King of the mountain?

In the dark, in sub-zero temperatures, and usually beneath a thick blanket of snow and fog, the road maintenance crew at Victoria’s Mount Buller and Mount Stirling Resorts clear the roads of ice and snow, enabling road transport up and down the mountain.

Given the unique harshness of the conditions, the reliability of equipment, as you’d expect, means absolutely everything.

Ensuring vehicles start first time, every time, is absolutely critical for General Manager of Resort Operations on Mount Buller and Mount Stirling, Andrew Marwick, who recently oversaw the purchase of a new Isuzu NPS 300 4x4 to undertake the resort’s extensive ice-clearing operations.

"Only recently, we had probably the biggest snow event for the season. It pretty well snowed for an entire week. The Isuzu was pressed into service and operated twenty-four-seven for that week, and it’s really been a vital piece of kit for us," he said.

"If it didn’t work or failed for any reason, the whole resort could come to a standstill. Clear roads are fundamental for access for visitors, deliveries and a raft of other tasks to do with the safe and effective operation of the resort."

With the need for an appropriate 4x4 truck to replace an older member of the Buller fleet, Andrew began his research.

The brief was as simple as it was specific. Buller Resort needed a high clearance, rugged 4x4 workhorse with excellent visibility and, above all, reliability under pressure. 

Andrew sought advice from his highly experienced road maintenance crew who made no hesitations recommending the go-anywhere Isuzu NPS 300 4x4.

"We trialled some snow-clearing operations just recently and decided we wanted to expand our fleet with another snow-clearing vehicle of some description," he said.

"We cast the net wide to see what was out there in the market. We had a pretty open mind as to what was out there initially, but our head mechanic, Geoff Watkins, had prior experience with the Isuzu NPS 300 4x4 and convinced me that it was the way to go, so we went from there."

Andrew and Geoff worked closely with the team at Blacklocks Isuzu in Wodonga in putting together the correct build for both winter and summer applications.

The NPS 300’s principal application is carting the resort’s Schmidt de-icing machine which sits atop a tray during the winter months and is removed for the summer to make way for other maintenance vehicles.

Andrew explains: "We’re moving away from the use of grit in the management of our roads up here. Grit is an abrasive stone material and we’re moving towards an alternate salt product distributed by the spreader.

"We had a lot of success with the first machine we purchased, so we decided to purchase another unit. We needed a capable 4x4 truck to float that machine on.

Powered by Isuzu's SITEC III 155 engine, the NPS 300 is amply powered for a range of driving conditions, with the 5.2-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel offering 114kW at 2600 rpm and 419Nm of torque from 1600-2600rpm.

The abundant muscle means the NPS 300 grinds its way up and down some seriously steep, not to mention icy, alpine gradients towards the mountain summit. This includes a particularly punchy 18 per cent gradient pinch on the bitumen, just shy of the Buller village.

But Andrew says that driver comfort was also a key factor: "Driver comfort is very important to us," Andrew said.

"A member of the team is operating this vehicle almost twenty-four-seven, so fatigue is a factor we have to deal with.

"We could be doing 16 hour shifts and that’s where the cabin comfort and features come into their own. The feedback I’ve had on that front so far has been really good."

On the safety front, the NPS 300 4x4 features ABS, switchable traction control and driver and passenger SRS Airbags.

"The truck has to be able to operate in extreme conditions, so it might be chucking snow down, there might be icy conditions or deep snow where it’s built up overnight," Andrew continues.

"These vehicles need to keep moving long after the cars and standard four-wheel drives have given up, because they’re first in, they’re our first line of attack at the fresh snow of a morning, so they’re super important.

"The guys start at four o’clock in the morning, in the dark, with the snow falling…they’re looking to clear those roads as quickly and efficiently as they can, so if a piece of equipment doesn’t start first pop, first turn of the key, then we’re in serious trouble," Andrew added.