What’s new in crushing and screening attachments?
Published 6/3, 2023 at 10:36Despite being just an excavator attachment, a modern day crusher bucket equals the production capacity of a mobile jaw crusher. And these attachments are getting more efficient and sophisticated every year. PDi’s Andrei Bushmarin looks into new compact crushing and screening solutions.
CM gives a facelift to ‘CBF’ crusher bucket range
Italy based excavator attachment specialist CM was established in the early 1990s in the province of Vicenza. Originally a mechanical engineering contractor, a few years later the company developed into a fully-fledged manufacturer of earthmoving and recycling attachments. For the Italian company, crusher and screening buckets are a core business. Its flagship CBF and CBF-L series of crusher buckets have recently received a facelift. The CBF-L attachments are designed for skid steers, mini excavators and backhoes. The CBF series, on the other hand, is made for excavators and wheel loaders with an operating weight of 10t to 45t. The redesigned CBF attachments feature a lower structure, resulting in greater force in the loading phase and improved weight balance. In addition, the buckets boast a larger opening, which allows crushing of larger blocks with the same carrier/attachment size ratio. The eccentric unit has been revised, with all bearings increased in size, while the transmission and flywheels have been increased in diameter and weight to have greater inertia during the work phase. The jaw opening is now adjustable from 15mm to 135mm. A nebulizer kit is optionally available to reduce dust during crushing. Other features include a magnet with control panel kit to separate the reinforcing iron after crushing and the digging teeth to ensure better entry during loading. A new integrated block has been installed to protect the motor.
Xcentric Ripper has a solution for every recycling task
Spain based Xcentric Ripper developed and marketed its first ‘E’ series of crusher buckets in 2015. The series, which include the XC15, XC17, XC20 and XC30 models, is designed for 13t to 35t excavators. It was followed by the ‘A’ series, which was launched into the market in late 2019. The A series consisting of the XC8, XC9, XC13, XC19, XC21, XC24 and XC29 models boast a number of improvements on its forerunner. The granulometry adjustment system offers rapid change and a broader choice of output sizes. The flow control valve makes the attachment easily interchangeable between excavators, with low risk of failure due to inadequate hydraulic adjustment. The bucket can be fully opened to simplify the replacement of jaws. In 2022, the XC19 bucket, designed for 16t to 21t excavators, was the most sought after model. In addition to the above mentioned series, in 2021, Xcentric Ripper designed the XC5F model for small carriers. This front crusher bucket for skid steers, telehandlers and backhoes between 4t and 6t was developed to ensure the balance between maximum power offered by the excavator and greater input size capacity of the crusher. The idea was to make it possible to operate with flow rates of 90l/min and within the pressure range of 16MPa to 24MPa. The attachment’s main features include a new system of dampers to reduce noise pollution, the ability to do the crushing in the ‘forward’ and ‘reverse’ mode and the robust structural design. According to the Spanish manufacturer, the XC5F has already proved itself on different types of materials, including rock, asphalt and concrete from demolition sites.
Waste is no longer a burden but source of income
‘With the MB Crusher bucket crusher, we can control our waste ourselves, grind it when we want and make use of it as we want’, states company Eurocave, based in the region of Marche, Italy. Eurocave operates several quarries where it extracts the Serene and Alberese stones. The extracted stone is directly processed by Eurocave to make architectural elements and worktops. Using a MB Crusher BF120.4 jaw crusher, the company fixes the haulage roads without having to buy crushed stone from a third party and they sell the extra aggregate for road subgrades. Before buying the MB bucket crusher, it would accumulate production waste in the yard, which took up a lot of space. Occasionally it was crushed with a rented crusher. The whole operation was very costly and personnel intensive. Today, thanks to the BF120.4 bucket crusher, waste is no longer a burden but rather a source of additional income.
Simex launches two models for mini and mid-range excavators
Italy based Simex has introduced two new models of screening buckets for mini and mid-range excavators. The VSE 2 fits the 1.5t to 3.5t carriers while the VSE 5 is designed for the 4t to 8t machines. The main fields of application are landscaping and small inner city construction sites. On the front attachment side, Simex has launched a new range of screening buckets for skid steers called ‘VS’. Encouraged by the positive response from the demolition and recycling sector to the first model - the VS 1500 - Simex has extended this series with a new bigger model, the VS 2000, having an operating weight of 920kg.
A Simex front screening bucket reduces salt blocks in Northern Italy
A Ferrara based contractor found itself dealing with a recurring problem: the crystallisation of de-icing salt used for road thawing. Purchased by the company at the beginning of the year, during the summer salt accumulated and solidified in large irregular blocks, up to 1m wide, making it unusable for salt spreading. A Simex VS 1500 front screening bucket was used to overcome this challenge. With an operating weight of 790kg and a volumetric capacity of 0.45m3, the bucket features two rotating shafts made of the ‘FIT’ screening elements, which ensure intense whirling of the input material. The bucket reduced salt to an output size of 0-20mm, which was ideal for the subsequent use in the salt spreaders. The contractor was extremely satisfied with the attachment’s performance, saying that it was the only viable solution in this particular situation.
Rock.Zone parades ‘Rockcrushers’ and ‘Rockscreeners’ at bauma
Germany based Rock.Zone used bauma 2022 to present its wide range of crusher and screening buckets. The company’s crusher buckets are marketed under the brand name of Rockcrusher. The buckets’ smart design and the ‘quattro movement’ system ensure low vibrations during crushing. Other features include replaceable side plates and a frame made of hardox steel. The quattro movement system provides optimised ellipse movement of the crushing elements, which results in what the company says is 30% more cubically shaped product. Thanks to this solution, even such challenging materials as river rock can be crushed efficiently. The reverse function allows clearing of the crushing chamber in case of a blockage. The manufacturer’s screening bucket range is called Rockscreener. The buckets come equipped with an oversized maintenance free heavy duty gearbox. A large inlet area allows for more material to be taken in, resulting in higher production rates.
Allu launches new ‘D Series’ variable drum
The new Allu variable drum enables users to quickly replace fixed ‘TS’ (top screen) blades without the necessity to open the chain box. Allu's patented TS construction and screening blades make it possible to screen materials even when they are wet or moist without the risk of the structure getting clogged. With the TS structure, it is also possible to get three different fragment sizes from the same Allu unit by rearranging the screening combs with no additional costs. The Allu ‘Transformer’ D-Series screener buckets are designed for large scale processing jobs such as aerating compost, primary on site screening and recycling construction material.
