TSL Contractors add Volvo to excavator fleet

Thirty-tonne EC300D excavator to spearhead prestigious hydro-electric projects on the island of Mull

TSL Contractors Ltd, based at Craignure on the Isle of Mull, have opted for a 30-tonne Volvo EC300D hydraulic excavator to spearhead several prestigious hydro-electric projects on the island.

The EC300D is the first Volvo product to be purchased by TSL Contractors Ltd and was chosen specifically to carry out rock-breaking operations with a hydraulic hammer on one of several hydro-electric projects currently being undertaken by the company.

‘We wanted a machine large enough and with sufficient capacity for rock breaking, and had been considering the Volvo product for a while,’ said TSL’s managing director Andrew Knight. ‘We also had to consider our requirements in line with the logistical limitations of moving larger equipment on to and around the islands, so settled on the 30-tonne EC300D as the optimum prime mover. So far we’ve been impressed with the machine’s performance.’

The new EC300D is powered by a Volvo six-cylinder D8H Stage IIIB engine which develops 228hp. The machine’s integrated work-mode control provides high efficiency, rapid dig cycles and low fuel consumption. The advanced mode-control system ensures the maximum possible hydraulic horsepower available is delivered at a constant engine speed under varying load conditions.

Hose rupture valves are fitted as standard to the boom and dipper cylinders, as are quick-fit hydraulics and a hammer/shear service. The machine supplied to TSL Contractors Ltd has also been equipped with a hydraulic quick-hitch to facilitate fast interchangeability between the hydraulic hammer and buckets.

TSL Contractors Ltd were established 35 years ago operating a small quarry on the Isle of Mull and have developed into a major construction, civil engineering and groundworks company in the Western Isles and Argyllshire, specializing in hydro-electric schemes, major building projects for the Scottish Government and contracts for Scottish Water and other national contractors, as well as maintaining a presence in the extractive, aggregates and waste-recycling sectors.

The company, which employs 85 personnel and operates a 20-strong fleet of 3- to 30-tonne excavators, is located at Craignure on the Isle of Mull and has a second office on the mainland at Oban.