Compact Booms

Denis Doornbos, (left) owner and managing director of Doornbos Equipment in the Netherlands, one of the first customers for the new booms and scissors, remarks on the rough terrain performance of the new 12 and 14 m Aichi booms; “Our first impression is that maybe you don't need crawlers anymore”, he says, before adding the qualifier, “You always need some crawlers, but less crawlers.”

Both booms have three speeds; fast, slow and the new 'elephant' rating, used when the machine is facing particularly difficult ground. The 14 m SP14CJ (pictured) is equipped with a 1.75 m long fly jib, and all 150 of the new booms ordered by Doornbos are the fly jib versions.

If good rough terrain capability is one of the features of the 2WS/4WD models, equally notable is the compact design. The use of a three section boom – Aichi's main competitors use two – has led to a compact length (see table), which will make transport easier and also brings the working range of the machine closer to the chassis. The boom has also been designed to sit at a low level, between the engine and the fuel/hydraulic tanks, which makes travel height a very modest 2.0 m (SP12) or 2.4 m (SP14). The boom movements are driven by a single cylinder with cables, and Aichi has paid attention to service requirements by placing these cables on an easily removed cartridge that can be accessed from the lower end of the boom.

This is important, says Mr Doornbos; “Finding technicians is so difficult at the moment, and it will be more difficult in the future. These machines will help us for sure – having more machines with the same number of service people.”