18-tonne hookloader application works out on paper – and in reality too18 September 2018
An 18 tonnes gvw, 4x2 chassis fitted with hookloader bodywork are rare. Yet for Lancashire - based Rishton Waste Paper, this is the specification of the latest vehicle to join its fleet - and it’s already proving to be an ideal solution for its particular application.
Fitted to a new ‘68’ registration 5,300mm-wheelbase Renault D Series chassis, the Harsh HH14 ‘Z frame’ hookloader unit provides a 14t lift capacity along with the ability to handle a full range of demountable containers up to 20ft in length.
The unladen weight of this particular Renault/Harsh combination is a competitive 8,720kg, thereby affording 9t-plus allowance for the container and its payload.
Rishton Waste Paper’s director Billy Braysford says: “This is a new type of vehicle for us. The truck’s primary job is collecting paper, cardboard and packaging from local factories and retailers - and this sort of payload is much more about volume than weight. Even with a big container full of cardboard we’re not reaching the 18t limit, so there’s no need at all to send out one of our bigger six wheelers on this type of work.
With Harsh and Renault supplying the key chassis and bodywork elements, all installation, fitting out and completion of the new truck was done by Thompsons ServiceTech in Blackburn. It supplies more than 200 hookloaders and skiploaders per year.
For Rishton Waste Paper, the hookloader breaks new ground in other areas too. Previous trucks in the fleet with demountable bodies have used a cable-lift system.
Driver Mark Ackers notes: “What’s particularly good is that the in-cab control box only lets you operate the system in the correct sequence. You can’t, for example, start moving the container off the chassis before you’ve fully retracted the sheet. This system makes the whole loading and unloading job much smoother, faster and safer, whilst also protecting the equipment against accidental damage.”
Author
Will Dalrymple
Related Companies
Harsh Ltd
Renault Trucks UK Ltd
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