Loaders

New Holland tackles Reef Island challenge

New Holland loaders ... on the job at Reef Island.

New Holland’s new wheeled loader, the W270B, is working relentlessly at Bahrain’s Reef Island development helping the contractor undertake the earthmoving work with relative ease.

One of the new machines of the Italian construction manufacturer, which has been recently launched into the Bahrain market by its distributor Ahmed Mansoor Al A’Ali (AMA), is the W270B. “The loader has already proven itself as a giant earthmover making short work of the task at hand,” says John Black, construction manager heavy construction division of AMA, who is responsible for the preliminary land works on the Reef Island.
Much of the abilities of the W270B are attributed to six simple concepts that include: record breakout force and pushability, absolute stability, outstanding productivity, complete versatility, top comfort and safety, and virtually limitless accessibility and immediate maintenance. “Many manufacturers talk of these six simple concepts, but putting them together has been something else,” says a spokesman for the company.
“This is the reason behind the W270B making the difference in quarries and jobsites day in and day out,” he adds.

Top productivity
Powered by a 320 hp engine, the W270B comes with an automatic ATC Powershift, coupling agility and power with four working modes in order to allow the right performance on different working conditions. The loaders also feature axles with limited slip differentials to guarantee maximum traction on every terrain and a load-sensing steering.
The W270B’s hydraulic logic reads operating conditions automatically, switching between the two power stages to reconcile outstanding pushability with a 22.7 tonnes breakout force even in second speed. The loaders also have a 19.5-tonne tipping load.
In addition, the turbo aftercooler of the W270B helps optimise the compression ratio to enhance power.
The loaders also feature the best in safety and operator comfort aspects with a Rops-Fops (roll over protection system and a falling object protection system) structure solidly integrated into the cab’s classical design. The operator cabin, which offers all-round visibility, eliminates fatigue, noise and dust and comes fitted with a compressed-air-suspension, full-adjustment operator seat with adjustable backrest. On the ergonomic front, the loaders have a lightweight and sensitive joystick or two-lever servo controls with easy reach.

Rich experience
Established in 2005, New Holland brings together the 235 years of combined history and experience of Fiat, Kobelco, O&K, New Holland Construction and Fiat Allis. So while New Holland is a global player in the construction equipment industry, it has a unique quality as a brand which already has the highest reputation for performance and service support, says Danilo Catalucci, New Holland’s representative for the EE, CIS and Africa and the Middle East markets.
With 13 product families, 80 base models and 600 possible configurations, manufactured at 10 plants located across the globe, the company operates through 700 dealers and more than 1,800 outlets spread over 100 countries.
New Holland has distributors in every country in the Middle East and this partnership with AMA is for the sale of New Holland equipment exclusively for Bahrain.
“The partnership between the two companies goes back several years. AMA was originally a dealer for Kobelco excavators,” says John Boyd, New Holland’s business development manager for the Middle East. “Back in 2002, New Holland acquired a stake in Kobelco, in Europe, Far East and the US. So we own 80 per cent of the joint venture company in Europe and 22 per cent of the joint venture company in the Far East.
“The history of the company actually dates back to Pennsylvania in 1876 when the New Holland Machine Company was originally founded,” Boyd explains. “In 2005, we brought all the different companies Ford, Kobelco, O&K, Allis Chalmers and New Holland together to form what it is now and create a company that has the full range of construction machines and not just excavators. We are only one of three manufacturers in the whole world that have the full range of equipment.”
“AMA is not just a distributor for construction equipment, but also a contractor,” says AMA general manager Abdulla A Abdulla. “New Holland equipment has been used extensively on most of our projects and we have found them to be very successful in completing the task on hand.
He adds: “Until recently, we were the only contractors in the kingdom with the largest range of earthmoving equipment under its wing. This is also because we have always been the leaders in the market when it came to launching the right equipment for the job. Part of our ability can be attributed to the fact that we have always had the right team of professionals who would assess these machines, go thoroughly through their specifications, test them on the field and follow it up on the servicing as well.
“Also owing to the relationship we share with New Holland, we have been able to avail of the company’s technical expertise as and when required. There have been frequent visits from New Holland’s technical team, who have continually updated our sales and technical staff on what is new in the earthmoving equipment segment and how to handle these machines.”

Revamped line
Commenting on the latest developments at New Holland, Catalucci says: “Over the past year, New Holland has been revamping its complete range of crawler excavators, which is one of its more in-demand products. We have also launched new telehandler models that will complete the range with a reach ranging from 5 m to 17 m.
“In addition, we are also launching the revamped versions of the backhoe loaders and upgrading the skid-steer loader and compact tracked loader models. All these revamped models will feature spacious luxury cabs and sophisticated equipment. Also on the anvil is the launch of the new wheeled excavator models, which are produced in our factory in Italy.”
“New Holland has also announced plans to completely revamp its line by 2010,” says Boyd. “It is also one of the most aggressive companies in terms of product development. Some of these changes will be driven by legislations that will be set in motion by 2010. These include engine emission standards, where we have had to move from Tier 1 to Tier 2 and now Tier 3. However, in Japan they are already looking to achieve Tier 4 standards.
“New Holland in co-operation with its partner Kobelco is looking at the legislation and finding out how to strictly adhere to the emission controls. Such changes also offer several benefits.
“Another advantage of New Holland when it comes to achieving the legislation on environmental norms is that most of its equipment is fitted with engines from one of the companies that fall under the Fiat Group of companies,” says Catalucci. “Although it is one of the largest engine manufacturers, about 80 per cent of the company’s production is used by Fiat Group itself and the rest is supplied to some other companies.
“The new models, which come fitted with a more efficient engine, cause less pollution, and has more power. But above all this these engines are low on fuel consumption as well.
“A few years ago, nobody in the Middle East was bothered about fuel consumption,” says Boyd. But now, as project costs escalate, contractors are becoming more concerned about fuel costs as well. In the markets of Europe, Asia and the US, fuel cost vis-à-vis productivity is one of the first concerns that are raised.
“Apart from better engines, the company is also looking to improve on various aspects of the equipment, be it digging performance, operator cabins or ergonomics.”
So what more is set to come? “We are yet to introduce the short-radius units in the Middle East, but they are widely used in the Far East and Asia, where space is at a premium,” says Boyd. “While using these machines, the operators need not worry about impacting something while at work. The short radius units can turn within their tracks resulting in minimal obstruction, especially if the equipment is being worked in the middle of the road. Also another major advantage of this unit is that it can be used to work near residential areas as well as the noise levels have been brought down by as much as 10 decibels.

Significant growth
“Over the years, we have seen a significant growth in the market for construction equipment in Bahrain, and so has the partnership between New Holland and AMA,” says Boyd. “As a supplier in the market, size per size, AMA won an award from New Holland last year, largely because, considering the market share and the market size of the kingdom, they have a considerable edge over other countries in the region. In actual numbers, AMA’s market share is about 20 per cent of the kingdom’s earthmoving equipment market.”
Commenting on how the market has changed in the recent past, Abdulla says: “In the last few years, there has been tremendous progress in the kingdom’s construction sphere. A few years ago, not many people were buying heavy construction machinery. Because of the short tenure of most of the projects then, we would often see construction companies scouting the regional markets for used equipment from the regional auctions. But today we have several contractors going in for new machinery.”
“This boom is not just limited to Bahrain. In the markets of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE and Oman there is a similar buzz in the construction sector,” says Catalucci.
 
Proactive team
“Over the years, there has not been a significant shift in the range of equipment that has been sold into Bahrain,” says Boyd. “This is because AMA has been at the forefront of the dealer network, offering the entire range of equipment from New Holland right from the smallest skid-steer loader, through to telehandlers, backhoe loaders, mini-excavators, all in the compact range. Even in the heavy range, they have the entire range of products. Currently there is a demand for the heavy equipment range, because of the nature of the jobs that are being undertaken in Bahrain.
“As of now, the demand is predominantly for heavy equipment. Perhaps, this is because most of the mega projects are still in the early stages of construction which involves more of excavation, reclamation and other such activities, all of which rely on heavy equipment. But as the projects progress, say for instance, as the work begins on the villas built on the Amwaj or Reef islands, then the demand shifts to the compact range.

Tight deadlines
“Every project would need backhoe loaders at some stage or the other. This is because it is a multi-utility machine,” says Boyd. “Now the telehandler range is a similar multi-utility tool that was introduced by AMA some two years ago. But the machines are reaching the jobsites now, because projects started some two years ago have now reached the stage that requires such equipment.
“From the manufacturer’s point of view what we strive to do, is to produce machines that are technically and productively better than that of the competition, and this is where we try to help AMA, both as a distributor and a contractor, to help meet project deadlines with ease. Now with deadlines getting tighter, we are trying to enhance the productivity of our newer machines.
“The machines do have a major role to play in helping achieve the completion date,” says Abdulla. “Contractors usually work out a plan when it comes to machine utilisation onsite. Some contractors prefer to keep the machines working continually onsite to achieve better productivity.
“When it comes to equipment, AMA has always placed machines on order anticipating the demand. They have been right at the forefront of the distributor network in the Middle East in this aspect as well,” says Boyd. “We have dozers being shipped right now, while there are graders, backhoes, telehandlers, and excavators on order. It is very difficult to know what would be required, but in general 90 per cent of the time, AMA has the right equipment on order.

Continual training
“We have been trying to keep the team at AMA and our dealers in the region abreast of the latest developments, through organising training programmes,” says Boyd.
“In fact, we have organised technical programmes in Bahrain for the first time, by bringing technicians from other countries. A few years ago, it was always done in reverse.
“All this is soon changing. Bahrain is emerging in importance as a training centre as we have already run two training programmes in the last year alone. We have had managers from New Holland’s after market team in Bahrain,” Boyd concludes.