ANC Forestry is a logging and transport business that operates across all of Victoria, up to New South Wales and even in Tasmania, and has become known for its advanced safety solutions.

Run by managing director Daryl Hutton, ANC has been in action for 16 years, having grown from a fleet of just five trucks to now 35 along with 60 staff.

Its headquarters are just a short five-minute drive out of the main drag of Morwell, and houses its comfy office space, a sizeable workshop where mechanics work away on the trucks and equipment and a yard filled with resting vehicles and timber as far as the eye can see.

Daryl stresses that ANC prides itself on the safety that it offers its drivers on the job.

In 2015, the business was recognised with a WorkSafe Victoria Award for Safer Logging Systems after developing a restraint system solution alongside a group of other foresting and trucking companies.

When carting such specialised material as logs, these innovative systems have to be in place to keep everyone safe in the workplace.

“Our local area is unique for slippery logs at certain times of the year. We had an issue with log movement in transit,” Daryl says.

“So we got together to fix the problem by changing the restraint systems by using double purchase systems and the air wenches which were available at the time.

“It’s doubled our restraint and it’s mitigated the logs falling off. We haven’t had loads shift in however many hundreds of thousands of loads now.

“We made chain hangers that are spring loaded onto the side so we can hang the chains and the loaders can chuck them over for the driver. The driver doesn’t have to be worried about shoulder injuries when chucking the chains.

“The flipside of that means we’ve got guys in their 70s still working for us. There’s no manual handling.

“We had one guy retire on 77, and he had carted logs for 60 years. It was the only product he carted for his whole life.”

Similarly, Daryl believes the Base Air systems offer his drivers considerable safety benefits first and foremost.

“As a fleet owner, it’s another tool that I can provide to get the drivers home safer,” he says.

“We do everything, log trucks are fitted with every safety device you can think of, but the industry still has the odd rollovers. That has been mitigated by EBS on trailers, but there are still times when people get it completely wrong.

“You want to give them the last fighting chance that’s available. For me I find that Base Air ticks one of those boxes.”