Kranman is constantly working on development and now we are taking a big step forward with the first and only harvester intended for the self-employed forest owner. For two years they have had the Bison 10000x combi which is both a forwarder and a harvester, but it is difficult to build a machine that is good at two things. So now we are in the development phase of a clean harvester, which is built to be a harvester from the beginning. They have built a brand-new chassis that is constructed with a low centre of gravity. We have focused on getting the machine heavy. Some examples are that the front chassis is built solely of 20 mm sheet metal and the bogie arms are cut into 100 mm thick sheet metal, all to get the weight in the right place. The result is that the machine weighs almost 4 tons, and it is needed. If you have a crane that is 5.5 m long and a machine that is 1.7 m wide and clear lift a tree of 300500 kg straight sideways without support legs, there is not much to choose from. But when compared to a Bison forwarder with a full load, it weighs almost as much.
The crane has chosen to develop a completely new parallel crane that offers much better properties for harvesting than a forwarder crane. Through the parallel guide, you work twice as fast in and out compared to a regular crane. Together with the servo levers in the armrests, the movement of the unit between the trees becomes very easy and accurate. This also reduces the risk of stem damage. Thanks to various pumps for drive, crane and aggregate, all functions are independent of each other. This, together with a petrol engine of 37 hp or a Diesel engine with the next double as much twist compared to our previous combination of 24 hp makes it possible to run an aggregate, crane and drive at the same time.
The visibility and comfort of the cab are difficult to beat. You can sit in the chair and look straight up at the treetops. Control of the machine, the crane and the unit is located in the drive levers, which means that you never have to release them. The driving pedals are on the floor, one pedal for the front and one for the back. If the pedal is released, the handbrake and the waist lock will automatically engage. Because the engine is at the other end of the machine and the cab is rubber suspended, the cab becomes quiet.
Apart from the unit, the machine is built without computers and electronics. All in order for you as a customer to get a reliable machine that can be stored and used in its right environment, the forest. We build machines that are easy to operate, reliable and if something should happen easily to fix.
With this mentioned it should also be mentioned that we have looked at an embodiment with a roll-fed unit. Based on the high flow and pressure that a roller-fed unit needs, the engine should be 80 hp, and with the current rules for motors, common rail and particle filters are needed. The unit, pump solutions and everything around it is also considerably more expensive.
