Chassis conversion for heavy-duty applications 20 July 2015

Specialist vehicle chassis converter Paul Nutzfahrzeuge of Germany teams up with concrete spray lining specialist CIFA of Italy to bring to market a custom base vehicle based around the four-axle Mercedez Benz Arocs tipper truck, and designed specifically for installation of the 37-tonne truck-mounted Carbotech K60H concrete pump.

Mercedez-Benz base unit converted to five axles

The conversion to a five-axle vehicle required close collaboration between the two companies, and a debut model – the Mercedes-Benz Arocs 5551K 10x4 – was presented to great acclaim at Intermat 2015 in Paris, France.

Paul Nutzfahrzeuge – which converts up to 1,000 vehicles a year for specialist applications in the tunnelling and mining sectors – has already received a number of orders for the conversion of more five-axle Arocs chassis configurations for the new Carbotech K60H concrete pump from CIFA, as well as for various concrete pumps of other international manufacturers.

By using a standard chassis as the base vehicle - in this case from Mercedes-Benz, but vehicles by other manufacturers can also be selected for alternative applications as required by the customer – the conversion time is only 6–8 weeks. Conversions by Paul Nutzfahrzeuge are therefore able to offer a considerably cheaper alternative to a 100% special-purpose vehicle solution.

For the company’s latest specialist conversion in collaboration with CIFA, a trailing fifth axle supplied by Bergische Achsen KG (BPW) has been fitted with an electro-hydraulic steering system, air suspension, a lift mechanism and single tyres.

The Mercedez-Benz Arocs chassis is modified for an empty weight of approximately 13 tonne. The technically permissible axle load distribution is made on the two steered front axles, with an axle load of 9 tonne each. In addition there are two rigid rear axles providing an axle load of 13 tonne each, as well as the newly installed trailing axle with a load capacity of up to 12 tonne.

This allows an increase of payload to 42 tonne to optimise the distribution of weight on the individual axles when transporting CIFA’s heavy concrete pump – which has a weight of approximately 37 tonne. This leaves a reserve of five tonne for extra payload such as additional equipment accessories, hoses, water, diesel fuel and/or construction materials without violating local highway regulations.

Chassis mounted with CIFA Carbotech K60H concrete pump and boom

Paul Nutzfahrzeuge and CIFA have been cooperating successfully for many years to match carrier chassis and concrete pumps so as to ensure a highly efficient and maneuverable unit. The latest concrete pump from the Carbotech series enables extended boom lengths of 60m, divided up into six sections and featuring an RRZ folding system. The first, second and third boom sections are made of high-tensile steel; the three sections at the top are made of lightweight Carbotech carbon fibre composite material. The diameter of the double-walled long-life pipeline for concrete spray application is 125mm, from a high tech pump assembly operating at a maximum pressure of 83 bar for an output of up to 180m³ concrete/hour. The concrete pump is equipped with a Smartronic machine management system with LCD display, integrated stability control, concrete output volume control, load-sensing proportional control for the placing boom, and fully hydraulic outrigger control.

The chassis of other appropriate truck manufacturers can also be converted by Paul Nutzfahrzeuge as appropriate for the application in question and according to the customer’s specific needs or applications. Special chassis modifications, incorporation of additional axles or special vehicle configurations for a variety of different fields of application are developed, implemented and produced in close cooperation with the customer.