Bartrum Group has added 20 Mercedes-Benz Actros BigSpace tractor units to its fleet, bringing the total number of new Mercedes trucks added in the last 12 months to more than 30.
Suffolk-based Bartrums placed the order with Mercedes dealer Orwell Truck & Van for 20 fifth-generation tractor units joining the 11 it commissioned late last year in an effort to “future-proof” its fleet with new technology including MirrorCam, Active Brake Assist 5 emergency braking and Predictive Powertrain Control to improve fuel economy.
Bartrums has specified all 31 trucks with the twin-screen Multimedia Cockpit and will use Daimler Fleetboard telematics to encourage and incentivise drivers.
In addition, Bartrums will also pilot Fleetboard’s automatic tachograph mass memory and driver card download services.
Tremayne Johnson, Bartrum’s operations director, said: “The Bartrum Group is committed to new technology, and the benefits it offers in terms of increased efficiency, environmental compatibility and safety. We’re keen, therefore, to explore the potential benefits of innovative features such as the Truck App Portal and automatic tachograph downloads. Today’s Actros is clearly the most advanced truck on the road, and the feedback we’ve received from drivers since we set our first on the road last year has been resoundingly positive.”
Most of the Actros purchased by Bartrums over the last six months are 450hp models for use on the Bartrums Haulage & Storage (BHS) fleet and the Bartrums Road Services (BRS) division. Nine of the new trucks, including eight from the latest batch, however, are 2544 variants with small-wheeled mid-lift axles, which will be utilised by Bartrums Bulk Haulage (BBH) to transport more than 500,000 tonnes of malt and grain each year for the brewing, food and beverage sectors.
Johnson continued: “MirrorCam is a big step forward and hasn’t provoked a single negative comment. All round visibility is so much better. When reversing, you never lose sight of the rear corner of the trailer on the screens mounted inside the cab. Plus, of course, you don’t have a big slab of mirror housing blocking your forward view. Driver retention has never been more important to the success of our business, so we made a concerted effort to further increase the appeal of our latest trucks by specifying the bigger cabs and fitting them with microwaves and fridges.”
