Mercedes-Benz has the ‘white stuff’ for Clean
Leading laundry operator Clean has chosen to run a pair of Mercedes-Benz trucks from a new, state-of-the-art facility, one of the most advanced facilities of its kind in Europe.
Located in Camberley, Surrey, the recently opened laundry has created more than 150 jobs and is capable of processing one million items each week.
The arrival of the 18-tonne Axor 1824 and 10.5-tonne Atego 1018 brings the number of Mercedes-Benz vehicles on the fleet of Maidenhead-based Clean to eight – the company has already taken delivery from Reading dealer Rygor Commercials this year of another Axor 1824, three 7.5-tonne Atego 816s and a Sprinter van. It also has more Atego 1018s and 816s on order.
Clean’s other Mercedes-Benz vehicles are based at depots in Banbury and Reading, while units from its next batch will be stationed at Maidenhead. Holder of a Royal Warrant as launderers and dry cleaners to Her Majesty The Queen, the company serves 3,000 commercial customers including hotels, restaurants, pharmaceutical and catering suppliers and others, across much of central and southern England.
Its latest vehicles are fitted with box bodies by Bodycraft, of Worcester and, like their predecessors, are the subject of four-year contract hire deals with Mercedes-Benz CharterWay, the manufacturer’s in-house commercial vehicle finance division.
“We’ve previously operated various vehicle marques sourced through independent contract hire suppliers,” said Group Transport Manager Keith Abbott. “But we’ve now changed that policy because as well as being fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly, Mercedes-Benz trucks come with excellent back-up, while CharterWay’s rates are also highly competitive.”
Clean’s latest Mercedes-Benz trucks are all equipped with the Motor Stop-Start (MSS) system. This cuts the engine automatically when the vehicle is stationary for more than three seconds, and starts it again as soon as the driver depresses the clutch pedals. “By cutting out wasteful idling MSS has helped us to reduce our fuel bills and our carbon emissions,” confirmed Mr Abbott.
He is equally impressed with the after sales support provided by Mercedes-Benz and Rygor Commercials. “Not only do we enjoy first-class service cover, we also benefit from the Mercedes-Benz Electronic Inspection System (EIS),” he continued.
EIS is approved by the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) and allows all vehicle maintenance and inspection schedules to be updated and stored electronically, relieving operators of the administrative headache of completing and keeping piles of paper records. Workshop technicians update the system using handheld personal digital assistants (PDAs), while operators have full access to all documentation via their own PCs.
“EIS makes our lives so much easier,” said Mr Abbott, “as well as substantially reducing the amount of paper we use in the office, which is another environmental benefit.”
For more information, visit cleanservices.co.uk.
