Classic Refuse Trucks DENNIS

Dennis Eagle

Dennis Eagle Phoenix Major, combining a Dennis truck with the Eagle Phoenix body



THE PHOENIX REAR LOADER
    Though technically an Eagle product, the introduction of the Phoenix rear loader in 1978 would have far-reaching effects on the future direction of both Dennis and Eagle. The slide-sweep, all-steel construction Phoenix was actually quite ordinary, at least by 1978 American standards, but was exceptionally executed and well-built. It came just in time for the home market, as the era of continuous-loading packers was coming to end, and operators sought more efficiency and less wear in a rear loader design. Best of all, it was British-designed and built, instead of being merely a licensed copy of a U.S. design.

    As an Eagle product, the Phoenix quickly proved itself, and became a best-seller. Hestair set up a new 80,000 square foot factory at Warwick, capable of producing 500 bodies per year, as well as other municipal vehicles. The big 2.1-cubic meter hopper and powerful packer of the Phoenix could devour household refuse and bulk with ease, delivering impressive payloads. Though an intermittent-type loader, some license-built copies have been adapted to continuous-loading. Packing cycle time was 25 seconds complete, with only 7-seconds needed before re-loading.

Slide-sweep sequence of the Eagle Phoenix packer

    The Phoenix was a smashing success, and could be mounted on any suitable truck chassis. It was soon being paired with the Dennis chassis and its new Ogle designed tilt cab. With a direct-driven hydraulic pump, the unit could pack on-the-go. The border lines of Hestair's ENVEC group were becoming blurred, and the Dennis Eagle name had been born, which would ultimately become the moniker for the company itself.

    By the mid-1980s, the Bulkmaster and Paxit were becoming distant memories. Going forward would be a product line consisting of Dennis truck chassis mated with Eagle bodies. Exports would increase 400-percent, harking back to the glory days of the 1950s and 1960s. The Phoenix carved out large chunks of the Australian rear loader market, being built by various firms beginning with Fruehauf in the late 1970s. Back home, it was a bulwark against invading American brands like Heil and Leach, and Hestair even went on the offensive, licensing the Phoenix to Jaeger of Canada. While Jaeger saw relatively modest sales in Canada and the USA, it still marked the only successful foray across the Atlantic by a British refuse truck body, and a feather in the cap for Dennis.

    Final consolidation came in 1985, when Dennis truck chassis production was transferred to Warwick and an even bigger 140,000 square foot facility. Only fire trucks would be built at Guildford. Starting with the Elite series in 1992, the firm has also been a world leader in low-entry cab design, and once again offered municipal-duty truck chassis for mounting of any make of truck body. Dennis Vehicles Ltd. was taken over in 1998 by Mayflower Corporation, which retained the fire apparatus division, but sold off the Warwick-based refuse vehicle division to NatWest Equity Partners the following year. This chain of buyouts continued until its 2007 purchase by Spanish RCV giant Ros Roca, which has since merged with Terberg Environmental.

    Against improbable odds, this small-size truck builder with an uncertain post-war outlook concentrated on their municipal-market strength, then combined forces with a rival to remain the "last man standing" amongst British RCV manufacturers. Dennis Eagle remains a world leader in refuse collection vehicles, and the only major company still manufacturing complete units (cab, chassis and packer), continuing a tradition dating back to the original Paxit in 1947. The company has recently opened a branch at Summerville, South Carolina to supply refuse truck chassis for the North American market. John and Raymond Dennis would surely be proud to see what has become of the humble bicycle shop they founded over a century before.

The Phoenix 2M series continued the tradition of the 'Alleycat' narrow-body rear loaders

Left: Australian-market Fruehauf Phoenix. Right: The Jaeger Phoenix was built in Canada, and also sold in the USA

The "Dennis Eagle" badged Phoenix arrived around 1981, and has been the mainstay of the product line

Dennis Eagle Phoenix XM-series mid-range rear loader

The Phoenix 600/800 series compact rear loader

Mid-range Dennis rear loader became the Ex-Cell, here paired with the Elite chassis

Detail of the Ex-Cell packer showing the rams embedded within the slide panel structure

Modern Dennis Eagle Elite/Phoenix 2, featuring curved-side body

DENNIS HISTORY IN PRINT:

AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF DENNIS BUSES AND TRUCKS (by Nick Baldwin)

WORLD TRUCKS #6: DENNIS (by Pat Kennett)

MUNICIPAL REFUSE COLLECTION VEHICLES (by Barrie Woods)

Vintage Dennis Literature in PDF at the Classic Refuse Trucks Library

REFERENCES:

The Commercial Motor, June 27, 1981, page 67: Everyone for Dennis?

The Commercial Motor, March 23, 1985, page 6: Dennis Moves

SELECTED PATENTS

Patent #	Description	Inventor	Assignee	Date
US4273497A	Refuse storage and discharge apparatus	Mealing, et.al.	Hestair Eagle Ltd.	June 26, 1978

9/5/22