Packing them in at IRTE show
Page 20
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by Bryan Jarvis • This year's IRTE exhibition, the first to span three days is a sell-out—every available square inch of space has been taken up.
There's more than 270 companies on parade and there's 30 more in reserve should any fall out at the last minute, Urban delivery trucks are usually a focal point at the show and this year Volvo's new lowframed FL619 6x2 19-tonner with Marshall gull-wing body system takes centre stage.
Developed at Whitbread Beer Company and produced on-line at Volvo's Gent factory, the rigid dray is the result of several years development by the brewer at a cost of more than am.
The deep-bellied Volvo chassis has a Hendrickson Norde tag axle behind an uprated Volvo drive axle, both on air suspension and using 70 aspect low profile tyres.
Volvo also fits disc brakes allround.
Marshall's part in the co-operative venture was to develop the 7.5m gull-wing body with horizontally opening sides, the lower section being quite shallow due to the low 762nun working deck height of the dray.
Its reward is to supply 116 for the Whitbread fleet.
Such innovation is not just the province of larger manufacturers. With the Channel Tunnel officially open, albeit without traffic, the consortium of Foden, Ray Smith, Southfields and King Trailers has produced a 44 tonne-rated drawbar outfit for road/rail service.
By combining their engineering expertise they're letting UK operators know that they don't necessarily have to go to the Continent to buy such intermodal systems.
Southfields demount boxes, which already conform to German Railway standards, were tested and given the allclear from Lloyds as well while the Ray Smith Airswop pneumatic lift system also complies with BS EN 284 European specifications.
Both boxes on the show model are 7.45m curtainsiders although a 7.15m, 7.82m and 6.1m ISO container or a pair of 6.1m 1SOs can be carried.
The 18.35m rig displayed is a Foden 4350 5.3m 6x4 rigid pulling a three-axled turntable steer trailer from King Trailers, all on air suspension. It can be run either at the normal 38 tonnes limit or the proposed 94-tonne ceiling.
J Baraclough Transport's 3.4m Strato 17.325 on the Seddon Atkinson stand has been equipped with Phoenix air suspension on the drive axle and a lifting/trailing Phoenix self-steer axle behind it.
The result is a 3.8m wheelbase unit without chassis extension that can handle maximum weights and overcome likely weight distribution problems.
Seddon also displays a 6x4 municipal chassis fitted with its latest on-line option—a sliding side door.
Schmitz Cargobull engineers took two and a half years to develop the Euroliner curtainsider.
It's a bolt-up low-weight semi which has a removable inner front bulkhead to accommodate 34 Europa!lets within a 13.62m inner length.
Schmitz is also displaying a 66-Europallet reefer with recessed mountings for the Henderson G-rail second deck tracking. It's one of seven for Purfleet-based Salina Distribution.
Among the trailer suppliers Thermo King is showing its latest range of noise reduction kits for the first time.
These are said to achieve 6090% lower operating noise levels which is good news for all light sleepers.
There's a new lightweight trailer axle and suspension making UK show debuts on the Granning stand. Its Lynx range has been expanded since the acquisition of the Spicer axle and now comes in 9.0,10,11 and 13-tonne design ratings and in various widths.
There's also a PTL low-height trailer suspension on show that gives ride heights from 170mm making it ideal for super cubes and low-loaders.
BPW, another trailer axle manufacturer, extended the service intervals on its range of ECO hubs and has now done the same with its cam shaft bearings. Using ECO Li 91 they only want greasing annually or when brake linings are changed.
VBG is introducing its 623 automatic coupling to the UK market at Telford.
Should a 44-tonne limit be accepted for UK intermodal work this type of coupling which currently handles 60 tonnes in Sweden will be needed, says VBG.
Its gross design limit is 76 tonnes and for centre-aided trailers up to 26 tonnes. Specialist trailer maker Maxilode is also showing a number of new products at Telford (see page 18).
In addition to its Ecosplit with Intarder, Ecomid and Ecolite transmissions, ZF is displaying its RLE 66 gearboxes and independent suspension for low floor buses,