Switzerland has the highest density of railways in the world. You can cross the beautiful country on high-speed rail lines, like the narrow-gauge railway of the famous Glacier Express, or climb the steep mountains on the funicular railways. Obviously, track construction plays a key role.

 

The family company Vanoli AG, based in the village of Samstagern in the canton of Zurich, is active in track construction and refurbishment throughout Switzerland. The company has been working with Hyundai dealer Bamag AG in Regensdorf for the past 21 years and has now taken possession of a new two-way excavator (for road/rail use) based on the Hyundai short tail excavator HX145LCR (87 kW, 15-tonne operating weight) with two-piece boom.

With its shorter tail swing radius, the short tail excavator is the perfect machine for working next to the rails. It is equipped with two hydrostatically driven and braked rail bogies (can be switched between 1,435 mm/1,000 mm gauge) and can travel on the rails at up to 20 km/h.

It has been adapted to rail use with a number of special equipment additions. These include:
• Lift height limitation
• Swing limitation
• Load torque limiter
• Dead man's control safety mechanism
• Electrically controlled joysticks
• Dual circuit compressed air brake with brake connections on the undercarriage (compressed air lines are routed through the rotary feedthrough)
• Towing device for railway wagons for a maximum gross vehicle weight of 120 tonnes
• Rototilt swing device for all kinds of buckets/attachments.

The track construction company modified the excavator in close collaboration with HCEE dealer Bamag over a period of several months and had it approved and certified by the competent Swiss authorities.

The excavator can be used as a normal civil engineering machine without any restrictions when the rail bogies are raised.

With the HX series (14 to 90 metric ton application weights), Hyundai Construction Equipment Europe introduces a newly designed range of modern and high performance hydraulic excavators. Stage IV/V engines, a new design, and extensive new and further developments in the cabin, components and operation are attractive selling points. A feature of all HX hydraulic excavators is the interior, which is up to four dB quieter, and cabin, which is now 13% larger. It is a defining design element and gives the HX machines a distinctive look with a high recognition value.

The main focus of further development work is the operator and their demands for comfort and safety. The new ROPS/FOPS cabin is mounted on especially well-insulated dampers, significantly reducing the vibrations at the operator seat. The operator seat and control panels with joysticks are a single unit that automatically adjust to the operator's weight.

The capacitive touchscreen display has been enlarged to 8 inches. The operator can use the display to make numerous parameter settings in clear and intuitive menu items. Two views and three modes are available. In addition to displays and switches, many settings can be made very easily using superimposed sliders and adjusted with minimal effort. To make it easier for the operator to work efficiently, the display has a large, colour ECO Gauge. Coloured bars in the tachometer indicate efficiency – green bars indicate efficient operation, red represent high fuel consumption and wear. Three operating modes – ECO, Standard and Power – are stored in the control and can be selected.

The oil quantity and pressure of up to 20 attachments can be stored in a directory via the touchscreen (HCEE calls this the EPPR function – the Electronic Proportional Pressure Reducing valve function). For particularly demanding attachments, the hydraulic delivery rate can be increased by connecting two pumps together. This configuration data is also stored in the Hyundai system. This feature is particularly important in demolition.

Safety is a top priority for Hyundai products. The reversing camera is fitted as standard. As an option, Hyundai offers the AAVM (Advanced Around View Monitoring) system, which presents a 360-degree all-round view, compiled from the image information of four cameras mounted on the excavator, on the display. With with the IMOD (Intelligent Moving Objects Detection) monitoring system that is also available, objects moving in the vicinity of the excavator are detected and presented on the touchscreen display.

Other features of the HX excavator generation

With the two-piece boom and 3,500 mm arm, the excavator reaches a digging depth of 6,000 mm and breakaway forces of 111 kN. With this equipment combination, the breakout force is 62.8 kN. Special features of the new HX series:

• ECO Gauge
• IPC (Intelligent Power Control)
• Improved variable power control
• Electrically-driven viscous fan clutch
• Volume flow control for attachments can be preselected
• Cooling system with higher air flow
• Large air intake with grille cover
• Single-pedal straight-ahead travel (option)
• Wear-resistant bolts, bushings and polymer washers
• Infotainment cabin
• Intelligent control system
• WiFi Direct with smartphone (Miracast, new audio system)
• Proportional auxiliary hydraulics
• Easy access to DEF/AdBlue supply
• Hi-Mate (machine management system, activation optional)
• Swing Lock (option)
• Fine Swing (option)
• Driveline with components from well-known manufacturers
(Cummins, Kawasaki, Hyundai, Rexroth, etc.)
• Very good ergonomics
• Great performance paired with state-of-the-art exhaust technology

Depending on the function selected, the knob reacts differently to physical feedback. The radio is integrated in the right-hand armrest, in direct reach of the operator. It is equipped with a Bluetooth and USB interface for connecting a smartphone and radio. The standard microphone is synchronised with the hands-free system via the Bluetooth feature of the radio.