While the attendance at Hillhead 2001 was down approximately 10 per cent from the previous show in 1999, exhibitors visited by Aggregates & Roadbuilding Magazine expressed very positive comments about the quality of this year’s exhibition. Numerous deals were either announced or confirmed during the 3-day event including two Hitachi excavators, an EX1200 and an EX800, a Nordberg LT1415 self-propelled primary impact plant and a pair of Bell B40C articulated dumptrucks equipped with Bell’s patented ejector body system for ejecting material without tipping.

As at past shows, the demonstration area was the scene of constant activity as dozens of pieces of mobile machinery, including excavators, hydraulic breakers, wheel loaders, rigid and articulated trucks, crushers, screens and stacking conveyors processed thousands of tonnes of blasted limestone under actual working conditions.

Among the highlights of the demonstrations area were three large hydraulic excavators, a Komatsu PC 750SE, an O&K RH30-F and a Liebherr 964, which worked with Caterpillar, Komatsu and Volvo articulated dumptrucks and rigid haulers to keep feed rock flowing to the crushing and screening stations. Also seen assisting at the face loading.

operations was a new Cat 988G wheel loader. Terex took advantage of the working area to demonstrate the capabilities of its new TR70 quarry truck which has a maximum payload capacity of 65 tonnes. With a gross power of 760 hp, the TR70 features the latest design Detroit Diesel 12V2000 Series engine and is fitted with the latest Allison MT6600AR soft-shift transmission. According to Terex, the TR70 has been designed with the widest front wheel track and the longest wheelbase in its class to give excellent cornering stability and handling.

Other machines, including Volvo, Hitachi, Daewoo and Case excavators and wheel loaders, assisted throughout the show charging feed hoppers, maintaining stockpiles and loading finished products.

A broad range of primary, secondary and tertiary crushers along with several new models of self-propelled crushing and screening plants were exhibited and demonstrated for Hillhead visitors. Crawler-mounted crushers working in the demonstration area during Aggregates & Roadbuilding’s visit included those manufactured by Extec, Finlay, MMD, Parker Plant and BL-Pegson. In the static display area, Svedala presented its new CM P300 crawler-mounted primary impactor containing a vibrating feeder, a separate two-stage, double-deck grizzly screen and P300 impact crusher for quarrying or recycling applications. Komatsu also displayed their BR 500 crawler-mounted crusher. Fitted with a 228 kW Komatsu engine, the machine offers outputs from 85-460 tonnes/h. It has a feed opening of 1050 mm x 750 mm and a discharge setting from 70 mm to 200 mm.

A few of the new products introduced at the show included Volvo’s 33-tonne L220E wheel loader for use as a primary production machine and rehandling applications, Daewoo’s 22-tonne Mega 400-V wheel loader, Atlas Copco’s ROC D5 crawler rig featuring extended reach and all-terrain capabilities, JCB’s 46-tonne JS460 excavator and JCB 718 articulated dumptruck, Cat’s 988G wheel loader and 36-tonne payload 740 articulated dumptruck and Powerscreen’s Turbo Chieftain 1800, the largest model in the Chieftain range. According to show officials, the largest exhibitions at this year’s event in terms of space utilized were mounted by Volvo Construction Equipment, Komatsu, Caterpillar dealer Finning (UK) Ltd. and Metso Minerals, the parent company and new identity for the Nordberg line of aggregate processing systems.

Metso Minerals had hoped to officially announce at Hillhead 2001 the timetable for the closing of its takeover of Swedish-based Svedala Industri AB. However final clearance of the deal by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission had not been received at the time of the show. Metso officials say the process is in the final phase and the company has extended its offer. In early June, Metso announced that it had finalized the remedy package sale agreements with Sandvik and Outokumpu and has delivered all the necessary documents relating to these agreements and the purchasers to the FTC for its review.

The Metso Minerals stand centered around the recently introduced LT1415 track-mounted crushing plant. Comprising a Nordberg NP1415 impact crusher, the 65 tonne plant offers a throughput of up to 600 tonnes/h. It is carried on a D7A undercarriage and powered by a Cat 345L 410 kW diesel engine. The 18 m long machine is described as highly maneuverable and ideally suited to applications requiring regular machine relocations. Standard equipment includes a variable-speed VG13-20-2V vibrating grizzly feeder and a large 10 m 3 capacity feed hopper. The LT1415 was joined on the stand by the smaller LT105, a 41.5 tonne self-propelled track model incorporating a Nordberg C105 jaw, a 212 kW emission compliant Volvo diesel engine, a vibrating grizzly feeder and 6 m 3 capacity feed hopper.

Two Nordberg machines making their Hillhead debut were the ST356 track-mounted mobile screen and the GP300S cone crusher. The ST356 has a patented 4.8 x 1.5 m convertible screenbox on both decks for high throughput and can accommodate woven screen mesh, punch plates, heavy-duty grizzly or finger decks. The onboard stockpiling conveyors allow for fast deployment times by eliminating the need for all off-plant stockpiling conveyors.

Also featured at the Metso Minerals stand was a HP300 cone crusher and the Nordberg A2020 Crusher Automation system for all GP and HP series crushers. The system monitors values such as power absorbed and materials levels in the crushing chamber, compares these with preset values and responds automatically with any necessary adjustments. Through integrated feed rate control, the 2020 will maintain an optimum choke feed condition to guarantee constant throughput, grading curve and product quality. Productivity gains of up to 20 per cent, reduced wear rates and lower power consumption are the major benefits claimed for the A2020 system. The GP300S is designed for secondary, tertiary or quarternary crushing duties. Depending on the feed material and feed opening, the cone can process up to 400 tonnes/h.

Among the first time exhibitors at Hillhead 2001 was the Wirtgen Group of Companies which displayed two new Wirtgen planers – the 2 m W2100 and the 1.5 m W1500 – as well as the Vùgele Super 1203 compact paver, a new 5 m screed fitted to a Vùgele Super 1603 paver and a range of Hamm vibratory rollers for compacting soils and asphalt.