More than 20 drivers at North Wales and Chester transport firm Delsol have completed training to meet tough new EU road safety regulations.
A total of 22 Delsol drivers have secured the Driver Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC) more than a year ahead of the official deadline.
The Driver CPC is a new qualification for professional bus, coach and lorry drivers. It has been introduced under a new European Union directive. It is designed to improve road safety and will become mandatory for drivers across EU member states by September 2014.
Delsol director Tony Parry said the latest investment in staff training demonstrates the firm’s strong commitment to upholding standards and providing road safety.
“A number of our core workforce have just completed the 35 hour Driver CPC training course,” he said. “The courses were run by Jaupt registered Expert Driver Training based in Deeside, near to our Sandycroft office. The cost was jointly shared between Delsol and our drivers. The speed in which we have carried out this training demonstrates the importance we place on road safety and driving greater efficiency throughout the company. This new EU Directive is set to have a major impact on UK transport firms and will catch out any unprepared or lax businesses. We are delighted to be a step ahead of the curve for the benefit of the company and our customers.”
Mr Parry said training involved a broad range of topics including health and safety, manual handling, safe loading, safe and economic driving along with rural and urban driving.
Further attention was given to driver’s hours, working time directive and tachographs which record driving time, speed and distances. The new directive requires all drivers of lorries of more than 3.5 tonnes and minibuses with nine seats or more to obtain a Driver CPC. Those completing the training receive a Driver Qualification Card (DQC) valid for five years.
Delsol is run by co-directors Tony Parry and Simon Walker and specialises in pallet and parcel delivery. It provides a UK wide and international service. The company is expanding rapidly and has made the Welsh Fast Growth 50 for the last two years. 2012 saw the company report its most successful year with turnover increasing by 11pc to £6m.
“Delsol has seen terrific growth in the last 18 months,” said Mr Parry. “In that time we have invested more than £350,000 in new vehicles to build a bigger and better fleet of sprinter vans, HGVs and bikes. We also take great pride in our staff. This latest training initiative is testament to that. We urge people who use multinationals to switch to a local firm with a strong commitment to affordability and a dedicated personal service.”
Delsol has also just launched a pallet delivery and collection service on the Wirral.
For further information please contact the Delsol team in Chester and the Wirral: 01244 531 282 or North Wales: 01248 679 933.