PADDOCK BASHERS – FLEET ORDERS 120 BENZ ACTROS FOR NULLARBOR CROSSINGS

Mercedes-Benz Trucks has announced it has delivered the first batch of a 120 truck Actros order to Brisbane based operators SGGS.

SGGS runs all over Australia, with an emphasis on “crossing the paddock” between Perth and the East Coast and already operates 37 Actros’ as part of its 80-plus truck fleet before inking the new deal.

It recently took delivery of a 2663 Actros model from Daimler Trucks Laverton and the 630hp 16-litre unit soon started work as a quad trailer road train.

The first Actros joined the SGGS fleet back in 2018 and the team was impressed by its reliability, fuel efficiency as well as the full-suite of active safety features.

“That truck has been great and the Actros just keeps getting better and better with each new model,” said SGGS general manager, Adam Fraser.

“The fuel savings are excellent. It soon adds up when you do the kinds of distances that we cover,” he said.

SGGS said that safety is paramount for it  and has a dedicated safety team actively monitoring the data from its trucks, in real-time, 24-hours a day.

SGGS owner, Rajbeer Khangura, said safety is something the company will not skimp on.

“We are 100 per cent committed to safety and our customers are onboard with this too,” he said.

“That’s why we like the safety features such as the autonomous emergency braking that come with the Actros. We want the safest equipment we can get,” Khangura concluded.

Standard safety features of the Actros include the fifth generation radar/camera Advanced Emergency Braking System (AEBS), which can automatically perform full emergency braking for vehicles and moving pedestrians. The standard Active Brake Assist 5 package also includes Lane Departure Warning System (LDWS) and Attention Assist (AA).

SGGS decided to tick the box for the optional Predictive Powertrain Control fuel efficiency feature, which uses satellite data and terrain information to make the best and most economical gearbox control choices. It knows when to coast in neutral and when to re-engage to maintain road-speed as well as when to hold a gear longer than normal, such as when the truck is approaching the top of a hill.

The SGGS story started in 2013, when Rajbeer Khangura began hauling with a single truck. He grew the business steadily and SGGS now has offices in Brisbane and Melbourne with plans for more in other key states.

It should come as no surprise that Khangura ended up in the world of trucks. His father has run a successful truck fleet from more than 40 years in Chandigarh, in the state of Punjab, delivering