Renault UK has delivered its latest batch of Renault Master ambulances during the COVID-19 pandemic to the Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust (WAST).
The 33 Renault Masters were in conversion at Wilker in Sandbach, Cheshire, which is one of almost 40 approved converters that were included in the Renault Pro+ Tailor Made conversion programme when the lockdown was announced.
Wilker finished the Masters to WAST’s bespoke specification, which includes variants with double wheelchair access or stretcher bearing with four passenger seats.
Renault Retail Group Cardiff had adapted to accommodate the safe handover of the Trust’s latest Renaults to include a dedicated technician and service advisor at the dealership for pre-delivery inspections and to prepare the ambulances.
With registration completed by the DVLA, WAST was able to press the vehicles straight into service days after the vehicles arrived in Cardiff.
WAST has utilised Renault vehicles for more than 20 years. In the past 16 months alone, it has taken delivery of 140 Renault Master ambulance conversions, all of which have been supplied through Renault Retail Group in Cardiff.
The Renault Master makes up the vast majority of the organisation’s Non-Emergency Patient Transport Services (NEPTS) vehicles, accounting for more than 220 of the near 280-strong fleet.
Mark Dickens, fleet sales and remarketing director at Groupe Renault UK, said: “Our blue light customers are facing unprecedented demand for their services, while also having to adapt to immensely challenging working conditions, so it was important for WAST that it was still able to take delivery of its latest vehicles at a time when the majority of the country was effectively closed.
“The Trust completes over 1.5 million journeys each year for patients and we are very pleased that we could help it continue its invaluable work. We’re very proud of our relationship with WAST and the fact that it has found the Renault Master to be the perfect vehicle for its complex needs.”
