LOAD & HAUL
Top: The John Deere 844L aggregate handler wheel loader is built to be productive and easy to run. Inset: Chase Vickerman, Linwood Mining and Minerals, says he could spend “the majority of my time here in a front-end loader… the John Deere is my favourite”.
L-SERIES MAKES FOR LEAN, MEAN HAULING MACHINES
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apable, comfortable, and in control, John Deere’s production class (PC) L-Series wheel loaders are built to be comfortable and easy to run while increasing productivity. “Our customers work day in and day out on some of the toughest quarries and jobsites, making reliability and productivity critical for their operations,” John Chesterman, John Deere Construction & Forestry product marketing manager for the PC four-wheel drive loaders, said. “With the new L-Series wheel loaders, we listened to customer feedback and used that information to continue to improve our wheel loader offerings.”. Boasting a new cab, joystick steering, intuitive controls, and a host of other features that help reduce operator burnout, the PC L-Series loaders are already an integral part of the operation at Linwood Mining and Minerals Corporation. One of the largest limestone mining operations in the United States, the company hauls out approximately 7000 tonnes of limestone from underground every day. Linwood Mining’s plant superintendent Dave Mueting knows how important comfort is to his operators. “We load the customer trucks, we load a lot of hoppers, and move material back and forth. The comfortability is extremely important to the operator when you’re spending 10 hours a day in a machine.” The fully redesigned cab in the L-Series wheel loader is more spacious and offers more storage as well as heated/ventilated seats, an updated air conditioning system for all-day cooling, improved visibility and a 178mm (7”) 50
Quarry November 2020
colour display that’s easier to read in bright sunlight and tilts for the best view. Chase Vickerman, a production operator at Linwood Mining, is enjoying the extra room in the cab. “There’s Bluetooth … I can listen to my music, I can see all around me and pretty much anything that can make that 10 to 12 hours better, the Deere does it for me,” he said. “Power is extremely important when you’re trying to climb up on a pile to push something up,” Mueting said. “Every loader we have has a use, so we need it be running all the time.” The new 844L aggregate handler loaders feature increased power (up to a nine per cent increase in power) and seven per cent less fuel burn than their K-Series predecessors, with an improved torque converter and better rimpull capabilities in the pile. Vickerman said he had noticed the difference. “When I’m digging into a heavy pile, the machine doesn’t bog down when I’m hoisting and maintains power through the entire lift,” he said. Maintenance is made easy with all daily service points, including fuel, grouped on the left side for quick and convenient ground level access. The factory-fit John Deere auto-lube system enables an 80 per cent reduction in daily maintenance and increases pin and bushing life. The PC L-Series also features an improved hydraulic hose and electrical routing and tyre-pressure monitoring system essential for proper tyre management. Like the former K-Series, the L-Series features John Deere’s exclusive Quad-Cool system, where coolers are arranged for optimum
cooling, unmatched cleaning access, and visual inspections to all sides of each cooler. All new adjustable electrohydraulic (EH) controls in the L-Series enable operators to tune and configure controls to their own preferences, while individual attachment settings mean no manual adjustment of controls when switching between attachments. This enables improved controllability and soft stops. Vickerman is finding the EH controls save him time, energy and frustration in his job. “My favourite thing about the machine is the return to dig setting. Instead of having to worry about getting your bucket in the right place, with this, I can just push a button and I’m straight back where I need to be. The savable settings on the loader let me switch from task to task effortlessly. I don’t have to muscle anything. The multi-function buttons make me more productive by making it easy for me to switch between different things that I do throughout the regular workday.” The PC L-Series wheel loaders allow operators to move more material, more profitably and in more comfort. Vickerman sums it up: “If I have my choice between any of the other front end loaders here at the quarry, or this 844L gear, I’m going to choose the L. It’s comfortable. It’s a quality product. It helps me make my job easier and more efficient.” For more information, visit John Deere’s Australian website: www.JohnDeere.com.au • Source: John Deere Construction & Forestry Equipment