New graphics for 2 Start’s growing training fleet
Training provider 2 Start Ltd has recently added to its training vehicle fleet with two new Iveco S-Way tractor units and two Schmitz Cargobull trailers, complete with specially designed liveries.
2 Start provides logistics training across the south coast of the UK and runs one of the few DVSA-approved test centres in Portsmouth. The fleet expansion will contribute to the company’s aim to help as many people as they can obtain their LGV Class 1 licences.
Once the new vehicles arrived on site, 2 Start’s marketing team shot into action to produce a new set of branded vehicle graphics. The process took about 2-3 weeks, from the initial design to the finished product.
The first week involved creating the initial vector graphics and coming up with ideas for the design, followed by internal discussions and ultimately design approval.
Once this had been completed, the draft was sent to external contractors, who would provide a final design and quote for the job. Vehicle availability was then scheduled for the fitting process to begin.
2 Start Ltd employed third-party contractor Branditright for the production and installation of the new vehicle livery. Branditright is a local, family-run small business that assisted with the graphics from the design stage, right through to production and printing.
Branditright worked with 2 Start’s internal marketing team to finalise the artwork and make adjustments with multiple reviews and edits, accounting for considerations such as the trailer reflectors, and the roller shutter door on the rear.
Branditright vehicle graphics are produced using Metamark Vinyls and Avery Dennison. 2 Start’s new truck and trailer graphics were printed onto Metamark vinyl on this occasion, as this allowed for the best application based on the artwork.
With the materials on order, Branditright moved onto the next stage of the process, which was to finalise the artwork with the required cut lines and final touches in preparation for production on Roland wide-format printers, which are capable of printing media up two metres wide.
Once the vinyl arrived on-site at Branditright’s offices in Horndean, Hampshire, full colour printing took around four hours. After final graphics land on the drying table, they are left for a minimum of 48 hours to fully gas off before applying lamination and cutting.
Installation was completed on-site at 2 Start’s Southampton training centre in a sheltered warehouse, where the Branditright team was able to fit and apply the new graphics to the truck cab and trailer. The highest points on the trailer and the 2 Start logo on the wind deflector of the truck were the most challenging aspects, requiring high-rise towers for the vinyl application.
An applicator tool was used to apply the printed vinyl, until the desired smooth result was achieved. This process can involve negotiating challenging contours in the vehicle’s shape, but with the experience of the Branditright team, it seemed to be achieved effortlessly.
Overall, the application of the graphics to the truck and trailer took around 7-8 hours. The team at 2 Start was excited by the results, and the truck was back on the road the following Monday for its next HGV Class 1 C+E driver training lessons.
2 Start, which operates 30+ vehicles, says it is continuously growing to help meet the increased demand it is facing for HGV driver training.
This has been exacerbated by the DVSA’s November 2021 announcement of changes to the Category C+E licence test requirements, meaning that current holders of a Category B (car) licence can now train to obtain their Category C+E driver licence without the need to complete the rigid Category C.
The new Iveco S-Way units have both been put straight into action in on-the-road practical driver training and ‘S’ shaped reversing, helping students train to obtain their C+E licences.
2 Start has further vehicles pipelined for acquisition in the near future, with a further three articulated trucks due to join the fleet in the coming months.
