MINING business Adept Contractors says a slowdown in Queensland’s mining sector has not hampered its steady expansion plans.
This family company, based in the mining heartland of Moranbah in central Queensland, specialises in servicing coal operators in the Bowen Basin.
Adept carries out general construction, bunds, maintenance and clean-up work for about 10 local coal miners, as well as running a civil engineering, reinforced concrete and earthmoving operation as a sideline to its core business.
The company has been in operation since 1991 and has steadily built a workforce of 40 employees and a fleet of five excavators, six trucks, two backhoes, two low loaders – including one 40-tonne machine – and several rollers.
Adept recently purchased a JCB 8045ZTS mini excavator and a JS240LC 25t excavator to add to its fleet.
Company owner Peter Alladyce said it was the first time he had bought a compact excavator and both machines were predominantly being used in the earthmoving side of the business.
He said the 4.5t, 46-horsepower 8045ZTS mini excavator was being transported between sites on a trailer towed by one of the company’s 10-metre tipper trucks and was mainly being used for smaller jobs.
“It is especially handy with an auger attachment for drilling holes,” Peter said.
The compact JCB 8045ZTS mini excavator has zero tailswing, which he said was an excellent feature when manoeuvring in tight spaces or when surrounded by other machines.
Peter said it had excellent stability, its Perkins engine delivered exceptional power for its size and its big cab size made it comfortable to operate.
“Visibility from the cab is really good – it has a big front screen to see the load, you can see the whole track to the left and there is a great view to the right and rear because of the cab shape.’’
Auxiliary controls in the 8045ZTS are mounted on a joystick, rather than a foot pedal, to allow more fine control of precise attachments, such as earth drills.
This JCB machine also has load-sensed hydraulics to improve machine performance and fuel efficiency, and slew and boom offset can be controlled simultaneously for faster machine positioning.
Peter said the 8045ZTS had easy access for servicing and the back-up assistance he had received from Wes Henshall, of JCB Construction Equipment Australia in Mackay, had been excellent.
“We have got no complaints with this mini excavator – it is performing well.’’
He said his company was also pleased with the JCB JS240LC 25t, 120hp excavator it had recently bought.
“We are using that auto tracked excavator for general excavation and a lot of hammer work.’’
“We have fitted it with a 7t demolition hammer for mining jobs such as destroying old sheds and concrete, and it has gone really well.”
Peter said Adept had designed and commissioned a range of auger, blade, grader, hammer and bucket attachments that were interchangeable between the JS240LC and the company’s other Case and CAT excavators.
“This helps with the logistics of getting jobs done fast and efficiently.’’
He also opted for a boom extension with the machine to increase its ground level reach by 4m to almost 10m.
This was proving highly beneficial for operations such as back-filling culverts and clearing drains.
Peter said the long-reach boom and reliability of the Isuzu turbo-charged engine were stand-out features of the JCB JS240LC machine.
He said the dipper force, drawbar pull and bucket dig force enhanced its performance, while the increased hydraulic flow increased the speed of operations to improve efficiencies.
The JS240LC has joystick-mounted track gear selection, making gear changing easier, and uses JCB’s Advanced Management System (AMS) computer intelligence to precisely control all major machine functions.
The AMS automatically delivers extra power and precision when needed for accurate and safe operation, while optimising fuel efficiency.
It has four operating modes – auto, economy, precision and lifting – alerts the operator the instant there is a problem and records the machine’s key operating data.
Every JCB tracked excavator features cushion control to the boom and dipper services to reduce the shock loadings to the machine and the operator. This can be de-activated for faster cycle times.
Peter said the back-up service from the JCB CEA team in Mackay had been terrific and he had not experienced any problems with either excavator Adept had purchased through the branch.
For further information on the JCB tracked excavator range, contact your nearest JCB Construction Equipment Australia branch or phone 1300 JCB CEA.
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