Finding a second-hand tractor that could carry blower gear proved “nigh-on impossible”, so the Bolton haulier ordered its first new truck in nearly a decade
For almost ten years, MJ May Transport built its all-DAF fleet on the used market, buying three-year-old trucks coming off contract. Its latest addition breaks the pattern. The Bolton-based general haulier has bought a brand-new DAF XF 530 FTP 6×2 tractor unit, and the reason is a very specific piece of equipment.
A spec the used market could not supply
The new XF will deliver bulk flour across the UK, in the powder tanker business MJ May entered around ten years ago when it bought Alan Hindle Transport. Bulk powder work requires a blower on the tractor unit to discharge the tanker.
“Trying to source a tractor unit that could accommodate blower gear for bulk powder transportation is nigh-on impossible,” said Mick May, who runs the family business. “Before this truck, our formula has been to buy used trucks from DAF that have been maintained by the company and are coming off contract at three years old.”
On the new truck, a Gardner Denver TR20 Tornado Power blower, supplied and fitted by Gardner Denver, sits on the driver’s side, while the diesel tank has been moved to the passenger side. DAF says the XF’s long wheelbase makes this layout easy to configure, with no impact on overall payload or chassis weight.
The specification
The XF 530 FTP is powered by a PACCAR MX13 Euro 6 engine with a 12-speed TraXon automated transmission. It has a high-roof sleeper cab, LED lights front and rear, DAF Corner View for better visibility around the cab, and the DAF City Safety package. An electric roof hatch and Alcoa brushed alloy wheels complete the specification. The truck was supplied by Simon Davis-Rice, Fleet Sales Director at North West Trucks.
Loyalty built on support
MJ May Transport started with Mick May as an owner-driver and now runs 12 vehicles, from a 7.5-tonne DAF LF to CFs and XFs up to 44 tonnes. Other brands have rarely featured. “Because we run an all-DAF fleet, it didn’t really make sense to have another brand in the mix,” May said. “We keep DAF parts on the shelves and our technicians know the trucks really well.”
For small fleets in specialist haulage, the story shows where the limits of the used market lie: when a job needs a specific chassis layout, buying new can become the only practical option. May still keeps his first DAF, a 2005 XF with nearly one million miles, refurbished and taken out occasionally to truck shows.
Read the full article here
