Castleford Engineering adds more Volvos
Castleford Engineering based at Liverton near Newton Abbott, Devon has added two further Volvo crawler excavators to its plant fleet along with a couple of mini excavators from Volvo CE’s utility dealer Plant & Engineering Services.
Not only is this incremental to Castleford’s fleet the new EC300D is the first Volvo 30 tonne excavator to be supplied in Great Britain with the optional two piece boom arrangement. “Because much of our work is focused on maintaining major water courses for river authorities we needed the combination of a sizeable excavator coupled to the maximum flexibility of the boom and arm geometry especially for sheet piling in very confined spaces,” comments managing director Steve Rule. “Volvo’s EC300D with the two piece boom arrangement ticks our particular box in this regard,” he continues.
The new 30 tonne machine has been supplied alongside a new Volvo ECR235D reduced swing radius excavator complete with dozer blade and Steel Wrist Tilt Rotator and two compact excavators supplied by Plant & Engineering Services – all machines joining an existing ECR145D again fitted with a Steel Wrist Tilt Rotator, making Mr Rule’s fleet of machines all Volvo.
“We spent quite a bit of time researching the market place for the right machines for the fleet including listening to third party recommendations and I have to say that the build quality coupled to the after sales service support and the ease in dealing with the team at Volvo made our purchasing decision an easy one,” continues Steve Rule.
The new EC300D is powered by a Volvo six cylinder D8H Stage IIIB engine developing 228hp which contributes to an excellent performance being well matched to the machine’s hydraulics. The machine’s ‘Integrated work mode control’ provides high efficiency, rapid dig cycles and low fuel consumption. This advanced mode control system ensures the maximum possible hydraulic horsepower available is delivered at a constant engine speed under varying load conditions. Hose rupture valves are fitted as standard to the boom and dipper cylinders as are quick fit hydraulics and a hammer/shear service. The machine has also benefitted from optional slope and rotator (X3) pipework. With the two piece boom configuration the working weight of the EC300D nudges 32 tonnes and the machine’s equipment has a far more dynamic feature especially so when the equipment has to work closely in to the superstructure. The effective dumping height with the two piece boom is a generous 9.3 metres.
The ECR235D supplied to Castleford Engineering has been equipped specifically for the typical contracts the company undertakes and includes a dozer blade, hammer-shear circuit and at the business end, a Steelwrist X26 rotator. To facilitate the addition of the tiltrotator quick hitch and a selection of attachments have been fitted with a 2.5m dipper arm.
The reduced swing excavator is equipped with a Stage IIIB 6 litre Volvo engine producing 172 hp which operates in conjunction with an advanced mode control system ensuring the maximum possible hydraulic horsepower available is delivered at a constant engine speed under varying load conditions. Equipped with a 5.7m monobloc boom and 2.5m dipper arm, the maximum reach is a generous 9.5 metres and lifting capacity across carriage at full reach is an impressive 3.1 tonnes. The machine’s balance and stability is enhanced thanks to the fitting of 700mm track pads and dozer blade giving an operating weight of 27.5 tonnes.
The Steelwrist X26 is a very powerful tiltrotator featuring a heavy duty design and the power needed to work with excavators with an operating weight of between 20 and 26 tonnes. The design ensures a smooth operation in both tilt and rotation which puts the operator in full control of the action.
To get the most out of the X26 and the ECR235D, Volvo utilises the Steelwrist X Control system which is the most versatile on the market. The Steelwrist X26 complete with a front pin locking quick coupler has also been equipped with a four finger gripper unit making it even more versatile. It can be used to pick up and move heavy objects eliminating the need for additional lifting equipment. The X26 is always equipped with one extra hydraulic outlet so additional hydraulic attachments such as selector grabs or tress shears can be connected. Both the EC300D and ECR235D have been installed with bio degradable hydraulic oil since all of their work is concentrated on rivers and water courses.