Operators put faith DimmiiISM in sliding winches at en: debuts •
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Utility International's bolt-up ZT triaxle curtainsider, on show at the NEC, has sliding winches integrated into its heavy-duty aluminium bottom rave.
But with an aluminium and hardwood floor and a stainlesssteel rear frame it still weighed in at under 6.2 tonnes.
Tried and tested in the US, the moveable winches are best suited to loads of a moderate height. They're fully adjustable and the strap is always captive. Operators using the ZT trailer in numbers include City Trucks with 50, Maxi Haulage with 20 and Elddis Logistics with 16.
WH Malcolm's 50 ZTs have a fold-out section in the front bulkhead designed to avoid drive-axle overloads. Hinged to the floor, it simply cuts the trailer's capacity by two pallets, but the increased use of 3+3 combinations (because of recent weight and VED increases) will probably render such extras obsolete.
The Elddis curtainsiders have Hendrickson triaxles but those for WH Malcolm use BPW running gear, the rearmost axle being positively steered.
They all have air suspension and disc brakes.
II Cummins' long-awaited ISM 11-litre engine will make its official UK debut at the IATE Show at Telford next month.
But operators will have to wait until the Euro-3 emission standard kicks in next year before getting their hands on the latest ISC 8.3-litre six-pot and the mighty 15-litre 600hp Signature diesel.
The ISM will be offered in ratings from 306 to 440hp, with the most powerful version fitted with a four-position wastegate turbocharger.
Commercial Motor had the chance to experience the ISM 405E in a test drive last year (CM 30 Jul-5 'Aug 1998): we found it to be more free-revving and smoother than the current M11 engine used by ERF, Foden and Seddon Atkinson.
Sandbach-based Foden is expected to be first manufacturer to offer the ISM, ahead of its rivals.