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UK reefer operators are facing evergrowing competition from the Continent, but tough competition is affecting the reefer manufacturers too. So if you have the contracts, there's no shortage of innovative equipment available at bargain prices. Sharon Clancy reviews the latest developments... For many years the temperature-controlled body sector seemed immune to the oversupply and cut-throat price competition that afflicts much of the general bodybuilding industry. There was a strictly limited number of manufacturers competing for orders, and operators (themselves working in a quality-obsessed industry) seemed to recognise that quality came at a price.
At the same time there was increasing demand for temperature-controlled transport as sales of chilled food kept expanding.
Those halcyon days are over. A growing band of importers are competing with UK manufacturers for slices of a diminishing cake as UK hauliers lose out to Continental rivals and majorleague domestic players.
An increasing proportion of trailers are being supplied on operating leases, giving the trailer rental companies enhanced bargaining power. All of which makes this a buyer's market—as long as you have the work.
The price of a 13.6m triaxle reefer is reported to be as low as £31,000, compared with an average price of £35,000 last year, with rental deals starting at just Lirs a week.
Unladen weights range from 7.6 tonnes for a monocoque reefer to around 9.0 tonnes for a chassis model, and for intensive operations it pays to check that low tare weight has not been achieved at the expense of durability.
Rear frames are especially vulnerable. Schmitz trailers, for example, have full-width rear cross-members with reinforced corners and bracing members which transfer impact loads directly to the chassis, protecting the rear frame. The frame has heavy-duty rubber protection ail-round.
Montracon's protective measures include fitting stress-relieving flanges into rear frames. Poor installation of shutter doors can crack rear frames, warns managing director Pat Berridge. When that happens the shutter can go out of alignment, resulting in higher maintenance bills.
The compression-style rear underrun bars fitted by Montracon and Gray and Adams, among others, protect the rear frame by absorbing the stress produced when a trailer reverses hard against a loading bay.
Preventing water ingress into panels is another key factor in keeping whole-life costs low. Over time it can increase weight and reduce the quality of the insula
lion, forcing the refrigeration unit to work harder.
The latest steel-skinned Ferroplast panels on Schmitz SKO trailers are capped round the edges to seal the panel. The floor, roof, side walls and doors are made separately in production cells: kick-strips, rub rails and load restraint gear are bonded to the walls before final assembly to reduce lead times.
Waterproof
The panels on French manufacturer Chereau's latest Tecnograrn reefer also have sealed-edge panels which incorporate waterproof membranes at 400mm centres. A series of vertical steel reinforcing strips are included at 3oomm centres for extra strength and to provide extra securing points in case the height of the horizontal load retention track needs to be adjusted in service.
The Tecnogram bulkhead is a one-piece moulded unit that includes the radiused front corners. The corner cappings fit flush with the side panel, rather than 5mm proud, so insulation can be increased from Gomm to 63mrri without loss of interior width or exceeding the 2.6m external limit.
Gray and Adams' latest innovations include a positively steered
reefer trailer to increase access to stores with tight access.
Eddie Stobart is the latest operator to specify moveable longitudinal partitions. These maximise roll-cage capacity on outward journeys but can be reconfigured to carry pallets on return legs.
Klege's aerodynamic reefer body has a roof scoop that helped reduce drag by 21% in an independent wind-tunnel test. Managing director Alan Lines says this could cut your fuel bill by 6% on a maximum-length artic.
Utility International is now building to reefers a week; its customer base has expanded from 30 to more than too over the past year. Managing director Stephen Bennett says operators looking for maximum payload are attracted by the low (7.6tonne) tare weight; it seems they are not deterred by the Euro 3000 trailer's old-fashioned riveted appearance.
He expects European sales to take off once Type Approval pro cedures in Germany and Holland have been completed
Spanish manufacturers SOR and Mirofret are among those competing for orders from UK operators: SOR products are now available through the Scania dealer network.