EXECUTIVE REPORT
The pioneering electric Ecovolve dumper from Ireland is now being distributed by Compact Loaders UK.
Dumper developments
EHN Consultant Plant Editor Nick Johnson highlights the latest advances in site dumper designs including the introduction of wider track small size machines.
The long established site dumper continues to be a popular machine on site for transporting spoil and non-palletised materials around site. As could be seen at the recent Executive Hire Show (EHS), the design of these machines continues to evolve with the latest advances being aimed at improving operational safety and providing ‘greener’ machines.
To help reduce the number of serious accidents involving site dumpers in recent years both the CPA (Construction Plant-hire Association) and the HAE (Hire Association Europe) have both been involved in worthy initiatives. The CPA has worked in partnership with the CECA (Civil Engineering Contractors Association) and the HSE (Health & Safety Executive) under the umbrella of the Strategic Forum Plant Safety Group (SFPSG) to produce a comprehensive guidance document entitled ‘Safe Use of Dumpers’. Published in May last year it is available as a free download on the CPA website.
Industry Digger & Dumper Safety Briefing. And, in the exhibition halls, three makers commendably displayed new versions of their small articulated dumpers which have been developed as a result of the HAE initiative.
At the HAE Safety Briefing during the EHS it was revealed that the catalyst for action was the tragic death of a young mother of four in May 2018. Her family had hired in a compact high-tip dumper to help landscape their garden. Whilst she was operating the machine on a slope in her garden the machine overturned, trapping her underneath.
This terrible incident highlighted the safety implications of the public hiring such small high-tip dumpers for self-drive. These machines are traditionally narrow so that they can access gateways and confined areas so users need to be made fully aware of the maximum safe angle for operation on side slopes.
Small dumper users need to be provided with suitable and comprehensive safety information. They need to know that, as stated in the ‘Safe Use of Dumpers’ publication, the discharge area must be level and firm.
Altrad Belle now offers the option of wheel spacers to increase the operating width of its DX100 HT dumper.
Thwaites is introducing wide track versions of its popular 1.0 and 1.5 tonne payload compact dumpers.
Meanwhile the HAE, following concerns from one of its members (Travis Perkins) following a fatal dumper accident, set up a working group with the aim of improving the safety of dumper operations on construction sites. Also covering diggers, this group has brought together machine makers, hire companies and users to improve the recording of incidents, review standards and highlight ways to make dumper operation safer through improved machine design and better operator education and training.
The HAE used the 2020 Executive Hire Show to stage a Hire 18
To improve operational stability where narrow access is not a necessity, three dumper makers - Altrad Belle, JCB and Thwaites - have now reacted to the HAE safety drive and revealed wider track versions of their small high-tip dumpers. The future availability of these machines will enable hire companies to offer customers the choice of a more stable, wider track dumper for applications
where narrow access is not a vital requirement.
Altrad Belle used the EHS to reveal a new wider width option for its recently introduced 1.0 tonne payload DX1000 HT high-tip site dumper. This Yanmar engined, hydrostatic machine can now be ordered with wheel spacers that increase its width from 1100mm to 1200mm in order to provide enhanced stability.
Thwaites was the second company showing a wider track small site dumper at the Show. A new ‘wide track’ variation now available on its
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36
