20
JULY-AUGUST 2013
d
&
ri
EXCAVATORS
If there is a common theme in the excavator
sector it is reducing running costs, and this
is driving the use of new technologies
to increase efficiency, cut fuel
consumption and recover waste
energy.
d
&
ri
reports
Hitachi first for
Ehlert & Söhne
One of the first of the latest generation Hitachi Zaxis ZX 250LCN-5 excavators to be
delivered in Germany has started work on a site where contractor H. Ehlert & Söhne
Gmbh is demolishing a ramp that provided access to a car park adjacent to a former
office block and medical centre in the German city of Hamburg. The company is also
demolishing and clearing the foundations and removing the resulting debris, totalling
30 truck-loads, to a recycling centre where it will be processed for re-use. The site is
being redeveloped as a new office and
retail space, work that is expected to be
completed by the end of November 2013.
The new ZX250LN-5 weighs in
at 27.3 tonnes and has a Stage IIIB
compliant diesel producing 132 kW
(177 hp). It has a maximum dig reach of
10.3 m (33.8 m), maximum dig depth
of 7 m (23 ft) and a maximum dig force
of 188 kN. According to Hitachi, the
machine’s TRIAS hydraulic system confers
higher productivity and optimised fuel
efficiency. The machine also features
faster swing performance and higher
swing torque to provide greater versatility.
Efficiency
as the ambient air in many cities. In fact
some manufacturers say that in some areas,
excavators with the latest engines will act as
air cleaners!
Other countries including Brazil, Russia,
India and China have laws in place equivalent
to the older Tier 2 or Tier 3 regulations,
and there is a further set of lesser developed
countries with no regulations for off-highway
equipment exhaust emissions – sometimes
referred to as Tier 0 countries.
The emissions regulations in place in any
one part of the world will have a bearing on
the engine design and the on-board systems to
reduce emissions. But within this framework,
L
owering running costs is a
major focus for the world’s
excavator manufacturers, and
one of the biggest target areas
is fuel efficiency.
There is no getting
away from the fact that
excavators tend to be
big, thirsty machines,
so fuel consumption
will always be an issue.
Manufacturers also have to
contend with the fact that there
are laws in place to limit exhaust
emissions in many parts of the world.
The strictest areas are Europe, the
USA and Japan, where the current Stage IIIB/
Tier 4 Interim laws are due to transition to
Stage IV/Tier 4 final next year. Emissions
at Tier 4 Final levels will see exhaust gasses
containing about the same level of pollutants
Doosan says the adoption of Bosh Rexroth’s VBO
hydraulic system – branded as D-Ecopower on its
DX340LC-3 and DX380LC-3 excavators – can deliver
a 12% drop in fuel consumption
Liebherr’s concept R 9XX 40 tonne class hybrid
features both electrical and hydraulic energy
recovery systems
