Swedish Haulier Fermgruppen Sees Fuel-Consumption Savings In Field Tests Of Scania 560 R XT
Swedish transport and logistics supplier Fermgruppen AB is no stranger to operating Scania trucks or to participating in Scania field tests. The Sundsvall-based company was established in 2004 based on nine Scania trucks that founder Richard Ferm purchased from his father. Now operating a 26-truck Scania fleet, Fermgruppen recently ran field tests in Northern Sweden on Scania 560 R XT equipped with the manufacturer’s new Super powertrain. This marks Fermgruppen’s third Scania field test.
“Everyone strives for reduced costs and a higher degree of utilisation, and this truck has shown that during this time,” says Ferm. “In terms of fuel consumption, it’s 20% lower than our other trucks on the same route. I have been out driving the truck several times, and the main positives I can see, apart from the better fuel consumption, are the drivability and the driver environment; it runs very quietly in the cab. I also find the new gearbox to be a benefit. All in all, it’s a very nice truck, and I think the field test is a great interaction because your feedback is really taken on board.”
Field-Tested
During test, Fermgruppen drivers drove the 13-litre Scania 560 R XT with its G33 gearbox into forests surrounding Sundsvall each day to pick up 60-tonne (66-U.S.-ton) log loads that they then delivered to depots owned by SCA Group, Europe’s largest private forest owner. For a truck to operate effectively in such an environment, Ferm says fuel efficiency is essential, as are all-weather reliability and the ability traverse rough, unpaved forest tracks, all while keeping drivers safe on narrow roads.
Frida Lautin, one of nine female drivers in Fermgruppen’s crew of nearly 50, says the drivability, fuel efficiency, and extra power the Super powertrain and gearbox have delivered in field tests were difference-makers. Also key was the Scania 560 R XT’s liftable and disengageable tandem bogie, which Fermgruppen says helps save up to 6% on fuel and reduces the truck’s turning radius. Scania says lifting takes less than 25 seconds, and most fuel savings relate to the reduced friction inside the second (disconnected) axle gearing.
“Because we have to load so much, the tandem means the trailer becomes lighter,” says Lautin.
Ferm adds, “We have been waiting for the liftable tandem for several years, so we’re happy to have it now.”
The Scania R Series
The Scania 560 R XT that Fermgruppen tested has a 560-horsepower (418-kilowatt) DC13 engine and 64-t (70.5-U.S.-t) train weight. Scania R series trucks are available in tractor and rigid configurations with day low, day normal, sleeper low, sleeper normal, and sleeper highline cab options. Engine options include Euro 6-compliant 9-, 13-, or 16-L power plants in five-, six-, and eight-cylinder configurations featuring Scania’s XPI injection system. Power outputs range from 280 to 770 HP (209 to 574 kilowatts), and the engines can be run on HVO (hydrotreated vegetable oil).
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Source: Scania