Caterpillar announced the release of a range of the latest Cat® attachments that has been made available for mini excavators which increases application versatility of these machines significantly.
Caterpillar’s expansion of its range of hydraulic attachment stems from listening to operators and clients that indicated that there was indeed a requirement to span attachments which include vibratory compactor plates, cold planers and also demolition and sorting grapples specific to Cat Tilt-rotators. The latest two (G306/ 308) demolition and sorting grapple are exclusive to the 5 to 10-ton range mini excavators which are often assigned to waste management tasks, material handling and recycling applications. The new element about these attachments that are often requested for by clients when they take mini excavators for hire or rent excavators for long periods is the auxiliary function and rotation head allowing these grapples to be more productive as they are able to handle material using the 360-degrees owed to the bidirectional rotation feature. The slim design of these attachments also bodes well with compact machines as it makes it all the easier to fit into tight spaces and hard to reach spots. The shelves that have been perforated enhance the wear resistance of the attachments, offer greater penetration capability, better visibility of load and easier positioning. The cylinder that features the load-hold valve ensures that the attachment provides clamping force that is constant even when the grapple or excavator is being moved about.
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New Additions for the Cat Tiltrotator
The latest multipurpose grapples are deemed as ‘a first’ in terms of expansion for hydraulic attachments that have been introduced specifically for the Cat Tiltrotator product group. The G206 and G208 from Cat are Multi-Purpose Grapples that brings new grapple technology that are specific to the TRS6/ TRS8 models mini excavators. According to a Caterpillar spokesperson the design of the grapple is objective towards easy material engagement. Cat also expanded the Vibratory-Plate Compactor series with the release of the CVP28/55 models and the re-launch of the CVP16/ 40 compactors that feature new design elements. These attachments that are generally used for soil, sand and gravel compaction are flexible and costs lower in terms of purchase and as well as ownership costs. They are now available at most construction equipment companies that provide excavators for hire at a very low daily and weekly rate.
Caterpillar has lately been focusing on a range of next-generation hydraulic attachments for the manufacturers exclusive excavators of all categories and among the most notable among these attachments are the latest pulverisers. According to feedback from operators, the new pulverisers offer high performance concrete demolition capability attributed directly to the faster cycle times of these pulverisers. The launch of the new generation of both primary and secondary hydraulic pulverisers specific to standard and large excavators such as the P series 318, 324 and 332 that offer 360-degree rotation, and are also compatible with secondary excavator models such as the P 218, 224 and 232. These pulverisers in terms of design were based on the Speed-Booster technology that is exclusive to Caterpillars multiprocessors which enables rapid jaw closing when loads are absent. The mechanism causes the pulverisers to switch to power mode the instant that the jaw makes contact with material, which boosts the jaws crushing momentum which shatters concrete rapidly. The latest pulverisers are rumoured to be the safest in the current market despite the fact that they offer 50 % more cycle times and more than 20 % of force compared to all of Caterpillar’s previous hydraulic pulveriser attachments.