Mercedes trucks prove their worth for flour business

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Transport Engineer / July 27, 2015

Flour miller and supplier Whitworth Bros has taken delivery of two Mercedes-Benz Actros and has already ordered two more for delivery later this year, thanks to fleet-topping fuel returns from its first Actros delivered in October last year.

Supplied by dealer Intercounty Truck & Van, the Wellingborough-based operator's latest additions are 2545 models with StreamSpace cabs and 450bhp straight-six engines, driving through Mercedes PowerShift 3 automated transmissions.

The vehicles are making nationwide bulk deliveries of bagged, palletised flour on curtainside trailers.

The two Actros scheduled for delivery later this year will be 2445 StreamSpace variants. They will deliver flour in tipping powder tank trailers, so will have small-wheeled mid-lift axles which, as well as saving weight, will free up extra space on the chassis to accommodate Gardner Denver blowing equipment.

Whitworth has 70 trucks, most of which are tractors, and its first Mercedes vehicle – an Axor tractor – was in service until 2013. Regional distribution manager Colin Spurrier says it was "the most reliable vehicle on the fleet".

Last year's Actros, too, performed well on fuel, he adds: "At around 9 mpg, the fuel returns are as good as, if not better, than anything else on the fleet."

Whitworth latest trucks are the subject of CharterWay contract hire agreements from Mercedes-Benz Financial Services, with inspections and servicing undertaken by the dealer.

"All of our trucks are contract-hired because as well as offering the predictable costs that allow us to budget with confidence, this acquisition method means we get new vehicles every five years," adds Spurrier.

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