It’s ironic that in a time when nearly everything has become more and more specialized – from your radio station’s playlist to computer systems – that anything used in business can be used in more ways than one. Over the last two decades, we’ve seen it in the upfitting industry. Once upon a time, contractors and fleet managers simply bought a bunch of the same trucks, added the same service body to them, and ran them until they were too old to fix again.
Today, though, we see companies designing specific trucks and vans for specific needs. We’ve outfitted small vans for their inner-city jobs and crew-cab diesels for their rural needs. That same business might also opt for a specially prepared trailer for certain needs, too. So, it’s fun when we get the chance to feature products that, while they are specially-built for a specific purpose, don’t require a specific chassis to do a great job.
Take the Par-Kan Easy Dump as an example. Now, you might not ever need a trash or refuse hauler, but if you do, nothing else will do the job as easily or as elegantly. Yes, we said it – elegantly. Sure, it was designed to haul trash, recyclables, and even yard or worksite debris, but that doesn’t mean it has to be ugly or inefficient.
In fact, that’s one of the things we love about it – since it does mount in any regular truck bed it can go places that bigger trucks – like the full-size trash haulers most companies have to use – can’t go. Par-Kan’s satellite dumper is perfect for trash companies that have to handle narrow streets, or gated communities, or even the narrow paths you might encounter in parks and green spaces.
More and more, we’re also seeing local governments utilizing the flexibility of the Easy Dump because while not everyone can afford a $100,000 trash truck, nearly every governmental agency has a truck or two they could mount the Easy Dump on and put to work.
One of the things we really like about the Easy Dump is that it’s built to last: all steel construction, self contained hydraulic and electrical systems, and multiple loading and unloading options. Given the flexible nature of its design, no matter what types of trucks your fleet or agency runs (or will run in the foreseeable future) the Easy Dump can be moved from one truck to the next with relative ease – and it mounts in the truck’s bed. No need to start out with a “cab and chassis” configuration, no worries about hooking up hydraulic systems or PTOs. All you need is a ¾ ton pickup.
We’ve seen the Easy Dump used in a variety of ways – some obvious – like emergency runs to missed pickups and for yard waste and landscaping refuse, but the flexibility built into the platform lends itself really well to other types of service, too; in fact, it’s perfect for swapping out containers or bringing receptacles to new customers and, since the bed on the Easy Dump can be configured with different attachments, the Easy Dump is also perfect for handling and supporting recycling efforts in the community.
The simple fact is that not everyone needs to worry about trash pickup, but when your company, agency, or government does, then the Easy Dump can provide you and your team a real advantage over trying to get the full size trash trucks into tight spaces or on hot shot runs for clients.
If you find yourself in any of these categories, we highly recommend you spend some time considering how the Easy Dump can more than meet your needs as a flexible asset in your fleet.