Elgin Sweeper forms partnership with Autocar

Elgin Sweeper Whirlwind AutocarElgin Sweeper has formed a strategic partnership with Autocar LLC, a manufacturer of heavy-duty low cab forward Class 8 trucks used by municipalities, fleets and private haulers. The companies formed says it formed the partnership to co-develop and introduce the industry’s first modern Class 7 cabover truck chassis specifically for street sweepers.

“This is truly the industry’s first joint-engineered and fully integrated sweeper with chassis design,” said Brian Giles, Elgin Sweeper products manager. “We are pleased and honored to build Elgin street sweepers on this new Class 7 cabover vehicle platform from Autocar. Our goal was to design the chassis to meet the requirements of our sweeper customers and create an optimized sweeper and chassis product for our customers.”

The development process entailed using specific cab/chassis component brands known and trusted by Elgin Sweeper customers, along with precise placement of cab/chassis components so as not to interfere with the sweeper mounting. Elgin Sweeper ensured that all popular chassis options were made available and superior operator ergonomics were optimized on both sides of the factory dual steer system.

The new Class 7 cabover, bearing the Autocar Xpert nameplate, will be assembled in Autocar’s facility in Hagerstown, Ind., and shipped to Elgin Sweeper’s facility for sweeper mounting. Elgin Sweeper and Autocar shared engineering strategy and CAD data to ensure minimal cab/chassis modification work would be needed once the Autocar cab/chassis arrives at Elgin Sweeper.

“Elgin Sweeper customers will appreciate the joint engineering and operations efforts between our two companies, which have resulted in a quality product featuring greater reliability and fewer cab/chassis/sweeper body field issues,” Giles said. “We’ve virtually eliminated all third-party modifications necessary for dual steer, as well as any warranty support confusion.”

An Elgin Sweeper Whirlwind mounted on an Autocar Xpert chassis will make its public debut at the 2011 APWA International Public Works Congress and Exposition Show, Sept. 18-21, in Denver, Colo., at the Elgin Sweeper exhibit (Booth #1000).