The trailer maker has added a second, moving bulkhead door to the specification, giving the operator the extra flexibility it needs for higher volumes of frozen product.
The Hull-based retailer has 280 stores throughout the north of England and the Midlands. Many are in town centres, so while half of the latest order is for the standard, 13.6m-long unit, the others are 11.2m urban versions, with command steer axles.
As with all of Heron’s trailers, the interiors have two lanes configured in a one-third/two-thirds width split. A host Carrier Vector 1950 MT refrigeration unit provides temperature control to the wide lane, while two MVS700 evaporators cool the narrow lane.
The new trailers are also fitted with 1,500kg Dhollandia tail-lifts – the 13.6m versions are fitted with retractable lifts, while the urban variants have column lifts to save space.
Previously, Heron Foods only carried chilled product in the wide lane of each trailer; the narrow lane, which had a moving bulkhead door, was for frozen product. However, increased customer demand for frozen foods has prompted the addition of a moving bulkhead door in the wider lane, so the operator can switch chilled to the narrow lane when needed.
Heron Foods’ head of logistics Karl Dawson explains: “As the profile of the stock that we’re selling in our shops changes, we might, for example, find ourselves in a situation where we want to fit 20 cages of frozen in a lane that will only hold 15. Rather than leave them off, we can now flip the lanes, so we’re using what was the frozen lane to carry chilled and ambient product, and vice versa.
“We discussed various options with Gray & Adams but settled on this low-cost solution, which is simple but highly effective. The increased flexibility it offers is already proving invaluable.”
Indeed, so impressed is the operator that it is now considering retrofitting extra moving bulkhead doors to some of the other trailers on the fleet.