THE LOWLOADERS AT DERBYSHIRE-BASED COLLINS EARTHWORKS TRANSPORT ARE ALREADY A FAMILIAR SIGHT ON MANY A CONSTRUCTION AND INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT. AND THE OPERATION'S LATEST VEHICLE IS BELIEVED TO BE THE FIRST OF ITS KIND IN THE COUNTRY.
Collins Earthworks Transport, like its parent company Collins Earthworks, looks to lead from the front wherever possible, whether in terms of equipment, technologies or working methods. So it is no surprise that the latest truck to join Collins’ lowloader fleet is believed to be the first of its kind in England: a Volvo FH16 750 XXL tractor unit, plated at 170 tonnes.
“The XXL-cabbed version five is the first one we are aware of in England,” confirms Richard Williams, workshop manager at Collins. “There may be a couple of left-hand-drive ones in Ireland, but this is the first with right-hand drive.” The truck, like all of Collins’ trucks, was bought from its local branch of Hartshorne in Derbyshire, although it was built specially for the company by Volvo in Sweden.
“Collins is known for being a loyal customer of Volvo – our entire fleet is Volvo – so when we made the request, Hartshorne went back to Volvo and they agreed to build it for us as a one-off,” says Richard.
CHECKING INTENDED ABNORMAL LOAD ROUTES FOR SUITABILITY AND NOTIFYING THE RELEVANT AUTHORITIES ACCORDINGLY CAN BE A REAL HEADACHE. BUT THE SELF-PROCLAIMED ANORAKS AT CASCADE SOFTWARE HAVE COME UP WITH SEVERAL SOLUTIONS TO STREAMLINE THE PROCESS FOR HAULIERS, COUNCILS AND POLICE.
One of the most challenging tasks any business involved in heavy haulage can face is notifying the relevant authorities of its intention to move an indivisible load from A to B and the route it intends to take. Can the bridges it will be crossing take the weight? Are there vulnerable culverts along the highways it will be travelling along which might be at risk of collapse?
Hopefully the structure-owning authorities will have all the relevant data at their fingertips, and it will be up-to-date and readily accessible. Then again, it may not be – and well- documented cutbacks endured by local authorities all over the country may mean it will be some time before it can be unearthed. Then there is the role of the police to consider. Are there traffic restrictions along the route concerned?
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HEAVY HAULAGE BETWEEN THE UK AND CONTINENTAL EUROPE HAS BEEN MADE MORE DIFFICULT BY BREXIT. BUT WITH BASES ON BOTH SIDES OF THE CHANNEL, JUNCTION 26 TRUCKING IS PERFECTLY POSITIONED TO CUT THROUGH ALL THE RED TAPE.
Moving goods from the UK into the EU has become quite a bit more complicated since Brexit and the same applies to importing into this country. After nearly 30 years of customs-free trade with a lot of continental Europe, it came as something of a shock to many that there was a new set of rules and regulations to abide by. But Britain was no longer part of the club, so moving most goods across borders was no longer a matter of finding a haulier, getting a few copy invoices and filling in a CMR document.
Moving heavy and oversized loads to and from the continent has always posed a challenge for most British hauliers, with the complex maze of rules and regulations that differ from one country to the next. The combination of more restrictive height, width and weight limits, as well as much lower axle weights than are permitted in the UK, had caught many out long before Britain left the EU.
VOLVO HAS UPDATED ITS FH HEAVY TRUCK RANGE WITH A NEW 17-LITRE ENGINE AND A LONGER CAB OPTION THAT GIVES DRIVERS MORE SPACE. BOB BEECH GIVES IT THE ONCE-OVER.
Earlier this year, we attended an event in Gothenburg at which Volvo introduced some changes and updates to its heavy truck range, most of them centred on the FH. The progressive refinement and continuous evolution of the FH has kept it at the forefront of truck development, and the latest changes, which will be integrated into its production later this year, are a continuation of this process. An example of this continuous refinement is the latest design of drag-free disc brakes, in which a new type of calliper ensures the pads release completely after braking to reduce the incidence of drag.
Key among the latest developments is a new 17.26-litre engine range that replaces the existing 16.1-litre unit, a change aimed directly at the heavy haulage sector. The new engine has the same layout as the outgoing unit, with a one-piece head and an overhead camshaft, but with a bigger bore. It also has a higher compression ratio and new pistons with the patented Wave pattern in the crown, as used in the smaller 13-litre engine where it has yielded a considerable reduction in fuel consumption.
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HEADING UP A VARIED AND VERSATILE FLEET OF TRUCKS AT CENTRAL DEMOLITION ARE A TRIO OF HEAVY-HAULAGE TRACTOR UNITS MOVING ITS WIDE RANGE OF PLANT AND EQUIPMENT ALL OVER SCOTLAND.
If you had to come up with one word to describe the Bonnybridge-based group Central Demolition, then ‘comprehensive’ would probably be the best one. Founded in 1993 and incorporating a sister company, Central Skip Hire, the outfit offers a complete service for demolition including full waste management.
Its headquarters near Falkirk, in easy reach of all the major motorway networks in Scotland, features a state-of-the-art recycling facility where all demolition material is separated and processed. The plant maximises the level of material that can be reused and recycled, with the remainder disposed of responsibly. There has been an increasing focus on the environmental aspects of demolition in recent years, and Central Demolition has invested in ensuring a minimum is sent to landfill.
CAN IT REALLY BE TRUE? A MOBILE PHONE APP THAT MAKES IT EASIER TO DEAL WITH THE MOUNTAIN OF DOCUMENTATION INVOLVED IN ABNORMAL LOADS MOVEMENTS? WELL IT IS INDEED TRUE – AND THE APP IS EVEN FREE.
The movement by road of abnormal loads has always involved extensive planning, routeing, notifications and paperwork… plenty of paperwork. Abnormal load permits, vehicle certification, pilot and escort documentation – the list is seemingly endless. Anything that can help to consolidate that mountain of paperwork, while making it easily accessible to all concerned, has to be a positive advance.
EAL Logistics is no stranger to this process. The company has worked with abnormal load and Convoi Exceptionnel hauliers across Europe for many years, managing notifications and permit requirements, liaising with foreign authorities and ministry departments and providing pilot vehicles to escort hauliers and ensure safe passage.
To assist with this process, the company is launching the EAL Abnormal Load Mobile App, to provide customers with instant access to all of the paperwork required for each vehicle movement, particularly the abnormal load permits.
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TDR TRANSPORT’S VEHICLES CAN OFTEN BE SEEN DELIVERING TO THE ONGOING HS2 PROJECT, AND DESPITE MORE THAN 30 YEARS IN THE BUSINESS, OWNER RICHARD ROLLINSON’S PASSION FOR MOVING PLANT REMAINS UNDIMMED.
Anyone who has driven through the M6/M42 interchange in the West Midlands in recent times will have noticed the huge building work that is going on around it. Some, however – especially those driving at night – may still have missed it when the motorway has been closed. And when the motorway is closed, it is likely that a TDR Transport truck will have been in attendance.
Dudley-based TDR has been involved in the High Speed 2 rail project for two years, initially just moving plant and equipment and gradually moving into larger movements such as rebar and silos. “Anything from 1 tonne to about 80 tonnes, we can move,” says Dan Harris, heavy and HS2 operations manager at the company. TDR usually works on the stretch of HS2 from Southam in South Warwickshire up to Lichfield, and Dan says one of the current points of focus is the Bromford Delta, which is around the M6/M42 split, with a lot of plant and equipment being moved there and much building work being undertaken, including tunnel boring.
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