Selected news is provided in alphabetical order
•Bell Truck & Van showed a hybrid battery-electric 7.5t 7C15 Fuso Canter in the livery of customer Murphy, London civil engineering contractor. The truck automatically switches from 90kWh battery to diesel engine at about 10kph. Bell promises fuel savings of 20% or more.
•Charlton showed a tipper body mounted on an unusual Scania 6x4 chassis for customer Burcombe Haulage. Its transport manager Stuart Wilkie says that the company runs a number of 6x4 tippers because of tight access on Cornish building sites. However, it has also been buying Mercedes and Volvo tippers on 8x4 tridem chassis, as they offer similar manoevrability to a 6x4 but with nearly the same payload as 8x4 tippers.
•An electrohydraulic rear-steer chassis, dubbed the FAX, was displayed on the DAF stand. The CF 450 FAX 8x2 rigid featured steel tipper bodywork from Thompson and Epsilon M125L grab equipment, supplied by LC Vehicle Hire. The FAX axle layout offers a better turning circle than a traditional 8x4 manoeuvrability, which it says suits utility and construction operators working in towns and cities. The specification of the 5.7m wheelbase show vehicle included 450bhp MX-11 diesel, 12-speed TraXon automated gearbox, day cab and LED rear lights.
•Harsh showed a high-speed heavy skiploader, 14t lifting capacity, or 10t at full 4.25m reach, that lifts skips (6-16 cu yard sizes) in half the cycle time of other models. The first of a batch of six for customer Ashcourt Group, they were shown in its light blue livery. In addition, the company exhibited a heavy-duty 26t-capacity hooklift for 32-tonne gvw 8x4 chassis. It features beefed-up 20mm-thick steel sections, and a replaceable hook. Larger outer and inner guides improve seating of the container, as does a cam system that locks into body rails. Also new is an optional radio remote control intended for greater operator convenience and safety of operations.
•IML showed a SAF rear axle with Poclain electrohydraulic drive for tipping trailers, to improve traction in loose ground. The PTO-driven device is actuated from a switch in the cabin. Launched in late 2018, its first UK customer is JA Jackson of Preston, and was being trialled on one unit as of late May. It has a weight premium of about 120kg, plus about half again for hoses and oil. The axle switches off automatically at about 12kph. It is only available fitted to the BI9 premium disc- braked axle.
•The first IVECO Stralis X-Way 6x4 tractor was shown off in the livery of Purfleet, Essex firm Brocks Haulage to pull tridem tipping trailers. Like the rest of its X-Way cousins, the unit takes a half-step toward off-road duty, while offering a road-going Stralis cab. In addition, the AT440X48TZ/P OFF model was specified in the off-highway specification, offering higher ground clearance and steeper approach angles than the ‘on’ and ‘on+’ specification packages.
•Keith Manufacturing promoted its new design of walking floor for self-ejecting trailers. Its new V-Floor design extends the width of the V-shaped tilted moving floor slats, and reduces the width of the horizontal static section, compared to the original design, it says. The result is that a greater percentage of the floor moves: 94%, compared to 75% in the original design. This design is said to improve material unloading. Also, wider bearing surfaces underneath the moving slats are said to increase the life of the floor. Finally, the new design has been made lighter, by as much as 4lb/ft (7.4kg/m).
•Montracon showed a prototype steel body straight-frame tipper trailer made of Swedish steel: 4mm-thick body, 6mm Hardox floor and Domex panels and doors. A Transcover front-to-back sheeting system is also included. It also features chassis-mounted PM weight scales. The big body offers some 62m3 of loading volume, and a target weight of 9.1t gvw (which the prototype hadn’t achieved by the time of the show). It is being made at the company’s factory in Mollusk, Belfast.
•SmartDrive showed a driver app for its video-based driver coaching service that was launched at the CV Show. The app allows drivers to see the same data that is sent to back office, enabling them to take responsibility for making improvements themselves. Although not real-time (partly to discourage drivers from being distracted when driving), the system does transmit data the same day.
•Swan Commercials showed a conveyor unloader for road construction. It unloads via a PTO-powered hydraulic motor connected to a chain drive, covered with a conveyor belt. Available in either Hardox or (optionally) aluminium body, the trailer has a payload of 12t (12.8t). It was shown mounted on a used four-axle rigid body owned by contractor McElchare.
•On show from Tatra was a 6x6 featuring electrohydraulic rear-axle steering, exhibited by J&R Millington of Shropshire (above). The heavy vehicle recovery and engineering firm has held the dealership for about a year, marking the first time the Czech truck manufacturer has been represented in the UK for a decade or more. Millington reports that a Tatra 4x4 has been sold as a lime spreader, and a 6x6 mounted on a rigid with electrohydraulic rear-steer is being built as a gully-emptier.
•TIA Wheels showed new surface coating for its forged aluminium alloy (T6061) wheels (above) that is said to reduce oxidation, and so remove the need for polishing. Called EcoShield, its cleaning is said to only require soap and water. The wheel is available for all of its 22.5in-diameter wheels, except those of Scania.
•Volvo and Renault showed a new common configuration of tanks and filters on four-axle rigids to comply with Euro VID requirements. Changes to the aftertreatment system – combined SCR and uncooled EGR – have forced it to be moved between the second and third axles on the offside, while the AdBlue tank has switched from a position in the near to offside under the cab. Two fuel tank location options remain: 255 or 290-litre aluminium tanks between second and third axles on the nearside, or a new design of 275-litre moulded polymer tank under the cab on the nearside. Engine management software has also been tweaked.
•WABCO showed off a new, simplified design of its OptiTire in-tyre TPMS system, consisting only of a temperature and pressure sensor and several sizes of belt with Velcro closure to mount them around the rim. Also new was an ultrasonic leak detector, power supply test case for testing trailer lighting, and ABS/EBS code reader.
•Co-located at the event was a drain and jetting show, Drain-Ex. New was the Whale jetting machine suitable for installation in vans. It comes with manual high- and low-pressure hose reels (up to 60m of ½-inch hose for the former, and 35m of 3/4-inch hose for the latter), integrated petrol compressor and tanks. The smaller model offers 43-litre/min output at 170bar with a 20hp Honda GX630 compressor; the larger 55-litre/min at 160bar with a 24hp GX690. Its supplier, Dutch jetting pump builder PTC, is represented in the UK by Roadvacs. Both units measure 1m by 1m by 0.65m without tank.