An intriguing haul

One of the A30G haulers bought by A&L McCrae

THE SMT GB and Volvo Trucks North & Scotland ScotPlant stand will feature a full line-up of the latest Volvo Construction Equipment machines, along with representative models from Volvo Trucks.

The offering is set to include a mix of Volvo excavators, loading shovels, a wheeled paver, articulated hauler and a line-up of compact excavators. Volvo Trucks will have a selection of FH, FM and FMX trucks on show.

A number of major deals involving Volvo equipment have been concluded recently in Scotland. This includes an Argyll-based family business taking a “leap of faith” by investing in two Volvo A30G articulated haulers.

Civil engineering and contracting firm A&L McCrae is run by Alistair and Linda McCrae, with support from son Calum. The company has added Volvo-branded machines to its mixed fleet for the first time, to be deployed on a range of activities. Typical contracts carried out by the firm include general earthworks, road construction and surfacing, civil engineering, forest road maintenance and construction.

Alistair explained, “Taking the decision to change to a new brand of hauler has been a leap of faith, to be honest. We took a close look at the market and having taken third-party recommendations into consideration, the projected residual values and lifetime operating costs, we felt opting for the Volvo haulers was the right decision.”

The A30G meets Stage-IV final emissions regulations and is powered by an electronically controlled, six-cylinder 264kW turbo charged Volvo V-ACT diesel engine. Purpose-built by Volvo, the engine is designed to match the Volvo drive train, ensuring the “best use of power and torque”, even in challenging conditions.

With a carrying capacity of 28 tonnes and heaped capacity of 17.5m³ the Volvo A30G has a maximum speed of 53kph. The hauler is fitted with Volvo’s telematics system, CareTrack, as standard. The two haulers supplied to A&L McCrae have been equipped with optional cantilever tailgates.

Another deal involved Paisley-based demolition specialist Bardem purchasing a 25-tonne Volvo EC250E as its “flagship” excavator.

The machine has been enhanced for Bardem with the addition of heavy-duty belly plates, side-impact protection rails, guarding for the boom, bucket cylinders and a heavy-duty FOGS guard for the cab.

The new EC250E has also been supplied with a “mix-and-match” quick coupler, heavy-duty extreme bucket and an X3 proportional rotation circuit.

Bardem opted for the excavator after operations director Willie Dunbar attended a ‘Live it. Dig it’ event to try out Volvo products. “We wanted to go to a larger size of excavator and the new EC250E has become our flagship excavator within our mixed fleet of equipment,” explained Bardem MD George Barclay. “So far we’ve been more than pleased with our decision to opt for a premium brand and we are delighted to be associated with owning and operating a Volvo.”

Bardem’s new “flagship” Volvo EC250E excavator

The machine is powered by a Volvo eight-cylinder engine developing 213hp. Operators can choose from a variety of work modes including: I-idle, F-fine, G- general, H-heavy or P-power.