UK – The Perth-based soft fruit and swede producers Stewarts of Tayside Limited have announced that they have updated their entire refrigerated fleet with 16 Vector 1550 units from Carrier Transicold UK. This decision ensures that Stewarts have maintained their tradition of an all-Carrier Transicold fleet.

The new units, which are mounted on 13.6m Schmitz Cargobull trailers and leased through Total Reefer, are set to operate from the company’s Glencarse site, which is responsible for the entire line for soft fruits and swede production, ranging from sowing and harvesting to washing and packaging. The company stated that the new units will be used intensively seven days a week and will serve to transport fresh strawberries, raspberries and swedes to major supermarket regional distribution centres across the UK.

Commenting on the deal, Jim Winn, the transport manager for Stewarts of Tayside, declared that “We’ve been using Carrier Transicold refrigeration units on our reefer trailers for more than 15 years and they never miss a beat. Reliability is important for us because we’re a 24/7 operation and our fleet is constantly in use.”

Mr Winn continued, adding “When we decided to refresh our fleet, Carrier Transicold worked closely with us to ensure we were specifying the optimum system for our needs; they took into consideration everything from the frequency of door openings to cooling capacity and journey lengths. The Vector 1550 system offered the best combination of power and fuel-efficiency, and we’ve been very pleased with our choice.”

Stewarts also revealed that the new units will be supported by everCOLD repair and maintenance contracts, which, Carrier claim, include servicing carried out by manufacturer-trained technicians, annual temperature control testing and certification, EU F-Gas regulation compliance and access to oneCALL 24/7 breakdown support.

Stating the reasons for maintaining his company’s links with Carrier Transicold, Winn said that “The level of aftersales support we’ve enjoyed over the years from Carrier Transicold UK was key to winning our business again,” Mr Winn concluded his statement by declaring “We have complete trust in the product and the service network. Plus, the repair and maintenance agreement includes full compliance with the new F-Gas regulations, which is one less thing to worry about.”

For thier part, carrier claim that the Vector 1550 unit is suited to delivering fresh fruit and vegetables as it offers 14,995 watts cooling capacity for excellent pull-down speeds and temperature control, while simultaneously helping reduce fuel consumption and total cost of ownership compared to traditional belt-driven technology.