Euro heavy haulers suck up to local specialist

Goulburn, NSW’s Vacvator has chosen the latest Euro 6 compliant IVECO S-Way 460 AD 8x4 model as the base for its new HD 8-90 NDD vacuum body.

Vacvator specializes in the design and manufacture of vacuum trucks for the hydrovac excavation and non-destructive digging (NDD) industries, and the company considered a number of trucks before settling on the Euro 6 Iveco.

“We extensively evaluated other European brands, Japanese and North American brands but none could offer the complete package we were after like the IVECO S-Way could,” explained Vacvator General Manager, Con Alvanos.

“Important considerations for us were payload and weight distribution and the ability to integrate our body design to the cab chassis in an uncomplicated way; we also needed generous horsepower, and it all had to come in a cost-effective package.

“The S-Way 8x4 platform gives us an industry leading legal payload of over 10 tonnes, with compliant weight distribution both over the steer axles and rear axles, so our customers and end users can rest assured that they’re not falling foul of regulations.”

When it comes to marriage of the body with the cab chassis, the S-Way also provided a solution that few others have, a ‘sandwich’ PTO.

Sitting directly between the engine flywheel and transmission, the sandwich PTO harnesses more of the truck’s power and torque to run the body, compared to a traditional transmission PTO.

In the case of the S-Way 460 AD, all its 460hp and 2150Nm of torque is available.

A further benefit of the sandwich PTO is that it removes the need for the transmission to constantly operate when the body is in use, reducing wear and tear.

For Vacvator, another plus was the location of the sandwich PTO at the back of the cabin which allowed for easier body integration.

“The sandwich PTO was a major attraction for us. Previously we would have manufactured around the transmission PTO with a split shaft drive system which is more complex and requires more work,” he said.

Development of the latest S-Way-based HD 8-90 NDD vacuum truck took around 18 months from conception to delivery of the first unit to Queenland’s Dynamic Hydro Excavations.

The body features a 9000L spoil tank and 4000L of on-board water, and is equipped with a 5000CFM Jurop Helix blower, complemented by a bespoke silencer that keeps the noise under 82 dB.

The unit also features a twin high volume, high pressure (32LPM @ 3600psi) NDD system which allows two technicians to work simultaneously, while the on-board weigh scales are designed to shut down the blower when the truck is reaching maximum legal weight.

Operating and maintenance systems for the HD 8-90 NDD are similar to smaller versions of the body used in the company’s 6x4 models. However, the new unit gets a larger and easier to read control screen, which can also be used to turn the truck on and off at the body, rather than needing to access the cab.

This is the first of a series of 8x4 vacuum trucks that Vacvator is developing on the IVECO S-Way 8x4 platform, with its HD 8-90 NDD model recently completed and the HD 8-90 NDD-DRY variant under development.

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