Recently in Environment Category

I'm indebted to 'Two-Stroke' for reminding me that the deadline for claiming a Reduced Pollution Certificate on a Euro-5 truck expires on the 30th September. Why? Because from 1 October Euro-5 becames mandatory. Likewise in the unlikely (though not impossible) event that you've got an unregistered Euro-4 truck tucked away somewhere, then don't forget that it needs to be on a manufacturer's derogation list pretty sharpish---unless you're planning to preserve it in aspic (or cryogenically freeze it and place it in a time-capsule for discovery in 1,000 year's time when it will qualify as a vintage truck!) Come to think of it, a brand new truck in a 1,000 years time would be worth a fortune. I wonder if Mrs BLB would object to me burying a new artic in her rockery...?  Meanwhile, click through here for a truck that definitely ISN'T Euro-5.....

Now here's an interesting thought. Should you find yourself tootling past the filling station at the Skandiahamnen port in Gothenburg and thinking 'Where can I get some of that lovely biodiesel?' Well the answer is right in front of you... Because according to Volvo Logistics the first fuel station in western Sweden selling ACP Diesel Bio30 is now opening at the self-same Skandiahamnen port, which just so happens to be close to Volvo's various truck plants and its trans-shipment terminal in Arendal. And it's all the result of a joint venture between IKEA, H&M, DHL, Preem and Volvo Logistics. Now click through here for more...

Those readers of Biglorryblog in the enviable position of being able to justify buying a new truck are reminded that the deadline for qualifying for a Reduced Pollution Certificate (RPC) on a new Euro-5 engined truck runs out when the latest emission standard becomes mandatory on all new vehicles on 1 October. So the message is get yer order in toot sweet! And I'm grateful to Volvo Trucks for reminding me of the approaching deadline. The good news (at least for Volvo truck buyers) is that it also says: "All the Euro-5 compliant engines currently produced by the company, in advance of the mandatory deadline for implementation, are eligible for up to £500 annual VED benefit on the largest vehicles providing the vehicle is registered and taxed before 1 October 2009." Indeed commercial truck director Ian Mitchell adds: "Currently, the £500 VED annual benefit will disappear from 1 October, when Euro-5 becomes mandatory. However, as long as they register and tax the vehicle before the 1 October deadline, operators can claim the RPC for all Euro-5-engined Volvo trucks, including those fitted with our new range of engines."

Now click through here for more on life after 1 October...

Off to Milton Keynes today for an abortive attempt to drive a new P Highline six-wheeler but while I wander lonely as a cloud  in Scania's truck pound I stumble on to this worldwide 'scoop'!  Yes forget  all about Euro-6...Scania has REALLY put the cat amongst the pigeon's with this EURO-8 and yes it's got EGR!!! And they said it couldn't be done eh? Those rival manufacturers who've backed SCR must be chocking on their AdBlue.  Is there nothing those people  at Sodertalje can't do?

Meanwhile, I'd love to tell you about another 'Scoop' I found this morning which was big, black and bothersome...but they've threatened to de-coke me if I breathe another word on it....and they know where I live...oooh...errr...

Now I know what you'e thinking...it's too big to get through that gap. You're probably right but it's just a bit of artistic licence on the photographer's part I'm sure to include those stripey posts...Meanwhile, as I'm sure you all know, the SK600, mounted on the specially-prepared Volvo 4x2 chassis with a six-speed manual box and left-hand-drive day cab is the only truck-mounted sweeper to have a full-width brush located behind the powerful suction nozzle (well everyone I know, knows that!) And naturally, this allows it to mechanically sweep the area that 'other' conventional sweepers can only clean by using suction. It also provides for faster sweeping across a full 2.3m width using both side and channel brushes...so now you DO know..OK? And click through here for more sweeper factoids....

With everybody going hybrid-mad - Mercedes-Benz is showing a hybrid Axor at Hannover, for instance - it's worth taking a look at a real-world hybrid truck. Here are Volvo's diesel-electric hybrid refuse trucks in action in Sweden:

The film does a good job of explaining the advantages of hybrid power for stop-start applications, including a potential fuel saving of 20 to 30%. We are not so sure that Volvo's conventional drivetrain engineers will be happy with the description of conventional refuse trucks as "noisy, rumbling trucks that guzzle up diesel when idling, right outside our bedroom windows" ...

Ever on the look-out for a 'green' truck story, Biglorryblog learns that Iveco has delivered no less than smart new 10 diesel-electric hybrid Daily vans to FedEx Express as part of an extended field evaluation. The trials will be conducted on routes between Milan and Turin using the latest generation of hybrid technology, developed by Iveco and exhibited for the first time at the RAI Show in Amsterdam last October.  The hybrid vans are said to offer fuel savings of up to 30% in urban environments, with a corresponding reduction in CO2 emissions versus the standard diesel-only Daily. "This is made possible using sophisticated control and operation systems like Stop & Start, launch in electric mode and energy recovery from braking." Iveco tells me. Now click through here for more....

If it isn't the price of diesel--it's the price of AdBlue says Biglorryblog. And for all those hard-pressed operators who opted for SCR on their Euro-4 and Euro-5 trucks this bit of news will be as welcome as flatulence in a space suit. GreenChem, Europe's leading supplier of AdBlue, is predicting a further increase in the price of the stuff. Apparently "...this follows a sharp increase in the price of urea which will affect all suppliers of AdBlue." 

GreenChem's founding chairman Teun de Bruijn tells BLB:  "The price of our basic raw material has climbed steeply in recent weeks and we - and other suppliers - will have no alternative to passing the increase on to our customers." However, the GOOD news is that de Bruijn reckons: "The increase in AdBlue pricing will be much lower than fleet operators are facing for their diesel fuel---so the impact on operating costs will be very low..." Well that's a relief anyway.

Meanwhile, de Bruijn forecasts that while AdBlue prices go up in the next few months,"...operators who shop around in the next few days may be able to obtain supplies at a lower price."  So BLB's advice is to get dialling your supplier ASAP.

According to the experts the cost of urea has already risen by almost 50% since the beginning of 2008. Why? Well it seems there's a whole raft of reasons but amongst them is the fact that a key element in the production of urea (the stuff that's the main constituent of AdBlue) is natural gas---and as we all know gas prices have been rising for several years, in line with oil. Only now there has been a further and significant increase on top of the earlier increases. Secondly, GreenChem reckons "Urea prices have also been impacted by two other factors: the increasing demand for food production worldwide but particularly in China (where urea is a core ingredient of many fertilisers) and, ironically, the growing popularity for bio-diesel which also relies on urea as a key component. "

Now click through here to find out more..and BLB's take on the whole subject.

I came to the CV Show at the NEC with the intention of looking out for any new products or services with an environmental bent - on fact, it's been more difficult to find a stand which doesn't have a 'green' angle.

Anything which saves money (or is claimed to save money) has been given a green spin, and even those stands which aren't explicit about their environmental credentials seem to feature a lot of green - the colour, that is. Thank goodness for Roadtransport.com's all-red stand (number 7-030 - come up and see us here tomorrow).

But a few of these environmental claims are rather more interesting:

Word reaches Biglorryblog that two leading British technology companies have agreed to collaborate in a unique project to put hydrogen-powered, emissions-free vehicles onto UK roads. The deal involves ITM Power---Europe’s largest electrolyser and fuel cell development company, and Roush Technologies, one of the world’s foremost automotive design, engineering and development groups. And the exciting news is that the co-operative agreement could see CO2-free, hydrogen-fuelled commercial vehicles being marketed in Britain within months.

Roush already has extensive experience in the commercial vehicle sector and will be responsible for both adapting existing internal combustion-engined vehicles and researching the development of new power units to utilise hydrogen fuel. While ITM will provide what's described as "...the breakthrough refuelling solution by enabling vehicle operators to generate their own hydrogen supplies. The company’s development of a hydrogen refuelling station, currently in the final stage of development, will overcome the current lack of a national hydrogen station infrastructure in the UK."

Of course what BLB wants to know is who will be the first commercial vehicle manufacturer to offer a hydrogen powered truck or van in the UK? And should we read anything into the fact that the artist's impression featured above appears to look rather like a Ford Transit?

Anyway click through here for more details and a hybrid truck from Kentucky!

The reason why I am blogging this is partly as a public informaion message, and partly because it seems to get Simon Hall, MAN's magnificently be-whiskered PR man is a good temper, for reasons which I can't even begin to understand...

Anyway not long after GreenChem issued a notice that the price of AdBlue was going up, I have now received this message from Air1 and Dureal, Yara’s AdBlue brands across Europe, to "...announce a price increase for their AdBlue packages, effective from April 1 2008."

According to Yara "The increase is due to the consistent rise in energy prices over the course of the past several years. 2007, alone, saw crude oil price increases of nearly $50 per barrel and gas oil prices also increased 40% in the same period. The levels of oil and natural gas prices have a direct impact on urea prices. High specification urea is the raw material for AdBlue."

John Arne Ulvan, Vice President for Environmental and Speciality Products at Yara, goes on to tell Biglorryblog: “As others, we are confronted by the rise of raw material costs. This is a market trend we cannot ignore. At Yara, we remain focused on the delivery of quality AdBlue to our Air1 and Dureal clients. Thanks to our unique supply chain from factory to customer, we can keep the increase down to a minimum”.

And what will it mean to UK operators running trucks with SCR? Well Yara says: "Details of the new pricing structure are being communicated to customers on a country-by-country basis. " So if you get your AdBlue from Air1 and Dureal then presumably you're already in deep conversations with them....

In the meantime I can think of two truck makers who aren't going to be too upset by the news...can you guess who they are? Well before you get the Bolly out guys just remember these two words..."Euro" and "Six".....

It's always a good idea to have a 'Plan B' don't you think asks Biglorryblog? Thus Volvo's decision to develop an EGR version of its 13-litre engine to sit alongside its SCR version shows a neat turn of hand to to keep all parties happy---not least those hauliers who won't entertain selective catalytic reduction and AdBlue.

Include in that lot Nantwich-based GA Newsome Haulage who, after purchasing other marques for the past four years, has returned to Volvo by adding four new EGR-engined Volvo FH tractor units to its 30 strong fleet. Already operating 23 Volvo trucks, the new Euro 4 units will replace existing vehicles as part of the operators five-year vehicle replacement programme. The latest FH-500 44-tonners are all topped off with Globetrotter ‘XL’ cabs in ‘Prestige’ trim.

Now click through here for a rather smart silver Volvo FH from Truck & Driver writer and photographer by Mark Roberts

Biglorryblog was intrigued to receive a press release advising me that "...leading AdBlue supplier GreenChem has been forced to raise its prices for AdBlue across Europe from the 1st January by 2 Eurocents (approximately 1.4p) per litre."

And the reason for this increase? It seems that the price of urea, which is the main raw material for AdBlue has gone up. Indeed, the price of urea has almost doubled since the beginning of 2006. Yet strangely, "...In the same period AdBlue prices have gone down while the price of other urea-based products have followed the price increase of urea, which has mainly been driven by higher gas prices."

Somewhat inevitably Teun de Bruijn, GreenChem's founding Managing Director tells BLB it's got to come to an end and that: "Since all energy costs are continuing to rise, including that for natural gas, we predict that the price of AdBlue from all manufacturers will have to rise further during 2008."

Now click through here for Biglorryblog's thoughts on the matter and how it could play into the hands of the proponents of EGR!

Is going ‘green’ the key to getting people to invest in haulage? Biglorryblog merely asks as armed with the idea of operating a fleet of vehicles which are 100% Bio-Diesel, newly formed haulage company, JPM Eco Logistics has recently appeared on the BBC television programme ‘Dragons Den’. And after pitching their business plan to the panel of five business gurus, the Rochdale-based company has received £100,000 investment from two of Britain’s top venture capitalists, Deborah Meadon and Theo Paphitis.

Good luck to them I say and with over 30 years experience in the haulage industry, joint MDs Jerry Mantalvanos and Paul Merker, co–founders of the ‘eco friendly’ haulage company --- are clearly going into the new business venture with their eyes wide open—unlike many other Dragon fodder….. Whether they achieve their goal of being the “most cost effective and environmentally-aware transport company in the UK” will be interesting to see.

Who was it that said 'Never give a sucker an even break?' (He also said, when asked whether poker was a game of chance, 'Not the way I play it!') But I digress . Word reaches Biglorryblog that since winning three major new contracts with the Environment Agency, Cambridgeshire County Council and Peterborough City Council, specialist drainage company ADC (East Anglia) has been spending dosh on new kit including this rather splendid new 26-tonne Volvo FM9-380 6x4 gully-emptier.

The Euro 5 FM joins a fleet of 11 other Volvo’s at the company’s base near Marshland St. James, near Wisbech, the others being Volvo FL four-wheelers. And it shows all the hall-marks of the Swedish manufacturer: proud, haughty, yet somehow approachable but with an air of mystery don't you think?

Now a lot of you must be wondering why on earth spec a Globetrotter sleeper cab on a gulley emptier? Good question. And the answer is that the truck is often used for is drain clearance on retail parks around the country. The driver overnights in the locality and enters the premises in the early hours before the shops open as parked cars make it impossible to access the drains in normal working hours. Satisfied?

Enthusiastic feedback from refuse crews (refuseniks?) to an Econic demonstrator proved just the ticket to persuading Fife Council to place its first order for Mercedes Econic trucks. And why not says Biglorryblog..after all, they are rather fine dustcarts.

Moreover, Fife joins a growing number of Scottish local authorities who've taken the purpose-designed municipal chassis. It's now running four 6x2 Econic 2629LLs with Geesink Norba compactor bodies and Combi Split Lifters capable of handling both domestic and trade bins. Don't you just love it when BLB talks dirty?

The new trucks have mid-steer axles and Euro-4 SCR, as well as full air suspension. Cor they don't half pamper bin-men these days don't they? What with low-entry cabs, deep windscreens offering panoramic views, air-conditioning and the latest, five-speed Allison automatic gearboxes. I think I'm going to change jobs and join 'Cheesy-Egg', 'Heavy Breathing' and Company! (And for a pie, what classic TV show am I talking about?)

Gather groundlings while Biglorryblog tells you a cautionary tale. And it came to pass that via e-mail BLB received a press release about a local council in Cheshire which had livered their new Dennis Phoenix Elite refuse collection vehicles with an all-over Tiger decal to help remind people of the need to protect the vanishing habitat of endangered species by recycling much of their domestic waste... And lo Biglorryblog deleted his e-mail and then couldn't undelete it when his faithful blogging platform lost his first blog on the subject....Now, what can we learn from that? Well just like the Tigers, when they're gone...they're gone!

Well I'll try and find the details some time soon but for the moment at least you have the picture of the Tiger covered Dennis bin wagons AND it seems there's also going to be one with a Polar Bear on it ..though presumably not standing on a mint. So the morale of the story: Never throw something away until you are absolutely sure you don't need it any more. Got that? I know I have!