Skip to main content

Volvo cuts it close among the trees of Germany’s Rheinland-Palatinate

German contractor Autobahnamt Montabaur is maintaining highways and roadside woodland – all with the support of Volvo CE’s redesigned EW160E wheeled excavator. The Volvo EW160E wheeled excavator’s compact design is perfect for confined highway construction job sites. Stretched across the heart of central Germany lies a network of often tree-lined highways. Nestled among the woodland and amidst the Rhenish Massif mountain range, is Westerwald, meaning ‘Western Forest.’ The city’s 13,000 inhabitants and 4
January 4, 2016 Read time: 3 mins
Volvo EW160E: standing ready for action
German contractor Autobahnamt Montabaur is maintaining highways and roadside woodland – all with the support of 359 Volvo CE’s redesigned EW160E wheeled excavator.

The Volvo EW160E wheeled excavator’s compact design is perfect for confined highway construction job sites. Stretched across the heart of central Germany lies a network of often tree-lined highways. Nestled among the woodland and amidst the Rhenish Massif mountain range, is Westerwald, meaning ‘Western Forest.’  The city’s 13,000 inhabitants and 40,000 district residents rely on the highway for economic growth and so must be maintained to the highest standard.

The authority – Mobility Rheinland-Pfalz (LBM) – designs, builds and maintains the 18,000km of highways, federal state and county roads in Rheinland-Palatinate. Of this total route network, 877km are being maintained by Autobahnamt Montabaur. With over 700 employees, the company’s duties include tree-cutting and salt dispersion to pavement rehabilitation and warning sign placement.

However, during the tree-cutting months from October to March, Autobahnamt Montabaur is primarily tasked with wood maintenance along the tree-lined highways.

To complete tree-cutting projects in a timely and efficient manner, Autobahnamt Montabaur uses the Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) EW160E wheeled excavator. Formerly rented solely for the tree-cutting months, Autobahnamt Montabaur recently added the wheeled excavator to their permanent fleet, joining the 11 Volvo L35G compact wheel loaders the company also operates.

As arguably the most advanced multitool carrier in the industry, the wheeled excavator is ideal for jobs that require flexibility, independence of movement and operational safety. To further aid productivity and reduce fuel consumption, the machine is powered by the robust Volvo Tier 4f engine that features automatic idling as standard, which not only cuts fuel use but noise pollution too.

When in timber management configuration Autobahnamt Montabaur uses a HABBIG HS850 Schnitt-Griffy hydraulic hedge shear and extraction gripper – allowing the operator to secure, cut and remove branches and trees quickly, accurately and safely.

To enhance the safety of operations, Autobahnamt Montabaur has added the optional Volvo Smart View system to its new EW160E. The system uses cameras attached to the front-right, front-left and rear of the wheeled excavator which provide a bird’s-eye view of the machine operating from above.

The 360 degree view of actual footage happening in real time allows the operator to see his surroundings and ensure safe rotation.

Related Content

  • Volvo’s L45H and L50H are fully loaded for all-round performance
    March 16, 2016
    The new L45H and L50H wheel loaders from Volvo Construction Equipment are well balanced machines, built to a solid design that ensures the strongest performance even in confined jobsites. The H-series wheel loaders have Volvo’s Torque Parallel (TP) linkage to deliver high breakout torque and excellent parallel movement throughout the lifting range. A long wheel base, low center of gravity and good weight distribution give the machine superior stability on rough and uneven terrain. A robust, compact d
  • Volvo CE skid steers assist in line painting
    January 30, 2017
    A contractor in the US state of California is using skid steer loaders from Volvo CE to help in its line painting operations. The machines are being used to carry out major road marking projects in Southern California. The first machine bought by the firm has been used on the I-5 highway. Driving along the centre double line, the skid steer loader is used to remove the reflective pavement markers from the asphalt and pop them into the 1.5m bucket. To boost performance, contractor Payco's industrial team
  • Brine spraying can boost winter road safety and cut materials costs
    February 16, 2015
    A study on the use of a brine sprayer on the A8 Autobahn in Germany has yielded valuable data - *Jo Rommeswinkel writes. Since 2007, Autobahnplus Services (a+S) has been providing the operation and maintenance services on the 52km concession Autobahn A8 between Munich and Augsburg in Bavaria, a region renowned for its severe winter maintenance conditions. The Munich Augsburg section comprises 48km of six-lane dual carriageway and 4km of four-lane dual carriageway. Part of the road surface consists of low-no
  • Germany’s B-85 gets the treatment from Bomag’s BM 2200/75 planer
    February 23, 2018
    By this spring, Bomag’s new BM 2200/75 cold planer will have removed all the old pavement from a 2.6km section of Germany’s federal highway B-85. Work on the section between Amberg and Pittersberg started at the end of 2016 after the Ministry of Transport classified the road as being in “urgent need” of upgrading as part of the Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan. Actual roadworks began in mid-June 2017 after essential forestry work had been carried out, such as the removal of tree roots on both sides