CTVDOLL in NZ Trucking

Sky High
Service
B y P E T E R LY N C H
Photos by OLIVER LI
VIDEO
www.nztruckingdigital.co.nz
Feeding millions of
aircraft passengers every
year involves a specialised
fleet of road vehicles.
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NZ TruckiNg
April 2015
I
f you thought preparing dinner for the
extended family is a logistical headache,
spare a thought for the team at LSG Sky
Chefs at Auckland Airport, who prepare up
to 20,000 meals each day, loading them on to
some 75 different aircraft at all hours of the
day and night.
The LSG Sky Chefs Auckland operation is a
medium-sized facility, part of their global catering network comprising 208 customer service
centres in 54 countries.
The Auckland facility is impressive. A major
building programme has just been completed
with a new 11,000sq metre building designed to
keep up with increasing airline demand.
Properties and Facilities Manager Jim
Boekhorst enlightened us on the 500 skilled
kitchen staff, high local quality ingredients, ever
changing menus and regular food tasting sessions.
He then reminded us that this area was off
limits, for security reasons. It was, after all, the
road transport operation we were here to see.
LSG Sky Chefs has a fleet of 23 road vehicles
in Auckland, most of which are high loader
trucks designed to transport food out to waiting
aircraft and load it on board.
As passenger aircraft have grown, the task has
become more complex especially with the introduction of the new Airbus A380, which brought
with it a fresh set of challenges.
An A380 is almost 73m long and 80m across
its vast wings; it carries up to 850 passengers
and is stickered for a gross take-off weight of
560 tonnes.
The major challenge for ground crews is that
the loading doors for the upper deck are 8.3m
above ground, well outside the reach of the
older generation of high loader trucks. Two of
those doors are over the wings, making access
more difficult.
LSG Sky Chefs Auckland had to invest in
three new state-of-the art high loader trucks to
service the A380s and it is the latest of these,
based on a three-axle MAN chassis, that we are
specifically interested in.
In MAN terminology, the truck is a 23.290
(6x2) with a gross weight of 23 tonnes, a 290hp
engine and single drive/lazy axle setup bringing
up the rear.
The TGM is the middle weight workhorse of
the MAN range, available in 4x2, 4x4, 6x2, 6x4
and 8x4 configurations up to 30 tonnes GVM.
Power comes from the company’s D0836 six
cylinder in-line diesel with ratings of 250hp,
290hp or 340hp, all of which produce maximum power at 2300rpm.
The D0836 incorporates the latest technology from Europe with twin turbochargers, four
valves per cylinder and electronically controlled
common rail fuel injection. It meets Euro 5 by
means of a cooled EGR system. The net result
is a responsive but surprisingly quiet engine with
full torque of 1150Nm (for the 290hp version)
available anywhere from 1200 to 1750rpm.
There is plenty of retarding action as well from
MAN’s built-in engine brake.
Standard transmission for the TGM range is
MAN’s 12- speed TipMatic automated manual,
although a 9-speed ZF manual is available as an
option. The TipMatic, built by ZF, is a constant
mesh design with automated clutch operation
and ratios from 10.37 to one through to an overdrive 0.81 top gear.
The new MAN high loader
works alongside an older
unit which can only reach
the lower deck of the Airbus
A380.
April 2015 NZ Trucking 33
The MAN D0836 engine is
available in 250,290 or 340
hp ratings.
Personnel access is via this
door on the High Loader
body. Food and Beverage
trolleys are secured in
groups.
From the driver’s seat normal driving is simplicity itself; no clutch pedal and a rotary dial
in the centre console to select drive, neutral or
reverse. There is additional position at either
end of the selector marked Dm and Rm for low
speed manoeuvring such as coupling up to a
trailer.
If desired, the transmission can be operated
manually with up and down shifts selected by
a stalk on the left side of the steering column.
MAN’s Easy Start system is also fitted which
holds the brakes on briefly until the accelerator
is pressed, avoiding the possibility of the truck
rolling backwards during a hill start.
Chassis design also reflects current European
practice with electronically controlled air suspension at the rear and disc brakes all round
with ABS, traction control and stability control.
The TGM has a clear top flange and a multitude
of pre-drilled holes intended to make body fitment easier.
The LSG Sky Chefs truck is fitted with a basic
yet comfortable three-seater day cab, but MAN
has dual cab and full-sized sleeper options. That
high loader bodywork sits right down over the
cab in the lowered position, helping keep the
centre of gravity down for on-road operation.
34 NZ Trucking April 2015
The trip from the LSG Sky Chefs’ Auckland
facility to the aircraft ramp is only a kilometre or
so but the first section is on public roads, so all
vehicles have to comply with normal mass and
dimension limits.
High loader catering bodies are a specialist bit
of gear and CTV Doll of Thailand is the largest
such manufacturer of these and other dedicated
aircraft support vehicles.
LSG Sky Chefs new MAN TGM came off
its normal production line in Steyr, Austria. It
was transferred to a truck modification centre
to have the trailing axle fitted, then shipped
to CTV Doll in Thailand for body fitment and
finally sent on to New Zealand.
Basically, the high loader has a box van body
with doors at either end which can be raised
to the required height by means of a massive
scissor lift mechanism. The truck has to be accurately positioned in relation to the aircraft door
and stabilised by hydraulic legs before lifting.
Power is taken from a high capacity PTO-driven
pump on the MAN transmission, meaning a lot
of engine hours are clocked up for relatively
small road mileage.
To reach the over-wing doors on the A380, the
latest CTV Doll unit has an additional function
to slide the front section of the high loader body
to one side. Outgoing food, beverages, magazines, audio headsets and other requirements are
then wheeled onto the aircraft in trolleys and
secured in the appropriate galleys.
There is not a lot of volume or weight involved
– around 500kgs per galley – but this new unit
has a permissible payload of 4500kg, meaning
two or three outgoing flights can be serviced
without returning to the catering facility. Tare
weight of the truck is a hefty 17.5 tonnes,
requiring the move to a 6x2 chassis whereas
previous high loader units fitted nicely on a 4x2.
The MAN 23.290 is a model designed specifically for the Australian and New Zealand market
where lower axle weights apply and tare weight
is critical. Use of 19.5in tyres keeps c­hassis
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LSG Sky Chefs’ trucks have to be fully compliant with
road regulations for the short trip to the terminal.
Gear selection is via a rotary dial.
MAN dash is well laid out.
Outriggers have to be extended and lowered prior to
raising the body.
Trolleys and bags of audio headsets being loaded via
the rear door.
Larger body allows several aircraft to be serviced in
one trip.
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April 2015
NZ TruckiNg
35
height down and provides better stability for
high loads.
Driver Ali started out on LSG Sky Chefs’
older 4x2 trucks and finds the new MAN easy
to drive. “Just like a big car” he explained during our brief run out to the tarmac where three
A380s were due in. Some body roll is evident on
roundabouts reminding us of the substantial tare
weight otherwise, as Ali says, it would be easy to
forget you are driving a heavy truck.
There looks to be acres of concrete out on
the tarmac but with numerous other vehicles
engaged in servicing one aircraft, manoeuvrability and good vision are critical.
There also seems to be a lot of waiting around
in this job, but once the plane is safely parked
up, everyone has to move quickly. Delaying an
international flight after the scheduled departure time costs thousands of dollars a minute
and LSG Sky Chefs does everything possible
to ensure the reliability of its service. All the
fleet are well maintained and local contractor
Transmech NZ Ltd is on call around the clock in
the event of breakdowns.
The MAN TGM certainly works well in this
specialised role but has much broader applications across the distribution and construction
sector.
Dean Hoverd, national sales manager for
Penske Commercial Vehicles, points out the
traditional price advantage enjoyed by Japanese
makers is narrowing and that MAN is well
placed to increase its market share.
He feels better fuel economy, cab comforts
and safety are major selling points for MAN and
that models tailored specifically for the New
Zealand market will appeal to a wider range of
buyers.
We will look at a different application of the
MAN TGM in a future issue.

S P E C I F I C AT I O N S
MAN TGM 23;290
Tare:
17,500kg ( complete with High loader body )
Chassis dimensions:
220x70x7mm single rail
GVM:
23,000kg
Front axle:
MAN VOK-036 6300kg rating
GCM:
33,000kg
Front suspension:
Parabolic leaf springs 6000kg rating
Wheelbase:
5475mm ( first to second axle )
Brakes:
Engine:
MAN D0836
Knorr air operated disc brakes all round with ABS
and ‘Hill Hold’ function
Engine capacity:
6871cc
Auxiliary Brake:
MAN EVB engine brake
Maximum power:
290hp (213kW)
at 2300rpm
Wheels and tyres:
305/70R19.5 Continental tyres on 8.25x19.5 8 hole
steel disc wheels
Maximum torque:
1150Nm from 1200 to 1750rpm
Electrical system:
24V with 80 amp alternator
Clutch:
Single plate with automated operation
Steering:
Mercedes LS6 power assisted reticulating ball
Diameter:
395mm
Brakes:
Air operated 430mm discs with ABS and ASR
Transmission:
MAN 12 speed TipMatic automated constant mesh
Park brake:
Spring operated on both rear axles
Drive axle:
MAN HY-1130 hypoid single reduction with
differential lock 10,000kg rating
Auxiliary brake:
Mercedes Engine brake – 180kW at 2700rpm
Ratio:
4.11 to 1
Wheels:
10 stud steel 9.00 x 22.5
Tag axle:
MAN N-10 10,000kg rating
Tyres:
315/60R22.5 Bridgestone
Rear suspension:
MAN electronically controlled eight airbag system
17,000kg rating
Fuel tank:
150 litre rectangular alloy tank on RHS.
Electrical system:
24V
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NZ TruckiNg
April 2015