- WHEN THE TOUR DE SKI COMPETITION BEGINS IN OBERHOF, GERMANY IN LATE DECEMBER, IT WILL MARK THE WORLD PREMIERE OF A NEWLY DEVELOPED SKI WAXING TRUCK
- IT REPLACES THE TRUCK THAT SCANIA DEVELOPED TOGETHER WITH THE SWEDISH NATIONAL CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING TEAM IN 2008
19/12/2012.- This first truck set a new standard in international skiing, giving the team’s waxing technicians a healthier working environment and better conditions for providing perfect skis to the active contestants.
“We are proud to be visible alongside Swedish cross-country skiing, which is continuing to reap international successes and strengthen its brand. Especially heartening is that we can help give the ski waxing technicians a good working environment. The waxing team has the same important role in the success of active team members as the employees at Scania service workshops have for the profitability of our customers in the transport industry,” says Erik Ljungberg, Scania’s Senior Vice President, Corporate Relations.
This partnership with Ski Team Sweden X-country gives Scania a unique opportunity to build relationships.
“There is great value in being able to offer customers, employees and other important stakeholder groups an exclusive insight into the national cross-country skiing team’s preparations and execution of its competitions,” Mr Ljungberg says.
Scania’s mission is to supply tailor-made vehicles and services that help maximise the profitability of its customers.
“In sports, profitability is measured in top rankings, so we hope that the new waxing truck will help Sweden’s cross-country skiers to continue winning medals at major championships,” Mr Ljungberg says.
Ensuring a better working environment for the waxers was a major reason behind the development of the first ski waxing truck. After long working shifts in poorly ventilated waxing cabins, sometimes waxing technicians suffer problems such as nausea and fever. A study conducted by a team of researchers from Örebro University in Sweden confirms that these health problems ceased when waxing technicians gained access to the ski waxing truck, which is equipped with a ventilation system that replaces the air every six minutes.
“Ski waxers often work long shifts under stressful conditions. The vapours from ski wax create an unhealthy working environment, which used to cause health problems. This is why it was very important for our waxers to switch to a working environment that did not jeopardise their health, physically or psychologically. In 2008 we finally got the first ski waxing truck, which significantly improved the environment, and now we are taking another step together with Scania,” says Urban Nilsson, the cross-country team’s chief waxing technician.
The need for a new, roomier waxing truck has increased as more and more Swedish cross-country skiers have qualified for starting positions at international championships. The new truck contains well-equipped workstations for twelve waxers, compared to seven in the truck that was developed four years ago.
“We have also gained better spaces for clothing and equipment that we use when testing skis. This means that we can perform our job more efficiently,” Mr Nilsson says.
The new ski waxing truck also represents an improvement for the external environment. The engine in the Scania truck that pulls this fully equipped mobile waxing cabin meets Euro 6 emission standards, which are being introduced in the European Union at the end of 2013. The Euro 6 engine decreases nitrogen oxide and particulate emissions by around 80 percent, compared to currently applicable environmental standards.
Having delivered the new ski waxing truck, Scania is continuing as a sponsor of the Swedish national cross-country skiing team for the next two years.
Facts about the Scania Waxing Trailer
The three-axle tractor unit that pulls the new waxing trailer is equipped with Scania’s roomiest cab – the Scania Topline – and is equipped for the highest possible comfort, both while driving and resting. It is powered by Scania’s fuel-efficient six cylinder 440 hp Euro 6 engine. Its transmission features Scania Opticruise automated gearchanging. The truck is equipped with Scania Active Prediction, an intelligent cruise control system that uses GPS to determine the position of the vehicle and predict the topography of the road. The system can deliver a fuel saving of up to 3 percent while driving on undulating stretches of road.
The 13.5 metre long semitrailer that is the waxers’ workplace was specially equipped by the Stockholm-based company Expomobil. Within a half hour after arriving at the competition site, the trailer can be transformed into a 70 square metre waxing cabin thanks to an ingenious hydraulic system featuring expandable walls. Inside the trailer are eight fixed and four mobile workstations for the waxing technicians and storage space for about 1,000 pairs of skis. Specially built ventilation equipment that exchanges 800 litres of air per second ensures the waxers a healthy environment.
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Text and photograph: Scania.
