South Wales haulage, warehousing and pallet network operator, Freight Movement, has taken two DAF New XF 480 FTG 6×2 tractor units to handle its expanding business. The DAFs join a mixed fleet for the operator that has recent experience of the marque with a ’15 plate XF already on the books, as well as earlier involvement with previous models.
Both the New XFs feature Super Space Cabs, 480bhp PACCAR MX-13 engines and 12-speed Traxon automated gearboxes. “While we have our own telematics package for a wide range of management information,” says Paul Hurley, “we trust our drivers and tend to rely on them for feedback on the fleet. Right now, we are getting very positive responses on the cab and the general handling of the XFs, and we are certainly seeing early signs of the sort of fuel economy promised by DAF at the launch of this New XF.”
The manufacturer has been on record with an expected 7% fuel economy gain, and while Paul Hurley couldn’t quantify the exact figure this early in the trucks’ lives, he was certainly happy to talk about ‘noticeable’ gains. He said, “We have a lot of very mixed work, on differing routes, so at this stage it’s frankly unrealistic to be exact in terms of overall performance. What I can say though, is that we have a ’15 plate XF on the fleet and the New XFs are certainly showing noticeable gains already, so that’s a nice bonus for us. I would expect those gains to improve further as the units bed-in, and certainly don’t think DAF’s claimed 7% is out of reach.”
The business is family-owned by Paul Hurley and wife, Samantha. Paul comments, “We have been in business and growing steadily for almost 20 years now, and have probably operated all the premium and mid-range marques during that time. With the business continuing to follow the year-on-year growth we have enjoyed throughout our existence, we wanted a couple of new fleet-leader units to enhance the image of the business. More important of course, we needed units that would please our loyal, long-serving drivers and deliver the all-round performance and reliability we wanted.”
The vehicles were supplied through local DAF Dealer in Newport, Watts Truck & Van, who Paul Hurley says were key to the decision to go with the New XFs. “The local sales guy listened to what we thought we wanted, offered some specific DAF-related input and then got the deal with the really excellent service back-up he could offer. We are growing steadily and need the fleet maintained at times when it suits our business, so evening and weekend maintenance and inspections really ticked a box for us. It’s all quite simple. Our vehicles must perform. If they don’t we risk losing business, and that’s not going to happen because we can’t get the services we need, when we need them.”
The operator has taken the New XFs on 2 year DAF MultiSupport R&M packages, but noted that he had opportunity to extend if needed. In addition, the business has its own four-bay workshops and services a number of its own smaller pallet-work rigids, as well as its whole trailer fleet. “Compliance and safety are at the front of everything we do here,” concludes Paul Hurley, “and so we use both FTA and FORS checks as our primary auditing tools. They give us the solid benchmarking we need for fleet vehicles, our service facilities and overall management of the operation.”
