Excavators
Crawler excavators
Crawler excavators are very common carriers in demolition jobs due to their stability, good lifting force and advanced systems.
When equipped with additional hydraulic functions, necessary protective structures and safety equipment, a crawler excavator can be useful for a wide range of applications on a demolition project.
According to the standard ISO 6165:2012, they are: “self-propelled machine on crawlers […] having an upper structure capable of a 360° swing with mounted equipment and which is primarily designed for excavating with a bucket, without movement of the undercarriage during the work cycle”.
There is in the market a wide range of excavators in terms of sizes and weights. In any case, its structure is generally, in a very simplified way, the same for all types of crawler excavators, consisting on three main components: undercarriage, uppercarriage and work equipment (or front equipment or front parts).
The frame of an undercarriage is usually a solid iron box with track frames. The tracks are driven by hydraulic motors with sprocket wheels and guided from the other end by spring-loaded idler wheels. Moreover, the undercarriage can be either fix or can be mechanically or hydraulically extended/retracted.
For its part, the uppercarriage, or superstructure, is generally the component which contains the engine, the hydraulic system, the cabin and the counterweight of the carrier. Although there are some manufacturers that offer this type of carriers with a different configuration (with the engine in the undercarriage, for example). The work equipment (or front equipment or front parts)
of an excavator includes 2 or more assemblies, typically connected and articulated by pinned joints, usually moved and controlled by hydraulic power.
The attachment of an excavator is the assembly of components that can be mounted onto the base machine or work equipment for specific use, according to the standard 6746-2:2003, definition 3.5. Attachments for hydraulic excavators normally are the working tool attached to the end of the arm that provides the digging, cutting, grabbing and processing function of the excavator.
To choose the right attachment it is necessary to know the front linkage dimensions, movement geometry, available hydraulic power and lifting capacity of that combination.
Compact excavators
Compact excavators are often known as midi, mini and micro crawler excavators.
Generally, the so-called midi excavators encompass those carries with a weight between 6 and 13 tons, mini excavators between 1 to 6 tons and the term micro excavators is referred to machines below 1 ton.
Compact excavators can be useful in confined spaces or where the surface supporting the excavator has low load bearing capacity.
It is important to pay careful attention to the safety of the operators of compact excavators if carrying out demolition work, because the operator is close to the working area.
Demolition excavators (High-reach/longfront)
A High reach demolition excavator is an excavator designed to operate high reach work equipment.
High reach work equipment is a multi-piece rigid, pin jointed or telescopic equipment with the primary function of operating specialised attachments for demolition of structures at heights that cannot be reached by standard backhoe work equipment. Typically, the operating height of the attachment on a high reach demolition excavator is above 15m.
Typically, a high reach demolition base machine can be fitted with a wide range of interchangeable work equipment to allow it to carry out many different applications.
It is important to be aware that high-reach demolition excavatorsalways have special limitations for attachments weight and features, and that the allowed attachments depend on which work equipment is installed.
Wheeled excavators
Wheeled excavators are very used on small jobsites where the machine will be relocated several times a day. They are designed to be versatile tool carriers that can handle multiple jobs.
The undercarriage is built on two driven axles and on smaller machines there is the possibility to have fourwheel steering.
The travel speed of an excavator may be up to 40 km/h depending on local legislation. Typically, the undercarriage may be fitted with hydraulic support legs (outriggers) and a blade to stabilize the machine during operation.
The upper carriage and operator compartment of wheeled excavators are similar to a crawler excavator but may need more hydraulic power for the undercarriage and a more powerful engine and extra cooling capacity.
For its part, the work equipment on a wheeled excavator is designed specifically for this type of machine.
As with any attachment carrier, it is very important to check the attachment weight recommendations when selecting attachments for wheeled excavator.
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