10,000th ADT leaves Norwegian production line
Elnesvågen plant celebrates major milestone after half a century of articulated dumptruck production
AFTER 50 years of production, the Elnesvågen plant outside Molde, in Norway, where the Doosan range of articulated dumptrucks (ADTs) is produced, is this month celebrating the completion of the 10,000th machine to be built at the plant. According to plant manager Jan Roger Lindset, the milestone Doosan ADT with production number 851951 is to be delivered to Rental Group in Norway.
Production began at the plant in 1972 when the business was called Glamox. Since then, the brand has had a number of names such as Moxy, Moxy Industrial, Brown Engineering, Moxy Trucks, and Moxy Engineering. In 2008, the name changed to Doosan when the South Korean manufacturer bought the factory and the product.
In 2021, Hyundai Heavy Industries bought the Doosan construction equipment range, including the ADT line, and the name of the business was changed to Hyundai Doosan Infracore (HDI). Now, HDI are replacing the Doosan construction equipment brand and transitioning to the new brand name Develon.
There are currently 150 employees at the Elnesvågen plant, but with both Doosan and Hyundai ADTs now being produced at the factory, the workforce is expected to expand to meet an anticipated 40% growth in production.
The Doosan ADT range comprises two 6x6 models – the DA30-7 and DA45-7 Stage V-compliant machines. The DA30-7 can carry a payload of 28 tonnes, while that of the DA45-7 is 41 tonnes. The range was extended at Bauma 2022 with the launch of a new 4x4 version of the DA45-7, intended to compete with rigid dumptrucks (RDTs) in the 40-tonne class.
Like all Doosan ADTs, the DA30-7 and DA45-7 models feature an articulation hinge positioned behind the turning ring to provide equal weight distribution to the front axle, even during maximum steer articulation. This, combined with a free-swinging rear tandem bogie, ensures equal distribution of weight to each wheel and guarantees permanent six-wheel contact and drive for equal power distribution and superior performance, particularly on difficult terrains such as soft ground, uneven surfaces, very steep slopes, tight turns or a combination of all of these.
In the new 4x4 ADT, the front truck and cab unit is the same as in the original 6x6 model, with modifications being made on the rear dumper unit only. Featuring a ZF EP8-420 transmission, the 4x4 DA45-7 is a two-axle ADT with twin wheels at the rear and with a dumper section similar to that on RDTs in the 40-tonne class.
As well as performing better in conditions that are tough for RDTs, the new 4x4 DA45-7 ADT has a width of less than 4m to avoid the need for special transportation and offers a better turning radius than a comparable RDT. The shorter turning radius and the design of the rear dumper unit, which is particularly suited to carrying flat and heavy rocks, are said to provide particular advantages in the mining, quarrying and tunnelling industries.
‘With superior operation on poorer roads, smoother surfaces and steeper terrain, the aim of our new 4x4 machine is to challenge RDTs in the 40-tonne class, by providing a dumper product that delivers much more than an RDT,’ said Beka Nemstsveridze, ADT product manager at Doosan.
