Haulage

Logging goes electric

Goal is for value chain to be fossil-free

SCA, together with Scania, has developed the world’s first electric timber truck with a capacity to carry 80 tonnes. SCA’s goal is for the entire value chain to be fossil-free.

“We have come a long way in the industrial processes that are already today 96 percent fossil-free. We are very happy to be able to break new ground together with Scania to make the heaviest transports fossilfree,” says Hans Djurberg, head of sustainability at SCA.

The world’s first electric timber truck with a capacity of 80 tonnes has now been delivered to SCA. The vehicle solution that Scania has developed in close collaboration with SCA and the research institute Skogforsk, is part of the transition to sustainable transport.

SCA was founded in 1929 in Sweden and has since then evolved from a pure forest company to a company that also offers personal care and tissue products.

“The 80-ton battery-powered timber truck shows that even really heavy transports can be electrified. The partnership with SCA, where you are out early and show what is possible, is a clear signal that it is possible to electrify even heavy transports. A change of pace is needed in order for Sweden to become fossil-free in time and achieve the goal in the Paris Agreement,” says Fredrik Allard, head of E-mobility at Scania.

“An electric timber truck is a symbol of something quite cool. Shipping of just timber has been talked about as something that might never be possible to electrify. The development in recent years and what we now present together with SCA shows how fast the development takes place both in terms of vehicles and batteries.

Test runs during summer

The intention is for the vehicle to transport timber on the stretch between SCA’s timber terminal in Gimonäs and the paper mill in Obbola outside Umeå. The new electric timber truck is another innovative step on the journey towards a fossil-free society and can be driven with a total weight of 64 tonnes on public roads and 80 tonnes on private roads.

Obbola’s paper mill currently has a basically completely fossil-free production process and the intention with the new vehicle is to reduce the fossil elements in the transport chain of raw materials to the mill.

The electric timber truck will be tested during the European summer and continuously studied by the research institute Skogforsk to collect relevant data that can form the basis for comparisons with conventional diesel-powered timber transports. Thereafter, the plan is for it to be included in SCA’s ordinary operations.

High climate ambitions

“This is a first concrete step towards electric power in the most difficult part of the land-based transport chain, which is extremely important. This is a global challenge that many have struggled with and now we are showing together with an innovative partner, Scania, that Swedish industry can drive sustainability development,” says Hans Djurberg.

“Sustainability and reduced carbon dioxide emissions are important for the whole society, which means that the business is also dependent on us driving development. Our forests and forest products have long created enormous climate benefits and our industries are very climate efficient, so it is also obvious with high climate ambitions for transport as well.”

The studies carried out during the European summer will, among other things, compare energy consumption, productivity and costs in relation to existing vehicles and map out what would be required for a broad implementation of electric timber trucks throughout the country.

•The electric truck being loaded and, inset, being recharged.

New K22 delivered through customer, driver input

KENWORTH has unveiled its next level cabover, the K220, which continues the company’s drive to optimise the capability of both owners and drivers to prosper in what is the world’s toughest but most productive transport industry.

“It is a development path that has been forged by an amazing collaboration between Australian transport operators and a dedicated and determined local development team that has spanned more than five decades,” Director Sales and Marketing, Brad May, said.

“Nowhere in the world does such a close relationship exist between those who use the product and those who design it”.

Beginning in late 2018, the project was driven by high levels of customer and driver input.

“We consider this to be a pivotal part of our development program. Only then can we ensure that we’re giving operators exactly what they need,” Product Planning Director Ross Cureton said.

The Kenworth K220 is reassuringly familiar. It has new LED headlamps with integrated indicators and daytime running lights (DRL) that can be paired with bright look bezels to give the K220 exceptional on road presence.

The most significant exterior change is the new wind cheating roof profile. Shaped with the aid of computational fluid dynamics, the new roof profile improves aerodynamic efficiency by four per cent.

The new roof profile increases headroom and provides greater overhead storage space, which is now triple the size. The new climate-controlled HVAC system provides significantly improved performance, to vastly enhance interior comfort in any weather.

The K220 picks up where the K200 left off and remains the most versatile truck on Australian roads. Starting nominally at 97t GCM and available up to 250t GCM and beyond, through application approval, the major configurations available are as follows:

The interior features a new 15-inch high-definition instrument panel. Intuitive and easy to read, this new digital instrumentation helps reduce distraction by allowing the driver to control how much information is shown when operating the truck. This can be customised from driver to driver and trip to trip.

The instrument panel will display critical content to alert the driver of all necessary information, constantly monitoring critical vehicle parameters, and displaying them to the driver as required. This includes early intervention warnings for the driver, allowing them to respond quickly.

At the start of the working day the K220 will perform a comprehensive Systems Check. Likewise, at the end of the day on shutting down, it will display a detailed trip and vehicle summary. This includes statistics such as average fuel economy, idle time, cruise control usage as well as any potential mechanical issues.

Designed for the Cummins X15 Euro 6 and Euro 5 engines, the K220 can be coupled with a manual or the all-new 18-speed Endurant XD Pro automated transmission. The Endurant XD Pro delivers the right mix of hardware and intelligence to give drivers more confidence in the most challenging applications.

The Endurant XD Pro utilises Eaton’s Extreme Duty clutches, which feature robust components designed for increased durability, improved noise and vibration, in addition to higher thermal capacity for enhanced low-speed manoeuvrability. All whilst being lighter, smoother, and engineered to reduce fuel and maintenance costs.

Evolved, refined, technologically advanced, the new K220 takes the driver experience to the Next Level.

KENWORTH.COM.AU/K220

Haulage BRIEFS

Russian sell off

PONSSE has sold all shares in its subsidiary that provided Ponsse services in Russia and Belarus. Ponsse’s operations in Russia will transfer to OOO Bison once the conditions of the transaction have been met. Ponsse announced its intention to divest its operations in Russia on 15 June 2022. Grapple expansion

TIGERCAT continues to expand its line of grapple attachments for Tigercat shovel loggers. The new Tigercat BG13 is a large capacity bunching grapple suited to high production shovel logging operations. The Tigercat BG13 bunching grapple is best matched to LSX870D and LS855E carriers.

Quayside buys into Olsen

PF Olsen and Quayside Holdings have announced Quayside has acquired 44% of PF Olsen, with the deal closing on 10 June 2022. Direct Capital is selling its shareholding after 11 years as a shareholder. Quayside, as the investment arm of the Bay of Plenty Regional Council, focuses on commercial returns for their shareholder and the wider community; supporting impactful investments while investing responsibly for strong financial returns for generations to come. Through their investment in PF Olsen, Quayside will appoint two Board Directors with complimentary skill sets to the PF Olsen Board.

Mulcher app

AE customers who purchase a forestry mulcher for skid steers with Sonic System now have one more tool to optimize its performance and capacity: the official FAE app for iOS devices. It helps users check that calibration at the time of deployment is optimal for getting the most out of the Sonic System. The app’s integrated diagnostics system and real-time monitoring of the main parameters assist in resolving any problems. For now, the FAE app is available only for skid steer mulcher Sonic heads but will soon be available for excavator Sonic heads as well as for Android devices.

Dongwha chasing reliability, service it can depend on

BOMBALA, in southeastern New South Wales, is home to Dongwha Australia, a timber saw milling and manufacturing plant specialising in softwood products, including decking, structural timber, treated sleepers and fencing and landscaping products.

The town’s remoteness– it’s around 485 km from Sydney – poses several operational challenges, explains Neville McInnes, Dongwha Holding’s Resource Manager.

“Despite being only an hour from the coast and an hour from the ski fields, Bombala is fairly isolated, which means it can be difficult to attract people to come and work in a small country town,” he said.

It also means that when there is a problem with the equipment or machinery on site it can be difficult to get someone out to repair it in a timely manner, resulting in extended periods of downtime.

Dongwha Australia recently took delivery of a new Volvo L180H wheel loader and one of the major factors in their decision to purchase a Volvo was CJD Equipment’s service, McInnes told Australian Forests & Timber News.

“Previously, with the other machines, if something went wrong and we had to get a technician out they’d have to come from Sydney and we’d be waiting seven hours,” he said.

“CJD have reliable field service technicians based in Canberra, so someone can be on site within two and a half hours.

“The key factor with our wheel loaders is uptime and, as I said, if something went wrong with our previous machines, they’d be offline for two days. It’s not just the machine we’re after, it’s also the backup service and spare parts availability.”

Ross Forsyth, CJD Regional Sales Manager, explains that it’s important for CJD Equipment to be close to its customers, both in the sense of really understanding their challenges in order to help them overcome them, but also in terms of proximity.

“Every operation is slightly different, so when we partner with operators, we want to understand their specific needs and requirements so we can provide equipment solutions accordingly,” he said.

“Volvo wheel loaders are widely respected – their performance is unbeatable. But, as the situation with Dongwha Australia illustrates, the equipment is only one piece of the puzzle. “Our customers operate in some extremely harsh environments and trying conditions and they need to know they can depend on us if something goes wrong – that, after all, is when they need us most.

“That’s why CJD Equipment operates nationwide with strategically placed branches, dealers and service centres,” Forsyth said.

Dongwha Australia is finding that, CJD Equipment is not only more responsive, but the Volvo L180H wheel loader is also more reliable, further reducing downtime.

McInnes believes that one of the key factors that underpins this reliability is that the L180H has been built specifically for log yard conditions. One of the key features is the logging counterweight, which provides unrivalled stability and keeps the machine well balanced, even when lifting extremely heavy loads.

Dongwha Australia most commonly utilise the wheel loader in log grappling applications and the Volvo L180H’s superior high lifting force and tilt out force make it the perfect machine for their operations, McInnes explains.

It features Volvo’s unique Torque Parallel (TP) linkage, which provides high breakout torque and ultimate parallel movement throughout the entire lifting range. The linkage offers stability during loading and carrying, and, for long lasting performance, the loader also has double sealed pins and bushes to improve longevity and reduce down time.

The Volvo L180H wheel loader has also been upgraded with a new transmission, which works in harmony with the engine transmission and hydraulics. The new converter delivers increased torque output, resulting in better performance at low speeds. For faster acceleration and smooth operation, the steps between gears have been reduced. Compared with the G-series, these upgrades boost productivity by up to 10 percent.

As he’s spending more time in the Volvo L180H wheel loader, McInnes explains that he increasingly appreciates the Volvo wheel loader’s ‘unbeatable’ operator comfort.

The machine is customisable – with the choice of single or multi levers – to ensure the precise control of hydraulic functions. Moreover, operators can select from three hydraulic modes based on their preferred responsiveness.

The L180H wheel loader features Volvo’s patented Reverse by Braking (RBB), which reduces the engine rpm and automatically applies the service break, thereby slowing the machine when the operator wants to change direction. In addition to improving operator comfort, the RBB reduces stress on the drivetrain and extends the life of the machine’s components.

One thing that Volvo seems to understand is that operator comfort directly affects productivity, McInnes notes.

A case in point is the Volvo Co-Pilot, a state-ofthe-art touchscreen tablet that powers all Volvo Assist platforms using on-board machine data and high precision sensors. It is simple and intuitive and allows the operator to set up projects in just a few touches by selecting the required job parameters.

The operator can then monitor progress of the job as it gets underway and stay safe, with on-screen alerts that indicate when pre-set parameters are met. The Android-powered tablet display is 3G-compatible when equipped with a SIM card, allowing for the system to receive software updates automatically and wirelessly.

The relationship between Dongwha Australia and CJD Equipment is ‘very strong’, McInnes says.

“As a business, you need reliable partners, and you couldn’t have a better one in CJD.”