General updates, News or recall notices
LED bulbs for rotating lights
For
those who asked, we are still testing LED bulbs for use on old style rotating warning lights. The logic is to replace the
old style bulb with a direct LED replacement, so just unplug the old bulb and plug in the new LED version, simple
! By doing so this will not only reduce the power consumption of the rotator by more than half, but decrease the down
time of vehicles as LEDs last a lot longer. Price is looking around £15 each plus VAT but if that stops Amber or Blue
light vehicles being VOR for no warning lights its worth it !! Drop us an email for details when released.
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LED lamp used inside a rotating beacon |
MMB International 17th October 2012
Had yet another Liquidation letter through this week for MMB International, As usual any customers who want support
on there vehicles please contact us.
Solar Panels
If you
asked us about Solar power a couple of years ago we would probably said its not really cost effective,
but now with the power generated increasing and the cost still coming down, we are working with several manuafcturers to find
a good quality, robust, wafer thin Polycrystalline panel with a high
efficency regulator/charger to compliment. We are in the final rounds of bench testing and hope to soon offer an installed
packaged price per vehicle which will include all cables, fixings fuses etc. We are primarily looking at PTS /
Frontline Ambulances (especially where it is not possible to plug in to a shoreline) and aiming for a nominal
charge current to compensate for comms and 'permanently on' equipment. A major observation
during our testing has been how inefficient a lot of regulators are, some loosing up to 40% of the power from the solar panel.
With the UK weather being infamous for cloud and rain, we feel it is important to utilise as much power generated
from the panel as possible hence using a higher priced but better quality solar regulater. For further
technical detail and prices, please email us and we will respond as soon as testing is complete.
Ambulance / van speed limits
Something that seems to catch people out in the UK are speed limits for support vehicles, PTS, Ambulances
and vans in general, the assumption is that if the vehicle is below 7.5 tonnes then normal maximum driving speeds apply, this
is not correct!! Vans below 7.5 tonnes but above 2 tonnes have maximum speeds of 50mph on single carriageways,
60mph on dual carriageways and 70mph on motorways. It seems to be the 60mph on dual carriageways that catches
a lot of people out, their are subclauses regarding car based vans, but if in doubt, check Schedule 6 of the Road Traffic
Regulation Act of 1984, summarised in regulation 124 of the Sept 2007 version of the Highway Code. Traffic cameras/Police
will fine you and you will get points! Make sure you know your speed limit, get your fleet manager or leasing company to confirm
what restrictions apply to your vehicle.
Response SV
Response
SV have also folded, I understand that some of the management team have bought the manufacturing equipment and have commenced
trading again. As usual I will still support existing Responce SV customers direct (rate card available on this
site).
Driving licence requirements for an Ambulance
A regular question regarding what driving licence is required for Ambulances is caused through a change
in the law in 1st January 1997. Before this date you automatically received C1 and D1 when you passed your manual vehicle
test, but after this date it is an additional test. This is why 'older' crews are not requested to take the C1
D1 tests as it is already on their licence.
Olympic Coachbuilders Limited
We have had our Creditors notice through confirming that Olympic have gone Insolvent on the 18th June 2010. We still offer
12 month 'return to Seylec' warranty on parts supplied by us to Olympic customers, but call outs will obviously now
have to be paid for (see rate card).
Auto eject and battery charger fault
We have found onboard vehicle battery chargers with 'blown' or melted input circuits, this is not unique to
one specific charger manufacturer but does only seem to happen when used with Auto eject sockets. The problem occures
when the shoreline charge sockets are not properly maintained, this results in the mains voltage plug not being completely
ejected from the vehicle causing high voltage arcing on the mains connection through in to the battery charger, hence damage
to its primary components. This is not a fault of the Auto eject or battery charger
design. Please insure that Auto Ejects are regularly cleaned following the manufacturers instructions, if
the spring loaded cover is damaged, replace as soon as possible insuring that the socket is serviced before new part installed. Replacement covers are available from Seylec or Ludo Mcguirk
Everest Trek
Seylec were
proud to sponser David Bird on his recent Trek up Everest raising money for the British Heart Foundation. David has raised
almost £3500 with money still coming in. "It was fantastic" said David, "I do take on a few sporting
challenges, but this was certainly different. The photo's don't do the view justice". Well done to David
and all involved.
UV Modular receivership 10.30am 15th Jan 2010
It has been confirmed that UV Modular went in to receivership this morning with the immediate closure of the
Brighouse factory. Until further formal notice is given, support from the factory does not seem possible.
Seylec have obviously been working with UV as field support around England and Scotland for warranty
claims and maintenance of new vehicle electrical systems. We still maintain good working relationships with
Antares, Carnation and other Ambulance part suppliers, so will continue to offer field support direct to the PCTs
on the same costing structure as we do for out of warranty vehicles. For non-electrical parts, please contact us
as we are in contact with other UV subcontractors who may be able to help.
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