The EC700B ... featuring a host of customer-friendly features.
Volvo redefines performance
Scandinavian manufacturing major Volvo eagerly awaits the full-scale production of its recently-introduced excavator, which is a combination of power, excellent balance and stability, and high digging forces.
01 September 2005
Asserting its leadership in the field of excavation engineering, Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) has brought out its new and powerful 70-tonne Volvo EC700B excavator.
The excavator, which was unveiled earlier this year at the ConExpo-Con/Agg 2005 in Las Vegas, Nevada, US, is expected to get into full-scale production by the beginning of the fourth quarter, according to a company spokesperson.
Production models of the Volvo EC700B are being field-tested worldwide and delivery to all markets will be completed starting the first quarter of 2006.
Performance
Designed from the ground up with extensive input from customers around the world, the EC700B excavator has been engineered to “re-define performance” in the 70-tonne excavator class. The next-generation machine with an aggressive performance profile for production digging and a proven Volvo powertrain, has excellent balance and stability and high digging forces. It delivers significant fuel economy and can be a major force in applications that include civil engineering, mass excavation, quarry loading, and heavy construction.
The new Volvo EC700B is equipped with the largest-capacity engine in its class of excavators, the Volvo D16C EAE3, with an output of 464 HP at 1,800 rpm. The Tier 3-compliant Volvo Advanced Combustion Technology (V-ACT) power system is matched with Volvo hydraulic systems to provide high digging and crowding forces, and smooth, harmonised operation in all conditions. A large counterweight and long, wide-gauge tracks give excellent balance and stability to the machine, she adds.
The new Volvo excavator has a digging reach of 13.17 m, a digging depth of 8.4 m, a breakout force of 301 kN, and bucket sizes from 2.5 cu m to 4.5 cu m. The excavator has an operating weight of 67,500 kg – 70,300 kg. The standard boom and arm on the Volvo EC700B are 7.7 m and 3.55 m, and with 900 mm double grouser shoes, the machine has a weight of 69,200 kg.
The key components of the Volvo EC700B – including the main pump, swing motor and bearing and the track rollers – are of a higher capacity than that normally found in a 70-tonne class machine. The result is exceptional performance and durability in a machine with clear advantages in digging force, cycle times, bucket capacity, and fuel efficiency. And the Volvo EC700B is well-matched to working with Volvo articulated haulers, the largest selling articulated hauler line in the world, says the spokesperson.
Comfort & serviceability
Built for comfort and efficiency, the operator station of the EC700B features clear visibility, a nine-way adjustable seat, ergonomic controls, extraordinary sound and vibration protection, a high-capacity climate-control system, wide access steps and an access ladder to the top of the machine behind the cab and reduced hydraulic noise with the use of dampened pipe clamps.
Serviceability of the new Volvo excavator is easy and simple. There is easy access to the engine oil fuel and air filters and to various other components via wide steps, a catwalk and ladders. The undercarriage of the machine is retractable for easier transport and quicker turnaround.
“We have recognised the need in the global market for an excavator of this size, capacity, and production capabilities,” says Tony Helsham, president and chief executive officer, Volvo CE. “The result is an excavator with field-tested components and extensive engineering that is pure Volvo, and one that will help us to even better serve our customers throughout the world.”
Sales rise
2005 continues in positive mode for Volvo CE, with Q2 sales, income and order bookings all in positive territory. In what is generally regarded as the peak selling season, the company’s second quarter trading activity has reinforced views that the buoyant market persists. Net sales rose 14 per cent to SEK 9.5 billion ($1,231 billion) while operating income rose 25 per cent to $120 million, from $97 million in the same period in 2004. Operating margin also increased – to 9.8 per cent – in spite of high raw material prices, notably steel and tyres. These negative factors were offset by rising volumes and good product mix, as well as cost reductions and active price management, she says.
Volvo CE’s sales in the quarter were a tale of two continents – its North American region grew strongly during the period (+22 per cent), while its Asian region declined by 10 per cent (all as compared to Q2 last year). The Asian region was pulled down by the continued weakness in the Chinese market and the more recent slowdown in Korea. Europe saw a solid sales increase of 12 per cent during the quarter, when compared with the corresponding period last year, while the company’s other international markets rose significantly (+58 per cent). Sales in South America also saw a sharp increase – up 68 per cent over the same period last year, she says.
The total world market for heavy and compact construction equipment within Volvo CE’s product segments increased by 10 per cent during the second quarter of 2005 compared with the corresponding period a year earlier. In terms of market size, Europe grew by 1 per cent, but this disguised an increase in the compact market at the expense of slowing demand for larger machines. The North American market (+11 per cent) maintains its momentum, albeit at a reducing rate. While positive developments in China have helped lift the Asian region up by 13 per cent, other international markets have risen by over a quarter (26 per cent), she concludes.
