Boalloy fridge trial
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• A prototype refrigeration unit, developed by bodybuilder Boalloy, is about to enter service with Kent-based haulier Henley Transport.
Boalloy's design objective was to achieve a unit that uses external evaporators that do not encroach into the loadspace, and one which can be demounted from the trailer.
It is an all-electric design, with the power generated by a Volkswagen Golf 1.6-litre diesel engine. The rest of the components are proprietary — mainly from the cold-store industry.
The weight of the unit is supported by a front extension to the trailer's chassis. It is held to the strengthened bulkhead by internal clamps. Slots part way up the face of the unit enable it to be lifted off by a fork lift truck, removing the unit's 950kg weight when the trailer Can Operate at ambient temperatures during the winter. Demounting takes less than 30 minutes — quick enough to allow a faulty unit to be exchanged in the event of a breakdown.
It can chill or freeze and Boalloy claims that its strengths are the large volume of air that it can deliver and the low noise level when it is running on its diesel engine. The diesel tank is mounted remotely on the trailer chassis.
The prototype, which is entering an extended trial with Henley Transport, is on an M&G tri-axle trailer with Boalboy Insuliner bodywork.
Although the fridge unit looks large by current standards, Boalloy managing direc tor Gerald Broadbent says that production versions — if they appear — would be more compact.
He says that he could produce the unit commercially at a price roughly 10% higher than the competition.