Whatley & Co Unimog

A mighty Mercedes-Benz Unimog has delivered a huge efficiency boost for Whatley & Co by taking on the work of no fewer than three previous vehicles.

The long-established company specialises in installing water pumps and irrigation systems for agricultural customers, in the area surrounding its base in Wiltshire’s rural Vale of Pewsey. Its new U530 was supplied by Dealer Group Rygor Commercials, with funding support from Mercedes-Benz Financial Services.

When performing an installation on farmland Whatley & Co would previously have used a road-going truck to transport pumps and pipes to a point near the location, then a tractor and trailer to carry the items across the fields, and finally an ageing 4x4 7.5-tonner with crane to lift them into place.

The all-terrain Unimog can perform each of these tasks with equal aplomb. The 16.5-tonne GVW chassis is able to tow a trailer at a gross train weight of 40 tonnes, so hauling a full load on-road at 50 mph is no problem. Permanent all-wheel drive, ample ground clearance and extreme levels of axle articulation all contribute to the unrivalled off-road ability which allows the Unimog to cross rough, unmade ground with ease. And when it does arrive at the job site the 19-tonne/metre Palfinger crane, fitted by Trowbridge-based Peake Engineering, performs all required lifting duties.

Whatley & Co has roots that go back to the 1870s, and Managing Director Sam Thompson represents the sixth generation of his family to run the business. It has concentrated on water engineering since its earliest days, drilling boreholes and installing pumping equipment, tanks and reservoirs, and more recently carrying out ‘trenchless’ installations using horizontal directional drilling techniques.

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