One machine, many uses

Though things are improving, the state of the economy continues to drive trends in the compact equipment market. Landscape contractors are still being cautious about their spending. They’re looking for the most bang for their buck and compact equipment attachments offer that – while also reducing man hours and ultimately saving money.

“The most significant trend right now has to do with the fact that contractors have experienced a pretty bad recession so there’s not a lot of equipment being bought and sold,” says Chris Giorgianni, vice president, product, JCB North America. “When that happens, customers start trying to find ways to truly maximize the use of their existing machines and minimize the number of people they need on a job site.”

Curtis Goettel, brand marketing manager for New Holland Construction, adds that by its very definition, compact equipment is designed to be portable and to take the place of manual labor, completing the work faster. “The more versatile the machine is, the more jobs it can perform, and the more man-hours it saves,” he says.

“Skid-steer loaders and compact track loaders are great examples. “There have been so many attachments developed for these machines that they can literally accomplish hundreds of different jobs in a fraction of the time it would take humans to perform the same work.”

Ramping up productivity. The Bobcat Co. has introduced a sonic tracer/slope sensor kit for its M-Series loaders, providing operators many of the same capabilities as large road grading equipment for rough and finish grading.

“Where usage of a laser requires a flat plane on the job site, using a sonic/slope set-up allows for going up and down hills while still achieving the correct slope,” says Chris Knipfer, marketing manager. “Operators will increase productivity and precession on job sites that feature hilly terrain.”

At CE Attachments, the EDGE Tree Puller/Grabbing Tool can save contractors a lot of time. “With this attachment, shrubs and smaller trees can be pulled out from their trunk base roots and all,” says Ron Peters, product manager. “You can load it right on to the trailer and haul it away. Without the stump being left behind, your workload is significantly decreased.”

Katie Pullen, brand marketing manager for Case Construction Equipment says that when it comes to compact equipment, Case is always trying to find ways to help customers do their jobs faster. “The most recent addition to our compact excavator line is the angled backfill blade, but we also offer an array of attachments for our skid steers, compact track loaders and compact excavators.”

More Offerings. Today’s contractors are looking for attachments that allows for a single piece of machinery to do as many jobs as possible. JCB’s Giorgianni calls it the “Swiss Army knife approach.”

“The more you can do with one machine, the fewer operators and the less transport you need to the job site,” he says. “All of that equates to money saved. Over the last year, we’ve launched our skid-steer loader and track loader with 31 different attachments.

“In addition to that, we’ve launched an upgraded array of hammers of the last year.”

At New Holland Construction, more than 200 types and sizes of attachments are offered for skid-steer loaders, compact track loaders, loader backhoes and compact wheel loaders.

The company reports that it is always adding new attachments to expand on that flexibility.

“We recently added new thumb kits, hammers and tampers for loader backhoes and compact excavators,” says Goettel.

“We also added a line of Enhanced High Flow (high pressure/high flow) attachments to go with this new factory offering on the skid-steer loaders and compact track loaders. These include mulchers, rock saws and cold planers. A new line of high flow snow blower attachments will be added by fall 2012.”

Environmental Trends. An interest in reusing and recycling green material also continues to grow in the landscape industry.

The EDGE Chipper from CE Attachments helps facilitate this by allowing contractors to easily produce reusable woodchips.

“It’s also multi-purpose by offering a solution to quickly remove branches from a yard while producing something that’s valuable and reusable,” says Peters.

Caterpillar has introduced two new high-performance mulching heads, models HM315B and HM415BB, designed specifically for use with Cat 272D HF XPS and XHP skid-steer loaders as well as 299D HF XPS and XHP compact track loaders.

The mulching head processes trees up to eight inches in diameter and are designed for high performance cutting and mulching vegetation, saplings and undergrowth from overgrown areas and even forested terrain.

Trees, shrubs and saplings are reduced to mulched material that can be easily reused. The MH60C Mulching Head from John Deere is a new attachment designed to work with John Deere skid-steers and compact track loaders. The mulching head can remove up to eight-inch trees and 12-inch stumps. The attachment also works well below soil level. A heavy-duty push bar is useful for topping trees or brush and helps protect the carrier.

Compliance with Tier IV. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Tier IV emission standards are also driving today’s trends.

Tier IV mandates reduced emissions from non-road diesel engines by integrating engine and fuel controls.

Bobcat machines with less than 25.5 horsepower have been Final Tier IV compliant since 2008, for instance. And Bobcat machines equal or greater than 25.5 horsepower, but less than 75.1 horsepower, have been Interim Tier IV compliant since 2008.

For some, Tier IV mandates have inspired exciting changes. The New Holland Construction 200 series-skid steer loaders and compact track loaders were the result of preparation for the new Tier IV engines.

“Knowing years in advance that the new engines were coming and that a redesign would be needed to accommodate the new technology, the door was opened for a complete redesign,” says Goettel.

“New Holland Construction was able to incorporate many of the upgrades and new features that have been on the radar for some time into our newest equipment.

“Two major impacts in the New Holland Construction 200 Series skid-steer loaders and compact track loaders were the new Cab forward design that allows superior visibility, and the stretched wheel base for excellent stability.”

But the reality is that Tier IV changes will come with an additional upfront cost for the contractor.

“When this cost is applied to compact equipment, the percentage will represent the largest market price jump in recent history,” says Goettel. “The cost impact will be the same for all manufacturers in regulated regions such as North America and Europe.

“The good news is that once you are over this hurdle, the Tier IV often results in higher power output and fuel efficiency throughout the life of the machine. This can result in a margin of payback for the machine’s life.”

The author is a frequent contributor to Lawn & Landscape.

COMPACT EQUIPMENT
Bobcat sonic tracer/slope sensor kit
The pitch: The new Bobcat sonic tracer/slope sensor kit provides M-Series loader operators many of the same capabilities as large road grading equipment for rough and finish grading.

• The grade control system is engineered to follow the contour of nearly any terrain, and eliminates the need for a control panel on the grader attachment.
• Offers contractors an alternative method of automatic grade control on job sites not suited to lasers.
• Where usage of a laser requires a flat plane, it allows for going up and down hills, achieving the correct slope.

For more information: www.bobcat.com

Case Stump Grinders
The pitch: Case stump grinders work to 12 in. below ground level and come in two models.

• The Case SG26 stump grinder, with a cutting diameter of 29 in. (74 cm.), is designed for standard flow hydraulic power.
• The Case SG30 stump grinder, with a cutting diameter of 33 in (84 cm.), requires high-flow hydraulic power.
• Both models feature an overall length of 84 in. (213 cm.), overall width of 58 in. (147 cm.) and overall height of 37 in. (94 cm.).

For more information: www.casece.com

EDGE Brush Mulcher
The pitch: The new standard-flow EDGE Brush Mulcher attachment is designed for mulching of brush in land clearing applications on standard-flow hydraulics.

• Equipped with a safety pusher bar to force brush or small trees down and allow the mulcher teeth to contact the lower portion of the brush to mulch it.
• The rotor is designed with four staggered rows of teeth around the circumference that cut into and mulch wood material
• It also features a rear chain shield and a pressure gauge on the back of the mulcher for the operator to monitor hydraulic pressure while operating.

For more information: www.ceattachments.com

General Equipment Co. 471 DIG-R-TACH Drilling Attachment
The pitch: The 471 DIG-R-TACH Hydraulically-Powered Earth Drilling Attachment System is designed for use with lower-auxiliary hydraulic system flow rates found on models of compact loader backhoes, mini-excavators and compact utility loaders.

• Features a universal mounting bracket that conforms to a wide variety of loader bucket configurations.
• The 471 DIG-R-TACH requires no special tools, drilling or welding.
• Features an industry standard 2-inch hexagon auger drive connection.

For more information: www.generalequip.com

MT 5519 telescopic handler
The pitch: Manitou has added to the MT series product range available in the North American markets with the new model MT 5519 telescopic handler. 

• The new telescopic handler’s low-profile compact frame, with an overall height of 6 ft., 4 in. and tight turning radius of 11 feet means it can maneuver in low buildings and confined job sites
• The low-profile boom reaches to a height of 19 ft. 1 in.
• Features the same welded box-section design that is on the proven larger MT Series telescopic handlers.

For more information: www.us.manitou.com

Ramrod Large Capacity Dumper Bucket
The pitch: Featuring a 42-cubic-foot capacity, the new Ramrod Large Capacity Dumper Bucket offers a lot in material capacity and maneuverability.

• With a 30 degree dump angle, the dual castor wheel with walking axle drive system allows for easier loading/unloading.
• Designed to carry and transport literally thousands of materials, it compliments RAMROD Models 930 and 1350.
• Dual wheels are able to handle a combined 2,400 lbs.

For more information: www.ramrodequip.com