Andover Trailers has supplied Thomas Plant Hire with four new bespoke plant bodies, adding to its existing 22-strong fleet.
Each is mounted to 32-tonne 8x2 Scania chassis and three are fitted with a fixed, double-cranked beaver-tail and a pair of 2.7m hydraulic ramps with a forward folding design to reduce drag. The fourth has a hydraulic lifting beaver-tail, which connects to a pair of 2.5m power-toe ramps.
All four vehicles have low-profile decks, cross members that transect the body runners – as opposed to sitting on top – an electric winch and six pairs of lashing points.
They will be used to transport heavy plant to sites across the UK and the hydraulic lifting beavertail model for pulling duties. They are expected to cover more than 90,000 miles annually and remain on the fleet for five to six years.
“When we got our first Andover body in 2006 we quickly understood why they have such a good reputation in the industry: the build quality is fantastic, you get what you pay for, and you can be confident that it will still be going strong 10 years down the line,” said Thomas Plant Hire’s MD Wyn Thomas.
“The engineering that goes into Andover’s designs is what makes them stand out from the crowd. You might be able to get something that on paper does the same job, but it doesn’t take long before you realise that it’s just not up to it; our Andover bodies and drawbar handle anything we throw at them, which makes our fleet much more versatile.”
