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Oct 2007 : Kinetic Special Vehicles gives Thames Valley Police versatility

Specialist vehicle converter Kinetic Special Vehicles has worked in partnership with Thames Valley Police to develop 32 Multi Purpose Police Vehicles ( MPPVs as they are more commonly known) to help take policing out into the community.

The unique partnership arrangement allowed the two organisations to work closely together to develop a specification which perfectly matched the police force’s exacting requirements. The resulting MPPVs now offer the force a high degree of flexibility in deploying the vehicles for a variety of assignments whilst also giving improved value for money.

The vehicles are based on a Vauxhall Vivaro chassis that has been specially adapted to take a number of different “modules”, allowing each vehicle to function in a number of different alternative roles such as a mobile office, cell van, incident room or rural police station.

Dave McDonald of the Chiltern Transport Consortium who purchased the vehicles on behalf of Thames Valley Police explained the concept:

“The vehicle was developed from a conviction that the traditional coachbuilding method was not the way forward for multiple use vehicles in the 21st century. If we are to be able to provide the level of service residents need whilst still offering value for money, we needed to think more creatively. In partnership with Kinetic Special Vehicles, we have developed a vehicle based around a modular concept that allows us to change the vehicle’s function by simply slotting in new modules. We have likened these vehicles to a Swiss Army knife as they are so versatile!”

The vehicles have been designed for use by police community support officers so that they can get closer to the public as part of their neighbourhood policing. The MPPVs are able to double up as a number of different vehicles for use as a mobile office complete with 240v electricity, a mobile cell or an incident room. The various configurations are available using different modules which slot into proprietary floor tracking allowing desks, seating, storage units or cell walls to be slotted into place. Previously, police forces have had to invest in a number of different vehicles to perform these functions, or build expensive bricks and mortar police stations. In addition to the obvious cost savings involved with these vehicles, Thames Valley’s MPPVs offer greater flexibility with the possibility of them being used for one function during the day and another function at night.

Kinetic Special Vehicles director Mark Catley believes that it has been hugely beneficial to have this kind of partnership relationship between the manufacturer and the user and they have been able to work closely together to develop the vehicle’s design together over the last year.

“We have always tried to be flexible in our approach to supplying bespoke vehicles to our clients. The partnership arrangement we have had with Thames Valley has been highly valuable in allowing us to understand their requirements and tailor our products to exactly meet their needs” said Mr Catley.

With police forces across the UK coming under increasing budgetary pressure, Kinetic Special Vehicles believe that the new MPPVs offer real flexibility combined with value for money.

Operating from a secure six-acre site near Beverley in East Yorkshire, Kinetic Special Vehicles is well equipped to deliver a wide variety of vehicles to all of the emergency services. The company has over half a century of experience in converting chassis into specialist vehicles for the military, security and police services.

The company has also continued to win contracts to provide bespoke vehicles for other bodies, including the National Enforcement Agency, the Bank of Jamaica and Reliance Secure Task Management.

For more information, call Kinetic Special Vehicles on (01964) 543398 or visit www.kinetic.uk.com