Walsh takes deliver of first of 40 Volvo FMX tippers

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Transport Engineer  /  November 3, 2016

London-based construction services firm Walsh has taken delivery of the its first Volvo tipper trucks, part of an order for 40 410bhp FMX 8x4s bodied with Fruehauf Load-Lites, from MC Truck & Bus, Thurrock.

Value for money, robustness, total cost of ownership, safety and on-site R&M (repair and maintenance) were key reasons for choosing these 32-tonne gvw trucks, according to Walsh director Tim Wheeler.

“We are FORS Gold accredited and CLOCS champions,” states Wheeler, explaining that all these FMX tippers have been specified with Brigade five-camera systems, as well as low-level nearside windows, side scan kits and audible left turn alerts.

“We take safety extremely seriously and these new Volvo tippers represent another advance in safe operation, with their superb all-round visibility that’s only enhanced by the innovative mirror system.”

As for total cost of ownership, Wheeler says the organisation is planning to growing its fleet to 200 trucks while also adding new operating centres to support HS2, Crossrail 2, the Thames Tideway Tunnel.

“With any investment we always conduct a total cost of ownership analysis and in this case, if you consider the whole life of the truck, Volvo stands out as offering best value.”

And he adds that the Load-Lite bodies with Hyva tipping gear are also part of that calculation.

“With these particular bodies we’ve worked [with Fruehauf] in their development, altering the wheel arches to give clearance when tipping and upgrading the side lights to make them more resilient to the rigours of the job,” explains Wheeler.

“We have also had twist locks fitted to the tailgates for those occasions that we carry particularly loose material. Thanks to the Hardox steel, we’ve found some 500kg weight saving, without any loss of integrity or strength.”

As for R&M support, Wheeler says that Volvo dealer MC Truck & Bus was the only organisation contacted that showed enthusiasm for providing R&M at Walsh’s purpose-built five-acre facility in Rainham, Essex.

“MC Truck & Bus showed itself to be very forward thinking and open to our ideas: this proactive approach will enable us to meet our business goals while giving us confidence in terms of compliance.

“It also has benefits in terms of driver hours as our headquarters will, in effect, also be our dealer workshop, so no time or resource will be required to travel to or from Thurrock.”

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