MADRID- Spain, May 2024 – Allison Transmission and FCC Servicios Medio Ambiente (or FCC Medio Ambiente) recently met at the 2024 Transport Awards, this firm participated on the judging panel and Allison served as a sponsor. FCC Medio Ambiente, a key division of FCC Group, a global leader in municipal services, has been collaborating with Allison since the 1980s. Today, nearly all heavy-duty vehicles acquired by the company are equipped with Allison fully automatic transmissions. 

“We first encountered Allison Transmission in the late 1980s. At that time, people were starting to talk about noise reduction in garbage collection trucks (the famous nighttime garbage truck noise that everyone talked about, and no one mentions anymore) and cleaner engines," said Antonio Bravo Díaz, Director of the Machinery Department and Juan Álvarez, a technical specialist in the Machinery Department. “It was common to hear the "scraping" of the manual transmission pinions in the earlier garbage trucks, which disappeared with automatic transmissions.”

“It was then that we decided to seek a higher caliber of service, in the form of a Pegaso Urbano garbage collection truck featuring an Allison automatic transmission and Kuka Rotropress bodywork,” said Bravo. “It was an unqualified success and, from that moment on, this formed part of FCC Medio Ambiente's specifications for all waste collection vehicles.”

“Our collaboration with FCC Medio Ambiente has always been enriching,” said Trond Johansen, Director of European Area Sales at Allison Transmission. “Embarking on a journey with a client that requires such high standards has unquestionably provided us with valuable insight into the heavy-duty cycles of their fleet of municipal waste collection trucks.”

“Added to this is the international scope of the two corporations. We go hand-in-hand both here in Spain and abroad with the same clear goal: to offer the best service,” said Johansen. “FCC Medio Ambiente concentrates on ensuring a quality collection service for all the municipalities in which it operates, while Allison seeks to be present when and where we are needed, through our extensive technical service network.”

Efficient waste collection: a solution for heavy-duty cycles

“The work of an urban service vehicle is particularly tough, and conditions are very demanding. It is not just working in an urban environment, with heavy traffic and traffic lights, but stops are required to pick up bins, and this constant stop-start cycle is repeated over very short distances with a heavy truck,” said Bravo. “The result in the past was extreme wear on clutches. Allison proposed a completely different system that overcame the problem: an automatic transmission with torque converter.”

“These vehicles operate with very heavy-duty cycles, continuous stops and starts, and heavy loads. The same truck is used for several consecutive shifts, with different operators of varying experience, and the driveline suffers,” said Johansen. “The Allison fully automatic transmission with torque converter protects the driveline, resulting in less contact between parts, fewer breakdowns, and greater reliability. All these benefits mean that companies with fleets providing this type of service are seeking automatic transmissions with torque converters and the option of an integral hydraulic retarder.”

Allison Transmission, has great benefits for municipal solid waste collection vehicles

Allison's fully automatic transmissions are also perfectly suited to compressed natural gas (CNG) engines over a wide range of applications. Allison Continuous Power Technology™ increases engine torque and the patented torque converter affords optimal truck performance and fuel efficiency.

“FCC Medio Ambiente put the first CNG vehicles into service in 1995 to reduce the environmental impact of fleets providing services in urban areas. Since that time, we have been strong advocates and promoters of CNG vehicles as a means of reducing emissions in vulnerable environments such as city centers,” said Bravo.

“Today, our fleet has over 1,900 CNG vehicles, and all heavy-duty vehicles are equipped with Allison transmissions. The gas engine combined with automatic transmission and torque converter have proven to be a guarantee of high performance,” added Juan Álvarez.

Moreover, eliminating clutches by implementing Allison's fully automatic transmissions reduces breakdowns, maintenance, and costs. Drivers also benefit from the simplicity of operation, which eases the workload and increases productivity, while Allison transmissions ensure that engines run optimally with minimal fuel consumption.

“We would emphasize the reliability of Allison. All the years we have been working with them have shown that their equipment not only delivers what it promises, but it does so throughout the entire life of the vehicle,” affirmed Bravo.

“The introduction of Allison automatic transmissions with torque converters increased the initial acquisition price of vehicles, but immediately eliminated all the problems we had with gearboxes and clutches, thus reducing overall vehicle operating costs. These transmissions have proved to be reliable, robust, and free of major breakdowns,”.

“They are also very comfortable for drivers, enabling them to carry out their work in the best conditions while reducing stress levels and enhancing service performance,” added Álvarez. “Allison transmissions are beneficial in every way, which is why many companies, both in Spain and elsewhere, have followed our example.”    

FCC Medio Ambiente and Allison Transmission, a great team

FCC Medio Ambiente has almost 20,000 vehicles worldwide, including some 9,000 industrial vehicles. 16,000 of these vehicles, including almost 7,000 industrial vehicles, operate in Spain and Portugal. FCC’s activity in these countries and in the rest of Europe and the United Kingdom is highly consolidated, while the company is expanding in the United States. It serves a total of 67 million people in 5,400 municipalities worldwide, including 32 million in 3,700 municipalities in Spain and Portugal.

Initially, FCC Medio Ambiente equipped only its municipal refuse collection vehicles with Allison, and the benefits soon became evident. Over time, the company opted to incorporate Allison into the majority of its heavy-duty vehicles, including street sweepers, garbage container trucks, trash bin cleaning trucks and dumpsters as well as medium-duty refuse collection trucks.

“The relationship between FCC Medio Ambiente and Allison has always been very close, so we have first-hand knowledge of the different solutions they propose,” held Bravo. “Although our company is a provider of urban services and not an equipment manufacturer, we frequently work with manufacturers to develop prototypes tailored to our needs and specifications. And, in many cases, they become series-production vehicles. The Allison eGen Power® electric axle could very well be included in our specifications and become a requirement for chassis manufacturers in the not-too-distant future."