Text: Oliver Schönfeld
Photos: Stefan Bungert
With silo vehicles, every kilogram of empty weight that can be saved is important: The supposedly small advantage adds up to tangible economic and ecological effects with numerous tours per day, for example in construction site logistics. Among other things, the silo vehicle manufacturer Feldbinder relies on lightweight components from BPW to successfully slim down its trailers.
The highest possible payload with the lowest possible unladen weight: this is the maxim with which the designers at Feldbinder Spezialfahrzeugwerke GmbH approach every new order. This goal can only be achieved with a great deal of experience and a high level of manufacturing and materials expertise. Founded in 1975, the company was one of the first vehicle manufacturers to focus specifically on aluminium decades ago. “Our two founders Otto Feldbinder and Jan-Dirk Beckmann already pursued this idea. With the light metal as an innovative material for vehicle construction, the company grew quickly and successfully. Stainless steel containers were only added later,” reports Dr. Nina Lorea Kley. Together with Dirk Feldbinder, Olaf Feldbinder and Wolf-Dietrich Kley, she has been the second generation of management of the internationally active family company since 2018.
Silo vehicles for the construction industry and agriculture

»The greatest possible payload with the smallest possible unladen weight – that’s our maxim.«
Over 250 kilograms of unladen weight saved




Lightweight components from BPW
The advantages for customers are therefore obvious. “Particularly in the short-haul sector with several unloadings a day, every weight saving contributes significantly to better economic efficiency and permanent CO2 savings – while at the same time ensuring high functionality and robustness of the vehicles,” continues Dr Kley. Feldbinder customers such as the Werner Ruploh group of companies from Beckum in Westphalia appreciate the high quality standards. After all, stability, safety and reliability over many years of use are also important for the lightest possible constructions. The latest tipping silo semi-trailer completed for Ruploh is a good example: the KIP 45.3 vehicle model is intended for subcontracted transport in the construction industry and has an unladen weight of just 5,420 kilograms. Numerous lightweight components from BPW Bergische Achsen KG contribute to this, including the BPW LightTube trailing arm, the BPW aluminium hub and the disc brake ECO Disc (TS2 3709). “Compared to a conventional axle with a large disc brake, this reduces the weight by 126 kilograms,” Krahn describes.

Reliability and functionality are in demand
Close partnership in development
