MVO Article
MVO Products November 2009
Keeping Suffolk Clean
Mid Suffolk District Council (MSDC) has a problem - the level of litter and rubbish discarded by motorists along the busy A12 and A14 routes that run through the county.
To help solve the problem MSDC has recently put a new Isuzu "Forward" N62.150 into service with its highways litter and verge clean-up squad. A key requirement is for a unit that can proceed at walking pace - to protect the operatives at ground level - while being light enough to park on roadside verges without getting bogged down. So the "Easyshift" gearshift and low unladen weight of the Isuzu was considered ideal for the job.
Mid Suffolk operates a number of Isuzu trucks already, so there were no issues regarding reliability, but as this unit spends most of its working shift alongside fast-moving main road traffic, there was one modification considered useful - the whole unit is painted traffic yellow, instead of the white livery of other Isuzus working on normal refuse, cleansing and recycling operations.
The unit works with a three-man crew and operates in partnership with Ipswich Borough and Babergh District Councils. Equipped with a LinkTip "Derby" body with RS360 bin-lifter, the unit is also fitted with extra high-viz chevrons and light bar for this demanding role. How well is it performing? "We believe the specification of the Isuzu is ideal for this job," says streetcare supervisor, John Buckingham. "So far, it has proved to be an effective addition to our fleet."
The LinkTip body has a sliding side door for hand collections while the bin-lift can handle wheeled bins from 120 to 360-litre capacity.
Johnston Scores In Dublin
Johnston Sweepers has won a major order from Dublin-based Holden Plant Rentals, a leading Irish specialist equipment hire company.
As part of a five-year contract lease package, the 19 new Johnston machines - 10 CN200 compacts and nine VT650 truck-mounts - will be working for Dublin City Council, joining a further six VT650 and CX400 units already in service.
This latest order brings the number of vehicles supplied to Dublin City Council by Holden to almost 100. Further units are at work in Cork, Galway, Waterford and Limerick. Indeed, whatever the actual state of the Irish economy, Holden Plant Rentals reports a doubling of its sweeper hire and rentals business in Ireland. The company now operates over 700 vehicles.
"We are very proud to have been successful in tendering the competition to supply Dublin City Council," said managing director, Paul Holden
The VT650s are mounted on a Volvo FL15 chassis.
Guildford Double
Once upon a time the Dennis company was based in Guildford, Surrey, so no prizes for guessing the most popular brand of RCV used by the borough council! Well, perhaps surprisingly, other brands have been tried over the years, but now, with the one-time Dennis factory no more - it's now an office park - and Dennis Eagle based up in Warwick? Well, the latest Guildford fleet looks set to be 100 percent Dennis again!
In fact, Dennis has supplied two new fleets to the city - the chassis for the Terberg Kerbsiders features on page 28 of this issue - and another 12 Dennis Eagle Phoenix RCVs for domestic and trade waste collections. Six of these are fitted with Terberg "Omnidel" bin-lifters and a further six have been specified with trade bin-lifters. All the new RCVs are rear steer 6x2s.
For When You Need "Drive"
Leading renewable energy company, RWE-npower, has put a new Mercedes Benz Sprinter 4x4 into service to ensure its crews can reach the Kirby Moor Windfarm facility, at Ulveston, Cumbria, which is situated above a slate quarry some distance from the nearest paved highway.
The weather in that part of the world can be "changeable" at best, so for all year round access, RWE needed a transport solution that could take all the weather Cumbria could throw at it.
That solution was the 2.2-litre, 184bhp common-rail diesel powered Sprinter 318CD 4x4. It comes with a four-wheel drive facility that can be engaged at the touch of a button, directing drive to the wheel with the most grip available. Mercedes calls this system "4-ETS" (Electronic Traction System) and it is said to mimic the operation of mechanical diff locks, without the penalty of their weight, cost and subsequent wear.
Based on the success of the initial unit, which is a panel van racked out to carry tools and other specialist equipment, the energy supplier is looking to add additional Sprinter 4x4 chassis cabs with load carrying bodies. "Several of our pickup trucks are coming to the end of their working lives and I anticipate placing an order for three more Sprinter 4x4s before the year end," explained operations manager Chris Griffiths.
Considering that RWE has facilities throughout the UK, from Wales and Cumbria to the Isle of Lewis in Scotland - where it is developing wave power technology - the on-highway capability of the Sprinter is as important as its off-highway capability.
Having said that, the Mercedes wins special praise form Chris Griffiths and his team when the going really gets tough. "We tested several vehicles over tricky terrain before opting for the Sprinter because it was the only one that handled well off-road with a full load," he explained.
On The Case…
"You need a big powerful machine to be able to move a laden hooklift waste container around," explained John McGrath of Hills Waste Solutions. His new machine - a Case WX210 "wheelie" has been fitted with a special hydraulic coupling, mounted on the frame below the arm and dipper, in order that it can lift and move large recycling containers at the Wiltshire Council household recycling facility.
John explained: "A container full of hardcore can weigh 16 tonnes, plus a further two tonnes for the container itself." Clearly, with such weight, suitable reserves of power and strength are vital, but so too is stability. To do the job, the machine is driven up to a container with the arms raised, the coupling then latching onto the container by a hook and eye principal. The hydraulics of the machine then enable one end to be raised clear of the ground, to allow the container to be moved, but the new WX210 has another vital task to perform, too…
"We also have to compact the waste material into the containers, to get optimum payloads and reduce the number of lorry movements," he explained. "So the reach of the machine is also important. I like the three-piece, extended boom configuration as it enables me to drive up to the front of the containers and compact the whole load, front-to-back, without repositioning the machine." Maximum reach is 10.4m and the 22 000kg operating weight WX210 was supplied by local Case dealer, Bredy Construction.
www.hills-group.co.uk & www.cnh.com
…And So Are They
A new Case 721EXT wheeled loader, with extra reach arms, is being used by Vital Earth to help in the processing of compost products made from green waste and food waste at the company's Derby facility.
"We use it to move the raw material after it's been screened," explained site manager Vince Ball. "We then use it for loading lorries and trailers that come in to collect the finished product. According to Vince, what Vital Earth needed was "…a small machine with a big bucket and a big lift, because the material handled is not dense." Typically it's half a tonne per cubic metre, so a large powerful machine wasn't needed. "Besides, our site isn't that large, so a compact machine that could work just as well inside our buildings, or outside, was another factor," he added.
Bulk trailers and high-sided hooklift trucks need a machine with plenty of reach and stability at full height. The solution? A factory-modified Case 721EXT with extended arms - giving a bucket pin height of 5m and a bucket capacity of 33.5m3.
"Composting is a harsh environment - as tough as any quarry job," Vince added, yet in spite of working in such harsh conditions, the 721EXT is working 10 hours a day, six and a half days a week in the hands of several shifts of driver.
Vital Earth processes 56 000 tonnes of raw materials by anaerobic, in-vessel composting. The 721EXT was supplied by local Case dealer, Warwick Ward, of Barnsley.
www.vitalearth.tv & www.cnh.com
