Vehicle Weighing Solutions says that under the Road Traffic Act and The Motor Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations it is an offence to use or permit the use of overweight vehicles, either GVW or axle weights for a variety of sensible, practical safety reasons. Offenders not only face a £5,000 fine, but repeat offenders could lose their Operator’s License – and VOSA is good at identifying and stopping trucks.
 
The solution, it says, is to fit vehicles with systems that warn when an axle or vehicle is approaching an overload. One of the key drivers for this industry is Landfill Tax, which accounts for 60% of an operator’s disposal costs. “The upstream measurement transfer from volume to weight is working its way to individual bins providing optimum profitability and efficiency,” VWS says.

There are also incentives schemes, such as Recyclebank (recyclebank.com) where residents are rewarded with credits for the amount they recycle and divert from landfill. The credits are exchanged for goods and services from retailers. Each truck has bin-weighing kit installed with an identification system, so that behaviour and the effect of marketing on waste producers can be measured.

Julian Glasspole, MD of VWS says “We believe it is paramount that customers get value for money, especially in these difficult economic times. Quality and reliability are designed into the VWS product but speed and manufacturing techniques are also important factors at the point of assembly and packing. VWS customises its systems for each customer,” he adds.

VWS has developed a range of systems to handle on-board weighing demands including M350S, which has been built for refuse collection vehicles and incorporates a clear, bright, easy-to-read display that can be dash, panel or weatherproof-trailer mounted and fits neatly into DIN cab radio slots. VWS is one the first companies to use modular open CAN technology.

The company’s SD data card logger means weight readings can be easily stored and transferred stored so data can be analysed or weight-based invoices raised on basic and high-end software systems. Other VWS products include the Enviroweigh bin-weighing system, and standard and bespoke weighbridge and platform weighing scales.
 
On-board weighing will continue to improve, especially in the way companies are organised and run. The key competence is proving to be quality products supported by a dedicated and skilled service team. Technology and legislation will continue to offer operators more safety and efficiency advances and this in-turn will deliver better services to their customers.

ENDS