10
JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2015
d
&
ri
DEMOLITION
EXCAVATORS
will have its latest largehigh reach, the
PC490LC-10. Komatsu ismaking this
machine availablewith twodemolitionboom
configurations. Inmedium reach, with a
boom extension fittedbetween the standard
digboom and theboom foot, themachine
weighs in at 65.95 tonnes, can reach to17.4
m (57 ft) and can carry a 5 tonne tool to
that height.With its fullydedicatedhigh
reachboommounted to theboom foot, the
machinewillweigh in at 65 tonnes, reach to
28m (92 ft) and carry a toolweight of 3.35
tonnes (including anyquick coupler system).
Themodel
thatwill be
seen inParis
will in fact
bepowered
by a Stage
IIIB/Tier 4
Interimdiesel
but
D&Ri
understands
that in the
future Stage IV
versionswill
be available.
Komatsu
also says that it fully supports theuse of
hydraulic breakerswhen themachine is in its
medium reach configuration.
Power comes from a six cylinder
KomatsuSAA6D125E-6-A common rail
direct injection, water cooled turbocharge
and after cooleddiesel developing270
kW (362hp) at 1,900 rpm. Themachine
comeswith the company’s Safety Space
Cab that tilts for optimum viewover the
attachment duringoperations. The cab also
features anewWorkingRange Indicator,
developed specifically for themachine that is
programmed for usewithboth configurations
and can storeup to15 toolmemory settings.
Liebherr is another thatwill have anew
demolition specificmachine at theParis show
ground.However, the company is notwilling
Getting a grip
While strictly speaking not a demolition excavator, we felt that Kobelco’s SK210D is
sufficiently interesting to be included in this feature. Designed for a very specific application,
namely automobile dismantling, as the picture shows themachine features a clamp
arrangement mounted to the undercarriage and a boom-mounted crusher.
Components, e.g. intricate strands of wiring harness, can be removed from a vehicle’s
chassis by themulti-role crusher that features jaw-like pincers attached to themain
operational arm. The crusher unit is operated via a proportionate control button on the
joystick. The fully rotational crusher head can rip, tear and crush withmore than adequate
delivered hydraulic torque.
To assist dismantling, the SK210D features the company’s fast two-way Clamp Arm. This
allows the crusher to gain purchase and dismantle/crush while holding the object firmly.
Stripping and bending tools are also located on top of the clamping arms.
Operator safety is further enhanced on the SK210Dwith the fitting of a protective front
and upper window cage as standard. Excellent fuel economy and low noise output are also
typical Kobelcomachine attributes.
According to the company, the SK210Dwould be suitable for any other application where
precise dismantling and component removal
is required.
On a separate note, there is still no
word on when, or even if, Kobelco plans to
introduce its demolition excavators into the
Europeanmarket A company spokesman told
D&Ri
: “the Europeanmarket for demolition
excavators is a competitive one and Kobelco
therefore currently does not bring these
machines into the region – this decision will
be under continuous review of course and
we cannot rule out their introduction at some
time in the future.”
The displays that the operator
sees in his cab from the new
Liebherr Demolition Control
system
to share anydetailed information at this stage
butwehope tobe able to reportmore fullyon
themachine in the Intermat showguide that
will be inourMarch-April issue, although
there arehints to it below.
IN CONTROL
Nevertheless, we candiscuss one feature that
themachinewill carry– thenewLiebherr
DemolitionControl (LDC) system thatwill be
fitted to its new excavators.
Liebherr-France SAShas had anLDC
system for anumber of years, but the system
thatwill be on show is all-new, says the
company. This system allows the operator
toknow thepositionof thedemolition
attachment at any time and toguarantee the
stabilityof the excavator. Bymeans of angle
sensorsmountedon the excavator andusing
automatic recognitionof the attachment
lengths, the systemgives continuous
information about thepositionof the
attachment (in cm). Byknowing theweight of
the tool the excavator canoperate in complete
safetywithin themachine'sworking envelope.
According toLiebherr, themain challenge
was to find a solution to integrate this LDC
system into the electronics of the excavator
and to simplify the functions for theoperator.
The solution thatwas developed
automatically recognises attachment lengths,
and angle sensors areused tomonitor the
positionof the equipment and to integrate the
tool typeswith theirweights into thedisplay
on the excavator. Tooptimise theperformance
of the excavator, extended reachwith rotation
limitationhas alsobeendeveloped. This
extended reach allows the operator to cover
a greaterworking area, which results in a
productivity gainon site.
Because theLDC is integratedwith the
on-board electronics on the excavator there is
no requirement for additional LDC-specific
