After two months of scanning through the roads and highways for Malaysia’s most fuel efficient driver, Volvo Trucks Malaysia has finally announced the Champion for this year’s Fuelwatch Challenge, its annual nationwide fuel-saving competition!
Held in an evening of sheer fun and entertaining Gala Dinner that was attended by over 100 guests at the Holiday Inn, Glenmarie on 7 June to celebrate the crowning occasion, the Swedish truck manufacturer was proud to present the Championship title to 49 year-old trucker, En Ahmad Bin Othman from Logistik Petikemas Sdn Bhd in Prai.
Clocking the lowest fuel consumption in a 40-kilometre drive challenge in the final stage of the Fuelwatch Challenge, En Ahmad Bin Othman who hails from the Perak town of Ipoh achieved a strong result of 2.52 kilometres using only 1 litre of fuel driving a Volvo truck with a 40-footer container carrying 20 tonnes of load.
“Prior to Fuelwatch, driving a truck has just been a daily task for me. It was just a job to feed my family. Now I know that driving is about so much more after gaining these useful knowledge and experience. The challenge has taught me a great deal about the efficient use of fuel and the impact of driving behaviours on both the business and the environment. Winning the Malaysian chapter has given me the inspiration to improve my skills and push my capabilities further. I really look forward to the challenge in Sweden as it’ll be a great experience and learning opportunity for me,” said En Ahmad Bin Othman.
As the national champion and newest Fuelwatch ambassador, En Ahmad Bin Othman is set to represent Malaysia at the Fuelwatch APAC and World Finals 2014, to be held in Volvo’s home country in Gothenburg, Sweden later this September.
Managing Director of Volvo Malaysia, Mr Mats Nilsson shared that the Fuelwatch Challenge has proven to be one of Volvo’s successful annual signature events.
“We have seen increased participation every single year. We had about 200 participants in the first year, which increased to more than 300 in the following year, 500 last year and 800 this year. Beyond the popularity of the challenge, what we really strive to achieve is to inspire a positive change in truck drivers’ role by empowering them to adopt fuel efficient and safe driving behaviour. Trucker drivers are movers of the economy and we want them to take pride and responsibility in their job,” said Mr Nilsson.
Volvo Malaysia also had the privilege of having En. A. Halim Husain, Head – Operations Group, Suruhanjaya Pengangkutan Awam Darat (SPAD) graced the event. Addressing the driver and the media, the Guest-of-Honour expressed his wish to see more companies in the private sector follow the footsteps of Volvo Trucks Malaysia and spearhead initiatives such as Fuelwatch to help shape a stronger trucking community.
