18 Apr Gray & Adams presents its 20:20 vision

Premium quality: The Gray & Adams demonstration unit that will appear at the Commercial Vehicle Show is based on a 3.5-tonne Mercedes-Benz Sprinter and employs Carrier Refrigeration

It is best-known for its market-leading semi-trailers and truck bodies but at this year’s Commercial Vehicle Show (26-28 April) Gray & Adams unveils an insulated and refrigerated panel van conversion that sets exceptionally high standards for thermal efficiency.

The UK’s number one manufacturer of temperature-controlled transport equipment is also presenting two DAF LF rigids at the NEC, Birmingham, in the liveries of Castell Howell Foods and Enterprise Flex-E-Rent, as well as a Sainsbury’s trailer.

The new van conversion is a recent addition to the Gray & Adams (Ireland) product portfolio, and achieves ATP Class A (chilled) and Class C (frozen) certification.

Capable of reaching minus 20°C in just 20 minutes, it is aimed at operators for whom absolute temperature control is critical, particularly those transporting deep frozen and pharmaceutical products.

Features include a high-specification GRP skin with polyurethane core for optimum insulation, side and rear doors with raised insulated shells (a modifiable side-loading door is also available) and a polyester-skinned floor which also has a polyurethane core.

The vehicle’s seamless, high gloss and waterproof construction also means it is very hygienic and easy to clean, so ideal for transporting refrigerated and fresh products destined for human consumption.

An initial fleet of 34 units is already in service with a high-profile operator. “The feedback from the customer has been excellent,” confirms Gray & Adams (Ireland) Managing Director Billy Dougan.

“This is a premium product that offers the very highest standards of thermal efficiency, achieving and, after a door opening, recovering its operating temperature extremely quickly. As such, it complements our well established and very competitively priced range of van conversions, which are well suited to more mainstream operations.”

The insulated box body fitted to Castell Howell Foods’ 15-tonne vehicle has a moveable bulkhead with personnel door, as well as a side door and triple rear doors, with steps to both apertures. Unusually, the Carrier Super 1250 multi-temperature refrigeration unit is operated by a generator which is driven by the engine PTO – on turning off the engine the driver can simply switch to diesel power. This vehicle has been specified for environmental compatibility, the fridge set-up being more fuel-efficient and quieter in operation than a conventional arrangement.

Enterprise Flex-E-Rent’s 18-tonner also has a moveable bulkhead with door, as well as a Dhollandia retractable tail-lift. In a ‘first’ for the fast-growing vehicle rental specialist, which is making its own debut at the CV Show, the truck is fitted with a FRIGOBLOCK refrigeration unit. Hydraulically driven by the truck’s engine and offering a very high level of performance, it is ideally suited to intensive, multi-drop delivery operations.

“The Commercial Vehicle Show affords us another fantastic opportunity to present innovative Gray & Adams technology to many of the UK’s biggest and most influential road transport operators,” says Joint Managing Director Peter Gray. “We’re looking forward to another busy and productive three days in Birmingham, and to engaging with potential new customers as well as established ones.”

Gray & Adams will be appearing in the COOL zone in Hall 3a at the NEC, on stands 3D115, 3D120 and 3F130.