The Road Freight Association’s 2013 Convention, themed “SMARTer Trucking”, will be hosted at the Hans Merensky Hotel and Spa, Phalaborwa, Limpopo from 19 to 21 May.

This year’sconference line-up includes:

Freight Hubs – a Perspective from the Department of Transport by MawethuVilana – Deputy Director General: Department of Transport.

Lonmin – the Aftermath and its Effects by Eusebius McKaiser – political and social analyst, best-selling author and activist.

Transportation and Logistics 2030: New Hubs, New Spokes, New Industry Leaders? Key Findings for the Road Freight Industry by Andrew Shaw – Associate Director for Capital Projects and Infrastructure: PWC.

In addition, three panel sessions will give participants the opportunity to ask their questions, raise concerns, speak out and make their voices heard.

Infrastructure Funding – More Taxes, More Tariffs or Privatisation? A panel discussion facilitated by TV news anchor Jeremy Maggs featuring Dennis Dykes (Chief Economist: Nedbank, Ravi Naidoo – Group Executive, Development Planning Division: Development Bank of Southern Africa, Yogesh Nasingh – National Planning Commission, Sizwe Nxedlana – Chief Economist: First National Bank and Mike Schüssler – Economists.co.za

A Fuel Supply Panel Discussion with Liesl de Wet – Sustainability Manager: Barloworld Logistics, Desmond Gird – General Manager, Supply Chain, Procurement and Supply: Sasol, Christo Kleynhans – Mercedes-Benz of SA, Dave Wright – Director and Special Advisor to the MD and CEO: Engen and Raymond Abraham – Commercial Technical Manager: Shell. This discussion will tackle the Clean Fuels Bill, availability of supply of clean fuels and cost implications for the road freight industry, among other related matters.

SMART Technologies in Trucking: Panel Discussion: Bigger, wider, heavier, with more payload and even better efficiencies, SMART trucks use cutting-edge technology beyond efficiency gains and cost reductions, with improved road safety, driver wellness and road stability, as well as reduced impact on roads and lower carbon emissions. This session will focus on the technologies and innovations behind success stories. The panel includes Gert Brits – General Manager, Mining at Unitrans, Brian Hunt – Timber Logistics Services, Adrian van Tonder – Senior Manager, Business Development: Barloworld Logistics, Eric Aspeling – General Manager Logistics & Fibre Supply: Sappi and Francois Ehlers – Technical Director: IMPERIAL Logistics.  This session will be facilitated by Paul Nordengen – Research Group Leader: Network Asset Management Systems, CSIR.

For more information on RFA Convention 2013, contact Nkgokeng Phetla at the RFA on 011 974-4399 or 011 966-0000 or e-mail events@rfa.co.za