New Holland debuts new excavators

New Holland demonstrated the most recent additions to its excavator range at its factory in Basildon, UK. Models included the recently launched 13 tonne short radius E135BSR and new models in the shape of the conventional tail E135B and the seven and eight tonne E70BSR and E80BMSR models respectively.

Steve Orr, business leader for North Europe, said, “despite what we predict to be an -8% drop to the end of the year for New Holland, 2008 will still put our annual growth at +20%.

“These new models fit our ethos of looking to supply a total ‘peace of mind’ package to our customers in respect of productivity, comfort, fuel efficiency and even financial support via CNH Capital. If we can sell the right machine at the right price for the right application then we’ll achieve the market share that we’re aiming for. “

Quiet please

The E135BSR is the quietest excavator New Holland’s ever produced in the 13 tonne class and features the company’s new integrated noise and dust reduction cooling system (iNDr). Through design lay-out and air flow management across the insulated engine compartment, the E135BSR produces just 92 dB of external noise, which according to business manager Ian Thomson, “makes the machine ideal for night time city centre duties.”

With a spacious redesigned operator cab featuring adjustable joystick and seating arrangements, where the armrests are linked to the consol rather than the seat, the E135BSR and the E135B both use a Mitsubishi direct injection engine producing 74 kW at 2000 rpm. In both cases, the engine is capable of running to B20 (20% biodiesel).

All switches are concentrated on the right hand side and the machines come with air conditioning and radio as standard. An ipod plug will come in the future.

Both variations of the E135B feature improved hydraulic flow, which Matteo Cala said, “improves productivity by +15%. Also, we have increased hydraulic service intervals with these machines from 2000 hours up to 5000 hours.”

The new E70BSR and E80BMSR with operating weights of 7,5 tonnes and 8,3 tonnes respectively feature the same cab space as the E135B models and both are designed around the iNDr engine installation. In all cases, maintenance has been simplified and all regular checks can be done from ground level.

UK Market

With manufacturing costs rising Steve Orr said, “For sure there will be price increases. Furthermore, the Sterling to Euro impact and inflation will certainly affect the trading position across the industry.”

“We see the current situation within Western European as a correction rather than a true decline. The figures of the past two years have been a bit unreal, and policy makers must act now to avert genuine trouble in 2009,” continued Mr Orr.

“Certainly, the market in Ireland for the foreseeable future is going to be very challenging,” said Mr Orr. “People are looking at their land investment from an emotional perspective and this could affect the region in the longer term.

“We estimate that UK house building will fall by -12% in 2009, which means that since 2007 the fall will exceed -30%. In the short term that’s going to hurt the industry, but we also believe that house prices around 2015 will rise by up to +40% because there is still a chasm between supply and demand.”