JUNE 2013 GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL
a few requests for this kind of equipment so far this year, he declares. Is this indicative of how seriously the sector takes this subject? I’ll leave the reader to form an opinion on that particular revelation…
Behind the scenes at Montlouis
I’ve been around this factory complex at Montlouis before (see Ground Handling International, August 2008), so I know what to expect. However, I’m totally unprepared for the quartet of TaxiBots that are currently under construction here. These are all destined for Lufthansa, TLD’s launch customer, and represent something of an anomaly, in that future vehicles are destined to be constructed in a new, purpose-built factory that will be some 30 kilometres away. This new factory will encompass a surface area of 7,000 square metres, with an overall potential of 21,000 square metres, and it is envisaged that the factory will be constructed in three phases. Work is all set to start in the second quarter of this year, with an opening date of March 2014 on the calendar.
As for the TaxiBot, Beta testing got Artist’s impression of the new TaxiBot plant
underway this May at Frankfurt. If all goes according to plan, the widebodied version will start testing at the end of the current year and a tentative date for certifi cation has been given as the second quarter of 2015. The TaxiBot isn’t the only mammoth
resident at Montlouis: I’m treated to a ride in the company’s fl agship towbarless pushback tractor, the TPX- 500-MTS, to give it the full appellation. Whilst it will set you back the price of a few Lamborghinis, it will, however, be able to do something that an exotic Italian automobile cannot: pull and push an A380. In that respect, it’s an impressive item of GSE, with highly manoeuvrable wheels and a fully-rotating driver’s seat. Its sheer girth becomes apparent, however, as my chauffeur expertly wends his way
COMPANY FOCUS 33
through the parked cars outside the factory. He makes it all look very easy but based on my (very limited) past experience, I know the converse is true. I‘m more at home in the base model, the TMX-150, which is aimed at aircraft such as the ubiquitous B737. It sounds powerful, has a very soft ride and is less vigorous, yet it’s an item that TLD sells and sells again the world over. As Jacques has pointed out earlier, TLD offers essentially two types of pushback: a buyer can opt for something specifi cally geared to the tow or he can choose a tractor that incorporates both the possibility of pushing and high speed maintenance rôles. I’m not quite fi nished with the
TaxiBot, though. Whilst at the factory, I learned that TLD was the recipient of an industry accolade, something quite new in the technological stakes. The French Industrial Innovation Award is allocated on a regional basis, and the company was selected for its work in bringing to market this green innovation. Antoine Maguin received the distinction from the French Minister of Industry, Arnaud Montebourg, at a ceremony in Paris on March 23.
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