New Mercs for Cornwall scrap merchant
St Austell-based scrap processing merchant Henry Orchard & Sons has invested in a pair of 8×4 Mercedes-Benz Arocs 3240s with 290 kW (394 hp) Euro 6 engines and Multilift hook loading gear, supplied by dealer City West Commercials.
The delivery follows hot on the heels of three New Actros 2545 BigSpace tractor units, which entered service on 1 January. All are fitted with the optional Predictive Power Control system, which employs 3D GPS mapping to read three kilometres of topography ahead then responds by controlling speed, braking and the transmission to maximise fuel efficiency.
Henry Orchard & Sons’ initial relationship with City West Commercials was as a service agent: it began using the workshop team at the Dealer’s recently refurbished Roche facility last year, to maintain its fleet of 15 trucks and trailers. Shortly afterwards, managing director Henry Orchard placed an order for two 6×2 units from the previous Actros range.
The company’s Arocs have replaced a pair of older eight-wheelers. They are now collecting scrap in 40 cubic yard bins from local authorities, factories, Ministry of Defence establishments and demolition sites throughout Devon and Cornwall.
“The Arocs is clearly a strong, well built truck, while its low-emission Euro 6 engine can only enhance our environmental credentials and help to reduce our carbon footprint,” says Henry Orchard.
The New Actros, meanwhile, haul bulk tipping trailers to a steelworks in Cardiff, then collect metal for processing from customer locations in Hampshire and Dorset, before returning to base.
Mr Orchard continues: “It’s a hard pull getting out of Cornwall because of all the hills, which explains why we specified our New Actros with Predictive Powertrain Control. It was a wise decision because in terms of fuel efficiency they are well ahead of the trucks we were using previously on the same job.”
Henry Orchard & Sons’ latest vehicles are being serviced by City West Commercials under five-year Mercedes-Benz Repair and Maintenance Contracts. Added Mr Orchard: “With Mercedes-Benz we now have premium quality trucks backed-up by premium quality after sales support from City West, Roche.”
The Arocs is available in numerous variants, including tractors and four-, six- and eight-wheeled rigids, with gross weights from 18 to 250 tonnes. All are said to combine previously unseen levels of performance and efficiency, with state-of-the-art Euro 6 engines said to offer mpg savings of up to five per cent compared to equivalent, outgoing models. AdBlue consumption, meanwhile, is reduced by as much as 40 per cent.
