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Dec 3, 2012 2:16 PM

The  Co-operative Group has become one of the first customers for a dramatically  styled aerodynamic truck body launched by UK-based Gray & Adams—the  Dolphin, with a streamlined profile that evokes the ultra-efficient aquatic  mammal.

Designed  to maximize fuel-efficiency and thereby cut CO2 emissions, it also  features all-new leading-edge cappings that follow the 3D curvature of the  roof, and a vortex generator to smooth the airflow around the back of the  vehicle.

The  Co-operative’s two Dolphins were built at Gray & Adams’ Dunfermline  production facility and are fitted to 26-tonne Scania chassis with  roof-mounted, adjustable air deflectors by Hatcher Components.

The Carrier Supra 950 refrigeration unit is mounted  above the cab roof. And despite the fact that the body’s roofline then tapers  towards the rear of the truck, there is still sufficient interior space to  accommodate the roll cages used by The Co-operative to transport its frozen and  chilled product – in fact, the reduced roof height offers an environmental  benefit, because energy is not wasted on cooling empty and unrequired  loadspace.   

Both  vehicles have entered service at The Co-operative Group’s recently opened  regional distribution centre in Avonmouth, from where they are being used to  supply smaller stores and convenience outlets.

“We’re  always keen to explore any opportunities to cut costs, especially our fuel  bill, while at the same time reducing our carbon footprint and improving our  environmental profile,” said Ken Thompson, Logistics Service Transport Fleet  Manager for The Co-operative Group.

“The  new Dolphin represents a very exciting development. These vehicles are  certainly turning heads and we will be monitoring their performance in terms of  fuel efficiency with great interest over the coming months.”

Thompson  is responsible for a fleet of around 2,700 rigid trucks, tractor units and  trailers, which service The Co-operative Group’s 4,000-plus stores from a  network of 12 regional distribution centers. 

Gray  & Adams is a long-term supplier and all insulated bodywork, and trailers it  manufactures for The Co-operative are fabricated using GRP panels impregnated  with the operator’s corporate shade of green, so that minor accident damage is  not obviously visible.   

This  year’s orders have included batches of bodies for 14-, 18- and 26-tonne rigids,  single- and double-deck 13.6m trailers, and 8.3m and 10.5m command steer urban  trailers.

In  another new development Gray & Adams has also just delivered several 15.65m  semi-insulated dry freight trailers, which The Co-operative Group is now  running as part of the much-publicized Department for  Transport-backed trial of longer semi-trailers.

Based in Coventry, these trailers deliver to stores in Leicester  and Ipswich that cannot be accessed by double-deckers because of local height  restrictions. The 15.65m trailer can accommodate up to 60 roll cages, still  well shy of the 81 that can be carried on a double-decker, but a useful 17.6  per cent increase on the 51-cage capacity of a single-deck 13.6m trailer.

Mr Thompson continued: “Our equipment has to be able to withstand  the rigors of a very intensive, seven-day delivery operation. Experience has  shown that Gray & Adams’ products give us a high degree of reliability with  very little downtime for seven, eight and sometimes up to 10 years.”