Vyta looks into the future becoming the first Truck operator in Northern Ireland to take delivery of MAN’s OptiView Mirror-Replacement system.

The new trucks, both 4x2 rigids, come in the form of a TGL 12.250 and a TGM 15.290, they join the Vyta fleet of 12 other specialist vehicles and will be used to provide customers with sustainable, secure and compliant IT asset disposal and on site hard drive shredding.

Specified individually and built to meet the needs of the business, both vehicles are powered by the latest generation lightweight, Euro6e

compliant, 6 cylinder, D08, 6.9 litre engine, the TGL rated at 250hp and the heavier TGM, at 290hp. The 12-tonne TGL, with its 4850mm wheelbase chassis is fitted with the comfortable and compact CC day cab, whereas the 15-tonne TGM, with its 5125mm chassis, is fitted with the larger TM high-roof sleeper cab.  

Matt Harris, Systems & Process Manager at Vyta, said: “We’re excited to be the first adopter of OptiView in Northern Ireland. The support we’ve had from MAN and our local MAN dealership, RK Trucks Centre, in terms of system familiarisation and driver training, helps further cement our view of MAN’s genuine commitment and caring customer support.

“At Vyta a core pillar of our business is to ensure we deliver our customers a sustainable and secure level of service, and to achieve this we need to make sure our fleet of specialist mobile shredding vehicles are both modern and efficient. Historically our MAN trucks have served us well, they have proven to be robust, economical and when looking at their total cost of ownership, efficient. All attributes that help us as a business to reduce our environmental impact.”

Being the market leader in ITAD services (IT Asset Disposal) across the UK and Ireland, Vyta offers an award-winning IT disposal solution. Depending on the customer’s needs, this can see redundant IT equipment, from desktops to laptops to mobiles, either refurbished for resale, providing customers with a financial return on their redundant equipment, or a sustainable recycling service.

In upholding the principles of the circular economy, where possible Vyta will work with their customers to refurbish and reuse all working but redundant IT equipment and in doing so offer high-grade IT equipment to users through their resale service, or as a donation to their charity education partners.

When, due to the risk of a data breach from the sensitive information equipment may contain, and reuse is not possible, Vyta’s shredding service reduces unwanted equipment down into 20mm fragments, or as small as 6mm upon customer request. With a zero-landfill policy, these fragments are then segregated and filtered into various material types are recycled with a 99% material recovery rate.

The Vyta ITAD service ensures that any data contained is irrecoverable and clients receive a certificate of destruction in line with international standards and regulations.

Already proving a huge hit with the Vyta drivers the OptiView system replaces all conventional mirror arms and mirrors. The advanced mirror-replacement system uses five exterior cameras, two on each side of the vehicle, which are mounted above the door frames close to the leading edge of the A-pillars and a fifth camera which replaces the forward-facing Cyclops mirror.

“For decades traditional mirrors have been a fundamental part of driving any vehicle and we’ve all depended on them as we go about our business,” continued Matt. “As a forward thinking company when we first looked at the OptiView system and discussed it with our local MAN Sales Executive Julian Brown, we instantly saw the many benefits. Our drivers have fully embraced OptiView and we hear nothing but positive comments about the enhanced fields of vision and the reduced blind spots on the kerbside.”   

Offering close-range, wide-angle and blind spot displays these cameras increase the field of vision providing the driver with an optimum overview of the traffic situation surrounding the vehicle, especially when performing critical driving actions such as manoeuvring, turning and lane changes. The cameras are splash and waterproof, self-cleaning and heated automatically, thus ensuring pin-sharp images are transmitted to the vehicle's internal displays even when driving in low light or at night.

Mounted internally, on the inside of the vehicle’s A-pillars, where a driver would expect to see traditional mirror images, are digital display screens, 12-inch on the driver’s side and 15-inch on the co-driver's side. Each of these screens displays high-definition live feed data from around the vehicle at a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. The forward-facing camera sends its imagery to a 12-inch screen it shares with the satellite navigation system, which is mounted in the centre of the dash.

To enhance the driver’s view the display brightness and contrast can be adjusted individually, either automatically or manually, via the door control module. Additionally, the mirror-replacement system automatically filters out disruptions in the camera footage and optimises the image clarity, delivering a glare-free view of the traffic behind and to the sides, while at the same time reducing dazzle from other vehicles’ lights in the dark.

Matt concluded, “These two new trucks have replaced two older MAN vehicles that have served us well over the last 6 Years. These de-fleeted vehicles will go through a series of workshop checks with RK Trucks, they’ll be serviced and reconditioned where appropriate and in a process very similar to ours, passed into the hands of the next user via MAN’s used vehicle function.”

Northern Ireland based Julian Brown, Sales Executive, MAN Truck & Bus UK Ltd, added, “Vyta has been a much-valued customer for 15 years now and once again it’s been a delight working with Matt Harris. Having a close working relationship means we have an in depth understanding of the Vyta operation and how our high level of service can add value to their business and clients.

“Houston Coachworks, of Ballymena, built the bodies and Ulster Shredders of Magherafelt, near Toomebridge, added the shredding equipment into the body of the larger TGM, both have done an outstanding job. Seeing the TGM working, as it shreds redundant media such as hard drives and SSDs from the onboard viewing area and knowing that 99 percent of the shredded fragments are heading for recycling and not landfill, is amazing.” 

All MAN vehicles, Truck, Vans and Coaches, are supported by MAN Truck & Bus UK's Nationwide Commercial Vehicle Dealer network, with many operating extended hours, including round-the-clock servicing and customer-tailored solution maintenance.

The entire MAN range, Truck, Vans and Coaches, benefit from MAN's Mobile24 24-hour assistance service, which guarantees customers a professional roadside partner throughout Europe 365 days of the year.