Legal Brief
New Actros is Poetry in Motion for Burns
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Two of Scotland’s first new generation Mercedes Actros tractor units have taken to the road in the smart silver liveries of Burns Express Freight.
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Founded in 1993 by Managing Director Derek Burns, the company initially specialised in UK same day and urgent European work, but has since broadened its portfolio to include overnight UK deliveries, and Irish groupage and parcel services; it is also a member of the national Pallet-Track network.
Burns Express Freight operates an all-Mercedes fleet of 11 trucks and a dozen vans from headquarters at Linwood, close to Glasgow Airport, and depots in Belfast and Dublin.
The firm returned to Glasgow dealer Western Commercial for its new, premium specification units. Both are Actros 2546 models with Long Distance sleeper cabs and 460hp BlueTec® Euro 5 engines, which qualify for Reduced Pollution Certificates that bring £500 savings in Vehicle Excise Duty, annually for the life of the vehicle.
New Actros is easily distinguished from its predecessor by its reworked front grille and sculpted external sun visor, and is the first truck to come equipped as standard with an automated transmission (Mercedes PowerShift 2). The cab interior is also classier and more modern, with improved bunks and host of new features.
Replacements for a pair of two-year-old Actros which went back to the dealer having reached their end of their operating lease terms, the new arrivals are Burns Express Freight’s only tractor units – the company also runs half a dozen curtainsided Axor 18-tonners, as well as two 13-tonne and one 7.5-tonne Atego. Its 3.5-tonne Sprinters, meanwhile, are a combination of panel vans and box-bodied chassis cabs with tail-lifts.
Both Actros are on local delivery duties during the day; one also trunks, on a rotating basis, to the Pallet-Track hub in the Midlands each night.
“These are still early days but first impressions of the new model are certainly positive,” confirms Derek Burns. “We’ve been an all-Mercedes operation for five years now – we like the all round quality, fuel-effciency and reliability of the vehicles, while our drivers appreciate their comfort and ease of use.
“After sales back-up is important too, of course,” he continues, “and we receive excellent support from the service team at Western Commercial’s Govan depot, who inspect and maintain our vehicles through the night so they’re always available when we need them.”
He adds: “We’re more than holding our own and quite pleased with the level of business we’re doing in the current market, but the £500 VED savings will certainly be very welcome.”
Burns Express Freight operates an all-Mercedes fleet of 11 trucks and a dozen vans from headquarters at Linwood, close to Glasgow Airport, and depots in Belfast and Dublin.
The firm returned to Glasgow dealer Western Commercial for its new, premium specification units. Both are Actros 2546 models with Long Distance sleeper cabs and 460hp BlueTec® Euro 5 engines, which qualify for Reduced Pollution Certificates that bring £500 savings in Vehicle Excise Duty, annually for the life of the vehicle.
New Actros is easily distinguished from its predecessor by its reworked front grille and sculpted external sun visor, and is the first truck to come equipped as standard with an automated transmission (Mercedes PowerShift 2). The cab interior is also classier and more modern, with improved bunks and host of new features.
Replacements for a pair of two-year-old Actros which went back to the dealer having reached their end of their operating lease terms, the new arrivals are Burns Express Freight’s only tractor units – the company also runs half a dozen curtainsided Axor 18-tonners, as well as two 13-tonne and one 7.5-tonne Atego. Its 3.5-tonne Sprinters, meanwhile, are a combination of panel vans and box-bodied chassis cabs with tail-lifts.
Both Actros are on local delivery duties during the day; one also trunks, on a rotating basis, to the Pallet-Track hub in the Midlands each night.
“These are still early days but first impressions of the new model are certainly positive,” confirms Derek Burns. “We’ve been an all-Mercedes operation for five years now – we like the all round quality, fuel-effciency and reliability of the vehicles, while our drivers appreciate their comfort and ease of use.
“After sales back-up is important too, of course,” he continues, “and we receive excellent support from the service team at Western Commercial’s Govan depot, who inspect and maintain our vehicles through the night so they’re always available when we need them.”
He adds: “We’re more than holding our own and quite pleased with the level of business we’re doing in the current market, but the £500 VED savings will certainly be very welcome.”
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