Schmitz Cargobull, Europe’s leading manufacturer of semi-trailers, has revealed its first new product from its UK plant as the S.KO PACE SMART – a fully modular dry-freight semi-trailer designed for UK and Irish operators with market-specific features.
Boris Billich, Chief Sales Officer and Member of the Executive Board, says: “The launch of the S.KO PACE SMART is a significant development for the dry freight market in the UK and Ireland because of the benefits it brings to operators and because it is built in Manchester. Landed costs, carbon emissions and lead times will be significantly reduced. I am really excited to extend our product range with the S.KO PACE, a product that will provide outstanding value for UK and Irish operators.”
The S.KO PACE SMART is targeted primarily at the parcel delivery and dry freight market, combining Schmitz Cargobull’s renowned quality build with innovative honeycomb STRUKTOPLAST panels. The lightweight panels mean each trailer weighs around 600 kg less than competitor models. As a result, the tare weight of the trailer remains consistent over time, ensuring the payload potential on day one is maintained for the life of the asset. It will also significantly reduce carbon emissions over the lifetime of the trailer which operators can expect to translate into lower fuel bills.
Paul Avery, UK Managing Director Operations, explains: “The S.KO PACE SMART offers the high standards of quality and durability customers expect from Schmitz Cargobull. It is built on Schmitz Cargobull’s fully galvanised MODULOS chassis that has proven itself millions of times over and comes with a 10-year warranty against rust-through.”
The S.KO PACE SMART is fully EN 12642 code XL certified and offers a variety of options including load securing rails, translucent roof, tail lift and two choices of doors – rear shutter, or aluminium barn doors. Furthermore, its ROTOS axles are covered by a 1,000,000 km or six-year warranty.
It can be fitted with any load restraint to protect parcels including rear parcel safety nets or gates, and has a standard floor strength of 5.5 tonnes, with options to increase to 7.1 tonnes or 8.0 tonnes for those carrying heavier loads or needing to move materials handling equipment. The Schmitz Cargobull telematics system TrailerConnect is fitted as a standard to provide intelligent connectivity and support fast diagnostics of all components with the telematics control unit.
Avery adds: “Opening the UK factory this year has been a fantastic opportunity and as a team we are extremely proud of the quality of the manufacturing process we have created. It is incredibly rewarding that we have had so many orders placed already.”
The Schmitz Cargobull plant in Manchester has so far created 40 jobs in production and administration and is now home of the entire UK team of currently 62 employees.