Rushcliffe Borough Council Refuse Collection Vehicle Refurbishment
It’s been a busy few weeks for us at Recycling Equipment Services Ltd.Several months ago we were asked to provide a quotation for the complete refurbishment of a Refuse Collection Vehicle.
We submitted our price and work plan, waited for what seemed an age then, in early December, we learned our quotation had successfully secured not only one refurbishment but two, and the prospect of a few more later.
The day to collect the vehicle arrived and our plans swung into action. As soon as it arrived at our workshop, we got stuck into the job.
The vehicle was in a sorry state, it was a 2007 Mercedes Ecconic with a Faun Variopress body and Terberg OmniDel bin lifter. It had been working tirelessly collecting, compacting, recycling, for the good people of Rushcliffe, every day for the last seven years. It’s not surprising it was showing signs of wear and tear.
The first job was to strip down and remove the bin lifter from the lorry. All the panels came off, all the wiring and switches were removed. Then all the pins, bearings and moving parts were taken apart ready to be shot blasted, prepped, and painted.
Next we got stuck into the compactor, we removed all the pins, rollers, bearings etc. Stripped it down completely so it could be shot blasted, prepped and painted.
Once everything was off the lorry, including the lights, mud guards, button box’s etc, we could fully repair the areas of the body that were worn. The hopper and body floor needed re-plating, the compactor roller channels needed new hardened rails, the body locks needed strengthening and welding. There was plenty to do.
We carried out a full chassis inspection to MOT standard to check there would be no foreseeable problems. We found the chassis and its components, though a little filthy, in very good condition, there was plenty of signs that the vehicle had been maintained to a high standard by the Rushcliffe vehicle maintenance team. Apart from a few loose connections and a leaking water pipe all it needed would be a good wash, a shot blast of the rust and a re-spray.
Once the body repairs were carried out, the compactor and bin lifter components had been shot blasted and prepped, it was time to reassemble them with new pins, bushes, bearings, wear pads and seals
Now that the compactor was back in the vehicle and running like it was new, we could send the vehicle to our specialist RCV paint shop to have the chassis, body and tailgate to be shot blasted and re-sprayed.
Whilst the rest of the lorry was away, we got on with the re-spray and rebuild of the bin lifter. With new pins, bushes, bearings, springs, wiring harnesses and switches, once painted it was virtually a new lifter.
When the lorry came back from its re-spray, looking in show room condition, we gently re-fitted the reconditioned bin lifter onto the back of the vehicle. Before running it up, we drained the hydraulic oil out of the system, re-filled it with fresh oil and fitted new filters. We then carried out a full service and pressure check, together with a PDI and full cab valet.
With new LED lights all round, new beacons, all the decals fitted on and sitting shining in the winter sunlight, the tired old RCV that we took in less than one month ago now looked as good as new.
Delivering the vehicle back to Rushcliffe Borough Council was a moment of pride for us at Recycling Equipment Services Ltd. We had worked hard and produced an excellent result which exceeded our customers’ expectations.
We now looked forward to our next one... Back To List
