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Past Issues

September 2005

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A Western Cape winery contracted Nampak to supply them with bottles for their products. Afrit was tasked by transport operation Transnational Freightlink to supply the trailer which, according to Afrit marketing director Albert van der Wetering, was initially a flatbed designed to carry palette-loads of shrink-wrapped bottles under tarp, netting and straps.

"The problem with the flat bed was that the trailer sent vibrations through the palettes causing the bottles to rotate in their wrapping, scratching one another," explains van der Wetering. "Another problem was that it took about two hours to load the flatbed, what with the need to tarp, corner plate, net and strap the palettes down."

Afrit's designers executed a total rethink on what trailer type was best suited to solve the problems. They scrapped the flatbed and designed a rigid draw-bar tautliner combination.

"It's a unique vehicle," says van der Wetering. "It's a gull-wing with a hydraulic roof that lifts and drops to push down on the load to stop vibrations. The roof also acts as a corner plate, helping to cut down on loading time. The trailer has a rubber deck, a foam-lined centre partition with sponge lining and air suspension, all of which softens the ride considerably."

Mark Roeing, co-director of Transnational Freightlink says the development cycle took two years from prototype to full production. "We now have 16 combinations running between Gauteng and the Western Cape," he says. "The new design is so effective that we've cut out the bottle-scuffing problem by 99.97%. This was a big problem with the old flatbed and was costing our client huge amounts of money to sort and repackage their products. Loading time has been cut from two hours to twenty minutes because the load securement is all done mechanically." 

Nice one guys. Let's face it - who's going to buy a vintage red in a scratched bottle?

TOP Afrit sales  guy, Johan Hagg gets distracted by a camera while the gull-wing roof comes down.

THIS rigid-drawbar combo from Afrit replaces a flatbed for easier, quicker loading.

THE gull-wing roof is hydraulically powered to lower down onto the crates to stop them from vibrating.

THE drawbar trailer with its cushioned centre divide and curtain.

ALBERT VAN DER WESTHUIZEN , Afrit’s proud Marketing Director alongside a new aluminium brick carrier