Red Bull puts energy into driver training with bespoke DriveTech (UK) programme

02 August 2005

Jim Kirkwood DriveTech MD with Rachel Mockett of Red Bull Reading Energy Team and Garry Hyde Business Development Manager of DriveTech

A targeted driver training programme has been introduced by leading energy drink company Red Bull to improve the safety of its drivers and reduce accident costs.

Apart from the London-based company’s 84 company car drivers, university students who drive the company’s unique ‘Energy Team’ cars, which feature a large can of Red Bull on the roof sloping at 45 degrees, and drivers of the company’s 14 event vehicles also undergo compulsory training.

A bespoke training programme has been designed by DriveTech (UK), the country’s leading provider of at-work driving risk management, driver assessment and driver training solutions, for Red Bull, whose energy drink is recognised to reduce fatigue among tired drivers.

Company car drivers, who drive a range of Audi, BMW and Volkswagen models, complete a one-day programme embracing both classroom-based and on-the-road training with the focus on improving both awareness and perception while behind the wheel and when undertaking manoeuvres. Employees who drive the company’s 14 Land Rover and Volkswagen event vehicles complete a similar course.

The Red Bull Student Marketing Programme has a workforce of 80 university students who drive the 35 ‘Energy team’ Volkswagen Beetles and Mini Coopers. This youth marketing programme has been at the heart of all marketing activities in the UK for more than six years and the purpose is to create understanding about the functional benefit of Red Bull and its usage occasions.

The Energy team support the Red Bull driving campaign by hunting down drivers in need of energy. They communicate that Red Bull is proven to improve concentration, reaction speed and alertness whilst driving and is supported by research carried out by Loughborough University’s Sleep Research Centre¹.It is therefore crucial that the Energy Teams are clued up regarding all aspects of driver safety.

The half-day programme for the students comprises on-road training, which focuses on ensuring that the drivers understand the unique ride and handling characteristics of the vehicles as well as being aware of the height and vision restrictions that their design imposes. Advice on parking safely is also given.

In addition, the students are trained to carry out a series of safety-related vehicle maintenance checks prior to each journey. Apart from carrying out tyre checks, each driver is equipped with a tyre tread and pressure gauge, they also undertake visual bodywork checks and complete a form highlighting any damage. Similar checks are to shortly be introduced for all vehicle drivers to undertake on their cars.

The driver training programme is compulsory for the students before they drive the ‘Energy team’ vehicles and if they do not meet the standard expected by the DriveTech instructors they undergo additional training before being re-assessed.

Carol Swift, Red Bull’s payroll and administration manager who is in charge of the driver training initiative, said: ‘We started working with DriveTech this year because the company was able to supply a flexible driver training programme to meet our exact requirements which previous providers had been unable to do. The company has also embraced the Red Bull culture and has made driver training enjoyable for our employees.

Jim Kirkwood DriveTech MD with Rachel Mockett of Red Bull' Reading Energy Team and Garry Hyde Business Development Manager of DriveTech

‘As a business we have a major obligation to promote road safety and ensure our staff work in the safest possible environment. In addition, our ‘Energy Team’ drivers have invariably only recently passed their driving test and they need to be fully acquainted with a very unusual vehicle.’

Last year the company’s vehicles clocked up a massive 1.7 million business miles with its customer development executives, who are typically in their 20s, spending up to 75% of their working day on the road making up to 12 calls a day.

In the first quarter of 2004 Red Bull drivers were involved in 16 ‘incidents’ of which 12 involved company cars with the remainder involving ‘Energy Team’ vehicles. In the first quarter this year the ‘incident’ rate dropped to 14 of which two accidents involved vehicle-based in Ireland - the division is now separate from the UK operation - 11 were classed as unattended damage and the other incident saw a pheasant fly into a vehicle.

Ms Swift said: ‘We have had no UK blameworthy accidents this year and that is an excellent start to our new driver training regime. We have had a reduction in accidents year-on-year and that has resulted in insurance premium savings, but I hope the new developments will further improve our insurance profile.’

DriveTech managing director Jim Kirkwood said: ‘Our flexible approach to providing risk management solutions to companies has enabled us to embrace the unique characteristics of the Red Bull fleet.’

For the last three years DriveTech has stocked Red Bull in its training room and recommends in its driver pack that company car and van drivers buy the drink to fight off sleepiness. Red Bull Energy Teams have also accompanied DriveTech trainers to seminars and safety days it has run on behalf of other clients.

Driver sleepiness is thought to cause at least 10% of all road accidents and one in five accidents on motorways and trunk roads. It is also considered to claim more lives on the UK’s roads than alcohol. Those statistics mean that drivers falling asleep could be the cause of more than 300 deaths annually and many thousands of injuries a year.

Work by the well-known Loughborough Sleep Research Centre has shown that one can of functional energy drink - Red Bull was used in the research - is effective in reducing moderate levels of sleepiness.

The Centre also found that consuming two cans of the drink would almost eliminate moderate level of sleepiness and sleep-related driving impairments for about 90 minutes after the drink had taken effect.

High resolution photographs to accompany this release are available on the DriveTech (UK) website at http://www.drivetech.co.uk or by contacting AWD Communications Ltd on 01733 390691.

Click here to download high resolution photographs (1.16Mb)

¹Arrive Alive ‘Tackling the killer problem of Driver Sleepiness’ – Loughborough Sleep Research Centre

Editor’s notes

DriveTech is the UK's leading provider of ‘driving at work’ risk management, driver assessment and driver training solutions.

DriveTech’s goal is to reduce both an organisation’s vehicle business costs and the personal risk for ‘at work’ drivers, by significantly improving driver ABC – attitude, behaviour and competence – therefore supporting driver safety and corporate ‘duty of care’ requirements.

DriveTech (UK) has won the Institute of Transport Management’s ‘Fleet Award for Driver Training’ in 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004 and its ‘European Driver Safety Specialist’ award in 2005.

DriveTech (UK) can be contacted at enquiries@drivetech.co.uk, telephone 01344 467881 or via its website at www.drivetech.co.uk.

For further information contact:
Ashley Martin (telephone 01733 390691) or Arthur Dalziel (01344 762890)
AWD Communications Ltd.