Pigs will fly on a EuroTrakker
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• British Gas has added two 6x4 EuroTrakker drawbar outfits to its fleet which are designed to carry remote control pipe inspection units called 'intelligent pigs'.
North East Truck and Bus moved the rear bogie forward by 350mm (giv ing 5.75m from front axle to the centre of the bogie) to allow a long-reach heavy-duty HIAB 330 hydraulic loader to be mounted to the rear of the chassis. With their dual wide-base stabilisers, they meet the new safety requirements which come into force in the new year.
Another first for the 420hp prime movers is that they are first vehicles in the UK to have the ZF Intarder retrofitted to the standard 16-speed Ecosplit gearbox. This forms part of the Petroleum and ADR regulations compliance equipment which includes an F,minox silencer with spark arrestor.
At the rear are 18-tonne Task-Montracon drawbar airsuspended trailers. Both the prime mover and trailer are fitted with drop side bodies and twistlocks for 20ft ISO containers. Depending on the size of the pipeline, the correct 'pig' (which can weigh up to five tonnes) is selected and taken to the site. British Gas has specified 800litre fuel tanks to allow the vehicles to travel to Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union.
As the inspection crew can spend several weeks on-site the vehicle has been specified with a high-roof double sleeper cab. With all that equipment onboard, the unladen weight of the EuroTrakker is 17,600kg.