Heil-bodied Volvo FM11 joins waste management fleet 19 November 2012

Hills Waste Solutions has added to its fleet of 95 service vehicles with the addition of a Volvo FM11 6x4, featuring a Heil Powerlink trade waste collection body.

The FM11 is powered by the 370bhp D11C engine, which uses SCR (selective catalytic reduction) technology to meet its Euro 5 emissions rating.

The Volvo 12-speed I-shift automatic gearbox is now standard fit on Hills vehicles, having been proven in service since its introduction in August 2009. Hills' specification features kickdown and enhanced software to allow manual shifting and off-road usage.

As for load distribution, Peter Moore, fleet manager for Hills Waste Solutions, explains that's accommodated with a 21-tonne B ride two-spring rear bogie and a front axle on parabolic suspension with a design capacity of eight tonnes.

"We needed a vehicle that could combine both motorway travel on a daily basis and the ability to cope with the repeated stop-start activity when on a door to door collection round," states Moore.

"The specialist gearbox and environmentally friendly Volvo engine give us this flexibility," he adds.

"It also provides a better level of comfort for the driver and his loader than a standard crew cab vehicle."

Additions to the vehicle include a bin weighing system by Vehicle Weighing Solutions (VWS). Its Enviroweigh allows bins to be weighed independently and side by side during the lifting cycle. As the lifters don't need to be stopped, normal operations are unaffected and there is less vehicle downtime.

Author
John Challen

This material is protected by MA Business copyright
See Terms and Conditions.
One-off usage is permitted but bulk copying is not.
For multiple copies contact the sales team.