Formula 1: the logistics work for the 2018 season is already beginning

Once the last Actros is loaded, pearls of sweat start to appear on Tobias Genrich's forehead. And not just because the sun is shining on the driver's paddock. "That was a challenge," says the 35-year-old sporting the DB Schenker logo on his shirt. The majority of the two dozen trucks which the logistics provider has here at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps have now been on the road for a while, heading in the direction of Monza. Some even started out overnight already: the race trucks are loaded, among other things, with the two "Silver Arrows" – the racing cars of Lewis Hamilton and his colleague Valtteri Bottas.

Welcome to Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport! The Formula 1 team of reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton has tasked DB Schenker as their official logistics suppler for all European races. For them, that means there's a lot to do when on location, as well as during the transport operations between races where they have a whole fleet of Actros trucks on the road. And if, like here in Belgium, there's just a single week between races instead of two, then the logistics operations between the races become almost artistic in nature.

– Tobias Genrich, Head of the Motorhome Crew at DB Schenker

At the same time, in the so-called garage, DB Schenker's race truck crew – made up on this racing weekend of 19 employees – are tense. They transport the Silver Arrows, the most prestigious cargo of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport team. Now, the men start helping the mechanics and engineers of the Formula 1 team pack away the technological marvels on wheels. The Silver Arrows are protected by a black cover as they are loaded into the trucks, the sun starting to set in the background.

The morning after the race, the truck with the Silver Arrows and the other race trucks are under way on the motorway. "We always drive with six race trucks," explains Denis Marinkovic, who heads up the entire Formula 1 operations of DB Schenker. Two of these trucks are turned into an engineers office during race weekends. They house, among other things, IT equipment, a hydraulics laboratory and the tyre store. Three further trucks are the home of the comprehensive range of accessories.

Proven over the course of three seasons.

Whether it's a race truck or a transport truck for the motorhome, "every season, we rent the latest Actros models via Mercedes-Benz CharterWay," explains Denis Marinkovic. To ensure everything runs smoothly, the vehicles are kitted out with the complete range of the latest safety and assistance systems. We ask whether the trucks have proven their worth over the past three seasons? "What can I say?" says the manager with a grin. "They're Mercedes trucks!" In other words: the transport operations are as reliable as the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport team expect.

Dismantling the motorhome is now in full swing and the team have worked in shifts through the night. The construction is made of 30 standard containers, clad on the outside and equipped inside with bars, sofas and plenty of IT equipment. It is conceived in such a way that it can be built and taken down within the given time – even in the case of back-to-back races like here in Belgium.

Despite the tight time plan, everything works like clockwork. A crane picks up one of the 20-foot containers on a hook and lowers it down onto the Actros. Every movement is perfect: an employee pulls the box into position using ropes, while two others manoeuvre it onto the guide rail of the load area. A fourth colleague clambers onto the container and uses an electric screwdriver to release the securing chains at each corner. A further container will be positioned behind the first later on. Just a few minutes later, the freight is secured and disappears beneath the tarpaulin with the DB Schenker logo on it.

Container for container, Actros for Actros – that's how it goes until the motorhome's steel strut substructure comes into sight. "This has to arrive in Monza first, so we drive that in two Sprinters," explains Tobias Genrich, visibly tired but much more relaxed. No sooner was it said did the vans appear and load up their cargo. Now just the tools and a few small components need to be loaded, and then it's all done: the race between races is on.

Professional partnership.

The 2018 Formula 1 season sees DB Schenker enter into its fourth year as the official logistics supplier for the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport team at all races throughout Europe – and for the fourth time with a fleet made up of Actros trucks. This time around, the logistics provider and its trucks will be in even greater demand than usual. While there were just seven dates in the calendar last year, this year, that figure has jumped to nine races between May and the beginning of September. Plus, after kicking off the season in Barcelona and the "Grand Prix de Monaco", there will be three races in back-to-back configuration – one in Le Castellet, France, another in Spielberg, Austria, and a further race at Silverstone in England. This will be followed by a further two sets of double back-to-back race weekends: the first sees the teams head to the Hockenheim Ring in Germany followed by Budapest the weekend after, and then, just as in 2017, Spa-Francorchamps will be directly followed by Monza. Reason enough then to have an experienced team of specialists at the helm.

Photos: Ralf Kreuels