 |
   |
|
|
We are seeing what seems to be an ever-increasing crossover between construction and agricultural equipment as technology, cost and availability of used machinery proliferate. Obviously a paving contractor would never use a combine harvester. Conversely a dairy farmer is unlikely to need a trenching machine on a daily basis. Generally the term that has come to be applied is “Compact Equipment”, although that is somewhat misleading as power and performance have improved as design innovation has shrunk the average size of machine. A good example of this juxtaposition of size power and application was on display at this year’s Royal Cornwall Show in the UK. On display was a new/reconstructed coal-fired, steam-driven crane from the early 1900s. The Joseph Chamberlain was a major feat of engineering know-how and restoration passion by owner Richard Scourfield, who took over seven years to build, virtually from scratch, the early piece of heavy equipment. Heavy? Yes. Powerful? Not as much as you would think with a lifting capacity of only about 3,300 kg. Its significance is as a marvellous example of the transition from “portable power” to “labor saver”.
Color was a defining characteristic in years past, with red, green or yellow being the demarcation between farmer and contractor. Now as customers have become more knowledgeable and vendors have multiplied, it has become more about utility, the main reason the crossover has gained momentum. Couplers, attachments and hydraulic horsepower have come a long way since Harry Ferguson started the revolution with his Model A or Ferguson-Brown tractor in 1936. (R.H.) |
|
© InfraStructures - Tous droits réservés - All rights reserved |
Royal Cornwall Show 2012
