Monday, February 25, 2013
Heavy Machinery Through the Years
If you look at any equipment literature, you will notice at once that the most important change on the last several years is increased productivity. Next to this follows greater comfort and safety. These are actually the results of different advancements that allow machines to respond faster to increased power demands.
Most of the newer models of machineries have electronic controls which will actually optimize fuel consumption, hydraulic system, and engine and transmission performance. One example of this is the electronically controlled power shift transmissions of the mid-sized G series wheel loaders of CAT (Caterpillar). Each of its transmission has an electronic clutch pressure control that smooth shifts the gears and an auto-shift capability that ease the pressure on the operator.
Manufacturers today give utmost importance to the comfort and convenience of machine operators. Since good machine operators are hard to find these days, manufacturers need to find ways to make their job easier and more efficient and productive. They have come up with new equipment designs that offer reduced noise and vibration, improved comfort and better visibility. The new control system also requires less effort for both the experienced and the inexperienced operator.
Aside from that, machines nowadays already have electronic monitoring systems that provide constant information on the state or health of the machine. These systems provide information to technicians, including service modes which will help them diagnose conditions more quickly and make their routine maintenance much easier.
If you compare the heavy equipment today to the machines of the past, you will see that the changes are for better. The machines of the past relied more on the skills and techniques of the operator whilst the heavy equipment today comes with electronic features. These electronics make the life of an operator easier since he does not have to go out and check the fluids anymore. All he needs to do is take a look at the instrument panel of the machine, which actually saves a lot of time.
Operators who’ve handled machines of the past know firsthand that it cannot compete with the machines of today. With the advancement of technology, it makes you wonder how great heavy machinery will get and what other features it will have to make the life of an operator even easier than it is today.