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Supplier Newsline
Strongco purchases Champion Road Machinery Sales
Volvo Construction Equipment has announced the sale of Champion Road Machinery Sales of Brampton, Ontario, to the Strongco Income Fund of Mississauga, Ontario. Champion was a division of Volvo Group Canada, Inc, and a company-owned member of the Volvo CE North America dealer network. Strongco is a Volvo CE dealer and presently operates 20 construction equipment sales and service branches in five Canadian provinces. The acquisition was effective in March. The acquisition gives Strongco the sales, rentals, parts and service operations of Volvo’s motor grader and compact equipment product lines in Ontario. Strongco will continue operations at the Champion sales and service locations in Brampton, Carleton Place, Goderich, North Bay and Thunder Bay to ensure that Volvo customers continue to receive product support and service without interruption. www.strongco.com
Cat offers rubber-tired harvester with fixed head
Caterpillar recently introduced a Cat 550 harvester with a Prentice PF-48 fixed head. Until now, the rubber-tired harvester was offered only with a telescoping boom and dangle head, while the Cat track harvesters were equipped with fixed heads.
The new combination gives loggers the control they want for select cutting in hardwoods, while leaving a minimal footprint, according to Cat. Trees can be cut, lifted off the stump, processed and placed without damaging surrounding timber. The Prentice PF-48 is a fixed fourroller head capable of cutting up to a 24” diameter with a feed speed of 16 ft/sec. The head is simple to operate and maintain.
All major functions are controlled from the cab and the hydraulic and electrical components are easy to access. The Cat 550 carrier works well with the fixed head, says the company. The optimum torque curve of the Cat C7 ACERT Tier III engine allows this 197 hp unit to operate in a constant rpm range, resulting in good fuel economy. www.forestpro.com.
Tigercat track loaders feature advanced load sensing hydraulic system
Tigercat offers two track loader models, the T234 and the T250B, powered by the Cummins QSB6.7 Tier III engine. The T234 is rated at 173 hp and the T250B at 205 hp. Both machines benefit from an advanced load sensing hydraulic system that improves performance and fuel efficiency.
They are equipped with the F6140 heavy duty forestry undercarriage. And both have the capability to travel to a secondary landing or staging area and perform in-field sorting, merchandizing or light duty shovel logging duties. Although they are standard equipped with a 9.75 metre boom system, the T250B can be optioned with the SD (SuperDuty) package that includes an 11 metre boom, live heel, 7,500 lb counterweight and the massive F6155 flotation undercarriage for added stability. www.tigercat.com
Maintenance management system from BCS Software
BCS Software has released a computerized maintenance management system for equipment, whether wheeled, tracked or stationary. Its use is said to extend equipment life, reduce downtime, and save time by scheduling tasks.
The easy-to-use system is flexible and designed to get loggers up and running quickly. Work order, fuel ticket and meter reading entries are fast and intuitive, allowing companies to build a history of their equipment costs.
A flexible Alert(s) system allows for the forewarning of upcoming maintenance program attention and/or warranty expiration pre-inspections. Keyword search facilities allow companies to search past work orders for relevant parts used and/or work done. www.bcsequipmentmaintenance.com
New line of rugged computers
DRS Tactical Systems Inc has introduced a new line of rugged mobile computers. The ARMOR Convertible Notebook and ARMOR Tablet PC offer data protection technology, “anywhere” connectivity and sunlight readable display options, making these computers the ideal solution for individuals interested in ensuring situational awareness, protecting valuable data and/or increasing worker efficiency.
“DRS has extensive experience developing systems that meet and exceed military requirements and survive extremely harsh environments around the globe,” says Michael J. Sheehan, president of DRS Technologies’ Tactical Computing strategic business unit. www.drs.com
TAIMI addresses issue of hydraulic hose torsion
Torsion reduces hydraulic hose life. For example, a seven degree twist per foot of hose can reduce life by 90 per cent. TAIMI started to work on this problem in 2005, looking for a solution that would eliminate torsion, be impossible to pull apart, last a long time, as well as product that was re-buildable, compact, and selflubricating, and would adapt to any situation on any machine.
The result was the patent pending Swiwell cartridge. This simple and robust product uses no ball or needle bearing. It is efficient against hydraulic shocks and external constraints, and it copes well with side loads that destroy ordinary swivels.
In places where movement causes hose twisting, TAIMI’s self-lubricating swivels and cartridges are an efficient and durable coupling assembly that is viewed by end users as a value-adding product that improves efficiency and reduces downtime. www.taimi.ca
Prentice skidders feature continuous rotation grapple to improve productivity
Higher horsepower on Prentice skidders has reduced cycle times and boosted productivity with no increase in fuel cost per ton.
An increase from 173 hp to 190 hp has resulted in a 6.8 per cent improvement in cycle times, 7 per cent increase in drawbar pull and an average 8.5 per cent boost in load start-up torque. These improvements will result in higher production, according to the company.
A new Prentice continuous rotation grapple further improves productivity. The curvature of the tongs rolls wood better and makes loading easier, while clamp force and the raised edge increase the grapple’s grip on a load and prevent log slippage. The grapple is lighter but stronger. Features that contribute to the grapple’s long wear life include the box section structure, baffle plates inside the tongs and wear-resistant cast tips. The large capacity hydraulic flow-divider valve is also designed for durability. Several grapple sizes are available. www.prenticeforestry.com