NRS was using rented vans until 2011, when it purchased its first Mercedes-Benz Sprinters. Today, the Midlands-based company runs a fleet of 294 Mercedes-Benz vans.
All are the subject of Mercedes-Benz Financial Services contract hire agreements and operate from a number of locations across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. They will be maintained within the manufacturer’s UK Dealer Network under Service Care packages.
Latest additions to the line-up are front-wheel drive New Vito 111 CDI Longs, which were supplied by Northside Truck & Van. The Dealer has also delivered 110 Long and Medium Sprinters this year, and will soon hand over the operator’s first two Citan small vans.
The 111 CDI is powered by a compact 1.6-litre diesel which generates 114 hp and drives the front wheels. The lightweight drivetrain means NRS’s 2.8-tonne gvw vans offer an extra 120 kg of payload capacity compared to previous models, and can each carry well over 1.0 tonne.
NRS is a leading supplier and provider of community equipment services, and rehabilitation and care equipment, items which help improve the quality of life for thousands of people with mobility and other health care needs.
Fleet manager Alison Owen explained: “The New Vito vans are used by engineers who carry out repair and maintenance contract work on items of equipment we’ve supplied, so they are loaded with tools and stocks of spare parts. The Vito has plenty of space for this purpose; it’s also very comfortable and refined to drive, and looks great too.”
NRS uses its Sprinters to deliver and collect pieces of equipment to and from private dwellings and care homes. These vehicles carry a combination of new and used items so strict infection controls must be observed. Each therefore has two entirely separate cargo areas, a movable bulkhead allowing the size of each to be changed according to the load profile.
The Citans, meanwhile, will be allocated to staff from NRS’s Telecare division, whose job entails supplying, installing and maintaining home monitoring systems, including pendants which elderly or infirm customers wear around their necks and activate in cases of need or distress.