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DRIVEN TO DRINK

19th August 2004, Page 64
19th August 2004
Page 64
Page 65
Page 64, 19th August 2004 — DRIVEN TO DRINK
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When Adnams Brewery threw down the gauntlet to local dealers to supply a highly unusual dray, MAN/ERF Eastern of Colchester rose to the challenge. Colin Barnett reports.

It's not a bad life, selling trucks. Just wait by the phone and tick the boxes when someone rings in for two dozen 420hp 4x2 tractors in white. Occasionally, however, the conversation would do justice to a Bob Newhart sketch.

"Hello? You'd like a rigid to carry a 16tonne payload into some tight spaces? No problem. What will you be using it for? Local shunting, urban deliveries and national distribution...1 see.

-And you value your drivers, so you'd like easy gear changing and a sleeper cab with aircon and a CD player. OK.

"There's one more thing? You don't want side pillars and you need to load three pallets high, but your loading bay is only 3,600mm high? Certainly, sir, what colour would you like?"

That in a nutshell describes the challenge issued to East Anglian truck dealers.The fact that the truck is now in service is proof that MAN/ERF Eastern at Colchester provided the right answers.

Try "Southwold" in a word association test and you will probably get "beach huts" or -beer" in response.The latter is due entirely to Adnams Brewery, seemingly the dominant business in the Suffolk coastal town. Its empire includes 80 tied houses, with direct deliveries made to another 800 or so in East Anglia and over 100 more within the M25.

A fleet of 21 trucks, ranging from an Iveco Daily 65 up to a quartet of 44-tonne artics, handles all of Adnams' out-going transport needs under the control of supply chain manager KevinWells.

The firm has a policy of running at least two marques in its fleet; the front-runners are currently Daf and MAN.The new MAN featured here replaces one of a pair of 21tonne ERF 6x2s with 12-tonne payloads.It has to be unusually flexible, as it is called upon to perform three different roles.

Tricky access

During the day, it can be used for general dray work • making up to 25 deliveries in a shift to any of the pubs in East Anglia, many of which are in remote villages with tricky access.It also hauls kegs of beer on one of the shortest trips in transport: all of 150 yards from the brewery to its distribution hub in the centre of Southwold.

Construction is about to start on a new outof-town distribution centre,which will eliminate some 250 truck movements a week from the crowded resort, just leaving the shunter with a longer journey.

And, while Adnams' major distribution work is handled by the artics, the new MAN is also used as a back-up to haul over-spill trunking loads.

This is the first time a TGA has been used for a specialist brewery application.The Adnams truck, a 26.313FNLRC, is based on a drawbar chassis, and retains the plumbing and wiring for this purpose.The main novelty on the chassis is the lifting and hydraulically steering tag axle which, unlike the similarly configured Volvo recently tested, doesn't have a lock facility for high speeds and reversing.

The 26ft curtain-sided body is from Colliers Truck Builders of Maldon; built on a lightweight steel box-section subframe with a pre-stressed roof. A Carbofont GRP honeycomb front bulkhead and aluminium side raves and front corner pillars help keep the weight down.

Unusually, the rear panel is also formed by a hanging curtain. The dead space behind the rear axle is home to racking that holds gas cylinders.

The target payload was achieved, giving it the ability to carry 306 nine-gallon kegs of the precious liquid.The nominated floor height of 1,150mm was also attained with 5mnn to spare.

There was some concern about the low floor's impact on axle lifting but the wheels tuck away neatly behind the cant rails leaving just enough for it to work.The smallest standard fuel tank is 480 litres but when full this would have compromised the 16-tonne payload target,so a custom 250-litre item was built.

Not only did the truck meet the operator's requirements, it did so for £8,000 less than another German brand.o

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