All the new trucks have been supplied to DSL by Isuzu Truck’s long-standing dealer Warrington Vehicle Centre, and are now operating from DSL Hire and Sales, and Contract Scaffolding locations throughout the UK.
With each vehicle expected to cover in excess of 50,000 miles per annum over a 5-year working life, the Isuzu rigids have three different body lengths to suit the varying range of contracts undertaken by DSL.
Three of the vehicles have front mounted cranes fitted on to 18ft flatbed scaffolding bodies, whilst the remaining flatbeds are a mix of 21ft and 24ft bodies, all manufactured by Bespoke Bodies and Plant Equipment.
Two of the new Isuzus are now based at DSL’s Luton and Bow branches and have been built to the Cross Rail contract specification. This specification includes a side scan safety device, which warns cyclists and pedestrians that the vehicle is turning left, as well as an audible reversing alarm.
All 13 trucks now incorporate a purpose-designed, detachable edge protection system, which has been specifically designed for driver safety if access to the bed of the vehicle is required.
As a further safety measure, each body has a collection of 15 sockets evenly spaced within the truck bed that accommodate the scaffolding restraints used by DSL. This ensures that all scaffolding tubes and boards can be secured tightly in position during transit.
Gary Clark, DSL’s transport manager, commented: ‘When we were looking to replace our 7.5t trucks we carried out our research over a number of different models. At the end of the day it was the Isuzu N75.190 specification that ticked all the right boxes. The vehicles we have replaced were the earlier design of Isuzu cab model and the reason we chose Isuzu again was because of the excellent dealer service we receive, along with economical fuel consumption and the best-in-class payload.’