Construction Plant News puts the questions to Jacco de Kluijver, Genie Vice President Sales & Marketing, for Terex AWP in EMEAIR on the J Series range of boom lifts.
In the current marketplace maximising rental revenue is more important than ever. What is Genie doing to help rental firms enhance profitability and lower total cost of ownership, and how does the J Series fit into that mission?
Our comprehensive boom line-up allows hirers to match the right equipment to their customers’ specific needs. If the end user needs to lift heavy equipment, for example – and put three people in the platform – the Genie XC line offers industry-leading lifting capacity. For jobsites that require indoor/outdoor capability, our Fuel Electric models offer the most advanced and reliable true hybrid machines in the industry. When a customer needs to get to height for tasks such as inspections and maintenance, tree trimming, painting, or electrical work, we’re proud to introduce the new J series to complete our model line-up.
Tell use more about the new J Series? How does it complement the XC and FE units already available?
While no other boom can beat the XC series when heavy lifting is required, XC boom can be overkill for many jobs, including maintenance and inspections, or other routine tasks that require relatively simple tools. This is where the J Series is the perfect fit. Our engineering team began developing the J series boom by focusing on attributes that optimise the total cost of ownership, uptime, and delivery costs.
To optimise TCO, we designed the J series to deliver peak performance for everyday jobs, including painting, maintenance, and general construction work. By right-sizing every part of the machine to specifically meet the needs of that type of work, we were able to design a machine that reduces total cost of ownership by up to 20 per cent.
Can you provide us with more detail in how the design has achieved those savings?
Many of those TCO benefits are driven by the J boom lift’s two-tube, single-envelope boom, which is much simpler than a standard dual envelope and is much easier to service. Additionally, the unit has no length sensors to worry about, which reduces costly inspections and the potential need for parts replacement.
Additionally, a 30 per cent reduction in wearable components combined with significantly fewer overall inspection points means less time and money spent on maintenance. And, because the less time is spent on maintenance, your J boom will spend more time getting work done in the field.
We’ve also maximised uptime with the J Series’ hydraulic system, which requires 33 per cent less fluid volume than common booms in comparable height classes. This feature has a direct and positive impact on replacement fluid costs and reduces the time needed to perform service tasks.
What other benefits does the J Series offer?
One of most significant advantages of the J Series is its best-in-class weight specifications. Weighing 1/3rd less than comparable booms, it also features an optimised transport position, which allows a single trailer to transport a mix of equipment or to deliver up to two S-60 J boom lifts on the same trailer. By optimising transport options, the S-60 J boom can provide significant savings in overall logistics costs for a business. With the S-80 J, a combination on multiple Genie machines on a single truck still possible. As an added benefit, the J Series is also perfect for jobsites with sensitive ground pressure.
By optimising the structures, hydraulic system and overall machine weight, the S-60 J boom lift is able to offer a less complex, lower maintenance 2 hp engine that is finely tuned to provide the performance needed to get the job done with the added benefit of less complicated emissions controls (no after-treatment) and internal electronics. Other engine options are available in order to match any need to comply with environmental requirements.
In addition to the boom lifts, what accessories and support can customers get?
The J boom lift Series will share commonality in design, parts and accessories with other Genie products in a rental fleet. Common options and accessories for Genie booms are also available for use on the S-60 J & S-80 J models, for example, including LiftConnect telematics, Lift Power, the panel cradle and pipe cradle attachments, positive air shutdown system, and more.
