Conspicuous consumption!
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HESTAIR Eagle launched a new intermittent refuse collection vehicle at its redeveloped factory at Warwick this week.
Since Hestair obtained Eagle Engineering six years ago, sales have increased from £650,000 to over £7 million. Last year £5 million-worth of business went in exports, mainly to the Middle East and North African countries.
Now that the sales boom in these parts of the world is on the decline, Hestair Eagle is looking towards North America, Europe and the home market, where it has carried out a programme of research into methods of refuse collection to develop this new machine.
When the factory is completed in 1979, 80,000sqft of work space will be available to instal a flow-line system with the capacity to produce up to 500 Phoenix bodies every year, in addition to other range products such as tankers, fire engines and crash tenders.
The new body, which takes its name from the old Eagle company's logo, is of all-steel construction suitable for matching to a wide variety of two-axle vehicle chassis in the 15.5 to 17 tonnes gvw range.
In the main body section, tensile steel panels are braced by pressed steel channels to form four complete hoops. Below the flat floor, two rolled steel longitudinal channels form the bearers by which the body is mounted on the chassis.
Savings
At the rear, a static hopper provides a wide 2.1m (8ft) loading aperture with a low loading height of 0.98m (3.2ft), eliminating the need for steps. A 2.1cum (75cuft) capacity allows almost continuous loading by a full team of four loaders interrupted only for a seven-second compaction cycle when full. The intermittent compactor is said to reduce operational time by about 90 per cent over continuous cycle types.
In assessments by six different local authorities, it was reported that fewer interruptions to loading resulted in shorter job times, but more significantly, a large hopper used in conjunction with fewer compaction cycles resulted in less wear as well and lower fuel consumption.
Hestair Eagle's chief executive Geoff Hollyhead assessed the possible savings as high as £1,000 per vehicle per year under normal operation.
The 15cum (536cuft) body plus canopy weigh 4.8 tonnes with a permitted payload of 7 tonnes. Rear axle load has been reduced by positioning the compactor and operating rams well forward in the body. The extra weight penalty of a large hopper made from 6mm (1/4in) thick high-tensile steel sheet supported by five rolled hoops is offset by the simplicity of the construction of the packer.
The packer plate slides along tracks built into the hopper at an angle of 450 to the horizontal, powered by two hydraulic rams. A sweeper plate attached by hinges to tt lower edge of the packer plai is also powered by hydraul rams.
Safety in use has been major consideration in the d■ ,sign. The sweeper plate sta! below the top edge of the rol rail at all times. A rubb( safety strip closes the gap be ween the plate and hoppi floor to eliminate the dange of flying glass. The compact" can only be started by the pu: button at the rear of tt vehicle and can be stopp( instantly by a full width erne gency stop bar placed just b low the rove rail.
An angled ejection ram employed to ensure clear di charge. Safety restrictions f ted in the tailgate lifting To ensure a controlled descent all times, even in the event o' hydraulic failure. Such a fa ure is in any case unlikely, the geometry of the tailga lifting gear is so designed th maximum pressure occurs the beginning of the lift a reduces as it rises.
Modular
The hydraulics are power by a continuously drivi pump which receives its dri directly from the engir allowing compaction while t vehicle is in motion.
All hydraulic and electri( connections are of a modu design, permitting simr removal and replaceme during maintenance.
At least three vehicles local authority livery will j( forces for the solid wast conference to be held Brighton from June 27 to which will be its first put showing.