Key role in major transport breakthrough
Tinsley Bridge has teamed up with British transport innovator – SOMI Trailers – in the launch of a space-enhancing trailer which could significantly reduce the cost of road transport, remove trucks from congested roads and lower carbon emissions by 25%.
SOMI, short for ‘Same Outside More Inside’, has developed a unique trailer design that uses patented technologies and advanced engineering to create 31% additional load capacity, without adding to the overall dimensions of a standard trailer.
SOMI chose Tinsley Bridge to develop their innovative design from a prototype to a mass production ready specification, based on their specialist engineering capabilities, expertise and extensive manufacturing infrastructure.
Tinsley Bridge will manufacture and install the unique SOMI system that sets the trailer apart – the load management mechanism. This patented automatic lowering/lifting platform installed inside the trailer body can position pallets into previously unused space within the trailer, allowing an additional 8 pallets to be carried in each load.
Tinsley Bridge will also work with SOMI to design and undertake an accelerated life testing programme on the mechanisms that will maximise product durability against the stress and pressures sustained over the trailer’s lifetime.
“Bringing together two specialist UK companies creates an exciting opportunity to utilise exceptional design talent and advanced engineering to commercialise intellectual property and bring new technologies to market” Tinsley Bridge Group Manager Director, Mark Webber, said. “It showcases our strategy of combining advanced engineering capabilities, expertise as a first tier supplier to global truck manufacturers to overcome innovation challenges and deliver turnkey solutions in areas such as design, lean manufacture and a wide range of advanced technologies.”
The SOMI trailer has been designed to be compatible with existing logistical and UK infrastructures and could revolutionise the freight industry as a whole, particularly the transport of food, by removing 1 in 4 of all trucks from UK roads. With a 4m high trailer it delivers these same benefits in Europe where double deck trailers are not allowed.
The average truck and trailer produces 400 tonnes of CO2 a year, but the SOMI trailer will allow operators around the country to reduce their number of journeys and make substantial savings on fuel costs. The design has already won a UK Low Carbon Vehicle Technology Challenge Award.
The groundbreaking trailer will be officially launched and available to view on the SOMI stand (V6 inside the exhibition halls) at the Temperature Controlled Storage and Distribution Exhibition at the Peterborough Arena on 18th & 19th September.
