Training

Booking

Required information

Please have the following information available:

  • Your full name
  • Address
  • Date of birth
  • Drivers licence details
  • Contact numbers
  • Email address
  • USI number – USI information or create a USI:

NOTE: From 1 January 2015 all students undertaking nationally recognised training, delivered by a registered training organisation (RTO), are required to have a Unique Student Identifier (USI)

Office Hours

Training times are within these hours

  • Monday 6.30 AM – 4:00 PM
  • Tuesday 6.30 AM – 4:00 PM
  • Wednesday 6.30 AM – 4:00 PM
  • Thursday 6.30 AM – 4:00 PM
  • Friday 6.30 AM – 4:00 PM
  • Saturday 6.30 AM – 11.30 AM

Payment

Pre-payment is required for all training
Payment options are:

  • Credit / Debit Card over the phone
  • Cash / Eftpos or Credit/Debit Card at our office
  • Direct Deposit to our Bank Account

Cancellations

All cancellations need to be made by phoning the office, and not by sending an email. Our cancellation policy requires a minimum of:

  • 3 working days notice (Monday – Friday) is given for all training cancellations
  • 5 working days notice (Monday – Friday) is given for all training/test cancellations

A $50 cancellation fee will be charged for any refund that is requested

Your payment will be forfeited if the appropriate cancellation time is not given

Attending

ID Required

Provide two forms of ID, Primary (Photo required) and secondary

Breathalyser

All students are required to have a zero blood alcohol reading (BAC) at the commencement of all training, tests or assessments.
KeenBros Truck Driver Training has an ‘Alcolizer’ on the premises and you are required to submit a breath analysis for all of your training, instructions and/or assessments.

Other information

Wear appropriate and comfortable clothing, including fully enclosed shoes

Eye sight

An eye sight test will be carried out during a student’s enrolment.
If prescription glasses or contact lens are used, please make sure that you have them available at the enrolment session.
If you believe it is likely that your vision may not meet the requirements for commercial drivers, it is advisable to seek advice and take appropriate steps prior to making a booking

Medical conditions

If you currently have a reportable Medical condition, it may be a requirement for you to obtain medical advice from a health care specialist. Mandatory reporting of medical conditions is dealt with by the Department of Transport, Licensing Services.

Courses and Training

Department of Transport (WA)

Training Accreditation Council of WA

Department of Transport

LIGHT RIGID (LR Class)
You must have held your car licence for a least one year prior to doing a LR Class driving test

  • Any motor vehicle with a GVM exceeding 4.5 tonnes but not exceeding 8 tonnes GVM (Gross Vehicle Mass) with no axle limit
  • Any motor vehicle equipped to carry more than 12 adult persons.
  • May tow a single trailer (including a semi-trailer) with weight limits imposed by VSR’s (Vehicle Standard Regulations) but not exceeding a GVM of 9 tonnes.
  • Any motor vehicle under C class

MEDIUM RIGID (MR Class)
You must have held your car licence for a least one year prior to doing an MR Class driving test

  • Any motor vehicle with a GVM greater than 8 tonnes with two axles.
  • May tow a single trailer (not a semi-trailer) not exceeding 9 tonnes GVM.
  • Any motor vehicle under LR class

All training is done through our RTO, and once you have achieved the unit of competency your Light Rigid and Medium Rigid Test will be carried out by a DoT Assessor in Kelmscott, unless otherwise stated. These courses are designed for drivers who wish to gain the necessary skills and knowledge to obtain a Light Rigid (LR) or Medium Rigid (MR) Drivers Licence. It is ideal for those seeking work in the transport industry driving either a truck or a bus.

Heavy Rigid Vehicle – (HR Class)
Requirements for taking a HR Class driving test. A person must have held either a:

  • Car (C class) licence for at least 2 years
  • Light Rigid (LR class) heavy vehicle licence for at least 1 year
  • Medium Rigid (MR class) heavy vehicle licence for at least 1 year
  • A Heavy Rigid (HR) licence permits a driver to learn to drive a rigid vehicle with 3 or more axles
  • Tow a trailer with a gross vehicle mass (GVM) up to 9 tonnes.
  • Any motor vehicle under MR class

HR Assessment Content: Theory (Prior to Assessment)

  • Legal requirement knowledge
  • Pre-drive checks
  • Starting and stopping sequences
  • Demonstration drive
  • Cabin checks
  • Defensive driving
  • Turning and handling
  • Vehicle positioning
  • Fuel efficiency
  • Systems of vehicle control
  • Road law knowledge

All training is done through our RTO and once you have achieved the units of competency for the HR licence our RTO will also conduct the assessment. These courses are designed for drivers who wish to gain the necessary skills and knowledge to obtain a Heavy Rigid (HR) Drivers Licence. It is ideal for those seeking work in the transport industry driving either a truck or a bus, or within the mining industry.

HEAVY COMBINATION (HC Class)

  • To be eligible for HC class licence students are required to have held a C class licence for 3+ years and MR or HR for 1+ years.
  • HC (heavy combination) class vehicle allows you to drive a prime mover and semi-trailer; or
  • A heavy rigid class vehicle with a trailer that has a GMV (gross vehicle mass) exceeding nine (9) tonnes.
  • Authorised to tow one but no more than one trailer in addition to the trailer or semi-trailer because of which it is classified as of class HC if the additional trailer has a GVM not exceeding 9 t; or
  • An unladen converter dolly or low loader dolly as defined in the Road Traffic (Vehicle) Regulations 2014.
  • Any motor vehicle under HR class

All training is done through our RTO and once you have achieved the units of competency for the HC licence our RTO will also conduct the assessment. These courses are designed for drivers who wish to gain the necessary skills and knowledge to obtain a Heavy Combination (HC) Drivers Licence. It is ideal for those seeking work in the transport industry driving trucks with a trailer.

MULTI COMBINATION (MC Class)

  • To be eligible for MC class licence students are required to have held a HR or HC class licence for 1+ years.
  • MC (multi combination) class vehicle allows you to drive any heavy combination unit towing one or more trailers, each having a gross vehicle mass greater than 9,000 kg
  • Any motor vehicle under HC class

All training is done through our RTO and once you have achieved the units of competency for the MC licence our RTO will also conduct the assessment. These courses are designed for drivers who wish to gain the necessary skills and knowledge to obtain a Multi Combination (MC) Drivers Licence. It is ideal for those seeking work in the transport industry driving trucks with multiple trailers.

HC & MC Assessment Content: Theory (Prior to Assessment)

  • Legal requirements
  • Pre-drive checks
  • Starting and stopping sequences
  • Mid-trip Inspections
  • Coupling and Un-coupling (HC & MC)
  • Reversing Exercise
  • Defensive Driving
  • Use of Controls
  • General Vehicle Control
  • Vehicle positioning
  • Turning and Handling
  • Driving Test
  • Road law knowledge
Training Accreditation Council of WA

UNITS OF COMPETENCY INFORMATION
If you would like further information regarding the units of competency that are listed on KeenBros (WA) Pty Ltd’s Training Scope, please go to www.training.gov.au

TLIC2002 Drive light rigid vehicle
TLIC3003 Drive medium rigid vehicle

TLIC3004 Drive heavy rigid vehicle
TLIB0002 Carry out vehicle inspection

TLIC3005 Drive heavy combination vehicle
TLIB0002 Carry out vehicle inspection
TLIB2008 Carry out inspection of trailers

TLIC4006 Drive multi-combination vehicle
TLIB0002 Carry out vehicle inspection
TLIB2008 Carry out inspection of trailers

TLIC3010 Pilot or escort oversized and/or overmassed loads
TLIF3060 Control traffic as a pilot vehicle operator
TLIE3009 Use pilot and escort communication
TLIF3013 Coordinate breakdowns and emergencies
TLIB0002 Carry out vehicle inspection
BVS – Bridge video supervision is embedded throughout the course

Involves the skills and knowledge to drive a light rigid vehicle, medium rigid vehicle, heavy rigid vehicle, heavy combination vehicle, multi-combination vehicle and pilot/escort safely in accordance with the licence requirements and regulations of the relevant state/territory roads and traffic authority pertaining to the relevant vehicle.

All information you obtain, will aide in your training and assessment. Covering all performance and knowledge competency criteria, you will gain skills that allow you to monitor traffic and road conditions, maintain, manage and efficiently control vehicle functions and vehicle condition. Gain knowledge on fatigue management and read and interpret instructions. Once you have successfully completed the assessment performance and criteria elements for the specific unit/s or course, you will receive a Statement of Attainment. Units of competency for this licence must be completed, and statement of attainment achieved, before a PDA can be performed.

Students will develop the skills and knowledge to Drive heavy rigid vehicle (HR) safely in accordance with the licence requirements and regulations of the relevant state/territory roads and traffic authority pertaining to the relevant licence.

Once you have successfully completed the assessment performance and criteria elements for the specific unit/s or course, you will receive a Statement of Attainment. Units of competency for this licence must be completed, and statement of attainment achieved, before a PDA can be performed.

Upon completion, the Statement of Attainment and other relevant documents must be handed into the DoT Licensing Centre or Main Roads. This allows you to have your licence loaded or gazetted. You will be required to pay a fee that is applicable to the licence you obtained.

GEARBOXES
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN NON-SYNCHRO, SYNCHROMESH AND AUTO GEARBOXES IN TRUCKS?
Once you decide you are going to go for your truck licence, you will need to decide what type of licence you require. There are three licence options as listed below:

Constant mesh, Road-Ranger, Unrestricted and Crash Box Gearboxes
All of the above are names which describe the non-synchromesh gearbox, the most common being the Road Ranger. When driving a non-synchromesh gearbox, in order to change gears the engine revs need to match the road speed for the gear change to happen successfully. This process is called doubling the clutch or double clutching. On the simplest level, the steps are as follows:

  1. Depress the clutch and disengage the current gear
  2. Let out the clutch to re-engage the neutral gear and then match the revs to the gear that you want to engage
  3. Depress the clutch and engage the next gear
18 speed road ranger gear pattern

18 speed road ranger gear pattern

Synchromesh Gearboxes
A synchromesh gearbox does not require the driver to double clutch as the gearbox has synchro rings which match the road speed and the engine revs which allows the gear to be selected. Many of the trucks doing local deliveries tend to use this type of gearbox as it is easier for the driver to operate and allows companies more choice when selecting drivers.

Automatic Gearboxes
More trucks are being manufactured and purchased with automatic transmissions due technological improvements over the last decade. Automatic truck gearboxes are slightly different to car automatic gearboxes in that they are, essentially, an automated manual transmission. This means that there is an automated shifter changing gears for the driver in the manual gearbox.

Ultimately it’s up to you which licence you choose to go for. If you choose to go for an unrestricted licence it will undoubtedly open the most doors for you, however learning to drive a non-synchromesh gearbox requires more training and can be frustrating for some new trainees. If you have a particular industry in mind where you would like to work and would like to know what sort of trucks are used in that industry, KeenBros Truck Driver Training have years of experience and industry contacts that can help you make the most informed choice when deciding which licence is right for you.