HVAC carries more further with Isuzu 4x4 NPS

Green fields. The term conjures an idyllic image of rolling grasslands and endless potential. But in the telecommunications world, it also means underdevelopment.

“Greenfields refer to areas without an existing telecommunications structure in place,” explained Stephen Coates, Project Manager from HVAC’s telecommunications department.

“Here at HVAC, we complete large volumes of structural steel upgrades throughout the telecommunications sector. We fabricate, supply, and install structural steel on towers, poles and guyed masts across five states and territories throughout Australia, along with installation of greenfields sites.

This means HVAC work with some of the country’s largest telecom carriers: Axicom, Optus, Telstra, TPG and others, delivering an end-to-end solution to upgrade networks.

“We have teams of field staff that have the capability to construct a small telco site on a city rooftop to a large, full-scale 120-metre guyed mast telco installation in remote areas including the fabrication and supply of the steelwork for construction,” said Stephen.

HVAC project managers are constantly monitoring all aspects of projects, from the delivery of raw materials to fabrication timelines and installation requirements.

They understand all too well the impact of poor equipment performance and how it can affect project timelines and overall quality.

The reliability of their vehicle fleet in rough conditions was a key factor that prompted them to purchase an Isuzu NPS 75-155 4x4 Crew which is HVAC’s first ever truck and a prototype model for the company.

“Reliability was the main factor for us,” Stephen said.

“The professionalism Isuzu demonstrates was definitely a big drawcard, and Nicholas Greet at Brisbane Isuzu made the entire process of acquiring the NPS 4x4 truck very simple for us.”

The company’s head offices are in Brisbane and Sydney, but HVAC operates nationwide, which means they rely on a fleet of vehicles to carry teams, tools, and large equipment to sites on and off the road.

According to Stephen, HVAC’s biggest issue with finding suitable vehicles has been payload.

“We own 20 utes and trailers, but they don’t really fit the purpose that we need them to.

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“We carry a lot of heavy steel that is often oddly shaped, so we really need payload and the room to carry these things safely.”

“When you have a two-seater ute, you’re limited to carrying two people to the site. A lot of the time we need to send more than two technicians and so we’ve had to send two vehicles instead of one in the past,” Stephen said.

“Our NPS 4x4 Crew can carry twice the payload as well as an additional five staff, so we eliminate the costs involved with sending an extra vehicle to site.

“We save on fuel, wear and tear, servicing… you name it.”

The NPS 75-155 Crew features a GVM rating of 750kg and a GCM of 11,000kg, plus a 4500kg towing capacity with a standard 50mm tow ball (which can be upgraded at the dealership).

This 4x4 model also comes equipped with the necessary power to back up a large payload with Isuzu’s 4HK1-TCN turbocharged diesel engine offering max power of 155hp (114kW) at 2600rpm and 419Nm of torque at 1600 to 2600rpm.

Working from Northern Queensland down to South Australia and across to Tasmania, HVAC’s vehicles are clocking up between 30,000 to 50,000 kilometres per year.

“We were spending a lot of money on transport,” Stephen explained.

“On top of the added payload, our new Isuzu truck is also a way for us to reduce our whole-of-life costs.

“Once we have more trucks in our fleet such as the NPS replacing our current utes, we expect this to reduce even further,” he concluded.