Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) will launch its latest hydraulic excavator at the forthcoming ConExpo 2005, which will be held in Las Vegas, US in March. 

Designed for the civil engineering, heavy construction, building and extraction industry segments, Volvo CE’s new 70-tonne excavator will be exhibited with a mass excavation boom and arm configuration.
With primary design and engineering focus on high reliability, high performance and low operating costs, the new Volvo excavator will be powered by Tier 3 Volvo engines using Volvo’s new Advanced Combustion Technology (V-ACT) system when production begins in the fourth quarter of this year.
“The excavator has been engineered in close cooperation with customers from key markets throughout the world,” says a company spokesman.
“We have designed the machine to suit the requirements for a number of different segments within the construction equipment industry, including civil engineering, heavy construction, building and extraction.”
The primary design and engineering focus during the development of the new 70-tonne excavator was on the aspects of high reliability, high performance and lowest operating costs.
The new 70-tonne excavator is not the only new Volvo product at America’s largest trade show; the short swing radius Volvo ECR compact excavator will also be shown for the first time in North America. Offering high manoeuvrability and improved safety, there will be three models on display: the ECR38, ECR58 and ECR88.
The three ECR models on show at ConExpo range in weight from the 3.3-tonne ECR38 to the 8.5 tonne ECR88. Featuring a FOPS, TOPS and ROPS safety structure to prevent injury from falling objects and rollover, the ECR comes with an automatic two-speed travel system: in high gear the travel speed is automatically shifted from high to low according to the travel load, making the machines good at leveling or backfilling work.
The short swing radius superstructure allows the counterweight to turn largely within its own track width. Operators can work in confined spaces, reducing the risk of hitting a wall or other obstacle. Enhanced safety on congested job sites is the ensuing result – without compromising on performance.
 Almost 30 other machines from Volvo CE’s product portfolio will be on display in four major industry segment display areas, representing the Volvo articulated hauler, wheel loader, backhoe loader, excavator and motor grader families.
Soft offerings from the company will also be represented, including e-business, finance and a 1,000 sq ft Volvo Rents equipment rental centre.
Under the theme “More care. Built in”, other attractions on Volvo’s exhibition stand will be a Volvo merchandise shop, a refreshment area and a cyber cafe with commanding views over the stand.
ConExpo is claimed to be the world’s largest international gathering place in 2005 for the construction and construction materials industries, showcasing the latest equipment, services and technologies.
With 2,300 exhibitors covering more than 1.85 million sq ft of exhibition space, the expo will be the place to be for more than 100,000 industry professionals from over 120 countries.
ConExpo-Con/AGG 2005 will be co-located with IFPE 2005 – the International Exposition for Power Transmission.