Danfoss Power Solutions will test its new hydraulic system in excavators operated by UK-based Ashcourt Group. Danfoss expects the field follow tests to prove that the system increases the productivity of the machines while reducing fuel consumption.
The Volvo EC200 excavators have been fitted with Danfoss’s Dextreme Swap system, replacing the main hydraulic pump with a Digital Displacement pump, custom software, and controller. Dextreme Swap is the simplest configuration of the Dextreme system, according to the company, and Danfoss predicts it will lower fuel consumption by 15 percent. The system can be implemented in three levels—Swap, Flex, and Max—with maximum fuel savings of 50 percent in excavators of all sizes, according to Danfoss.
The 20-ton excavators are powered by 154-horsepower diesel engines. Two of the excavators will be used at Ashcourt’s Partridge Hall Quarry in East Yorkshire; the third at a nearby material washing facility. Each machine is forecast to complete 2,000 operating hours over the next 12 months.
To compare operating data with Ashcourt’s existing fleet of Volvo EC200s, each excavator has been fitted with data logging equipment.
“Our goal is to see how the Danfoss Dextreme-equipped machines perform in terms of productivity and fuel use in a tough quarrying and material moving environment,” said John Hood, Ashcourt plant director, in a statement. “So far, the feedback from our operators has been uniformly positive. The fuel savings I can’t speak to yet, but my team is telling me the new machines are very responsive and strong, with the EC200 performing more like an EC250.”
A Danfoss study suggests that excavators account for 50 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions generated by construction equipment, with 90 percent of those emissions from excavators of 10 tons or more. As a result, the company has specifically targeted the Dextreme system solution at the excavator market.
According to Danfoss calculations, an excavator utilizing the Dextreme system will have a lower total cost of ownership than a standard diesel machine. For excavator owners more interested in reducing cycle times than reducing fuel consumption, Dextreme Swap can deliver up to 25 percent higher productivity, according to the company.
The Dextreme system can be integrated into diesel, hybrid, and fully electric excavators and will work with any machine control system. Its integral digital pump controller provides extensive data, providing fleet operators with real-time performance monitoring and diagnostics.
“Today’s excavator systems are only 30% efficient, with around 70% of the engine’s energy wasted as heat in the hydraulic system,” said Leif Bruhn, head of digital displacement for Danfoss, in a statement. “We’ve designed the Dextreme system to radically reduce hydraulic system losses, leading to increased productivity and lower fuel consumption. We are excited to be working with the Ashcourt Group in such a challenging environment to demonstrate that Dextreme-equipped excavators deliver more productivity while consuming less fuel.”
Watch an interview with Bruhn.
Source: Danfoss Power Solutions
