Front loader selection questions

At least 40 notable brands of front-end loaders are represented on the world market. How to choose from this variety of loader, operating and cost-effective and high-performance? Different models work differently under different conditions, some models do better with one type of work, others with a different type of work.The main thing is to establish your own requirements for the future loader, depending on your needs. To do this, at least three steps must be taken.

First, you need to determine what work the loader will have to do.

Secondly, consider the existing types of loaders, their advantages and disadvantages from the point of view of the implementation of the work specified in paragraph one.

The third step will be the selection of a specific loader model for its technical characteristics.

We will provide some recommendations on issues of the most general nature.

Priorities of selection of loader .

Obviously, the more aspects concerning the future front loader the buyer will analyze before purchasing, the more reasonable and correct the result will be.

These aspects can be divided into two large groups: technical and economic.

Among the technical ones, this is the carrying capacity (determined by the maximum mass of goods to be lifted); engine power (according to world statistics, among construction frontal loaders, machines with engines with a power of 100-200 hp are most popular); bucket lifting height and its trajectory (radial, vertical); bucket capacity and breaking force; operational weight and dimensions of the loader; type of running gear  (wheeled or tracked, determined, in particular, by the nature of the surface on which the loader will ride, and the required speed); and finally, the complexity and scope of maintenance.Among the economic priorities by which the equipment is chosen are the purchase price and the brand of the loader, and with it the reputation of the dealer/ distributor.

It is necessary to analyze the profitability of the operation of the future loader, associated with the expected service life, as well as the convenience of its use from all points of view. According to economists, with a transportation distance of up to 180–300 m, it is more expedient to replace an excavator with a dump truck with a pneumatic wheel loader, which will make it possible to significantly reduce operating and technological costs with equal productivity. Along with the advantages of pneumatic wheel front-end loaders, it is necessary to note their disadvantage: the relatively small pressure force on models of small and medium power. The variety of front-end loaders is very large, and their scope is huge, therefore, the forms of presentation of data on loaders from different manufacturers are significantly different, and in order to compare the loaders with each other, the buyer will have to conduct a serious analysis.

Choose a reliable dealer.

Before collecting information that will help you choose a specific loader model, or at least in parallel with this process, it is recommended that you choose a good dealer. Given the cost of the machine, not to mention the cost of its subsequent operation, the right choice of a dealer can save you hundreds of thousands of rubles during the life of the machine.

Long in the market.

A highly professional dealer will tell you what technical characteristics a future loader should have in order to most efficiently perform work at your construction site in specific conditions, and will help you choose a car. The easiest way to find a suitable dealer on the recommendation of colleagues.From the list of applicants it is recommended to choose those who have a longer experience working with this equipment.Therefore, a dealer who has been working with loaders for more than 10 years may be more preferable than someone who has only recently specialized in this equipment. Find out from the dealer if he can give contacts to several of his customers who have already purchased equipment similar to what you need, talk with these customers.

Purchase financing.

Loaders are often purchased on lease, and many dealers offer assistance in arranging financing for the purchase. It is recommended, nevertheless, not to rely entirely on the dealer’s employees and to study for yourself what interest rates and under what conditions various banks provide loans. If you manage to win even half a percent, it will bring substantial savings for the entire loan repayment period. Do not forget to study everything written in the agreements in small print  carefully - as experience shows, this is where the most important information can be for you, for example, about the amount of fines in case of late payment. Find out from the dealer for as many details as possible about financing purchases.

Local legislation.

If you are hiring a job in an unfamiliar region, check out the local laws and requirements for your work and equipment. It is preferable to choose a local dealer who will tell you what regional rules and restrictions exist and help you get the necessary permits from local authorities for the vehicles sold to you. Before purchasing loaders, find out from the dealer what help he can provide you with these issues.

After-sales service.

The timely and correct performance of regular maintenance by qualified dealer personnel in accordance with the recommendations of the manufacturer is the main condition for the profitability of the machine, maintaining low production costs in the long term. The main components - bucket, tires, steering, brakes and light fixtures - must be constantly checked by the operator to ensure safe and productive operation of the machine. Timely replacement of wearing parts, such as bucket teeth, cutting edges, and tires, also helps keep production costs down. The lifespan of the loader and its availability factor depend on the quality of technical support.

It is very important to choose a dealer who will help the construction company to reduce production costs and machine downtime by promptly supplying spare parts and consumables, as well as high-quality maintenance.Find out from the dealer  how quickly the equipment manufacturer delivers parts that might not be in stock at the dealer.

A qualified dealer can recommend to your company which parts and consumables should be purchased and stored in their warehouse in advance for operational use.

Service contract.

Terms of service are specified in the service contract.It is difficult to overestimate the importance of this document. Find out from the dealer what types of service contracts he can offer.

When signing a service contract, pay attention to the following points. Spare parts and consumables used to service your forklift must be from reliable brands. If, in the absence of branded spare parts, replacement with some other brands is supposed, this should be agreed in advance in the contract.The intervals for basic standard maintenance, additional maintenance work (for different systems) and maintenance of all other components of the loader, from the bucket to the rear bumper, should be indicated. A price list with prices for work and spare parts should be attached to the contract. The contract should indicate the hours of the service center and where to contact (and what help can be obtained) in case of emergency outside working hours. If the dealer does not provide round-the-clock service without days off 24 hours / 7 days a week, the contract should indicate how quickly assistance will be guaranteed after the start of the first working day.

Warranty obligations should cover all details and work.Your responsibility is to ensure that the dealer strictly complies with all points of the service contract, since the profitability of operating the truck depends on their implementation.

 Specifications of  frontal loaders.

Wheel or tracked travel. Of course, the choice of chassis type depends on the surface on which the loader will ride.Both types of machines have a number of specific advantages.

 Crawler-mounted front loaders until the mid-1970s were among the most popular types of construction equipment, but in recent years, due to the improvement of wheel loaders and the expansion of their range, the demand for tracked loaders, especially for general construction applications, has decreased.  They left a small market niche: work on highly abrasive soils and solid rock and concrete fragments, hot slag, etc. Tracked loaders have better ground adhesion and higher traction.They are more stable than wheeled. Caterpillars work better on steep slopes, less damage to soft soil and grass cover. It depends on weather conditions which vehicles, on wheels or on tracks, will show the best performance.In the rainy season, when the soil is soaking and turning into a "mess", it is better to choose a tracked vehicle.Crawler loaders move confidently in the snow. In dry summertime and for hard surfaces it is better to choose a wheel drive.

Wheeled vehicles are cheaper to buy and operate than tracked vehicles.They move more smoothly. A wheel loader can be driven on two or four wheels. Four-wheel drive vehicle is lighter, it has less traction, but less rolling resistance.All-wheel drive vehicles, on the other hand, are more stable and even safer, which is important for the operator.

Dimension and type of tires.Wheel loaders are equipped with “off-road” tires designed for heavy use on uneven and unfavorable surfaces. Radial tires are usually used on wheel loaders, the operational mass of which together with the load exceeds 40 tons.The most common wheel loaders are modern diagonal tires, which fully meet all the requirements for loads, wear resistance and strength.

The most important advantage of a diagonal tire over a radial tire is the price, which is often 20–40% lower, while the mileage and reliability of the diagonal tire, depending on the operating conditions of the truck, can correspond to the performance of the radial tire.

Typically, the tires that the wheel loaders are equipped with have a diameter of 48 to 63 inches (1219–1600 mm), a width of 12 to 25 inches (305–635 mm), and the tread depth is between 22 mm for the lightest tires of this class and up to 31 mm for the most powerful and heavy.

When choosing tires for your loader, first of all check which tires are allowed on this machine.

The availability factor and loader performance in certain conditions can also be increased by selecting special tires designed for these difficult conditions and difficult terrain. If you choose the right tires for the loader with a tread pattern of "high cross" or wider, so as not to fall on soft ground, then the performance of the loader will increase.Also, if you choose the right monolithic tires for riding on sharp rocks or scrap metal, you can increase the reliability of the machine.

Articulated Loaders.

Wheel loaders are widely used in construction and other jobs, but large, powerful machines are difficult to maneuver in tight spaces.The desire to overcome this problem led to the appearance of the classic design of the front-end loader on an articulated frame.The high maneuverability is explained precisely by the presence of articulated articulation to the semi-frames, due to which the loader is like two shortened machines connected among themselves, following one after another. The hydraulic drive at the articulation point controls the position of both the front and rear axles. The most compact “full-sized” articulated frontal loaders (unlike mini-loaders) start with an operating weight of 3.5–4.5 tons. Loaders of this class are capable of carrying loads of over 1 ton in the bucket.Some skid steer loaders can also transport such loads, but full-size loaders can transport heavier loads with higher speed and on uneven surfaces.There is plenty of work to do on the job sites for such loaders. Brick pallets and other heavy palletized materials often weigh up to 2 tons. We list the advantages of articulated loaders.

The articulated loader has high maneuverability; it needs a much smaller area to turn around than loaders with a rigid frame. As a result, machines can develop high performance in cramped conditions in places inaccessible to other types of heavy equipment without risking damage to buildings, animals and people at the construction site.

Thanks to the articulated frame, the front axle structure of the loaders does not contain steering rods, moreover, the front axle has lower loads, and this, in turn, allows the front half of the loader to be fully concentrated on the main tasks without risking damage to the components of the front axle structure: a set of materials in the bucket , lifting heavy loads and transporting them to their destination. Thanks to the fastening of the boom levers in the front of the machine, this type of loader has a higher unloading height and boom reach.

The articulated loader is an economical machine.

In general, it moves faster than other heavy machines, that is, it develops greater productivity. Due to its high maneuverability due to the articulated frame, the machine can be used to perform many tasks that are usually performed manually, can drive up to stored loads, transport them and unload them as close to their destination as possible, while passing a shorter path compared to less maneuverable machines other types.

Modern articulated front-end loaders are often equipped with a hydrostatic transmission without clutch, in which power is transmitted without breaking the flow and changes smoothly, there is no problem of wear on the clutch, gearbox and final drives of axles.Due to the hydrostatic transmission, loaders of this type move faster compared to other heavy machines. The transmission control has a toggle switch that allows you to change the direction of movement of the loader with the touch of a finger.This greatly simplifies management. The speed is regulated by pressing the accelerator pedal, as in a car with an automatic transmission. Thanks to the highly efficient hydrostatic transmission, the truck uses less fuel than trucks equipped with other types of transmissions.

On an articulated loader, the operator is provided with a good overview of the areas in front and behind the machine, i.e. in places where work is mainly performed. They usually try to make the front chassis of this type of loader compact in order to provide the operator with maximum visibility. Good visibility allows you to perform work quickly and safely.

Bucket size.To carry out work with various materials, even within the framework of one construction project, the loader needs buckets of different sizes and types.

Consumers very often make mistakes in determining the size of the bucket. There is a tendency among contracting companies - to purchase or lease a front-end loader of dimension or power, which they consider correct, with a bucket that is included in its standard package.However, a standard bucket will not always be optimal for working with a particular material. This misconception leads to the fact that the loader does not develop the productivity that could have shown with the optimal selection of the bucket.

Before choosing a front-end loader, you need to determine what soils and other materials he will have to work with, and find out their density. It should be noted that the density of the material can vary greatly depending on the condition of the material: for example, washed gravel or mixed with dirt.

Next, it is determined what productivity in cubic meters per unit of time (per hour, per shift) should be at the loader. Having determined the value of this parameter, we can take the density of the material and calculate the capacity of the bucket, as well as the mass of material in it.

If the loader will work with different materials - today with sand, tomorrow with crushed rock, you should choose a bucket for the heaviest material from those with which it will work.The capacity of the front loader buckets can be from 0.5 to 25 m3. Front loaders with general purpose buckets with a capacity of 1.2–3 m3 are used for loading crushed stone and other materials in construction and public utilities, shavings and wood chips in sawmills and light organic materials for agricultural work. Buckets with a capacity of 4 m3 or more are usually intended for the transportation of materials with high density, in quarries and mines, for large-scale work in the construction of roads, etc.

Due to the correct selection of the bucket for this material, which is also correctly coordinated with the load capacity and unloading height of the loader bucket, it is possible to reduce the number of duty cycles required to load the dump truck body or fill the stack, and thereby increase the profitability of the machine.If the owner tries to increase the productivity of the loader by installing an excessively large bucket on it, the wear of the machine components will go at an accelerated pace, the reliability of the machine will decrease, it will fail, stop, and recover the funds invested in

its purchase will become problematic, at least for a period The payback period will substantially move away.For use with custom large size buckets on the front loader, agreement with the machine manufacturer or dealer is required.

Movement speed. In addition, it is necessary to consider the size of the area where the loader will have to work, the length of the route during the work cycle and how quickly it will have to deliver the material.Based on these data, the operating speed of the machine is calculated. Knowing the dimensions of the bucket and the mass of cargo in it, as well as the speed of the machine, you can choose the size and model of a loader capable of performing such work.

The speed of the loader is determined on the basis of its working conditions. For the development of dense continental soils and other heavy materials, the loader will need high tractive effort, in which case it should have a relatively low speed and high breaking force.

On the other hand, the development of bulk materials such as soft soil and coke does not require high traction. Therefore, you can choose a loader that develops higher speeds to increase productivity. Pneumatic wheel loaders on a level road can reach speeds of up to 35–40 km / h.

Breaking force is a parameter that characterizes the force with which the loader can collect material into the bucket, crashing into the ground, or pull, moving in reverse, for example, tearing a tree, large bush or stump from the ground. This value does not fully reflect the capacity of the truck. Its performance directly depends on the amount of pull-out force on the machine’s bucket when preparing a site for construction or during construction work. The breaking force of the bulk of the front loaders on the market is from 40 to 210 Kn.

Rated load capacity. The rated load capacity of the loader must be chosen correctly in order to get the maximum economic benefit from the operation of the machine. The choice is made according to the actual loads that will be during operation. The rated load capacity of the loader must not be too small nor too large. If the permissible load capacity of the loader is too large, this will lead to excessive costs of money and fuel. If the load capacity is too small, the machine will not be able to complete its work properly. The correct capacity of the loader should be selected as follows.

The rated load capacity must include the permissible payload mass and lifting equipment weight. Nominal load capacity should be determined at the rated height of bucket raise at maximum radius / outreach.

When calculating the rated load capacity, two important characteristics of the machine should be taken into account: stability and maximum allowable hydraulic force.

Tipping load is the same “red line” that cannot be crossed so that the accident does not occur. Therefore, this parameter should be taken into account when assessing the possible loads on the front-end loader during work at the facility. For front-end loaders on an articulated frame, two tipping loads are usually indicated in the technical specifications: with the frame straight and fully folded.

The values of the tipping load in the straight position of the frame for loaders are (approximately) from 3700 to 25 400 kg. The tipping load with the frame fully folded is approximately 3300 to 21 800 kg.

The rated load capacity for each load attaching point on the boom is equal to the maximum mass of the load (in kg), which can be raised at a point located at the maximum radius of the boom, or at the maximum outreach (in meters) with the most unfavorable combination of these characteristics, and permissible loads for the structural strength, the load on the hydraulic system and the stability of the machine should not be exceeded. For most modern foreign front-end loaders, the tipping load values (in the straight and folded position of the articulated frame) are now indicated in the technical specification, and the load capacity is proposed to be determined for the buyer.

The rated load capacity of front loaders should not exceed the following values, namely:

• 75% of the value of the tipping load in the forward position of the frame;
• 50% of the value of the static tipping load with fully folded half-frames of the articulated machine;
• the maximum load that the machine is able to lift to full height;
• structural strength of the machine (and the attachment points of its components);
• 87% of the maximum allowable force of hydraulic equipment with a maximum outreach / radius of the boom;
• the permissible load-carrying capacity during cargo transportation should not exceed 66% of the tipping load if the frame of the articulated machine is in the upright position, and 50% if the semi-frames are folded.

For road construction and large opencast mines, in which the workloads are large, the duration of the work cycles is large, and there is enough space for maneuvering, and the load capacity of dump trucks is usually above 10 tons. Under these conditions, loaders with a nominal load capacity of 3-5 tons will be ideal to increase productivity and reduce production costs.

In some cases, when the workloads are relatively small, for example, when filling soil and sand, loaders with a rated load capacity of 2-3 tons can be selected. If the working loads are very small, for example, in some small quarries where small dump trucks are used, loaders with a rated carrying capacity 1 , 5 tons or less can fully satisfy the requirements of the production process, thereby contributing to significant savings in production costs.

Engine power. The power of front wheel loader engines is usually in the range of 30 to 1250 kW. In recent years, heavy equipment has been increasingly equipped with gas engines. Gas fuel is cheaper than diesel. The experts argue regarding the other advantages and disadvantages of engines of both types. It has been argued that maintenance of gas engines is simpler and cheaper than diesel engines. On the other hand, diesel engines are more powerful than gas ones and have a longer service life, and therefore are cheaper to operate than gas ones and develop a higher torque, which means that a machine with such an engine develops higher performance.

Rise height and boom trace. Loader performance also depends on boom design. Loaders with a radial path of bucket raise, that is, when the bucket moves in an arc when lifting, are better suited for earthmoving operations. Vertical lift trucks are great for loading, as the bucket is at the same distance from the truck during the entire lift. Pay attention to the values of the boom lifting-lowering speed - the loading-unloading cycle time depends on this.

Dimensions and weight of the loader. The mass and dimensions of the front-end loader are selected depending on the tasks that it has to carry out. The operating weights of the front loaders are generally approximately 3.5 to 35 tons.

The larger the machine, the higher its load capacity and productivity. The longer and wider the wheelbase of the loader, the higher its stability on soils of any type and condition, as well as a smoother movement on uneven surfaces, which is important for operator convenience and cargo safety.

But the lighter the machine, the easier it is for the operator to control it when maneuvering. The more compact the machine, the easier it is to work in places where space is limited. The lightweight machine does not damage artificial grass coverings and tiled garden paths. The lighter and more compact the loader, the easier it is to transport it from one construction site to another.

Hence the conclusion: the loader must be selected so that it copes with all the upcoming work, and with a certain margin, but with a small one, because too large machine for these tasks will be uneconomical and inconvenient.

Front loader accessories

Telematics equipment. For financial reasons, many loaders are not equipped with telematics systems. Nevertheless, it is recommended to use the equipment for remote monitoring of the company's machines in real time. Many manufacturers and dealers equip front-end loaders with GPS / GLONASS-based telematics systems, which can also be useful both for rental companies and consumers who rent equipment. Satellite-based telematics systems allow the management of machine parks of companies to receive important information about the operation of machines remotely and in real time, to prevent theft of cars, and to companies that have leased loaders for long-term leases to control their use by customers.

Working conditions of operator. This has become almost an axiom: a loader operator must be provided with a comfortable working environment. The more convenient are conditions for the operator, the higher is his productivity. A closed cabin and heater are indispensable things in cold weather, just like air conditioning in hot summers. When working in dusty air, for example when cleaning land from vegetation, a pressurized cabin is needed in which overpressure is maintained. A sprung seat significantly reduces operator’s fatigue and increases productivity, as well as an ergonomic arrangement of machine controls, noise in the cab and visibility from the operator's seat.

Viewing from the operator’s position is an important characteristic of the loader, since it has to constantly move around the construction site, collecting, transporting and unloading materials. Good visibility from the operator’s place, backed up by a rear view camera, greatly facilitates the operator’s work.

After a short list of loaders available for purchase is compiled, you should compare the prices of the selected machines and the budget available to the company for their purchase, taking into account that the purchase of a front-end loader is a long-term investment. Buying a loader is a significant investment for the company, therefore it is recommended to purchase cars of well-known, proven brands.

It’s not worth mechanically buying just the same forklift as you already bought before. Take your time and choose the front loader that is optimal for the work you need.

And the final tip. Whichever loader you choose, it must be checked first in real operating conditions.