Australian Linehaul provides express parcel services over a wide variety of routes, with major customers that include the Toll Group, Australia’s largest logistics and transportation solution provider.
“We deliver on an express basis across every capital city in Australia, running up to line haul B-double and double road train. The routes run many different lengths and require a lot of flexibility,” says the company’s owner, Rick Andrews.
Given the task at hand, Australian Linehaul requires powerful, durable engines that are capable of pulling heavy loads up to 250,000km per year. And for this reason, Rick has remained a dedicated Cat engine customer for several years.
His preference for Cat engines and the fact that Cat Trucks are designed to meet the demanding requirements of the Australian market made these vehicles an easy choice when it came time to add to the fleet.
Rick initially placed an order for 12 CT630s, and then followed this up with another order for five more. Together, the 17 vehicles represent over a quarter of Australian Linehaul’s fleet. The first of these vehicles has already exceeded 100,000km.
14 of the new vehicles are Cat CT630As, a lightweight day cabin truck suitable for line haul and B-double operations, while the remaining three are Cat® CT630Ds, an extended cabin truck targeted at double road train operations. All the vehicles use the Cat C15 engine, which provides up to 550hp and up to 1850lb-ft of torque.
“We’ve been very happy with the trucks’ driveability, as well as their ride, explains Rick. “The trucks are very comfortable, which is also important.”
Brad Phillis is a driver for Australian Linehaul and has been happy with the CT630 he has been driving for the past six months. “The gearbox is excellent and the engine overall is brilliant,” he says. “Lots of people come up to me and ask me what it’s like to drive it.”