Schutz Fahrzeugbau: Specialist for custom commercial vehicle solutions
Whether it’s a tipper, flatbed or box body, bodywork for vans, lorries or trailers – Schutz Fahrzeugbau GmbH offers a wide range of custom solutions in different versions and weight classes for vehicles made by all major commercial vehicle manufacturers. The success story of the market leader in custom-built vehicle bodies began in a small forge in 1961. In the following decades, the demand for commercial vehicles and trailers grew. Schutz Fahrzeugbau GmbH expanded its product range accordingly and established itself as a provider of complete solutions for the transport sector and special vehicle manufacturing.
New bodywork concepts such as the production of airport ground equipment, freight and luggage trailers as well as the purchase and sale of agricultural machinery enabled the company to grow into a medium-sized vehicle construction specialist with around 100 employees. Today, highly customisable bodywork solutions for all common chassis are available and produced in large quantities.
“Schutz Fahrzeugbau has been our loyal and highly valued customer for a very long time. Mutual trust, flexibility and a shared wealth of ideas are central elements that have connected our collaboration from the very beginning. We are delighted that for many years we have been able to support the company with our chassis and running gear components for the implementation of intelligent transport solutions as well as in the development of unique special projects.”
Custom-built bodywork solutions
As early as the late 1960s, the company developed its first bodywork solution for transporting plants: local horticultural businesses were looking for equipment to transport their products. It didn’t take long for this initial support to evolve into a complete product range for the horticultural sector. Today, the portfolio includes box bodies, insulated box bodies and bodies with tarpaulin covers. These bodywork solutions are specifically designed for CC containers, which have been developed for transporting potted plants and flowers by trailer, van or lorry. CC containers are recognised as a standard in the horticultural sector for plant transport and can also be disassembled as returnable containers to reduce storage and transport costs.
One product – unlimited possibilities
Over time, Schutz Fahrzeugbau GmbH developed and manufactured more and more bodywork solutions and complete vehicles based on individual customer requirements. After all, every sector requires its own tailor-made solution. In addition, the vehicles can be equipped with different options for different target groups. For example, a heated box body with an insulated rear curtain can be ordered for optimum transport of horticultural products. For other sectors, features such as an integrated power supply, a partial refrigerated area, efficient ventilation or energy-saving LED lighting can be especially useful. Interior lighting as well as side doors or flaps, extra lashing rails and much more can also be tailored to individual requirements. These robust and durable bodywork solutions benefit not only businesses in gardening and landscaping or bakeries, laundries and caterers, but also cemetery gardeners, road maintenance authorities and municipalities, motorway maintenance depots, construction companies and depots, civil engineering and cable-laying companies, furniture movers and haulage companies, as well as general cargo shippers – in other words, the bulk of the courier and logistics sector, the construction industry and service providers.
User-friendly solutions thanks to AL-KO chassis
The proven low-frame chassis from the AL-KO Vehicle Technology Group are used as the basis for individual bodywork solutions from Schutz Fahrzeugbau. Wheelbases are defined constructively in advance together with the end customer and then implemented accordingly in the chassis. Based on the FIAT Ducato or Peugeot Boxer, the frame height can be lowered by up to 218 mm compared to conventional chassis. Compared to the standard solution, this AL-KO-specific low-frame concept, with its low loading edge, offers additional user-friendliness. Thanks to the low loading ramp, the entrance is significantly less steep and ensures that roll containers can simply be loaded into the vehicle and easily and quickly unloaded from the loading edge. In addition, installing an optional rear step can provide easier access for personnel loading and unloading goods. This makes the AL-KO chassis the perfect choice for all companies that want to transport goods in an operator-friendly, gentle and time-saving way.
The customer relationship: Where ideas are developed together
The collaboration between Schutz Fahrzeugbau and AL-KO Vehicle Technology Group began decades ago. As early as the mid-1980s, the two companies joined forces for their first joint project. The aim of the collaboration was to develop user-friendly bodywork solutions that could be used by a wide variety of sectors. The focus was on individual customer requirements and their specific wishes. Schutz Fahrzeugbau GmbH has always relied on the proven AL-KO AMC low-frame chassis and AL-KO components such as towbars or air suspension systems for its commercial vehicle bodies. At the AL-KO Vehicle Technology Group, we always know where we stand and that they are interested in innovation and want to help develop new ideas from the outset. In addition, the company is a solid and reliable partner. Not only in terms of cooperation, but also with regard to vehicle components and driving safety, continuous checks and testing are carried out. This is what defines our long-standing partnership,” says Cord Wahlers, Sales Manager at Schutz Fahrzeugbau GmbH.
