Find a Transport Manager for Timber Haulage

Timber haulage needs a Transport Manager who is prepared to look beyond the operating centre. Vehicle condition can change on forest roads, load weight varies, and safe restraint depends on the timber, trailer, containment and route. The right candidate should understand how those factors feed into licensing, maintenance intervals, driver checks and management decisions before the vehicle enters the highway.

ETM helps operators publish a clear requirement and compare potentially suitable Transport Managers or consultants. It is an independent marketplace and is not connected to DVSA, GOV.UK or the Office of the Traffic Commissioner. The operator must complete its own checks and any formal appointment remains subject to regulatory acceptance.

State the work and licence position precisely

Explain whether the business hauls customer-owned timber for hire or reward, carries its own timber, works internationally or relies on any claimed exemption. Do not use “forestry exemption” as a complete description. Candidates need the exact vehicle use, journey and legal basis to judge whether the operation is authorised.

Say whether you require a nominated Transport Manager for a standard licence, a consultant for a restricted operation, application or variation support, a maintenance and load-security audit or replacement cover linked to a period-of-grace request.

Relevant experience should cover the whole movement

A suitable person should be able to discuss weight estimation, weighbridge use, axle distribution, stacking, bolsters, stanchions, headboards, chains, lashings and attachment points. They should understand that load photographs support but do not replace a defined restraint method and inspection record.

Ask how they would assess rough access, mud, gradients, weak bridges, narrow routes and safe places for restraint checks. Timber experience is valuable when it produces better controls, not when it is used as a vague credential.

Maintenance oversight must reflect arduous use

The candidate should explain how preventive maintenance intervals are selected and reviewed against age, mileage, operating conditions and defect history. They should recognise recurring damage to tyres, brakes, suspension, lights and underbody components, and know how loader-crane, trailer and restraint-equipment responsibilities interact with vehicle roadworthiness.

Where inspections or crane work are contracted out, the Transport Manager still needs access to records and authority to challenge poor reports. Ask how they review braking-performance evidence, overdue defects and repeated failures linked to forest access.

Decide what operating contact is realistic

Continuous and effective management may require representative loading-site visits as well as operating-centre attendance. Discuss travel, remote loading points, driver contact, workshop access and how urgent defects are handled when the vehicle is away from base. The candidate should have a route to directors who can authorise repair, recovery or suspension of work.

External Transport Managers are limited to no more than four operators and 50 authorised vehicles in total, but the practical capacity may be lower. Check all other commitments, distances and seasonal workload.

Include these facts in the ETM request

• Legal entity, licence type, number and current status.
• Authorised and operated vehicles and trailers.
• Loader cranes, specialist trailer types and maintenance ownership.
• Operating centres and representative loading regions.
• Customer haulage, own-goods and international work.
• Inspection intervals, defect trends, brake and tyre arrangements.
• Weight, weighbridge and load-security process.
• Any overload, prohibition, incident or regulator deadline.
• Expected visits, loading-site involvement, reporting and start date.

Questions to use when comparing candidates

Verify competence and define deliverables

Check Transport Manager CPC evidence, relevant CPD, current operator commitments and proposed time. Agree the frequency of visits, record sampling, driver briefings, maintenance reviews, written reports and action tracking. Clarify whether loader-crane examination advice, route assessment or specialist load-security training is included or separately sourced.

How marketplace responses should be used

Members may reply with their experience, location, availability and proposed approach. Compare the substance of those replies and interview the strongest candidates. Once selected, document responsibilities, authority and time, then complete the relevant VOL process for a statutory appointment. ETM does not guarantee suitability or regulatory approval.

Timber haulage matching FAQs

Must the Transport Manager have worked in forestry?

There is no separate statutory timber qualification, but direct or closely relevant experience can be important. Ask the person to demonstrate practical understanding of the vehicles, loads, access and maintenance risks.

Can site visits be replaced by video calls?

Remote contact can support management, but it may not provide enough understanding of loading points, vehicles and practices. The arrangement should include the physical contact needed for the actual risk.

How many hours should be proposed?

Use current statutory starting points and adjust for vehicles, trailers, cranes, drivers, sites, distances, compliance history and support. The candidate should explain the calculation.

Can a consultant help a restricted operator?

Yes. Consultancy can support audits, maintenance, loading and driver systems without creating a statutory Transport Manager nomination. The licence holder remains responsible.

Sources for timber transport appointments

• Senior Traffic Commissioner: transport managers
• DVSA: securing loads on HGVs and goods vehicles
• DVSA: Guide to maintaining roadworthiness
• Goods vehicle operator licensing guide