HEARN’S COACHES MAKE WORKSHOP IMPROVEMENTS WITH TOTALKARE PIT

By Pavan Jheeta
Thumbnail of Thumbnail of Thumbnail of Thumbnail of

North West London operator Hearn’s Coaches has upgraded its in-house facilities with products from workshop equipment experts Totalkare. Its Harrow-based workshop now includes a 15-metre vehicle inspection pit, in-ground brake tester, headlamp tester and shaker plates to increase the testing capacity and ensure all vehicles are in great condition.

Hearn’s Coaches has been a provider of corporate travel, school transport and private hire coaches for 70 years, now operating a fleet of 45 modern vehicles ranging from minibuses to luxury 57-seat coaches, all maintained by a team of dedicated engineers.

In-house testing reduces the cost, fuel and time associated with external services long-term. A vehicle inspection pit makes it easy to access the underside of a vehicle, allowing engineers to work safely and efficiently, increasing vehicle throughput in busy workshops. Hearn’s Coaches opted for a 15-metre pit length to ensure suitability across the fleet. After Totalkare managed the associated groundworks, the pit was installed quickly by experienced Totalkare engineers with minimal disruption to Hearn’s Coaches daily operations. The pit is accompanied by an air-operated pit jack on rails, capable of jacking vehicles up to 20,000kg.

The workshop now also features a Totalkare in-ground brake tester. Strong, durable, and suitable for testing all vehicles, the brake tester was installed across the vehicle pit to maximise workshop space.

The lane includes other testing equipment including heavy-duty shaker plates, radius plates and a DVSA-approved headlight tester to meet MOT requirements.

Jamie Thacker, Managing Director at Hearn’s Coaches spoke about the installation, “Totalkare has made upgrading our facilities easy. The option to design a bespoke vehicle pit allowed us to meet specific workshop requirements, prioritising efficiency and ensuring all our vehicles are catered for.”

James Atkins, UK Key Account Manager for Totalkare commented, “Hearn’s Coaches has a newly renovated space to conduct their vehicle servicing with all the equipment they need for a successful testing and maintenance lane. Totalkare are pleased to have facilitated this development from manufacture to install, and look forward to supporting Hearn’s Coaches with any future workshop equipment requirements.”