Lorry shell sales of £2m and jobs on the way
It is the shape of things to come for lorries - and has helped one Black Country company chalk up more than £2 million sales.
It is the shape of things to come for lorries - and has helped one Black Country company chalk up more than £2 million sales.
The distinctive aero-dynamic lorry shell, designed by Bevan Motor Bodies, reduced diesel bills by around 15 per cent.
And it has attracted interest from some of the UK's largest haulage companies.
Bevan builds the new sloping bodies at its plant in Blakeley Hall Rd, Oldbury. It employs around 160 people at its four sites, including operations at Halesowen, Darlaston and Wednesbury.
Its bulging order book means that it is looking to create new jobs going into 2011.
Retail chain Argos and Willenhall-based delivery firm Nightfreight are among those to have bought the lorries.
Its aerodynamic "eco" body reduces weight, increases the amount of freight it can carry and means the lorry needs to refuel less often.
Operations director Lee Dimmock said: "Our order intake is now experiencing impressive increases in 2010. Employment has also increased and, with exciting plans for new model variations in the pipeline, we expect more jobs to be created shortly.
"The response from our customers has been phenomenal, with the likes of Nightfreight placing orders and Argos requesting 100 vehicles."
The company this week gave West Bromwich West MP Adrian Bailey, chairman of Parliament's business select committee, a special demonstration of its new Bevan 21.
He was joined on the tour by Martin McKeever, specialist manufacturing adviser from the Wolverhampton Science Park-based Manufacturing Advisory Service-West Midlands, or WAS-WM, a government-backed organisation set up to support industry in the region.
Mr Dimmock added: "We are always looking at developing new products to stay ahead of the market and the low carbon marketplace offers us an excellent opportunity to put our design and technical expertise to the fore.
"Working with the Manufacturing Advisory Service-West Midlands, our in-house team spent hundreds of hours developing the aerodynamic frame that gives the 'Bevan 21' such unique performance."
Mr Bailey said: "Bevan is a perfect example of how manufacturing in the West Midlands is evolving. It has successfully recognised the need to develop new products to remain competitive."
