MACHINERY
Caterpillar is to excavators what Van Gogh was to sunflowers . Its long history with these staples of the mining and construction industries goes back to the late 1960s , when mining companies began to need much larger machines . In 1970 , Caterpillar responded by introducing a prototype excavator .
Its first customer-ready hydraulic excavator , the 28-ton 225 , was groundbreaking in every sense of the word , providing improved lifting , digging and loading capabilities .
Fast forward to today , and Caterpillar ’ s colossal excavator , the Cat 6090 , makes the 255 look like a diecast model . The 6090 has an operating weight of over 1,000 tons and a 4,500 horsepower engine .
Its hydraulic shovel has a mind-boggling bucket capacity of 71.9 cubic yards and a bucket payload of 103 tons . Although no longer in production , it remains the world ’ s largest hydraulic excavator .
But size is not all that has changed regarding Caterpillar ’ s excavators down the years , for the company has also refined its designs to reduce fuel use and maintenance costs .
A landmark product in this regard was its 320D , which optimised engine performance , lowering exhaust emissions to meet global regulations .
Next-gen excavators sustainability boon This paved the way for future models , such as the Next Generation 320 hydraulic model in 2017 , which was designed for
medium to heavy-duty applications , to help customers meet both environmental and business goals .
By 2022 , Caterpillar had implemented this system across its entire excavation product line , and its latest designs use a lower engine speed and larger hydraulic pump to deliver high performance with less fuel consumption .
Caterpillar estimates that implementing the Next Generation system across its excavator range has
88 November 2024