ERF (lorry manufacturer)
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ERF is a British truck manufacturer established in 1933 by Edwin Richard Foden, who had left Foden - the company founded by his father - because he believed the future lay in diesel rather than steam power. The trucks are now re-badged MAN AG models with the option of specifying a Cummins engine.
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[edit] History
Based in Sandbach in Cheshire, the company made their own chassis and cab with engines from Cummins, Perkins, Detroit Diesel and Caterpillar. ERFs used to be marketed under the Western Star badge in some countries such as Australia. It built a specialist fire engine chassis, with a body built on by in-house company Cheshire Fire Services. However, when recession came in the early 1980's and production fell from a total output of 4,000 chassis per annum, CFS was sold to management to eventually become Saxon Sanbec.
The company was bought by Canadian truck maker Western Star in 1996. However, after PACCAR's purchase of both DAF Trucks and Leyland Trucks increased competitive pressure, and Western Star was approached by Freightliner corporation, the decision was made to sell ERF.
[edit] Purchase by MAN
In 2000, ERF became part of MAN. MAN bought the company on the understanding that ERF was profitable, but it was found that its Financial Controller had for years been syphoning monies from the company, and resultantly MAN sued Western Star successfully in the British courts. Freightliner tried to sue Western Star and ERF's former auditors, but failed on technical grounds of corporate negligence [1]
[edit] Present model range
ERF's current model Range comprises the ECT, ECM, ECL and ECX built on MAN's production line in Nuremberg (for heavy trucks), and a plant in Middlewich for light trucks (positioned to win a contract from the Ministry of Defence for 8,000 new British Army trucks). The only difference between a MAN and an ERF truck, is that the ERF comes with the option of specifying use of Cummins ISMe power plant as an alternate to MAN's own D20 common rail power-plant. However, light of Cummins intransigence on upgrading the ISMe engine to comply with the Euro4 emission regulations, MAN have taken the decision into replace it completely with the new series of MAN D20 engines. [2] ERF badging is now only used for the British market.
The Middlewich factory was closed by MAN in 2002 and production of the ECX tractor units transferred to Germany, and rigid units to Salzburg, Austria where they are built on the same facilities as their identical MAN counterparts.
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.healys-solicitors.co.uk/ArticleDetail.aspx?articleId=c0c0183a-94f9-4d61-96af-27bd413aa4cb
- ^ http://www.bizbuzzmedia.com/blogs/big_lorry_blog/archive/2005/12/2.aspx
[edit] External links
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