Simon Blake, Head of Transport, London Borough of Havering said: “Overloading is always an issue with sweepers especially in wet conditions when the hopper is only partially full but you’ve reached the payload. We needed an intelligent weighing system that would enable us to maximise the efficiency of the vehicles by collecting as much as possible, but without overloading and risk losing our Operators Licence.

​

Overloading vehicles puts undue stress on the tyres and a braking system, which means more maintenance and vehicle downtime, plus increased fuel usage.

​

Simon continued: “We trialled the VOPS2 system in a range of conditions and we were impressed. There is an in cab display with an alarm that can either be set to sound off just before or when the maximum weight is reached so you can achieve a good payload, value for money and not have wasted trips to the transfer station. The weighbridge tickets showed that the loads were spot on.”

​

The VOPS2 systems were installed to the sweepers by VWS engineers on site at London Borough of Havering’s well-equipped vehicle workshops. Installation times can vary between 4-8 hours per vehicle depending on vehicle type and customer workshop facilities. Fitting can also be done at VWS’s Installation Centre in Chesterfield.

​

The VOPS2 system doesn’t rely on the use of springs, which can stretch and require regular adjustment; it uses electronic load sensors that are installed between the axle and the body of the vehicle to detect the load applied to the axles. The reading is more accurate and the system can be fitted to any commercial vehicle ranging from 3.5-7.5 tonne GVW. The system only requires calibrating once a year.

 

Julian Glasspole, Managing Director, VWS said: “Overloading can be easy to do and around 20% of vans that are stopped are found to be over capacity. VOPS2 is leading in its field, providing operators with reliable data and peace of mind that overloading will be prevented.”