Bunzl Retail Supplies has completed a deal with TOM Vehicle Rental which sees 20 new Mercedes-Benz Actros 6x2 tractor units join its fleet.

Further to a competitive tender exercise, the Mercedes-Benz Actros 2545 LS Bigspace 6x2 tractor units fitted with Predictive Powertrain Control have entered service and are expected to deliver both financial and operational benefits for Bunzl by reducing downtime and increasing fuel efficiency.

Lindsay Wilkie, finance director for Bunzl Retail Supplies, said: “We are delighted to add these new vehicles to our fleet that supports our ambitious growth plans and look forward to working with TOM Vehicle Rental to realise excellent customer, operational, and driver benefits.”

The Predictive Powertrain Control feature is Mercedes-Benz cruise control system which helps save fuel through intelligent predictions of the road ahead.

It is fitted to these and the latest batch of TOM Vehicle Rental tractor units and is expected to deliver a 3-5% saving on fuel consumption over and above the standard fuel consumption performance of the Mercedes-Benz trucks, enabling operators to realise further fuel savings.

All vehicles were supplied by TOM’s own Mercedes-Benz dealership, Caledonian.

Richard Worthington, national business manager for TOM Vehicle Rental, said: “Bunzl’s new tractor units will be monitored via our new online customer portal which has been developed to offer fleets easy access to all their vehicle history, compliance documentation and repair statuses to help them to run their fleet more efficiently.

“We look forward to improving fleet fuel performance for Bunzl with the new Mercedes-Benz trucks.”