Wordsworth Excavations, a nationwide bulk earthworks contractor, has been a strong advocate of Komatsu’s intelligent machine control technology for some time now, with a number of Komatsu intelligent dozers and a PC210LCi-11 already part of their large fleet of machines.
Impressed by Komatsu’s technology and with a demand for a machine which is capable of bulk loading and fine grading, Wordsworth Excavations placed an order for the new PC360LCi-11 excavator after it was launched at Bauma earlier this year.
They received the 36 tonne machine in July, and it has already been put to good use in Leeds to assist with the construction of a large distribution centre. Here it has been moving a large quantity of earth and shaping it into a pyramid mound, which is allowing the operator, Shane Smith, to make the most of the machine control features it possesses.
Using the automatic real time digging control he has been able to move tonnes of material every day without worrying about over digging as the bucket will stop once it hits the target surface. This has resulted in the site becoming more productive and the company believes that this machine can complete a standard machine’s daily workload with a few hours remaining.
Site efficiency has also been improved as they no longer need one of their bulldozers to assist with the grading in the section that the PC360LCi-11 is working on as it can complete this on its own. This means that Wordsworth Excavations can have their bulldozers working in other sections of the project or on other job sites.
Prior to receiving this machine, they used a standard excavator fitted with an aftermarket solution. Shane also operated the old machine and has already noticed lots of benefits with the integrated solution of the PC360LCi-11. “The monitor of the Komatsu machine is in a better position compared to the aftermarket kit which was low down and close to my feet. It is also much more user friendly, so I was confident on using the system after being shown how to use it once” he says.
“The increased productivity and reliable technology of Komatsu’s intelligent machines allows us to achieve the tight schedules of the sites we work on” says Mark Briggs, Director “We have been impressed once again with the new Komatsu PC360LCi-11 excavator and believe that these types of machines are the way forward.”
