Back in 2009, Matt Wood, a regional maintenance manager for Republic Services, asked himself a few questions.

1. Could lighter-weight trucks deliver enough savings in fuel and other costs to offset lost productivity?
2. Is there a way to prevent drivers from overloading and damaging the lighter trucks?
3. Could the trucks be built to last as long as their heavier counterparts?
4. And, if all the above were true, could such a truck possibly be affordable?

Wood worked with Heil Environmental on concepting the lighter-weight trucks—and to find answers to the above questions. Republic and Heil spent about a year and a half developing the truck, and another seven months testing 15 Heil Half/Pack Freedom front-loading trucks in Houston, Texas.

The results of those tests are now in, and virtually all the numbers confirm the performance and projected cost savings of the lighter-weight models. The 15 test trucks also underwent recent structural inspections and passed those with flying colors.

“I would say the lighter trucks have exceeded my expectations,” Wood says. “I think it’s one of the coolest things we’ve done in a while, and long-term it’s the right way to go.”

While lighter-weight trucks previously have been available, the Heil Half/Pack Freedom model separates itself through its load-control system, Wood says.

The trucks cannot be overloaded because of patent-pending Heil technology. That new loading system—called the Heil Overload Prevention System, or HOPS™—convinced Wood it was time to test the lighter trucks.

“We had to have a way to regulate the payload,” Wood says. “Otherwise, drivers would continue with their old loading habits, and they could damage the new trucks. Controlling how much they could load was crucial to considering the lighter weight trucks. HOPS provides us with that control. Once that system was developed, we saw it was time to test the trucks.”

The trucks have delivered some key benefits for Republic. Among them:

• Improved fuel efficiency of 6 percent to 8 percent
• A reduction in tire wear of 6 percent to 8 percent
• A nearly identical savings on brake wear

The lighter weights also should extend the life of both the chassis and the body, says Nate Davis, product manager with Heil. HOPS will be key to that longevity. “With properly sized payloads in the body, we expect a much longer life,” Davis says. “Before a body might last eight to 10 years. Now that could stretch to 10-12 years.”

Perhaps most appealing, Republic’s analysis showed the benefits could be gained without a loss in productivity. “We haven’t lost any—not one bit,” Wood says. “We’ve reduced costs without sacrificing anything. In fact we’ve found some unexpected benefits,” such as improved operator comfort.

Wood has been involved from the beginning. He originally challenged Heil to build a truck with a true lightweight body that could haul a 10.5-ton legal payload—yet maintain its structural integrity.Even then Wood saw two factors as crucial to the success of the lighter-weight truck. The first was obvious: removing enough weight to make a difference. That was achieved by shedding as much as 5,000 pounds from the body and 2,000 pounds from the chassis.

“We’ve done that by using alternative materials, such as aluminum and some plastic composites,” says Nate Davis, product manager with Heil.

The new materials are used “only in ancillary areas,” Davis says. “It’s a low-risk, weight-saving strategy. We took weight out of areas of the body that don’t see a lot of force or stress.”

Specifically, the cab shield was converted to aluminum, while the top door is now an aluminum and plastic composite. The tailgate has been redesigned and shed some weight in the process. Oil tanks and under-ride bumpers are also now aluminum. In addition, the chassis manufacturer, Mack Trucks, also was able to eliminate additional weight.

Payload control was the second key element recognized by Wood during the initial discussions. That issue was addressed through HOPS. The system:

• Uses axle transducer scales, accurate within 2 percent, to determine the vehicle’s gross weight.
• When the gross vehicle weight exceeds 9.5 tons, HOPS sends the driver an audio and visual warning inside the cab. The driver knows some weight can be added, but is aware that the loading must stop soon.
• When the maximum allowable weight is reached, HOPS prevents the operator from loading any additional containers.

“Our inspections show the lighter trucks will hold up, but they can’t be routinely overloaded,” Wood says. “There have always been scales, but drivers can ignore them. HOPS actually controls the payload on the fly, which is a new innovation.”

Wood and others in the waste hauling business have long understood the benefits of lighter weights. The question has always been whether the vehicles could withstand the tough duty—and compensate for lost productivity.

Productivity concerns led Republic to take a detailed look at hauling habits while considering use of the lighter-weight trucks.

“We found that the average heavy-duty truck carried about 30 tons per day,” Wood says. “We took a closer look at the loads delivered to landfills. The first was typically 17 or 18 tons, the second 8 or 9 tons, and the third only a few tons.”

Part of the rationale for the heavy trucks was their ability to haul 18 tons. Yet only one of the three daily hauls hit that target.

Republic wondered, Why not make three even hauls of 10 tons? If that was done, a much lighter truck could be used. “That’s when we decided to investigate the use of lighter trucks and balance our loads equally for all three trips,” Wood says. “At the end of the day, we’re hauling the same amount with the lighter trucks as we did with the heavier trucks. It’s just that the load sizes are consistent with the Half/Pack Freedom trucks.”

Of course drivers load those trucks, and they have habits. Changing them was easy because of HOPS. In addition, drivers found reasons to embrace their new rides. “They absolutely love the new trucks,” Wood says. “With lighter trucks, the drivers benefit from improved suspension and air-ride.”

In fact, increased driver comfort has been a significant—and unanticipated—advantage. “We had not expected that drivers would see such an improvement in comfort,” Wood says.

Republic also expected route balancing to be a challenge with drivers, but that has not been the case. “Habits can be hard to break, but once they understood how this system functions, they saw the benefits,” he says. “The fact they were driving a comfortable new truck didn’t hurt.”

It’s been two years since Wood asked his questions. Now he has his answers—and a new line of high-performing, lighter-weight trucks that exceed expectations.