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What’s new in Attachments
APRD MACHINERY: THE ATTACHMENTS EXPERTS
Gary O’Shaughnessy knows a thing or two about excavators. He’s been driving them for over 20 years and now heads up his own company, APRD Machinery, established in County Kildare just four years ago, during which time he has become known as ‘the attachments expert,’ and not without reason.
Having grown up on a busy farm, he was a quick learner when it came to tractors, diggers and other machinery, more often than not repairing or even rebuilding damaged equipment himself, along with his father. Today, APRD Machinery is a distributor in Ireland and the UK for Wolf Technik, who manufacture high quality and durable screening and mixing buckets for excavators and wheeled loaders in the 1.5 tonne to 70 tonne range. APRD is also the sole Irish distributor for OilQuick hydraulic quick hitches for excavators, wheeled loaders, material handlers and forklifts, from 1.5 tonnes to 120 tonnes, as well as OilQuick tilt rotators for excavators. “Having spent so much time in the industry, mostly in the cab of an excavator, I can easily identify with my customers needs,” says Gary. “Having so much in common with them is a big bonus when it comes to growing my business.” And grown it has, with a customer base that stretches from landscape gardeners and civil engineering companies to demolition contractors and plant hire outlets. “This is a ‘people’ business and I enjoy getting out and about serving the needs of operators up and down the country. It’s all about providing reliable customer service.” He adds: “I sold my first Wolf Technik screener bucket in February 2021 and several months later delivered an OilQuick hydraulic coupler, and I haven’t looked back since. Things were a little tough during the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, but business across the board has been picking up once again.”
APRD source best-in-class products to make sure that the attachments you buy for your machine are the best available on the market. The company uses decades of experience to pinpoint the factors that matter the most to the people that own and operate the attachments, and deliver on those factors. TERRASTAR BUCKETS
Take Wolf Technik’s TerraStar Compactline buckets, for excavators between 11 tonnes and 22 tonnes and for wheel loaders from 8 tonnes. They are designed for heavy and continuous use and are ideally suitable for all recycling and reusing of materials. Backfilling of pipe and sewer trenches are just as much a part of these specialties as mixing, sifting and aerating soil and compost – especially in wet or peaty soils. With three or four 4 shaft options available with cutting widths of 1000mm, 1500 mm and 1800 mm, all buckets have patented shaft coupling so you can change between mixing, screening, crushing, soil stabilisation, and all feature low-maintenance bearings and chain drive. The TSC.154 model, for example, never ceases to amaze operators, with its high throughput. It only needs between 20 and 30 seconds for a content of 1.25 m3. With 50 fillings, this results in well over 60 m3 per hour. The possibility to change the shafts quickly and easily makes the Terra-Star Compactline series unique in the market, especially for customers with different tasks on changing construction sites. The TSC is an excellent machine for use in liquid soil production, soil improvement for mixing in lime or other aggregates, and even for excavating heavily stony soil. Due to the sturdy housing of all TSC separators, attaching it to excavators well over 20 tonne is not a problem. Maintenancefree bearings and chain boxes filled with fluid grease, in which the drive chains run, round off this holistic concept. Meanwhile, the TerraStar Ecoline bucket for excavators and wheel loaders is equipped with the patented Wolf shaft couplings for quick shaft changes directly at the construction site. It is designed with various cutting widths for excavators from 1.6 tons. With the options of either 3 or 4 shafts, it is ideal for separating and mixing topsoil as well as building rubble. Damp soils pose no problems for the Ecoline, which is equipped with a highly efficient hydraulic motor.
Jurgen Wolf, Managing Director, Wolf-Technik and Gary O'Shaughnessy, APRD.
OILQUICK HITCHES
As we mentioned, APRD is also sole distributor across the island of Ireland for OilQuick’s worldleading quick coupler systems which enables operators of excavators, material handlers and wheel loaders to connect and disconnect hydraulic attachments automatically without leaving the cab. The operator can change between various work tools within a few seconds, such as a hydraulic hammer, steel or concrete shears, sorting grapple, hydraulic magnet, compactor, sorting bucket, tilt bucket or tiltrotator. The hitches feature OilQuick LockSupport (OQLS), an advanced, user-friendly driver support for safe and secure attachment switching on excavators. It is available for all nine sizes of OilQuick fully automatic quick couplers. “Safety of construction staff and operators is of the utmost importance to us,” says Gary. “So, our understanding and experience helps us bring machinery attachments to the market that ensure safety as a priority. Our range of products also reflects the focus we have put on environmentally friendly construction, recycling and processing materials on site, and reducing overall carbon footprint.” RELIABLE SUPPORT
Operators, of course, cannot afford the luxury of unnecessary downtime, so when something goes wrong, which is rare, you need to have good back up and support – and APRD prides itself in providing exactly that for its customers. “We maintain a well-stocked store of parts for both our Wolf Technik and OilQuick customers and being centrally located in Kildare we can respond quickly to the needs of our customers no matter where they are. That said, as has been proven time and again, the brands that we supply are engineered to the highest standards, which ensures that the risk of breakdown is completely minimised.”
news
Kilwaughter Minerals Commits Almost £5 million to Capital investment
Kilwaughter Minerals Limited has announced a two-year capital investment programme totalling £4.7 million.
The money will fund a range of projects with a focus on improving capacity and efficiency, reducing the company’s carbon footprint, and enhancing its market-leading position in the construction and agriculture sectors. The initiative includes the construction of additional warehousing, updated plant and machinery, and a new blending plant that was completed earlier this year. The company also plans to further improve its office facilities at their headquarters at Kilwaughter, near Larne, and their distribution and office facility in Cork which is ideally placed to serve their growing customer base in the Republic of Ireland. These investments are in addition to recently completed enhancements at their St Helens facility and a newly opened business centre at HQ in 2021. Kilwaughter services a growing customer base with products such as through-colour renders, external wall insulation systems, soil health conditioning minerals and livestock bedding lime solutions to control bacteria. Gary Wilmot, CEO, Kilwaughter Minerals said: “As we seek to remain at the forefront of our
industries and the markets that we serve, investing in our capital infrastructure remains an ongoing PAT CARROLL commitment for Kilwaughter. “These investments cover projects taking place across 2022 and 2023, many of them HYDRAULICS designed to ultimately enhance the experience of our customers and also the environment and opportunity for our team. “Demand for our products Kilwaughter Minerals CEO Gary Wilmot. is increasing so we must plan for future growth and development, aligned with our commitment to sustainability.PAT CARROLL
HYDRAULICS “Among our capital spend is the purchase of a more efficient stone drying system that will help us to reduce carbon emissions while also improving production efficiency.”
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DEALERS FOR STEELWRIST TILT ROTATORS, FAE Dealers for Steelwrist Tilt Rotators for the South of Ireland MULCHERS AND TREE SHEARS Dealers for Steelwrist Tilt Rotators for the South of Ireland FOR THE SOUTH OF IRELAND
Sherin’s Cross, Kilmallock, Co. Limerick Phone: 086 806 6147 Sherin’s Cross, Kilmallock, Co. Limerick Phone: 086 806 6147Dealers for Steelwrist Tilt Rotators for the South of Ireland
COMBINATION OF CAT 444F2 & ENGCON TILTROTATOR DRIVE EFFICIENCY & COST SAVING FOR DARREN DAY
For those of you who have seen Engcon UK at any shows or dig days you will probably recognise Darren Day as one of their demo team, but Darren’s engcon journey started several years ago with his first tiltrotator.
Back in 2017 just after the Plantworx Exhibition 2017 Darren, the owner of Bayleaf Enterprises, a family business based near Newmarket, started by his late father Graham in 1976 specialising in equestrian work, ordered his first engcon - an EC206 for his then Bobcat E62 ordered from his old pal Mark Payne at Kellands Plant Sales in Bridgwater. More recently, he had a new EC206 with a gripper on a Doosan DX63. Sensing some changes in the market including the increased cost of fuel, changes to the use in red diesel and transporting his machine Darren has made the huge leap to a 180° backhoe this time with a Cat 444F2. This comes with a brand new EC209 tiltrotator (for machines from 7.5t to 11t), GRD45 gripper cassette, DC2 controls, EC-Oil fully automatic quick coupling system on the top and bottom of the tiltrotator, full engcon QSC hitch control for increased safety when changing attachments and a plethora of engcon attachments he has acquired over the past few years. He had this to say about the decision to move away from his tracked excavator: “With the obvious hike in fuel being the elephant in the room I jumped ship from my 6t setup as having money tied up in a tractor and low loader didn’t sit well, with an additional machine to fuel and setup time, sometimes I was spending half a day to get from job to job, ie, get tractor and trailer, go get/load digger, move digger and unload , 9 times out of 10 nowhere to park tractor on site so taking it away. Then again in reverse after finished contract. “Plus, I was bought up on the backhoe. The convenience is the biggest factor,
arriving on site and cracking on! My 6t setup was running at 6 ltrs an hour, my Cat is showing 5.5 on the computer.” NO BRAINER
With so many choices of tiltrotator on the market in the UK now, we asked Darren why he stuck with engcon. Not being one to mince his words Darren said: “Sticking with Engcon was an absolute no brainer for me, all the years I’ve been using their units has been a great experience, great backup and service! Why kill the goose….” Darren went on to talk a little bit more about the increase fuel saving with this new setup. “I’m currently running at the 5.5ltr/p/h mark, according to the digger’s computer, half a litre less than my 6t setup, and without the additional machine needed to move it from site to site. “I’m absolutely convinced that the introduction of a tiltrotator on a backhoe will bring them back into favour, especially for owner operators. I admit that I was sceptical about the benefits of the idea of a tiltrotator on a backhoe but having a little go on the 4CX of Robin Webber’s convinced me that it brought something to the party. TIME SAVING
“I’m surprised each day how differently I approach the jobs I’ve done for many years on a backhoe, the lack of repositioning and little things like having to keep adjusting the rear stabilisers to get the angle you need. Time saving adds up at an alarming rate, and that goes hand in hand with the fuel savings.” He adds: “I’m sure that the doubters of the tiltrotator are now starting to eat humble pie and are finally getting the fact that they’re not a gimmick that removes skills of the operator, they’re actually the future and bring a whole new skill set to the industry. The future is here.”
NORTHERN IRELAND DEALER
BALLYWARD PLANT SERVICES
16 CLANMAGHERY ROAD, BALLYWARD, CASTLEWELLAN T: 07850 363747 E: ballywardplant@gmail.com
www.ballywardplantservices.com
Clive Latimer, Managing Director, Trailertek and Phil Eaglestone, Plant & Civil Engineer.
With a network of 11 dealers across the island of Ireland, Brian James Trailers is famous for its quality and user friendly trailers which include plant, tipper and car transporters. We recently paid a visit to one of those dealers, the County Armagh based Trailertek which was established in 2010 by Managing Director Clive Latimer to find out more about the brand new 2022 Connect range.
TRAILERS Awaiting us was a three axle 5.5m long flatbed Connect ready to be loaded up with a compact Avant Tecno 460 wheel loader kindly ‘borrowed’ for the day from dealers Essener Equipment. THAT MAKE The Avant Tecno safely negotiated the high grip loading ramps which feature a locking system to ensure they didn’t move during the process. It was then secured on the trailer which has multiple tie points allowing for easy and safe strapping of the Avant, while the machine stop bar ensured the weight was evenly distributed. That done, with the loading ramps easily LIFE EASIER WHATEVER removed and stored under the bed, and the trailer hitched up to our Nissan Navara, we headed out on to the open road to learn more about the Connect and why it THE LOAD has become so popular with so many. With the new ‘click & clamp’ feature with auto-adjusting locking posts and twin clamping, we found towing a pleasant, smooth and quiet experience, taking in busy main roads and less congested rural routes. It was also extremely easy to manoeuvre, despite its length, and stable, too. Its lightweight structure meant the pulling power of the Nissan wasn’t challenged at all. The Connect heavy-duty trailer range, rated at 2600kg, 3000kg and 3500 kg, comes with a host of features as standard and available in eight lengths - from 2.7m to
THE CONNECT HEAVY-DUTY TRAILER RANGE, RATED AT 2600KG, 3000KG AND 3500KG, COMES WITH A HOST OF FEATURES AS STANDARD AND AVAILABLE IN EIGHT LENGTHS - FROM 2.7M TO 6M - AND FIVE WIDTHS
6m - and five widths, so there’ll be a model to suit whatever your requirements; you even have a choice of five body colours (red, yellow, grey, black and blue) to reflect your corporate business identity. The strength of Connect is more than skin deep, though. Super-strength steel used in the main chassis fabrication is complemented by two additional longitudinal beams just below the 18mm thick phenol ply anti-slip centre bed. The stylish, fully sealed strobing effect LED lamps are highly visible even in bad weather and on the new 2022 Connect are multivolt compatible with 12/24v allowing them to be used with trucks, vans and other vehicles. They are protected by a bodywork housing preventing direct wheel spray. What we like about the Connect range is its versatility and flexibility. While it starts as a flatbed, it can easily be transformed into whatever you want it to be, with the addition of options such as drop sides, hydraulic tiltbed, loading ramps and side extensions. Many of the options use unique ‘Click & Connect’ technology and have been designed to be added or removed with as little effort as possible. Other options which may not always be used, such as winches and loading ramps, are located so that they don’t impede on the bed, axle and wheel options can also be chosen to provide a wide range of configurations, with wheels that range from 13”, 12” and 10”, all of which makes Connect ideal for both specialists and those who have constantly changing requirements. It can be a robust workhorse during the working the week transporting tractors, compact mini diggers, mowers and heavier pieces of equipment - and a race car trailer at the weekend!
www.brianjamestrailers.co.uk
ROTOTILT & CULLION PLANT SERVICES MAKE A PERFECT PARTNERSHIP
Celebrating 15 years in business, Cullion Plant Services are the sole all-Ireland dealer for Rototilt Tilt Rotators and attachments; it’s a product range that continues to grow in popularity as more and more operators begin to appreciate the many benefits of a tiltrotator.
It is eight years since County Tyrone based Cullion Plant Services took on the Rototilt franchise and in that time the dealer has significantly grown the brand’s market share across Ireland, with increasing numbers of operators opting for this innovative and versatile tiltrotator. Tiltrotaters from Rototilt virtually transforms an excavator into a flexible machine that opens up the opportunity for operators to take on more challenging tasks; not only can they get those tasks completed faster, and more efficient, but with less manpower such is the product’s versatility. Rototilt’s tiltrotators are robust and reliable thanks to their cast rotor housing which is both stronger and lighter than welded alternatives. The specially designed guard for the hydraulic motor is integrated with the cast rotor housing and protects it against impact and shocks from beneath. Rototilt’s tiltrotators are oil filled and the advantages over grease are numerous, including continuous lubrication, better heat dissipation, a longer service life, particle removal, fewer lubrication points and cleaner components, the latter simplifying maintenance. Rototilt’s central lubrication system offers convenient tiltrotator lubrication. It is designed to be connected to the machine’s central lubrication system and features an easily accessible interface on the mount. The system also simplifies manual lubrication if the machine lacks a central lubrication system. Self-lubricating bushings on the cylinder attachments mean fewer lubrication points and consequently simpler maintenance. All Rototilt cylinders feature load management as standard, which increases workplace safety; the load is secure, even in the event of a hose rupture. INNOVATIVE CONTROL SYSTEMS
With Rototilt you can choose the control system that optimises your excavator and contributes to increased performance, better handling and more options for settings. The Innovative Control System, ICS, is a smart control system that features a clear and simple display that quickly gives you overview and control. With the
ergonomically designed handle you can control tilting, rotation and any extra function during the same excavation movement. Choosing the pulse function, for example, will help you to quickly and evenly spread the material. You can also get individual operator settings and smart troubleshooting that even suggests corrective actions. An important ICS function is the safety solution SecureLock. With a built-in sensor in the quick coupler, you get a warning both on the display and with an audio signal if anything is wrong with the tool coupling. Continuous monitoring ensures that the tool remains locked in place. The safety lock also lets you know when tools are worn and require attention. For dual hydraulic circuits common on smaller excavators, TLE (Tilt Lock Extra) is an attractive and cost-effective control system alternative; it also works with larger excavators with dual circuits and can be complemented with SecureLock. TO THE FUTURE
Looking at the year ahead, Cullion Plant Services has set its sights on further strengthening Rototilt’s position in this part of the world in addition to offering invaluable technical training along with sales training. Regarded as attachment and equipment specialists, Cullion Plant also provide a growing customer base with a comprehensive sales, service and installation package, all in house with fully equipped service vans and highly trained technicians that cover the whole of the island of Ireland. “We have a great customer base to which we offer a huge thanks for their support and continued custom over the last 15 years. “We also thank our brilliant suppliers for all their support and backup and look forward to many more years of collaboration as we look forward to the future and progressing with the market and the new products that come with it.”
140 Killycolpy Road, Stewartstown, Dungannon, Co. Tyrone BT71 5NS Office: (028) 7772 5193 Mobile: 0776 2626 325 EMAIL: info@cullionplant.co.uk www.cullionplant.co.uk CULLION PLANT SERVICE ARE IRELANDS LEADING TILTROTATOR SUPPLIER
We supply a full range of excavator and loader attachments IDIG 2D machine control systems. Improved productivity, Reduced labour and improve health and safety.
Held at the beautiful Shandon Park Golf Club in Belfast, the Institute of Quarrying NI Branch’s annual golf day was the first major event since Breedon Ireland’s Ballystockart Quarry Manager, Patrick O'Connor, was appointed Chairman – and he attracted plenty of support on the day.
The event was staged recently just ahead of the branch’s Stonecrushers’ Ball being held later this month; it had to be postponed last year because of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Shandon Park Golf Club is a gem of a parkland golf course, situated in the leafy suburbs of East Belfast, and proved a challenge for some of the IoQ members, but not all of them, who were hoping to break the course record of just six under par! Consistently regarded as having the best parkland greens in Northern Ireland, the course combines a tough championship layout with some beautifully sculptured holes, great views of the city, and challenging greens. Plant & Civil Engineer has captured some of the highlights of the day on camera…
www.quarrying.org
Jezebel safety solutions Team. Conexpo Team.
CMS Cepcor Team. Orica Team.
Conexpo Team. Gibson Bros Team.
CDE Team. Fining Team.
MPANI Team. Breedon Tile Team.
CRH Team. CRH Team.
Scotts Fuels Team. Bruce Engineering Team.
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