Working country-wide demands reliability and efficiency at all levels. Large fleets can’t and won’t take chances when it comes to their equipment, and Milthorpe Transport is no different.
G.F. & R.J. Milthorpe are specialists in heavy haulage and general freight, and operate a transport fleet servicing every region of Australia on a regular basis. Started thirty years ago in Corowa, NSW the family owned business now holds an extensive Australia-wide network of depots, and scheduled freight services.
Milthorpe put their trucks through their paces by transporting mining equipment, as well as building supplies across the country, specialising in flat top work. Their heavy freight services run daily between Corowa and Melbourne, twice-weekly to Adelaide, Sydney and Brisbane and weekly to Western Australia and North Queensland with all points covered in between. Services to other destinations include Darwin, Central and Northern Territory and the rural mining communities in Western Australia.
So when Managing Director Greg Milthorpe needed another heavy duty model for his fleet, he turned to Isuzu, purchasing an FYJ. Greg added an eight tonne crane and an alloy tray to the new model to carry large power transformers twice weekly from Corowa to Sydney.
The FYJ joins another four Isuzu models, which vary across the F Series range including a FXL 1500 and an FVR 1000.
“We looked around at other trucks, but we’ve had a number of Isuzus over the years and we’ve had a very good run out of them,” Greg said. “We know they’re going to give us good service and they haven’t let us down this time around either.”
With 50 staff, and some drivers spending up to ten hours a day in the truck, it was essential to Milthorpe that the new addition gives much needed comfort on long hauls.
The FYJ boasts an ECE-R29 compliant cab, an ADR 42-04 compliant sleeper with mattress and benefits from a DAB radio and DAVE unit with a 6.2’’ LCD touch screen for added driver comfort.
“The drivers have said the cab is comfortable, and they’re good movers with good visibility. They have a lot of things going for them, and a lot of great features,” Greg said.
Nationally accredited for their safety in vehicle mass and maintenance management, and fatigue management for drivers, Milthorpe pride themselves on providing the safest environment possible for their staff. Keeping drivers safe is always high on Isuzu’s priorities too –double side-intrusion bars, seatbelt pre-tensioners and load-limiters, and driver airbags all come as standard across the FY range.
Working with local Isuzu dealership Blacklocks, in Wodonga VIC, helped Milthorpe Transport find a truck that was perfectly suited for their application.
“We went to the dealers, and Tom Wighton the dealer and I put a package together on paper, and decided we wanted a 14 tonne payload on the Twin Steer and that’s what we achieved”.
“The FY models now come with FUPS (Front Under-run Protection System) meaning you can safely carry up to 6.5 tonnes over the front axle.
This is ideal for Milthorpe as the FYJ’s load-sharing twin-steer front axle can undertake a multitude of heavy duty applications, making the daily grind easier for Greg’s drivers when delivering freight.
“Isuzu are dependable, and were very good to work with, we are very happy. They’re great trucks, and down the line we’d be looking to buy another one. We’ve grown slowly over the years, we haven’t changed much but we’ve grown with the times. I don’t want 100 trucks, I just want to be comfortable and to be able to rely on them every time”.
“The trucks are very reliable, and that’s what’s important to us.”
