Skip to main content

ECT's sustainability in action

French company ECT (Enviro Conseil Travaux) has opted to take advantage of the Caterpillar Certified Power Train (CPT) rebuild service for two of its Cat 740 Ejector articulated trucks. These are the first rebuilds worldwide for articulated trucks, and both were carried out by the French Cat dealer Bergerat Monnoyeur. What you get with CPT: Restores power train to like-new performance, Covers radiator, engine, transmission, torque converter, final drive and axle, Approximately 200 tests and inspections of p
February 7, 2012 Read time: 3 mins
French company ECT (2360 Enviro Conseil Travaux) has opted to take advantage of the 178 Caterpillar Certified Power Train (CPT) rebuild service for two of its Cat 740 Ejector articulated trucks.

These are the first rebuilds worldwide for articulated trucks, and both were carried out by the French Cat dealer 2154 Bergerat Monnoyeur.

What you get with CPT:

• Restores power train to like-new performance

• Covers radiator, engine, transmission, torque converter, final drive and axle

• Approximately 200 tests and inspections of power train components

• Replacement or reconditioning of approximately 3,000 parts, including power train electrical switches, sensors, sending units, electronic control modules, engine wiring harnesses, bearings, gaskets, seals and coolant hoses

• Critical engineering improvements and updates incorporated

• Extended power train coverage available

"The Caterpillar CPT service offered by Bergerat Monnoyeur presented us with a more cost-effective option. It allows us to take advantage of a machine with a practically new engine, transmission and axles, and with external renovation, for around only 50% of the price of a new machine," explains ECT Directeur d'Exploitation Pascal Beslay on the choice of rebuild over a new machine.

"That includes a three-year extended warranty on the complete power train. And we could also be certain that the experience and expertise of our Cat dealer's technical staff would guarantee a first class renovation job." An initial study was undertaken to evaluate potential benefits, followed by detailed machine inspections and planning. Only then was the renovation process and thorough performance testing carried out. For each of the two machines, the total process, including dismantling renovation, painting and reassembly, took approximately 1,200 hours, and the two machines are now back at work.

ECT specialises in the storage of inert waste from building and civil engineering projects, and in its use for reclaiming and restoring derelict land.

Currently the company handles around 7 million tonnes of material brought by contractors to 14 landfill sites in the Paris region and the south of France. These include two gypsum mines, where the mineral extracted is being replaced by waste material in order to stabilise the cavity and prevent collapse or subsidence.

ECT was one of the first companies in Europe to buy 740 Ejector articulated trucks in 2004.

"For us the 740 Ejector is a perfect machine to match our application underground, where there are height, turning radius and visibility constraints.

"With its 38 tonne payload and long service intervals, the 740 Ejector has proved to be just as productive for us underground as a normal 740 articulated truck would working on the surface. Using it, we can move up to 50,000m³ of material per month working a single shift pattern," says Pascal Beslay.

But even the toughest machines have limited lives, particularly when they work underground, subjected to high dust, vibration and shock. By 2009 it was evident that, with over 8,000 operating hours, ECT would soon have to consider replacing them.

"We're a company whose primary concern is sustainability, and whose whole business is related to conservation and restoration of the environment. So does it make sense simply to scrap and replace a Cat machine when there's a more cost-effective, environmentally friendly alternative? Of course not," says ECT's environmental consultant Joel Labille.

The operational life of the two machines has been extended by at least 50%.

"Like the kind of work we do, it's a perfect example of sustainability in action," added Beslay.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Sennebogen’s 830 Crawler and the sweet smell of success in Germany
    January 4, 2016
    Since 1942, the company Hermann Trollius has been processing limestone and dolomite in the Bavarian town of Lauterhofen and refining it for agricultural use, as well as in the building and industrial sectors. Trollius is now for the first time using residue from washing crushed dolomite, thanks to a Sennebogen material handler. The oft-discarded viscous mass is pumped out and then used as fertiliser. Manager Hermann Trollius - the third generation to run the family-owned company of 60 employees - says th
  • Earthmoving machine advances
    June 10, 2019
    One of the most competitive segments of the off-highway equipment sector, it is no surprise that earthmoving machinery is seeing a wide array of new models coming to market - Mike Woof writes Competition is tough in the market for earthmoving equipment. Manufacturers from Europe, the US, Japan, Korea and China are all vying for increased market share across the globe. Firms are developing new models and widening product lines, with a wide range of excavator, wheeled loader, dozer, grader and soil compact
  • Hitachi ZX135US-5 and ZX210LC-5 excavators work in Sjodalen valley
    July 7, 2016
    Norwegian contractor Skogen has started building a service road for a log-cabin development in Norway’s Sjodalen valley. More than 90 of the 120m2 cabins are being constructed to order and the project is scheduled to be completed within the next 12 months. The Vågå-based company was set up in 1982 by owner Ola Skogen and is firmly focused on general construction activities including groundworks and roads, as well as foundations, drainage and utilities for log cabins. The contractor’s medium excavat
  • Cummins turbos launched at Conexpo 2014
    May 20, 2014
    Cummins develops new turbo technology to boost diesel efficiency and performance – Geoff Ashcroft reports Cummins Turbo Technologies (CTT), a global engineering leader in turbocharger technology, has revealed a new range of large turbochargers for engine capacities of 16litres and above. Called the 900 series, the new turbo platform sits between the 800 and 1000 series models and is said to provide robust, flexible solutions for the off-highway sectors, including quarrying and mining applications. Des