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Location: London Sector: Highway maintenance Size of fleet: 70 Vehicle:
Page 51
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Mercedes-Benz Actros Emission standard: Euro 5 GVW: 26 tonnes Bodywork: Lancashire Tippers grab and gritter body
Ringway Jacobs, part of the Ringway Group, looks after the highways inside London. Its Euro-5 Mercedes-Benz Actros is one of 70 trucks on the fleet that will operate as part of the Transport for London (TfL) initiative.
Transport manager Lee Potter didn't have too much of a say in the specification other than pointing out what his requirements were. The vehicle, he says, will be double-shifted night and day, on road maintenance duties, and its specification is pretty impressive.
Responsibility for the vehicle falls to Ringway's assistant group plant and fleet manager Gary Condon. He selected the Mercedes-Benz Actros for its heavy-duty reputation. We felt it was the best vehicle for the job in winter applications. It's a dual purpose vehicle; it's a heavy-duty beast, rugged and ideal for the job, and for longevity and functionality," he says.
The Actros 6x4 rigid has a tipper body, grab, and gritter with a plough. The chassis cab was supplied through Mercedes-Benz dealer John R Weir from Aberdeen, and has been through Lancashire Tippers, Econ Engineering, with a PDI at Ciceley Commercials in Bolton before delivery to Ringway Jacobs at Bow Common, East London.
As it's for TfL, Euro-5 was a prerequisite. As a group Ringway has 300 gritters in the fleet with nine allocated for Ringway Jacobs working for TfL. Two will have the 6x4 Actros chassis while the rest will be 18t chassis. All are built for multi-purpose work.
In preparing its budget Ringway goes to each manufacturer separately for the snowplough and gritter, the grab and tipper body, and finally the chassis cab. This approach allows Ringway access to any health and safety issues that need to be addressed during construction.
Spending more than £12m a year on more than 200 assets, Condon is in a strong bargaining position. When it comes to bodies, Ringway goes to Brit-tip for 3.5t Mitsubishi chassis cabs, Abba Commercials for lat and Lancashire Tippers for heavier vehicles such as the 26t Actros. With the chassis cab with grab and body it costs £66,000.
The vehicle is financially written off after five years, but Condon intends to keep it as long as possible. When contracts are won he normally orders vehicles specifically for the job.