Frosty positivity as 2018 marches on
With the political about-turn of recent months taking hold of the country, renewed confidence in business is beginning to show. This is certainly true for trailer and bodies manufacturer Serco, which has seen an encouraging uptick in orders this year so far.
MD, Clinton Holcroft, attributes the improvement mainly to the introduction onto the market of the company’s new refrigerated vehicle, the Protec Steel Frostliner.
“We have seen a swift uptake of the new Protec Steel refrigerated bodies with 95 percent of our order book for trailers being Protec Steel units; a clear indication that the vehicles have been well received,” he says.
“Fleet owners have been extremely positive and impressed with the finish of the coated steel panels, including the new rice-grain aluminium floor – a flat, full sheet bonded onto the vehicle, which creates a durable, high-wearing feature.
“An added attraction is that repair costs on the coated steel units are very similar to those of our fiberglass model. When coupled with the improved thermal performance and increased durability, this makes for a significantly lower cost of ownership,” says Holcroft.
“We also introduced a new five-lip door seal made of an extruded rubber. This provides an excellent thermal barrier, which prevents the leakage of cold air. The seals have a coating that makes it easier to open and close the rear door,” he adds.
“With our new injected foam technique for the panels, we expect an improvement of more than 20 percent in thermal performance compared to our previous products. The significance of this is that the load on the fridge unit will be significantly reduced – a big plus factor for clients,” concludes Holcroft.