Managing a large, national fleet of haulage vehicles with specialism in agricultural and general purpose applications is no easy challenge. For Wm Armstrong, it’s important that the parts specified on all trucks and trailers can meet the rigorous demands of life on the road.
Protecting a reputation of over 90 years as a renowned provider of logistics solutions and road transport services requires attention to detail, reliable vehicles and a delight in going the extra mile. Founded in 1927, the Wm Armstrong Group is a family-run business, headquartered in Cumbria in the North West of England. It provides road haulage across the United Kingdom, Ireland and Europe, plus warehousing and distribution services through two depots, one in Carlisle, and the other just outside Glasgow, in Uddingston.
In total, the firm has 100 trucks and 180 trailers, so maintaining and servicing all of these must be managed with the utmost efficiency. To help achieve this objective, Armstrong has equipped all 110 of its curtain siders with nine tonne axles made by Jost. Jost designs and builds robust axle solutions, and is recognised for its ability to provide reliable, high mileage service.
Robbie Fenwick, Fleet Engineer for Armstrong, explained the company’s philosophy: “The general haulage trailers do extremely high miles, so we want an axle system that can manage hard work with minimal maintenance and repair demands.”
Jost’s axles feature a ‘monocoque’ design, whereby the tube and end sets are joined by a seamless weld. This process reduces weak points which could suffer from stress fractures – it also eliminates the need for fasteners or strengthening joists which add weight. For further simplicity when placing an order, a modular design of hangar brackets means that the axle systems can be easily mounted onto any trailer that is legal for use on UK roads.
Used widely across the whole European transport industry, Jost’s axle systems are suitable not only for curtain siders, but also for platform semi-trailers, tippers, tankers and bulk distribution. Once installed, the burden of maintenance is minimal, as there are fewer parts to monitor and maintain, and the hubs are specified with heavy-duty wheel bearings as standard.
Robbie continued, “We specify Jost axles for our curtain side trailer because, in our experience, it’s extremely rare that anything will go wrong with them, no matter what they have to endure.”
Jost acquired Mercedes-Benz TrailerAxleSystems in early 2015, at which point it was quickly integrated into the group of brands that include Jost, Edbro, ROCKINGER and TRIDEC.
