TNT Express UK has signed a deal with Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles to trial ten Crafter singlechassis cabs with a box van conversion.
The Crafters will be based at TNT’s depot in Bristol and were purchased through Volkswagen’s VanCentre in Manchester. The vans have received a box conversion by Altrincham specialists Cartwrighttailored to the specific requirements of TNT.
Steve Davis, National Engineering Manager TNT Express Services UK & Ireland, said: “Once adecision was made to re-evaluate our current fleet, we researched the market place to findmanufacturers of five-tonne vehicles that fit the company’s requirements. We will be monitoring thecabs over an average annual mileage of around 30,000 miles and hope to make decisions about our vancapacity and vehicle range in the next 12 months.”
He stressed that the Crafter will be assessed based on various criteria including fuel economy,operational activity, ease of maintenance and driver evaluation, as it is the case with all TNT’sfleet vehicles.
Alastair Hemmings, National Fleet Manager for Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, commented: “Thetrial with TNT is a great way of demonstrating the different uses of a Crafter chassis cab and therange of conversions we can offer our customers via our Van Centre network.”
He added that the five-tonne Crafter will give TNT more flexibility in deliveries and save onrunning costs compared with a standard 7.5-tonne vehicle, especially due to the fuel efficientengines and very competitive whole life costs.
