Volvo Electric Equipment: New Opportunities for Heavy Equipment Jobs
One of the things I find myself saying quite often about our new Volvo electric excavator and wheel loader and our concept machines is that we don’t even know yet all the interesting ways they could be used. The benefits of these machines are so new and exciting that it’s important to keep an open mind about the applications for which electric equipment will be best suited.
Still, we know several applications that will be perfect for the Volvo ECR25 electric compact excavator or Volvo L25 electric compact wheel loader. Here are just a few:
Urban
Grading with a Volvo ECR25 Electric Excavator
Electric machines are impressively quiet, which makes them prime candidates for work in populated areas — especially on projects that require nighttime work or operation in residential areas. Digging or moving material outside a bedroom window , school zone or hospital room will be no problem at all. As more cities and states work on charging infrastructure for electric passenger vehicles, Volvo electric construction equipment can make a logical addition to their equipment fleets as well.
Indoor
Volvo ECR25 Electric Excavator for Indoor Demolition
Indoor construction jobs cause a unique set of problems for workers. Construction equipment needs to be compact enough to fit through tight spaces, yet powerful enough to complete the job. Ventilation also poses a problem as diesel-powered equipment emits exhaust fumes. Indoor projects can now benefit from the low noise and zero emission levels Volvo electric machines offer.
Where it used to take several laborers doing manual work or using smaller electric tools, now an electric compact excavator can dig or an electric loader can move material indoors without polluting enclosed spaces or causing major disruptions.
Agriculture
Because of electric machines’ zero-emission factor, they are great for agricultural settings involving valuable livestock. Farmers don’t want their livestock breathing in diesel emissions, but still need to get work done around them. With an electric wheel loader, farmers can keep barns or sheds closed for warmth while still moving loads of feed, for example. And they won’t have to sacrifice power or reach, because these machines operate at the same level as their diesel counterparts.
Food Production
Yet again, zero emissions save the day. In a setting like a greenhouse, orchard or fish hatchery, electric machines can carry supplies or materials in and out without exposing products or workers to hazardous emissions or loud noise. This can also increase work productivity by eliminating the need to transfer from a diesel machine to equipment that can come indoors, or even manually unloading from outside to inside.
High-Dust Environments
Volvo L25 Electric Wheel Loader
A combustion engine can be dangerous in a high-dusting setting because of the possibility of sparking from the exhaust. In a lumber mill or sawmill, workers are keenly aware of safety issues like this. With an electric machine, productivity isn’t sacrificed, and neither is safety.
LOOKING TO THE HORIZON
Many businesses are interested in moving away from diesel wherever possible as the sustainability movement gains traction, while others simply want to explore new segments and applications where they could grow their business. Either way, at Volvo we anticipate that electric equipment will be a big part of the solution.
Looking beyond the current compact machines, we’re also working on concept models like our Volvo EX03 electric mid-size wheeled excavator and Volvo TA15 autonomous hauler. The idea of fully electrified and automated jobsites like mines, quarries and lumber yards will become a reality in the not-so-distant future.
You can read more about Volvo’s drive to electromobility and our electric, automated test site we built to learn what else is in store for the future of electric and autonomous machines.
(“Volvo Electric Equipment: New Opportunities for Heavy Equipment Jobs” was used on 6/29/21 from https://volvoceblog.com/volvo-electric-equipment-new-opportunities-for-heavy-equipment-jobs/)