November 11, 2022
5 min read
France
Bennes Vincent
Trailers and body builders
Hardox® In My Body
Tough on wear, gentle on the environment. When Bennes Vincent upgraded to Hardox® 500 Tuf, they could build tippers that have less tare weight, take a higher payload and are more sustainable – and more profitable.
Benne Vincent’s rear tippers are used in construction, roadworks and public works. A majority of their tipper bodies are built entirely in Hardox® wear plate, and they appreciate that they can use less steel with Hardox® 500 Tuf and still have the same wear resistance. And the less steel they use, the less their tippers weigh.
Get a design consultation with our technical support team“One of the biggest benefits when upgrading from Hardox 450 to Hardox® 500 Tuf is that you get a more high-end product, using less material and without changing any tools in the workshop,”
For Bennes Vincent’s customers, bodies that weigh less make a big difference. With reduced tare weight, not only can they load their tippers more than before, but they can travel lighter when the tipper is empty or not fully loaded. The results? Slashed fuel costs and less wear and tear on the trucks themselves.
“In just five years, the tipper body has already paid for itself and the following years translate into pure profit. The tipper body will last as long as the truck itself, if not longer,” Thal explains. But he says that the main advantage is the reduced environmental impact.
“By moving less unnecessary weight, you pollute less, and this is essentially what our customers are all aiming for.”
This is also in line with the European Union’s new and tougher CO2 emissions standards, which aim to reduce heavy-duty vehicle emissions by 15% from 2025 compared with 2019/2020 levels, and by 30% from 2030.
“Hardox® 500 Tuf is super resistant and has higher elasticity, so we can use thinner gauges than before. Our Multi-Blocs tipper body, for example, was using 8 mm (0.315 in.) thick floor plate and 6 mm (0.236 in.) side panels compared to 7 mm (0.276 in.) and 5 mm (0.197 in.) today with Hardox 500 Tuf.”
Bennes Vincent and SSAB have been partnering and innovating together for 30 years.
“We’ve always had a great relationship,” says Philippe Mengel, Bennes Vincent’s technical director. “Over the years, we’ve evolved our products alongside SSAB’s steel evolutions, which has allowed us to constantly keep improving our tipper bodies,” he says, noting that cooperation has grown into much more than just a commercial transaction.
“They are always there to support us technically, even in our own product designs, and help us with calculations and solutions. Personally, I’m on the phone with them pretty much every week.”
Bennes Vincent is also a member of the Hardox® In My Body program. Today, they make 80% of their tipper bodies with steel from SSAB’s Hardox wear plate product range, of which Hardox® 500 Tuf accounts for 10%. This is about to increase even more, since Bennes Vincent has started working Hardox® 500 Tuf into its two-way tipper bodies. And there are plans to ramp up production, for good reasons:
“The Brinell hardness is higher, the elasticity is increased, and the abrasion resistance is improved,” Thal concludes.
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