3 Benefits of the Long-reach Excavator

A long-reach excavator is an excavator with an extremely long arm and bucket bar, also commonly referred to as a boom. Used for digging very deep holes and trenches, many long-reach excavator jobs require digging the bottom of a river or lake while the excavator is sitting on a barge or floating platform. Often equipped with oversized counterweights to counteract the leverage of the long boom and bucket bar, long boom excavators are also used to reach heights with hand-held auger attachments and other tools. When equipped with a mechanical thumb attachment, long-reach machines are used to lift poles, pipes, and other materials to extreme heights.

An excavator is a machine equipped with a track that has a bucket attached to the moving arm and uses a stick to dig holes and trenches. Like the backhoe on tracks, excavators are common on many construction sites. Although perfectly equipped to dig large basement holes and trenches, the excavator's digging depth is limited by the size of the movable arm it is equipped with and the depth of the picking. The boom is the main part of the machine arm, while the pick extends down from the boom and is attached to the bucket. Hydraulic cylinders power the movement of all three components: the boom, the cutter, and the bucket.

 Excavator Boom

3 benefits of the long-reach excavator

There are two types of excavators on the market that can reach very high heights: the high boom excavator and the long boom excavator. The main difference between these two types of excavators is that a long boom excavator can extend horizontally, whereas a high boom excavator extends vertically. In addition, the long boom excavator is the ideal machine for scrap metal removal work as it can easily reach and shovel up debris. On the other hand, a high boom excavator keeps workers away from falling objects and debris. Long boom excavators offer many benefits and advantages on the job site, some of which are as follows.

Improved accuracy and safety

The operator of a long boom excavator has greater control of movement than with a high boom excavator. When equipped with a wrecking ball, the operator can easily and accurately demolish buildings floor by floor. By providing the operator with greater precision, they create a safe working environment for the workers, the surrounding buildings and nearby objects.

Long Reach Arm and Boom         

Fuel saving machines

Long boom excavators are considered to be a fuel efficient machine with no exhaust gas recirculation on the engine. Because of this, long boom excavators consume 20% less fuel compared to high boom excavators.

Versatility

Although it comes with a metal bucket, the long-arm excavator can be equipped with other attachments to perform different tasks. The machine is also used for kneading, hammering, pressing, scooping, picking, cutting materials and many other applications. This option eliminates the need to purchase multiple machines to perform different tasks. The length of the arms can also be changed to perform different demolition jobs.