“In the past, we used the standard 8x4 rigid chassis,” says Chris Boyd, depot manager for the Wiltshire-based operator, explaining that the new vehicle offers improvements in terms of axle loading, manoeuvring and visibility.
“The potential for overloading the rear axles made us look for a better solution. By moving to the tridem configuration, the problem of the potential for overloading the rear axles has been resolved,” he states.
Moving on to the other benefits, Boyd says that, from the driver’s perspective, the best thing about his new FM 8x4 Tridem is its manoeuvrability.
And he adds: “Visibility from the new cab has been improved over the old FM too. Hills Waste Solutions were the first in the UK to operate the Tridem configuration nearly 10 years ago, but these latest Tridems are a big improvement.”
Hills new Tridem was specified with the 13-litre D13K420 engine, rated at 420bhp, and driving through Volvo’s I-Shift AMT (automated manual transmission).