International Truck introduced a new lightweight concrete mixer option for its HV series heavy vocational model. The HV50B mixer package trims about 1,000 pounds from the truck’s tare weight with engineering optimizations that allow the hauling of up to 9.75 cubic yards of concrete while staying under 66,000 pounds gross weight.
These changes mean customers in certain locales currently able to legally carry 9 cubic yards of concrete will be able to increase their revenue by as much as $750 per truck, per day, said Mark Stasell, Navistar International’s vice president, vocational truck business. The spec also includes an improved line of sight for the driver.
The idea stemmed from a conversation between the company and a potential customer, Stassel said. “A major concrete producer was excited about our HV series but had some constructive feedback regarding the chassis weight and line of sight for their application,” he related. “As with all customer feedback, we took that challenge to heart and wanted to respond to these suggestions. We put together a small, passionate team and got creative from a design standpoint.”
The spec was designed to save pounds that don’t affect the integrity of the vehicle, Stassel said. It features an all-aluminum, lightweight bumper from the International HX series; modified the front suspension components, allowing for a lower hood height which leads to the increased visibility for the driver and improved safety on the work site; mounting of the fuel-water separator and air dryer on the same bracket, saving the weight of multiple brackets and making more room for concrete mixer hydraulics; and redesigned crossmember locations, further reducing the weight of the chassis and cutting the need for truck equipment manufacturers to relocate crossmembers.
“I’m very proud of what our team accomplished with this project and look forward to continuing to optimize our offerings based on the needs of our customers,” he said.
