DAFs help deal with the dirty stuff

Cape have invested over half a million pounds in two DAF CF85 eight-wheel trucks fitted with Koks vacuum tank equipment.

Cape is a market-leading international provider of essential support services to the energy and natural resources sectors where the requirement for safe, reliable and intelligent solutions is paramount. The expanding £400 million business employs more than 12,000 people around the world.

The DAFs are being operated throughout the UK from Cape DBI’s Warrington depot, one of ten it has across mainland Britain. They’re helping to clean up waste resulting from a wide range of industrial activities and to recover for re-use valuable materials that might otherwise be lost.

Cape-DBI Regional Director for the UK, Gordon Mackay, says that a further two similar vehicles will join the company’s 15-strong fleet of large-capacity high airflow vacuum tankers during 2009 as part of its programme of continuous investment in the latest technology.

The trucks can deal with both wet and dry products, including hazardous substances. Material can be placed in the 15,000 litre tank for transport direct to specialist treatment plants or, in the case of benign material, to landfill sites. Alternatively it can be discharged on site into a variety of storage facilities or containers, such as silos, tanks and skips, for recovery and re-use. The high tipping angle of the tank and the use of stainless-steel in its construction ensures fast discharge for all types of material.

Waste materials and by-products from coal-fired power stations, cement works, petrochemical plants and oil refineries are all in a day’s work for these powerful machines. They can recover material from distances up to 200 metres horizontally or from a height or depth of up to 60 metres, making them suitable for deep well work. Most types of material can be handled including heavy liquids, powders, steel plant waste streams, and light debris.

Cape DBI chose the DAFs because they are the ideal platform onto which to mount the Koks MegaVac 8000 vacuum equipment. The four axle configuration provides a very stable platform and for added strength a full-length inner re-inforcement to the chassis side members was fitted during the assembly process.

On sites where access is restricted the good manoeuvrability provided by the FAD CF85’s twin-steer arrangement comes into its own. And when working off road the specification of hub reduction axles on the rear bogie, along with cross-axle and differential locks, ensures good traction whatever the conditions.

With the DAFs travelling throughout the UK the comfort of the two-man crew – both of whom are HGV and ADR trained - was a key factor in the specification of the trucks. Cape DBI chose DAF’s Space Cab, which offers ample room for the crew to sleep on wide full-length bunks, and there’s plenty of storage space for their personal gear, wet weather clothing and Personal Protective Equipment needed on site.

Power for the CF85s is from the 12.9 litre MX engine rated at 410 bhp (300 kW) and which delivers 2000 Nm of torque between 1000 and 1410 rpm. This is matched to a 16-speed gearbox. A 340 litre fuel tank is fitted.

With headquarters in Paisley and depots throughout the UK, Cape DBI can undertake all types of vacuum recovery, high and ultra-high pressure water jetting, chemical cleaning and decontamination work. As well as industrial work, its vacuum tankers have been used in disaster recovery situations, such as clearing blocked drains and culverts following last year’s severe flooding in Yorkshire and Gloucestershire. It is certified to both the ISO 9001 and 14001 standards.

DAF dealer North West Trucks of Huyton, Liverpool, supplied the two trucks.