Waste-A-Way wastes no time with big new Arocs order

Basildon operator Waste-A-Way has taken delivery of 14 new Mercedes-Benz Arocs, adding to its fleet of 38 tractor units. The flat-floor BigSpace 2648s were supplied by Sparshatts Truck & Van and will be used to collect commercial and domestic waste from transfer stations in Essex and Kent using moving-floor trailers.

The 14 new 480hp Arcos units replace 10 existing four-year-old Arocs that are typically double-shifted six days a week, 362 days a year. As a result they average more than 100,000km a year.
Sparshatts delivered the first Mercedes to Waste-A-Way 10 years ago and now has all but three of its vehicles from the brand.

Director Ian Whitehair said: “We’ve not looked back since. With Sparshatts’ support Mercedes trucks work really well for us, particularly the Arocs, which are impressively strong and robust, ideally suited to our work.

“We’d been running 450hp versions but are now favouring the 480hp engine because the extra bit of power for hills seems to be resulting in slightly better fuel efficiency – we’re getting 5.8mpg to 6.2mpg, which is excellent for this job, not least because the tractors power the hydraulics for tipping.

“The drivers like the Arocs, too,” he said. “The BigSpace cabs on our latest vehicles are roomy and well appointed, while we also fit them with fridges to make nights out a bit more comfortable.”

Supplied under a Mercedes-Benz complete service contract, Sparshatts inspects and maintains Waste-A-Way’s trucks at workshops in Dartford and Sittingbourne.

“Truck sales executive Kevin Haynes has looked after us very well for a number of years, while the dealer’s aftersales support is also first class,” Whitehair added.

“Sparshatts understands how important uptime is to a business like ours, and on the rare occasions that we’ve found ourselves in a sticky situation, it has worked with us to overcome the problem. We couldn’t ask for better service.”