Equipment World Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/662812
EquipmentWorld.com | April 2016 43 technology | by Tom Jackson | TJackson@randallreilly.com Trimble announces a 3D GPS/GNSS system for wheel loaders S ay again? GPS on a wheel loader? That was our fi rst reaction too, but after talking to Jeff Drake, the business area manager at Trimble Machine Control Systems, we found a lot to recommend such a system. GPS/GNSS is mostly used on doz- ers and graders, however Trimble's GCS900 (version 12.81) is designed specifi cally for wheel loaders. According to Drake, Europeans had long requested such a system because of the smaller jobsites and confi ned spaces encoun- tered across the pond. Due to the compact size of these European worksites, wheel loaders are of- ten used in lieu of less maneuver- able dozers and motor graders. Low cost operation We typically don't have those same space restrictions in the United States, but there are two compelling reasons to consider using a wheel loader for grading and leveling, regardless of the size of your worksite: cost and convenience. The owning and operating costs of a wheel loader are only a fraction of that of a dozer or mo- tor grader. With the right front- end attachment, a wheel loader is capable of spreading and leveling stone, subbase rock and sand. Within limits, you can also use a wheel loader to level build- ing pads and dig basements and swimming pools. What's more, a wheel loader doesn't need a dedicated Class 8 haul truck and trailer to cross a paved road. Add the fast cycle times and short turning radius of a wheel loader, and you've got a contender that can do most of the light- to medium-duty applications that a dozer typically handles. Light up the right size wheel loader with GPS/GNSS, and you have a highly effi cient, fi nish- grade machine that costs little money to operate, and which can work in even the most con- fi ned spaces. Could the Trimble GCS900 12.81 be used to level subgrades for roads and high- ways? There's no reason why not, says Drake. Armed with a GPS/ GNSS indicate system on a wheel loader, you can spread subgrade materials, clean up haul roads, grade and cut building pads, and prevent quarry stockpile undercutting.