Derek Lewis buy a second Volvo asphalt paver
Doncaster-based Derek Lewis Ltd have bought into the Volvo brand once again with the addition of a second new ABG6870 wheeled paver for their paving division and two Volvo excavators for their civils activities.
Tom Lewis, managing director, said: ‘We opted for the second paver based on the performance and reliability of our first unit which we purchased back in February 2008. The machine is quite capable of handling high tonnages on major carriageway works where speed and a quality finish to the road surface are essential – in fact I truly believe this is a top class piece of equipment with a top pedigree for performance and reliability.’
Taking over as the front line machine the new ABG6870 is in charge of major carriageway resurfacing projects around Doncaster and South Yorkshire and is the fifth ABG product taking up residence at Derek Lewis Ltd. The older ABG6870 is still in use but has been assigned to lighter duties but it means that crews can switch between the two machines with ease depending on shift patterns and work demand.
‘Because a lot of our work is on major carriageways we are more often than not obliged to work at nights,’ explained Tom Lewis. ‘The ABG6870 is suited to this thanks to its extremely low noise emissions. Fuel economy is another plus for the machine and from a support side we can’t fault the team at Volvo when we need their help,’ he continued.
The ABG6870 wheeled paver features continuous independent traction control over all six wheels and powered by a Stage III 122kW engine. The operator is able to use the ‘Smart Power’ setting to vary the power output depending on the conditions of the application and running nominally at just 1,600 rev/min, the ABG6870 boasts significantly low noise emissions besides being highly fuel efficient. Volvo say that the 6x6 ‘Smart Drive’ technology offers unparalleled traction because even on the most difficult bases, tractive effort is automatically adjusted according to ground condition and the weight of material available in the machine’s 12-tonne capacity hopper. The machine also demonstrates a class-beating degree of manoeuvrability thanks to the ‘Active Steering’ feature with an inside turning radius of just 2.5 metres. This coupled to individual suspension struts means the paver can overcome obstacles in one go that competitive models can only do after several complicated manoeuvres.
Screed performance is a distinct feature on the ABG6870, which has a variable screed width of 2.5-5 metres in standard configuration but can be fitted with optional extensions to provide a width of 9 metres. With an output potential of up to 700 tonnes/h, the machine can continuously pave up to 40 metres per minute. Whilst a normal layer thickness of 50mm at high speed is easily achievable, the ABG6870 can, for certain applications, lay up to a maximum thickness of 300mm.
Other features on the machine include a moveable steering wheel, which allows for sensitive control of the machine that can be placed in various positions around the EPM (Electronic Paver Management) control panel. The large screen display is the only one of its kind on the market giving a bird’s eye view or map of the paver, allowing the operator to monitor and control all the important functions as a glance. The EPM control panel has backlit control buttons to facilitate paving at night. Besides a comfortable seat the operator is afforded an excellent view of the flow of material in the hopper, the head of material in the auger channel and material lay down. The flexible (rigid) all-weather roof can be hydraulically lowered along with the exhaust pipe for transportation. With a proportion of work being undertaken at night, Xenon lighting has also been included as an aid to the operator and crew.
Besides the new ABG6870 paver, Derek Lewis Ltd have continued to buy into the Volvo brand by purchasing a second hand Volvo EC140B and an ECR88 compact excavator from Volvo Construction Equipment’s used equipment department. ‘These are the first Volvo excavators we’ve tried and if they perform as expected we intend to increase our civils fleet with more of the product in the future,’ said Tom Lewis.
