assessment yesterday morning in a 18T Merc with an independent assessor they employ, (was a bit nervous that i would be rusty, having not really driven for the last 8-9 months and may mess it up) but got back to the yard, a quick(but tight) reverse park between two rigids and he gives me the thumbs up.
Start on Monday
The closest i’ ve done to multi drop is 2 - 8 drops in a sprinter van afew years back which i know does’nt come close so im abit apprehensive about it.
Any productive/helpful tips or advice for class 2 multi dropping with palletways and similar would be a great help.
All new to me so i’m looking forward to this permanent job(at last) so any advice would be Much appreciated
Well done for getting the job. You have done multi-drop before so you will be fine. Just remember height of vehicle you will be driving and the overhang and you’ll be fine.
Then after a while you can tell them it’d be handy for you to have your class 1!
Good luck and all the best.
Streaky.
You should ■■■■ it mate, the only thing that I never could remember was which side each pallet was, always ended up opening the wrong curtain. Ive done Palletforce, Palletline, Palletways and now on Pallet Track, All pretty similar drops
You’ll only be looking at around 8-12 drops max a day and maybe half a dozen collections. It’ll be in a small area so there’s no need to rush around like a headless chicken. One job I did I basically ended up delivering on two adjacent industrial estates for a day.
Keep an eye on your driving/wtd time. Set the alarm on your phone or whatever at the five and a half hour mark to remind you and give you time to sort out a reasonable place to stop. It’s easy to lose track of time when doing multi-drop. Before leaving the yard look in the back to see what side your first drop is on then after this as you do the drops you can see what’s next. This will also give you the chance to check the load condition and security. Doing this will normally cost you 30 secs in a day. Not doing this could cost you much more dearly.
Do not allow the office to ring you every 5 minutes asking when you’ll be at the next drop!
Do not take calls from the office whilst driving! It’s a mugs game now!
The law are now using longer range cameras to pick up these offences and can now nick you when you can’t even see them yet. That’s enough for now, orrabest!
C10HOO:
You should ■■■■ it mate, the only thing that I never could remember was which side each pallet was, always ended up opening the wrong curtain. Ive done Palletforce, Palletline, Palletways and now on Pallet Track, All pretty similar drops
I used to dot the pallet locations on my paperwork when shutting the curtains
I’ll be working monday from 8am to 7pm
44Tonne… 5.5 hour mark?not 4.5?
Should tacho be on driving mode while i stop to drop a load or set to other work or whatever? or does it depend how long it takes to unload,getting held up while dropping etc?
Another thing,if the dont give me a phone, am i expected to use my own phone for calling in?(cause that aint happening)
tattooedally:
Cheers for all your comments fellas!
I’ll be working monday from 8am to 7pm
44Tonne… 5.5 hour mark?not 4.5?
Should tacho be on driving mode while i stop to drop a load or set to other work or whatever? or does it depend how long it takes to unload,getting held up while dropping etc?
Another thing,if the dont give me a phone, am i expected to use my own phone for calling in?(cause that aint happening)
Cheers!!
If you’re doing multi-drop your likely to reach the wtd limits before driving hours, I could have made that clearer sorry for the confusion!
The tacho should be on crossed hammers when tipping or doing other work.
4.5 hours in the max driving time before taking a 45 minute break but within 6 hours you need to take a 30m break.
So if you started at 0800 and by the time you’d reached 1400 had only driven for 3 hours but done most of your drops then you would need to take a half hour break. You can then drive another 1.5 hours before you would need to take another 30 minute break. You can’t take a 30 then 15 min break only 15 then 30 min break.
If you were planning to have done 4.5 hours driving by 1400 Hrs then you could take a 15 minute break before 1400 Hrs so you could take your 30m break at the same time for your WTD and Driving break at the same time…
Or just take a 45 minute break from 1400 to 1445 then you can drive until 1915 Hrs…
Follow? I’m sure you’ll soon get into the hang of it
The choice of the phone is your own decision. If they provide you with a phone then you have no excuse really not to call in. But if it is your own phone you could either put it off or not at all.
Whatever you do, if you are sitting in the driving seat on the phone make sure the engine is off if you do not have a handsfree setup.
If you have a call while you’re driving you could justifiably let it go to voice mail, ignore it etc UNTIL you reach your drop or a stop where you’re having your break. Please do not get ‘pushed’ into speeding or pushing things to get there ‘on time’ as most times what they want in the office has no relation to the traffic on the road in front of you… It is up to you to plan your driving not have them to ‘force’ or ‘harass’ you into it…
Saratoga…Thanks alot for that, i pretty much get the jist of what you are saying / ha ha.
I’m not racking up a massive bill on my personal phone for anyone, work or not so it’ll be getting turned off. I wonder how many drivers use their own mobile for work on a daily basis though?
Just looking forward to getting into it, know whats what and above all else enjoy it!
Try and chill out on Sunday and don’t worry too much.
If things do start to go pear shaped. Stop. Have a coffee and calm yourself down.
You will make a few mistakes and things will take longer than expected but after a few days you will be fine and knocking out those drops like you’ve been doing it for years.
tattooedally:
I’m not racking up a massive bill on my personal phone for anyone, work or not so it’ll be getting turned off. I wonder how many drivers use their own mobile for work on a daily basis though?
I use mine cause I get unlimited minutes to landlines so it doesn’t cost me anything and it’s much clearer than a cab phone, which in my experience are all pretty ■■■■■■
Saratoga:
…but within 6 hours you need to take a 30m break…
You only need a 15 minute WTD break before the 6 hours is up. The second 15 can be taken any time before your 9 hours are up, providing the 2 breaks aren’t more than 6 hours apart, obviously…or a 30 minute break when your 4.5hr driving time is up, whichever comes first.
Once you start to find your way about you might be tempted to go racing back to the yard for an earlier finish. Do that too often and you’ll see your work load increase for sure!
Get yourself a marker pen, mark on the pallet NO.1 drop then mark on running sheet where on the bed the pallet is . do this for them all and when you arrive at customers you will be able to position your self for the forkie to gain access to the correct bit of your motor.
In my experience the hard bit is often finding out where to go/who to see when you get to a drop. Most are straightforward but some assume everyone knows.
I advise showing your drops to someone experienced, to get the SP on routes and likely problems. There will be all sorts like “They stop 12 till 1 for dinner; Don’t bother going there before 4 — it’s never ready; That address is wrong — the goods in is on such and such street.”
You may have seen on previous threads that it is very common to be greeted with, “Too early/too late/not booked in. There will be a procedure for this which usually involves getting the guy’s name and phoning your office before you leave. In many (most) instances, they change their minds after the phone calls and take the stuff off. Never argue — phone it in, put your feet up and take an unplanned break. If you’ve phone in then they know you are delayed so it’s not your problem.
When you do collections make sure you get what you are supposed to. The right number of pallets; packed well enough to get through the system; properly labelled and addressed to the right places. You can’t always do it but you should try as the office won’t thank you for signing for five for Lancashire when you got four for Belfast. And watch out they don’t try to load you with Haz — if they say “It’s ok — small quantities” then phone the office to make sure.
Pallet systems take the paperwork very seriously so get it right. If they say customers must sign, print, date and time every note then make the buggers do it or you will get a bollocking. If they want you to phone in after every timed delivery then do that and so on.
Make friends with the forkies in your depot — you depend on them to load you right, and get you out in the morning — you may also have to wait until you are unloaded in the evening, so they have the ability to mess you around without really trying.
Make sure you have a high viz vest/boots/hard hat — some places won’t let you in without them.
Once you learn the ropes it is a dead easy job — you may well find that there is a two hour gap between the deliveries and the collections so buy a paper.
