Ground-breaking technology designed to prevent and mitigate the effects of accidents has persuaded Flogas to make its first investments for more than 15 years in new Mercedes-Benz trucks.
As one of Europe’s leading LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) suppliers, the Leicester-based operator has an uncompromising approach to safety. It is also highly focused on operational efficiency, and was impressed by the Actros tractor unit’s performance in a series of fuel trials, as well as by the manufacturer’s industryleading Zero Tolerance on Downtime aftersales commitment.
Supplied by East Midlands Dealer Mertrux Truck & Van, Flogas’s nine new Actros 2445s are the subject of a Mercedes-Benz Financial Services contract hire agreement. They have flatfloored StreamSpace cabs and are powered by economical, 330 kW (450 hp) six-cylinder engines paired with smooth Mercedes PowerShift automated transmissions, which contribute to fuel-efficiency as well.
Small (17.5in) wheels on the mid-lift axles save around 300 kg compared to the standard version with 22.5in wheels, while also freeing up valuable space on the chassis for discharge equipment – the trucks comply fully with PetReg standards and pull bulk tank trailers at 44 tonnes GCW.
They are additionally fitted with optional Mercedes-Benz Safety Packs. Offering customers significant savings on the price they would pay if purchasing its individual elements separately, the Safety Pack includes the remarkable Active Brake Assist 4 emergency braking system, which incorporates a world ‘first’ in the shape of its pedestrian recognition capability, as well as Proximity Control Assist and a driver’s airbag.
Flogas, whose fuel is used to power everything from camping equipment and home heating systems, to major industrial machinery, runs a fleet of nearly 400 commercial vehicles from a network of more than 50 depots located throughout the UK. Most are rigids from 3.5-26 tonnes GVW with tanks or dropside bodies for carrying cylinders, although the line-up also includes approximately 70 tractor units.
Winner of the Logistics Champion of the Year for Essential Services trophy at the 2017 Freight Transport Association Logistics Awards, Flogas has been running a couple of four-year-old Actros tractors which it inherited as the result of an acquisition. It also purchased five FUSO Canters – a trio of 3.5-tonners and two 7.5-tonners, one a diesel-electric Eco Hybrid model – from Mertrux late last year, for delivering bottled gas in London.
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