Martins Stock Haulage have unveiled a unique wrap design on its latest Mack Super-Liner to support blue collar mental health group TIACS.
The truck aims to raise awareness of TIACS (This is a Conversation Starter), a professional mental health counselling service for tradies, truck drivers, farmers and blue collar workers.
Founded by TradeMutt, renowned for their range of eye-catching workwear, TIACS aims to get people talking about mental health.
Jason Martin, CEO of Martins Stock Haulage is a big supporter of TIACS, having already bought into TradeMutt’s Funky Friday shirts, and when he met the co-founders at the Dalby Stock Show, something special happened.
“We were the charity beneficiary of one of the horses that had been sold,” said Ed Ross of TIACS and TradeMutt.
“We were having a beer to celebrate when we were introduced to Jason. He was telling us about the pink Mack Martins did last
year, and he asked us if we’d be interested in doing something similar.
“Were we interested? We jumped at it.”
And so a conversation over a beer set in train a sequence of events that resulted in one of the more interesting looking trucks to be found on Australia’s roads.
Ross showed Martin the TradeMutt design catalogue and he chose the Razzle-Dazzle print.
From there a whole team was involved in getting the truck on the road.
“Tom Chapman, the current VP of Mack at the time got right behind it,” said Adam Ross, General Manager of Martins Stock Haulage.
“Ben Dare of Western Truck Group was superb co-ordinating everything.”
The truck was wrapped in the print by Bailey Print Group, who hadn’t handled anything on that scale before.
“Bailey’s have wrapped all our Mazdas, but this was the first time they’d been asked to wrap a truck, and they did a brilliant job,” said Ed Ross.
With finishing touches added by The Bling Man, the Mack Super-Liner certainly makes a statement, and with a 58-inch sleeper cab fitted behind the driver, the aim is to have it working all over Australia.
“She’ll be doing B-double, B-triple and triple roadtrain work hauling cattle wherever she’s needed in Australia,” said Adam Ross.
“We want to get this truck out in front of as many people as possible, after all, the whole idea is to start a conversation and we reckon this truck will do the job.”
The new Super-Liner follows on from the pink Mack Martins launched last year to acknowledge women in the workforce.
“We’re a family owned and run company, and all our staff are part of that extended family,” said Adam Ross.
“A lot of men have difficulty talking about things that are going on in their lives, and this is particularly true of drivers, who are often away from home for periods and spend a lot of time alone in the cab.
“Jason’s seen a lot of this over his career, and we want to make sure we look after our people. Mental health’s a big part of that.”
Acting Vice President of Mack Trucks, Darren Cowan, said his team was proud of their involvement in the project and the partnership.
“Transport operators, truck drivers, tradies, and farmers are the backbone of our nation,” he said.
“As a Brisbane-based truck manufacturer, supporting mental health within these vital sectors is incredibly important to us.” said Cowan.
“It is truly inspiring to collaborate with Martins Stock Haulage, who are making a significant impact, and to witness the dedication and enthusiasm of the local suppliers who came together to bring this exceptional Mack to life.”
With the contact details for TIACS emblazoned on the side, Ed Ross of TIACS is ecstatic about the Super-Liner, and is looking forward to seeing it in action.
“We want more people to reach out to us, so this truck is a really exciting opportunity to change the narrative around mental health and get people talking, as well as seeking early intervention counselling through our service.”
Martins Stock Haulage now have four Titans and eight Super-Liners in the fleet, with two of them making bold statements for causes that the Martins team believe in, so what comes next?
“I reckon that’s enough for the moment, but no doubt Jason will
come up with something, and we know we’ve got a solid team behind us at Western Truck Group and Mack, so stay tuned.”