IVECO Daily and Tadano
If you’ve driven past any civil engineering project or large commercial building that’s under construction, it’s a fair bet you’ve driven past a Tadano crane, too. Founded more than 100 years ago, Tadano is one of the major players in the crane game worldwide. Their Australian arm – Tadano Oceania P/L – was established in 2010 and has become a leader locally, too.
Tadano’s range of lifting equipment covers wheeled cranes for city, rough terrain and all terrain applications, as well as crawler cranes, truck-mounted loader cranes and aerial work platforms.
With so much lifting equipment in circulation, and so much of it being of a significant scale, servicing isn’t a matter of driving to a Tadano dealership – repair and maintenance work needs to be done in the field. In fact, on-site servicing makes up a major component of the aftersales business for Tadano Oceania P/L. As such, their service fleet is important and must be practical, usable and reliable.
Three and One
Until recently, conventional utes made up the service fleet for Tadano Oceania P/L, but they now have four brand new IVECO Daily vehicles ready to support their customers. A trio of Daily 50C 4x2 vans and a Daily 50C 4x2 cab chassis are the new acquisitions and they’ve already proven their value, according to Michael Kobilke, Tadano Oceania’s Project Manager – Customer Service.
“One of the main reasons we opted for IVECO Daily was the additional space and carrying capacity the models provided,” Michael explained.
“The vans are 12 cubic metres in volume, so have a lot of room for storage and racking as well as a work bench, and a GVM of 4,495kg in both van and the cab chassis provides significantly more payload than standard utility vehicles.”
While Tadano selected the 12m3 Daily van for their requirements, other volumes are available, from 7.3 to 19.6m3, while GVM ranges from 3,800kg to 7,000kg
“A braked towing capacity of 3,500kg also provides the scope to tow a service trailer containing oils and lubricants, compressors, oil pumps and waste oil tanks – everything we need to conduct a full on-site service,” Michael added.
Inner Space, Extra Security
While some vans can be cramped inside, the Daily’s standard high roof allows people up to 6’ 2” (188cm) to fully stand-up in the back. In Tadano’s case, this means their service technicians can work without stooping, while also being out of the weather.
Another benefit with the Daily vans over traditional utes is the extra security they offer.
“Van service vehicles are more common in Europe and we wanted to mirror that here – given the spare parts, specialist tools and consumables we carry, it made more sense to opt for a secure, enclosed environment,” Michael explained.
To allow Tadano technicians to power a range of sensitive equipment, like computer systems, their Daily vans are also equipped with inverters, while additional interior and exterior lighting has been fitted to make work safer after dark.
While the Daily vans will be split across Tadano Oceania service facilities in Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland, the Daily cab chassis will go to WA’s Pilbara, assisting Tadano mining customers. With security not as much of a concern out there as it is for service vehicles in urban areas, the cab chassis was the better option.
Comfort and Safety
The car-like driving experience offered by the Daily’s auto transmission extends to other elements, like power windows, powered/heated mirrors, air con, keyless entry/locking, electronic park brake and a heated driver’s seat. All these in-cabin appointments mean that travelling long distances (as Tadano Oceania’s service techs are often required to do) isn’t a tiring experience.
The new Daily is well-equipped in terms of safety technology, too, which is yet another reason why Tadano Oceania P/L selected them.
“Safety is a major consideration for us as a company, so minimising fatigue while also providing technicians with a full suite of active and passive safety equipment such as four airbags, Advanced Emergency Braking System and ESP9 was important,” Michael said.
On top of IVECO’s comprehensive ESP9 suite of stability technologies, Hill Descent Control, Lane Departure Warning System, auto high beam lighting, TPMS, City Brake, Queue Assist and Traction Plus technologies are available as part of optional upgrade packs.
While most of these are self-explanatory or already familiar, City Brake is designed for stop-start urban applications and will apply the brakes autonomously in low-speed situations if an imminent collision is detected. Queue Assist works in a similar way, automatically accelerating and braking to reduce driver fatigue in congested traffic.
Traction Plus operates at low speeds (up to 30km/h) on slippery surfaces, automatically applying braking to the wheel that’s losing grip, transferring that torque to the wheel with the best traction.
Grow with IVECO
“This new vehicle investment is a major pillar to the growth strategies of Tadano Oceania – the importance of being customer focused allows us to target areas where we can make improvements on our customer experience touchpoints, along with providing a safe and efficient workspace for our team,” Michael concluded.
The new IVECO Daily service fleet for Tadano Oceania P/L was purchased through Adtrans Truck Centre in Laverton North, Melbourne.
