DAF plus Disab helps Yorkshire firm clean up

An investment of half a million pounds in two impressive vacuum machines is helping Yorkshire-based industrial cleaning specialists Harpers carry out a wide range of often difficult jobs.

These highly flexible machines are the result of combining the stable platform and excellent on and off-road performance of DAF’s four-axle FAD CF85 chassis with powerful vacuum equipment by Disab Vacuum Technology of Sweden.

Each of the trucks is designed to remove a variety of materials in solid or liquid form from deep wells, storage tanks or large diameter drains and culverts by means of a powerful blower with an air volume of 8900 square metres/hour. The suction pipes are connected to a hydraulic boom located in the centre of the tank that can swing through 360 degrees and be lowered or elevated according to the position of the truck to the job. Attachment of a 90 degree pipe at the end of the boom enables straight suction of materials out of deep wells.

Recovered material is deposited into a 12 cubic metre tank that complies with all current regulations covering pressure vessels, including the Pressure Equipment Directive. It is then discharged by simply tipping the tank with the waste exiting through a hydraulically operated, fully opening rear door.

Unique features of the tipping system include the ability to raise the entire tank off the chassis by using both the main forward ram and a pair of smaller rams positioned towards the rear. This enables it to be lifted to a sufficient height for direct discharge into skips. The system also allows material to be discharged into one tonne ‘dumpy’ bags enabling the product to be reused and producing a large saving to the customer. Company transport manager Mick Kilner says that the high tip and dumpy bag filling facilities are enabling some customers to save the cost of clean-ups in recovered product alone.

When the tank is empty it can quickly be flushed out and cleaned using the on-board Dynaset high pressure jetting unit, which can deliver 30 litres/min at 200 bar.

All the equipment is powered independently of the DAF’s engine by a 330 bhp (242 kW) donkey engine using red diesel from a separate 200 litre tank. The engine is contained within a noise insulated engine compartment located directly behind the cab.

“These are two very versatile machines,” says Kevin Maguire, operations director of the industrial division of Harpers. “We can use them for a wide variety of jobs and materials. An early job for one of them involved sucking material over 800 feet up the side of a cliff, which others said was not technically possible but which it accomplished with ease.

“The DAF chassis is an ideal platform for this type of equipment. It’s very stable both on and off the road and its twin-steer arrangement makes it quite manoeuvrable. Diff locks also mean that it can easily cope with slippery site conditions.”

Each of the two DAF CF85s has been specified with a sleeper cab to provide a rest area for the crew when carrying out long jobs at night. Harpers have opted for the 410 horsepower (300 kW) rated version of the DAF MX engine which at 32 tonne gross weight provides a generous 12 bhp/tonne of power to weight enabling good average speeds to be maintained for faster travel between jobs.

DAF dealer Imperial Commercials supplied the trucks through their Hull main dealership and will maintain them at their premises in York.