Lancashire-based GBA Services, specialists in time-critical logistics, has taken delivery of six new 3.5-tonne Mercedes-Benz Sprinter vans, specified with lightweight and powerful FSDF member Carrier Transicold Xarios 350 refrigeration units. They will be used for long-distance temperature-sensitive deliveries across the UK and Europe, each covering up to 100,000 miles per year.
The new vehicles will be used on various contracts covering deliveries of controlled and patient-critical pharmaceuticals, as well as supplying research drugs to laboratories as far north as the Arctic Circle, and south to Greece. The Xarios 350 unit provides GBA Services with a system capable of maintaining precise temperature set points when outside temperatures could range from -25 to +50 degrees Celsius. “We transport specialist loads to customers, frequently over very long distances, and we are required to maintain pinpoint temperature set points throughout the cold chain,” said Mark Hailwood, fleet manager, GBA Services. “We have to be sure the vehicles we specify are up to the task, and if there is ever a problem that we’ll be able to fix it, quickly.
“We’ve been working with Carrier Transicold for more than 10 years and they’ve never let us down. The combination of reliable transport refrigeration systems and a Europe-wide service network is exactly what we need to keep our operation on the road.”
All the new systems are covered by Carrier Transicold’s comprehensive everCOLD™ full-service repair and maintenance package. This includes annual temperature control testing and certification, full regulatory checks and access to Carrier Transicold’s Europe-wide oneCALL 24/7 incident management service.
GBA Services expects each new Sprinter to remain in the fleet for around four years. This most recent order is comprised of four Solomon converted panel vans and two chassis cabs with Solomon box bodies. They join a fleet of 16 Carrier-cooled Sprinters already in service, complimenting seven refrigerated trailers fitted with Carrier Transicold Vector units.
GBA Services was established in 1987 and specialises in movements of time-critical, dedicated, temperature-controlled, high security and hazardous freight.
