LIFT TRUCKS FEATURE
ALTERNATIVE FUEL TRUCKS RESULT IN 30% SAVINGS
S
teel manufacturer the Hadley Group has saved 30% in fuel costs after upgrading its fleet of counterbalance trucks. The company took delivery
of 16 new environmentally friendly and economic Linde trucks after reviewing their current fleet which was retained for nearly 15 years. As the UK’s largest independent manufacturer of cold rolled metal profiles,
spanning five continents roll forming steel coil for transport, building and construction industries, the business was looking for ways to become more efficient while reducing fuel emissions.
MULTIPLE SHIFT PATTERNS 24 HOURS A DAY The business operates 24 hours with multiple shift patterns moving over 700 tonnes of steel a day. Trucks are required to load and unload product and feed the manufacturing lines carrying a maximum load weight of three to four tonnes, requiring a mix of H30 and H40 engine counterbalance trucks. The business already had a Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) power station on site and while it was open to review all fuel options available the company decided to operate Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) powered trucks. CNG is methane stored at high pressure which can be used for engine
trucks in place of diesel and LPG. The team of truck operators were involved in the decision making process which included trialling each supplier’s trucks for two weeks. Following the trial operators were asked to complete a survey and discuss it with their supervisor. “My team are operating the trucks for up to five hours per shift, therefore
they needed to be involved in the process and have some ownership,” says logistics and production engineer at Hadley Group Aaron Cope. “Since delivery of the trucks each operator was assigned with their own
truck and implemented additional checks as part of the pre-shift checks to help reduce cost and damage to the equipment”.
ERGONOMICS AND MASSIVE FUEL SAVINGS Key influences in choosing Linde over the other suppliers included the ergonomics of the truck, the hydrostatic transmission and massive 30% fuel savings since introducing the Linde fleet. “I have used a range of trucks in my time and Linde trucks are by far the
best I have ever worked with,” says David Smith, an operator with 25 years’ experience at the Hadley Group. “You can see the time and effort that has been put in the design of the truck with accessibility of the controls, the ease of the steering wheel which takes the pressure off the wrist and the increased visibility through the mast.” Craig Whitehouse at Linde Creighton comments: “The trucks have been up
and running for some time now and I’m pleased to report that the process of implementing the new fleet has been seamless. “The local engineer checks in to one of the sites each day and our ability to
maintain non-Linde trucks while the transition to the new fleet continues is a more consistent approach focusing on increasing truck uptime.”
Linde Material Handling (UK) T: 01256 342000
www.linde-mh.co.uk
MATERIALS HANDLING & LOGISTICS | MARCH/APRIL 2017 S5
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