Heavy Duty Trucking, December 2018
HDT DECEMBER 2018 80 WWW TRUCKINGINFO COM ometimes changing out the most basic engine component can have a profound effect on fleet operations Thats the case in Texas where Harold Graves director of maintenance for Texas Disposal Systems discovered his technicians were spending less time under the hoods of his trucks when he swapped out standard OEM fans for Horton RCV250 variable drive engine fans The fleet is primarily composed of Mack and Peterbilt refuse trucks equipped with Allison transmissions and brake retarders working in a tough stop and go urban application in a hot muggy climate Working in that environment fan hub failures were an almost weekly occurrence Graves says And when we had a fan failure it would usually fly right through the radiator So wed end up with a truck that needed a tow back to our shop and two major components replaced To counter the problem Texas Disposal began field testing the Horton RCV250 cooling fan a couple of years ago Graves says the fleet met with good success right off the bat with both Mack MP7 and Cummins engines Fully variable speed control reduces operating noise lowers fuel costs and provides cold weather performance advantages according to Horton The RCV250 is an integrated belt driven fan drive that can be mounted in various locations to eliminate the vibration inherent in traditional driveshaft mounted fan drives On trash collection routes Graves says the benefits of the switch have been more consistent engine temperatures as well as better coolant flow in radiators with less clogging And of course fewer fan failures The real selling point here is that when an RCV250 fan fails it does so in its default Horton finds a new fan Texas Disposal Systems needed a more reliable engine fan that could handle hot humid climates and wouldnt destroy a trucks radiator if it failed Hortons RCV250 cooling fan fit the bill and proved to be significantly quieter during refuse operations as well A new engine fan helped one Texas refuse fleet cut maintenance costs while boosting safety On position Graves says So even though its not functioning properly it still continues to cool the truck And the bearings are set up in a way that doesnt allow a failed fan to fly off the hub and into the radiator So the truck can either finish its route or limp home And the price of the fan repair isnt augmented by an additional radiator repair Additionally our drivers have noted that the trucks are much quieter which helps us with safety as well By Jack Roberts Senior Editor jroberts@ truckinginfo com FLEET SNAPSHOT WHO Texas Disposal Systems WHERE Austin Texas FLEET 265 power units 300 trailers OPERATIONS Refuse recycling in Central Texas FUN FACT 2000 head of exotic animals on the companys headquarters grounds CHALLENGE Minimize fan failure damage and decrease total cost of ownership FLEET TALK S PHOTOS TEXAS DISPOSAL SYSTEMS
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