Well known for their multi-directional machines, the latest Combilift is as manoeuvrable as you would expect, but a slight departure being the company’s first pedestrian reach stacker.
The WR-4 (Walkie Reach Truck) has already grabbed it’s first FLTA Award for ergonomics. Not a bad achievement for a stacker that requires only a two metre pallet-to-pallet gap. The multi-position tiller no doubt impressed the voters, whilst electronic power steering and fingertip controls make it simple and easy to operate.
The extraordinary seven week voyage from Belgium to the South Pole, completed by Komatsu’s latest hybrid excavator wasn’t the end of the journey. The HB215LC was then transported using a giant sled to the Princess Elizabeth Station, around 250 miles away! It’s not the first time the company has delivered snow vehicles to the Antarctic. The first machine arrived in 1956!
The hybrid excavator was loaded on the Mary Arctica at the port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, and the ship departed for the White Continent the day after. After a short stopover at Cape Town, South Africa, it headed out for Crown Bay on Antarctica’s coast, where cargo for the Princess Elisabeth Station is usually unloaded.
The HB215LC was unloaded onto the icy continent of Antarctica. The ship could not arrive at the usual site at Crown Bay due to the worst sea ice conditions in the last 30 years.
Soon after it arrived at the station, the HB215LC was already hard at work, removing snow and preparing the site for the reconstruction of the technical storerooms. “It is fantastic to see how much work the excavator can do in one day,” says Mr. Alain Hubert IPF founder and Belgian polar explorer. “The power and the precision of this new HB215LC are amazing.”
In Komatsuʼs unique hybrid system, the electric swing motor/generator captures and regenerates energy as the upper structure slows down and converts it into electric energy. The regenerated energy is stored in the capacitor and used by the generator/motor to assist the engine when it needs to accelerate. Thus, the hybrid system reduces fuel consumption significantly. Most components of the system are developed and manufactured by Komatsu.
Doosan has won its fifth FLTA Award, nicknamed ‘Archie’, this time for the G2 diesel engine. Managing Director of Overseas Sales, Kun H Lee, collected Doosan’s first award back in 2005.
This latest win means Doosan has now received prizes in each of the three main categories of Safety, Ergonomics and Innovation. Said Kun H: “It is a great way of recognising the effort that has gone into building up our product range over the past decade. The G2 is a new engine that reduces emissions so much that a particulate filter is no longer needed.”
Japanese manufacturer Komatsu is a world leader in the field of construction, military and mining equipment, and now they are hoping to take this field to a whole new level; deep underground.
Komatsu is joining forces with General Electric Co. to venture into the market of subterranean mining equipment. With a rising demand for metal and mineral commodities, mining companies are going deep underground in search of resources, leading to the needs for new products to be developed.
Since Komatsu already have the product knowledge and expertise in producing mining machinery, they feel that they offer serious competition in this field.
Together, with their established engineering backgrounds, Komatsu and GE hope to become leaders in the market and with mining equipment accounting for 33 percent of Komatsu’s sales last year, pioneering new underground mining products will be an attractive new long term venture.
Many markets are characterised by rival manufacturers battling for market dominance, Apple and Microsoft, Pepsi and Coke, Ryanair and Easyjet, to name a few.
But rarely have two companies’ fortunes been quite so interlinked as Caterpillar and Komatsu. Named after the Japanese city of Komatsu (the name translates as “little pine tree”) Komatsu Iron Works separated from Takeuchi Mining Co. in 1921 to become Komatsu Ltd.
Caterpillar Inc. was actually founded four years later in 1925 when the Holt Manufacturing Co. and the C. L. Best Tractor Co. merged to form Caterpillar Tractor Co. The company aimed to be the leader in providing the best value in machines, engines and support services for customers dedicated to building the world’s infrastructure, and developing and transporting its resources.
Komatsu produced its first agricultural tractor prototype in 1931. Through the 1930s, Komatsu also produced tractors for the Japanese military, as well as bulldozers, tanks and howitzers.
(more…)
Think Scandinavian businesses and pretty soon you’ll see a famous flat pack furniture store or a boxy car company, but a quick look at the origins of some the MHE’s big boys reveals a fascinating link.
Atlet, Konecranes, SMV, BT Rolatruc, Hiab, Cargotec, Kalmar, Svetruck – all have geographical links to the Peninsula.
Atlet equipment is well know for its durability and high build-quality. Now the Swedish firm is making stress the enemy…
The new generation Tergo reach trucks focus on how to minimise operator fatigue and stress and are designed to be the most ergonomic trucks on the market.
For years, there have been announcements about trials of forklift trucks powered by hydrogen fuel cells. Concerns about the supply infrastructure for hydrogen fuel cells and safety questions over the refuelling process saw the early tide of forklift trials slow to a trickle. That’s no longer the case and some key fuel cell announcements have been made in the past few months – on both sides of the Atlantic.
In the European Industrial Truck Survey 2009, 250 senior business people were asked to identify the critical factors which affect their forklift purchasing decisions. Surprisingly, price came only third on the buyers’ list.
From magnificent mountains to sandy beaches, there are many outstanding natural features that give California its identity.
Unfortunately, some of the heaviest traffic congestion and worst air pollution in the world is also one of these trademarks. In 1967, California’s Legislature combined two Department of Health departments to form the Air Resources Board (ARB). Since then the board has been instrumental in setting the clean air agenda, championing emissions targets that were soon adopted across the globe.
Now the state has a new target in its sights – efficiency standards for battery chargers. The new regulations require big changes for some electric lift truck users in California and might also forecast a worldwide model for efficient forklift battery charging. By the time the regulations are fully phased in, they could save California an estimated $300 million in annual electricity costs. Any industrial chargers that do not meet the regulation’s requirements for power conversion, power required to charge, no-battery draw, and overall efficiency will have to go.
Thankfully, high-frequency technologies such as IGBT or MOSFET are smaller, quieter, and much more efficient due to intelligent switching systems. The efficiency of such systems is much greater, leading to improved charging and extended battery life.
