United Utilities has a strong relationship with the Swedish manufacturer and its dealer Thomas Hardie Commercials, having bought Volvos since the late 1980s. The two 6x4 tractors join an influx of Volvo trucks recently added to its 350-strong HGV fleet, including two FMX 8x4 tippers.
Martin Shaw, regional logistics & industrial cleaning manager at United Utilities, says: “Our vehicles work on five-year asset management periods, so when it was time to refresh our contracts, we shared our vehicle specifications and requirements with all the major players in the industry. Volvo has been awarded the contract for the past two renewals as its vehicles have consistently proven to be the best fit for our operation.
“Through Thomas Hardie Commercials, Volvo has an excellent dealer support network in the North West, something we haven’t always experienced with its competitors.”
The new FMX tractor units – powered by Volvo’s D13K engine generating 493bhp and 2,500 nm of torque – are paired with bulk tipping trailers manufactured by Wilcox Commercial Vehicles and are being used to transfer sewage sludge to farmland across the UK.
Operating up to six days a week, the trucks are covered by a Volvo Gold Contract to guarantee maximum uptime, with servicing and maintenance to be carried out at Thomas Hardie Commercial’s Warrington dealership. The double-drive tractor units benefit from a tandem axle lift, which enables drive to the rearmost axle to be disengaged and lifted clear of the ground,.
Inside the new FMX cab, United Utilities has specified a range of features focused on safety. The Active Safety+ pack includes adaptive cruise control with emergency brake assistance, lane changing support radar system, driver alert support, Volvo Dynamic Steering, automatic trailer brake activation and stretch brake, which kicks in to help prevent jack-knifing when driving downhill on a slippery, winding road.
Shaw adds: “We have recently brought some outsourced operations in-house, so these new FMX tractor units are important additions to our fleet.”
United Utilities’ Bioresources Services Team transport 2,000,000m3 of liquid sludge and around 400,000 tonnes of sewage sludge cake each year. Sludge is moved from the company’s 569 wastewater treatment works to one of its 37 bioresource treatment facilities, where digestion technology is used to produce fertiliser that is then distributed to farms across the country.