Weldex goes green with Kobelco

21 April 2015


Kobelco has sold four new G series cranes to UK hirer Weldex, as part of a fleet modernisation programme.

Weldex purchased two CKE600G machines and two CKE800G cranes, which will be based at the company's centrally-located depot in Derbyshire. The CKE600G has a 60t capacity at 3m, a maximum lift of 7t at 12m, and a 51.8m maximum crane boom length. The CKE800G has a higher rated capacity at 80t at 3m, maximum lift capacity of 7t at 20m, and a maximum crane boom length of 54.9m.

"We have 120 cranes with an average age of four-and-a-half years. They are all new and that is the way we want to keep it," said Weldex chief executive Dougie McGilvray. The company aims to replace all of its machines every eight years, says McGilvray: "That is why we are working with Kobelco to update and modernise our fleet."

One of Weldex's drivers for purchasing the CKE series machines is the leading green technologies of the machines. Kobelco was the first manufacturer to fit its crawler cranes with an Auto Idle Stop facility and low emission engines that are compliant with European Union Stage IIIB (Tier 4i) requirements, says the crane manufacturer.

To achieve this, all of the G-series crane engines are fitted with diesel particulate filters (DPFs) and exhaust gas cleaning systems to minimise harmful emissions such as particulate matter and nitrogen oxide. This is becoming increasingly important in central London where new planning rules have been introduced to reduce emissions from construction equipment by 40% by 2020.

"We do a lot of work within the London area so we are looking at upgrading our fleet to be all 3B compliant machines," says McGilvray. "The cranes will be working on Crossrail and the new Thames Tideway Tunnel as well as carrying out general construction work in London and all over the UK."

As well as low-emission technologies, the Kobelco G-series machines are also fitted with extra fuel saving measures such as the G-winch, which enables the line to be raised at high speed without raising the engine speed, and the G-engine, which limits maximum engine speed by controlling pump capacity.

"We experienced major growth throughout 2014 but this year is set to be even better, with our first quarter sales outperforming the same period last year by a long way," says Mark Evans, sales manager at Kobelco Cranes Europe.

Two CKE600 G cranes, front, and two CKE800 G cranes were supplied by Kobelco to Weldex as part of the hire firm’s modernisation plans.