Capital Equipment News April 2018

CONSTRUCTION NEWS

JCB goes electric

JCB has developed its first ever electric digger in response to customer demands for a zero emissions machine which can work indoors, underground and close to people in urban areas. The 1,9 tonne mini excavator can be charged by simply plugging it into a stan- dard 230 volt domestic electricity supply. Once fully charged, it is ready to put in a full normal working day on the building site – digging with the same speed and power as its diesel counterpart. Super-fast charging will also be available at launch, slashing the charging time in half. The innovative product goes on sale at the end of this year after being developed in secret at the company’s Staffordshire HQ. Its development has been spearheaded by com- pany Chairman Lord Bamford who recently heralded its arrival as a “real breakthrough” for the construction sector. “JCB has been at the forefront of develop- ing innovative, low emission diesel-powered

construction equipment for decades. In fact, thanks to our clean diesel technology, typical JCB machines will be pretty close to zero emissions by next year,” says Lord Bamford. “However, with urbanisation, machines are operating more closely to people as well as digging underground, indoors, near hospitals and in food production environ- ments. As a result, there is a new zero emissions sector emerging and it’s emerging very quickly. It’s for this reason that we have put ourselves at the forefront of alternative power technologies and developed the first ever electric JCB digger.” The machine – known as the 19C-1 E-Tec – will not only deliver zero emissions, it will also be the quietest in the JCB range. This means contractors can work after normal hours in urban streets, around hospitals and close to schools without disturbing people. The machine also has a retractable undercarriage to enable it to negotiate tight spaces. The electric excavator has an is able to provide a product for every area of application. Wacker Neuson is well-known for its compaction equipment, especially its rammers. The ambition to deliver mature products that meet the needs of the customer led Wacker Neuson rammers to become the most widely sold rammers worldwide. For applications in trenches and within buildings, the battery rammer AS50e can fully display its strength. Used for all traditional rammer work, the AS50e rammer provides safety for the operator as the unit is 100% emission-free and noise-reduced, which is an important feature for all operators. The battery can be removed without tools so the operator can replace the discharged battery easily in a few simple steps. The runtime of the rammer is 30 continuous minutes, which is usually sufficient to accomplish a full day’s work. Low operating costs are an additional advantage since the typical maintenance jobs of conventional ram- mers, for example maintenance work on

JCB Chairman Lord Bamford during the unveiling of the first JCB electric excavator.

electric motor and three advanced lithi- um-ion battery packs, to deliver a full energy capacity of 15 kWh. b

Rammers for all areas of application

Since the development of the first rammer by German engineer Herrmann Wacker in 1930, Wacker Neuson continues to develop and broaden its rammer port- folio – always connecting tradition and innovation. With its range of gasoline four-stroke-, two-stroke-, diesel- and battery-driven rammers, Wacker Neuson

the carburettor, are not required with the battery-powered rammer. The two-stroke rammers from Wacker Neuson produce low emissions. The two-stroke models are driven by the WM80 engine that was specially designed and developed by Wacker Neuson, and thanks to its catalyt- ic converter, it falls well below all exhaust standard limits. A multi-stage air cleaner system efficiently cleans the intake air, thereby ensuring the long-term operation- al readiness of the rammer. The Wacker Neuson two-stroke gasoline vibratory rammers boast the lowest total emissions on the market. Four models are currently available: the BS50-2, BS60-2, BS50-2plus as well as the BS60-2plus. A special feature of 2plus-rammers is the extra-large oil tank that only requires a top up after 120 hours of operation and is available with a lockable cover, eliminating the risk of incorrect refueling. In summary, the two-stroke-rammers are developed for maximum productivity, performance and durability. b

The battery-powered AS50e offers a runtime of 30 continuous minutes.

Bobcat launches new WS-SL20 wheel saw attachment

Bobcat has launched its new WS-SL20 self-levelling wheel saw. Approved for use on the Bobcat S630, S650, S770 and S850 skid-steer loaders, as well as the the T590, T650, T770 and T870 compact track loaders and the A770 all-wheel steer loader,

the wheel saw is designed to cut through asphalt, rock and concrete surfaces. The WS-SL20 wheel saw has a variable segments wheel, which allows the user to quickly change the width of the wheel (50, 80, 100, 120 mm) in the field, instead of

replacing the complete wheel in a workshop (providing a time saving of 10 hours in the process). The self-levelling feature on the WS-SL20 allows the attachment to follow and adapt to the contours of the ground.

CAPITAL EQUIPMENT NEWS APRIL 2018 38