A further 1,000 new Ford commercial vehicles have joined BT over the first three months of this year. More than 500 new Ford Transit Custom and 200 Ford Transit vans are among the order, with the balance made up of Ford Fiesta vans. Some will replace existing customer service engineer vehicles, while others will help meet expanding demand for BT’s products and services across the UK.

The order is part of one of the biggest fleet regenerations ever undertaken by BT, and follows a comprehensive review of its needs for the next seven years.

“We started by looking at all of our skill sets across the business and designing the safest and most ergonomic racking we could,” said Mike Langford, BT’s senior customer relationship manager. “We then looked at what vehicles were available which could accommodate what was required.

“After that we looked at a range of factors, including whole-life costs, safety, emissions, technology and aftersales. If we are keeping a van for seven years, we have to ask whether we will be able to get a spare part for that vehicle, at the right price, throughout its life.

“Our timescale was extremely tight as BT is a rapidly growing business and we needed to put 2,000 more customer service engineers on the road. Ford has kept to its commitment of delivering in volume and on time.”

The Ford Fiesta vans will be in service with engineers based at exchange buildings, with Ford Transit Custom used to carry the equipment required by customer service engineers. The Transits are long wheelbase, high-roof panel models and mark a shift away from chassis cabs previously used.

Vehicle conversion specialists Bri-Stor Systems and Bott are undertaking the interior alteration works on the BT vans.

Ian Watson, Ford’s manager of direct and municipal sales, added: “This is a major order and a tough one to fulfil in the timescale and Ford is delighted to have been able to meet BT’s requirements in terms of speed of delivery and quality of product.”