Supplied by dealer Roanza Truck & Van, the new addition is powered by a 10.7-litre straight-six engine which generates 389bhp and drives through a PowerShift 3 automated transmission.
It is fitted with hookloading gear to carry a range of roll-on, roll-off steel skips with 20-40 cubic yard capacities.
The operator’s fleet includes 16 Mercedes-Benz skiploaders, all up to 18 tonnes, but another marque has always been used for 32-tonners.
“We’ve steered clear of Mercedes-Benz eight-wheelers in the past because we didn’t feel they were particularly well suited to our kind of work – payload is critical in this business, and the fact that they were relatively heavy always counted against them,” explains co-owner Barry Flanaghan.
The Euro VI Arocs changed this, however, he adds. “The Arocs is light enough to allow us to maximise payload capacities, while also offering the strength and durability that we’ve come to expect from Mercedes-Benz.
“There’s plenty of ground clearance, too, and visibility from the driver’s seat is excellent. All in all, this vehicle offers a great combination of attributes.”
The Arocs was ordered after Barry’s Skip Hire had reliability issues with a pair of 32-tonners by its established supplier. “They were giving us all sorts of trouble, and the AdBlue consumption was sky-high,” says Flanagan. “It was time for a change and the Arocs looks like a marked improvement.”
The Arocs has a ClassicSpace M-cab with the 320mm engine tunnel introduced last year, and sits six inches lower than its stablemate with 170mm tunnel.