Breaking Good!
Published: 5/5, 2020
Whether you need to crack up some concrete or bust up some boulders, there’s a hydraulic hammer attachment to fit every carrier machine and owner budget. Along with packing a powerful punch many times a minute, they’re also filled with features to enhance efficiency, minimize maintenance, and optimize operations. So enough with the amusing alliterations; let’s get breaking!
Rammer to hit smarter with new releases
The Rammer Excellence Line continues the company’s 40-year tradition of delivering innovative hammers designed to improve profitability, safety, and performance. Officially launched at Conexpo-Con/Agg, the Excellence Line comprises state-of-the-art hydraulic hammers that are ready for all rock breaking requirements. And what better way to showcase the Excellence Line than with its biggest addition—the 9033E, is for carriers in the 65t to 120 t range. The 16,310-lb (7,400kg) 9033E has a size and format that delivers the extra punch demanded on major quarrying and demolition projects. The Excellence Line has been designed to make it easier to adjust Idle Blow Protection (IBP) in the field, decreasing both operating and maintenance costs. IBP ensures that the hammer cannot be operated until pressure is placed on the tool. It also protects the tool from failure and tie rod stress, reduces oil overheating and protects against premature failures. In addition, all large Rammer hammers have another “easy in the field” adjustable feature—Stroke Selector, which allows the operator to optimize hammer operation according to material and application, either to more frequent lower power strokes in softer material or to fewer high-power strokes in hard material. Other Excellence Line features include separate greasing channels from the valve body to the upper and lower tool bushing to increase tool/tool bushing lifetime; new, robust plastic wear-resistant plates for optimum hammer protection and noise reduction; and easy-to-use pins to expedite field replacement of the lower tool bushing.
Perhaps the biggest development within the Excellence Line is Rammer’s purpose-developed RD3 remote monitoring device - a first of its kind on hammers, and a standard feature on all Rammer Excellence Line models. (RD3 is also available as an option for Rammer Performance Line hammers and as retrofit-kit for older Rammer hammers.) Using the latest GPS and Telematics technology, RD3 uses the Rammer MyFleet Telematics service to track and monitor fleet equipment usage via Google maps.
RD3 comes with a new hammer feature, the “hour meter,” linked to the unit’s serial number to measure the exact number of hours it has worked. This enables more accurate invoicing, and proactive or scheduled servicing. Owners can also set a more accurate value should the unit be sold or traded. The system also enables owners and managers of fleets to know exactly where their equipment is and how it is being used.
Epiroc’s HATCON: Hydraulic Attachment Tools Connectivity
Also entering the remote monitoring arena is Epiroc, whose HATCON device is designed for breakers and drum cutters that keeps track of location and operating hours to improve efficiency and safety. The cloud-based My Epiroc platform gives user notifications about service, create task lists and provides a great overview of the entire fleet. All data is presented in a straightforward way to simplify both everyday duties and long-term decisions.
HATCON is available factory-mounted or as a retrofit kit for Epiroc premium range breakers and drum cutters. Once connected, the system monitors every individual tool and keep customers updated via My Epiroc. Notifications about service and wear part alerts are just a few of the features that will help increase efficiency. With data available regardless of device, at any moment and even offline, everyone from operators to fleet managers will have a more comprehensive view and be able to take smarter decisions. And since the data is also shared with Epiroc, the company can provide better service, for instance shipping wear parts just in time for a scheduled maintenance stop.
Komatsu, Montabert team up for a new breaker line
To meet North American customer demand for rock breakers, Komatsu is launching a full range of hydraulic breakers specifically for that market. Manufactured by Montabert, these hydraulic breakers are designed and tested to fit Komatsu excavators from the PCMR30-5 up to the PC800LC-8, without modification. The product line is among the first product rollouts since Komatsu acquired Montabert earlier this year. While most Montabert products will retain their iconic green color scheme, the new breaker range will offer the French company’s longstanding tradition of exacting quality, performance, and durability in a Komatsu-themed package.
The breakers’ high percussion efficiency and unique variable energy technology provide high production in multiple applications. To protect customer investment in the equipment, they feature an anti-blank firing system and automatic greasing.
Backing up the product quality is an enhanced service and support network for North American customers. That includes a new 50,000-ft2 (4,645m2) distribution and customer care center in Nashville Ill., and a new breaker remanufacturing facility in Chattanooga, Tenn. Montabert is also planning to open a new remanufacturing facility in Elko, Nev., to better serve the western U.S.
Green Attachments’ Red Line membrane-type breakers are real attention-getters
Red Line hydraulically operated membrane-type breakers from Green Attachments have been designed to perform all types of demanding tasks for mining, demolition, tunnel construction, underwater application, and boulder breaking. Movement is achieved by the hydraulic oil pressure on the piston head and accelerated by the oil and gas load of the accumulator on the top of the piston. This accumulator maintains a constant pressure at the top of the piston. Gas must be added only during service.
The membrane type Red breakers are fully hydraulically operated and this guarantees reliable operation when productivity matters. They can operate in all possible positions due to long and light piston and a large number of seals. The hydraulic rock breaker range consists of nineteen models for 0.75t to 100 t excavators.
Other advantages include constant blow energy, low wear, and good hydraulic shock absorption thanks to a unique buffer system. The system keeps the oil’s thermal heat low for energy savings, while side rods are covered with the polyurethane to reduce stress and vibration on the thread.
Also from Green Attachments is the Piikki economy line. Piikki hydraulic breakers are gas assisted economy line breakers for customers who have only occasional need for a breaker. This range is perfect for demolition and excavation assistance, typically frozen ground breaking etc. Piikki breakers accept higher back pressure and generally larger scale of hydraulic circumstances than fully hydraulically operated ones. Composed of relatively few parts, Piikki breakers also keep operational costs low.
Piikki breakers offer many of the same features as the larger Red Line models, including a system of side, top, and bottom buffers that provide special impact and vibration absorbing properties. Tool and piston diameters are matched for maximum energy transfer.
News from Indeco
The smallest hammer in the Indeco range, the HP 100 FS, gets ready to cross the ocean, renaming itself the HP 150 FS, looking to hit the US markets backed up by an already great reputation. The American market is increasingly on the lookout for equipment or mini-excavators from .75 upwards, which can operate in restricted working areas, whether on construction sites or in the agricultural/forestry sectors. Capable of top performance even with reduced hydraulic flow, the little giant of the Indeco hammer range streamlines job times and ensures excellent productivity through an impact energy per blow which is unparalleled among hammers in the same class.
Two lightweights in the Indeco small hammer range—HP 550 FS and HP 400 FS—now deliver improved performance with new powerful features. Both are now in higher energy classes, have higher tool diameters, and deliver more blows per minute. This upgrading has not changed the hammer size and design in either model, while decidedly improving the perfect match with 2.5t excavators for the HP 550 FS, and 3.5t-6.5t for the HP 400 FS The result is maximum hydraulic efficiency for the finest performance in its category.
Finally, Indico’s new HP 6000 FS which takes up a position midway between the HP 5000 and the HP 7000.With this product Indeco aims to provide an answer to a specific trend in the excavator world. For some time now, 30t carriers are increasingly being replaced with slightly larger models weighing up to 36t. This new hammer is an ideal fit for excavators in the 35t – 45t range, especially given its excellent power-to-weight ratio. A champion of productivity and reliability, partly due to the HARDOX® inserts in the lower part of the casing, which enable it to withstand even the toughest jobs.
PRODEM’s family of workhorse breakers
Hydraulic hammers come in all sizes but the PRODEM PRB series is a comprehensive range specially designed to be cost effective without compromising power or durability. From the small but dynamic PRB008 right through to the mighty PRB1000, they are all workhorses. The unique valve design and high-pressure accumulator in the PRB170 and higher models work to eliminate pressure fluctuations and increase impact power, all the while minimizing damage on the excavator pump. PRODEM hydraulic hammers also have a specially hardened and heat-treated piston that gives long piston strokes. This minimizes recoil and eliminates mechanical springs.
Speaking of recoil, all models in the PRB series features an optimal damping system made of high-quality elastomer, which minimizes impact-induced recoil shock, vibration and noise. Downtime costs money, which is why PRODEM hammers from the PRB150 upwards feature anti-blank firing to significantly reduce blank blow-induced failures and downtime, therefore increasing productivity. The models’ dual speed control adjusts the blow frequency of the hammer to the density of material to maximize productivity: low power/high speed for concrete breaking, soft rock and reducing boulders; high power/low speed for quarrying and trenching.
But even the smaller models are designed to go the distance. All models feature a hardened rock claw that resists wear and abrasion; a through-bolt which reduces internal torsion stress and increases fastener life; and an extremely durable welded full box enclosure with no rigid side bolts to protect components and reduce noise. All come with two tools, optimized with high grade steel and heat-treated to maximize durability and efficiency.
PRODEM hammers are also designed to be easy to maintain. There are fewer moving components in the PRB series than in competitor hammers. PRODEM hammers also feature a centralized lubricating system, with the option of installing an auto-greasing kit.
Hammer builds breakers for every need
Thanks to an over than 40 years’ experience, Hammer offers customers a wide range of quality breakers, supported by high level after sales service. The dedication to the customer and the great skills of Hammer’s technical staff (constantly updated) result in full availability for any kind of customization request by its customers.
Hammer’s 8 modelsof SB series is designed for excavators from 5t to 11t, while the 14 models of the FX series are suitable for excavators with operating weight from 10t to 200t.
Hammer’s SB and FX breakers can tolerate 25bar back pressure and they are designed for easy installation on site. Besides the power, Hammer FX series breakers are provided with a special hole for the compressed air passage, located in the front of the breaker, designed for underwater demolition works. All Hammer’s breakers have a closed casing design integrated with one upper and one lower shock absorber made of polyurethane, which dicrease vibrations and noises, while respecting the environment, thus reducing ordinary maintenance costs. Hydraulic connections are located inside the casing and they are protected by an elastic rubber cover, giving the breaker the opportunity to work in narrow spaces. A specially developed lip seal prevents the loss of nitrogen from the chamber, thus ensuring efficiency and reducing downtimes.
Hammer attended to Conexpo 2020 in Las Vegas, through the sister company Kinshofer America, by introducing the SB and FX series and having a huge success thanks to their innovative performances. Today, thanks to the locations based in Burlington - North America and in Sanbor, in New York state - US, it is possible to buy Hammer’s products in cooperation with KinshoferGmbh in the American continent.
Furthermore, Hammer can claim the production of the biggest breaker in the world, i.e. FX 15000 model, which has been sold in the 2018 in Chigaco, Illinois and that is still fully operational, with excellent performances and complete customer’s satisfaction.
Two new breakers from Promove
Promove’s new 1,323-lb (600kg) XP600 and 441-lb (200kg) XP200 complete the XP series of high-performance hydraulic breakers. The XP series boasts an energy recovery and anti-blank firing systems, a power/ frequency automatic regulation system, and the innovative smart valve with the “plug and play” feature that allows users to install the breaker without having to adjust any settings on the excavator. In addition to significant time/cost savings, this feature eliminates future problems such as premature breakages due to extra flow. This system also allows the breaker to be moved to various machines, making it easier to rent equipment. For those looking to match a hydraulic breaker with a mini excavator, consider Promove’s five-model light range, which weigh 132-948 lb (60-430 kg). Promove technicians have designed a new mix of strength and performance. The XP 60 is one of the latest in the Promove family. Thanks to its small size, it can be used in the smallest demolitions site.
The larger XP 101 and XP 150 are designed specifically for jobs that require greater delicacy and collateral damage control, offering incredible versatility thanks to their constitutive technology. Shock protection absorbers, mounted above and below the hammer body, avoid vibrations and damage to the excavator arm. The nitrogen valve is easily accessible for faster and more efficient gas control or for refill operations. A low-pressure chamber improves the energy at each blow and, together with the increased diameter impact mass, produces a more powerful blow.
Idromeccanica returns to Conexpo
After a 20-year absence, Idromeccanica Italiana, once again took its place on the international marketing stage with an impressive display at Conexpo-Con/Agg. The company’s exhibit included the IMI 88HP, equipped for skidsteer loaders, and the versatile IMI 121M for machines in the 15t to 24t range. “Breakers and Beyond,” the theme for exhibit, served as a reminder that Idromeccanica does more than manufacture a full range of breakers to suit any machine from 1t to 50t. The company also makes other attachments to complete demolition, mining, recycling and road works. Idromeccanica’s ambition is to be customers’ one-stop-shop.
During the exhibition days, with an ear to the news from Italy and the attention to attendees, Idromeccanica’s staff caught different trends and needs of the US market regarding hydraulic hammers. The most requested among these are the ones for machines from 40t to 50t and those for machines from 4t to 10t. Idromeccanica hopes that the expectations before the exhibition will not be significantly cut back due to the severe global emergency, especially since Conexpo attendees were able to explore new products, technologies and services. The cmopany’s staff found this Conexpo edition quite successful and optimistically believing that the show must go on! Idromeccanica is keeping fingers crossed ,and will continue working with greater commitment to its customers.