• 0Shopping Cart
Watts Truck & Van
   Tel: 02920308595      
  • HOME
  • NEW VEHICLES
  • USED VEHICLES
  • PARTS
    • OFFERS
  • SERVICING
  • CAREERS
  • NEWS
  • CONTACT
    • Cardiff
    • Newport
    • Swansea
  • Menu
You are here: Home / 2018 / October / 8

NEW DAF XF TRACTOR UNITS PROVIDE MPG BONUS

October 8, 2018/in Uncategorized /by admin

“With the DAF, we are getting a premium truck at costs that make sense to us”

In August this year Knights of Old took delivery of the first DAF tractors to be added to their fleet. The 10 XF 530 FTG tractors join a fleet of 250 trucks and 400 trailers and are part of a significant business investment by the operator.

Scott Mason, Group Fleet Manager at Knights of Old, says, “Alongside this investment, we have been looking at managing operating costs, and the arrival of the New XF 6X2s is an example of that. Prices have been increasing steadily on everything from tyres to fuel, and truck prices have been no exception. With the DAF, we are getting a premium truck at costs that make sense to us. There has been a lot of talk around the industry about enhanced fuel consumption from the latest DAF models,” he says, “and we are already seeing fuel economies. We are getting well over 9mpg, and close to 11mpg, across the DAFs over a tough operating week. These are brand-new trucks, so the likelihood is that this will improve further as they settle in.”

When it comes to driver development, Knight Of Old are an industry front runner. The operator has apprenticeships, recruitment, and driver training operations under its Merlin Supply Chain Solutions business and driver acceptance of the DAF XFs was one of the major reasons quoted by Scott Mason for taking the 10 new vehicles. “We value our drivers highly and want to do everything sensible that we can to ensure they are happy in their work. They are enjoying both the space and comfort of the DAF big cab and the performance from the Paccar MX13 engine and TraXon gearbox. We’d heard good reports about the combination of this engine and gearbox long before we made our decision, and to date, we have only heard driver praise.”

The investment in the new DAF XFs is mirrored across the whole company with telematics packages running that allows Knights Of Old to monitor vehicle position and performance as well as driver behaviour. “The data we collect is turned into weekly league tables across our operating branches around the country, so that all drivers can see how they are performing as individuals and as operating centres,” said Scott Mason. If anyone is experiencing performance issues, their training academy steps in to help resolve any issues.

The DAF CF & XF range has won multiple awards this year, with both being voted International Truck of the Year.

DAF’s driver comfort, award winning design and excellent fuel economy backed by the Repair & Maintenance contracts at Watts Truck & Van Ltd Swansea, Cardiff and Newport has resulted in the XF Super Space Tractor being the most popular truck in the South Wales heavy truck market for the third consecutive year.

The team at Watts Truck & Van were also named Top Performing Sales and Aftersales Dealer of the Year at the DAF UK Annual awards in Manchester earlier this year.  Operating from three parts distribution centres and running its own dedicated delivery vehicle fleet, Watts Truck & Van Ltd have fully qualified staff who are trained to the highest standards. But it’s not just vehicles they supply – Watts Truck & Van Ltd can provide everything an operator needs to run their business.

For more information about the award-winning DAF truck range, please get in touch with our Truck Sales Team.

Swansea – Gareth Rees 07967 589105

Cardiff – Ben Adams 07966 007362

Newport – Kristian Seddon 07810 157060

https://wattstvc.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/NEW-DAF-XF-Fleet-Provides-MPG-Bonus.png 225 890 admin http://wattstvc.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/FINAL-LOGO-2-300x199.jpg admin2018-10-08 06:22:002021-02-10 18:14:23NEW DAF XF TRACTOR UNITS PROVIDE MPG BONUS

STOCK SWEEPERS

May 8, 2018/in Uncategorized /by admin

Stock Sweepers has grown from humble beginnings into one of the market leading road sweeping manufacturers in the UK and it’s the hard work and entrepreneurial spirit of Managing Director Jeff Stock that has made it happen.

Sweepers were not the starting point in business for Jeff. He began his career as an owner driver of a JCB 3CX in Wrotham, Kent, working hard in the construction industry and it was whilst building crash barriers on the M20 that Jeff came into contact with the road sweepers. They came along after building work was completed to clear the carriageways, and it was seeing this that sparked his interest and resulted in a little more digging around into the world of sweepers.

Following some advice from a fellow contractor, Jeff decided there was an opportunity to be had and alongside his business partner, bought his first road sweeper.

“We had never had a road sweeper before” said Jeff “We didn’t even know how to put the brushes down”. But the problem was soon solved when the retired father of a friend offered to drive the sweeper for them if they found the work. And that’s how it went.

The fleet was added to over the years with vehicles being purchased second hand and refurbished and that heavy machinery knowledge and experience from previous years came in useful during this time. Eventually a further 11 vehicles were added to the fleet and Stocks Sweeper Hire was born. Once bought and reconditioned, the sweepers were hired out to local authorities and private sector companies.

It was this experience that has directly led to where Stock sweepers are now” said Jeff. “Doing all that maintenance, stripping the vehicles down, remounting them; it taught us everything we know about how sweepers are built, how they work and more importantly why they stop working.”

He goes on to say that things go beyond even that. Doing all that work also allowed them to see how the vehicles could be built better, how the maintenance could be made easier and how they could be engineered from the start to make them more efficient and robust with a longer life span.

Taking this information into account, the hire side of the business was sold and the business focused its efforts into refurbishing, refitting and supplying sweepers nationwide, eventually becoming one of the UK’s top companies for reconditioning used road sweeper equipment. However, after ten years, Jeff and the team became tired of accounting for the weaknesses in existing machines. Using all their experience to date they began to develop their own parts which were lasting longer than others available on the market. The parts side of the business soon grew and became a major focus turning over more than £100,000 per month.

The development of the business did not stop there. With their extensive knowledge of refurbishing and operating sweepers manufacturing sweepers was the next logical step.

“We were fully refurbishing and remounting vehicles and using our own in-house engineered parts – if you considered the whole machine, we were actually producing a high percentage of it ourselves,” said Jeff. “All we had to do now was engineer our own body shell and we could produce a 100% new machine, fully designed, engineered and manufactured by stock sweepers.”

In 2009, following a little reorganisation within the business the company launched their S6400 and S8400 models. Since then, Stock Sweepers has grown into one of the leading road sweeper manufacturers in the UK and are the only British, family owned manufacturer in the industry.

Their vehicles are reliable, robust and innovative and their mission is to build the best sweepers possible. A ‘build it tough’ philosophy underpins the Stock sweepers design, meaning their customers, whether they be in the construction, municipal or civil engineering industries are guaranteed long lasting solutions to their requirements. Stock Sweepers have a huge commitment to provide excellent customer service and product quality and as a result they have an excellent reputation in the marketplace.

“We work tirelessly to uphold our high personal and professional standards – early mornings and late nights are all part of our commitment to going the extra mile for our customers” said Jeff. With the majority of their equipment built on DAF Truck chassis supplied from Watts Truck & Van Newport, Stock Sweepers are able to call upon further support from the Watts team and the collaborative effort of the DAF Trucks dealer network when required.

Stock Sweepers are based in the village of Mitcheldean and have two manufacturing facilities. Their sweepers are available in many different countries in North America, Asia, Australia, and Europe. Stock Sweepers remain true to their vision, which is building quality machines that have the longest working life achievable and minimum down time for their customers.

Stock Sweepers are not concerned about being known for selling the most number of sweepers – they pride themselves on providing the best sweepers possible and are known for building quality machines with a long working life.

For more information about their products visit the Stock Sweepers website

https://wattstvc.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Stocks-Sweeper_1.jpeg 225 890 admin http://wattstvc.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/FINAL-LOGO-2-300x199.jpg admin2018-05-08 11:22:002021-02-10 18:14:23STOCK SWEEPERS

Pages

  • ABOUT US
  • Cardiff
  • CAREERS
  • Contact
  • Cookies
  • CSR POLICY
  • FOCUS ON JOHN RAYMOND TRANSPORT
  • Footer Section
  • FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
  • GET A BROCHURE
  • GLOSSARY
  • Header
  • Home Page
  • NEW VEHICLES
  • Newport
  • News
  • Offers
  • OUR VALUES
  • PART EXCHANGE REQUEST
  • PARTS
  • ROB GEORGE DRAGON LOGISTICS ON WHY HE RUNS DAF TRUCKS
  • SERVICING
  • SWANSEA
  • Terms and Conditions
  • USED VEHICLES
  • Vehicles

Categories

  • Uncategorized

Archive

  • December 2020
  • October 2020
  • May 2020
  • March 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • July 2019
  • May 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
ISO:9001 + ISO:14001
BITC Responsible Business Champion 2020 Award
  • Contact Us
  • News
  • A member of the Watts of Lydney Group
  • CSR Policy
  • Accreditation
Facebook
Twitter
Google-plus-g
Linkedin

All Rights Are Reserved to Watts Truck © Copyright

  • Contact
  • FAQ
  • Glossary
  • About Us
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Cookies
Scroll to top

This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse the site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies.

OKLearn more