Construction Plant News profiles one of the leading players in the attachments sector and looks at what’s new in the already considerable Worsley Plant portfolio.
Since it was established in 1996, Worsley Plant has developed into an attachment specialist with a tool for every job. Whether it’s in construction, demolition, waste & recycling or quarrying, the company can supply a huge range of solutions from its many brands, with strategically placed northern and southern depots facilitating a national reach.
“We wanted to innovate from the outset,” declares Managing Director, Sean Heron. “That’s why we were early pioneers of excavator-mounted crushing and screening buckets, and it’s a tradition that continues with the MB brand today. We’re seeing more and more people converting to the concept, and Worsley Plant now offers MB Crusher Buckets for machines ranging from 2.8 to 70 tonnes.”
The commercial and environmental benefits of on-site recycling are now an established fact, with the savings in transportation costs and the importing of aggregate on to a project potentially considerable. Whilst it was an idea that was well received from Worsley Plant’s very earliest days, the fourth generation of the technology is now faster, and produces higher quality material. “For many the logistics of deploying a static crushing machine onto a compact site are not feasible,” continues Sean, “but on jobs where there’s already going to be an excavator present it makes perfect sense to utilise a crushing bucket and we quickly found a receptive audience.”
“By increasing the size of the jaw – and introducing a vibrating plate which pulls material through faster – the MB Series 4 buckets now have a larger capacity, and are as a consequence 25 per cent quicker in operation than the previous model – and that’s been a real game changer in terms of bringing more people on board,” enthuses Sean. “The fundamental equation for any contractor is cost per tonne, and if you can utilise one engine to produce all that you need, it becomes more and more viable.”
Similarly, the Remu Screening Buckets Worsley also supplies have been on a parallel journey of continual improvement and are now saving contractors time and money both before and after the crushing process on site. Simultaneously scoring points on sustainability and productivity, as well as improving the quality of recycled construction waste, they will equally reduce the amount that’s destined for landfill.
In 2013, Worsley Plant further expanded its offering with the addition of the Lehnhoff Variolock Quickcoupler range. The fully automatic system allows for the changing of attachments in seconds from the safety of the cab and is particularly well-suited to demolition applications, where an operator is required to switch between grapple, shear or breaker on a regular basis. It has also found a home in waste & recycling and, on jobs where space is tight, it may well be possible to reduce the number of excavators required and replace them with just one multi-tasking machine – a welcome cost-saving exercise for any contractor.
Where this precision-made German engineering departs from its competitors in the field is in higher oil flows. Thanks to larger valves the Lehnhoff operates at lower temperatures, and with reduced fuel consumption, as well as less wear and tear on the equipment. In addition, because the Lehnhoff can reduce the distance between the end of the dipper and the bucket compared to other quick hitches on the market, it has greater breakout force than many of its rivals.
“We’ve always been greater believers in making sure that our customers get the solutions that’s right for them,” reveals the Worsley Plant founder, “and that’s a policy we pursue with the Lehnhoff. In certain sectors the time and cost savings can be prodigious but if you’re not changing attachments fairly regularly then you should be thinking very carefully about making the investment. I’ve actually been approached by some civil engineering companies who are engaged primarily in mass excavation, and we’ve had to tell them that we didn’t think it was the right option for them.”
Where the Lehnhoff has been specified appropriately, however, its adopters have reported considerable reductions in downtime, not least from a decline in incidents of hose damage damage. As well as that, by considerably increasing the speed at which an operators can change tools, it encourages on site personnel to use the right attachment for the job, thereby reducing the potential for misuse of equipment.
In 2011, Worsley Plant became the exclusive UK distributor for Dutch-built Rotar brand, which includes a host of attachments for the demolition contractor. The Rotar Concrete Cutter is the latest addition to that range, and brings new technology to the sector. Powered by a Ramplifier installed inside the cycliner rod, it more than doubles the pressure from 350bar to as high as 700bar. That makes it the perfect weapon in heavy industrial demolition, where thick reinforced concrete is in evidence. “We were on a site recently where a 2 ½ tonne tool on a 25-tonne machine, was delivering the same break out force as a 7 tonne unit on a 70 tonne excavator would have provided,” Sean reports.
With the addition of Montabert breakers – for whom Worsley Plant is now the largest UK dealer – and Dynaset hydraulic magnet technology, the attachments specialist has a solution for every application. Indeed, it is a scope and reach which is continually expanding, whilst Sean and his team pride themselves on the level of expertise they can offer clients.
