Highlights from the Civil Construction Field Days

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The truck-mounted forklift offers superior reach and stability and genuine onesided offload

D Loadmac 825 Super Reach forklift E Steprite safety access platforms F TFH Hire solar-powered portable surveillance cameras

Clark S25L forklift

Across town at the Brisbane Truck Show, the LPG-fuelled Clark S25L forklift offers what Clark says is one of the latest advances in internal combustion trucks.

With features including an interactive LCD dashboard, a load scale and the on-board reporting of operator controlled functions; the S25L has a load capacity of 2,500kg and a rated engine output of 52.4kW.

The forklift also has standard safety features including speed limit control, an automatically applied parking brake and LED lights, as well as a back-up alarm.

Kärcher HDS 13/20-4 S

The most powerful hot water high-pressure cleaner in Kärcher’s lineup has a water flow rate of up to 22 litres per minute – allowing the operator to carry out a two-spray lance operation that makes tasks quicker and easier.

With a range of innovative equipment features, like the eco!efficiency mode, service switch for water hardness regulation, turbo blower, precise cleaning agent dosing unit, optimised burner engineering, high pump efficiency and patented nozzle technology, the machine delivers outstanding results.

Another highlight is the 25-litre fuel tank and the large LED display, on which the filling levels of fuel and cleaning agent, as well as information on system care, can be checked easily at any time.

Loadmac 825 Super Reach forklift

The truck-mounted forklift offers superior reach and stability as well as a genuine one-side offload and multi-directional steering option – meaning it can reach the full width of a trailer bed.

The forklift has a 49hp (37kW) Yanmar engine, with a 2.5-tonne lifting capacity, three drive wheels and mast heights of either 3.1 or 3.6m.

The unit has a compact design, with only a 1,350mm overhang, as well as ergonomic controls, multidirectional steering, lockable fuel filler caps and rustproofing throughout.

Both the Loadmac 825 and the Loadmac 225 ultra-light forklift are available in Australia through Sammut Agricultural Machinery.

A purpose-built Komatsu wheel loader has been credited with a threefold increase in waste metal collection by a WA council at its landfill facility Small and very large excavators experienced a decline in buyer interest in the first four months of 2021, while those in the middle found the sweet spot

Recover,

reuse

The customised WA207-8 loader is working exclusively at the Town of Port Hedland’s facility, which collects about 45,000 tonnes of waste per year.

During the first six months of operation, the value of recovered waste steel has increased to more than $5,000 per month compared to between $1,000–2,000 per month previously.

Port Hedland council decided a dedicated wheel loader would work at the landfill facility and another WA207-8 would have general duties within the council boundaries, replacing another wheel loader and excavator, which were multipurpose.

Puncture-proof solid rubber tyres and a semienclosed grapple bucket with hardened cutting edge have been added to Port Hedland’s landfill wheel loader.

Engineers say its reduced weight and increase agility means it can climb deeper into the landfill and the improved recovery and compacting efforts will increase the site’s overall life expectancy.

“We had already had some experience with the use of solid rubber tyres fitted to remove the risk of punctures in waste disposal operation,” says Komatsu’s business development manager, Dean Jones.

“Each tyre weighs 750kg – three times that of a standard fit pneumatic tyre, but experience has enabled Komatsu to warrant their use in defined operations.”

Operator feedback indicated the solid tyres did reduce comfort in rough conditions, and a solution was being sought.

Jones says Komatsu is monitoring progress closely to further refine the specification, which he hopes will become a blueprint for landfill operations across Australia.

Port Hedland’s landfill manager, Rebecca Walter, says the customised machine has been successful but remains a work in progress, with further strengthening improvements to be made to the grapple bucket’s teeth to allow for picking of larger and heavier resaleable refuse.

Sweet spot

Excavators in the 20–100 tonne class experienced the biggest jump in searches and enquiries on Earthmovers & Excavators’ digital classifieds platform in the first four months of 2021, new data reveals.

Some 5,681 excavators and excavator parts are currently listed for sale on TradeEarthmovers.com.au – as well as sister site TradeFarmMachinery.com.au.

Although overall searches (-1.06 per cent) and enquiries (-6.6 per cent) on the stock dropped marginally compared to the same period of last year, 20–45 tonne excavators experienced a 11.42 per cent jump in searches and a 11.54 per cent increase in enquiries in the year up to April 30.

Search & Enquiry Growth by Excavator Class*

Excavator Class Search % Enquiry % Increase Increase

0–7 tonne +1.8 -14.7

7–20 tonne -13.8 -8.2

20–45 tonne +11.4 +11.5

45–100 tonne +33.8 +28.0

100+ tonne +15.9 -60.0

*Based on total searches and enquiries for the period January 1–April 30, 2021 Vs January 1– April 30, 2020

Similarly, 45–100 tonne excavators also registered a big lift in buyer interest, with searches up 33.81 per cent and enquiries up 28 per cent in the period.

While searches for 0–7 tonne (+1.76 per cent) and 100+ tonne excavators were higher in the period, both classes registered drops in enquiries of -14.74 per cent and -60 per cent respectively.

Excavators in the 7–20 tonne category suffered declines in both searches (-13.85 per cent) and enquiries (-8.17 per cent) in the first four months of 2021.

Search & Enquiry Growth by Excavator Make*

Product Type Search % Enquiry % Increase Increase

Wacker Neuson +132.3 +285.7

Liebherr +468.7 +150.0

Sunward +138.5 +150.0

Yuchai +14.4 +133.3

Agrison +2,300.0 +120.0

Hidromek +51.5 +100.0

Hitachi -16.7 +20.8

Caterpillar -30.7 +17.4

Komatsu -43.2 +17.1

Bobcat +30.1 +8.3

Kobelco -8.5 +1.3

*Based on total searches and enquiries for the period January 1–April 30, 2021 Vs January 1– April 30, 2020

By make, Wacker Neuson led the pack with a 285.7 per cent leap in enquiries and a 132.3 per cent jump in searches so far this year.

Liebherr (+150 per cent enquiries; +468.7 per cent searches), Sunward (+150 per cent enquiries; +138.5 per cent searches), Yuchai (+133.3 per cent enquiries; +14.4 per cent searches), Agrison (+120 per cent enquiries; +2,300 per cent searches), and Hidromek (+100 per cent enquiries; +51.5 per cent searches) all experienced heightened buyer interest – although off low bases.

Big-name makes including Hitachi (+20.8 per cent), Caterpillar (+17.4 per cent), Komatsu (+17.1 per cent), Bobcat (+8.3 per cent) and Kobelco (+1.3 per cent) also registered growth in enquiries in the period.