Using new designs, materials and welding techniques, Fontaine Trailer introduced its new Revolution all-aluminum and Revolution Hybrid composite aluminum-steel flatbed trailers that offer greater strength at a lighter weight and improved aerodynamics. Both trailers are the first products to be designed at Fontaine’s new research and development center in Jasper, Ala.
The all-aluminum Revolution weighs only 8,000 pounds, but can handle payloads of up to 60,000 pounds concentrated in only four feet, says Buck Buchanan, vice president of marketing for Fontaine. Conventional flatbed trailers typically are constructed using about 3,700 individual parts, Buchanan says; in comparison, the Revolution consists of only 1,500 parts, including a trailer floor that is made up entirely of friction stir-welded aluminum crossmembers. Because the floor itself serves the function that crossmembers do on a typical flatbed, the design both saves weight and improves aerodynamics, Fontaine says.
Buchanan says the Revolution’s design features a single-piece routed aluminum extrusion side rail that is both lighter and stronger than steel and helps give the trailer a significantly stiffer unitized design while minimizing load shifts. The new design reduces wracking, which improves tire wear, while a low drag coefficient as well as a lower overall weight for a given load boost fuel economy, he says.
The Revolution Hybrid composite flatbed includes all the design elements and benefits of the Revolution but at a somewhat heavier weight and lower price. The 9,000-pound Revolution Hybrid can handle a 54,000-pound load concentrated in only four feet, Buchanan says. Its base design elements consist of steel main beams combined with an extruded aluminum floor for added strength and support at a lower overall weight. Other features of the Revolution and Revolution Hybrid include:
· Load securement that allows chain tiedowns and chocks anywhere on the trailer deck;
· Moveable strap retention/rope hook devices that ease strap securement and tarping; and
· A lighting system by Grote that has more than 60 percent fewer connections than previous-generation systems and features a comprehensive 10-year warranty.
While the lighter weight of the Revolution and Revolution Hybrid allow for greater payloads, Fontaine believes that the trailers will be valuable to fleet owners in the coming years even if they can’t take advantage of those higher payloads. Tractors are getting heavier with additional emissions-related hardware and the growing popularity of auxiliary power units, the company says. So a lighter trailer will help fleets remain within regulated weight limits without having to reduce payload.
Fontaine Trailer
(www.fontainetrailer.com)
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Pliers wrench
Snap-on says its PWZ3 pliers wrench is designed to work in hard-to-reach spots that require a powerful tool that works quickly and efficiently, such as tie rods and front-end work. Features, according to the company, include specially hardened jaws; inwardly angled teeth (fine teeth at back of jaws, larger teeth at front) for a stronger, more secure grip on an object; quick adjustment of grip width; a built-in guard against unthreading; an inner handle with built-in protection against pinching; easy locking into desired position with the adjusting screw; a jaw grip that increases when pressure is put on the handle; and narrow jaws that provide added accessibility, including cramped corners.
Snap-on
(www.snapon.com)
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GM hood-assist device
Monroe Truck Equipment says its MTE Hood Assist for GM model trucks reduces the overall opening force of a hood from 66 pounds to 22 pounds, and turns a difficult two-handed operation into an easy one-handed operation. According to the company, the device – which can be used on the C4500, C5500, C6500, C7500 and C8500 – helps encourage timely maintenance while preventing pinched or broken fingers and sprained shoulders or backs, which might occur when opening the truck’s hood normally. The MTE Hood Assist is designed to be compatible with both stationary and tilting grilles, and boasts a no-drill installation; kits are available that can be customer-installed or installed where the truck is purchased.
Monroe Truck Equipment
(www.monroetruck.com)
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