Niyac wins ExxonMobil 2002 hauler award for safe, environmentally sound operation

Oct. 1, 2003
NIYAC Corporation, Tokyo, Japan, has been named the ExxonMobil 2002 Hauler of the Year, the first Japanese tank truck carrier to win the award. The petroleum

NIYAC Corporation, Tokyo, Japan, has been named the ExxonMobil 2002 Hauler of the Year, the first Japanese tank truck carrier to win the award. The petroleum operation composed of 95 trucks operates in the Tokyo metropolitan area and greater Honshu Island.

The carrier was noted for its safety record, top-of-the-line equipment, and environmentally sound operations as a core carrier for ExxonMobil.

Mike Horie, president of Niyac, received the award from Peter Healey, ExxonMobil global customer service manager, at ceremonies conducted July 22 at ExxonMobil's office in Tokyo. The following day, a celebration was held at one of the carrier's truck terminals near Tokyo.

“We bestow this prestigious award on Niyac which, among the more than 400 ExxonMobil haulers worldwide, achieved the highest level of performance against our rigorous safety, operational, and customer service standards,” said Healey. “This award also recognizes the notable effort Niyac has made in its personal commitment to continuous improvement in both safety and operational excellence.”

Healey lauded the carrier's driver safety recognition program, which has been in place for a number of years, and said it reinforces awareness and attention to procedures.

“As last year's runner-up, you visited the winning hauler in Singapore to identify gaps and areas of improvement, and then diligently worked on closing them,” he added.

He congratulated Mike Horie for his efforts at vision setting and Kota Horie, Niyac director of business planning, for his team's tireless execution.

“Niyac has adopted these programs and demonstrated that flawless performance can be achieved across a large fleet operation in very difficult and challenging conditions,” Healey said. “Whether in the highly compact Tokyo/Yokohama urban environment or in the remote rural settings, the safety and operating standards are communicated, understood, and delivered.

“Niyac's 2002 safety performance (0 injuries in 312,000 hours, 1 minor motor-vehicle accident in 9.3 million miles, 0 spills in 107,000 deliveries, and 1 crossover in 267,000 deliveries by grade) sets a standard of excellence that is truly world class.

“Now that Niyac has demonstrated it can be done, this becomes the benchmark for our haulers worldwide.”

Also participating in the festivities was John Snodgrass, vice-president, global accounts, Heil Trailer International, which supplies Niyac with four petroleum-models.

“We offered them our congratulations for their huge accomplishment in the interest of safety,” Snodgrass said. “Heil supports safety initiatives around the world with our tank trailer designs and with support of safety programs like the annual National Tank Truck Carrier Safety award. We also offered our congratulations to them as a supplier to both ExxonMobil and to Niyac, our friends, distributor, and customer.”

Heil supplies the 16,000-liter (4,227 gallons) tank truck, and 20,000-liter (5,284 gallons), 24,000-liter (6,340 ), and 26,000-liter (6,869 gallons) model trailers. Additionally, Heil has built 811-cubic-foot dry bulk trailers for the carrier. All of the trailers are aluminum and are either pumpers or general transports, Snodgrass said.

He pointed out that the carrier's tank trailers have much smaller capacity than those used in the United States, primarily because of the maneuverability factor, and their laws only allow smaller capacity trailers at this time. Most of the components are Japanese-made except for Civacon domelid covers and valves.

The ExxonMobil competition for the award included carriers in Africa, the Middle East, South America, Europe, and Asia Pacific.