It's been a while since trailers and even rigids have witnessed significant technical innovations beyond aerodynamics, but Schmitz Cargobull has used the downturn to rethink its offerings.
Its new curtainsider, for example (triaxial, xx tonne and 20 tonne tandem coming soon), features a steel roof fabricated from interlocking cassettes that makes it both lightweight and modular.
There is also an all bolted chassis – fully galvanised to enable the company's 10 year corrosion-proof guarantee, and again, modular.
Schmitz product support manager David Pressley goes on to cite matched suspension, designed to let the structure flex. That's based on Schmitz's Rotos disc axle, which also features sealed bearings, engineered to run cool by virtue of their unusually long thermal path from the brake assemblies.
All units come with Schmitz's EBS electronic braking and stability and large discs as standard. Pressley says the company will provide drums if operators request them, but makes the point that EBS cannot then work as efficiently.
For the rest, it's about incremental improvements: the trailer can be side (front or back) or rear loaded at any point, thanks to better curtain retracting; the birch ply floor now handles 7.1 tonnes, with protection for forklift operations; and a facility to partially raise the rear axle at yard speeds, to improve manoeuvrability without the expense of rear command steer.
Also, maintenance items, such as hinges and lights, are simple to swap out. That's good news for fleet managers wanting to keep the fleet mobile. So is the reduced axle bearing rolling resistance and overall weight, which should improve fuel economy.
Incidentally, transport engineers can also specify reduced height – so less drag – without damaging residuals. "Since our trailers are modular, they can be reconfigured at the end of the lease term," explains Pressley.
As for Shmitz's MKO rigids, they're aimed initially at the 18 tonne market, and feature virtually identical modular chassis and floor construction.
Schmitz general manager Paul Avery says that's gone down well with Scania, Volvo and Mercedes. He also points to rugged ferroplast panelling, but concedes that the rest is business as usual options – with options such as side doors, refrigeration, movable bulkheads, tail lifts and a dry freight version.
Demounts and tippers are not on the horizon, but a draw bar already exists in Germany, and Avery says he's ready to take orders.
