“Caway is simply in a class of its own.” Johan Fischer, supervisor at Svevia in Västerås, lists the benefits of the new, wide side plow from Mählers. Haulier Micke Bergquist nods in agreement.

“It does a quality ploughing job. What’s more, no more daredevil overtaking means a safer working environment.

On an average day, around 55,000 vehicles pass by Västerås on the E18. The E18, together with the national roads that run north to south, are the main responsibility for Johan Fischer and his colleagues at Svevia. “And this year, the E18 was upgraded to a Class A road. This means if there’s one centimeter of snow, we must complete a round trip on our section of the E18 in the space of two hours, including slip roads. Because the time available has shrunk by one hour – previously the requirement was to clear the whole stretch in three hours – we need more equipment and personnel. Johan Fischer was sure there must be a more efficient way of ploughing two-lane carriageways than using two snow ploughs in convoy. “Last season, Svevia tested Caway in Jakobsberg outside Stockholm. I checked with them, and they only had good things to say. They found the width a bit strange at first, but they soon got used to it.

Good all the way across

So Svevia Västerås invested in two Caways from Mählers for the 2017-2018 season. One is run by Mälardalen Lastväxlarcentral (hook lift centre) on the stretch from the Hälla interchange in Västerås to Enköping, which is about 18 miles each way. The other one is on Micke Bergquist’s new Scania R 520 and runs on the E18 between Anundshög interchange in Västerås and Västjädra on the way to Köping. “The Caway plough is really wide, but you learn quickly. I used to drive a rigid side plough, but it was not much good where the road is cambered. Because Caway is split into three sections, it does a good job all the way across,” says Micke. Micke has seen a thing or two in snow clearance. He began working for Västerås municipality in 1992, and five years later for the erstwhile national road administration. “Back then we were still using V-ploughs,” he laughs.

A lot of salting

Today he runs Blåsbo Transport, has four employees and recently signed a multi-year agreement with Svevia for winter road maintenance. This winter – up until New Year – there have only been three ploughing occasions but all the more salting with many days at temperatures around freezing. “In two months I’ve driven 12,000 miles with my new truck, almost exclusively salting,” says Micke, pointing to the large tanks on the Scania that can hold eight tonnes of dry salt and 9.5 tonnes of brine. In other words, Micke’s Caway has not had to show its mettle many times, but both Micke and Johan are very pleased. “There are so many good things to say about Caway, I hardly know where to start,” says Johan, as he begins itemizing the advantages.

Item after item

+ With a width of almost ten metres, one truck can do a two-truck job on motorways and other dual carriageways. “That saves money, and not a little. And there’s less environmental impact.”

+ With the Caway, one truck can handle the entire width of the carriageway. “No more crazy overtaking by stressed-out motorists zigzagging between two snow ploughs is a great improvement for the work environment.”

+ Better plough results. “Because the side plough is split in three, with slush blades behind, it follows the carriageway very well and the end result is bare road. You can’t ask for better than that.” All in all, with one truck instead of two, we get better results, we save fuel and we also reduce our environmental impact,” says Johan Fischer.

According to Johan, Caway is ‘in a class of its own’ and collaboration with Mählers is good — and will only get better. “We’ve always enjoyed good support from Mählers and their service partner in Hedesunda, but now we’re also getting an authorized Mählers service partner here in Västerås. As perfect as can be!

IN A NUTSHELL SVEVIA DO VÄSTERÅS

+ Around 10 permanent employees and 20 contract hauliers during the winter for snow clearance and deicing.

+ Operations cover approx 600 miles for the Swedish transport administration and around 300 miles for the City of Västerås.

+ DO Västerås has around 34 leased vehicles, mainly trucks and tractors. Winter road maintenance equipment is predominantly Mählers, and includes all front ploughs and seven side ploughs with side shifting, and two Caways.

IN A NUTSHELL CAWAY

The Caway system is based on three sections – a hook lifter arm, a 5.5-meter side plough and a salt container or other deicing equipment.

+ When used with a front plough, the truck has a plough width that covers two lanes. Everything including blade pressure is managed from the cab using the MC2 control system.

+ When a hook lift is used to attach it, the plough can be quickly and easily picked up and set down again.