28
IRN NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2013
TELEHANDLERS
Telehandler buying spree in UK
The improving rental market in the UK, and in particular a growing housebuilding market, has led to
several major telehandler orders in recent months, with Hewden, Fork Rent and Nixon Hire all placing
enormous deals.
Earlier this year Fork Rent ordered 900 telescopic handlers from JCB in a £53 million (€61.7 million)
deal, one of the largest single order’s in JCB’s history.
The order includes the 540-200 Loadall, the 20 m high-reach model, with Fork Rent being the first
major rental company to invest in the machine.
Fork Rent, based in Ipswich, has been a major customer of JCB’s since 1987 and in that time has bought
more than 5500 JCB machines, including its backhoes, through dealer Watling JCB.
Next up was Nixon Hire, which has taken
delivery of 107 Loadall telehandlers from JCB in
an order worth £7 million (€8 million). The firm
has purchased the handlers in lift heights ranging
from 7 m to 17 m. Nixon Hire operates 14 depots
across the UK and one in Doha, Qatar.
The most recent order was from Hewden, which
has ordered 463 Caterpillar C series telehandlers
from dealer Finning UK in a deal worth £25 million.
It is the largest order for Caterpillar telehandlers
ever placed in the UK.
Kevin Parkes, Hewden CEO, said: “These products
are in high demand from customers and form part
of our core fleet proposition. Our investment will
ensure we are able to say yes to even more hires
and satisfy even more customers.”
Wacker Neuson and JCB, for example.
The big change with the Plus version is the use
of a new Ausa/Poclain “mechanical–hydrostatic
transmission with permanent 4WD that reduces the
cost of the machine while keeping its performance,
handling loads up to 1350 kg in very tough ground
conditions.”
More recently, Terex AWP used the ICUEE utility
equipment show in Louisville, Kentucky in October
to introduce a new version of its compact GTH-5519
telehandler.
The GTH-5519’s specifications have changed, with
length reduced by around 125 mm. The telehandler’s
wheelbase has expanded by 50 mm and the turning
radius has decreased by 75 mm.
Otherwise, the main design changes are reflected
in the engine choice, cab design, serviceability and
product quality, says Terex. A Deutz TD 2.9 L4 Tier 4
Final engine replaces the Deutz D 2011 L4 Tier 4 Interim
unit, and no diesel particulate filter is required, but
rather a diesel oxidation catalyst muffler. The power
of the new engine is 55.4 kW at 2600 rpm compared
to 50 kW on the previous model.
The cabin interior has been completely upgraded.
Now with a black dashboard, the new main
instrumentation cluster offers an integrated display
showing messages coming from the engine’s
electronic control unit. A new and more efficient
air defroster and ventilation unit keeps the cabin
comfortable, said Terex AWP.
“This newly updated telehandler is even simpler
to use and service,” says Chad Hislop, Terex Aerial
Work Platforms product manager, telehandlers.
“New fenders add to the durability of the machine
and easy access to the engine compartment
improves serviceability. “These upgrades help our
rental customers bring the machine in from rent, do
necessary maintenance and quickly get it back out
to work”.
Production of the new machine will begin
immediately for the ANSI and CSA markets. The new
unit will be available for South America beginning in
2014.
Italy’s Faresin, meanwhile, says it has been investing
heavily in its business over the past four years, with
€10 million spent on increasing production capacity –
not just for telehandlers, it also makes formwork and
scaffolding – and a further €2.5 million on research
and development.
Ausa T 144H model has been upgraded to a ‘Plus’ version,
with a new poclain transmission system.
Faresin’s FH Series Compact models feature Tier 4 Interim
engines and Faresin’s new VPS and VPSe transmissions.
Based in Breganze, Vicenza, and run by the Faresin
family, revenues are now double what they were in
2009, with sales of €40 million expected this year, a
20% increase on 2012.
New Faresin transmissions
Playing a part in that growth will be the latest
telehandler launches – seen at the Agritechnica show
in Hannover in November – comprising the FH Series
Compact models with Tier 4 Interim engines and
featuring its new VPS and VPSe transmissions.
The smallest of these is the FH 7.30, a 7 m boom unit
with a maximum 3.0 t carrying capacity, although also
in the range are 8 m, 9 m and 11 m models.
The new Variable Power System (VPS) transmission
for speeds of up to 40 km/hr is used in the FH 7.30
and FH 9.30 units, while the Variable Power System
Eletronic (VPSe), with three different driving modes
(soft, work and automotive), is available on the
FH 7.45, FH 8.40, FH 9.30 and FH 11.30 models. The 7.30
uses a 90 kW Deutz Tier 4 Interim/Stage IIIB engine,
while a larger 115 kW Deutz engine is used on the VSPe
models.
Faresin says the handlers have a new, larger cabin,
which increases the operator’s field of view by 20%.
Another big name in telehandlers, Bobcat, is also
updating some of its machines with new Stage IIIB
compliant engines. Although not strictly speaking a
compact model, the 4 t, 7 m TL470HF, a high power
version of the standard TL470, is now powered by
a Deutz TCD3.6 L4 diesel engine providing a rated
power of 89.5 kW at 2300 rpm. The engine uses EGR
(Exhaust Gas Recirculation) and a DOC-only diesel
oxidation catalyst) solution, eliminating the need for
a diesel particulate filter.
The TL470HF has a new load sensing pump
delivering a hydraulic flow of 190 l/min, offering faster
Kevin Parkes, CEO of Hewden.
New Italian manufacturer Magni has not yet ventured into the
compact telehandler segment. Pictured here is its HTH 25.11.
