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Pat Olney to leave Volvo Construction Equipment at end of 2013
October 21, 2013
Volvo Construction Equipment president Pat Olney is to leave the global construction equipment manufacturing giant at the end of 2013. The 44-year-old joined Volvo CE in 1996 and has held a number of top management positions in finance, operations and general management, before becoming Volvo CE president in May 2011. He is to take a post at what a Volvo CE spokesperson said was a ‘non-competing, large engineering company based in the U.S.’
Brazil opens tenders for highway concessions
October 21, 2013
Two major highway concessions are being opened for tender in Brazil. The deals are for two, 30-year concessions worth some US$5.43 billion. The tenders cover the widening, maintenance and operation of some 2.028km of highways. The tender process is being handled by Brazil's national ground transport agency, ANTT. The largest tender is for 1,177km of highway and including BR-060, BR-153 and BR-262.
Ireland signs winter road maintenance package
October 21, 2013
Vaisala with Ireland’s National Roads Authority (NRA) has signed a €3.65 million agreement with Vaisala. The five-year contract will see Vaisala providing a comprehensive package of winter maintenance decision making tools, solutions and services. This will allow the NRA to optimise winter service to Irish road users. The deal involves a state of the art road weather information management system. The contract includes maintenance of over 80 weather stations across Ireland as well as a provision for expandi
Conspicuity concern for Spanish sign safety
October 21, 2013
The Spanish Road Association (AEC) has revealed its concern over the state of the country’s road signage. The AEC carries out an audit of the Spanish road network every two years and its data shows that 26% of the country’s road signs do not meet safety requirements. According to the research 26% of the road signs are over 10 years old and no longer have sufficient reflective properties to provide sufficient visibility at night or in low light conditions caused by poor weather. The AEC’s audit also shows th
Amey’s hard-hitting safety DVD supports Highways Agency Safety Week
October 21, 2013
Amey is playing a leading role in the fight for zero harm at road works sites with the launch of a hard-hitting DVD in support of a national radio advertising campaign to coincide with the UK Highways Agency’s ‘Safety Week’ (October 21-27 October 2013). The public and regulated services provider’s DVD ‘Changing Behaviours – What Does It Take?’ features powerful scenes of near misses and accidents on the motorway and is designed to make employees think about what more they can do to make they keep themsel
ERF president urges participation in 17th IRF World Meeting in Riyadh
October 18, 2013
ERF (European Union Road Federation) president Jacobo Díaz has urged leading transport industry companies and figures to participate in the 17th IRF World Meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Organised every four years, the global transport event from 9-13 November 2013 is a superb opportunity for transport sector stakeholders to gather and share knowledge, exchange good practices and return home with a new set of ideas on how to make our roads safer and more sustainable.
CECE-CEMA hands 10-point action manifesto to Euro leaders
October 17, 2013
The presidents of the CECE and CEMA have handed the European Parliament a 10-point manifesto for securing strong industrial production across Europe. Doing this, the European construction equipment and agricultural machinery industries underlined that they are committed to playing an active role in reaching the target of the European Commission to raise the share of industry in Europe from 16% GDP to at least 20% by 2020. Both industries maintain important production facilities and R&D sites in Europe.
LiuGong is now offering its biggest ever excavator, a 70tonner
October 16, 2013
Taking centre stage on the LiuGong stand at BICES was the new 970E, the largest excavator the firm has ever made. Following soon after the launch of the firm’s 50tonner, this new 70tonne class machine shares various design features with the rest of the recently developed E Series.
XCMG is widening its already extensive model range with the addition of new machines
October 16, 2013
From XCMG comes an array of new machines for loading and hauling as well as road construction. Designed for the domestic market, the LW800K LNG is a 28.5tonne wheeled loader powered by a 257kW Weichai diesel and using LNG as fuel. Twin 500litre gas tanks sit just behind the cab and the machine is suited to duties in sites where emissions may be an issue. The machine features ZF axles and a ZF transmission. Standard bucket size is 4.5m3 and it can carry an 8tonne load. This is the latest addition to the fi
Exports are strong for SANY Road Machinery, which is also launching new models
October 16, 2013
SANY Road Machinery is widening its product line and is also building its sales outside of China. The company is a strong player in the asphalt batching plant sector in China and is also now exporting this equipment to markets including Africa, the Middle East and parts of South East Asia. Xie Zhixia is chairman of SANY Road Machinery, one of the group’s best established divisions and said, “Our overseas sales revenue keeps growing.” And he added that around 50% of the machines the firm builds are now expor
Caterpillar is launching a new customer service option and new machines at BICES
October 16, 2013
Caterpillar is increasing its focus on specific markets with technology developed for particular requirements as well as introducing a new focus for how it works with its dealers and customers. John Fallows, general manager of Caterpillar’s GCI territory said, “We are launching five new products at BICES, all of which are designed for customer needs.”
Zoomlion offers customers financial packages to buy equipment
October 16, 2013
Zoomlion is looking to continue its strong growth, having expanded through a series of acquisitions as well as through organic growth. And with its strong base there is a potential for future acquisitions to come. Zhang Jianguo is senior president of Zoomlion’s overseas division and explained that the firm’s financial packages offered to customers have been helpful in building its Chinese market share. He said, “Zoomlion has made great progress in financial solutions.”
New higher performance dozers from Shantui
October 16, 2013
Shantui is offering high performing versions of its bulldozers as well as a new wheeled loader. The SD32 Plus bulldozer unveiled at the BICES show is the first of the high performance models from the firm and is available now, with more coming to market in due course. Aimed at export markets the SD32 Plus offers new high quality hydraulics, an upgraded power train, improved electronic controls and a heavy duty Cummins diesel. As with other bulldozers in the range it has a large volume blade that optimises e
Dutch transport industry tipped for 2014 volume increase, according to Panteia NEA
October 16, 2013
The Dutch transport industry is expected to record a 1% trade volume increase in 2014 after a tipped 0.3% decline in 2013, according to internationally renowned transport research and training consultancy Panteia NEA. The decline in 2013 is being caused, claims Panteia NEA, by the disappointing results from the national transport sector, partly due to the difficult construction industry climate.
IAM pollsters support traffic light risk system for driving on prescription drugs
October 16, 2013
Just half of drivers feel prescription drug labelling is clear enough on medicines, according to the latest poll by road safety charity the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM). Earlier this year, the government announced that a drug-driving bill will be introduced and will include chemicals which can be found in prescription drugs. Almost a third of respondents suggest that a simple traffic-light system would be the best method to inform people of the risks of using prescription drugs when driving.