Are we being forced to go electric?
- Thread starter gavroche
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cougie uk
Guru
JCB were also in favour of Brexit so I don't think they're the height of foresight.
DRM
Guru
- Location
- West Yorks
LOL first bit reads Join the leaders in electric technology, they’re so far behind everyone else it’s laughable, every bit of kit they’ve ever built has been either Diesel or LPG powered, they’re very late to the game, I wonder if it’s more to do that lighter machines can no longer use red diesel
FishFright
More wheels than sense
DRM
Guru
- Location
- West Yorks
For starters caravans will need LPG to fuel cookers, fridges, water heaters and space heaters, not everyone goes to huge sites with 16 amp supplies, indeed a lot of sites can provide as little as 6 amps,some people prefer CL or CS type sites with a fresh water tap, a waste water & toilet disposal and nothing else, battery powered passenger airplanes, I doubt I’ll be around long enough to see one, as for plant, customers want it available 7 days a week 24 hours a day, that generally means a battery change over set up, so 2x batteries for each piece of plant
DRM
Guru
- Location
- West Yorks
So ban everything that is so old it pollutes then, bet they don’t get voted in next time round, rather than it belongs to a company so they’ll just pay up
FishFright
More wheels than sense
Pale Rider
Legendary Member
All smaller machines, as Sir Patrick said.
The telehandler is the biggest and said to be able to run all day with 'opportunity charging'.
In other words, it can't run all day without a part recharge.
No sign of the classic digger, because JCB know an electric one is a complete non-starter.
And of course the diesel version doesn't need refuelling at all if it is running all day?
No sign of the classic digger because JCB have dropped the ball. Caterpillar are making vastly bigger EVs, and this work can only accelerate as battery density improves.
Pale Rider
Legendary Member
It might or might not, but as you know, refuelling a diesel takes minutes, not hours.
Your Caterpillar link is only a prototype.
The fact it has enough grunt to do the job is to be expected.
No real mention of how long it will run for, other than it could do a few cycles of the test track, no mention of how long it would take to recharge or how that might be achieved at an isolated site.
A powerbank the size of a remover's lorry or a week plugged into the mains?
Fair play to Caterpillar for making a start, but that truck is years, if not decades, away from production.
DRM
Guru
- Location
- West Yorks
Exactly, they can only opportunity charge because its lithium ion, on lead acid cells it’s the sure fire quickest way to kill the battery, as well as the fact that getting Bob the Builder to check/top up the cells with demineralised water will be impossible, also who is going to put in a 3 phase power supply for the chargers on all these building sites, because that is the type of chargers such plant come with, as for roadworks, it seems like mission impossible to run battery powered plant there
FishFright
More wheels than sense
Pale Rider
Legendary Member
As mentioned, JCB is going for a hydrogen powered ICE engine for its bigger stuff.
Seems they are close to production, and hope refuelling may be solved by the their mobile hydrogen bowser which can be transported in the same was as a diesel tanker.
The engine itself does everything a diesel does, is slightly lighter, and cheaper to produce.
Although Lord Bamford said the overall rig will be slightly heavier because the hydrogen tank weighs more than the diesel one.
He's also said the prices shouldn't be a great deal more than their diesel equivalents.
Compare that to seven tons of batteries on a digger at goodness knows what cost and you can see why JCB is going down the hydrogen route for its big equipment.
https://www.jcb.com/en-gb/campaigns/hydrogen
Seems they are close to production, and hope refuelling may be solved by the their mobile hydrogen bowser which can be transported in the same was as a diesel tanker.
The engine itself does everything a diesel does, is slightly lighter, and cheaper to produce.
Although Lord Bamford said the overall rig will be slightly heavier because the hydrogen tank weighs more than the diesel one.
He's also said the prices shouldn't be a great deal more than their diesel equivalents.
Compare that to seven tons of batteries on a digger at goodness knows what cost and you can see why JCB is going down the hydrogen route for its big equipment.
https://www.jcb.com/en-gb/campaigns/hydrogen
DRM
Guru
- Location
- West Yorks
Yes, they’re bringing in a law without a clue how it can be actually implemented, they’re not the first and not the last to consider the charging aspect of it all
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