The privately-owned container transport specialist ordered 15 Actros tractor units with optional safety packs which include the pioneering Active Brake Assist 4 and Proximity Control Assist systems, as well as a driver’s airbag.
Supplied by East Anglia Dealer Orwell Truck & Van, most will operate from Port Express’s headquarters in Felixstowe. The remainder will be allocated to the depot in Southampton which it opened three years ago.
The trucks’ flat-floored BigSpace sleeper cabs offer room for living and storage, and are additionally fitted with refrigerators and electric sunroofs. To further enhance economy from the 2545 model’s 444bhp 12.8-litre six-cylinder engine, Port Express has added air management kits by Hatcher Components, of Framlingham, Suffolk, and the predictive powertrain control system that employs digital 3D mapping and GPS data to scan the road ahead.
Port Express works for shipping lines, freight forwarders, importers and exporters, and operates from all major UK sea ports. It runs a fleet of 82 tractor units. The latest were ordered from Orwell Truck & Van.
Acquired with funding support from Mercedes-Benz Financial Services, the new Actros are the subject of four-year service contracts. Port Express’s Felixstowe-based trucks are inspected and maintained by the workshop team at Orwell Truck & Van’s Ipswich branch, while those that work from Southampton are looked after by the manufacturer’s local representative.
Explaining the decision to specify the Mercedes-Benz safety pack for the first time, co-founder and director Karl Dawson recalled the visit made by his son Adam, the company’s transport operator, to last November’s RoadEfficiency LIVE at the Millbrook proving ground in Bedfordshire. A highlight of the event was a demonstration of Active Brake Assist 4’s stopping power, delivered on the facility’s high-speed bowl, in which guests in an Actros tractor unit bore down on a stationary van.
Reports Dawson: “Adam was hugely impressed by the experience. His feedback, coupled with our determination to do everything possible to prevent one of our vehicles being involved in an accident, convinced us that the safety pack represented a wise investment.”
He continued: “Our Actros are highly reliable and average a very acceptable 9.5-9.6 mpg, while the drivers also like the comfort and handling of their vehicles. That’s important given that they do a difficult job in conditions which can sometimes be very challenging, so we like to provide them with the best possible working environment.”
Active Brake Assist 4 employs multi-mode radar to monitor moving and stationary objects in front of the vehicle from a speed of 15 km/h, and sounds an audible warning when it senses potential for a collision. If the driver takes no action, it will apply staged braking followed by full braking power to prevent a crash, or dramatically reduce the effects of an impact. On detecting a moving pedestrian – even one stepping into the truck’s path from behind a parked car – the system can apply partial braking, simultaneously activating acoustic and visual warnings, up to a speed of 50 km/h. Finally, Proximity Control Assist works in conjunction with the truck’s cruise control to restrict speed and maintain a pre-set distance from a vehicle in front. This system reduces the risk of rear-end shunts and promotes more comfortable driving in nose-to-tail traffic.