Capital Equipment News March 2015

A newly designed line of Cat rippers is now available for mini hydraulic excava- tors to meet diverse tasks that include picking, grabbing, sorting and digging in var- ied ground conditions for applications such as landscaping, demolition, site preparation and the installation of underground services. These specialist work tools are purpose-built for fitment on a broad spectrum of Cat mini excavators, as well as on original equipment manufacturer machines in the same class. Ripper operating weights extend from 45 to 107 kg, depending on the machine model match. For added versatility, Cat rippers can be used with a pin grabber coupler, coupler and thumb, or as a pin-on attachment. The curved shape allows the ripper to work in con- junction with existing thumbs. “When used with the Cat Dual Lock pin grab- ber coupler, rippers can easily be interchanged with Cat buckets for on-site rip and load multi-tasking,” explains Barloworld Equipment product specialist, Craig Christie. (Barloworld Equipment is the Cat dealer for southern Af- rica.) Rippers are manufactured from highly durable materials to match arduous operating conditions. For example, the gussets on the top bracket are designed to withstand side load; whilst the high strength alloy shank fur- ther extends wear life. Three ground engaging tool (GET) tip options are available: penetra- tion, sharp centre, and heavy duty abrasion. “Choosing the right GET tip will be determined by the application,” Christie adds. b CAT RIPPERS for mini excavators

Konecranes South Africa MORE THAN TRIPLES ORDER INTAKE OVER THREE YEARS

K onecranes Southern Africa’s order intake for cranes and service and has grown by a spectacular 336% from early 2012 to date. This is an aver- age of 112% per annum. John MacDonald, Sales, Marketing and Service Director of Konecranes South Afri- ca, attributes this to dedicated and experi- enced management, supported by equally dedicated and enthusiastic staff. “We have concentrated on improving our service to all makes of cranes and hoists,” MacDonald continues. “In 2013 we introduced a comprehensive Service Documentation Manual for each crane and hoist under service contract so we can keep track of the performance of the crane and identify any problems before they become a major and expensive issue. This has been very well received by our customers.

“Our focus is twofold”, MacDonald ex- plains. “In order to improve our Service Contract and service package we looked at increasing safety, decreasing the main- tenance costs and at the same time im- proving the availability and reliability of the crane”. Konecranes was established in South Afri- ca in mid-2012, when they over took over Dynamic Crane Systems in Johannesburg. Since then another nine branches around the country have been added – in Durban, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Witbank, Klerksdorp, Ngodwana, Uitenhage, Mapu- to and Richards Bay. More branches are planned in East London and Kathu. The Konecranes Group has over 12 000 employees at 626 locations in 54 coun- tries. The company has the largest service network in the industry worldwide, provid- ing high-quality service 24 hours a day. b

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