Terberg mini stillage recyclers selected for Cae Post kerbside collection

As a pioneering charity and social enterprise, Cae Post provide work experience and training to people with disabilities and others that are disadvantaged in the job market. In November 2006, the non-profit organisation are implementing a kerbside collection programme that will serve around 4,500 households in the North East Powys area by the end of December 2006 with the majority of participating households within a 15 mile radius of their Trewern depot.

When planning the implementation of the scheme, Cae Post came to the conclusion that the best solution for collection would be a stillage-based kerbside collection vehicle but felt they needed to implement a solution that satisfied health and safety legislation, eliminated overhead lifting and was a departure from the traditional style of stillage collection vehicles that have inherent ergonomic and operational safety issues.

They also required a solution that was compact and manoeuvrable, given the location of most of the participating households. The chosen solution also had to incorporate a feature that would enable the en-route ‘drop off’ of low density, high volume recyclables to allow the collection round to continue without a return visit to their own commercial scale MRF.

After careful consideration a pair of Terberg Mini-Kerbsider® Stillage vehicles were selected for the scheme. Fitted with three conventional ‘hard’ stillages and two ‘soft’ stillages, the vehicles facilitate the ‘drop off’ of the low density, high volume materials in the removable ‘soft’ stillages onto the kerbside and allow additional empty ‘soft’ stillages to be fitted en-route to allow the collection to continue with minimal interruption. The full ‘soft’ stillages are then collected by a support crew vehicle and transported back to Cae Post’s MRF facility for processing.

Sue Packer, Kerbside and Collection Manager for Cae Post commented, "When we researched the collection solutions available to us we were adamant that we wouldn’t sacrifice our commitment to improving the health and safety performance of our collection service. We were aware that Terberg Matec UK Ltd had already supplied vehicles to our partner, Powys County Council with great success and following further consultation with Terberg’s Sales and Engineering departments we felt confident that they could meet our safety and ergonomic requirements with the Mini-Kerbsider® Stillage vehicle. During the design process Terberg Matec UK Ltd were very receptive, providing a locking and quick release mechanism for our ‘soft’ stillage design and an audible alert system that operates when the trough is being lowered. We are very pleased with the end result and believe that in the Mini-Kerbsider® Stillage we have sourced the right solution to implement our kerbside collection programme and operate the scheme efficiently and safely."

The vehicles supplied are built on Isuzu NQR 70T 7.5 tonne GVW chassis complete with six man crew cabs. With a bumper to bumper length of 7.7 metres and a waiflike 2.2m body width, the Mini-Kerbsider® Stillage is ideal for country lane use and areas where manoeuvrability is crucial.

For the Mini-Kerbsider® Stillage Terberg have developed some innovative weight-saving to deliver a meaningful payload potential, this will prove extremely beneficial as Cae Post anticipate that the vehicles will facilitate the collection of around 13.5 tonnes/week of recyclables including textiles, card, paper, plastics bottles and film, tins, cans and glass with the plastics and film being collected in the ‘soft’ stillages.

The vehicles lightweight body houses three 2.1 cubic metre stillages constructed using a robust steel frame and clad with aluminium to keep the weight down, the stillages are installed from the offside by forklift truck and are locked into position. The two ‘soft’ stillages are held in place by an innovative hook and cable system complete with a quick release mechanism that can be operated from the offside, additional restraint is provided by vertical straps fitted to the offside.
Access to the full ‘soft’ stillages for drop off and re-fit is made simple thanks to access steps and a grab handle, the ‘soft’ stillage section of the vehicle body floor is also fitted with strips of non-slip tape.

Featuring powered loading from the nearside, the vehicles utilise a 650 litre, partitioned, loading trough manufactured from lightweight polypropylene and housed in a robust steel framework allowing a safe working load of 250kgs. As the recyclable materials are collected at the kerbside, operatives will segregate them and load the appropriate trough partitions. Operating the trough lifting controls raises the trough hydraulically with the roof being automatically raised at the same time. Materials collected in the trough are then discharged into the appropriate stillages. All trough operations are performed safely from the exterior of the vehicle, utilising a two-hand fixed control station.

In response to Cae Post’s requests for additional safety features that were mindful of the needs of their employees, Terberg have included an audible alert that sounds when the trough is operated downwards, ensuring that operators are reminded that they should remain clear of the trough operation area. Additionally, the vehicles are fitted with a rear mounted CCTV system allowing the driver to monitor the areas not covered by their line of sight or mirrors.

Unloading of full ‘hard’ stillages is undertaken by means of a forklift truck, once unloaded the stillages can be emptied into suitable bulk containers achieved by the use of a fork lift truck fitted with rotating tines. The design of the stillages is compatible with the standard materials handling equipment in use by organisations currently operating traditional type stillage vehicles, meaning that the transition from traditional stillage collection to Terberg’s innovative solution is smooth and economical.

Additional options fitted include a hot water hand-wash unit, an underslung storage/tool box, standard safety items such as a First Aid Kit and Fire Extinguisher, three recycling box carriers, two warning beacons and halogen worklights.

Terberg Director, Will Marzano, had this to say, "Terberg are pleased to be associated with Cae Post and fully support their organisations efforts to provide employment for people that might otherwise be at a disadvantage. We feel that in the Mini-Kerbsider® Stillage, Cae Post they have chosen a vehicle that will provide many years of reliable, efficient and safe operation. At Terberg we take safety seriously, not just through our manufacturing process but also in our product design. Careful consideration is given throughout our design phase to ensure we deliver the safest possible solution."

Terberg Matec UK Limited is supporting the Mini-Kerbsider® Stillage with a standard 12 months warranty and an unrivalled after-sales support package. Extended warranty packages are also available. The Mini-Kerbsider® Stillage kerbside collection solution is available in a range of GVW options from 7.5 tonne to 12 tonnes and can also be fitted with 240L wheeled bin clamp.

For further details, to arrange a demonstration of the Mini-Kerbsider® Stillage or for information about other Terberg Matec products please contact Terberg Sales on 01925 283915.