Cement maker ACC Ltd plans to issue smart cards (dubbed as e-passport) to 12,000 truck drivers it engages daily. The smart card will capture the drivers’ personal details and medical history. This apart, a GPRS device installed in the vehicles will register the safety aspects the drivers follow while on wheels.

The company will also conduct regular medical and eye check-up when drivers visit plant sites. Special training sessions on safe driving will be conducted at the modern parking bays built outside its plants.

ACC annually handles about 36 million tonnes (mt) of goods, including 12 mt of raw material, at its 17 plants located in 15 remote locations.

As a pilot, ACC is in talks with Tata Motors Ltd to install truck stimulators for training purpose at its plant at Thondebhavi in Karnataka. The company plans to initially have one or two mobile simulators in each region. Tushar Rameshchandra Dave, Vice-President (Central Logistics), ACC, said the shrinking tribe of truck drivers is the most neglected lot, though they play a crucial role in the entire logistics chain.

“Driving in the night with beam of halogen light hitting the eyes, truck drivers should have the most deficient eyesight. But how often have we seen them wearing spectacles?” he asks.

ACC is spending Rs 35 crore over the next one year in improving its logistics through adopting modern technology and enhancing the working condition of drivers. Apart from a decent lodging facility, the parking bays being built at Chanda (Maharashtra), Wadi (Karnataka), Bargarh (Odisha) and Kymore (Madhya Pradesh) will have toilets which an executive of ACC will not hesitate to use, says Dave.

The company is also modernising its packing and loading facilities to ensure that there is no spill-over of cement and it reaches customers in clean bags. ACC has started moving cement bags on conveyor belts at Damodhar (West Bengal). The aim is to reduce human intervention till the bags are loaded on trucks.

There are 16 elements of handling cement bags before they reach the end consumers without damages, said Dave. The company wants to ensure that customers get the right quantity of cement they are paying for. Each bag will have a unique bar code which will enable ACC to trace its origin and plug the fault, if any, he added. The company has also started an SMS service to inform dealers on the receipt of orders and dispatches.

“We want to ensure our dealers are adequately stocked as brand loyalty is fast diminishing with each company struggling to capture whatever market is left,” he added.

> suresh.i@thehindu.co.in