CED

July 2013

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Regulatory states, the situation seems pretty typical across the country. When he has raised the issue with local dealers, he keeps being reassured that they are trying their best to stay on top of the technology. "It just seems like the manufacturers are engineering, designing, and producing these machines and putting them in the market and only then are they training their people." Cost of Progress No one disputes that heavy off-road equipment engines are running cleaner. Brinker of Cummins confidently declares that 25 of today's engines produce the same noxious emissions as one machine produced a decade ago. Some wags assert that the outside of exhaust stacks soon will be dirtier than the inside of the stacks. Whether this translates into thousands of lives saved every year, as EPA literature claims, is another matter. Also unclear is the final cost of Tier-4. Brinker says R&D for both on-road and off-highway engines at Cummins amounted to many billions of dollars, a high figure even for a major manufacturer. OEMs are expected to recoup some of their development costs through incrementally larger price tags on new products. That will be a significant cost to customers, who must also upgrade their maintenance shops for basic repair work on the new engines. Expected lower fuel and operating costs will produce some offsetting relief. Dealers face more costly technological overhauls of software and diagnostic equipment in their shops and field service units. Some industry observers believe the dealers might ultimately benefit through extra service calls to keep the fine-tuned Tier-4 Final engine systems percolating efficiently; however, the idea of the new generation of engines being maintenance money-makers is scotched by OEMs. "Komatsu's goal is to provide ever higher-value products to our customers. That's what our target is," said Richard Smith. "We aren't looking at servicing this equipment as a way to increase revenue streams." Case's Rhonda Monks is more nuanced in her response: "While additional revenues may be possible, it's our belief that these capabilities will be required of all dealers looking to keep their customers happy." The Countdown The next couple of years will tell the tale on Tier-4 Final. It may turn out to have a happier ending than some sources anticipate today. Brinker estimates that 25,000 machines manufactured worldwide for the North American market will need to be delivered in Tier-4 Final configuration in the next few years. So how many Tier-4 Final machines did he see at the Bauma equipment show in Germany this spring? Two. He added that this may be a deceptive number, because OEMs are fully focused on promoting their current Tier-4 Interim machines. "Behind the scenes you can be sure they are hard at work developing their Tier-4 Final machines for next year. "I am an engine guy and deal with hundreds of original equipment manufacturers," he says. "I see OEMs working diligently, and from a Cummins perspective the change from an Interim to Final engine is relatively simple as they carry forward with the same envelope with no additional on-engine systems. However, with some other Tier-4 Final solutions I think that some in the industry might be in for a rude awakening at the OEM and dealer levels about how much change is needed for Tier-4 Final. There has never been a time like this in our industry." n Giles Lambertson is a retired journalist and freelance writer whose interest in the construction industry goes back to his carpentry days. He can be reached at geepeela@yahoo.com. Join us on Facebook July 2013 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 27 22_Tier4_Feature_KP.indd 27 6/27/13 12:52 PM

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