Just had a phone call from Fowler Welch offering me an assessment drive tomorrow Whilst I’m very happy to be offered an assessment seen as I’ve only recently passed, my brain is now in overtime thinking of everything I need to remember.
Couple of things I want to check, these will probably seem stupid but think it’s best I check. As I’ve only seen/used the training artic and it had the points of everything marked on the trailer eg “trailer brake”, “legs” etc
Trailer Brakes: are they always located at the rear wheels of the trailer and can they be loated on either side?
Connecting the suzies up: am I correct in thinking, if i take my time and look at them, each one can only fit in 1 hole?
Reversing upto a bay: I obviously havent done this, so is it a case of take my time and if in doubt of position or how close I am, switch the engine off and get out and look?
Finally, anyone had any experience of what Fowler Welch’s assessments are like, are they easy going or strict?
Trailer brakes can be either side, front or rear. Each suzie will only fit the relevant socket, airlines because one has a male coupling and one a female coupling. Look at the ends of the electrical suzies, the pins are different, look at the sockets before you plug them in.
As for reversing onto a bay, call me a traditionalist but I generally just select reverse gear and then continue until I collide with it.
Once you’ve found the trailer brake make sure you apply it 'cos sure as eggs is eggs they’ll have you pick up and drop a trailer and as it’ll be a fridge you’ll probably have to split couple it. Nowt more embarassing then chasing a trailer down the yard. Not that I’d do that of course
There is no need for the OP to split couple as all fowler welch trl’s have them slidey things on them so you can do it without getting on the catwalk
seen as your from oop norf i.e washington,they don’t have bays they have ramps which you have back onto,like they use for the containers,if they ask you to put one on there then spin it around at the top of the yard by the diesel pumps so you got it on your good side,the guys in the yard are spot on,so are the shunters,they will watch you back,if you have to put it in the trl park then thats a piece of ■■■■ as you have loads of room to do your reversing.
best of luck with it
oh and the park brake on f/w trls are normally by the landing legs
Good luck with this mate - As its an assessment for reefer work it may be worth remembering that for chilled work the fridge is usually set at +3 degrees and its important to check this and that the status compartment is OK once the fridge is running.
If its frozen work then its set at -25 degrees. They probably won’t ask you this but for brownie points you could say that you know this to the assessor
It’s probably stating the bleedin’ obvious, but as part of your checks make sure there is sufficient fuel in the fridge tank (they have a simple gauge on the outside edge).
Fowler welch don’t do frozen only chilled its either +3 or +10,most if not all of their trl’s have 2 switches that you use for this which are above where the display screen to show you what the temp it is.
Thats if you have a split load which they will tell you anyway and will load it accordingly and you just get the paperwork and off you go
The best guy to talk to is Davey Driver as he worked there and he will tell you the “in’s and out’s” of the lot
as for the slide thingy its the suzies on the trl and you can move them(if they work!!) to whatever position you want either side of the trl,they have a little lever so you can release it so you can do it from standing on the floor so to speak.
Ask the guy who takes you for your assessment which way he wants it done and do it that way
Personally i couldn’t understand what most of them said but im from wales so im above you english in the pecking order
The daily checks is the other thing I’m trying to get right in my mind, again as this is my first assessment for a driving job I’m hoping I can remember everything and all the checks. Cheers for the info about checking the fuel level on the fridge. So there’s a control on the front of the trailer with the controls on and also the fuel guage? Have I got that right?
Thetaff:
There is no need for the OP to split couple as all fowler welch trl’s have them slidey things on them so you can do it without getting on the catwalk
All of ours have them slidey things (I don’t know the proper name for them either ) but unless you’re prepared to get all the road crap that’s on the fuel tank or battery cover on you it’s easier to split couple. Plus you gotta have arms like Garth to push home the air lines from that wierd angle. I agree totally though for uncoupling they make life easier.
I had a test drive for fowler Welch about 3 years ago,before that the last time i had driven an artic was 1989 so nearly a 18 year gap! i was worried sick as i had also been living abroad for over 5 years, but it was all ok, it soon all came back to me the second i got behind the wheel, however the new digi card i just did not understand at all really on how to operate the machine itself, i had a test drive at 10am i was then waiting still at 3pm in the yard to take a load to Scotland with all the newness of this, i completely forgot i ever had the test drive, and was still driving around at 02;30am! consequently once i returned to Mach ester the following day i was asked to leave! i felt so stupid forgetting about the test drive time! and guess it was my own fault, but the tuition is minimal on the operation of the machine and was then a little bewildering for me to take in, they want everyone to run 100% legal no exceptions, which cant be a bad thing, so all i say if they offer you the job, make sure you stay legal at all times, and dont end up like i did! Good Luck tomorrow.
melvyn bragg:
I had a test drive for fowler Welch about 3 years ago,before that the last time i had driven an artic was 1989 so nearly a 18 year gap! i was worried sick as i had also been living abroad for over 5 years, but it was all ok, it soon all came back to me the second i got behind the wheel, however the new digi card i just did not understand at all really on how to operate the machine itself, i had a test drive at 10am i was then waiting still at 3pm in the yard to take a load to Scotland with all the newness of this, i completely forgot i ever had the test drive, and was still driving around at 02;30am! consequently once i returned to Mach ester the following day i was asked to leave! i felt so stupid forgetting about the test drive time! and guess it was my own fault, but the tuition is minimal on the operation of the machine and was then a little bewildering for me to take in, they want everyone to run 100% legal no exceptions, which cant be a bad thing, so all i say if they offer you the job, make sure you stay legal at all times, and dont end up like i did! Good Luck tomorrow.
Theres one good thing to come out of that story,at least you got your own tv show on a sunday night for donkeys years you must of made a few bob!!
Harry Monk:
Trailer brakes can be either side, front or rear. Each suzie will only fit the relevant socket, airlines because one has a male coupling and one a female coupling. Look at the ends of the electrical suzies, the pins are different, look at the sockets before you plug them in.
As for reversing onto a bay, call me a traditionalist but I generally just select reverse gear and then continue until I collide with it. [/quote]
Hi all, sorry took a while to get an update of what happened on here.Â
Well I didn’t get the job everything seemed to go well and I was told my driving and road positioning is very good. Couple of things I think got me was I hadn’t used air suspension to couple and uncouple before so the bloke showed me how it was done and I had to do 2 reverses, the first one it went straight in and I was well pleased but then had to pull it out and park the trailer in another position this time even tighter and it was all looking good but I didn’t start straightening the unit up and the trailer kept moving closer and closer to the trailer next to it. In the end I pulled forward and got it in a pretty awkward position (due to lack of room to move forward) when I really should of pulled back out and started again!
Never mind, I learnt a lot from the bloke who was really canny, and I certainly feel a lot more confident when I eventually get another assessment.Â
Didn’t get the job just down to general lack of experience
Not that I’d do that of course 
everything seemed to go well and I was told my driving and road positioning is very good. Couple of things I think got me was I hadn’t used air suspension to couple and uncouple before so the bloke showed me how it was done and I had to do 2 reverses, the first one it went straight in and I was well pleased but then had to pull it out and park the trailer in another position this time even tighter and it was all looking good but I didn’t start straightening the unit up and the trailer kept moving closer and closer to the trailer next to it. In the end I pulled forward and got it in a pretty awkward position (due to lack of room to move forward) when I really should of pulled back out and started again!