With the delivery of a custom-built refurbished refuse truck in late May, the Town of Jonesborough, Tenn., now has a refuse fleet made up of entirely refurbished units. Alliance Refuse Trucks in Gilbert, Ariz., refurbished the truck, as well as two others completed in 2011. The fleet staff refurbished another unit, an upfitted landscape truck used for curbside recycle collection, according to Fleet Maintenance Director Gary Lykins.

The most recent truck is a backup refuse truck, or a truck that can run the route while the main truck is being serviced. “I have had such a good experience with the performance of the refurbs from Alliance, I bought our ‘back up’ through them too,” Lykins said. “Their performance has been nothing short of amazing.”

Lykins added, “In a small operation like Jonesborough, refuse collection bodies will wear out long before the truck chassis. This is why refurb makes so much sense for us. In theory, Jonesborough could go through three bodies to every one chassis and still not hit the 300,000 mile mark.”

The refurbished units are on a seven-year lifecycle schedule, the same as a new unit. The truck is priced at $90,000, compared to $210,000 for a new unit, Lykins said.

Lykins blogged about the refurbishment process in 2011, which you can read about at FleetBlogs.

By Thi Dao