Hot off the heels of the NRFA Conference in Wollongong, MyTrucking’s Australian Business Development Manager, Nikola Berryman, headed west for her first-ever trip to WA. It was a big week on the road, with Nikola sharing insights from the yard, the highway, and an epic run back to Geelong. She’s even been learning to drive trucks herself and took the wheel of a Kenworth C509 along the way.
Monday – On the road to Wongan Hills
I kicked off the week with a drive up to Wongan Hills to visit Auhl’s Transport.
It was great catching up with Sheldon and Lorrice to learn more about how the transport industry ticks over in WA. Sheldon also passed on a couple of leads, and by that afternoon I had two new meetings lined up.
Driving north out of Perth, I couldn’t believe the volume and variety of trucks on the road — mining gear, dongas, bulk loads, refrigerated freight, tankers, heavy haulage… You name it, it was rolling past!
WA truly is a land of scale — you don’t fully appreciate it until you’re out there driving through it.
Almost everyone I spoke to said the same thing: work is plentiful. Interestingly, though, a lot of WA transport operators are still running on paper dockets, spreadsheets, and text messaging. There is real room for tech adoption — with MyTrucking as their Transport Management Software (TMS) to help close that gap.
Tuesday – Kiwis, contracts, and conversations
My first stop was Derek Murray Transport, who came onboard late last year.
Neil and Ros are fellow Kiwis, so there was plenty of banter. Neil hadn’t started using contracts in MyTrucking yet, so I ran through the feature with him again. He was buzzing to get it up and running once he saw how much time it could save.
I then visited the two leads Sheldon from Auhl’s had passed on (including another Kiwi, which seems to be a theme here), for some great chats!
Wednesday – Old school meets opportunity
On Wednesday I headed 1.5 hours south of Perth to Harvey to visit a transport company down there.
They had started a trial a few weeks ago but hadn’t been able to get much traction, as with a lot of people we see in the transport industry, they are so busy, and change can feel daunting and too hard.
It wasn’t long before they could see the benefits of MyTrucking, and the time and money it was going to save their business.
Harvey is a cute country town off the beaten track. It has a population of 2,797. Harvey Town is known for its dairy industry and oranges.
Thursday – A look around Perth
I went to Kings Park, and then Fremantle for lunch. What a great city Perth is, I loved it!!
Friday – My 3326km drive across the paddock
After a great week work-wise, on Friday I set off in a Kenworth C509 to travel 3326km “across the paddock” (that’s truckers’ term for the run from Perth back over east). It’s a bloody long way, but I really enjoyed it. I’ve been learning to drive trucks and even drove some of the way, picking up truckie etiquette on the road. It’s all helping me gain fresh insight into the work our customers do every day.
Some of my favourite stops were: Eucla (crystal-clear water), Border Village (trucks everywhere), the Nullarbor cliffs (both terrifying and beautiful), Nullarbor Roadhouse (loved how Australian it was), and Ceduna (fresh, delicious seafood).
If you ever get the opportunity to drive “across the paddock”, take it. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime trip.
That’s a wrap on WA! It’s clear there’s a huge opportunity out there — both for transport operators and for us at MyTrucking. After a week of meeting great people, swapping stories, and seeing endless road trains, I’m looking forward to heading west again soon. Keen to see how MyTrucking works? Book a demo.
